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Iowa History 101: Iowa Victorian Sarah Rousseau
The State Historical Society of Iowa invites you to join author and historian Janelle Molony, a descendant of Dr. James and Sarah Rousseau (pioneer settlers of Liberty Township), as she dives into the immigration experiences of Sarah Rousseau, a refined musician from New Castle Upon Tyne.
After years of trying everything he could for his wife, Dr. James Rousseau is desperate to find a cure for Sarah's debilitating rheumatism. He hopes that a climate cure in the warm, dry air of California might be the answer she needs.
In 1864, while the Civil War is raging in the east, the Rousseaus join with three other families from Pella, Iowa, to make the arduous covered wagon journey across the American Plains. Along the way, tensions run high under the stern captaincy of Sgt. Nicholas P. Earp as the Iowans face fierce enemies, quicksand, hailstorms, poison water, and the blazing sun. As told in Sarah’s diary, it’s an incredible yet true story of survival at any cost.