 1863 - 1946 (82 years) Submit Photo / Document
Has 38 ancestors but no descendants in this family tree.
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| Name |
John Stephen Prince Ostler |
| Birth |
6 Jul 1863 |
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Death |
18 May 1946 |
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States |
| Burial |
21 May 1946 |
Nephi, Juab, Utah, United States |
| Initiatory (LDS) |
22 Sep 1947 |
| FamilySearch ID |
KWJ8-343 |
| Headstones |
 Submit Headstone Photo |
| Person ID |
I164353 |
mytree |
| Last Modified |
25 Feb 2024 |
| Father |
John Charles Ostler, b. 5 Jun 1838, Bridport, Dorsetshire, England d. 17 Aug 1913, Nephi, Juab, Utah, United States (Age 75 years) |
| Mother |
Mary Ann Prince, b. 29 Feb 1840, Redlynch, Wiltshire, England d. 28 Feb 1913, Nephi, Juab, Utah, United States (Age 72 years) |
| Marriage |
10 Apr 1861 |
Southampton, Hampshire, England |
| Family ID |
F12480 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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| Notes |
- John Steven Ostler was a man who raised himself to financial success a n d community prominence through thrift, industry, and hard work. As par t o wner of a bank during the depression he saw first-hand the financia l stru ggle of the times as his bank was forced to close its doors. A s a sheepma n with herds of up to 50,000 head, he was constantly faced wi th decision s to keep the business going, even in times of difficulty. H e was devote d to his two children and seven grandchildren, teaching the m principles o f thrift and industry that had served him so well. A stud y of the life o f John Steven Ostler reveals the events and factors tha t influenced his c haracter and molded him into the man he was.
John Steven Ostler, or Steve as he was known to distinguish him from h i s father John Charles Ostler, was born July 6, 1863 in Salt Lake City , Ut ah, the son of recently arrived immigrants from England. His parents , Joh n and Mary Prince Ostler were so poor that he was born in a humbl e dugout . Soon after his birth, his family moved to the small farming co mmunity o f Nephi, Utah, eighty-five miles south of Salt Lake City. In h is youth h e saw the city bloom and develop into what was then known as t he "littl e Chicago of the West." The coming of the railroad caused the c ommunity t o become the center of shipping for the southern Utah area.
With the increase of economic activity in the town, Steve's father estab l ished a tannery and later a harness shop that were quite successful. St ev e and his four brothers learned the trade as they worked in the shop . I n 1884 Steve opened a branch of the harness shop in the nearby town o f Gu nnison. This shop was operated by the family for four years.
Steve's interests, however, went beyond harnesses. He went to work i n a b ank, working his way up from sweeping floors to being a teller. Ste ve ha d a quick mind and excelled at mathematics, although it is unknow n how mu ch formal schooling he received. Steve also worked in a telegrap h offic e when he was young.
During his early life, Steve learned the sheep business, in which he w a s involved the rest of his life. Sheep raising was a highly lucrative b us iness in Nephi during the late 1800's, and a fortune could be made b y tho se with good business sense and good luck. Steve had both of thes e trait s and became quite wealthy in the sheep business, starting from t he humbl e beginning of a $5.00 investment.
Steve possessed the qualities of endurance and strength that are essenti a l for those working with sheep. He stood around five feet six inches ta l l and was stocky and strong. He had dark hair which never turned full y gr ey, even in later life. He was a handsome man and at one time sporte d a m ustache.
In September 1889 Steve married Louisa Udall, a Nephi girl who had bee n h is childhood sweetheart. In 1890 their first child was born, a girl , who m they named Oleva. In 1892 a second child, Steven Lovell, was born . The n tragedy struck. A month after Steven Lovell was born Louisa cam e down w ith a sudden illness and died. One of Steve's granddaughter's Ma rjorie Wi nward, recalls the story:
"She died quite suddenly. She had to go out and the snow was very, ver y d eep. It was in the winter and Grandpa was out with the sheep. She did n' t have transportation and she had to go to the doctor or go to town fo r s omething. So she walked, and she got what they call exposure and cam e dow n with pneumonia and died within two or three days. She was just go ne. An yway, this left this little baby and Aunt Oleva. It just about bro ke Gran dpa's heart. He never could reconcile to that."
Louisa's death was hard on Steve. With a heart full of grief he buried h i mself in his business affairs. It was also this event which turned hi m so mewhat against the LDS church at that time, of which his family wer e memb ers. Steve held the office of a deacon in the LDS church, yet he w as no t active after Louisa's death. He also disagreed with the church pr actic e of polygamy, which of course was discontinued in 1890. He did, ho wever , believe in the high ideals and standards of the church which he k ept th roughout his life. He did not use alcohol or tobacco, which are pr ohibite d according to LDS belief.
Since Steve was gone so often on business after Louisa's death, his fami l y members offered to help raise his children. Oleva was taken in by Lou is a's sister and raised by the Udalls, while Steven Lovell--often referr e d to as "S.L." or ''Lovell" to distinguish him from his father--was rai se d by Steve's mother.
In 1907, Steve married Hattie Kearns of Salt Lake City. This marriage w a s more of an effort to reunite Steve's family than out of love. Hatti e ha d a son from a previous marriage. Lovell and Oleva were brought fro m thei r separate relatives to the new family home in Salt Lake City. The y wer e in their teens and found this new arrangement difficult. Hattie t reate d Oleva and Lovell kindly while Steve was home, but when he went ou t on b usiness she would treat them poorly, favoring her own son. Steve l earne d of this and there was trouble in their marriage.
After the turn of the century, Steve continued to expand his livestock b u siness. He was a shrewd businessman and knew sheep well. He brough t i n a new brand of sheep from Mexico that improved his herd. In 1910 h e wa s on the State Board of Sheep Commissioners. At one time he owned 50 ,00 0 head of sheep. He was constantly looking for ways to expand and imp rov e his herd. Steve was well known and respected among sheep man .
Steve also became president of the Nephi National Bank when it opene d i n 1906. The bank was owned predominantly by sheepmen. Steve's brother s Jo seph and George worked in the bank as directors, but Steve was alway s th e "top man."Lovell also worked in the bank for a time as a teller. T her e are advertisements for the bank in every issue of the Nephi newspap er , The Times-News, in 1911. The ads focus on the four percent interes t rat es on time deposits offered by the bank. There is also an occasiona l list ing of the bank's assets. In the June 7, 1911 issue, total resourc es an d liabilities for the bank were $236,775.17.
Steve continued to hold a large portion of the bank's stock even afte r h e was no longer president. The bank did well for several years, but h ar d times were coming. With the stock market crash of 1929 an era of fin anc ial chaos set in as hundreds of banks across the country were force d to c lose their doors. On December 20, 1931, the Nephi National Bank, " being t hen insolvent and unable to pay its obligations," joined the ever -increas ing list of bank failures caused by the depression. Stockholder s were ass essed a penalty of $100.00 share by the government in an effor t to pay of f the investors. Steve apparently paid off all of his assessm ent, even th ough it was a great difficulty to do so.
The year 1931 was a difficult one for Steve in other ways as well. Duri n g this year he was divorced from Hattie after more than twenty years o f t roubled marriage. She enjoyed the city and social events, while Stev e pre ferred the out-of-doors, being on the range with his sheep. Their d isagre ements grew over the years culminating in their divorce. As part o f the s ettlement, Hattie retained their home in Salt Lake on the hill ne ar the C apital building. At this time Steve owned three homes in the Sal t Lake va lley, as well as land at various locations throughout the stat e of Utah . At one time he had 100,000 acres of property, much of it in N ephi, bu t some also in Tooele, Mountain Green, and in Evanston and Sta r Valley, W yoming. Nephi land records indicate many property transaction s over the y ears by Steve and his father John C. Ostler. However, much o f his land th at was under mortgage was lost during the depression to pa y off his ban k assessment and other debts. In fact, in 1931 Steve claime d that all o f his property was mortgaged except for his home and that h e had no incom e--needing to borrow in order to pay his numerous obligati ons .
As trying as the depression years were, Steve did retain much of his wea l th even while others lost all that they had. In 1946 at his death his p ro perty was appraised at over $76,000--not including some property in To oel e discovered later. The majority of this sum was in private shares o f sto ck in the Ostler Land and Livestock Corporation which he founded.
The depression not only cost Steve much of his land and bank interests , i t cost him many of his sheep as well. One of Franklin Roosevelt's pol icie s to stimulate the economy was the reduction of large amounts of foo d pro ducts. This applied to sheep as well and Steve was required to slau ghte r a large number of sheep. Steve did not like Franklin Roosevelt o r his p olicies. He was a staunch Republican who strongly supported Herbe rt Hoove r. He evidently had some disagreements with his son Lovell abou t this bec ause Lovell voted for Franklin Roosevelt twice.
But for the most part, Steve thought the world of his son. He was clos e t o his son and worked together with him in the sheep business. As year s pa ssed, Lovell managed more and more of Steve's affairs. Steve was als o clo se to his daughter Oleva, and spent many winters with her and her h usban d Fred Wessel in California. Later, the Wessels moved to Nephi wher e the y provided a room for Steve to stay.
Steve was also close to Pearl, Lovell's wife, and enjoyed visiting wit h t he family at their ranch house in Mountain Green, Utah. When Lovell a nd P earl were divorced, Steve was in a unique and difficult position. Pe arl o btained the ranch in Mountain Green adjacent to Steve's ranch, whil e Love ll went to live in Steve's home in Salt Lake. It was a tense situ ation , but Steve still tried to be close to Pearl and his grandchildren . He wo uld bring the family much needed groceries and help fix their bro ken harn esses. He even bought grandson Lynn--who was running the ranch-- a team o f badly needed work horses without which the work could not hav e been don e.
When Pearl died three years after the divorce, the tension of the situat i on eased. The younger children went to live with Lovell in Salt Lake . I t was there that they got to know Steve better since he often staye d wit h them. Lynn also got to know his grandfather better even though h e did n ot stay with them. Steve would let him borrow his Ford coupe to g o on dat es or out with his friends. Steve also gave a car to his grandso n Stephen .
Steve was proud of his grandchildren. When two grandchildren, Marjorie a n d Stephen, visited Nephi one time he took them around town to show the m o ff. He proudly told people, ''This is young Steve." He also was prou d o f his ancestors. He and Elmo Ostler, a cousin, paid for a large ston e t o be erected to John Ostler--Steve's grandfather--in the Salt Lake Ci ty C emetery. The stone lists all of John Ostler's children and their wiv es an d where they are buried. For Steve to help pay for so large a grave ston e to be erected instead of spending his money in so many other possi ble w ays stands as a testimony of how he held his family in high regard.
Steve had a reputation for thrift that bordered on stinginess. Some peop l e considered him to be tight, since he was so careful with his money . A n experience with grandson Lynn exemplifies this trait, in referrin g to h ay that would fall to the ground at feeding time.
"He told my Dad to watch out for the hay scraps and scatterings. He sai d , 'That's your profit. Don't waste that hay.' He was a very thrifty per so n."
Granddaughter Marjorie also identified Steve's thrift as the way he infl u enced her most. "I've always had a feeling that I should be saving--th a t I should hang on to capital and not spend everything I have."
Although he was thrifty, Steve also had a generous side. After his dea t h some people in Nephi gave Oleva $2000 they owed to Steve from a tim e h e had helped them out. The money was put into a fund for Steve's grea t-gr andchildren. Steve was also generous with his family, giving silve r dolla rs on special occasions. In 1946 before Steve went into the hospi tal fo r an operation, he gave Marjorie the high school graduation gift o f her c hoice--a beautiful graduation dress.
At eighty-two years of age, Steve was in good health when he went in f o r an operation. He was seen jumping fences the year before and had jus t r ecently driven a full cattle truck from Nephi to Mountain Green. Unfo rtun ately however, the operation did not go well and he died within a da y o r two--quite a shock to the family. An interesting sidenote is that h e di ed calling out "Pearl! Pearl!"--the name of his daughter-in-law wh o had d ied just three years before to the very day.
Steve's grandchildren have many fond memories of their grandfather. On e i s the way he dressed. Steve considered himself a businessman, not a s heep herder. He always wore a double-vested suit, and often wore a suit v est a nd suit pants covered by chaps while riding horseback through the b rush t o check his sheep camps in the hills. One time Steve offered to bu y his g randson Lynn a hat. Although Lynn wanted a cowboy hat, Steve insi sted o n buying him a business hat.
Another common memory the grandchildren have of their grandfather is h i s sheep camp. It was a tiny, trailer-like structure with a canvas top . In side there was a stove, a table that could pull out, and a bed wit h blu e denim blankets. While not very comfortable by adult standards, ch ildre n loved it.
Granddaughter Marjorie was fond of playing with her dolls in the sheep c a mp. Grandsons Stephen and Lynn once tried to convert the wooden suppor t s for the canvas top of an old sheep camp into a rollercoaster. Steve w a s quite upset when he found that they had sawed off many of the support s.
One memory that all the grandchildren share is Steve's visits on Thanksg i ving and Christmas. He would usually bring a turkey at Thanksgiving tim e . For Christmas he often gave money. One year he came the week after Ch ri stmas, loaded with toys he purchased at half price in an after-Christm a s sale.
Steve had a deep and lasting influence on his grandchildren. Many of t h e character traits he exemplified have been passed on to them such a s a q uiet, reserved nature and a strong will. Steve was also fiercely in depend ent and preferred to be his own boss. This trait too can be seen i n his g randchildren. In describing him today these grandchildren refer t o Stev e as a man of integrity, thrift, industry, and honesty.
John Steven Ostler had a full and interesting life. He was raised in t h e rough age of pioneer Utah in the days of Brigham Young, whom he hear d s peak from the pulpit. Yet when he died he had seen the beginnings o f th e atomic age. An examination of the life of John Steven Ostler has s how n the trials that molded his character and the circumstances that sha pe d his personality. The death of his first wife was a profound turnin g poi nt in his life, a shock from which he never fully recovered. His fi rst gr eat love after his family was his business affairs-- something h e excelle d at. The money losses of the depression and the divorce from H attie wer e further opportunities to test his character. He lived accordi ng to a hi gh standard of industry and thrift, and followed a personal cr eed of dete rmination and independence shaping his world according to hi s desires. I n the midst of prosperity he did not forget his family or su ccumb to th e pleasures of spending for spending's sake. With a regard fo r his own an cestors, he passed on a legacy to his descendants who see i n him an examp le of thrift, industry, and a self-made man.
Written by Duane L. Ostler in 1987
Sources
Interview with Lilian Ostler, Nephi, Utah, May 22, 1987. Lilian was marr i ed to Horace Ostler (now deceased), Steve's nephew, who worked for Ste v e in his sheep business.
Mary L. Teerlink, "John Ostler and Sarah Endacott Gollop Their Descendan t s and Ancestors" (Salt Lake City, Utah, 1985).
Interview with Lynn Ostler, Salt Lake City, Utah, May 23, 1987. Lynn i s S teve's oldest grandson.
Fred J. Chapman, Sadie H. Greenhalgh, and Keith N. Worthington, "They Le f t a Record" (Provo: Community Press, 1979).
Interview with Marjorie Winward, granddaughter, Orem, Utah, May 21, 1987.
Interview with Eugene Ostler, grandson, Salt Lake City, Utah, May 23, 19 8 7.
Interview with Newell Ostler, grandson, Nephi, Utah, May 22, 1987.
"Salt Lake City Directory" (Salt Lake City, Utah: R. L. Polk & Co., 1910 ) .
Interview with Lee Pitchforth, Salt Lake City, Utah, May 23, 1987.Lee a n d his wide Athelia are not related to the Ostlers, but were acquainte d wi th Steve in the 1920's. Athelia's father, E. R. Booth, was the bank' s fir st cashier. Athelia also later worked in the bank as a teller afte r Stev e was no longer bank president.
Nephi (Utah)Times-News, June 7, 1911.
Utah, Salt Lake County, District Court, Probate Division, No. 50470, To w n of Levan vs. Nephi National Bank et al, Oct.11, 1932, p. 44.
Utah, Salt Lake County, District Court, Probate Division, No. 48165, Hat t ie K. Ostler vs. Johns. Ostler, Aug 24, 1931.
Interview with Vyron Ostler, Provo, Utah, June 16, 1987. Vyron is a grea t -grandson of Steve. His father, Stephen, died in a car accident in 198 4 , but Vyron remembers several things he told him of his grandfather .
Utah, Salt Lake County, District Court, Probate Division, No. 28122, I n t he Matter of the Estate of J.S. Ostler, Deceased, Inventory for Inher itan ce Tax Purposes, Feb. 21, 1947.
Interview with Louise Hansen, granddaughter, Provo, Utah, May 24, 1987.
Interview with Wanda Ostler, Provo, Utah, June 15, 1987. Wanda is the wi f e of Steve's grandson Stephen who died in a car accident in 1984.
Interview with Arthur Ostler, Nephi, Utah, May 22, 1987. Arthur is the g r andson of Steve's brother George.
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Has 38 ancestors but no descendants in this family tree.
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