Gold Rush Era Letters

St Louis April 20th 1850

Dear Sister I take this oppurtunity [opportunity] to write to you as it will be the last for some time. I arrived here this morning at 2 O clock [O'clock] and shall leave at 5 O clock [O'clock] for the City of St. Joseph five hundred miles from here on the Misouri [Missouri] river from there I shall probably go to the Lake Superior Copper mines in Minesota [Minnesota] or to the Mormon Settlement on Salt lake. I have enjoyed first- rate health since I left home. I arrived in Buffalo the next morning at 6 O clock [O'clock] I took the Lake Steamer Niagara and arrived in Chicago on last monday [Monday] at 10 O clock [O'clock] we encountered very severe Storms on the lakes and in the midst of the most severe part of it our boat took fire and was put out after a great deal of labour [labor] and to no little damage to the boat this made the third time our boat was on fire. our first Stopping place was detroit [Detroit] on the detroit [detroit] river we staid [stayed] here all night and I had a first rate Chance to see the place which I like very much and I would have staid [stayed] there if I Could have sold my ticket which I offered to sell for one half it cost me but Could get no purchaser so I Concluded to Come to Chicago myself. business was dull at Chicago and I Come on to this place. I make a mistake Cleaveland Ohio [Cleveland] was our first landing which we made on the morning of the 10th and detroit [Detroit] on the same evening on the next morning went down detroit [Detroit] river into lake St. Clair from there down the river St Clair to lake Huron thenee [then] down Macinac [Mackinac] Straits to Mackinaw where we landed