He was one of the LDS Church's earliest missionaries to Asia and was one of the leaders of the Mormon pioneers traveling in the Willie Handcart Company.
The family moved from Michigan to Nauvoo, Illinois, and later migrated as Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847.
During the move from Nauvoo to Salt Lake City, Savage enlisted in the U.S. Army as a part of the Mormon Battalion.
Savage arrived in Salt Lake City via San Diego on October 16, 1847, three weeks after the family.
At a tense meeting in Florence, Nebraska on August 13, 1856, Savage was asked for his views and told the group that he firmly believed that embarking West so late in the season was dangerous.
"[4] Over one-fifth of the group died from freezing and starvation before they arrived in Salt Lake City on November 9, 1856.
After returning to Salt Lake City with the ill-fated pioneers, Savage married Ann Brummel Cooper, a member of the Willie handcart company he helped rescue.
He left his 21-month-old son with his sister, Hannah Maria Savage Eldredge, while he served a four-year mission in the Far East.
He left for Siam on October 21, 1852, by traveling through Las Vegas, Nevada, to Los Angeles, California, and then by boat to San Francisco.
Savage is the principal character (played by actor Jasen Wade) in the T. C. Christensen film 17 Miracles.
This film is based on the actual events surrounding Savage's efforts to aid the Willie Handcart Company in their journey to Salt Lake City in 1856, emphasizing the miracles he and fellow travelers reported during the trek.