Sager orphans ( sometimes referred to as the Sager children ) were the children of Henry and Naomi Sager . In April 1844 the Sager family took part in the great westward migration and started their journey along the Oregon Trail . During it , both Henry and Naomi died and left their seven children orphaned . Later adopted by Marcus and Narcissa Whitman , missionaries in what is now Washington , they were orphaned a second time , when both their new parents , as well as brothers John and Francis Sager , were killed during the Whitman massacre in November 1847 . About 1860 Catherine , the oldest daughter , wrote a first-hand account of their journey across the plains and their life with the Whitmans . Today it is regarded as one of the most authentic accounts of the American westward migration
Whitman massacre
Whitman massacre
Sager orphans