Swen Lester (aka Lester Wood) Carlson

Other Events and Attributes:

• Initiatory (LDS): IFALL
• FamilySearch ID: KWDN-9Q9

Swen married Anna Elizabeth Gleason on 8 Jul 1922 in Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States. Anna was born on 5 Feb 1901 in Helsingør, Frederiksborg, Sjælland, Kongeriget Danmark; died on 26 May 1981 in Bountiful, Davis, Utah, United States; was buried in American Fork, Utah, Utah, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Lester Gleason Carlson was born on 29 Jan 1923 in Logan, Cache, Utah, United States; died on 30 Dec 1951 in Roosevelt, Gila, Arizona, United States; was buried in American Fork, Utah, Utah, United States.

Swen married Inez Sarah Manulkin on 1 Oct 1950 in Seattle, King, Washington, United States. Inez was born on 29 Aug 1911 in Brooklyn, Kings, New York, United States; died on 1 Apr 1997 in Laguna Hills, Orange, California, United States; was buried on 4 Apr 1997 in El Toro Memorial Park, Lake Forest, Orange, California, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: 26LC-MY3
• Initiatory (LDS): 24 Feb 1904, LOGAN

Swen married Sarah Ellen Wood on 3 May 1900 in Logan, Cache, Utah, United States. Sarah (daughter of George Shaw Wood and Mary Hirst) was born on 10 Oct 1878 in Wellsville, Cache, Utah, United States; died on 27 Nov 1962 in Logan, Cache, Utah, United States; was buried on 30 Nov 1962 in Logan, Cache, Utah, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: KWC5-MS7
• Initiatory (LDS): 24 Feb 1904, LOGAN

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: KWN5-JGL
• Initiatory (LDS): 29 Mar 1866, EHOUS

Notes:

Memories of grandpa George Wood (jr.) by Lee Carlson

Grandfather George Wood, [Jr.] was a short fellow, about five foot five/ s ix inches tall and very distinguished looking. I only knew him, when h e w as older and he had nice grey hair and wore a goatee, without mustach e. H e was born February 1, 1840, in Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, England. Th e stor y is told, that, at about age 16, he came from England with his mo ther, R ebecca Shaw Wood, with two of his sisters, Alice and Mary, and hi s brothe r, John—coming across the plains with handcarts. His parents, Ge orge Woo d (born Jan 26, 1813) and Rebecca Shaw had been married Februar y 25, 1838 . The family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S aints in En gland and wished to come and join the Saints in Utah. He rece ived his end owments March 29, 1866, possibly serving a mission, and wa s then marrie d and sealed June 21, 1869 in the Endowment House, Salt Lak e City to Mar y Hirst.
In 1912, Grandpa sold the Wellsville area farm, took a vacation, to hi s h omeland—England--and visited his sons in Rexburg. All of them had hom este aded in Rexburg years earlier. Then, he moved to Logan, where he bou ght t wo 4-room [duplex?] homes at 460 South Main Street. Grandpa lived i n on e home; and my Aunt Ellen (his sister), lived in the other. Aunt Ell en to ok care of his needs until he died December 28, 1924, nearly 85 yea rs old . He was buried inWellsville.

George married Mary Hirst on 21 Jun 1869 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States. Mary (daughter of John Hirst and Charlotte Brook) was born on 1 May 1848 in Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, England; died on 5 Mar 1909 in Rexburg, Madison, Idaho, United States; was buried on 11 Mar 1909 in Wellsville City Cemetery, Cache, Utah, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: LKVY-THC
• Initiatory (LDS): 1 Feb 1869, EHOUS

Notes:

Memories of grandma Mary Hirst Wood, by Lee Carlson

Grandmother Mary Hirst Wood. Was born May 1, 1848, in Slaithwaite, Yorks h ire, England. She was the seventh child born to John Hirst (a farmer a n d cattle rancher, who was born January 7, 1816 in England) and Charlot t e Brook (who was born 1819 in England). They settled on a farm at Colle g e Ward, near Wellsville, Utah. Their children were: Mary Alice (b. 1870 ) , George Hirst (b. 1871), John Hirst (b. 1873), Henry Hirst (b. 1874) , Jo seph Hirst (b. 1876), Sarah Ellen (my mother, b. 1878), Ann (b. 1879 ; d . 1898), Martha Rebecca (b. 1882, d. 8 hours later), Ida Hirst (b. 18 84) , Ida Hirst (b. 1884), Ella Wood (b. 1885), Margaret (b. 1888), Willi am B rook Hirst (b. 1889, d. 1902), and Olive (b. 1891). All thirteen o f the c hildren were born in Wellsville. My grandmother, Mary Hirst Wood , died i n Rexburg, Idaho, on March 5, 1909, at the age of fifty. She wa s buried i n Wellsville.

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: LLM4-8L7
• Initiatory (LDS): 10 Nov 1887, LOGAN

George married Rebecca Shaw on 25 Feb 1838 in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England. Rebecca was born on 17 Apr 1817 in Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, England; was christened on 25 Apr 1817 in Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, England; died on 30 Aug 1900 in Murray, Salt Lake, Utah, United States; was buried on 2 Sep 1900 in Murray, Salt Lake, Utah, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: KWVW-TJ4
• Initiatory (LDS): 3 May 1862, EHOUS

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: KWVH-TDB
• Initiatory (LDS): 1 Feb 1869, EHOUS

Notes:

Family Records

Salt Lake Sealings, 25261 pt 1, p 244

Occupation: Farmer, Cattleman

Pioneer
John G. Holman Company (1868) Age at departure: 52
About 650 individuals and 62 wagons were in the company when it beg a n i t s journey from the outfitting post at Benton, Wyoming.

Burial: Salt Lake City Cemetery plot: I_13_10_1W

History: They left England 20 June or 20 May 1868, sailing on the pack e t ship "Emerald Isle" over 8 weeks on the Atlantic. Aunt Nancy bore a b ab y girl on the ship, who they named "Emerald." They were with over 80 0 LD S Saints on board. 37 people died. He was a presiding Elder in Magn a (the n Pleasant Green) Utah and was Branch President up to the time h e died. A fter that time, the branch became a Ward. The history of Pleasa nt Green W ard reported: in 1877 a branch organization was effected wit h John Hirs t as presiding Elder and the same year an adobe meeting hous e was built , which served the branch and later the ward, until 1897, whe n it was rep laced by a substantial brick chapel. Elder Hirst died Set. 7 , 1878 and wa s succeeded as presiding Elder by Lehi Nephi Hardman (who b ecame bishop w hen the ward was created as part of the Salt Lake Stake o n Oct. 1, 1882 . It became part of Pioneer Stake on 1904.)

John married Charlotte Brook on 5 Nov 1837 in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England. Charlotte (daughter of George Brook and Hannah Bottomley) was born on 20 Feb 1819 in Salendine Nook, Yorkshire, England; was christened on 20 Feb 1819 in Salendine Nook, Yorkshire, England; died on 20 Jun 1880 in Brighton, Salt Lake, Utah, United States; was buried on 28 Jun 1880 in Salt Lake City Cemetery, Salt Lake, Utah, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FamilySearch ID: LKVY-TH3
• Initiatory (LDS): 1 Feb 1869, EHOUS

Notes:

Burial: Salt Lake City Cemetery plot: I_13_10_1W

John HIRST and Charlotte BROOK
Pioneers
Written by Ellen Hirst Whipple-a daughter ,
and Henrietta Taylor-a granddaughter.
Combined with additions by Julie Robinson Smith 2009

John HIRST was born on 7 January (or March) 1816 in the village of S l aithwaite, near Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England. John was the only so n o f Abraham HIRST and Nancy SYKES. Abraham and Nancy lived off of thei r lan d in the picturesque little farming and factory community. John rem aine d on the farm working with his parents until he was twenty-three yea rs ol d. He then acquired a small farm of his own in Slaithwaite and i t was t o this cottage that John brought his lovely bride, to begin thei r new lif e together.
John’s bride was nineteen year-old Charlotte BROOK, the daughter o f W illiam (or George) BROOK and Hannah BOTTOMLEY. John and Charlotte exc hang ed sacred vows of matrimony on 5 November 1837. This fortunate coupl e wa s blessed with thirteen children: Abraham born 2 April 1838, James 3 1 Mar ch 1839, Harriet 10 June 1841, Hannah12 January 1843, Nancy 15 Nove mber 1 844, Eliza 21 February 1846, Mary 1 May 1848, Martha 15 June 1850 , Fanny1 0 May 1852, John Jr. 12 January 1855, Sarah 29 July 1857, Charlo tte 9 Dec ember 1859, and Ellen 3 Feb 1862. The family experienced grea t joy and ex ceptional sorrow together. Some of their greatest mourning c ame when thei r first two boys, both Abraham and James died as infants, a nd again at th e death of their darling seventeen year-old daughter Hanna h.
Being naturally of a religious turn of mind, John readily conceded t h e rights of humble Elders who came to his village preaching the newly r es tored gospel of Jesus Christ in this Latter-day. He investigated the g osp el message they preached and gladly accepted the truth as is was expl aine d to him. Charlotte also welcomed these missionaries into their hom e an d listened attentively to the story of the great Plan of Happiness . She w as inspired by the news that the priesthood had been restored aga in to ea rth from heaven, so that families could be united eternally. Cha rlotte wo uld have again her little lost boys and daughter to rear durin g the mille nnium! This message went straight to their hearts such that a t Linthwaite , on 3 April 1852, Elder Johanthan Midgley baptized John Hir st a member o f the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Charlott e followed hi s example and entered the waters of baptism on 10 April 185 2. Elder Wrigh t Beaumont performed Charlotte’s ordinance at Slaithwait e while Elder Geo rge C Reiser, another missionary, was a witness. John w as also ordaine d a Priest in 1852 by Elder William Noble, and soon there after was ordain ed an Elder.
The Hirst family commenced to look forward to emigrating to Utah, t h e land of cherished hopes. With this end in view, all the children wh o we re able to do so, worked in the cotton mills of Yorkshire and save d thei r hard-earned money towards the realization of their dream to gath er wit h the Saints in the Rocky Mountains! For the next sixteen years Jo hn serv ed as the Branch President of his local congregation, the meeting s for wh ich were held at the Hirst home. Also John was called as a “hom e missiona ry and a traveling Elder” throughout England, during those lon g years o f saving for emigration; throughout which time his cottage wa s always rea dily open to all missionaries. The Hirsts moved from Slaithw aite to Longw ood, (which is also near Huddersfield), and finally to Todm orden; but des pite transience, their hearth was never without welcomed g uests in gospe l association. Charles W. Penrose and many other prominen t men of the chu rch visited at the Hirst residences.
The Hirst girls were beautiful and active sisters. Because their par e nts were “Mormons” and due in part to the fact that church meetings we r e held in their home, the Hirst daughters had many trials of persecuti o n to pass through. Their companions and friends began to shun them an d mi streat them. To try to mollify this situation, the sister began to a tten d the Baptist Church, while their father held meetings at home. Th e girl s were each in turn baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of La tter-da y Saints and supported their parents greatly by ultimately makin g it poss ible to emigrate to Zion as a family-the goal for which they ea ch had bee n praying and working toward, for nearly two decades !
When the preparations to depart for America had been made and everyt h ing arranged the family experience an extreme mix of emotions. First th e y each were thrilled at the prospects of finally being able to go a s a fa mily to join with the Saints living near a prophet of God; yet the y wer e also filled with despair at the realization that they would be se parate d from their beloved daughters Eliza Hirst Gledhill, Martha Hirs t Taylor , and Harriet Hirst Marshall; since these dear siblings had marr ied and n eeded to stay behind in England for the present. Eventually Eli za and Mar tha were able to also travel with their families to Utah, bu t the Marshal l family did not relocate to the Rocky Mountain Region, des pite the fac t that Thomas, Harriet’s husband, did join the Church.
John, Charlotte, John Jr. (the only living brother), Hannah, Nanc y ( and her husband Mr. Dearden), Mary, Fanny, Sarah, Charlotte, and Elle n, a ll sailed from Liverpool on 20 June 1868 on the sailing vessel, “Eme ral d Isle”, bound for the Promised Land! The Emerald Isle was “and old f ashi oned packet of sailing variety”. John was fifty-two years-old and Ch arlot te, fifty. The children ranged in ages from twenty-five to six year s-old . There were Eight-hundred seventy-six Saints on board ship under t he lea dership of Hans Jensen Hald. After only a few days journey it wa s discove red, to the consternation of all on board, that the apparatus u sed for fi ltering the drinking water was unserviceable, and this necessi tated every one drinking the water from the huge tanks in an unsanitary c ondition. Th is fact, coupled with the very restricted space and exceptio nally crowde d quarters, as well as the long tedious ocean journey of eig ht heart-brea king weeks, caused agonizing sickness to spread throughou t the passengers . Almost every other day of the trip, someone died! Th e first to be lower ed to a watery grave was a two-year old toddler. On e particularly horrifi c day found the death’s toll at six! During the en suing terrifying days t he list of the departed mounted higher and highe r until, appallingly thir ty-seven souls lost their lives while on boar d and had to be buried at se a. Violent storms were encountered by the ve ssel practically the entire w ay across the Atlantic-all were at the comp lete mercy of violent waves fo r many days at a time. The voyage was so r ough that it seemed as though t he ship would be sunk.
Charlotte brought with her a sack of Chamomile flowers. She boile d t he water her family drank mixed with these flowers making a kind of h erba l tea which likely protected the health of her family during the jou rney . None of the Hirst family became ill. The Hirsts were additionall y bles sed and elated when their married daughter Nancy Dearden, gave bir th to h er first child while midway across the ocean. The infant was an a dorabl e little girl, thus she was christened for the ship upon which sh e was bo rn, and named “Emerald”. They arrived safely in New York harbo r the 11 Au gust 1868, after fifty-six long treacherous days. The Emeral d Isle then b egan a return trip which ended in tragedy as she sank-cargo , crew, and al l-just within reach of its destination of England!
The exhausted traveler next boarded the train in New York and rod e a s far as Fort Bonton, the then terminus of the railroad line. Fort Bo nto n was about seven-hundred miles west of Omaha. The Hirst clan gratefu ll y arrived there 25 August 1868. From this point on, the journey was ma d e by ox-team and wagon under the direction of Captain Holman who ha d a co mpany of men with teams and provisions ready to escort the newly a rrivin g immigrant Saints to Utah. The company experience a great deal o f sickne ss on the plains and many were left by the wayside after a hast y grave wa s dug, with a few leaves and brush put at the bottom of the gr ave, and ov er the top as the only markers. The Hirsts again mercifully a voided sickn ess and loss. Eleven-year-old Sarah however fell from the fr ont of the mo ving wagon and was overrun, being badly bruised and sustain ing a broken l eg. After suffering many privations and much weary toil, t he Hirst clan f inally arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in October of 1868 , four months af ter leaving Liverpool.
John and Charlotte settled their family on a ranch in Jordan, nine mil e s Northwest of Salt Lake City, belonging to Dr. W. F. Anderson and too k t he cattle there on shares. The first winter and spring found John als o wo rking on the railroad, which was under construction through Echo Can yon . The Hirsts stayed on the Jordan Ranch four years, and then homestea de d a beautiful farm of their own in Pleasant Green where they also rais e d cattle. Taking advantage of the home Homestead Act, John “took up” on e- hundred sixty acres of land. He built a two-room frame house and move d i n on 2 April 1873.
John Hirst was called to be the Bishop of the Pleasant Green bran c h by President Shoenfeldt of the Brighton Stake of which Pleasant Gree n w as a part. John held therefore, the first religious meetings in the P leas ant Green, and served in his position of “Presiding Elder” until hi s deat h on 7 September 1878. Pleasant Green was located where the city o f Magna , Utah is presently. John was buried in the Salt Lake City Cemete ry. Geor ge C Reiser, one of the missionaries that taught the Hirst famil y the gos pel, spoke at John’s funeral giving tribute to his devoted conv ert and fr iend who was a faithful and energetic minister of the gospel d uring all t he long years of his exemplary life .
The Relief Society was organized in Pleasant Green the spring of 18 7 9 by Eliza R Snow and Martha Horne Tingey. Charlotte Hirst was electe d th e first president-a position she held until her death on 28 June 188 0. C harlotte loved her charitable work with the women of her area and w ould w alk four miles rather than miss a meeting. It was said of her that , “sh e was a woman of the purest principles and greatest integrity. Wher ever s he went, she gained the good will of all her associates. She was f aithfu l to her trust in visiting the sick, liberal to the poor, and a go od usef ul member of the ward in which she lived.” Charlotte was buried n ext to h er husband in the Salt Lake Cemetery.
John and Charlotte Hirst and their children were members of the la s t group of Latter-day Saint emigrants that crossed the ocean in a saili n g vessel, and the last company that crossed the plains by ox-team. Th e ne xt company of Saints to cross the Atlantic came in a steamboat, an d the r ailroad was completed to Ogden, Utah the following spring!\

Researched by Ray B. Jensen and Evelyn Jenkins.
Reference Archives: 34260F 929.2F 21 pt.347