Cholera outbreak at Zion's Camp (Rush Creek), 1834 — healings and rescue of Harrison Burgess

During Zion's Camp in 1834, while the camp was near Rush Creek, the Prophet Joseph Smith prophesied that the Lord would send a scourge upon the camp because of unrighteous murmuring; the cholera broke out a few hours after this prophecy. The outbreak struck the camp, and some eighteen brethren died while many others were sick. Brigham Young and other leaders (including Heber C. Kimball) administered to the afflicted—Young recording the intense spiritual struggle to rebuke the disease and recounting that, although many were taken, others were miraculously healed or preserved through the power of the priesthood (including the laying on of hands). Harrison Burgess, who had attended the sick and helped bury the dead (including his brother John S. Carter), was himself violently seized with cholera but was rescued from the grasp of death through faith and the assistance of Brother Zerah Cole. Young later reflected on these healings as a trial of faith that prepared the survivors for future leadership roles.