Typed transcripts of diaries kept by E. Kitchell, originally of Hillsboro and Olney, Illinois, document his life from May 14, 1852 to December 24, 1853 and from September 3, 1862 to February 6, 1864. With occasional gaps, the 1852-1853 diaries recount his experiences while crossing the Great Plains in a wagon train, while prospecting for gold on Rabbit Creek in California, and while teaching school and engaging in a speculative hog driving venture in Oregon. An educated and observant recorder, Kitchell comments on Indians, particularly the Pawnees encountered early in the trip, on road conditions and scenery, on food and water supplies and the diseases that occasionally resulted from their use, on prices of livestock and supplies, and on the Mormons and their settlements in Utah. After arriving in California, he established a diggings which he worked with partners and alone until June, 1853. The diaries for this period describe daily labors and financial gains, sluicing operations, prices, and living conditions. Kitchell notes his extreme loneliness and longing to see his family again. He mentions a travelling library organized by the miners and arbitration proceedings at which he presided as a local “government” official. In June, 1853, Kitchell decided that his future did not lie in gold mining, sold his claim, and joined acquaintances in Oregon. There he was unemployed until he successfully organized a school in Douglas County where he taught during the summer months. A gap in the diaries occurs at this point and when entries begin again in November, he has embarked on a trip to Jacksonville, Oregon driving a herd of hogs before him which he hopes to resell at a profit. The diary ends after his arrival in Jacksonville as he concludes that his venture, though not a financial failure, is a disappointment.
The 1862-1864 diaries record experiences during Kitchell's service as a Lieutenant Colonel in the 98th Illinois Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. Entries here are briefer and less introspective than in the California diaries. He refers to his activities and movements, food and prices, the weather, and pillaging which he observes. His time was spent primarily in Tennessee.
Information on Kitchell's family is provided in three clippings pasted in the front of the war diary: an obituary for Mrs. John W. Kitchell and a report on her will, and an obituary for Mrs. William R. Kitchell. John Kitchell was E. Kitchell's brother; their father was Wickliff Kitchell, Illinois' attorney-general, 1839-1840. William Kitchell is tentatively identified as E. Kitchell's son; in the Civil War diaries Kitchell refers to his wife Hattie and to his children, one of whom is named Willie.
