Clara Elizabeth Theobald

1880 - 1955  (75 years)  Submit Photo / Document    Has 2 ancestors and 26 descendants in this family tree.

• Name	Clara Elizabeth Theobald
  Birth	24 Mar 1880	Duncan's Retreat, Washington, Utah, United States
  Christening	29 Aug 1880	Duncan's Retreat, Washington, Utah, United States
  Gender	Female
  Initiatory (LDS)	13 May 1896	MANTI
  FamilySearch ID	KWCY-DC6
  Death	20 Dec 1955	Sacramento, Sacramento, California, United States
  Burial	24 Dec 1955	Oak City Cemetery, Millard, Utah, United States
  Headstones	Submit Headstone Photo
  Person ID	I23165	mytree
  Last Modified	25 Feb 2024

  
  

  Father	Arthur Theobald,   b. 1 Jun 1844, Freshwater, Isle of Wight, England d. 3 Mar 1890, Provo, Utah, Utah, United States (Age 45 years)
  Mother	Jane Burgess,   b. 22 Sep 1848, Marshfield, Gloucestershire, England d. 16 Jul 1933, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 84 years)
  Marriage	4 Sep 1864	Washington, Utah, United States
  Family ID	F10948	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Arthur James Talbot,   b. 24 Oct 1868, West Jordan, Salt Lake, Utah, United States d. 29 May 1922, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 53 years)
  Marriage	13 May 1896	Manti, Sanpete, Utah, United States
  Children	1. Elsie Elizabeth Talbot,   b. 6 Jul 1897, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 23 Apr 1932, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 34 years) + 2. Arthur Loren Talbot,   b. 24 Apr 1899, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 14 Nov 1961, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 62 years)   3. Thomas Reed Talbot,   b. 16 Jun 1901, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 24 Jan 1990, St. George, Washington, Utah, United States (Age 88 years)   4. Noel Theobold Talbot,   b. 30 Sep 1903, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 25 Apr 1962, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 58 years)   5. Lyle Wendell Talbot,   b. 7 Sep 1905, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 10 Jan 1975, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 69 years)   6. Verna Fontella Talbot,   b. 11 Sep 1907, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 18 Nov 1985, Delta, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 78 years)   7. Lee Asiel Talbot,   b. 9 Apr 1910, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 21 Jan 1980, Delta, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 69 years)   8. Hazel Jane Talbot,   b. 19 Mar 1912, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States d. 14 Mar 1916, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States (Age 3 years)   9. Margaret Alice Talbot,   b. 29 Apr 1914, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States d. 25 Aug 1988, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 74 years)   10. Ernest Jay Talbot,   b. 15 Mar 1916, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States d. 10 Feb 1971, Novato, Marin, California, United States (Age 54 years)   11. Nelda Talbot,   b. 4 Mar 1918, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States d. 30 Jun 2013 (Age 95 years)   12. Basil Talbot,   b. 9 Feb 1920, Hinckley, Millard, Utah, United States d. 19 Mar 2006, Utah, Utah, United States (Age 86 years)   13. Clara May Talbot,   b. 26 May 1922, Oak City, Millard, Utah, United States d. 21 Jan 1998, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 75 years)
  Family ID	F10944	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	5 May 2024

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 24 Mar 1880 - Duncan's Retreat, Washington, Utah, United States Christening - 29 Aug 1880 - Duncan's Retreat, Washington, Utah, United States Initiatory (LDS) - 13 May 1896 - MANTI Marriage - 13 May 1896 - Manti, Sanpete, Utah, United States Death - 20 Dec 1955 - Sacramento, Sacramento, California, United States Burial - 24 Dec 1955 - Oak City Cemetery, Millard, Utah, United States  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  A LIFE SKETCH OF CLARA ELIZABETH THEOBALD TALBOT Written by herself I, Clara E. Talbot was born March 24, 1880, in Duncan’s Retreat, Washin g ton County, Utah. A very small town of about ten or twelve families o n th e bank of the Virgin River, between two large mountains, a red one a n d a black one. My parents [Arthur & Jane Burgess Theobald] were poor and we lived in v e ry limited circumstances. My parents had been living in a one room lo g ho use where they lived in this house until just before I was born. Whe n the y moved into a new two rom adobe house which they were very proud o f. I w as the seventh child of nine children. The family consisted of fiv e boy s and four girls. My oldest brother and one between me and my bab y siste r prematurely born, died almost immediately after birth. When I was born, my parents were unable to procure the help of a whit e g irl to help with the extra work that always comes with the arrival o f a n ew baby, so they had to get an Indian girl to help with the work. M eans w ere very scarce and hardo get. My health in childhood was fairly good, my childhood responsibilities w e re few. I had to run errands for Mother, go for the mail, pack in wood , a nd fire kindling, feed chickens. When I grew larger and older I had t o g o and herd sheep as we hd a few and I and my younger sister had to g o her d them. I also had to herd cows, also milk them, and when my olde r brothe r was busy on the farm, I would have to take the cows three mile s to th e river bottoms to pasture during the day and at night go and ge t them . I would put the saddle on the horse myself. I also had to take t he mil k to the creamery. We had an old cart which I would hitch one hors e to, a nd put the can of milk on and go four miles to the creamery in De seret, w here I lived. I was about nine years old when I started to school. We were new settle r s in a new country and did not have the privilege of going to school ea rl ier or when I was old enough to go to school. I was taught to say my p ray ers at night before goig to bed when I was a child. My father was no t o f the religious type although he was converted to the Mormon church i n th e old country (England), and came for the Gospel’s sake and went tho ugh t he old Endowment House for their Endowments. We did not have famil y praye r in the home in my earlier life, but later prayers were a regula r habit. My first school teacher was Miss Sophia Peterson, taught in an old aban d oned adobe house that was used on Sunday for a church house. The firs t ye ar I went to school there was only one teacher. The second year I we nt, m y teacher was Milton Mooy. My next teach was E. W. Kelly from Fillm ore, n ow a prominent man in Salt Lake City. My next, I think, was a Mr. Hanson from over around Aurora and my next was Alex Melville, attorn e y Melville now, of Salt Lake City. As my courtship days had already been started, I quit school at the clo s e of this last teach’s year and was married 13th May 1896, at the ag e o f two months past 16. I was born in the church, therefore, I have always been a member as I w a s baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints when abo u t nine years old, in the Sevier River, just east of the river bridge i n D eseret up by the home of W.. Black. My youthful associations were not many, but we had many good times. O u r amusements consisted of parties and dances and buggy riding, etc. W e ha d no cars and automobiles in those days and we enjoyed buggy and hor se ri ding. My courtship was a duration of several months. When we decided to be ma r ried, we made preparation for our journey to the Manti Temple which wa s t o be made with covered wagons. We left on Friday noon of May 8 and ca me t o Oak City from my homen Hinckley as that was then my home town. W e stopp ed over night with my intended husbands father and mother, and th e next d ay we went to Scipio and the next day to warm creek, camping ou t at night s and on Monday we arrived in Manti and went and gave our name s in as tha t was the custom in those days. And on Tuesday we went up int o the Templ e and was baptized as that was also another custom of my da y to be baptiz ed when we went to get married. And on Wednesday we were m arried about no on and we went to the room where we were stopping and ha d our lunch and t hen started on so we went as far as we could go that ni ght with the tea m which I think was bout the northern part of Ephriam an d camped for th e night. The next day we arrived in Nephi and stopped ove r night with m y cousin and the next day we came on to Leamington and sto pped with my hu sband’s brother Thomas, overnight and the next day on ove r to Oak City an d the next day, Sunday, back to our home in Hinckley. M y Mother went wit h us and we had a real enjoyable trip. We stopped wit h Mother for a wee k or two and then went to our own home which was on th e farm about a mil e east of main street in Hinckley. My husband, Arthur James Talbot, was not a wealthy man, therefore, h e h ad to work very hard for to make a livelihood and we had to live ver y eco nomically. We did not live on luxuries. My husband had took a gris t to th e mill and had killed ark and his mother had put up a two gallo n jar of p reserves for him. Outside of that, we did not have much to eat . We woul d hunt pigweed greens for dinner and anything we could get. W e planted so me corn and many an ear of corn did we eat without any butte r. We had n o cow and no money to buy, in fact, we hardly seen any money. The first summer we were married, we raised some grain and would go a n d trade that to the stores and get the things we had to have, but wen t wi thout the things we could get along without. And then the next year my children started to come along. My first chil d , a girl, was born the 6th of July, 1897, and life went on quite smooth ly . We lived on the farm until our third child, a boy, (Reed) was a yea r ol d, when we bought my siser’s home and moved in town. This was in th e Spri ng of 1902. When in the fall another boy was born to us and he g o along n icely till ten months old and took whooping cough and summer co mplaint, a nd was very sick, almost to death, but slowly recovered. We ha d three chi ldren born to us here at this place, two boys and a girl, and when the girl was about one year old, my husband’s father, g e tting along in years, wanted him to come to Oak City and buy his plac e a s he was getting too old to handle it himself. So in the year of 1908, we left Hinckley and came to Oak City to live a n d here we have had many hardships. First, we had to buy us a home to li v e in, and my husband worked hard, almost night and day in order to kee p t hings a going, and suppot the family, till he was somewhat broken dow n i n health. While we were building, he would ten mason in the day and after they qu i t work, he would haul sand adobes for the inner walls, also do farm wor k , we could not afford to hire much so had to make all kinds of turns t o g et along. We got along here fairly good for a few years until Diphtheria hit ou r f amily and took one of our little children, a girl four years old, an d alm ost took some more as about all the children had it, and the nigh t our li ttle girl was buried, anoter little boy arrived at our home. W e were stil l quarantined in and no one could come in to see us. It wa s a real loneso me and sorrowful time. We then went on for a few years without much trouble, until the dreadf u l flu struck our town, and then we were all sick. None lost their live s a t that time, but it left my husband with leakage of the heart and thr ee y ears later he died of dropy, leaving me with my 13th baby, a girl, t hre e days old. My oldest child, a girl, just married seven months, whe n he r father died, and I was left with a family of 11 children and in ve ry po or circumstances. But somehow we have got along. The Lord has bless ed u s and we have always had something to eat and something to wear, i f it wa sn’t the best. We haven’t went hungry or cold. I have always trie d to kee p my tithing and fast offerings paid and to pay my donations . I have quit e a lot of sickness in my home since my husband’s death. A t one time, m y son, Lee, when he was about 14 years old was very sick wi th pneumonia a nd was nigh unto death and I think if it had not been fo r the power of th e Lord, we would have lost him. But he revived and i s a grown man and fat her now. I am now 56 years of age, have 24 grandchi ldren. This is Januar y 31, 1937. I served as a Secretary in the Primary for two or three years just befo r e and after I was married. I also, have been a Relief Society Teacher f o r several years. I have made a good many trips to the Temple and done q ui te a lot of Temple work. (Written later by Irene Talbot) (Clara and Arthur) were a hard working team. They carried the water ma n y times from a block away, and hauled firewood from the nearby hills. S h e sewed and made the boys shirts and overalls until they were old enou g h to want store clothes. Se made the girls slips, dresses and coats. She had a very little time to help in church activities, but she alwa y s kept the children clean and urged them to take an active part in chur c h activities. When her husband died it was not an easy task ahead. Her youthful deter m ination and desire to never be a burden on anyone urged her forward. I t w as her desire to raise the family to Arthur would be pleased with th e jo b he left her to finish. Of this union there were 13 children, 57 grandchildren, 38 great grandc h ildren, making a total of 108, to this date. One son and seven grandsons have served in the U. S. Army. Two grandso n s have filled a Mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Sa in ts, and a third has just left for the Mission field this month. Clara had been married 59 years and a widow for over 33 years of that t i me. Most of her children and grandchildren have married in the Temple. To the close of her life, she was a staunch believer and member of th e c hurch and nothing pleased her more than to see her family following i n he r footsteps. Her family loved to gather around her, and when they were away, she spe n t many hours writing letters to them. She often remarked that there wou l d be no mail in Oak City if it wasn’t for hers. She joined with them in games and was a very good ball player. They we r e always a lively, noisy, happy family. The luxuries of life were few and late, yet she never complained, an d i n the later part of her life she had at least had some of them. She e njoy ed them very much, and spent happy hours making cookies, cakes, an d othe r good things to treat thm when she knew the families would be com ing hom e. Her baked beans was always a special dish at their reunions, and the ki d dies loved to find her good cookies. Her hobbies were growing flowers. She spent many hours caring for gard e n and house flowers. She made lovely pieces of crocheting which she ga v e as gifts to her children and grandchildren. Another hobby was collect in g knickknacks. She had hr shelves and a cupboard filled with pretty on e s which was given her by her children and grandchildren, sent from man y p laces. Her life was simple and undemonstrative. The hardships she bore mellow e d her character and sweetened her soul. She passed away very quietly a n d suddenly on December 20, 1955, thus having a desire of her life fulfi ll ed, that she not become a brden to anyone. She gained love and admirat io n from her many friends. Following written by Reed & Irene Talbot. Her oldest son and daughter-in - law/ Clara Elizabeth Theobald Talbot Clara was the seventh child of a family of nine children. Her brother s a nd sisters were Ernest, T. George, Lyzett, Charles, Nell, & Emma. Tw o bab y boys died at birth, Arthur William & John. She was the daughter of Arthur and Jane Burgess Theobald. Was born Mar c h 24th 1880 in a small town, Duncan’s Retreat in Washington County kno w n as Dixie. There were about twelve families living there. Her parents were very poor and lived in humble circumstances. Their ho m e was a one room log house which sheltered them until shortly after sh e w as born when they proudly moved from it into a two room adobe house t he f ather had built. When she was born it was hard to procure the help of a white girl s o a n Indian girl was hired to help with the added work of a new baby. The family lived in Utah’s Dixie until Clara was five years old. Condit i ons for making a living grew worse each year as their farm land was gra du ally being washed away by the flood waters of the Virgin River. When she was five the families belongings were loaded into two covere d w agons. They headed Northward and settled in Montpelier, Idaho, wher e the y lived for one year. This place was not their liking so again thei r prec ious belongings were loadd into the two wagons. This time their de stinati on was Southward coming to Deseret in Millard County. This was th eir hom e for many years. Clara was baptized in Deseret in the Sevier River when she was about ni n e years old. Her scant education also started in Deseret. She was eage r t o learn and some of her teachers were prominent and well known citize ns o f this county; Milton Mody, E. W. Kelly, Alec Melvil. She being one of the younger children of so large a family her responsi b ilities were few but as she grew older and stronger, she became the she e p herder of her father’s small her. Because of the scarcity of feed sh e a nd her little sister alsoad to herd the cows. They drove them to th e rive r bottoms three miles away in the morning and brought them home a t night. At a very early age it was Clara’s job to take the milk to the creame r y four miles away. To do this she learned to harness and bridle the fam il y horse, hitch it to an old cart, load the can of milk and take it t o th e creamery. She also milkd the cows when her brothers were late comi ng fr om the field. The horse and buggy was their luxury, their means of transportation a n d the milk a means of earning part of the living. Clara’s father died w he n she was ten years old leaving her mother the responsibility of raisi n g and providing for the famil. She learned early in life what hart tim e s were. She learned many valuable lessons of sacrifice, love, obedienc e , sharing and kindness to others. Her youthful associates were few but they had happy times at dances, bu g gy rides, parties and horse back riding. Her mother moved the family to Hinckley on a plot of ground close to h e r son-in-law William Alldredge. (1886) He had a pal he had become acqu ai nted with while living in Leamington by the name of Arthur Talbot. Thi s y oung man came to Hinckly to work at threshing and stayed at the Alled redg e home. It was at this time Clara met and fell in love with her futu re hu sband. He was 11 years her senior but that difference seemed to mat ter li ttle concerning their courtship, for Arthur never stopped coming. Clara’s schooling came to an end when she and Arthur decided to get mar r ied. Without much announcement or preparation, Arthur came in a covere d w agon and took Clara and her mother to start on their journey to be ma rrie d in the Manti Temple. Tey were married the 13th day of May 1896. She was a beautiful young bride, she being just two mon t hs past sixteen years old. It took them five days to make the trip an d a s many to return. They made their home in Hinckley, farming, where the first five childr e n were born, Elsie, Loren, Reed, Noel and Lyle. Arthur’s father lived in Oak City and as he was getting on in years , h e desired Arthur to come and take the farm over, so their farm in Hin ckle y was sold and they moved to Oak City in 1908, where the rest of th e thir teen children were born, Fonella, Lee, Hazel, Alice, Ernest, Nelda , Basi l and Clara. A new house was built but no modern conveniences were installed. It w a s still a problem to keep a large family clothed, fed and educated. Th e c ulinary and wash water many times was carried from a block away. Fire woo d hauled from the near byills and chopped into pieces. Arthur and Cla ra w ere a hard working team. She sewed and made the boys shirts and over all s until they were old enough to want store clothes. She made the girl s sl ips, dresses and coats. She had very little time to help in church activities but she always ke p t her children clean and urged them to take an active part in church ac ti vities. Clara was a visiting Relief Society teacher for many years. Al s o a Relief Society trainr teacher a short time, and a Primary teacher. In 1916 Diphtheria caused the death of Hazel, a four year old child a n d some of the other children were seriously ill. Aunt Sue Theobald, a s is ter-in-law and a nurse came to the rescue and helped nurse the sick ch ild ren and prepare the dead oe for burial. Ernest, the tenth child, was born that same night after Hazel’s buria l , and as they were still in quarantine, no one was able to come and hel p. Clara was very grateful for such an angel of mercy as Aunt Sue was to h e r many times. On May 29, 1922, Arthur died when Clara the baby was only three days ol d . This left Clara as her mother had been left a young widow with a lar g e family to care for. Only one of the twelve living children was married at that time, Elsi e t he oldest. She and her husband, Lafe Olson, were a great comfort an d hel p during her great sorrow. Elsie’s death combined their sorrow and Clara always had the deepest lo v e and respect for the kindness Lafe and his children gave her. It was not an easy task ahead. Her youthful determination and desir e t o never be a burden on anyone urged her forward. It was her desire t o rai se the family so Arthur would be pleased with the job he left her t o fini sh. Of this union there are 13 children, 57 grandchildren, 38 great grandch i ldren. l son who served in U. S. Army, and 7 grandson’s, 2 great grands on s have filled a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day S ain ts and a third has just lft for the mission field this month. Clara has been married 59 years and a widow over 33 years of that tim e . Most of her children and grandchildren married in the temple. To the close of her life she was a staunch believer and member of the c h urch and nothing pleased her more than to see her family following in h e r footsteps. Her family loved to gather around her, and when they were away, she spe n t many hours writing letters to them and often remarked there would b e n o mail leave Oak City if it wasn’t for hers. She joined with them in games and was an excellent ball player. They we r e always a lively noisy, happy family. The luxuries of life were few and late yet she never complained and i n t he latter part of life when she at last had them, she enjoyed them ve ry m uch and spent happy hours making cookies and cakes, and other good t hing s to treat when she knew te families would be coming home. Her bake d bean s was always a special dish at their reunions, and the kiddies lov ed to f ind her good cookies Her life was simple and undemonstrative. The hardships she bore mellow e d her character and sweetened her soul. She passed away quietly December 20, 1955, and suddenly thus having a d e sire of her life fulfilled that she not become a burden to anyone, an d ga ined love and admiration from her host of friends from her exemplar y lif e she lived. We loved her, we will miss her as we look across the way and remember t h rough the years.