Barton, Prudence
      Prudence lives with her widowed father and two older sisters. In a letter to the Bolts, she writes, "I want more from my life than to be a live-in caretaker for my sisters' children...I long for my own children, my own husband and to be a part of creating something fresh and new...I am anxious to see the town of Seattle which you described so well. Your words kept ringing in my ears and I hear their echo calling out to me."

Bolt, Jason
Bolt, Joshua
Bolt, Jeremy
The three brothers that risked losing their mountain to bring back home the one thing that Seattle lacks: marriageable women.

Borden, Hanna Dosie
      Hannah is 23 years old and originally from Tennessee. She moved to New Bedford during the War, at the urging of her late husband Todd, a Union soldier killed during the War. Hannah has remained in New Bedford, living with Todd's elderly Aunt Madeline, out of a sense of obligation. Even though Madeline is against Hannah leaving for a new life in Seattle, she understands.

Brown, Sarah Elizabeth
      In her journal, Sarah writes, "When I first told my parents about the voyage and that I would be moving to Seattle, they were angry and forbid me to go. I explained that I had signed a contract with the Bolt brothers agreeing to go but they insisted that because I was a mere seventeen years old that the men could not hold me to their contract. I wanted so desperately to leave; I had even lied about my age, telling the brothers that I was indeed eighteen years...My father was the first to agree...Convincing mother was a little more difficult, but finally she tearfully agreed."

Catlett, Angeline Eliza
      Angeline, originally from Virginia, was sent to live in with cousins in New Bedford because of the war. She writes the Bolts, " I am anxious to see the world and feel that you are honest and can be trusted (my father, a lawyer, saw to that). I meet all requirements, have taught school for nearly two years and have some medical training (due to the war). I am forthright but sometimes shy around gentlemen callers...[My parents] support my decision to follow you and your brothers to your home to find my own place in this world, that being our wonderful United States of America. Heaven help each one of us to find our dream and record it for those who follow behind.

Danforth, Lavinia
      In describing the Bolts' town hall meeting in her journal, Lavinia writes, "[Jason Bolt] told us we had to be "marriageable". I am not quite sure what that means. When I got back from the lecture, Mama and Aunt Gertrude were waiting up for me, and I told them I had decided to become a pioneer and had signed a contract. I asked Mama what "marriageable" meant. I thought she was going to pass out, but fortunately Aunt Gertrude had her smelling salts with her and after taking whiff of them, she passed them to Mama."

Gates, Anna-Claire "Sunny"
     Nicknamed "Sunny" by her grandfather, Anna-Claire Gates is looking forward "to the excitement and to being on my own, after having taken care of my father and 3 siblings for a number of years (as my mother passed away 10 years ago)...I used to love the sea, and would normally not mind sailing. That is, if it were not for an unfortunate event while I was cook aboard my grandfathers fishing trawler...My father does want to see me married off, as in his eyes I am already an old maid at the age of 19 !... I am not quite so earnest about the prospect of marriage myself. After all, I've already experienced the chores that come along with being married, and I'm tired of them." Though a self-professed modest and shy girl in most respects, "Sunny" confesses to a weakness for hats.

Horn, Jonathan (crew member)
      No information available

Jacobson, Emmy Lou
      An orphan with a young sister to raise, Emmy Lou was formerly in the employ of Lavinia Danforth. "[Mr. Bolt said] that in Seattle, all of the ladies would be treated the same, no matter what social advantages they may have possessed in New Bedford. If all the men in Seattle are as charming as this man, then I shall be lucky indeed."

Jacobson, Serena (minor)
      Orphaned nine-year-old sister of Emmy Lou Jacobson, traveling with her cat, Diana, and until recently, living at St. Peter's Orphans' Asylum. In her brand-new notebook, she writes, "My sister has agreed to go to a place called Seattle to find a husband. I am to go with her. Diana too. I am not all that excited about it..."

Lowe, Margaret
     At her father's urging, Margaret Lowe began a journal just before the journey. "Tomorrow, I shall set out on a journey to the other side of the world, or at least it seems that far away. Papa says that anyone setting off on such a great adventure has to keep a journal so her descendants will be able to ready the story. I have signed a contract with Mr. Jason Bolt to move to the city of Seattle in the Washington Territory for the purpose of getting married. I am not marrying Mr. Bolt, but will be free to meet the other men of Seattle. It seems like such a long way, but if I stay here in New Bedford, I'll be an old maid and there will be no descendants to read any journals."

MacBeth, Lena
      In a letter to the Bolts, she writes, "I've two older married sisters and one brother who is younger. My mother lives in New Bedford, but my father died recently. I love to read and write and I've been working for the New Bedford Heard doing stories on church picnics and such. I'm making the trip to Seattle in hopes of a new life and maybe a husband. I'm nervous about leaving my family. I've never been that far from home before. I know that many of the other girls making the trip will feel the same."

McCaskill, Holly Grace
      Holly Grace McCaskill claims to be a distant cousin of the Bolt brothers. She has only been in this county a few months. In a letter to Jason, she writes, "I cannot believe it has been almost 10 years since I saw you... I welcome the opportunity of putting roots in Seattle, and being with the only family I have left." Holly's best friend, Sarah Antoinette Patterson will also be making the journey.

McQuire, Kathleen "Katchie"
      In a letter to the Bolt brothers, Katchie writes, "I descend from sturdy Irish stock. My schooling has been completed and I consider myself a fairly bright girl. Although I am young and have no formal training, my late mother was a nurse and taught me some skills. Perhaps I can be of assistance during our voyage in that capacity."

Mulhern, Katherine "Kitty" Mary Margaret
      Prior to leaving for Seattle, Kitty was a maid in the household of Amanda Forrester. In a letter to her uncle, Father Terence Mulhern, she writes about the Bolts' town hall meeting, "I looked around the room. Many of the girls at the meeting were Miss Amanda's friends, girls from good families, girls who would never receive me in their parlors because I am a servant. But in Seattle, we would all be the same...just women looking for husbands, none of us any better than the others."

Parker, Felicity
      Since the death of her brother, Felicity, 20, has been living with the Rev. Cummings and working as a housekeeper and companion to his wife. Felicity writes, "While I am not averse to the idea of marriage sometime in the future, I am still mourning the loss of someone very dear to me who would have been my husband had he survived our recent war with the South. I plan, therefore, to seek employment upon my arrival in Seattle...I trust that I am still welcome; although your advertisement used marriage as an inducement, the contract requires only that the women who accompany you to Seattle be marriageable and not that we are necessarily seeking marriage at this time."

Patterson, Sarah Antoinette
      Sarah Antoniette Patterson accompanied her friend Holly McCaskill to America. Sarah, just 25, is anxious to find a new way of life in America. She has hopes of continuing with her writings, and finding a husband.

Piper, Samantha
      No information available

Riley, Carla Louise
     In a letter to Jason Bolt, Carla writes, "I have no family to tie me here in New Bedford and the prospects for marriage, especially for myself, are slim. My parents died a little more than a year ago and I live quite comfortably on an inheritance. When I was only two there was an illness that left me paralyzed and unable to walk. Although I regained the use of my legs one is still weak and supported by a brace. I wish only to be accepted for who I am and hope to find a new life for myself in Seattle."

St. James, Karen
      Karen is 22, and is traveling with her younger brother, Jonathon, 4. Their parents died a year ago: Father in the war, and Mother shortly afterwards of pneumonia. Karen was born in York, Upper Canada, and spent half her life there and half in New Bedford; as a result, she doesn't know many people in the group of brides. Karen's reason for going west is more to make a new life for herself and her brother than to find a husband for herself; she feels Jonny needs a male in his life as he grows up, so she has decided to go. Jonny is a good kid who's looking forward to going on the long boat trip, and thinks Jason is terrific. Karen's cousin, Kate McNeil, is also making the journey.

You can read about Karen's later adventures in Seattle in Aaron's Way.

Scarborough, Anne
      In her letter to the Bolt brothers, Anne writes, "Please know that I am quite marriageable, not afraid of hard work, and an accomplished seamstress. I also play the piano and have played accompaniments on occasion at the Seaman's Bethel here at home. (I do hope there might be an instrument on our sailing vessel so that I might continue to practice.) [ed. note - There is no piano] Finally, I have experience in tending the sick, since my father has been often unwell and my elder brother sustained injuries while fighting in the War."

Stanford, Charity
      In a letter to Jason Bolt, she writes, "My breeding is of the highest quality and my family is one of the oldest in New Bedford. I enjoy a great deal of popularity within my social circle which, I feel compelled to point out, is rather exclusive. I trust that you will take these things into consideration when assigning living quarters on the vessel in which we will be traveling."

Wedgeworth, Amelia Rose
      Amy Rose, as she is called, was a late addition to the brides, arriving with a letter from her family just as the group was preparing to depart. In her letter, she tells Jason, "...some most unfortunate circumstances have struck our family within the last couple of years. First of all, my dear grandfather...has passed on and my parents have been left with no other choice but to take in my ailing grandmother. My youngest brother, God bless him, fell in a well last year at the age of four. My sweet mother has never been the same since the accident. My family owns a farm and our crops were nearly destroyed by some horribly devastating storms last winterI did have a beau this past year, but it ...ended up that he was wanted for robbery...Although I am young, I am a hard worker. I am not afraid of challenges."

Wetzel, Lili Mae
      As a legal minor, Lili made a special entreaty to the Bolts that she might be able to come. In her letter, she writes, "At the age of 16, I fear I might become an old maid should I not...marry soon. Your Seattle sounds like a fine place and the challenge of a new land is most enticing!...My father owned a whaling schooner, which we had to sell after his death in the war. My mother and I support the family by doing tailoring and dressmaking. Naturally, I would not dream of leaving without my mother's blessing."