Virginia converted to Catholicism, fulfilling a promise she had made to herself while observing Patrick Breen pray in his cabin. The Murphy survivors lived in Marysville, California. The Breens made their way to San Juan Bautista, California, where they operated an inn. They became the anonymous subjects of J. Ross Browne's story about his severe discomfort upon learning that he was staying with alleged cannibals, printed in in 1862. Many of the survivors encountered similar reactions.