David Kennaley was my 3x great grandfather on my father's side. Please note: while the surname Kennaley has changed multiple times over the years: Kennaley, Keneily, Kenealy, Connelly, Canale, Connal, etc. For sanity purposes, I will be using the spelling of my grandmother's maiden name, Kennaley, when discussing the family. In other mentions, the name is spelled as it was from the document it was copied.

This past weekend, my mom and I traveled to Fort Morgan, CO for my uncle's wedding. On our return trip, we drove the prettiest two-lane highways through southern Nebraska to see the old Wildrick homestead that had been my 3x great grandparents, John Wesley and Minnie Wildrick's, and to stop by the cemetery in Cambridge, NE so I could photograph the tombstone of their family plot. We're planning a return trip because where the sod house and barn foundation would have stood was buried beneath ten feet of weeds. But as we left, it really stirred my interest. What drives someone to leave all they know, their family and friends, their lifestyle, and pack all their belongings onto a wagon, travel hundreds of miles and begin a new life?

Alice was born 21 November 1852 to Archibald and Almira (Hopson) Tuttle in Mondamin, Harrison County, Iowa. Her parents had met and were married in Hancock County, Illinois in 1850. Their oldest child, Mary was born in Illinois, but by the time of Alice's birth, the small family had moved to Iowa. Alice was followed by more siblings, another girl, Hester, was born in 1857 while they lived in Iowa. But the family soon crossed the Missouri and settled in the Florence area of Nebraska territory. Her brother William (1859), and sisters Ida (1862) and Harriet (1865) were born while the family lived there. William's obit stated that he was born in a covered wagon in Florence.