Historical travel guide book signing Saturday

By: 
Ryan Fitzmaurice

Lovell resident Jack Brinkerhoff has finished volume two of his travel guide following the footsteps of Latter-day Saints pioneers. Titled “Vermont to the Great Basin,” the second volume begins with the church members’ settlement of Illinois before traveling to Salt Lake City.

The first volume begins in 1805 and follows the church after being driven out of Missouri.

“It’s a travel guide that uses historic sites as a backdrop to tell the story of the LDS Church,” Brinkerhoff said.

A book signing has been scheduled for this Saturday at Lovell Drug from 10 a.m. to noon. 

Brinkerhoff has been interested in the subject for more than 20 years now, but there has never been a concise, centralized resource where one could find location based historical knowledge about the LDS Church pioneers. Brinkerhoff said after spending time grappling with finding the information, he felt that maybe that task should be his to take on. He’s been cracking away at the project for the last three years.

“It’s something that’s gradually built over the years. The best experience comes when you come with a knowledge of what happened there. When I planned a trip in 2007, I did a lot of research,” Brinkerhoff said last December during the release of volume one. “I thought it would be really nice if there was one
place you could go to get this information. I had all that information, so I thought I should become that resource.”

Brinkerhoff said the book contains a history of various sites, addresses, GPS coordinates and any other information needed for a reader to meaningfully follow the path themselves. 

Brinkerhoff said the history and accompanying historical sites in volume two are especially exciting because they show concretely the impact the LDS Church has had on the United States history. 

“They call Brigham Young the American Moses. I don’t think people realize how much impact the church had moving westward,” Brinkerhoff said.  “They worked with the fellow governments, they were pivotal in making sure the railroad came through to the West. I get excited about the interweaving of church history and national history and the settling of the west.” 

Brinkerhoff’s family history itself goes back at least five generations within the LDS Church, meaning Brinkerhoff has a personal connection to the material.

Interested readers
can find information about the project at LDShistoryguide.com.