Rebecca Winters (pioneer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rebecca Winters
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Grave of Rebecca Winters
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| Born |
Rebecca Burdick
January 16, 1799 |
| Died | August 15, 1852 (aged 53) near Scottsbluff, Nebraska, U.S.
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| Spouse(s) | Hiram Winters |
| Children | Oscar Winters Alonzo Winters Hiram Adelbert Winters Rebecca Winters Helen Melissa Winters |
| Parent(s) | Gideon Burdick Catharina Schmidt |
Rebecca Burdick Winters (born January 16, 1799 – died August 15, 1852) was a brave Mormon pioneer. She traveled with her family from the eastern United States. They were moving to the Salt Lake Valley with many other members of Latter-day Saints.
In August 1852, during their long journey to what is now Utah, Rebecca became very sick. She died from a disease called cholera near a place that is now Scottsbluff, Nebraska. Her grave is in the Rebecca Winters Memorial Park. It has become a famous spot along the historic Mormon Trail. It is even recognized as a Nebraska State Landmark.
Her grave is a popular place for visitors. It is one of the few graves that can still be found along the old Westward Expansion Trails. Some of Rebecca's family members have asked for her grave to be moved. They are worried about its safety and how well it is being taken care of. They hope to move it to a museum in a nearby city.
Rebecca Winters' Life Story
Early Years
Rebecca Burdick was born in Canajoharie, New York. Her parents were Gideon Burdick and Catharina Schmidt. When Rebecca was only seven years old, her mother Catharina passed away in 1806.
Later, Rebecca's father, Gideon, married Jane Ripley Brown. When Rebecca was 18, her family moved to Athens County, Ohio. There, she met Hiram Winters. They got married in 1824.
Rebecca and Hiram learned about Mormonism and decided to join the Latter Day Saint church. They moved their family to Kirtland, Ohio. This was so they could live closer to other church members. Rebecca's brother, Thomas Burdick, also joined the church. While living in Kirtland, Rebecca and Hiram helped take care of the Kirtland Temple.
The Journey West
After leaving Kirtland, the Winters family lived for a short time in Nauvoo, Illinois. In June 1852, they began their long journey on the Mormon Trail. They traveled with a group called the James C. Snow Wagon Company.
On August 13, 1852, when they were near Chimney Rock, Rebecca became ill. She had cholera, a very serious sickness. Her condition quickly got worse, and she died on August 15.
After she passed away, a family friend named William Fletcher Reynolds did something special. He carved Rebecca's name and age into an iron wagon tire. He then buried the tire to mark where her grave was. This helped people find her resting place later on.
Her Grave and Its New Home
After the Union Pacific Railroad was finished, pioneers no longer walked the trail. Rebecca Winters's grave was mostly forgotten for a while. Farmers in the Scottsbluff area knew about it, but it did not become a tourist spot until the early 1900s.
Around that time, a railroad company was building tracks through the Platte Valley. They found Rebecca's marked grave. To avoid disturbing it, they changed their original plan and moved the tracks. For nearly 100 years, many thousands of people visited the grave.
In 1995, the Burlington Northern Railroad decided to move the grave. This was for the safety of visitors, as it was very close to the railroad tracks. In September 1995, her body was carefully moved. It was placed a little further east and north of its first spot.
In June 1996, hundreds of Rebecca Winters's family members gathered. They came for the opening of the Rebecca Winters Memorial Park. Her grave is still one of the few marked graves. About 6,000 Mormons died while crossing the plains, and most of their graves are not known.
