Ebenezer Russell Young II was born on November 14, 1814, in Staten Island, New York, the child of Ebenezer Russell and Margaret. He was married four times and had five sons and four daughters between 1837 and 1854. He died on November 23, 1890, in Wanship, Utah, having lived a long life of 76 years, and was buried in Salt Lake City, Utah.
1859 Ebenezer Young Freight Train
Ebenezer Russell Young was a Salt Lake merchant who traveled east in 1859 on business. Archibald Gardner, Daniel R. Allen, and George A. Smith had entrusted him with $125 for the purpose of buying "card clothing" for a double carding machine. Young also carried letters to Thomas L. Kane and others. At Florence, Nebraska, Young hired men to drive his ox teams and loaded 10 wagons with merchandise. There were about 12 men in the company and at least one woman and a girl (the wife and daughter of one of the drivers). The woman cooked for the others. They were English Mormon converts who had hired on to work their way to Utah. The freight company left Florence on August 25 and traveled by way of the Platte River and the plains. They averaged about 12 miles a day, which was considered good for ox teams. Except for seeing vast herds of buffalo and experiencing an occasional Indian scare, the company had an uneventful trip. They arrived in Salt Lake City on October 25. There were no reported deaths.
