 1877 - 1938 (61 years) Submit Photo / Document
Has 2 ancestors and 16 descendants in this family tree.
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| Name |
James Rowan Donaldson |
| Birth |
6 Apr 1877 |
Porterville, Morgan, Utah, United States  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Death |
25 Nov 1938 |
Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States |
| Burial |
26 Nov 1938 |
Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States |
| Initiatory (LDS) |
28 Feb 1939 |
ARIZO |
| FamilySearch ID |
KWZ7-976 |
| Headstones |
 Submit Headstone Photo |
| Person ID |
I153770 |
mytree |
| Last Modified |
25 Feb 2024 |
| Father |
John Donaldson, b. 4 May 1845, Johnstone, Renfrewshire, Scotland d. 25 Jun 1916, Bisbee, Cochise, Arizona, United States (Age 71 years) |
| Mother |
Christina Comb Sim, b. 1 Feb 1851, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland d. 25 Apr 1886, Castle Dale, Emery, Utah, United States (Age 35 years) |
| Marriage |
12 Feb 1873 |
Morgan, Morgan, Utah, United States |
| Family ID |
F39347 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Frances Cora Harris, b. 10 Mar 1881, St. Johns, Apache, Arizona, United States d. 23 Oct 1920, Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States (Age 39 years) |
| Marriage |
28 Dec 1896 |
Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México |
| Children |
| + | 1. Karl Maeser Donaldson, b. 13 Nov 1897, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 15 Mar 1996, Silver City, Grant, New Mexico, United States (Age 98 years) |
| | 2. James Richard Donaldson, b. 15 Sep 1899, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 25 Aug 1984 (Age 84 years) |
| | 3. John Harris Donaldson, b. 10 Nov 1901, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 17 Oct 1930 (Age 28 years) |
| | 4. Conrad Donaldson, b. 9 Aug 1902, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 9 Feb 1987, Duncan, Greenlee, Arizona, United States (Age 84 years) |
| | 5. Vearl Donaldson, b. 29 Apr 1904, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 19 Mar 1953, Murray, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 48 years) |
| | 6. Oswald Marion Donaldson, b. 16 Dec 1906, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 2 May 2000, Franklin, Greenlee, Arizona, United States (Age 93 years) |
| | 7. Marvin Oliver Donaldson, b. 27 May 1910, Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México d. 18 Jun 1994 (Age 84 years) |
| | 8. Clifford Joseph Donaldson, b. 20 May 1912, Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States d. 15 Feb 1998, Las Cruces, Doña Ana, New Mexico, United States (Age 85 years) |
| | 9. Christine Francis Donaldson, b. 17 Sep 1914, Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States d. 15 Jul 2019, Springville, Utah, Utah, United States (Age 104 years) |
| | 10. Amy Elnora Donaldson, b. 19 Mar 1920, Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States d. 13 Sep 2015, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States (Age 95 years) |
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| Family ID |
F28056 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Last Modified |
5 May 2024 |
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| Event Map |
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 | Birth - 6 Apr 1877 - Porterville, Morgan, Utah, United States |
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 | Marriage - 28 Dec 1896 - Colonia Díaz, Ascensión, Chihuahua, México |
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 | Death - 25 Nov 1938 - Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States |
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| Burial - 26 Nov 1938 - Hachita, Grant, New Mexico, United States |
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 | Initiatory (LDS) - 28 Feb 1939 - ARIZO |
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| Notes |
- James Donaldson, or "Dad D." as I called him, was around 6 feet tall, fa i rly slender, with blue eyes and thick dark curly hair, which was just b eg inning to go grey. He wore bib overalls and a "Stetson" hat. As I late r f ound out, he didn't spend much on clothes, but he always had a good S tets on hat.
Dad D. always treated me with kindness, respect and love. He often cam e t o visit me when he was out riding, checking on his stock (cattle). W e liv ed about 4 miles from his home in Hachita, New Mexico. Sometime s I woul d be outside working when he rode up, and I would never see or h ear him c ome. He loved to tease me and tell me it was a good thing I did n't live w hen the Indians were savage and roaming about, for they woul d have captur ed me without any trouble!
Quite often when he visited me, he would bring me some candy. I was gett i ng quite a supply on hand, for I was pregnant and candy didn't agree wi t h me. When I thanked him for the candy and commented on how much he bro ug ht, he said, "I want to bring you something." I told him fresh vegetab le s would be a real treat for me. I can still remember how good the radi she s tasted to me that he brought- it pleased him to bring me somethin g tha t I could enjoy!
James Donaldson was born at West Potterville, Utah. on April 6, 1877. Wh e n he was only 9 years old, his mother passed away. The following year , i n 1887, his family moved from Utah to "Old Mexico" in hopes of havin g a b etter life. This however, was a very difficult time and even food w as sca rce. James and his brothers were paid fifty cents for the all-da y job o f grubbing (clearing) mesquite for other farmers .
When he was almost 20 years old, he married Francis Cora Harris. Their f i rst home was a two-room adobe house. Later they added 3 more rooms mad e o ut of lumber to it. One room was used as a kitchen, one for storage , an d the other for the boy's bedroom. The bed mattresses were made ou t of ti cking (a heavy cotton cloth), stuffed corn shucks (the dried leav es fro m corn stalks). One of their younger sons, Ozz, recalled how the y slept - two boys at the head of the bed, and two at the foot. He also r emember s quite often he would get kicked!
While living in this small home, 8 children were born- seven sons and o n e daughter. Although times were difficult, James was very industrious a n d provided a good living for his family for those times. He farmed, rai se d cattle, had a meat shop and was a barber! Ozz recalls helping his fa the r plant fruit trees that his father had started from seed.
Although he was a stern father, James loved his children and while teach i ng them how to work, he also left time for fun. He got rubber from som e p lace, melted it down, and shaped it into a ball. It bounced much bett er t han the balls the boys had made for themselves out of cloth rags cov ere d with string. In the spring, he would make whistles out of the gree n cot tonwood shoots for his children. In addition, Ozz recalled that hi s fathe r could whistle really loudly with just his lips. Although all hi s boys t ried to imitate their father, only John ever learned how to do i t just li ke their dad.
In 1912, James moved his family into a brand new home- complete with n e w curtains at the windows and rugs on the floor for Francis. However , i n only a few short weeks after moving into their new home, the Mexica n Re volutionary War broke out, and the members of the Church of Jesus Ch ris t of Latter-day Saints were advised to leave immediately for the safe ty o f the United States. Francis left her new home, and taking what belo nging s they could fit into a wagon, she left with 7 of their children- t he you ngest Clifford only 6 weeks old, and 5 other adults- a total of 1 3 passen gers in a wagon, fleeing for safety. James, and their oldest so n Carl, st ayed behind to try and salvage as much of their cattle herd a s possible , and serve as guards for the departing families. In spite o f their hope s and best efforts, James was unable to salvage anything, an d he and Car l left and joined Francis and the children across the Mexico /US border i n New Mexico, near a small community called Hachita .
Although they planned and hoped to return to their new home and proper t y in Mexico, it became evident that this would not be possible. James t oo k any work available to provide for his family, and in time, moved hi s fa mily from their scanty shelter made of canvas and soapweed brush, t o a on e room rock house they built. Ozz recalls going with his dad and b rother s to get the rock from a hill near Table Top Mountain- they had n o mone y for cement, so they used what materials they had on hand, mud an d a lit tle straw, to lay the rock in place .
In spite of the great difficulities they faced, James and Francis work e d hard to improve their circumstances. James continued to take what wo r k was available, and slowly things improved. James gradually built u p a c attle herd and began ranching again. In the fall of 1920, eight yea rs aft er their arrival in New Mexico, and just 7 months after the birt h of thei r 9th child, a little daughter they named Amy, Francis died .
This was an incredibly difficult time for James and his children. To t h e best of his ability, a heart-broken father quietly began to try and f il l the void left by his wife's passing. His children recall that thei r fat her became more thoughtful- more gentle and loving with them. Thirt een ye ars later, on November 26, 1938, James quietly passed away and wa s reunit ed with his beloved wife.
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Submit Photo / Document
Has 2 ancestors and 16 descendants in this family tree.
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