GUEST POST from Don – The Unsettling, chapter 3

PREQUEL to BLURRY MOUNTAIN:  “THE UNSETTLING”

©️2026 Donald Whelpley

CHAPTER THREE.  ANCHORS AWAY.

Not long into May the family loaded the wagon and hitched a draft horse.  They had a canvas tarp over their luggage, crates, and gifts because, of course, it was drizzling.  Branwyn baked a few loaves of bread and packed some cheese for the trip to Bangor.  They crossed the wide suspension bridge and stopped to see her family there.  Branwyn’s father asked her, “Are you sure this is the right path for your family?”  She answered, “We could not continue with every season being so close to failure or starvation.  We prayed seeking the will of God.  He has assured us of two things.  The path will be hard.  Also, it is the right path for us.  We are satisfied.”  Her father responded, “Then so am I.”

They stayed overnight, said their forever good-byes, and handed gifts to her family (mostly things they could not take like quilts and a newer kettle).  Many tears were shed.  Early on the next morning her father drove them to board the coach heading to Liverpool.  There was only time to get settled and covered in wool blankets.  It would take the entire day.  Soon they were on the road north.  Stopping briefly a few hours later to rest, feed, and water the horses, the children were able to run about for a while.  Then it was back in the coach and a bit of lunch as they traveled.  Upon arrival in Liverpool they stayed overnight in a rented room by the docks.  Upon arising Grigor and his wife bought passage on a ship heading to Philadelphia.  That was normal.  Many Irish and some Welsh immigrants headed to that port.  Some Welsh were Quakers and they sought to live near other Quakers in Pennsylvania, settling in places like Pittsburgh.  Others saw the port city as a way-stop on the way to other places.  This was how the Hughes saw it, too.  

Some might wonder why they didn’t head for New York and Ellis Island.  Well, Ellis Island was purchased by a Welsh man by the name of Samuel Ellis in the 1700s.  Mr Ellis had been born in Wrexham, Wales.  It wasn’t used for immigration purposes until 1892, long after the Hughes’ journey.

They found passage on the barque Louisa Bliss captained by J.A. Creighton.  The captain, they found, only cared about getting into port and getting out of port.  The sooner he could cast off the fewer men he lost to strong drink, loose women, and bad bets…and the more money he and his crew could make.  The cabins were booked, so all remaining for the family was steerage; a forward cargo hold half-filled with passenger boxes, beds, crates, and barrels.  Steerage passengers slept on the rough planks, but there were two “changing areas” where heavy tarps were hung.  There were no portholes to let in light and no heat or air flow.  

Branwyn and the children took turns teaching Grigor a long list of English words.  They started with the easy ones which had a similar sound and meaning.  “Helo,” “pris,” “fy,” and “gost” easily translated into “hello,” “price,” “my,” and “cost.”  Then they quickly became more difficult.  “Fochyn,” “fuwch,” and “dafad” translated to “pig,” “cow,” and “sheep.”  There was a small vocabulary of maybe 80 words and phrases.  Of course, few in the United States of America would speak the King’s English with a Welsh accent, so it still would be difficult to communicate.  Thankfully there was little else to do.  Branwyn and the children spoke only English on the trip, purposely throwing in an occasional word he should know.  By the end of the second week he was understanding a little.  He would reward them with loving comments, “Thank you, fy bach (my little one).”  “Blessings, fy nghariad bach (my little sweetheart).”  The terms of endearment didn’t sound right in English, he left them as they were.

It was aboard the ship that, during prayer, Grigor realized something powerful.  God spoke to his heart saying two mighty things.  First, while the Hughes descendents in Wales had lived private lives, speaking seldom to anyone without a clear need and holding close any serious thoughts and desires, that would have to change.  They were traveling to a new land of opportunity and would be among a variety of folk from many lands.  If they were to survive and thrive in the strange new land they had to learn to engage.  It would be good for language training, but they also would need many new friends.  Grigor’s children would need to find friends, husbands, and wives from among these people.  It would become necessary to not only trade goods but also share friendships.

Second, God made him aware that he, Grigor, was the grandson of which God had spoken clearly to his grandfather.  He would see what none had seen before, and from there would see everything.

When God speaks, one had better listen.  Grigor already knew that God never “suggests,” His Word is always a command, but lovingly spoken.

The smell of the 40 unwashed bodies after 2 weeks was a bit strong.  So, when the crew got excited that port was close the family took turns washing in one of the changing areas with fresh clothes.  Branwyn had planned ahead; she had heard that food was not plentiful on board, so the family had carried with them a sack of potatoes and another of apples.  It turned out to be true…their meals were a hunk of bread and some beans for breakfast and a weak stew and hunk of bread for supper.  So having slices of a raw potato and half an apple each daily gave them lunches.   They arrived hungry at port Philadelphia on June fifth.  The trip took about eighteen days (more or less) and they saw none of it.  

[Author’s note: there actually was a “barque Louisa Bliss captained by J.A. Creighton” that sailed from Liverpool to Philadelphia in May, early 1800s, and it took 18 days to arrive.  And if you read the news you found that Kate Middleton recently went to Wales on March 1 to celebrate St. David’s Day.]

[Watch for Chapter 4 next month…]

Christmas On Blurry Mountain ~ Part 1 of 4 ~ Part 2 of 4 ~ Part 3 of 4 ~ Part 4 of 4

Copyright 2026 Donald Whelpley

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