Photograph taken in 1895 (according to note on back)
05 September 2012
(not so) Wordless Wednesday
Photograph taken in 1895 (according to note on back)
04 September 2012
John Ammon Taylor (1846-1921) narrative
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| John Ammon Taylor (1846-1921) and possibly his signature? |
Again, more from Aunt Jeanine's documents. It seems like there should be a lot of documentation/sources for the information in this narrative. I will definitely have to follow up on these leads.
JOHN AMMON TAYLOR;
MY GRANDFATHER.
John Ammon Taylor was born in Georgetown, Texas, Febr.
18, 1846, a son of John and Eleanor Burkett Taylor. They with 35 other
families, had left their homes and property in Nauvoo and went to colonize in
Texas under the leadership of Lyman Wight. This group and other families had
been called by Joseph Smith Jr. to make a settlement in Texas a few weeks
before his death and were making preparations to do so when he was killed by
the mob. All the colonists that went to Texas belonged to the “Josephites.”
(Which later became the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day
Saints).
John and Eleanor later decided to go to Utah and in 1852
they moved to Oklahoma Territory where they stayed 2 years getting ready to
join their family, who by this time were at Bingham’s Fort near Ogden. (This
was in the area now known as Five Points.) They started their journey June 12,
1854 and arrived at Bingham’s Fort August 15, 1854. Another family started out
with them but had better horses, no oxen, and didn’t want to travel as slow as
the train so pulled ahead. Several days later the train found the wagons where
they had been attacked by Indians and all killed except 2 boys who were riding
their horses ahead and upon hearing the Indians hid in the brush and watched
their family massacred. John Taylor’s party consisted of the parents, 10
children, 12 yoke of oxen and 1 horse. They had one bad accident when the baby
was run over b a wagon but through faith and prayers he was healed. They
moulded [sic] his head back in shape and took turns holding it with their
hands.
Grandfather was 8 years old at the time of this journey
and in later years when he and his brothers and sisters visited together they
would take of the amusing happenings on this trip, perhaps not so funny at the
time but remembers so afterward. All the family had a great sense of humor
which helped them through many trying times, and he especially liked to tease
and play harmless jokes on others. As he was the 6th child in a
family of 12 he found plenty of outlet for this.
The family settled in Weber County and there he spent the
rest of his life with the exception of a few years in Montana. He led the usual
hard life the times with scant schooling but like most parents had the desire
to see his children educated and out of a family of 9 boys and 1 girl he had 4
sons who attended Utah State Agriculture College and 1 son graduate of Harvard
University of Engineering.
During his early manhood he made several trips to the
Missouri River after immigrants, and on the last trip in 1868 he drove a team
during the day and took turns in the night-hearding or watering camp at night.
On these trips the guides and immigrants indulged in wrestling, singing,
jumping etc. for amusement and he was the best wrester in his Company. When
they would meet another Company they always stopped and had wrestling matches
and other diversions. He often told of one of these matches when an opponent, a
Wm. Gibson, after being thrown by Grandfather broke the hold and caught the leg
of his overalls ripping it to the top. This made Grandfather angry as he had on
a new pair and they couldn’t be had often in those days, so he said “I’m going
to throw you had now.” which he proceeded
to try and do, finally succeeding but he also broke Gibsons arm. This made him
as remorseful as he had been angry before and he insisted on paying the
Doctor’s charge, although Mr Gibson didn’t hold him to blame for anything. On
this trip back from the Missouri he bought one of the first cook stoves ever to
come into that part of Utah (Ogden Valley) as he was contemplating marriage to
Mary Hannah Poulson (Maren Johanne Ottoson).
[page 2]
In his early boyhood his father John Taylor got the
goldfever [sic] and wanted to go to California so 6 younger children of the
family and the parents made preparations to go but while camped at the mouth of
Ogden Canyon waiting for the rest of the company they had a bad Indian scare
and abandoned this plan and the next year set out with ox team and went up
through northern Utah across Idaho and finally ended at Alder Gulch, Montana,
where one of the richest goldfields then known was located. During their stay
here the Indian Wars broke out, Grandfather and his brother William went to
fight the Nez Perce. It seems there must not have been any age regulation about
joining the Army – just the ability to load/fire a musket as they were in their
teens. They never rejoined their parents who stayed in Montana several more
years. On coming back to Utah Grandfather spent one summer in East Mill Creek
working for Amos Neff, but one was enough when he had settled for his summers
work he had a small amount of script on the Tithing Office and about 30 pounds
of homemade soap. He packed the soap and walked to Weber County, about 50
miles. It was after this experience he made the trips back to the Missouri
River and between trips worked for Bishop Ballantine of Eden, Ogden Valley. His
parents were still in Montana, and his brothers that were married had been sent
by Brigham Young to help colonize different parts of the Territory; one to
Ashley Valley (Vernal), one to Franklin, Idaho and another was freighting from
Utah to Montana.
While working for Bishop Ballantine he met Maren Johanne
(Hannah) Poulson in 1868 in the Salt Lake Endowment Hiuse [sic] after his last
trip to bring in immigrants. They lived in Eden a little over a year, where
John Henry was born, their eldest son.
The people of Ogden Valley had to travel through Ogden
Canyon to Ogden City for supplies and Grandmother very often made the trip
behind a yoke of oxen and told us many times it was not uncommon for them to
have to stop and build a road or bridge over the river where it had washed out.
IT would take them all day to make the trip[.] She was very proud of the cook
stove Grandfather had brought her and often baked bread and other delicacies
for the neighbors, especially when there was a wedding supper or a party. She
used this same stove until 1895.
Grandfather often told how hard it was to get money or at
least to keep it and it was a common thing to go to a dance with a girl on one
arm and a pumpkin or such in the other to pay the dance ticket. One incident
where his love of jokes to to light again happened whenhe [sic] was floor
manager and door deeper of the Poplar dance hall. One young man named Summers
for several weeks had brought a $5.00 gold piece to pay his ticket and always
came early before enough money was taken to make change. This night Grandfather
was prepared for him, securing the change after much trouble in dimes, nickles [sic] and some pennies. When the gold piece
was offered he proceeded to count out the pennies nickles [sic] etc. Summers
immediately dug into his pocket and brought out the quarter to pay the ticket,
but nothing doing, he had to weigh his pocket down with coppers.
After being married and living in Eden Grandfather moved
his family to Plain City (the area known locally as Poplar) and began dealing
in real estate. In 1899 he bought his fathers old homestead of 350 acres of the
best irrigated land to be found in Weber County. Late in the 1880’s he and the
older boys established a ranch in Bingham Co., Idaho buying part and
homesteading part. The range was open and their cattle and horses ranged from
Culew valley to Promontory, thus began the Bar JA brand one of the oldest and
best known brands in Northern Utah and Southern Idaho. (Bingham County was
later divided and the ranch was in Oneida Co. with Malad as the County seat.)
This began as a cattle ranch with herds being driven out from Plain City and
surrounding town to summer range and back in fall with horses being left at all
times. After the Cattle war
[page 3]
with the Union Pacific R.R. and the subsequent closing of
the waterholes on the range a large part of the ranch and all the cattle were
disposed of and activity was given solely to the raising of horses for which
the “Taylor Boys” became famous in this part of the country. They sold horses
to the British Government for the Boer War in the 1890’s and also to the United
States for the Spanish-American War and World War I. During later years they
broke and sold horses for polo players.
As the sons grew older and married, Grandfather turned
the active management of the farm and ranch over to them and devoted most of
his time to civic affairs, helping establish the Plain City Irrigation Company,
Plain City Canning Company, Harrisville Creamery Company, and the Utah Idaho
R.R. in getting service to Plain City. He was a member of the District School
Board for 20 years. He was also a member of the Black Hawk Veterans Association
until his death.
Although being a stockholder in these companies took up
most of his time, he always had time for visits with his brothers, sisters and
friends and would arrange big family parties on the slightest excuse. He was a
devoted husband and father and although not especially active in church affairs
he instilled the L.D.S. religion into his children and sent two sons on missions,
one to Australia and the other to the Central States.
Plain City was always the family home, here were reared
the family, John H., William, George Francis, Charles Ezra (my father), Hyrum
Alber, Ether Green, Parley Paul, Elmer A., and Lester Grant – nine sons and one
daughter, Eliza Hannah. Grant died as a small child. With the exception of
George F. his sons and daughter married and also reared their families in Plain
City. On February 7, 1916, Grandmother died. Grandfather later married Martha Ferrin
and moved to Ogden where he died after a two week illness on February 19, 1921,
the day after his 75th birthday. He was survived by his eight sons
and one daughter, 58 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He left his descendants
a great heritage: of family love; to live a full useful life and be stalwart
men and women.
Written by Thelma Taylor
Storey, February 1935.
Information from family
records, Ogden Standard
Examiner articles, personal
letters written by
Uncle Francis and Emma Knight
Furness, niece of
Grandfather and family
memories.
03 September 2012
Joseph Taylor (1825-1900)
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| Joseph Taylor (1825-1900) |
Having studied both History and English and the process/product of scholarly writing, I can't help but wonder at this narrative. I wish there were sources cited and less of the authors own bias. But, I guess this is a product of its time and the rose-colored look back at history, where things are very black and white. I just have to be sure to be careful in my own writing. I will also have to go back and verify everything stated in this narrative.
JOSEPH TAYLOR
Joseph Taylor,
third son and eighth child of William Taylor and Elizabeth Patrick Taylor, was
born 4 June 1825 at Bowling Green, Warren, Kentucky. He moved with his parents
to Missouri and went through the trying times of the early church history. In
Nauvoo he met Mary Moore and married her 24 March 1844. They went through the
Nauvoo Temple 24 Jan 1846. At the same time his mother, brothers Allen and
Green also went. He served as one of the body guards to the Prophet Joseph
Smith.
Under the
leadership of Brigham Young, he and his family and his mother and some of her
children crossed the Mississippi River on the ice 8 February 1846. They reached
Council Bluffs in June and had planned to go on to Utah, but the calling for
the Mormon Battalion upset all his plans and he was marching away without
bidding his wife good-bye, leaving her in a campwagon and in a delicate
condition. He suffered the terrible persecutions and starvation that this body
of men had to endure. History treats it lightly in comparison to what it really
was. When the men became sick, the government doctor would give them medicine
to make them worse. If they had diarrhea, the doctor would give them medicine
to make them worse or to increase the cramps. Because of this the men would
stay on duty as long as possible before admitting that they were ill. They were
so near starvation that they would eat the decaying meat of dead sheep, even picking
out the eyes and eating them. One time they had one this sheep for a group of
starving men. One man was left to keep guard and cook the meat while the others
rested. The sheep was so this the firelight shone through. This man was so
hungry he ate all of the sheep while he was cooking it. All the rest of his
life he would never eat mutton.
Joseph
returned to his family in 1847 but his cattle and belongings were so scatted
that he couldn’t leave until the last of May 1850. In the company of fifty
wagons where James Lake was captain, Joseph was lieutenant. He had his wife and
children: Clarissa, Mary Melvina, Joseph Allen, and William Andrew. The latter
was two weeks old when they began the journey. Joseph baptized Sarah Jane
Marler in the Platte River on the way to Utah. They suffered the hardships,
privations and horrors of the Indians but were always faithful. They came by
way of Parley’s canyon and arrived in Salt Lake valley 5 September 1850. They
settled in Salt Lake for a time, then moved to Kaysville. He had a farm and was
building a log cabin when his wife took ill and died at childbirth 4 April
1852. He made her coffin out of his wagonbox, and placed her and the tiny baby
in the coffin took her to Salt Lake for burial. She was one of the first to be
buried in the Salt Lake Cemetary.
Soon after he
married Jane Lake Ordway. After they lived in Kaysville for a time, she
persuaded him to move to Ogden so that she could be near her parents, se he
moved and settled in West Harrisville, now Farr West. He settled where Eliza
Taylor now lives. Very few people lived here. He and two others built a small
irrigation ditch to their farms. Tey [sic] made a proposition that if people
would work onand [sic] enlarge this canal they could have water at four dollars
an acre, where it had cost them therty-two [sic] dollars. People flocked here
because of such good terms. He was water master for years. A branch of the
church was organized with Daniel Rawson as head, and Joseph Taylor and Green
Taylor as his two counsellors [sic].
During the
Echo Canyon War, when Johnston’s Army came to Utah, Joseph Taylor was appointed
Major and sent out with forty or fifty men to the Oregon road near the bend of
Bear River to help delay the progress of Government troops and trains. The instructions
given him were “Burn the whole country before them and on their flanks, keep
them from sleeping, by night surprises, blockade the roads by falling trees and
destroying river fords, take no life, but destroy their trains, and stampede
and drive away their animals at every opportunity”. After he had passed fort
Bridger he left his men and returned to that place on important business. He
came upon a body of United States troops unexpectedly and he and his assistant,
William Stowell, were surrounded and taken prisoners. The soldiers tried to
poison them by putting poison in their soup after starving them. Joseph told
his friend not to eat the soup because it was poison. Mr. Stowell just tasted
his soup and then they buried it, yet he became deathly sick. Then the soldiers
tried to smoke them to death in a tent. Joseph told his assistant to dig a hole
in the ground with his hands, put his face in the hole, hold his hand around
the hole and breath in it. By so doing they lived. One day Joseph said to his
companion, “I’m leaving here tonight”.”You’ll be killed if you try it”, his
companion replied. The officers had been given instructions to fire and kill
the men if they tried to get away. In spite of this, that night Joseph kept
asking the soldiers to build the fire higher because he was cold. He took off
his shois [sic], supposedly to warm his feet. The sentinels kept up their duty
of coming together, giving the password, and facing around to go back to meet
the next sentinel, then coming back, which they did every few minutes. He
waited until the sentinels turned to go back, their backs being toward him,
then he bolted from the fireside and out into the midst of the cattle and
horses. This caused a great commotion and started a stampede. His guards fired
and searched but they couldn’t find him. He ran for miles without stoppingthen
[sic] he slowed down some. A day or two later he found an overcoat and in the
pockets of which were some clean, dry socks. He made good use of these,
especially the socks, since he had left his shoes behind and it was winter.**
The next day he saw two men coming toward him on horseback. At first he thought
it was the men hunting him but soon saw that it wasn’t. They were hunting the
overcoat. They gave it to him and ride back besides. William Stowell was
released at the close of the war.
Joseph Taylor
was stern, strong charactered man. He married two other wives, Maria Harris and
Caroline Madsen.
About 1859 he
took a herd of cattle to care for on shares. They milked about fourty head in
summer and took them down to Salt Creek in winter. The winter that Joseph Allen
was eleven and Andrew was nine, they stayed with the cattle, living in a dugout
and their only clothes being straw hats, shoes and canvas suits. One night some
Indians came into the dugout, motioned for the boys to go to bed, that they
wouldn’t harm them, and they ate all of the boy’s food. Of course the boys
didn’t sleep. Next morning Joseph Allen send Andrew home to tell his father
what had happened while he stayed with the cattle. Andrew walked the twelve or
fifteen miles through the snow, arriving hole late in the afternoon. His
step-mother had no food ready so he had to wait until the next day before his
father could take fresh provisions to his brother.
He was father
to the following twenty- 4 children: Clarissa, Mary Melvina, Joseph Allen,
William Andrew, Moroni, Esther, Emma Jane, Lydia Anne, James bailey, Janette,
Julette, Mary Ellen, Elizabeth, Philomela, Amanda, Lamone, James, Heber, Hyrum,
Ada, Evelyn, Frank, Joseph Jr. and Esther.
He lived to a
ripe old age, doing good all his days. He was a Patriarch. He died at Farr
West, Utah 9 August 1900 after a three week illness. His funeral was held in
Farr West with a large attendance. Five Mormon Battalion members were present,
all of whom spoke. They were: John Thompson, James Owen, Lorin Clark, Alexander
Brown and Jess Brown. Bishop James Martin presided and he and George Middleton,
William Fife and Thomas Doxey all spoke of long acquaintance with him and of
his faithfulness in forwarding the Lord’s work. He had always been willing to
defend his people, even to laying down his life.
** some say
that he took his shoes with him when he ran away from the soldiers in
Johnston’s Army.
Some of this
was from Orson F. Whitney book “The Making of a State” Page 107.
(by
Lola Taylor wells)
Source: Lund and Taylor Family personal papers, (genealogical research and documents, ; privately held by Jeanine Lund (Clontz Allen Sinsel), [address for private use], Plain City, Utah); Joseph Taylor narrative report of his life, great-grandfather, scanned and transcribed, 31 Aug 2012. Written by Lola Taylor Wells.
02 September 2012
George Francis Taylor (1875-1945)
Some of the pictures in the Taylor pile were Post Cards. These are pretty neat and while most of them were blank on the back, I thought it was a fun idea. I wonder what the process was to get them printed on post cards. I may have to look into that a bit more.
b. 24 Apr 1875, Plain City, Weber, Utah, United States
d. 16 May 1945, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States
That's all I know! He is Grandma Pearl's uncle, brother of her father, William Taylor (1871-1942). Apparently he served an LDS mission in 1909 in Subiaco, W.A. At first I thought that was Washington State but since the postcard came "via England" that wouldn't be right. When I did a Google search I discovered it was in West Australia. That's pretty neat. There was no stamp on the card so it may have come in a packet with some other missionaries and not individually through the mail.
Transcription:
Tarjeta
Postal
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Post Card
|
Bilhete Postal
|
|
Postkarte
|
Carte
Postale
|
Levelezo-Lap
|
|
Union
Postale Universalle
|
|||
COMMUNICATION.
|
ADDRESS ONLY.
|
||
Subiaco, W.A.
Dec. 13, ’09.
Dear Niece;-
This
picture will show
you how a Mormon Elder looks
just before preaching. Sometimes
he looks that way when preaching
except his hat is off and his
mouth wide open. This picture
was taken Oct. 30, ’09, but I
look about the same now.
It was taken in our back
yard the next day after my
beard was cut off. I am well
and hope that this will find
all of you the same. Love to
all and accept the same yourself.
Yours truly, Geo. F. Taylor
|
Miss Pearl Taylor
Plain City,
Weber Co.
Utah,
Via England. U.S.A.
|
||
01 September 2012
William and Ada Rose Taylor, abt 1900-1909
William Taylor and Ada Rose Taylor (yes that was her maiden name). In fact, they were first cousins, once removed - here's what that looks like:
The back of the photograph had some information written in about them:
Ada Rose Taylor
Born Aug 13, 1872 in
Harrisville UT
Died with her 9th child
on the 9th day of the 9th
month in 1909. They were
married on 3 Sept 1890 on
Will's 19th birthday
William (Will) Taylor.
I have no birth date.
Died April 11 1942.
31 August 2012
Victor Erastus and Etta Letitia Lund, 1889
Victor Erastus Lund (1888-1965) and his sister Etta Letitia Lund (1887-1868)
They are the 4th and 5th children (there were 10) of Mathias Christian Funk Lund and Pauline Persson Swensson. Victor is Troy's great-grandfather.
I think Victor looks just like himself when he was older -
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| Victor E. Lund |
I wanted to find out more about the photographer and discovered his photography collection is held at the Utah State University Library. (Initial Citation: USU_P0466; Heber H. Thomas Photograph Collection; Photograph Collections Special Collections and Archives. Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library. Logan, Utah.) Here is their biographical note: (http://uda-db.orbiscascade.org/findaid/ark:/80444/xv46704)
Heber H. Thomas was born on November 17, 1862 in Wales and at the age of 14 immigrated to Ogden, Utah. He held various public office duties including that of superintendent of the state industrial school and a member of the Ogden school board. Around 1911 he moved from Ogden to Salt Lake City where he opened the Thomas Studio. He resided in Salt Lake City until his death on October 8, 1926 at the age of 63. He was survived by his wife Nellie Dane Thomas and three children: Mrs. G. Earl Stoddard of LaGrande, Oregon; Mrs. C. B. Turner of Salt Lake City, and J. D. Thomas of Ogden and four grandchildren. (Source: Salt Lake Tribune October 10, 1926)
So then I searched the page for "Lund" or "Taylor" thinking he may have taken more photos of the family. Here's what I found:
8x10 Glass Plate Negatives, undated [Box 23]
23:21: Lund. Family portrait with four children
5x7 Unlabeled Glass plates, undated [Box 40]
40:07: Exterior shot of the Lund home
40:07a: Group of boys in front of the Lund home
5x7 Glass Plate Negative, undated [Box 7]
7:55: Taylor. Portrait of a man [cracked and held together by tape]
5x7 Glass Plate Negative, undated [Box 12]
12:41a: Taylor. Portrait of a man wearing a military uniform and hat
12:41b: Taylor. Portrait of a man wearing a military uniform without the hat
8x10 Glass Plate Negatives, undated [Box 17]
17:15: Taylor. Portrait of a man
5x7 Glass plates, 1919 [Box 21]
21:19: Taylor. A girl sitting on a bench and holding flowers
21:51: Taylor. Woman wearing a corduroy jacket
5x7 Glass Negatives, undated [Box 24]
24:47: Taylor. Woman sitting on a bench
I have to get up there and take a look! How exciting!
30 August 2012
Elizabeth (Patrick) Taylor (1793-1880)
I'm working my way through scanning all these awesome photos I have from aunt Jeanine. I'll post some as I go along.
b. 9 Dec 1793, Meclenberg, Virginia, United Stated
m: 22 Mar 1811, Warren, Kentucky, United States
to: William Taylor (1787-1839)
d: 25 Oct 1880, Harrisville, Weber, Utah Territory, United States
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