"The enemies of the Latter-day Saints thought that the murder of Joseph and Hyrum Smith would be the end of `Mormonism,' " wrote Joseph Fielding Smith in Essentials in Church History.

"They the enemiesT rejoiced in the accomplishment of their frightful deed of blood, and boasted of the downfall of the Church. To their great surprise the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church. The object they hoped to gain was not attained; therefore their anger was rekindled against the Church."In a concerted effort to destroy the Church, its enemies launched attacks to drive the saints from Illinois. The city charter of Nauvoo, which had given protection to the saints, was repealed by the state's Legislature in January 1845. With the charter's repeal, the saints were left without protection from the officers of the state. Sheriff J.B. Backentos endeavored to protect the saints against mob law, but his efforts were thwarted. (See historical feature on Sheriff Backentos in Aug. 16, 1989, Church News.)

Violence against the saints went unchecked. During the fall and winter of 1845-46, Church leaders made preparations for the saints to leave Nauvoo in the spring of 1846. Although the members were planning to abandon the city, they continued to work on the construction of the Nauvoo Temple.

The saints had begun to hold meetings in the temple as early as October 1845, when a general conference of the Church convened there. Each room of the temple was dedicated as it was completed; ordinance work was commenced in December 1845. On Jan. 1, 1846, the work of finishing the assembly room was nearing completion.

Increased violence against the saints forced them to move up their departure from Nauvoo. The first saints left Nauvoo on their westward journey Feb. 4, 1846, being transported across the Mississippi River on a flat-bottomed ferry.

In The Kingdom of God Restored, Carter E. Grant wrote: "On Feb. 22, a raging blizzard covered the country with a foot of snow; moreover, when the storm cleared, the weather turned intensely cold - twelve degrees below zero - sealing the broad Mississippi from shore to shore. Hurrying feverishly across this temporary ice bridge went thousands of Mormons - men, women and children. Although they shivered in the frosty weather, they believed wholeheartedly that a kind Providence was speeding them and their heavy outfits over the mile-wide barrier."