[Hosea Stout Diary] Tuesday Nov. the 24th 1846. To day I was employed in moving into my little house now partly finished it being 12 feet square on the outside[.] In the evening regulated the guard as usual.
Tonight myself and family had the pleasure of once more sleping in our own house for the first time since we left Nauvoo on the 9th day of last February, making nine months and fifteen days that we lived without a house. During which time we have undere went allmost every change of fortune that could be imagined. One half of my family so dear to me has been consigned to the silent grave & we who yet remain have often been brought to the verge of deathoften in storms & rains have I stood to hold my tent from uncovering my sick family expecting every moment to see them exposed to the rain & wind which would have been certain death.often have I lain and contemplated my own sickness & feeble situation, without any thing for myself and family to eat with death staring me in the face and could only contemplate what would become of them in case I was called away.
And worse yet how often have I behel[d] my family one by one yielding up the Ghost & bereaving me of every earthly prospect with the melancholy reflection that there was yet more soon to follow. How often in sorrow & anguish have I said in my heart. When shall my trials and tribulations end. But amid all these adverse changes, these heart wrending trials not once yet have I ever regretted that I set out to follow the council of the people of God & to obey the voice of the spirit to flee from the land of the Gentiles.
But to return home again. We did not enjoy much comifort tonight for my house was yet open[.] Neither door nor windowsnot even but few of the craks was yet stoped and hard North wind blowing. We were exposed to it all & could not sleep but little but lay shivering in the cold all night.
The only thing that was any satisfaction to us was that we were out of the tent for if we had been there in addition to our troubles & cold we would have been expecting the tent to blow down every moment and thus left to the "merciless blast" which to be delivered from was even a great satisfaction. This day was the first day that my only living child [daughter of Louisa Taylor] now 7 months & 2 days old ever was in a house, being born in the wild rude and unhabited prairies and remained so till now "a perfect child of nature. So much for my "New house or more properly speaking my little shanty
[source: Diaries of Hosea Stout]
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