Ephraim Knowlton Hanks (b. 21 March 1826 - d. 9 June 1896) was a prominent early member of the Latter Day Saint movement, a Mormon pioneer and a well known leader in the early settlement of Utah. The Latter Day Saint movement is a religious movement which began in the early 19th century and is generally considered to be founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. ... A statue commemorating the Mormon pioneers The Mormon Pioneers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who migrated across the United States from the midwest to the Salt Lake Valley in what is today the State of Utah. ... Official language(s) English Capital Salt Lake City Largest city Salt Lake City Area  Ranked 13th  - Total 84,876 sq mi (219,887 km²)  - Width 270 miles (435 km)  - Length 350 miles (565 km)  - % water 3. ...

Hanks was born in Madison Lake, Ohio, the son of Benjamin Hanks and Martha Knowlton. Hanks left home at age 16, working for a time on the Erie Canal and then serving in the United States Navy. Returning home to Ohio, he learned his brother Sidney had joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Hanks soon accepted the young church's teachings and became a member in 1845. The Erie Canal (currently part of the New York State Canal System) is a canal in New York State, United States, that runs from the Hudson River to Lake Erie, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. ...

Hanks left Nauvoo, Illinois with the LDS followers of Brigham Young on the trek west to the Rocky Mountains. However, he left the main body of emigrants to join Company B of the Mormon Battalion, United States Army, and marched with them to San Diego as a private. He and other Battalion members marched from the Midwest, south through Arizona, and were released from service in California. Battalion members rejoined the Mormon emigrants from the west, traveling from California to the Salt Lake Valley. The references in this article would be clearer with a different style of citation, footnoting or external linking. ... For other uses, see Brigham Young University Brigham Young (June 1, 1801 – August 29, 1877) was the second prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

In 1856, Hanks played a role in the rescue of the Martin handcart company. One of the first on the scene, Hanks provided buffalo meat to the starving party and administered to the sick and dying. Finding many of the emigrants with frozen hands and feet, Hanks later wrote: Many such I washed with water and castile soap, until the frozen parts would fall off. Hanks also led a militia company in scouting expeditions during the Utah War in 1857 and 1858. A statue commemorating Mormon handcart pioneers on Temple Square The Mormon handcart pioneers were participants in the migration of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the Mormon or LDS Church) to Salt Lake City, Utah who used handcarts to transport their belongings. ... The Utah War was a 19th century armed conflict between Mormon settlers in Utah Territory and the United States federal government. ...

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hanks practiced plural marriage, having four wives and 26 children. His wives were Harriet Amelia Decker (m. 22 September 1848), Jane Marie Capener (m. 27 March 1856), Thisbe Quilley Read (m. 5 April 1862). A fourth wife, Hannah Hardy, never lived with Hanks and the union was dissolved in 1856. The Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest attraction in the citys Temple Square. ... Plural marriage (also sometimes called celestial marriage or The Patriarchal Order of marriage) is a type of polygamy that was allegedly practiced by Joseph Smith, Jr. ...

Hanks was ordained a patriarch in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was known for his obedience to church leaders. President Brigham Young said that Hanks ... was a man always ready to lay down his life for the authorities of the Church as well as for the cause of Zion and her people. (Richard K. Hanks, pp. 26­27.)

Hanks was a U.S. mail carrier from 1851 to 1853 and later acted as a station master for the Pony Express, facilitating mail service on the Mormon Trail near Utah's Emigration Canyon. Hanks station was located near Snyder's Mill (also known as Big Canyon) at the foot of Big Mountain's western slope. The Utah portion of the Pony Express Trail. ... The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of Latter Day Saint movement traveled from 1846-1857. ...

Hanks passed away at his home in Caineville, Wayne county, Utah and buried in the Caineville Cemetery.

The Hanks family was proud of their family relationship with Abraham Lincoln, through his mother Nancy Hanks. Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865), sometimes called Abe Lincoln and nicknamed Honest Abe, the Rail Splitter, and the Great Emancipator, was an American politician who served as the 16th President of the United States (1861 to 1865), and the first president from the Republican Party. ...

Fictional accounts

• Hanks, Sidney A. and Ephriam K. Hanks, Jr. "Scouting for the Mormons on the Great Frontier", Deseret News Press, 1948.
• Barrett, Ivan J. "Eph Hanks: Fearless Mormon Scout." 1990, Covenant Communications, Inc.

External link

• Excerpt from Biography

References

• Hanks, Richard K. "Eph Hanks, pioneer scout". Master's Thesis. BYU Harold B. Lee Library.
• Hanks, Sidney Alvarus. "The Tempered Wind: biography of Thisbe Read Hanks" held by Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University.
• Smith, Sherry. "Ephraim Hanks." Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia.