Reynolds Cahoon — Protection During the Nauvoo Exodus

In February 1846, Reynolds Cahoon and his family were among the first group of Saints forced to flee Nauvoo. They crossed the Mississippi River while it was frozen, a feat that many viewed as a providential 'bridge' for the Saints. Despite the extreme cold and the threat of pursuing mobs, Cahoon recorded that his family was preserved from harm and illness during the crossing and the subsequent difficult journey across the Iowa prairies, which he attributed to divine protection over the faithful.