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Spooner, Elijah Allen, 1811-1876

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1811 - 1876

Biography

Elijah Allen Spooner (1811-1876) was a Kansas farmer and judge who participated in the California Gold Rush of 1849.

Elijah Allen Spooner was born on April 11, 1811, in Oakham, Massachusetts to Andrew Spooner and Sally Adams. Elijah married Nancy Judson Hodge on May 19, 1847. In 1849, Elijah embarked on the Overland Trail in hopes of being a prospector in the California Gold Rush of 1849. Elijah and Nancy had three children, of which only one lived past childhood. They settled in 1857 in the town of Walnut Creek in Kansas and began farming. Elijah served as county clerk of Brown County, Kansas from 1864-1865 and was later elected a probate judge from 1864-1868. He died on January 12, 1876, in Hiawatha, Kansas.

Citation:
FamilySearch, January 31, 2025 (Elijah Allen Spooner; b. April 11, 1811 in Oakham, Massachusetts to Andrew Spooner and Sally Adams; m. Nancy Judson Hodge on May 19, 1847; two children; farmer; d. January 12, 1876, in Hiawatha, Kansas)

Trails of Hope: Overland Diaries and Letters, 1846-1869, via WWW, January 31, 2025 (three children with one surviving past childhood; 1849-1850 traveled the Overland Trail with hopes of being a prospector in the California Gold Rush of 1849; 1857 moved to the town of Walnut Creek in Kansas; served as county clerk of Brown County, Kansas from 1864-1865; elected a probate judge from 1864-1868) Also prospector who participated in the California Gold Rush of 1849.

Found in 2 Collections and/or Records:

Elijah Allen Spooner letters and diary

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: Vault MSS 662
Scope and Contents Overland diary and fifteen handwritten letters. Most of the letters are addressed to Spooner's wife and were written while on the overland journey by ox team from Adrian, Michigan to Sacramento, California in 1849. Spooner writes of encounters with Indians, buffalo hunting, distaste for Sunday travel, a handful of deaths within his company, and travelling conditions. Spooner also mentions his religious faith in most of the letters. Spooner stopped in Salt Lake City and gives a brief...
Dates: 1849-1850
Found in: L. Tom Perry Special Collections

Photographs of Elijah Allen Spooner

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS P 671
Scope and Contents

Contains negatives and copy prints of photographs primarily featuring Elijah Allen Spooner. Includes two copy prints possibly of Andrew Jackson Poe (1817-1902). Materials transferred from the papers of Elijah Allen Spooner. Materials are dated approximately 1850-1900.

Dates: approximately 1850-1900
Found in: L. Tom Perry Special Collections

Additional filters:

Subject
California National Historic Trail 1
Copy prints 1
Correspondence 1
Diaries 1
Gold miners -- California -- Diaries 1
∨ more
Letters 1
Material Types 1
Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail 1
Nitrate negatives 1
Oregon National Historic Trail 1
Overland journeys to the Pacific 1
Photographs 1
Salt Lake City (Utah) 1
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