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Sarah Priscilla Cluley

Sarah Priscilla Cluley

Female 1831 - 1865  (34 years)  Submit Photo / DocumentSubmit Photo / Document    Has more than 100 ancestors and more than 100 descendants in this family tree.

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  • Headstones
    Greaves, Joseph b1832 - Cluley, Sarah P b1931 - Goddard, Elizabeth A b1931
    Greaves, Joseph b1832 - Cluley, Sarah P b1931 - Goddard, Elizabeth A b1931

  • Name Sarah Priscilla Cluley 
    Birth 13 Feb 1831  Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Christening 1 Apr 1831  Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Female 
    Death 13 Apr 1865  Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Initiatory (LDS) 28 Jan 1885  LOGAN Find all individuals with events at this location 
    FamilySearch ID KWJ4-ZW1 
    Burial Logan City Cemetery, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I2659  mytree
    Last Modified 25 Feb 2024 

    Father Henry Cluley,   c. 18 Jan 1807, Walsgrave-on-Sowe, Warwickshire, England Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 19 Aug 1840, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location (Age ~ 33 years) 
    Mother Catherine Threlfall,   b. 1805, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1919 (Age 114 years) 
    Marriage 4 Mar 1827  St. Peter's Church, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Family ID F1896  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Joseph Greaves,   b. 22 Feb 1832, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 19 Jun 1904, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 72 years) 
    Marriage 20 Feb 1853  Liverpool, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
    +1. John Cluley Greaves,   b. 21 Dec 1854, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 8 Oct 1933, Preston, Franklin, Idaho, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 78 years)
    +2. Elizabeth Cluley Greaves,   b. 21 Oct 1856, Provo, Utah, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 5 May 1942, Preston, Franklin, Idaho, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 85 years)
    +3. Joseph Cluley Greaves,   b. 1 Dec 1858, Provo, Utah, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 16 Nov 1884, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 25 years)
    +4. Thomas Cluley Greaves,   b. 2 Nov 1860, Provo, Utah, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 5 May 1920, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 59 years)
    +5. Priscilla Cluley Greaves,   b. 17 Mar 1863, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 24 Feb 1917, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 53 years)
     6. Mary Ann Cluley Greaves,   b. 2 Apr 1865, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 8 Apr 1865, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 0 years)
    Family ID F385  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 3 Sep 2024 

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBirth - 13 Feb 1831 - Liverpool, Lancashire, England Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsChristening - 1 Apr 1831 - Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, Liverpool, Lancashire, England Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarriage - 20 Feb 1853 - Liverpool, Lancashire, England Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDeath - 13 Apr 1865 - Logan, Cache, Utah, United States Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsInitiatory (LDS) - 28 Jan 1885 - LOGAN Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsBurial - - Logan City Cemetery, Cache, Utah, United States Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 

  • Notes 
    • Sarah Priscilla Cluley
      1831- 1865

      Early Life
      Born: 13 Feb 1831 Liverpool, England
      Christened: April 1, 1831
      Baptized: 3 July 1831 St. Nicholas, Church of England in Liverpool
      Parents: Henry Cluley and Catherine Threlfall .

      Sarah’s father, Henry, is listed as bootmaker on Sarah’s marriage licens e . Bootmaking/shoemaking appears to be a family business. Sarah’s mothe r , Catherine, worked as a shoebinder (1841 census).
      ** Hand binder or boot binder—one who sewed together the upper leather s o n a last, usually women, older children and old men.

      Sarah Priscilla was born the 3rd of 6 children in her family but she w a s the only child that grew into adulthood; her other 5 siblings all di e d when they were infants. Sarah Priscilla was the only child who live d p ast the age of one.

      Siblings:
      Ann—Jan 2, 1828-Nov 1828--
      Lived 10 months
      John—July 17, 1829-Mar 8 1830--
      Lived 8 months
      Sarah—Feb 13, 1831-Apr 12 1865
      Joseph—June 28, 1835-Feb. 1836--
      Lived 8 months
      Elizabeth—Feb 13, 1837-March 1837- Lived about 5 weeks
      Henry—May 6, 1838-Feb 24, 1839--
      Lived 9 months

      Sarah lived on Brick Street, Liverpool, England.
      She learned about heartache and death at an early age.
      Before she was 10, Sarah not only lost her father but had also experienc e d the joy of having 3 siblings born and the sorrow of those 3 childre n be ing called home in their infancy.

      Sarah (10) and her mother (35) then lived with Catherine’s father, Jose p h Threlfall, a carpenter, who was 75 years old. (1841 census)

      While growing up, Sarah most likely helped her mother in the shoe bindi n g business and probably looked after her grandfather the best she could .

      When Sarah was 17 years old, her mother, Catherine, remarried a man nam e d William Maxwell. (She had been a widow 8 years )

      Adulthood
      At age 20, Sarah was living in another household—(77 Grove Street) possi b ly caring for an 82 year old man. She is listed as a servant living wi t h a retired merchant, a commercial traveler who is a listed as a lodge r a nd a 36 year old woman listed as head of house and housekeeper. (185 1 cen sus)

      Sarah somehow learned about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Sai n ts between the years of 1849 and 1852. One record says she was baptiz e d on 22 Dec. 1849 but other writings indicate the date was later, clos e r to 1851-2.

      When she was 22, Sarah married Joseph Greaves (Feb 20, 1853). The ne x t day they sailed on the “International” bound for New Orleans, LA.

      This must have been a time of conflicting emotions for Sarah. Knowing th e y would never see each other again in this life, she had to leave her m ot her and everything familiar to her, but there must have been excitemen t a t starting a new marriage and a new life in a new country with peopl e wh o shared her same beliefs and goals.

      Coming to America
      8 weeks of:
      The discomforts of cheapest fare
      Crowded quarters
      Menial tasks, bad smells
      Insufficient food—running out of flour
      Little room—their berth (or bed) was so small that if she turned, she a n d Joseph both would have to turn at the same time.
      Unfavorable winds
      Once during a storm on ship—the hatchway was closed down and people ha d t o keep in their bunks. Sarah made a caraway seed cake that they pu t in s ack and hung it within reach and that supplied food for them whil e the st orm lasted.

      *A more detailed description of the International’s voyage to Americ a i s included at the end of this history.

      Going West
      Joseph remembers:
      (In a letter to his cousin William Greaves Sept 2-4 1897)

      Jacob Gates Company—1853

      “from New Orleans we go by Steamer to Keokuk Iowna [Iowa], from this Pla c e we Travel with Ox Teams to Salt Lake City Distance 1300 miles.
      arrived there Sept. 30. I helped to drive the Loose Cattle of the Compa n y the whole of the Journey on foot. the first 300 miles it was very we t w eather. and most of us had to lay on the ground as only one or two co ul d lay in each wagon. my Provisions gave out on the Sweet water, as wa s th e case with others of the company. from this time we commenced to ki ll th e poorest of the Cattle to live on, and we had no salt to use wit h this m eat,
      Keokuk, Iowa was our outfitting point w[h]ere we received our oxen, cow s , and wagons. Here is where our camp life commenced. We were on the fro nt ier of civilization; we remained here some time waiting for our oxen . Her e we were put in companies, twelve persons to a wagon. There were , I thin k, four families in our wagon, my family and that of an old man’ s was sma ll. There was a captain over each ten wagons and a captain of t he compan y of fifty wagons when we started from here. And when the wago n I belonge d to was just pulling out a man comes to me and says, “You ha ve been sele cted to remain here in company with three others to bring al ong a herd o f cows when they come.” I had never been one day away from m y wife befor e since we were married. The company went some distance t o a place calle d Montrose, and by this time they found out that they wer e too heavily lo aded for a journey of 1,300 miles. Each family had a box , some had crock s and books. We had to lighten up; the locks and hinge s were taken off th e boxes, and the boxes were all piled together and bu rned. Crocks, extr a cooking utensils, books and anything that could be d ispensed with had t o be got rid of. The inhabitants of that place got lo ts of things for a f ew vegetables or a little milk. When the cows came , life was something ne w for a sailor. The cows were purchased of farmer s all over the country a nd were all strange to each other and of cours e would not travel together , and I can assure you we green horns had a h ard time of it. They would g o every way but the way we wanted them to go . When we reached our compan y my wife soon informed me of all the thing s she had to part with. We wer e allowed one box to a wagon to put in th e best things of the persons bel onging to the wagon, and me being away a t the time, selected mine for tha t purpose. Our route through Iowa to th e Missouri river to where Omaha no w is was a distance of 300 miles. It w as a wet season of the year. I ha d made myself an oilcloth coat to wea r on the ship as I thought befor e I started, but had no occasion to wea r it. But it came in good to put o n the wet ground in the tent to make o ur bed on. The grass was up to ou r waist and every morning when we woul d go to gather up the cattle we wou ld get wet to our skin. This 300 mile s was one of the greatest trials I h ave ever passed through, except losi ng my wife. I had never been used t o walking and it was a great deal o f labor to me. I have many a time la y down on the ground and cussed th e day that I was born. I am sorry to sa y it but it is so. But long befor e we got to Salt Lake I could have walke d many more miles than our team s were able to do each day. We were campe d some time where Omaha now is . It took quite a long time to ferry the wa gons and cattle over the rive r. This place was called Caneville [Kanesvil le], and the last place sett led by white people. When we crossed the Miss ouri we were in the India n territory and one thousand and thirty miles o f dry country before us . We made this part of our journey in a little ove r ten weeks. This par t of the journey was hot and we would walk through r ivers and creeks wit h our clothes all on and let them dry on us and not h ave any bad effect s from so doing. We had two yolk of oxen to each wago n and two cows. Som e men would break in the cows and use them. I drove th e loose animals th e whole distance, had one person at a time to help me . During the last 5 00 miles when the cattle were poor and sore-footed I w ould be left a lon g way behind the company and at times when it was ver y dark. I could no t have found the camp if it had not been for the sens e of smell of an ol d gentleman that was with me. He could smell the cam p fire a long way of f. Some time before we reached our journey’s end ou r provisions became v ery scarce. Then we commenced to kill our poorest ca ttle to [word fade d out] out the deficiency. If anyone ever learned the v alue of salt, w e did at this time. (I have always been careful of salt ev er since.) W e lived on poor beef alone and no salt too – it is somethin g you could n ot comprehend if you have not tried it. During our journey w e could se e many useful articles by the roadside that were left by thos e who wer e ahead of us to lighten their loads. Men would be stationed b y these ar ticles while the train would pass by them or some thoughtless p ersons wo uld put things in the wagons and soon put us in the condition o f those w ho had to leave them. I was so hungry the latter part of our jou rney tha t I had made up my mind that as soon as I got in the valley of Sa lt Lak e I would commence to beg, but as usual, the last day I was a lon g way b ehind the company. And as soon as I got out of the mountains I cou ld se e the city in the distance. I left two oxen that had hindered my pro gres s all day, and traveled a little faster. When I reached camp my wif e inf ormed me that the people commenced to beg at every house they passed . Wh en I learned that, it took all the courage out of me and one of our c omp any, seeing we had nothing, gave us enough to make us a supper. Thus e nd ed our journey, on the 30th of Sept. 1853. I kept no diary of those da y s so I cannot give you as interesting account as I would like to have d on e.” (J. Greaves)

      The company made a start but found they were too heavily loaded. Capta i n Gates called a meeting and told everyone to throw away all but 25 pou nd s a head. All of the books were burned and many dishes were discarded . S ome were traded to settlers for food.

      A grand-daughter remembers:
      “Grandmother (Sarah) had to discard many of her precious things as the y w ere coming to Utah so as to lighten the load for the oxen were givin g out . This made her feel very bad.”

      “Grandmother had real dark hair and grey eyes. (her daughter, Priscill a , resembled her (Sarah) and aunt Lizzie resembled grandfather (Joseph). ”

      Utah
      Arriving in Salt Lake destitute, Joseph had to accept any kind of availa b le work, a tough thing for someone who had never done anything except t ai loring. Priscilla fared some better by helping with the housework of a n a ged couple and this had food and warmth.

      Priscilla and Joseph’s first winter in SLC was full of hardships. Jose p h wrote, “We were in a strange country and I had never done a day’s wo r k at anything but my trade. It was hard for a weak, half starved indiv id ual like myself to learn to do common labor with shovel, pick or saw . Ev ery little job I would get would be different from the one I last h ad…I w ould keep warm in the sun on the south side of some building. W e got i n a log house that winter, but had very little wood to burn. A t nigh t I would go to meeting to keep warm. However, we lived through o ur firs t North American winter. I have never regretted my coming here a lthoug h it was wild looking place then.”

      Ten months after Joseph and Priscilla were married, their first child, J o hn Cluley, was born in a one-room dirt floor log cabin. They lived i n Sa lt Lake City for 3 years, sometimes living on roots of weeds to kee p fro m starving. The grasshopper plague made things even worse, destroy ing th eir crops, so they moved to Provo.

      In Provo, fish were easily caught—even with no bait and potatoes, corn a n d flour were obtained. There, Thomas, Joseph and Elizabeth were bor n i n a one-room adobe house. The Greaves family spent several years cle arin g land and farming near the Provo River. The farm was too near th e rive r and their crops were frequently washed away. Then one year th e river f looded, completely ruining the farm .

      Joseph had heard favorable reports about Cache Valley so he set out on f o ot to inspect to the area. He liked what he saw and so after 6 year s o f living in Provo, the family of 6 traveled by ox team in the winte r to L ogan. They lived in their wagon until they were able to make a on e-roo m dugout where the lot sloped down. They now had a roof, a door an d a wi ndow. The floors were covered with clean straw and they had a fire place a nd bake oven that they used outside. Now sheltered and comfortab le, th e family welcomed a baby girl, Priscilla, born in March 1863. Th e move t o Logan was permanent. Later they lived in a two-room house wit h a “lean to” on the back on the lot where they first camped.

      Three years later, on April 2, 1865 Sarah gave birth to a baby girl, Ma r y Ann. She lived only a few days and on the 13th of the same month, Sa ra h (age 34) followed her in death. Mary Ann’s grave was made larger an d c ontains both mother and daughter. Thirty-four years is not a long ti me t o live, but the wonderful characteristics, traits and values Sarah a nd Jo seph have passed on to their children stand as a witness to the ki nd o f people they were and what they instilled in their children.
      Sarah and Joseph’s 6 children:

      John Cluley Elizabeth Cluley Joseph Cluley

      Thomas Cluley Priscilla Cluley Mary Ann Cluley

      Trials, tests, set backs, hardships, caring for others, accomplishment s , joy, starting and restarting life over again…Sarah was familiar wit h al l these things and kept going. She was loved: by the family she cam e fro m, by her children and her husband. We are grateful for her life , sacrif ices, example and legacy she has left us. Joseph’s feelings wer e about S arah were expressed in his letter to William, 32 years after he r passing:
      “Our route through Iowa to where Omaha now is was a distance of 300 mile s . This 300 miles was one of the greatest trials I have ever passed thr ou gh except losing my wife”
      Thank you, Grandma Sarah. Until we meet again….
      **The plot was among the first in the Logan City cemetery and lies direc t ly east across the roadway from the Thatcher plot. Joseph, and his sec on d wife, Elizabeth Wood Greaves and an infant daughter Susan who died s oo n after birth are also buried there. A suitable monument marks the pl ot.
      Sources:
      “My Grandfather – Joseph Greaves”, History of Utah since Statehood, Vo l . 4, pg. 1920
      Conversations between Nellie Greaves Spidell and Elizabeth Greaves Eam e s on March 27, 1937
      Missionary Journal of Joseph Greaves – original now in LDS Church Archiv e s. Also brief sketch prefacing this journa l
      Two letters written by Joseph Greaves dated September 10, 1897 and Septe m ber 14, 1897.
      #1 Personal History: Childhood and Catherine Mary Eames by Vera Carter L e wis