Edward Nelson Morgan was born to Daniel Morgan and Clarissa Adelaide Baxter on June 29th, 1882, at Aurora, Sevier County, Utah. Daniel owned a large tract of land which they owned until about 1889. On October 12th, 1889, Edward's youngest brother, Roy, was born. On January 10, 1890 Clarissa died, having never recovered from her illness at the birth of Roy. The family moved to Wellington, where they lived until Daniel died on October 6, 1902. During much of this time Edward herded sheep for a living. Martha Jane Patterson (Jen) was teaching school at Levan and living with Edward's grandmother Morgan and his uncle, James Morgan. Jen and Edward married on June 5, 1907. Throughout his life, Edward had many jobs and worked wherever he could. He also had many positions in the church and was faithful throughout his life. He was ordained a High Priest on November 30, 1924 by Joseph Fielding Smith.
One summer a hail storm came up and in 15 minutes destroyed their entire crop of wheat. The next year they lost about a tenth of their crop to hail. After their crop was destroyed they bought pigs and fattened them in the field, killed the pigs and hauled them to Carbon County and sold them for 10 cents a pound.
In July 1936 Edward's nephew, Dan, was killed in an auto accident in Nevada. They lived in St. George, so the family went down to the funeral. As they were returning home the car turned over and Jen was seriously injured. She died two days later, on the 17th of July. The car was driven by Evan, Edward's brother Bert and his wife, Darle and Irene, and Jen were all in the car.
Edward married Harriet Irinda Sorensen in the Salt Lake temple on June 10, 1942. They took Frieda Sorensen, Nora Burnham, and Jessie Foresgren to the Manti, St. George, and Mesa temples on their honeymoon trip.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Martha Althora Morgan Childs
Martha was born on February 22, 1914, in a little mining town called Kenilworth, Carbon, Utah. Her parents were Edward Nelson Morgan and Martha Jane Patterson, called Jen. Martha was the third child in the family. Edward Evan and Viola were older, then Darle, James, Jean, and Irene were younger. Martha's father did many things, including farming, garage work, vulcanizing, mining, traveling salesman, and a shoe repairman. While farming, they lost 60 acres of wheat to hail so Martha's parents bought pigs and fattened them in the wheat fields. James died when Martha was ten years old. He had been two, but was such a sweet child and they missed him.
Edward had many jobs, and he'd take the kids with him if he was able, so he could spend time alone with them. One time when Martha was with him, he rented a large truck to help move a family. They were going down a mountain road when the front wheel fell off the truck. They had a good laugh when they saw it running down the road ahead of them.
One spring day when Edward was away, Jen was ill. She told Vi and Martha to plant the garden and gave them the seeds to plant. They dd it as fast as they could so they could go play. When the garden came up, it was like a lawn. Everything was so thick, and they hadn't put markers up, so they didn't know where anything was planted. It was a total disaster.
In the spring they bought crepe paper and made lots of paper flowers to put on the graves. They made roses and sweet peas. None of them liked that job. Jen even said she hoped no one would ever put paper flowers on her grave. They didn't like cutting and sewing rag rugs, either. They would tear up all of their old clothes into 2" strips, them sew them together and the neighbor would make rugs out of them. When they got tired of doing that, Jen would take out her false teeth and make faces so they'd laugh and be happy again. Sometimes Jen would give the kids an egg to take to the store to buy candy. When Martha was about 13, they rode a school bus to a small town called Spring Glen to school. One day a few of them decided to sluff school. They walked across a hill to get to the town of Price. When they arrived in Price a truant officer was waiting to take them back to school. They were all expelled for a week. After returning to school a teacher asked Martha what her parents said about her sluffing school. Martha told the teacher that Jen wasn't mad since she'd done worse things than that when she was young. Evan was called on a mission to England, and in order to support him Edward went to work in the mines.
Martha married Howard Childs on February 15th, 1933 in the Manti Temple. When Martha had her first child, LeRoy, she had a hard labor and was required to stay in bed for three weeks. During this time Jean, aged 14, got very sick with appendicitis. Edward and Jen took Jean to the hospital, but the hospital wouldn't take her in without the money in advance. Edward didn't have that much money, so they had to take Jean home. It was a Friday night and the banks were closed. Edward raised the money by Monday morning, but by then Jean's appendix had ruptured and she died. Martha wasn't told because the doctor thought it would make her sicker. Martha was at her parents' place, but because there weren't mortuaries to keep the body in, Jean's body was kept at home until the funeral. The doctor moved Martha to Howard's parents' place, still without Martha knowing why.
Jen was killed in a car accident on July 19, 1936. After her death, Edward was very lonely. He spent a lot of time in Manti doing temple work. On June 10, 1942 Edward married Harriet Irenda Sorensen. They had two children, Ora and Lynn.
Martha and Howard moved with their family to Dillon, Montana, to ranch. In 1961 Martha thought she could help out with finances so she went to work in the school cafeteria. She started out as a dishwasher and worked her way up until she was the manager of the program. She did all the shopping, creating menus, and cooking. She worked there for 10 1/2 years. On January 2, 1973 Martha was on the way to work and had a car accident. She drove her car off the end of an unfinished freeway. She didn't think she was hurt so she started walking. She walked for two miles before finding anyone to help her. The men working on the road were reluctant to help her, and it took a long time to convince them to get her to a hospital or a doctor. The doctors weren't sure if she would live or in which order to try to fix her. The first operation was on her jaw, knees, and the broken bones in her elbow. The next operation was for internal bleeding. The doctors found that all the lining in her stomach had been torn to shreds. Martha was in the hospital for two to three weeks. After she got out of the hospital she had her jaws wired shut for many months. The cuts and scars had changed her lips and chin, and she was very self-conscious. An artificial elbow was put in her arm, but it was terribly painful ad she couldn't get it to work. Martha went to several doctors but they all said that she was allergic to the artificial elbow and that it had to come out. Martha finally agreed, and they removed the elbow entirely. Her right arm became 2" shorter than the left, and with limited use. It had to be picked up to be raised and didn't turn properly. The fingers were stiff and didn't bend easily, but Martha never complained. She always wore long sleeves to cover the elbow. All of her clothes have the right sleeve 2" shorter.
After Howard died, Martha moved to a condo near the River Jordan temple and worked as a receptionist for several years. Then she moved to live with her daughter Jean in Bigfork, Montana, where she died in 2004.
Edward had many jobs, and he'd take the kids with him if he was able, so he could spend time alone with them. One time when Martha was with him, he rented a large truck to help move a family. They were going down a mountain road when the front wheel fell off the truck. They had a good laugh when they saw it running down the road ahead of them.
One spring day when Edward was away, Jen was ill. She told Vi and Martha to plant the garden and gave them the seeds to plant. They dd it as fast as they could so they could go play. When the garden came up, it was like a lawn. Everything was so thick, and they hadn't put markers up, so they didn't know where anything was planted. It was a total disaster.
In the spring they bought crepe paper and made lots of paper flowers to put on the graves. They made roses and sweet peas. None of them liked that job. Jen even said she hoped no one would ever put paper flowers on her grave. They didn't like cutting and sewing rag rugs, either. They would tear up all of their old clothes into 2" strips, them sew them together and the neighbor would make rugs out of them. When they got tired of doing that, Jen would take out her false teeth and make faces so they'd laugh and be happy again. Sometimes Jen would give the kids an egg to take to the store to buy candy. When Martha was about 13, they rode a school bus to a small town called Spring Glen to school. One day a few of them decided to sluff school. They walked across a hill to get to the town of Price. When they arrived in Price a truant officer was waiting to take them back to school. They were all expelled for a week. After returning to school a teacher asked Martha what her parents said about her sluffing school. Martha told the teacher that Jen wasn't mad since she'd done worse things than that when she was young. Evan was called on a mission to England, and in order to support him Edward went to work in the mines.
Martha married Howard Childs on February 15th, 1933 in the Manti Temple. When Martha had her first child, LeRoy, she had a hard labor and was required to stay in bed for three weeks. During this time Jean, aged 14, got very sick with appendicitis. Edward and Jen took Jean to the hospital, but the hospital wouldn't take her in without the money in advance. Edward didn't have that much money, so they had to take Jean home. It was a Friday night and the banks were closed. Edward raised the money by Monday morning, but by then Jean's appendix had ruptured and she died. Martha wasn't told because the doctor thought it would make her sicker. Martha was at her parents' place, but because there weren't mortuaries to keep the body in, Jean's body was kept at home until the funeral. The doctor moved Martha to Howard's parents' place, still without Martha knowing why.
Jen was killed in a car accident on July 19, 1936. After her death, Edward was very lonely. He spent a lot of time in Manti doing temple work. On June 10, 1942 Edward married Harriet Irenda Sorensen. They had two children, Ora and Lynn.
Martha and Howard moved with their family to Dillon, Montana, to ranch. In 1961 Martha thought she could help out with finances so she went to work in the school cafeteria. She started out as a dishwasher and worked her way up until she was the manager of the program. She did all the shopping, creating menus, and cooking. She worked there for 10 1/2 years. On January 2, 1973 Martha was on the way to work and had a car accident. She drove her car off the end of an unfinished freeway. She didn't think she was hurt so she started walking. She walked for two miles before finding anyone to help her. The men working on the road were reluctant to help her, and it took a long time to convince them to get her to a hospital or a doctor. The doctors weren't sure if she would live or in which order to try to fix her. The first operation was on her jaw, knees, and the broken bones in her elbow. The next operation was for internal bleeding. The doctors found that all the lining in her stomach had been torn to shreds. Martha was in the hospital for two to three weeks. After she got out of the hospital she had her jaws wired shut for many months. The cuts and scars had changed her lips and chin, and she was very self-conscious. An artificial elbow was put in her arm, but it was terribly painful ad she couldn't get it to work. Martha went to several doctors but they all said that she was allergic to the artificial elbow and that it had to come out. Martha finally agreed, and they removed the elbow entirely. Her right arm became 2" shorter than the left, and with limited use. It had to be picked up to be raised and didn't turn properly. The fingers were stiff and didn't bend easily, but Martha never complained. She always wore long sleeves to cover the elbow. All of her clothes have the right sleeve 2" shorter.
After Howard died, Martha moved to a condo near the River Jordan temple and worked as a receptionist for several years. Then she moved to live with her daughter Jean in Bigfork, Montana, where she died in 2004.
Mary Ann Knighton Childs
Mary Ann Knighton was born in Minorsville, Skull, Pennsylvania, on July 1, 1856. Her parents, John Knighton and Mary Marsden joined the church in England and immigrated to America. They first settled in Pennsylvania, then moving to Illinois, where more children were born. In 1862, the family began their journey west with ox teams in Brother Wareham's Company. The journey was made without accident or trouble with the Indians. Mary Ann, then a girl of six, remembered finding beads and trinkets at Indian camp grounds. She also remembered crossing rivers and streams of water. They arrived in Salt Lake City in September 1862, settling in Bountiful.
In 1864 the family moved to Fort Alma, later called Monroe. During the Black Hawk days their cattle were stolen many times and always their lives were in danger. Finally Fort Alma was abandoned and the Knightons come to Fort Gunnison for protection on April 20th, 1867. As the oldest, Mary Ann was very busy helping her mother with the household work. As a young girl Mary Ann did the family spinning, making yarn for stockings, mittens and cloth used to dress the family. She made four and sometimes five skeins of yarn a day, which necessitated her walking all day using a large spinning wheel. The family of six lived in the fort in one log room having a rock floor. In the spring of 1868, the Indians stole the Knighton team and they had to give up farming. John Knighton took up shoe making as a trade instead. Mary Ann's mother, Mary, owned the first sewing machine in the fort and with the help of Mary Ann made shirts and overalls that were sold in the co-op store, managed by John Knighton.
Mary Ann married William David on November 20, 1876. They moved to Centerfield on her 21st birthday (July 1, 1877), where she lived for 60 years. In 1881 Mary Ann and one other woman cooked for 60 men who were building a railroad at Green River. That same year she and Will and two children went to to St. George to the temple to be sealed as a family. In 1890 they again went to build railroads, this time between Gunnison and Salina. This time she was the mother of eight children and did the cooking for 20 men. Mary Ann had 11 children, four of which died. Will died on September 30, 1927. Mary Ann died on April 2, 1938.
In 1864 the family moved to Fort Alma, later called Monroe. During the Black Hawk days their cattle were stolen many times and always their lives were in danger. Finally Fort Alma was abandoned and the Knightons come to Fort Gunnison for protection on April 20th, 1867. As the oldest, Mary Ann was very busy helping her mother with the household work. As a young girl Mary Ann did the family spinning, making yarn for stockings, mittens and cloth used to dress the family. She made four and sometimes five skeins of yarn a day, which necessitated her walking all day using a large spinning wheel. The family of six lived in the fort in one log room having a rock floor. In the spring of 1868, the Indians stole the Knighton team and they had to give up farming. John Knighton took up shoe making as a trade instead. Mary Ann's mother, Mary, owned the first sewing machine in the fort and with the help of Mary Ann made shirts and overalls that were sold in the co-op store, managed by John Knighton.
Mary Ann married William David on November 20, 1876. They moved to Centerfield on her 21st birthday (July 1, 1877), where she lived for 60 years. In 1881 Mary Ann and one other woman cooked for 60 men who were building a railroad at Green River. That same year she and Will and two children went to to St. George to the temple to be sealed as a family. In 1890 they again went to build railroads, this time between Gunnison and Salina. This time she was the mother of eight children and did the cooking for 20 men. Mary Ann had 11 children, four of which died. Will died on September 30, 1927. Mary Ann died on April 2, 1938.
William and Mary Childs
William David Childs was born in Salt Lake City on April 22, 1853. His parents were William and Mary Howard Childs. Both of his parents crossed the plains with the pioneers. William Childs lived in Nauvoo and knew the prophet Joseph Smith. William's first wife and two children died in Nauvoo. Mary Howard's husband died while crossing the plains in 1852. She came on to Utah with her two little girls Mary and Lavine. Later she met and married William Childs in Salt Lake City. Mary and William had five sons, of which William David was the oldest. Moroni, Parley, Lorenzo, and Edward were his brothers.
The family was called to settle the Gunnison valley in 1861, and they had to build roads as they went. It took two weeks to make the trip from Springville to Gunnison. The children were scantily clad. The only clothes they owned were the ones they wore, so their mother would spread a quilt on the floor by the fire place and cover the children with another quilt while she washed and mended their clothes. Mary made all the cloth for their clothes and they were patched until they were threadbare. Once Mary made the boys some trousers out of seamless sacks with the stripes on the outside of the leg, and Ed said they were as proud of them as boys are of their finest broadcloth suits. In the early 1860s the Childs family was called to help settle Salina. In 1865 the Indians went on the warpath, and hostilities with the Indians continued until 1870. It was known as the Black Hawk war. The whole family had many experiences with trying to stay safe from the Indians. After living in Salina for some time the Indians became so hostile that they had to move back to Gunnison and build a fort for protection. The fort inclosed four city blocks. The houses were the walls of the fort. There was always a lot of work to be done because everything was made themselves, and by hand. However, they were happy and had fun together.
When the Childs family moved out of the fort they built a cellar and two room house. William died here on August 19, 1879. Mary died at the home of Lovina on February 5, 1897.
In November 1876, Will married Mary Ann Knighton. He took up a homestead two miles south of Gunnison, which is now called Centerfield. They had 11 children.
The family was called to settle the Gunnison valley in 1861, and they had to build roads as they went. It took two weeks to make the trip from Springville to Gunnison. The children were scantily clad. The only clothes they owned were the ones they wore, so their mother would spread a quilt on the floor by the fire place and cover the children with another quilt while she washed and mended their clothes. Mary made all the cloth for their clothes and they were patched until they were threadbare. Once Mary made the boys some trousers out of seamless sacks with the stripes on the outside of the leg, and Ed said they were as proud of them as boys are of their finest broadcloth suits. In the early 1860s the Childs family was called to help settle Salina. In 1865 the Indians went on the warpath, and hostilities with the Indians continued until 1870. It was known as the Black Hawk war. The whole family had many experiences with trying to stay safe from the Indians. After living in Salina for some time the Indians became so hostile that they had to move back to Gunnison and build a fort for protection. The fort inclosed four city blocks. The houses were the walls of the fort. There was always a lot of work to be done because everything was made themselves, and by hand. However, they were happy and had fun together.
When the Childs family moved out of the fort they built a cellar and two room house. William died here on August 19, 1879. Mary died at the home of Lovina on February 5, 1897.
In November 1876, Will married Mary Ann Knighton. He took up a homestead two miles south of Gunnison, which is now called Centerfield. They had 11 children.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Jens and Marie Jensen (mom's great-grandparents)
Jens Jensen was born in a small country town in Denmark called Horsens, on Sept 21, 1848. His parents, Jens Samuelsen and his wife Karen, made their living doing farm work. Jens was the 7th child in a family of 11 children. Obedience, honesty, and reverence for God was taught. When he was seven years old, he was hired out to herd geese. At that time people were not hired out for a day, week, or month, but by six months or a year at a time. Jens continued to work for this family until he was 22, when he was called into the Kings service in training for a soldier. After two years of service, he came back to work for the same people.
About this time Jens met Marie, who as born on February11th, 1853, in Sulsted, Denmark, as the oldest child in a family of six. Her parents were Jens Rasmussen and Jensine Christiane, and Marie had been raised in poor circumstances. Marie would be hired out during the summer and then come home in the winter to take care of her sick mother. Jensine finally died, leaving a baby nine months old. The children were sent out to relatives and Marie was again hired out. Jens remarried and the children were gathered back together again, but met and married Jens Jensen. Marie was trained in tailoring and dress making. She bought a sewing machine and became very efficient in sewing.
Jens and Marie were married on June 5th, 1876. They stayed in the country for a short time, but soon decided they could live better if they moved to the city of Aalborg, which they did about 1877. Marie went to work in a laundry to help get bedding and furnishings for the new apartment in the city, while Jens worked as a mason for the same contractor for eighteen years. He was a very efficient brick layer and cement worker and became foreman of the men working for the contractor. Marie lost her first three babies due to overwork, so she quit work to care for her next baby and six more children were born to them during the 1880s and early 1890s.
About 1891, Andrew Jensen, a missionary from America came to their home. This was Jens's childhood neighbor from Horsins who had embraced the gospel and emigrated to Utah, then came back to serve a mission in Denmark. He vowed that as soon as he came to Denmark he would find Jens and Marie and share the gospel with them, which he did. Marie knew right away that it was true. Many afternoons were spent discussing the gospel principles and when Jens came home the discussions continued long into the night. The gospel was a great comfort to them because their 4-year-old girl had died in 1888. Her death had given them much sorrow because they didn't know if they would ever see her again. On June 26th, 1892, Jens and Marie were baptized. They lost all of their friends and most of their relatives when they joined the church. About this time, a niece and nephew of Marie's came from Russia where their parents were working and had sent their children to Denmark for schooling. Since Jens and Marie were Mormons, the niece and nephew were sent to a different relative in the city. The relative didn't send the children to school, so later they came to live with Jens and Marie. These children also learned of the gospel and later when their parents returned from Russia, all were baptized into the church.
Now the spirit of the gathering to Zion came to Jens and Marie, but they didn't have enough money for a family of seven to travel to Zion. When Andrew Jensen was released to come home, he offered to bring the oldest child, a girl of 13 (Kate) and give her a home until Jens and Marie could come. So Kate was sent 7,000 miles away. This was a great trial and test of faith on their part. Kate left with Andrew Jensen on April 26th, 1893, and Marie was very lonesome for her. On July 24th, 1893, Christine was born to them. A missionary from Brigham City, L.F. Johnson, said when he came home that he would send for James, their next oldest, now 11 years old. On August 11th, 1893, James was sent with strangers to Zion. This was hard for Jens and Marie, but their faith kept them going. They worked hard. Besides Jens's usual work in the day time, he was janitor in evenings for a large club house, and firing the furnace in a church. He also had such jobs as white washing to make more money so the time could come soon when the rest of the family could come to join the children already in Zion. Their daughter, Johanna, remembered sitting on a chair in the meeting house to be named, since the sprinkling of infants, such as she had, wasn't correct. How they prayed to the Lord to help them come to Utah! Johanna was baptized on May 21st, 1894, at nearly midnight in the Linafjord. Someone walked over the railroad bridge crossing the fjord and everyone was quiet at the waters edge underneath the bridge so they wouldn't get caught.
On July 24th, 1895, the family left Denmark to come to Utah. It took nearly a month. The family was very seasick on the voyage. They sailed from Aalborg to Copenhagen, then crossed the North Sea, then spent five days in Glasgow waiting for the steamer to take them across the Atlantic. They spent 12 days crossing the Atlantic Ocean, landing in New York Harbor in the afternoon. Jens was very sick and all their belongings had been taken from the ship and placed in a large warehouse where all the trunks were opened and the custom agent searched them for anything that wasn't allowed. Marie discovered that their bedding with the other sacks were missing, so she hunted through the warehouse until she found it. With two large rolls and sacks and with the baby on one arm, dragging bedding with the other, she finally got them to the rest of their luggage where Jens sat in terrible pain. Mary and Johanna sat with Jens, not daring to leave him for fear they would be lost. They traveled eight days by train to Utah. They ate food that they had brought from Aalborg. The family arrived in Manti on August 18th and in Centerfield on August 22, 1895, where they went to the home of Andrew Jensen. Kate had gone to live in Sterling with Bishop C.N. Christensen, whose wife was in and needed help (Kate had been there for two years). People were good to the family, but Johanna remembered being mercilessly teased by the other children for her clothing and accent.
Life was very different to their way of living in Denmark, but their testimony and love of the gospel made them feel it was a better way. Work was scarce, and no one had money to pay for hired help. Jens took whatever jobs he could get to support his family, but it was hard to get food and clothes. They were blessed of the Lord and conditions became better. They added to their house and planted trees and a garden. James came home from Brigham City, but later went back here and married. The girls married in Centerfield. Jens and Marie were worn out. They went to live with Johanna, where Jens died on July 14th, 1918. Marie lived with Johanna for another five years, then went back to the home that Jens had built for her. Her sons-in-law built Marie a home next to Johanna's, so Marie went to live there. She died on November 15th, 1933. Her last deed while conscious was to pay her tithing. She tried to be perfect in every way. Kindness and honesty were her watchwords and motto.
About this time Jens met Marie, who as born on February11th, 1853, in Sulsted, Denmark, as the oldest child in a family of six. Her parents were Jens Rasmussen and Jensine Christiane, and Marie had been raised in poor circumstances. Marie would be hired out during the summer and then come home in the winter to take care of her sick mother. Jensine finally died, leaving a baby nine months old. The children were sent out to relatives and Marie was again hired out. Jens remarried and the children were gathered back together again, but met and married Jens Jensen. Marie was trained in tailoring and dress making. She bought a sewing machine and became very efficient in sewing.
Jens and Marie were married on June 5th, 1876. They stayed in the country for a short time, but soon decided they could live better if they moved to the city of Aalborg, which they did about 1877. Marie went to work in a laundry to help get bedding and furnishings for the new apartment in the city, while Jens worked as a mason for the same contractor for eighteen years. He was a very efficient brick layer and cement worker and became foreman of the men working for the contractor. Marie lost her first three babies due to overwork, so she quit work to care for her next baby and six more children were born to them during the 1880s and early 1890s.
About 1891, Andrew Jensen, a missionary from America came to their home. This was Jens's childhood neighbor from Horsins who had embraced the gospel and emigrated to Utah, then came back to serve a mission in Denmark. He vowed that as soon as he came to Denmark he would find Jens and Marie and share the gospel with them, which he did. Marie knew right away that it was true. Many afternoons were spent discussing the gospel principles and when Jens came home the discussions continued long into the night. The gospel was a great comfort to them because their 4-year-old girl had died in 1888. Her death had given them much sorrow because they didn't know if they would ever see her again. On June 26th, 1892, Jens and Marie were baptized. They lost all of their friends and most of their relatives when they joined the church. About this time, a niece and nephew of Marie's came from Russia where their parents were working and had sent their children to Denmark for schooling. Since Jens and Marie were Mormons, the niece and nephew were sent to a different relative in the city. The relative didn't send the children to school, so later they came to live with Jens and Marie. These children also learned of the gospel and later when their parents returned from Russia, all were baptized into the church.
Now the spirit of the gathering to Zion came to Jens and Marie, but they didn't have enough money for a family of seven to travel to Zion. When Andrew Jensen was released to come home, he offered to bring the oldest child, a girl of 13 (Kate) and give her a home until Jens and Marie could come. So Kate was sent 7,000 miles away. This was a great trial and test of faith on their part. Kate left with Andrew Jensen on April 26th, 1893, and Marie was very lonesome for her. On July 24th, 1893, Christine was born to them. A missionary from Brigham City, L.F. Johnson, said when he came home that he would send for James, their next oldest, now 11 years old. On August 11th, 1893, James was sent with strangers to Zion. This was hard for Jens and Marie, but their faith kept them going. They worked hard. Besides Jens's usual work in the day time, he was janitor in evenings for a large club house, and firing the furnace in a church. He also had such jobs as white washing to make more money so the time could come soon when the rest of the family could come to join the children already in Zion. Their daughter, Johanna, remembered sitting on a chair in the meeting house to be named, since the sprinkling of infants, such as she had, wasn't correct. How they prayed to the Lord to help them come to Utah! Johanna was baptized on May 21st, 1894, at nearly midnight in the Linafjord. Someone walked over the railroad bridge crossing the fjord and everyone was quiet at the waters edge underneath the bridge so they wouldn't get caught.
On July 24th, 1895, the family left Denmark to come to Utah. It took nearly a month. The family was very seasick on the voyage. They sailed from Aalborg to Copenhagen, then crossed the North Sea, then spent five days in Glasgow waiting for the steamer to take them across the Atlantic. They spent 12 days crossing the Atlantic Ocean, landing in New York Harbor in the afternoon. Jens was very sick and all their belongings had been taken from the ship and placed in a large warehouse where all the trunks were opened and the custom agent searched them for anything that wasn't allowed. Marie discovered that their bedding with the other sacks were missing, so she hunted through the warehouse until she found it. With two large rolls and sacks and with the baby on one arm, dragging bedding with the other, she finally got them to the rest of their luggage where Jens sat in terrible pain. Mary and Johanna sat with Jens, not daring to leave him for fear they would be lost. They traveled eight days by train to Utah. They ate food that they had brought from Aalborg. The family arrived in Manti on August 18th and in Centerfield on August 22, 1895, where they went to the home of Andrew Jensen. Kate had gone to live in Sterling with Bishop C.N. Christensen, whose wife was in and needed help (Kate had been there for two years). People were good to the family, but Johanna remembered being mercilessly teased by the other children for her clothing and accent.
Life was very different to their way of living in Denmark, but their testimony and love of the gospel made them feel it was a better way. Work was scarce, and no one had money to pay for hired help. Jens took whatever jobs he could get to support his family, but it was hard to get food and clothes. They were blessed of the Lord and conditions became better. They added to their house and planted trees and a garden. James came home from Brigham City, but later went back here and married. The girls married in Centerfield. Jens and Marie were worn out. They went to live with Johanna, where Jens died on July 14th, 1918. Marie lived with Johanna for another five years, then went back to the home that Jens had built for her. Her sons-in-law built Marie a home next to Johanna's, so Marie went to live there. She died on November 15th, 1933. Her last deed while conscious was to pay her tithing. She tried to be perfect in every way. Kindness and honesty were her watchwords and motto.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Sorry: a conversation with Mom
Tell me about going to catch the wild horses and getting Sorry.
We went to get our mares one day, and the mares weren't in the pasture. We searched and searched for them. We knew there were wild horses up in the Sweetwater mountains, and figured that they had taken our mares. There was a wild black stallion that had stolen all the horses. He was so quick that it was hard to see him, but we found that our horses were in this pack. When they were running, the stallion would lead the pack, but when they came to a fence, he would go to the middle of the pack and the mares would break through the fence. We went up to the mountains again, and there was a corral that was up there. We went up (Les, DeVon, Errol, Grandpa, me), riding horses and driving the pickup to try to head them off and get them into the corral. It was sagebrush country, and it was a wild ride with lots of adrenaline. We got some of the horses from the wild band, but not all, and not the stallion because he was so wild and quick. We got our mares and a few others - seven or eight. One mare had a sorrel colt (later named Sorry), and we took the colt and our mares and turned the others loose.
Why did you take Sorry? Because he was no one's horse. He was just a colt that belonged to no one.
Why did you name him Sorry? Errol named him because he was a sorrel and sometimes he felt sorry that he had taken him into captivity - that Sorry couldn't run wild anymore. A few years later we found that the stallion had been shot. When Grandpa left the ranch, he took Snip and Sorry.
Who was Snip? One day, up in the mountains, there were about 200 wild horses. Someone in the area captured all these horses and brought them into the fairgrounds and had a wild horse sale. Grandpa bought Snip, a wild black stallion. He had a little white marking on his nose, and he was really spirited. Grandpa loved him because of that, so he kept Snip and Sorry when he sold the ranch, and took them to Utah with him. One winter Grandpa took the horses down to DeVon in Cedar City and DeVon was supposed to be caring for them. Snip died, and Grandpa thought that DeVon hadn't taken care of him well enough. When Grandpa died, DeVon still had property in Cedar City to keep Sorry on, but Mom got him instead.
Why did you get Sorry when Grandpa died? I rode Sorry. Sorry became my horse when all the brothers had left home. If Snip was available, he was ridden by someone else, not me, but I rode Sorry all the time. When Grandpa died, DeVon and I were the only ones that had property to keep Sorry on. Because he was my horse, I got Sorry when Grandpa died.
How did Sorry die? How old was he? When Sorry died, he was over 30. Sorry died from a heart attack while we were in Salt Lake during spring break. I wanted to keep the hide with the brand, but that part of the hide had decayed by the time we got back from Salt Lake. We buried Sorry in the pasture and tacked up some of the hide on the outhouse.
We went to get our mares one day, and the mares weren't in the pasture. We searched and searched for them. We knew there were wild horses up in the Sweetwater mountains, and figured that they had taken our mares. There was a wild black stallion that had stolen all the horses. He was so quick that it was hard to see him, but we found that our horses were in this pack. When they were running, the stallion would lead the pack, but when they came to a fence, he would go to the middle of the pack and the mares would break through the fence. We went up to the mountains again, and there was a corral that was up there. We went up (Les, DeVon, Errol, Grandpa, me), riding horses and driving the pickup to try to head them off and get them into the corral. It was sagebrush country, and it was a wild ride with lots of adrenaline. We got some of the horses from the wild band, but not all, and not the stallion because he was so wild and quick. We got our mares and a few others - seven or eight. One mare had a sorrel colt (later named Sorry), and we took the colt and our mares and turned the others loose.
Why did you take Sorry? Because he was no one's horse. He was just a colt that belonged to no one.
Why did you name him Sorry? Errol named him because he was a sorrel and sometimes he felt sorry that he had taken him into captivity - that Sorry couldn't run wild anymore. A few years later we found that the stallion had been shot. When Grandpa left the ranch, he took Snip and Sorry.
Who was Snip? One day, up in the mountains, there were about 200 wild horses. Someone in the area captured all these horses and brought them into the fairgrounds and had a wild horse sale. Grandpa bought Snip, a wild black stallion. He had a little white marking on his nose, and he was really spirited. Grandpa loved him because of that, so he kept Snip and Sorry when he sold the ranch, and took them to Utah with him. One winter Grandpa took the horses down to DeVon in Cedar City and DeVon was supposed to be caring for them. Snip died, and Grandpa thought that DeVon hadn't taken care of him well enough. When Grandpa died, DeVon still had property in Cedar City to keep Sorry on, but Mom got him instead.
Why did you get Sorry when Grandpa died? I rode Sorry. Sorry became my horse when all the brothers had left home. If Snip was available, he was ridden by someone else, not me, but I rode Sorry all the time. When Grandpa died, DeVon and I were the only ones that had property to keep Sorry on. Because he was my horse, I got Sorry when Grandpa died.
How did Sorry die? How old was he? When Sorry died, he was over 30. Sorry died from a heart attack while we were in Salt Lake during spring break. I wanted to keep the hide with the brand, but that part of the hide had decayed by the time we got back from Salt Lake. We buried Sorry in the pasture and tacked up some of the hide on the outhouse.
Monday, August 12, 2013
Howard William Childs (Grandpa)
Howard went to school in Centerfield in a little rock building. Much of his time he didn't go to school because he had to work. When he was in 2nd or 3rd grade the family moved to Winkleman so his dad could work in the mines. There was no school there so the two years they lived there the children did not go to school. While at Winkleman they lived in tents. One tent was the bedroom, which had no heart, and the other tent was the living quarters, which had wooden slats for a floor. One time a skunk came in the tent and went under the bed. Quite a stink before the skunk was put in its place. The children enjoyed their time in Winkle man, as they would spend their time in adventure and play. An old engine was a favorite place to play. The winters were cold and the snow was very deep. Howard's father was working in the mine at Big Rock Candy Mountain. Howard graduated from 8th grade but he would only attend high school during the winter months or when he did not have work.
Howard and Martha had been ranching in Nevada and loving it. They were paid well, but decided to go to a copper mine 50 miles from Ely on a get rich quick scheme. Howard was to work in the mine and Martha was to cook for 4 or 5 men. They spent all their savings on food and drove their Plymouth out to the tiny little shack. After a time the boss said he would go into Ely for more food. He didn't come back. Once they realized they were abandoned they loaded up their car with the family and the extra men and had to siphon gas out of an ore truck to get back to town. They drove into Ely penniless. Howard had a cousin in Ely, Beth and Bob Larsen, who took them in. Howard and Martha and children lived upstairs. They stayed with Bob and Beth until they had earned enough money to buy a lot and even build a home on it. Their time in Ely was a fun time with friends.
During WWII Howard worked his father's farm of 40 acres with horses. The watering was done in furrows and sometimes when there wasn't an abundance of water only one or two rows could be watered at a time so Howard would turn the water into those rows and then walk to the bottom of those rows and lay down and sleep and when the water reached him it would wake him and he would then turn the water into the next rows and do it again. Howard drove milk truck hauling milk to Monroe. He picked up milk from the dairies in10-gallon milk cans. Howard could pick up a 10-gallon milk can with each hand and lift them onto the bed of the truck all day long.
After the family had moved to Dillon, the summer range for the cattle was in the Sweetwater mountains east of Dillon. Up on the upper pasture in the Sweetwater some horses came up missing. Howard went looking for them and discovered them with a big red wild stallion and his band. It took many trips and much adventure before finally being able to corral the mares, but the stallion was never surrounded. He would lead the herd all over those mountains. DeVon, Errol, and Howard were able to get the mares back and also there was a 6-month-old sorrel cold that they caught and brought home and named Sorry. Snip was a black stallion that was purchased at a wild horse auction in Dillon. He was a spirited animal but respectful. Was quick to learn but was fast as a flash. There were other horses that Howard worked with that he raised or purchased. He trained many horses over the years. Snip was his favorite, however, and then Sorry. These horses he brought with him to Utah when he sold out. We have a picture of me on Sorry when I was a kid. After Howard died, Sorry came to Mom, and he lived with us for many years.
One Sunday when Howard and Martha were living in Dillon, Howard had a terrible accident. The family had left for church and Howard went to elevate the grain from the truck into the barn. He had the tractor running with the power take-off engaged to elevate the grain. The power take-off had a nail in it and Howard somehow got his coat snagged and caught. He was wrapped around and around and his clothes bound tighter and tighter. He was knocked unconscious and when he came to, the tractor was turned off. He would have been killed had the tractor not been stopped. Standing by the tractor was Howard's grandfather and grandmother, William David and Mary Ann Knighton Childs. Howard made his way to the house and called Martha at church and she came home and took him to the hospital. His lungs were badly damaged and they collapsed several times and his skin and body were terribly ripped up. It was a pretty scary time because of his extensive injuries. It took him months and months to recover.
When Howard's kids were old enough to get a job they didn't have any trouble because Howard had taught them how to work and hopefully they had some common sense, too. Howard would give the kids lambs, steers, and foals. Many of these animals were taken to the fair and sold. The kids were blessed in other ways too because they learned to do almost anything from mechanics to building. Some of the values that Howard lived by were work, work, and work. Be thrifty, take care of what you have, don't be wasteful, and don't be a saucerhead. If life is hard, don't pout or cry. Get back to work and get on with life.
Howard and Martha had been ranching in Nevada and loving it. They were paid well, but decided to go to a copper mine 50 miles from Ely on a get rich quick scheme. Howard was to work in the mine and Martha was to cook for 4 or 5 men. They spent all their savings on food and drove their Plymouth out to the tiny little shack. After a time the boss said he would go into Ely for more food. He didn't come back. Once they realized they were abandoned they loaded up their car with the family and the extra men and had to siphon gas out of an ore truck to get back to town. They drove into Ely penniless. Howard had a cousin in Ely, Beth and Bob Larsen, who took them in. Howard and Martha and children lived upstairs. They stayed with Bob and Beth until they had earned enough money to buy a lot and even build a home on it. Their time in Ely was a fun time with friends.
After the family had moved to Dillon, the summer range for the cattle was in the Sweetwater mountains east of Dillon. Up on the upper pasture in the Sweetwater some horses came up missing. Howard went looking for them and discovered them with a big red wild stallion and his band. It took many trips and much adventure before finally being able to corral the mares, but the stallion was never surrounded. He would lead the herd all over those mountains. DeVon, Errol, and Howard were able to get the mares back and also there was a 6-month-old sorrel cold that they caught and brought home and named Sorry. Snip was a black stallion that was purchased at a wild horse auction in Dillon. He was a spirited animal but respectful. Was quick to learn but was fast as a flash. There were other horses that Howard worked with that he raised or purchased. He trained many horses over the years. Snip was his favorite, however, and then Sorry. These horses he brought with him to Utah when he sold out. We have a picture of me on Sorry when I was a kid. After Howard died, Sorry came to Mom, and he lived with us for many years.
One Sunday when Howard and Martha were living in Dillon, Howard had a terrible accident. The family had left for church and Howard went to elevate the grain from the truck into the barn. He had the tractor running with the power take-off engaged to elevate the grain. The power take-off had a nail in it and Howard somehow got his coat snagged and caught. He was wrapped around and around and his clothes bound tighter and tighter. He was knocked unconscious and when he came to, the tractor was turned off. He would have been killed had the tractor not been stopped. Standing by the tractor was Howard's grandfather and grandmother, William David and Mary Ann Knighton Childs. Howard made his way to the house and called Martha at church and she came home and took him to the hospital. His lungs were badly damaged and they collapsed several times and his skin and body were terribly ripped up. It was a pretty scary time because of his extensive injuries. It took him months and months to recover.
When Howard's kids were old enough to get a job they didn't have any trouble because Howard had taught them how to work and hopefully they had some common sense, too. Howard would give the kids lambs, steers, and foals. Many of these animals were taken to the fair and sold. The kids were blessed in other ways too because they learned to do almost anything from mechanics to building. Some of the values that Howard lived by were work, work, and work. Be thrifty, take care of what you have, don't be wasteful, and don't be a saucerhead. If life is hard, don't pout or cry. Get back to work and get on with life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)