February 5, 1865--Panacker City

View of Pioche, Nevada, from one of its mine buildings.  (lds.org)

Panacker Citty Feb 5 1865

Dear Henry, it is with with greaf i rite you and with pleasure to    it is a pleasure to hear that so many of you are well but a greaf to hear of Dans Death    but it is what i looked for every letter i received till i got the news     you all complane of getting letters so infrequent you dont seem to think that i am a hundred miles from a post office and some of the time out of paper and stamps for i answer all the letters i receive and some i never have received a letter from and i dont complane a bout it for i supose it is thare wish to not rite to me   you was a frade that i would knock

the botom of my half bushel out and i think you are a knocking the botom out of your half bushel pretty successfully by not attending to what i wanted some time a go that was a power of atorney that i could act for you legally  you have had one clame jumped  for i had nothing to show that i had any wright to hold it for you and they have ben offered forty Dollars a foot for it since they prefered it and what dos 200 feete come to at forty dollars per foot and the 18 of March there will be an other one ready to Jump that is worth as much or more and so on through the summer

as they were located they hold good for one year for location and then a man has to be thare or by his legal representative and you have as much as i have and i think you better attend to it soon and wellington too i wish you would take all the panes you can to learn wellington at home to rite and do the best you can for my folkes    my wife rites me she and children are prety destitute but i have no means at present to send them an i would i have not made any thing for 2 years  it has ben all expense and i shant make any thing probably be fore next summer an fall for I shant sell

four ten cts on the Dollar    i want to get my business in shape so i can come home e (arly?)  next fall  if it is possible i am a  going to start to the Colorado River to mor ow morning a prospecting that country there has ben some very rich discoverys made lattty by many of the latter Day saints and i want to come in __ to ___ for i am on it ??     you spoke in your last letter of bying a farm  i want you to investagte the matter well be fore you by at the present prises  when the war closes you will see hard times and more taxes?  than any farm  can pay but Do as you pleas

yours truly    S. Sherwood

Notes:  

Future posts will:

• Discuss the unfortunate death of Stephen Sherwood's fifteen year old son, Dan

Stephen wrote that He was going prospecting at the Colorado River tomorrow (February 6, 1865)   In March 1865, a mixed group did leave for the Colorado River.  Some of the friends of Stephen Sherwood were in the party (Samuel S Shutt, William McCluskey, and David Sanderson), but Stephen Sherwood is not listed with them.  Also listed were Thomas C. W. Sale, Territorial Indian agent, John H Ely, and Ira Hatch, a Mormon, who was the group's Indian interpreter (Making Space on the Western Frontier by W. Paul Reeve, pg. 38)