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.