ARCHIBALD WALLER OVERTON BUCHANAN 1830-1915 WHISTLING AND WHITTLING BRIGADE - NAUVOO Archibald was baptized on his ninth birthday, 9 February 1839, some of his family having been converted by missionaries as early as 1834. His father died in Lima, Illinois, the same year he was baptized, leaving his mother with 10 children. The family suffered the persecutions of the Saints in Caldwell Co. Missouri and the violence of being expelled with the rest of the Saints in 1838. In late 1838 and 1839, they were in Quincy and Lima, Illinois where John died, and they were in the midst of the persecutions of the Church there. After her husband’s death, Nancy Ann moved her family to Nauvoo for safety. They were there when the Prophet Joseph Smith and Hyrum were martyred. Archie was 14 years old. He relates: “About this time, [after the martyrdom] when there were many strangers among us, we boys were organized into little groups to follow these people to find out about them and what their intentions were. We were called a ‘Whistling and Whittling Brigade.’ It was organized among the younger boys and I was one of them. We watched around town for people who were strangers. If we saw a man looking around, whom we did not know, we would go up reasonably close to him and start to whistle and whittle. We followed him at a fairly close distance, just enough to be an aggravation to him and yet not to be too close. If he came to us and asked questions we did not look up nor did we answer but only continued to whistle and whittle. I suppose we were too young to hit individually but if he had attacked us, the group could easily have overcome him so there was really no danger. With this method we were able in many cases to force the stranger out of town.” He also remembered: “Because I was there I must tell you that I saw with my own eyes the mantle of the prophet fall upon Brigham Young. I heard the voice of Brigham Young become the voice of the Prophet Joseph. I heard this with my own ears, and I again bear witness that the Council of the Twelve was to be the leaders of the Church. Mother and her family were willing to follow them.” (By Claudine Cable, Great-great-great granddaughter.)