Milan tells of an incident that happened when he was with others who had volunteered to take wagon trains out to rescue some emigrant handcart companies who were stranded about six hundred miles east of Salt Lake City. This was in late October, 1856. At this time in history many of the converts to the LDS Church from back east, and especially Europe, were too poor to acquire a wagon and teams. Consequently many of these saints crossed the plains from the Missouri River to Salt Lake City with handcarts in large companies.

These particular emigrants were stranded on the Platte River in central Wyoming. The weather was extremely cold and the snow deep. The Willie handcart company had almost exhausted their supply of provisions and were reduced to small rations. They were waiting for relief from Utah, and previous to the arrival of this rescue party had suffered untold hardships. Many died from hunger and cold. The rescuing party also suffered from the extreme cold. They were obliged to keep their animals from freezing by lighting fires at night in the encirclement of their wagons. Milan told how some of this rescue party did suffer from frozen hands or feet before they met the emigrants, and then the wagon train escorted them into Salt Lake City.

In 1866 he built one of the largest and best homes in Springville on First South and First West for his family, and in which they lived for many years.

In 1868 he began doing construction work for the various railroads. He worked for the Central Pacific, Southern Pacific, and Union Pacific lines. He assisted in the work at Promontory Point, Utah, which completed our first trans-continental railroad, and he was present at the driving of the last spike.

In 1873, he saw the value that a steam saw mill would be to our community. So associated with L. S. Wood and William Bringhurst, he established the first steam saw mill in Hobble Creek Canyon. This became a very profitable enterprise because of the opening of mining in the Eureka District. He used his freighting outfits to haul lumber from this mill to the miners of Tintic and Eureka where he established a lumber industry during the early seventies.