Remembering the pioneer exodus from Nauvoo, Illinois

With names of ancestors or others who lived in Nauvoo, Illinois, pinned to their clothes, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and friends made the mile-long walk down Main Street to Parley and then to the Mississippi River on Feb. 4.

The annual exodus commemoration marked the 177th anniversary of when the early Church members were forced to leave their homes and began leaving Nauvoo on Feb. 4, 1846.
This Church News video titled “Sacred Sacrifice” is created from videos and images of the commemoration provided by media specialists from Iowa and Illinois.

Nauvoo Illinois Stake President Matthew J. Thomas said: “We’re here to commemorate these sacred sacrifices that [the pioneers] made and the commitments to what they knew to be true.”

Nauvoo Illinois Historic Sites President Craig Lee Dalton told those gathered that as they remember the miracles that the Lord worked with the pioneers, that “we also can go forward with the confidence that the Lord will likewise bless us in miraculous ways.”

Historic Nauvoo is open year-round and virtual tours are also available. For more information, visit https://www.nauvoohistoricsites.org/