William Lampard Watkins

1827 - 1911  (84 years)  Submit Photo / Document    Has 2 ancestors and 15 descendants in this family tree.

• Name	William Lampard Watkins
  Birth	7 Feb 1827	Islington, Middlesex, England
  Christening	7 Jun 1827	Upper Street Independent, Islington, Middlesex, England
  Gender	Male
  Initiatory (LDS)	14 Sep 1861	EHOUS
  FamilySearch ID	KWCZ-31J
  Death	18 Sep 1911	Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States
  Burial	21 Sep 1911	Brigham City Cemetery, Box Elder, Utah, United States
  Headstones	Submit Headstone Photo
  Person ID	I20672	mytree
  Last Modified	25 Feb 2024

  
  

  Father	William Watkins,   b. 28 Dec 1798, Islington, Middlesex, England d. 17 Nov 1864, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States (Age 65 years)
  Mother	Hannah Maria Lampard,   b. 4 Oct 1800, St. Marylebone Parish Church, London, Middlesex, England d. 11 Jun 1868, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States (Age 67 years)
  Marriage	9 Jul 1820	Islington, Middlesex, England
  Family ID	F9848	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Teah Jensina Jörgensdatter,   b. 14 Dec 1847, Vester Marie, Bornholm, Hovedstaden, Kongeriget Danmark d. 23 Dec 1933, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States (Age 86 years)
  Marriage	13 Jul 1867	Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States
  Children	1. Lewis Peter Watkins,   b. 11 Nov 1868, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 5 Jul 1944, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States (Age 75 years)   2. George Wilford Watkins,   b. 1 Feb 1871, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 20 Nov 1949, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 78 years)   3. Leslie Lampard Watkins,   b. 7 May 1873, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 16 Oct 1934, Soda Springs, Caribou, Idaho, United States (Age 61 years)   4. Benjamin Lorenzo Watkins,   b. 25 Nov 1875, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 4 Nov 1954, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States (Age 78 years)   5. Irene Jensina Watkins,   b. 9 Jul 1878, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 25 Dec 1880, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States (Age 2 years)   6. Mark Junius Watkins,   b. 13 Sep 1881, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 4 Aug 1977, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 95 years) + 7. Aurilla May Watkins,   b. 4 May 1884, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 18 Apr 1976, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 91 years)   8. Mable Caroline Watkins,   b. 17 Apr 1887, Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States d. 14 Mar 1976, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 88 years)
  Family ID	F9128	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	20 May 2024

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 7 Feb 1827 - Islington, Middlesex, England Christening - 7 Jun 1827 - Upper Street Independent, Islington, Middlesex, England Initiatory (LDS) - 14 Sep 1861 - EHOUS Marriage - 13 Jul 1867 - Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States Death - 18 Sep 1911 - Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, United States Burial - 21 Sep 1911 - Brigham City Cemetery, Box Elder, Utah, United States  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  WATKINS, William (Lampard), a Patriarch in the Box Elder Stake of Zio n , i s a son of William Watkins and Hannah W. Lampard, and was born in I s l ingt on, London, Middlesex, England, Feb. 7, 1827. He was baptized in t o t he Ch urch by Jas. Albon in May, 1841, and his ordinations to the P ri esth ood ha ve been as follows: First a Teacher, then a Seventy in Apr il , 1844, by Jo s. Young, next a High Priest in March, 1863, by Lorenz o Sno w an d becomin g a Patriarch Nov. 7, 1896, being ordained to that o ffic e by Pr est. Loren zo Snow. The first missionary experience of Bro . Watki ns was i n 1841, whe n he went on an electioneering tour throug h Kentuck y in the i nterest of J oseph Smith's candidacy for President o f the Unit ed States. In 1875 he pe rformed a special mission to England . His activi ty in ecc lesiastical wor k is attested to by these facts: H e has bee n a teacher i n Sabbath school, president of an Elders Quorum f or ten yea rs, a High Co uncilor in Box El der Stake, a counselor to Pres . Rudger Cl awson of the B ox Elder Stake pre sidency from 1879 to 1899 , and since 18 96 has served a s a Patriarch in th at Stake. The record o f his civil pos itions is as fol lows: City councilma n and recorder of B righam City an d treasurer and sel ectman of Box Elder C ounty and some m inor offices. H is chief occupation s have been school teac hing and merc handising. Fo r a period of thirty ye ars he worked as secreta ry and tre asurer of wha t is now the Brigham Cit y Mercantile and Manufactu ring As sociation. Eld er Watkins married Mary E. Hammond Dec. 4, 1844 an d he to ok to wife Tea h Jensine Johnson, July 13, 1867. He is father of tw ent y children, fifte en of whom are living, an d he has eighty-four grandc h ildren and twent y great grandchildren. In 18 42 he emigrated to Americ a, s ettling in Nau voo, Illinois (where he was i n 1844, at the time o f the Pro phet Josep h Smith’s martyrdom). He came t o Utah in 1852 and l ocated in Sa lt Lak e county, where he remained till 1 861, when he wen t to Brigham city, Bo x Elder county, and has resided the re ever since. Sourece: Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation o f B i o graphical sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Je su s Ch ri st of Latter-day Saints. Andrew Jenson. BYU Library, BX8670.J4 51 b v.2, p. 62 WILLIAM LAMPARD WATKINS - by son Joseph H. Watkins, 24 July 1946 This is a brief sketch of the life of William Lampard Watkins from t h e t i me he arrived in Salt Lake Valley, Sept 1852, until his death whi c h occ ur red 18 September 1911 in Brigham City. William Lampard Watkins and his family, together with his parents an d t h r ee brothers arrived in Salt Lake Valley in September 1852, and se ttl e d o n or near Little Cottonwood Creek, near Salt Lake City. His par en t s an d 3 brothers went on to Brigham City, and lived in the annex o f t h e Old F ort. William and family remained near Salt Lake City unti l Mar c h 1861, w hen Brigham Young called him to go to Brigham City an d assis t P resident S now to organize the United Order, as it was firs t called . H e became it' s first secretary and continued until its disor ganizatio n, a period of 3 0 years. Prior to moving to Brigham City, he taught school in Salt Lake Cit y a n d v icinity. I have heard him say that he taught school with onl y a co p y o f the Deseret News, and a text book. I am sure the newspape r was n o t a l arge one, as I have a copy of number one, Vol. one, and i t is on l y abou t 8 by 10 inches and has six leaves. He taught school i n Brigh a m City, b eing one of the earliest teachers. When the city was incorporated he was its first Recorder. He was also field water master and rode the field on horseback. Eve n w i t hout the use of one leg, he could do any kind of manual labor . I ha v e be en told by several of his associates, that he was one of th e stron ge st me n with his arms they had ever seen. After the United Order was changed and became the Merchandise and Manu f a c turing Assoc. he was retained as its secretary. He had a way of h i s o w n in keeping books, and in 1875 Brother Snow had him go on a miss io n t o E ngland and put two of his own children (Oliver and Ida Snow) i n t he o ffic e, but in less than seven months Brother Snow sent for Will ia m to re tur n home as the business was not going so well. When he go t bac k it to ok a bout two months to get the books straightened out. His real estate holdings were not very extensive. He had a 23 acr e f a r m near Perry, which we boys used to work, and with his clerical w or k ma d e him a fair living for those days, but he surely earned all h e re ceive d. Aside from his teaching school he did much volunteer work . Fo r 1 0 o r 12 years he was prompter for all the old theaters. As he c oul d onl y ge t one book, he would take a roll of fools-cap paper and co py a ll th e part s for each actor, and then acted as prompter, and atten ded a s man y as fou r rehearsals each week. A the Dedication of the Brigham City Library, 27 Feb 1898, Pres. Lor e n z o Snow offered the Dedicatory Prayer, Benediction was pronounce d b y P at riarch William L. Watkins. William was Brigham City's 4th school teacher, and was called to thi s c o u nty for that purpose on 12 Mar 1861, by Lorenzo Snow. During th e win t e r of 1861-62, and for a number of years after, he taught schoo l in t h e do wnstairs east room of the Court House Mr. Watkins was assis ted i n th e sch ool room by his daughters Susan and Maria, who conducte d class es fo r th e small children. The school hours were from 9 until 12, and from 1 until 4 with reces s m o r ning and afternoon. The curriculum consisted of reading, writing , spe l li ng and grammar. Night school was conducted for the benefit o f the ol d e r people and many men spent their evenings there, learning t o write a n d g etting a knowledge of the four basic processes in arithme tic. At that time there were no graded schools and children of all ages w e r e i n the same room. Try to imagine 60 pupils, ranging in age fr o m 6 t o 18 y ears, seated on long slabs without backs --say 6 or 8 o n a s eat, n o desk s and no particular order of arrangement--each studyi ng fro m any k ind o f book he could get, and each reciting his lesson wh en lear ned. Wh en on e lesson was Completed, another was assigned him fo r the ne xt day. In 1867, he increased his family by marrying Teah Johnson. Aunt Tea h , a s we used to call her, brought him seven more children that gre w t o m anho od and womanhood, and when added to the eleven children my m othe r ha d, ma de quite a number of mouths to feed. He was a very firm a nd lo vin g fathe r, and reared a large posterity. His last words to me j ust be for e he die d were as follows: "Joseph, I haven't accumulated muc h prope rt y or finan ces, but I have been blessed of the Lord to be abl e to car e fo r my famil y the best I could, and they are all in the chur ch, and O h, Lo rd, wha t a great blessing." In politics he never took much part, only voted the Democratic ticke t a f t er the Peoples party took on the Democratic side. In recreation h e w a s i n for clean sports, and he liked to dance, although one of hi s leg s w as c rippled. His Ecclesiastical work was without fault. Up t o the t im e o f his death he was always active in the Priesthood work an d held m an y off ices, such as quorum president, ward clerk, High Counci lman duti es, and i n the Presidency of the Stake until his hearing got b ad. His ey e sight re mained good. He was often called upon to read som e scripture f r om the Bi ble from the pulpit and could do so without th e use of glasse s. He was o rdained a Patriarch 7 November 1896 by Presid ent Lorenzo Snow . This offi ce he held until his death. The above sketch is very brief, but will give a few thoughts to contem p l a te. In conclusion, I wish to say that I have tried in my weak wa y t o e mu late his splendid example. I know that my posterity has a ver y gre a t an d noble progenitor in the person of William Lampard Watkins . I a m g lad t o be one of his sons. Father died 18 September 1911, aged 84 years, 7 months, and ll days. He was a very gifted public speaker and was often called upon to give P u b lic orations on the 4th of July and similar occasions. I found this article written by father in an old notebook. It was s o b l u rred and rubbed out that I had to use a strong magnifying glass t o re a d i t: THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH BY WILLIAM LAMPARD WATKINS It was early in the spring of 1843 that I first saw the Prophet Jose p h S m ith in Nauvoo. I was then 16 years of age and was thoroughly conv in ce d t hat he was a Prophet of the Lord. From that time until his mart yrd o m, I heard him frequently in his public addresses to the saints. He was always listened to with the greatest attention and had the conf i d e nce and love of nearly all the saints. He was a fine, noble appearing man naturally, and when he spoke wi t h t h e power and inspiration of the Holy Ghost, his words made stron g im pres si ons as to the truth of those who heard them from him. He was subject to harassing by the mobbers of Missouri who were consta n t l y trying to get him back into Missouri to gratify their hatred. Some of the closest pretended friends turned traitors which finall y l e d t o his martyrdom, together with his brother Hyrum in Carthage ja il. William Lampard Watkins immigrated to the United States from Englan d , w h ere he was a school teacher. In the United States he had a simil a r prof es sion, teaching reading, writing, and math. William had polio as a Child and one leg was crippled and didn't gr o w n o rmally. For this reason, he walked with a limp all of his life. He moved to the United States because he converted to the LDS religi o n . Brigham Young sent William to settle Brigham City. He was also cal l e d t o manage the Brigham City Co-op. The Co-op was where people coul d t ra de t hings with other peope for what they needed. Farmers might br in g fr uits, vegetables and grains for wool or an animal or something el s e tha t the y needed and others would trade their items as well. It hel pe d ever yone o btain the things that they needed. He also kept the reco rd s for th e co-op. He was known as an honest man and was well respected . A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LIFE OF WILLIAM LAMPARD WATKIN S FROM HIS BIRTH UNTIL HIS ARRIVAL IN UTAH ON SEPTEMBER 12TH, 1852 William Lampard Watkins, son of William Watkins and Hannah Maria Lamp a r d, born in Islington, London, England, February 7, 1827. At about two years of age I was paralyzed through the carelessne s s o f a n urse, having been exposed too long in the fields on the wet g ra ss. I los t the use of my right leg from the hip joint down. From eight years of age until fourteen, I attended the Brewers Schoo l , b e ing the gift of endowment of Lady Owens on St. Johns road, Isling to n, L on don. During my boyhood I attended church with my parents, know n a s Irv ing ites, on Sunday mornings and Sunday school in the afternoon s wi th th e Wes leyans. On leaving school I became acquainted with the Latter-day Saints , a n d i n the month of May, Whitson Sunday, with the consent of my pare n t s I wa s baptized by James Albon, and confirmed by Lorenzo Snow. By t h e c lose o f the year my parents and sister were baptized. On the 22n d o f May, 1842, my sister, Emma Watkins, died. In October, 1842, my pare nts , mys elf, an d two young brothers, Joseph and Henry, aged four and t wo y ears, left ou r home for Liverpool to sail with the company of Saint s lea vin g that mont h for American shores in the ship Emerald under th e car e of P arley P. Pra tt. We had a stormy passage, were ten weeks on the ocean. My mother me t w i t h an accident in her hurry to escape a storm, fell down the hatch wa y a n d fractured her thigh. She was attended to by Elder Pratt. I n a fe w da y s she was able to be on her feet, and on arriving at New Or leans w as qu it e well. We took the steamboat, Goddess of Liberty, to St. Louis. Brother Pra t t a n d his family and his wife's sister, Olive Frost, left the boat t o t rav e l inland. Our journey up the Mississippi River was impeded, lon g be for e r eaching St. Louis, with floating ice which came within ver y littl e o f pre venting us reaching there. But after nine or ten days w e were s afel y land ed. We remained in St. Louis the [rest] of the winte r. I go t a sit uatio n in a store with a Mr. Severson. My parents, findi ng an ol d frien d who m they had assisted in London to emigrate previous ly, too k shelte r with t hem for awhile. Early in April, 1843, Lorenzo S now wit h a compan y of Sain ts came to St. Louis on a light draft boat , and th e river bein g just free d of ice. They were able to continue th eir journ ey to Nauvo o. We made arrangements and followed as soon as possible. On reaching Nau v o o, my parents in connection with Samuel Smith bought five acres of l a n d ab out four miles south of Brother Abraham Hunsaker. My parents al s o bo ugh t some land in the prairies in what was known as Little Field . T hey b uil t [a] neat, comfortable house, thinking they were settled f or l ife an d ev erything seemed favorable for awhile. We attended Sabbath meeting at Nauvoo and frequently heard the Proph e t J o seph Smith and Sidney Rigdon with others of the Apostles and lead er s ad dr ess the Saints. Nauvoo was flourishing, although the Saints we r e gener all y poor. They were exerting themselves to the utmost to bui l d the temp le. The Prophet used to speak with great power and it seemed as if the r e w a s no end to his knowledge. Before the year was ended we found th e e nemi e s of the Saints were not dead, but were covertly seeking to br in g troub l e and persecution as they did in Missouri. Writs were issue d t o arres t th e Prophet, but he was surrounded by so many faithful bre thre n who we re wi lling to sustain him in the most critical and tryin g times . There w ere al so quite a number who were spreading dissentio n among th e people a nd wer e preaching false doctrine and stirring up s trife. Whe n they wer e taken t o task or reprimanded for their course wo uld get ang ry and reve ngeful. It was getting on toward Presidential Election and the Prophet was anx i o u s to learn the feelings of those who were aspiring to that positio n a n d o pened up a correspondence but could get no satisfaction. In Jan uary , 1844, a meeting was called to consider the best course for the Sai n t s to tak e in the coming election. Two candidates were in the field , b u t neither o f them friendly toward the Saints and it was conclude d to h av e an indepen dent ticket with Joseph Smith as the choice for pr esident . A fter which th e Prophet wrote out his views on the powers an d policie s o f the governmen t of the United States. There was much poli tical agit atio n. Shortly afte r a great many of the brethren were calle d and sen t out t o spread the wor d, and conference appointed in the sev eral state s that t he Elders might g o and canvas and extend the views o f the Proph et in reg ard to present con ditions as well as to preach th e Gospel. Being one of the number, after waiting sometime for my companion, an d f i n ding that he did not respond, I on foot to Warsaw twenty miles fr om N au vo o. When near Golden Point a man with a team overtook me and in vite d m e t o ride, which I readily accepted. We soon got into conversat ion a n d I fou nd him to be very bitter in his feelings. He said, "Joe S mith w il l neve r occupy the presidential seat, before he gains the elec tion h e wi ll be k illed." He, however, cooled down and I rode with hi m to nea r Wars aw. He i nvited me to the house and I remained with him o ver nigh t and ha d suppe r and breakfast. The next morning I went down t o the Lev ee. No bo at bein g in sight, I concluded to go to Quincy wher e there wou ld be a be tter cha nce for a boat. Arriving at Quincy just a s a boat cam e down th e river. I went on board and took passage to St. L ouis. Her e I found a n umber o f my old friends and some of my London ac quaintance s. I was delay ed her e a week on account of a misfortune caus ed by the b reaking of th e instrum ent that I wore on my right leg to en able me to w alk. It wa s a difficul t matter to get it repaired as I ha d outgrown it. I was on my way to Kentucky but had to call, in order to fill a promi s e , at Caladonia in the south of Illinois, so I took a boat to Cair o a t t h e mouth of the Ohio River. On landing here I found it was eight ee n mil e s to Caladonia. The road was but little traveled as it was a t im e of hi g h waters and the bayous were full so that the usual route wa s i mpassabl e. The country was heavily timbered without much settlemen t an d I had t o f ollow such tracks as I could find, which eventuall y I (wa s lost) enti rel y on account of the water in places that submerg ed the l and. I wander ed t ill night when I had to lie down on a falle n tree to r est for the ni ght, it being cloudy weather with a fine rai n falling al l the time. Th e mosq uitos were awful. I had been deceive d by what I tho ught was the ba rking o f a dog, but as the bark came fro m other quarter s I gave it up. Next morning I got around with much difficulty, but came onto a tra v e l ed road through the woods. I did not know which course to take so c on cl ud ed to wait for awhile. I did not wait long before a man with a t ea m ca m e along and I learnedm him that I was farther from the plac e I wis h e d to go than when I started from Cairo. He took me to the pla ce to wh i c h he was traveling, he said it was a good road from there on . The la n d la dy at the hotel was very kind, got me some liniment to ba the my an kl es an d wrists where the mosquitos had done their work, an d I rested f o r the da y. The next morning I started out and found a Bro ther Compto n an d family, and at a short distance from them, another fam ily of Saint s, b ut the fa mily I was endeavoring to find for Brother Hu nsaker had go ne o n to Kentuc ky. I went to the river and waited for a b oat to come t o th e landing. On e came along and I went on board, but co uld make no ar range ments with th e captain to take me to Louisville . I immediately sta rted t o Lexington, t raveling on foot and doing wha t I could in the wa y of adve rtising my busi ness, expecting when I go t to Lexington to ge t further in struction. In th is I was again disappo inted, so I had to d o the best I c ould alone. I found my friends willing to listen and conversed on the political si t u a tion although I was in a slave state. The question of slavery as ad vo ca te d in the views of the document I carried found great favor. I wa s e njo yin g myself tolerably well, for when I got weary there was alway s on e t o ass ist me and give me courage until one day near Georgetow n I beca me p erfect ly dark in my mind and quite discouraged. I sought t o overcom e thi s feeli ng leaning on the Lord for help, but could not co ntinue . As i t were, a voice made an impression on my mind to go t o C inci nnati. A boa t had just come up the river and docked. I steppe d on bo ar d and the firs t person I met was Elder George J. Adams. Bein g very we l l acquainted wit h him I told him freely of my feelings. He s aid, "Brot he r William, I hav e sorrowful news. Our Prophet and our Patr iarch wer e mur dered in Carthag e Jail and I am now on a mission to noti fy the eld ers t o return home imme diately." The same day I got on a boat and went to St. Louis and from ther e t o o k boat to Nauvoo. It was a serious and trying time. Few of the el der s h a d yet arrived and the condition of the Saints was mournful in t he e xtre me. Our enemies were rejing in what had been done, yet full o f fear . His tory, of course, gives a full account of these perilous time s. Sidney Rigdon, one of Joseph Smith's counselors who had gone to Pit t s b urgh, hastened home on hearing of the martyrdom of the Prophet an d wi t h s ome of his friends sought to influence the people to appoint h im a s g uard ian to build up therch to Joseph, but few of the Twelve ha d arr i ved a nd John Taylor was suffering from the wounds he had receive d at t h e tim e of the martyrdom. A meeting was appointed for August 8th by which time Brigham You n g a n d most of the other apostles had returned home. It was at this me et in g Si dney Rigdon made a lengthy and tedious speech presenting his c lai ms, tell ing the people what werful things he had planned for them . I t w as a so lemn time, for he was a man who on account of his experie nc e an d talent s had been sustained as Joseph's counselor by the people , a lthou gh contra ry to the Prophet's wish for some time past, but th e dark ness w as soon di spelled, for Brigham Young explained before th e peopl e on tha t day, the o rder of the Priesthood. He was filled wit h the powe r of th e Holy Ghost. H e stood before the people as the Proph et Joseph S mith oft en had done an d we heard the voice of the true shep herd, for h e spoke wi th the voice o f Joseph. His manner and appearanc e were like u nto Joseph' s and it was ma nifested to all those present u pon whom the r esponsibilit y rested to carr y on the work of God and lea d the Saints. I sat in that assembly and did not realize for a time but th a t I w a s still listening to the Prophet Joseph, so great and marvelou s w as th e m anner in which the manifestation before the entire congrega tio n was m ade, that when the proposn was placed before the people to de cid e wh om t hey would sustain as the leader of the Church, the Twelve A post les w ith B righam Young as their president were almost unanimousl y susta ined. This c ircumstance, although the Saints were in deep troubl e and fi lle d with sor row for the condition in which they were placed b rough t a grea t relief an d gave joy to the Saints for they realized tha t Go d was stil l mindful o f them. Soon after my return home I went to live with John Hammond at Gol d e n P oint to assist him and learn basket making. On December 4, 184 4 , I ma rrie d his daughter Mary Almina. I bought an old log house in t h e neighbo rhoo d of John Carson. Dug the year 1845 the enemies of the S ai nts con tinue d their annoyances. We had to keep guards out at night t o k eep trac k of t hem and prevent depredations. I took my turn regularl y, s tanding g uard, l eaving my wife alone during my absence. Finall y a treat y was mad e that al l the Saints should leave Nauvoo. During the winter of 1845-46 endowments were given in the Tem p l e i n a hurried manner, commencing with the leading authorities, an d we r e not ified by quorums. I was a member of the 6th quorum of Sevent y an d r eceive d my notice to attendt I was just taken down with a viole nt fe v er an d unable to respond. As soon as I was able I arranged to g o to Na uv oo t o get my endowments. I procured a team, and when about ha lf way o n t he jo urney, met some returning who stated that endowments h ad to dis cont inue b ecause of the excitement then raging. My parents received their endowments in the [Nauvoo] Temple on th e 1 1 t h day of October 1845. My daughter, Mary Ann, was born early in t he s pr in g of 1846. I with my family and my father-in-law with his fami ly cr oss e d the Mississippi Rivento Iowa. My parents, in the company of Bishop David Evans, crossed the riv e r a n d went to Garden Grove and made preparations for others to follo w . We a l l sought employment in order to get means to travel and contin u e on ou r j ourney. Through the ler part of the summer we camped near B on apart e, o n the Des Moines River, and engaged in clearing a piece o f lan d. Thi s wa s a very unhealthy location but we stayed there until w e coul d endur e i t no longer. It was here that we all came down with th e feve r with th e ex ception of my wife and her mother. In this conditio n, we m oved up t o th e higher land to a place called Utica. This countr y was bu t sparsel y seal ed. Here we found an empty log cabin into whic h we enter ed for she lter. O n Sept. 29, our little daughter died. It wa s necessar y for me t o be bolst ered up in a one-horse wagon in order fo r me to g o out and fin d help to b ury the little one. The country was v ery broke n with few inha bitants, an d it was some time before I could f ind the ne cessary assistan ce. As soon as we were able to travel we went into the timber country . H e r e a family by the name of Dunn was building a new house. Mr. Dun n off er e d us a chance to occupy his old house for the balance of the w inte r i f w e would assist him inlding his new one. This offer was gladl y ac c epte d. We had to live in a tent and in a covered wagon until th e Dunn s m ove d out. This was not so desirable as we frequently had to c lear aw ay t he s now in the morning before we could make a fire, and som etimes w e ha d to d o without a fire at all. Just before spring a Brother Clinger, his wife and his wife's par e n t s came along. His wife's parents were old acquaintances of my fathe r- in -l aw in the early days of the church, so we took Brother Clinger a n d hi s wi fe into our room althh there was barely room for us to turn a ro un d. H e used to make butter ladles and other notions from box elde r woo d. The n for some reason he reported to Mr. Dunn that we were damag ing mu c h of h is timber in our selection suitable for basket work. Mr . Dunn ca m e to u s very much excited over the matter. My father-in-la w took Mr. D un n aroun d and showed him where we had cut the trees and t hat was all w e h ad done. He was more surprised at Brother Clinger's sta tements to hi m af ter he h ad been so kindly treated by us. This natural ly resulted i n Brot her Cling er finding a new location. In the spring, as soon as the frost was out of the ground and the fe e d w a s good enough, we continued on our journey to Council Bluffs. W e ar riv e d there early in July and located on a branch of Little Pigeo n als o kno w n as Allred's camp. Here we found my brother-in-law Josep h Hammon d an d fa mily, and his wife's parents and relatives, all prepar ing to le ave f or th e valley next spring. We took our squatters' right s on some l and, b uil t a number of log cabins, and went into basket mak ing and a li ttle fa rmin g in order to obtain an outfit for future trave ling. The Saints had gathered here quite rapidly. Kanesville was the prin c i p al location, with Apostle Orson Hyde presiding. We found a good mar k e t fo r our baskets, and made frequent trips down the Missouri with th e m i n exc hange for such things we needed. We even employed brother Luc i u s Bingh am to take several loads and sell them on commission. My father was taken very ill while he was in Garden Grove, and wa s t a k en down to Marysville, Missouri by a number of Saints going there . I t w a s thought by some that my father was dead, but Bishop Evans sai d i t wa s n ot so and through theercise of faith and prayer he finally r ecov er ed. My father-in-law, his daughter Sarah, and myself, in 1848, went i n t o M issouri and camped on the Dodoway River for a short time making b as ke ts. It was only twenty miles from the place where my parents wer e s o I c onc luded to go out and sehem. In those days twenty miles seem e d a lon g di stance. After walking about six miles I came to where the r e was a gr ocer y store, a few scattered houses and also a saloon. I fo un d a man her e wh o said he would be glad of company, and I was gla d o f a chance to ri de. T he man however, hung around the store occasion all y drinking with hi s frie nds. He became very drunk and did not kno w wha t he was doing. The y put hi m into his wagon and gave me the direc tion s to where he lived, a nd I drov e the team to his home. His famil y wer e glad when I brought hi m home safe ly and I remained with them ov ernigh t. The next morning afte r breakfas t I started on my way to Marys ville . I had gone only a few mil es when wh o should I meet but my paren ts an d my brothers. They were movi ng to St. J oseph, Missouri. It did n ot tak e much persuading to have the m go to our c amp on the Dodoway. Th ey rema ined with us until we made rea dy to return h ome, and they final ly decid ed to come with us to Little Pi geon. They sett led in another g rove jus t a short distance from us, fence d in a nice piec e of timber , and buil t a log cabin. On August 80, 1848, my daughter Susa n Elizabet h was born. This new location was ideal for the Saints to prepare for their co m i n g long journey. Traders going to California made a fine market fo r a l l th e corn we could raise and it brought a good price. A great man y be ga n t o make improvements andch business was done in Painsville. W e we r e get ting along very well and the people in general were satisfie d wi t h the lo cation. I was engaged in a little farming, teaching schoo l, a n d preparin g for the trip to the Valley. My wife's parents secure d an o ut fit and sta rted west in the Spring of 1850. My daughter Louis a was bo r n August 10, 1 853. To Salt Lake City In 1851 the missionaries were sent by President Young urging the Sa i n t s to hasten on to Salt Lake. Apostle Benson was laboring in our vic in it y, and it was finally decided to vacate [p.394] Council Bluffs comp let e l y and in one solid unitave for Salt Lake in the Spring. I immedia t e l y began work on building a wagon. This I did from my own timber, a n d i n t he spring it brought me with my family and father's family acro s s th e pla ins. When we left, my brother Henry drove my team and we tra ve led i n a gr oup of ten. William White was captain. We had with us a large number of cattle, and a Brother Stanley, ow n i n g the greatest number, caused some dissatisfaction because of the b ur d e n imposed on the rest of the company. We came close to losing mos t o f t he m when we attempted toss the Platte River at the South Fork. T h e r ive r was full of quicksand and the frightened cattle were more th a n onc e cau ght in a strong eddy and taken down stream. My brother Henr y , seein g on e of my stock losing ground, caught him by the horns and l e d him ou t of t he herd, thus saving him. The men forced most of the ca tt le acros s with l ong poles. It was a miracle we saved as many as we d id , and ther e was gre at rejoicing when we reached the other side. We w er e all thankf ul to Go d and we gave great praise to Henry for the ris k h e had made o n his own l ife in order to save the stock. He was the n onl y in his 15t h year. We continued our journey for several days without a mishap, but o n e n i ght, while hurrying to our next camping grounds, we had a seriou s s tamp ed e. We were close to the river and it was very dark. My wago n wa s secon d i n line and in it wery two little children. My wife was o n foo t. Wa gon s were coming in all directions and it was only a miracl e the y turne d fro m the river bank and ran to the hills over deep gulli es whi ch looke d as i f it would be impossible for teams with wagons t o cross . It woul d have be en very disastrous had they gone to the rive r as th e banks wer e perpendic ular. My team ran in this wild manner until they were exhausted. When t h e y b egan to slow down I slipped down between them and loosened them f r o m th e wagon tongue and they ran off. I then went into the wagon an d ma d e a li ght. It was not long bre other lights were to be seen scatt er e d about. It took a long time to find all the company. Henry was foun d l y ing i n a ravine. He was very badly injured internally, as a wago n ha d pa ssed o ver him crossing his body from the shoulders to the hip s on t he op posit e side. Blood passed from him for several days. My wif e had b een kn ocke d down and her apron torn from her, but she sustaine d nothin g more s eriou s than a grazed head. We were compelled to lay b y for a fe w days t o repai r wagons and to gather our scattered stock to gether. Hen ry was i n great p ain for several days, and it was necessar y for us to c onstruc t a hammoc k in our wagon in order to carry him. We had a few cases of cholera in the company, and two deaths. O n t h e c rossing of Bear River, Sept. 5, 1852, my daughter Sophronia wa s bor n. A t this time my parents remained with us with their team; the r es t o f th e company continued on the valley. On the seventh day of Sept . , m y wif e's father came to meet us with a horse team, and as soon a s po ssib le w e continued our journey. We arrived at my father-in-law' s hom e on Li ttl e Cottonwood on the 12th of Sept., late in the evening , thu s bringin g t o an end our search for a home for life. Source: Our Pioneer Heritage