Tragedy Spring and the Pouch of Gold

Ricketts Publishing Company, Sacramento, California, Published date: 1983. Staple-bound illustrated paper wrappers; 48 pp; 22 cm. First edition. Illustrated with black and white photographs, portraits, and maps; includes notes, general references. In good condition. Green illustrated paper wrappers show light to moderate soiling and foxing spots, particularly along edges; staples are rusted but binding is firm. Interior pages have light toning but are otherwise unmarked. Tells the story of three members of the Mormon Battalion - Daniel Browett, Ezra H. Allen, and Henderson Cox - who were murdered near Tragedy Spring in the Sierra Nevada in June 1848 while scouting a wagon road over Carson Pass during the California Gold Rush. Includes detailed accounts drawn from period diaries, maps of the Mormon-Emigrant Trail, and photographs of historical artifacts including the blood-stained gold pouch and the carved tree stump memorial. Cover illustration by Kevin Bunker.