They traveled in wagons and arrived in Beaver, Utah the end of January 1858. He was counseled to stay in Beaver, Utah, which he did. About a month later he received a letter from a long time friend, Elder William Cook, telling him that he could find profitable employment for him and his brother Clement, and inviting him to make a home with his family. He and his brother finally arrived in Salt Lake City on Sunday, March 20, 1858. 
At that time the saints in Utah were concerned about the threat of invasion and a call was made for volunteers to go out to the mountains. Brother Thomas Cook was called to go out in the mountains to Echo Canyon at the end of March. Frederick volunteered to go in his place and Clement joined him there later. Those maintaining the Echo Canyon posts were charged with the task of setting fire to the Mormon possessions in the Salt Lake Valley if the invasion was hostile. They were released from this service at the end of May, 1858.

Following this, they worked at anything they could find—cutting hay, mowing, hauling, road building, etc. Frederick met a young lady there in the Salt Lake Valley by the name of Aurelia Hawkins and they were married on the 3rd of November, 1858 in the Endowment House. The following season he and Clement and Aurelia’s brother, Creighton, got work cutting saw logs in City Creek Canyon. After nearly working themselves to death for six or seven weeks they each cleared about $13.00 each.

Aurelia’s brother had given Fred a lot in Salt Lake City just north of Sugar House and east of what is now Eleventh Street East.. He bought a log house and worked very hard moving it and getting it ready to live in, which they were able to do in November of 1859. Their first child, Frederick William Hurst, Jr., was born February 23, 1860.

In the spring of 1860, Fred took care of a Pony Express Station located in Ruby Valley—about 375 miles west of Salt Lake City. He rented out their house and made arrangements for his wife to stay with her mother while he was in Ruby Valley. He had many thrilling experiences and narrow escapes there, for the Indians were very hostile. At one time, his was the only station for many miles around that was not burned by the Indians. This fate would also have been his, but he had been kind to the Indians earlier that winter. The winter was very severe and the Indians were dying by the hundreds. Against the advice of others, Fred mixed flour and water into a paste similar to Hawaiian poi and set it outside at night for the starving Indians. This charity proved a great blessing to the Indians and to himself, for those whom he helped warned him of pending attacks and he was able to take adequate defensive measures. After he arrived at the Ruby Valley station, Fred either did not keep a journal or it has been lost. After a number of years he made the following entry in his journal:

“October, 1875. I ought to write up a little of the past. In 1865 we moved to Logan, April 29th. At that time we had three children; namely Willie, Samuel Harris, and Lucy. 9th of April, 1967, Nora was born. October 28, 1869, Aurelia (we call her Lillie) was born. March 29, 1872, Reigo was born. March 27, 1875, we were blessed with a fine pair of twins, son and daughter, we named them Leo and Leoline.

“In the month of August 1868, I met with a very serious accident. I was run over by a load of hay and nearly killed. My left arm was paralyzed, and for the next two years I earned but very little, after which I quit farming entirely and turned my attention to house painting, graining, etc. And I gradually worked into a good business, in fact, had a great deal more work that I could possibly do.

“My brother, Charles C. Hurst and myself were called, October 11, 1875, to go to New Zealand on a special mission to the Maoris....Means I had none, and no property to dispose of, however, as soon as I heard the news, I went up to the President’s Office and had the pleasure of not only seeing Brother Brigham Jr., but also his father, President Brigham Young…And President Young informed me that he had instructed Bishop W.B. Preston to look after my family and see that they would be provided for while I was away.”