On June 16, 1834, members of the expedition known as Zions Camp came to a point on the Grand River just above its confluence with the Missouri River where it separates Carroll from Chariton County in Missouri.
The Grand River is quite wide and deep, and members of Zions Camp were given a price of $17 by a ferryman to take the whole group across the river. Feeling that the price quoted was excessive, negotiators from the camp declined the offer to be ferried across, saying that they would build their own raft. Not wanting to lose all his potential profit, the ferryman renegotiated the price to $12, which was accepted by the Mormons.
After ferrying across the river to the west bank, they camped for the night. This site was also a campsite of the Lewis and Clark Expedition 30 years earlier, almost to the day.