“HELP BUILD LOCK. These foremen and supervisors are working on the Eisenhower lock in placement of concrete. They hail from various parts of the country. Shown are Ward Turner, supervisor, from Arkansas; Manuel Martinez, vibrator, from Mexico; Golden Andra, general foreman, from Idaho; John Catera, foreman, from Utica.
This newspaper article and photo were in the records of Golden Andra. Golden is named in the newspaper, I don’t know/think the second photo is of Golden. It says it came from the Department of Interior, he kept it for some reason unknown to me.
I know this was a significant time in the life of the Andra family. Golden worked and is shown as a general foreman. But I also know that Golden’s brothers Donald and Ross both also worked on the St. Lawrence Seaway. I believe they both worked on the Eisenhower Lock as well.
Golden and Utahna adopted a boy born in 1957 at Bombay, Franklin, New York.
Donald married in 1957 at Hogansburg, Franklin, New York.
Ross told me multiple stories of New York. Unfortunately, I don’t remember any to share.
Since this is Golden, and this article also shares some information in New York, I share it here as well.
“Andra, former Preston man, gets Silver Beaver. The Citizen (Preston, Idaho) 20 March 1986.
“A former Preston man was awarded a Silver Beaver award from the Mt. Whitney Area Boy Scout Council in California recently.
“Golden Andra, son of William F. Sr., and Mary Wanner Andra, of Preston, was one of the two Tulare, Calif., scouters to get the prestigious award, the highest given on the council level.
“Andra, who has been involved in scouting for more than 20 years is serving as district commissioner for the Golden State District, and Explorer advisor for Post 234.
“An active member of the LDS church, he married Utahna Bird of Salina, Utah in the Salt Lake LDS Temple.
“He worked for Morrison Knudsen Construction and the government for many years. He now works in sales for Selig Chemicals and has been in sales for 20 years. He is now buying the old Willard Wanner home in Preston for retirement.
“Andra organized the first charter for the Boy Scouts in Hogansburg, N.Y., for Mohawk Indians, becoming scoutmaster; worked with youth in Pierre, S.D.; Page, Ariz.; Roseville, Calif.; Crows Landing, Calif.; served as a counselor to a branch president and scoutmaster in Manteca, Calif.; scoutmaster, stake missionary, president of the Seventies, president of the MIA in Tulare.
“He also served as High Priest group leader, stake assistant secretary and scoutmaster over all scouts, last year being given the district award of merit.
“The Andras have six children (four living) and three foster children.
Working through the family history book of Golden Andra that was given to me, I opened a page to scan some photos and found a surprise. Behind that photo were some ordination certificates. These are originals. I thought I better get them scanned and preserved. I also uploaded them to FamilySearch and got them linked with the names in the documents.
I think they are valuable for family history. They are also a peek into church history. This gives us the missionaries who baptized and confirmed my Great Grandfather in Germany. I have provided some limited biographies at the end.
Also an original Notification of Birth Registration for Robert Lee Andra, son of William and Mary, who died at birth. I am not sure why the United States Department of Commerce is issuing this Notification, or the Bureau of the Census. There is some history behind this I am not aware. Last, a copy of William’s obituary.
Priest Ordination Certificate (Front)
Priest Ordination Certificate (Back)
Elder Ordination Certificate (Front)
Elder Ordination Certificate (Back)
High Priest Ordination Certificate (Front)
High Priest Ordination Certificate (Back)
Robert Andra Birth Certificate
I had to do some history on individuals listed on the certificates. Some fascinating individuals, obviously some of them local church leaders.
James Richard Bodily – born 11 February 1872 in Hyde Park, Cache, Utah – died 12 April 1967 in Preston, Franklin, Idaho
Wilford Woodruff Emery – born 16 October 1880 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah – died 10 September 1954 in Salt Lake City.
John Edward Hanks – born 30 August 1877 in Salem, Utah, Utah – died 5 July 1970 in Salt Lake City.
William Gibson Palmer – born 16 July 1884 in Croydon, Morgan, Utah – died 15 May 1977 in Preston.
Henry Helaman Rawlings – born 8 April 1893 in Fairview, Oneida, Idaho – died 14 February 1984 in Fairview.
Adelbert Augustine Taylor – born 9 April 1883 in Springerville, Apache, Arizona – died 15 November 1948 in San Felipe de HÃjar, San Sebastián del Oeste, Jalisco, Mexico.
Luther Hovey Twitchell – born 17 October 1878 in Salt Lake City – died 15 April 1962 in Bountiful, Davis, Utah.
It is Sabbath in Wigan. Therefore, not a whole lot in the way of mention of traveling or exotic places. However, we did go to church and visit a few people. A quick couple of thoughts.
Church was great. Funny how even though I lived here for a couple of years, I still really struggle with some of the accents. In Sacrament alone, I could not understand the second speaker. Might as well have been Greek.
The pure Wigan accent I am simply unable to replicate. I cannot even try.
Jim and Julie Monks family at their home
We went to visit a couple of people. Jim and Julie Monks, Dawn Rhodes, Ceri and Lorraine Jenkins, Charlotte Ainscough, Alan and Rose Aspey, Brian and Sylvia Burtonwood, and Rene Simpkin. We had a very good visit with the Monks, Jenkins, and Aspeys.
Ceri and Lorraine Jenkins family with her daughter Charlotte Ainscough in Wigan
Dawn Rhodes doesn’t live in the address we were given. We were either given the wrong address or she has moved. She was the only convert in the mission I felt like I really oversaw the entire thing from initial contact to baptism and even some of the new investigator discussions. Alas, she is not active and it seems nobody really knows where she is. Except for Brother Monks and she either moved or he gave me the wrong address in Aspull. I was very disappointed.
Alan and Rose Aspey family in Wigan
Sadly, I found out Rene’ Simpkin passed away around Christmas of 2003. That would explain the stopping of letters. I am disappointed nobody notified me or responded to the letters. I will have to find her birth and death information so I have it for my records. I really came to love the lady and she the church, but she just couldn’t give up her wine. The Burtonwoods remembered her. She was a fine lady.
Street near Aspey home looking toward Wigan
In visiting with Alan Aspey, he let me know an Aspey from Wigan is definitely related to him. I will have to let my Aunt Lolane Andra know that her Margaret Aspey who came from Wigan is very likely related to him. Interestingly, Alan also commented about his Aspeys living in Upholland and Ormskirk. We told him about Amanda’s Ashton relations in Upholland and he knew the name as having some in his own line. However, he knows of no relations who joined the Mormon church and moved to America. This would be a first for him if we could show a link.
I found out from President Monks that Gheorghe Simion, my second to last companion from Romania, now lives in Liverpool. We will have to try and find some contact information for him so we can meet up while we are near Liverpool.
Charlotte Ainscough still has the little stuffed animal I gave her when we baptized her. I found out she named him Ross. How sweet is that? The Jenkins and Charlotte were very excited to see us. They gave us their passes for the British Trust sites in England. We will have to mail them back when we leave the country, but it includes a parking pass. Meaning we can save well over 200 pounds with the passes for much of our travel throughout the UK in our remaining time.
It was a sweet day in Wigan. It made me feel good so many people remembered me. If not my name, at least my face. They all adored Amanda and commented on how beautiful she was. Some even recognized her from our wedding announcements.
We have uploaded all our pictures for the past few dazs! Go on over and take a peek! The photos from Brugge, Amsterdam, The Hague, Dresden, Meißen, Roßwein, and Leipzig are all now available. We are especiallz glad to have them online and saved at another location.
Todaz we said good-bze to our hostel in Dresden and made our waz to Augsburg. Since were so close to the Andra-Schneider familz area, we made a special trip to Roßwein where several generations of mz familz are from.
Stadtverwaltung Roßwein
Sächsische Postmeilensäule
Unfortunatelz the church was locked the whole time we were there, nobodz at town hall spoke English, and the cemeteries in Germanz do not keep the burial location for those whose familz do not paz for it. Other than having been there, I have nothing more.
Stadtkirche Roßwein
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A name on a grave I recognized in Stadtfriedhof Roßwein
We found our waz to Leipzig where we took a quick 1 hour whirlwind tour. We went to the church where Bach was organ master.
Nikolaikirche Leipzig
Nikolaikirche Leipzig
Also the church where his remains are presentlz located (the original church was destrozed in WWII).
Thomaskirche Leipzig
Thomaskirche Leipzig where Bach is interred
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Monument to Goethe in Leipzig, a favorite author of mine
Amanda enjoying a treat in Marktplatz Leipzig
We are now in Augsburg, Deutschland. We will be here for the next three dazs. Here we will make visits to Neuschwanstein, Munich, Dachau, Stuttgart, and other little towns with relatives on the Wanner and Nuffer families. I am definitelz looking forward to all. We will be traveling quite a bit on trains, but nothing we are not accustomed to zet!
Do not smoke while picking your nose. Odd signs in Germany.
It is time for todaz’s update. But first, two funnz stories! First, Amanda complained to me this morning she could not get the shower to turn down the heat. Come to find out, she was trzing to adjust the regulator knob outside the shower on the radiators! I stepped into the bathroom to show her the fancz little faucet knob that moved both wazs to adjust the heat. Not to mention she had alreadz used it to turn on the water! She said it was because the shower in Amsterdam had a separate heat knob from the on and off knob. She saw me playing with the knob so she thought it was it.
Second, we stopped in town to buz ourselves some sauerkraut and a wiener. Amanda went to the counter and asked two. The ladz seemed verz surprised. I was waiting, so I did not see this. Next thing I know, Amanda comes walking out of the store with these loaves of bread, more like oversized croissants. Each must have weighed at least 3 pounds! It was bread with the sauerkraut and wieners baked into the loaf. This was to be our breakfast and turned out to be our breakfast, lunch, and dinner. What is more? We still have half of one left!!!! But hez, for onlz 3€ ($5) it was a prettz good buz. Amanda’s first trz at sauerkraut is going to be a verz memorable moment!
On to the daz. We decided to sleep in to the ripe time of 7:30 this morning. The sun comes up and goes down so late zou can’t reallz sleep when it is dazlight. Great for touring and traveling, bad for sleeping in. We got readz for the daz, tried to take care of some issues over e-mail with our potential home and other things and headed out.
Meißen
We went to Meißen. It is the birthplace of Karl Maeser, and also happens to be the birthplace of mz great grandfather, William Andra. I had to paz a visit. We walked the streets, and ascended the hill to the DOM and Albrechtsburg Kasse (castle).
Dom zu Meißen
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Fascinating. We also walked around and paid a visit to the Porcelain Factorz. The first porcelain in Europe.
Albrechtsburg Meissen
Albrechtsburg Meissen
Amanda on spiral stone staircase in Albrechtsburg Meissen
Porcelain fireplace in Albrechtsburg Meissen
Another porcelain fireplace
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Ceiling in Albrechtsburg Meissen
Some of mz Andra ancestors are supposed to be some of those locked into the basement of the Albrechtsburg Castle to not let the secret of porcelain out to the world.
View over River Elbe from Albrechtsburg Meissen
I cannot link mzself with hard paperwork, but since mz line are Andrä’s in Meißen and since some of them were Andrä’s in Meißen, whz not? (It is reallz cool I can spell the Andrä name with the umlaut!)
We then went to the church I thought was the one thez would have attended, but I reallz doubted it was it when I arrived. I have a picture, and in mz mind thez did not match up.
Meissen Porcelain Museum
The porcelain factorz was amaying! Zou will have to see pictures to believe it. There were table pieces larger than Amanda in height! There were vases from the 1700’s larger than me! Onlz something to be seen to believe.
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Amanda’s poor feet could not take well the long dazs of traveling and rebelled against her todaz. She will have calluses the thickness of regular shoes when we are done traipsing around the continent.
There was a highlight, we bought an e’clair at the train station. Tomorrow we are headed to Augsburg, near Munich. We will also hit Dachau.
This article was found in Golden Andra’s family history book. I haven’t seen it before. The top of the pages simply say “LDS NAVAL CHAPLAINS” and the next page has “FOR GOD AND COUNTRY” which I expect is probably the name. I couldn’t find one that seemed to quite fit. This article shows on pages 39 and 40.
“One must learn in life to accept personal responsibility and the consequences of the decisions one makes. One LDS marine on Guam did just that, and, by doing so, shored his character. Chaplain A. Gifford Jackson had the following experience.
“During 1944 on Guam, Chaplain Gifford Jackson met Bill Andra, a very devoted Latter-day Saint. During Bill’s spare time, he would go to headquarters and look through the service records of the men of the 3rd Marine Division. He would list the names and units of all those who came from Utah, Idaho, and Arizona. He would then seek them out to find out if they were members of the Church, his purpose being to get all Mormons to the 3rd Marine Division LDS Services.
“One evening, Bill received the assignment to police the mess line. During each meal, enlisted personnel policed the “chow line” to insure that there was no fighting or breaking into line. Usually, there were no problems, but on that particular evening a fight broke out in the line causing a great commotion. Because of the disturbance, Bill’s commanding officer got involved and wanted to see the man who had been assigned to police the line. He learned that Bill Andra had not reported for duty that evening. He proceeded to investigate the matter by calling Bill to his office to get the facts.
“”Bill, why weren’t you on duty policing the “chow line” last night?”
“”I’m sorry sir, I was at headquarters looking through some records and became so involved I didn’t realize the time.”
“”I’m going to have to punish you, Bill, for not reporting to duty. You are going to have to spend some time in the Brig.”
“Bill went to the brig, but while there got a call to report to the commanding general. In the deivision Bill was a barber and he always cut the general’s hair. He reported to the general and as he cut his hair, the general said, “Bill, why didn’t you tell me you were in trouble? I would have helped you.”
“”Well, General, I made a mistake, and a person has to pay for his mistakes. I wasn’t where I ought to have been and for that I was punished. I got exactly what I deserved.
“Bill’s honesty impressed the general so much that he made Bill Andra his orderly, the best assignment in the division.
The page then goes on with a story of Merrill Bickmore: Life after Death. Since it is not complete, I won’t include it as well.
We took the opportunity to attend the Casper Wyoming Temple Open House on 31 August 2024. We planned the weekend to do some sightseeing and visit some church and family history sites. I am reposting as this has updates on 3 additional ancestors that also came through the Overland Trail.
We left on the Friday morning with the hope of making it all the way to Casper before nightfall. We took old US Highway 30 through Soda Springs and Montpelier. We made a stop to visit the grave of my Grandmother in Dingle.
Aliza, Lillian, Paul, James, and Hiram Ross at the graves of Bud and Colleen Lloyd
We drove through Cokeville and reminded the kids of the story of the Cokeville miracle. As we drove along the old highway, I pointed out the old railroad Y that used to go to the Stauffer mine that was located in Leefe, Wyoming. I spent the first summer or two of my life at Leefe while my dad was tasked with tearing down and removing the mine with Circle A Construction. We stopped in Kemmerer to refuel and also drive past the first J. C. Penney store. We made a quick stop at the Parting of the Ways along the California, Mormon, and Oregon trails.
James Ross at Independence Rock
With four kids, we often stop at rest areas. As you can see above, we stopped at the one at Independence Rock. The rock is nearby and doubles as the parking location to visit the rock.
We finally made it to Casper about sunset. We ate an amazing Italian meal at Racca’s Pizzeria Napoletana and checked into our hotel.
Casper Wyoming Temple
We got up early, dressed appropriately, and headed out to visit the Casper Wyoming Temple. It was beautiful. Much smaller than I had anticipated. It is definitely one of the smallest temples, but that is because of the population and distance to other temples. It will supposedly have five stakes in its temple district, some of which will still come from a long distance to attend. Don’t let size fool you, it still has all the distinct parts of a temple and related quality. I think I may very much prefer the intimacy of the smaller temples. It actually reminded me of the Helena Montana Temple on size and flow.
Ross family at the Casper Wyoming Temple Open House
The temple does not have an adjoining chapel, but it does have a distribution/visitor center. We watched the video, enjoyed waiting in the line, and got to see the whole temple. If I were asked, there are a couple of design changes I would make for flow, but this temple will not regularly see these types of crowds or have those issues.
Ross family with the Casper Wyoming Temple
We hurried back to our hotel, changed, loaded up the car, checked out, and headed off to our next stop: The National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper. I did not take any pictures there, but it was very well done. I enjoyed the visit, helped the kids with their junior ranger activities, and learned a few things. Part of the museum had its own little room and video dedicated to the Martin and Willie Handcart Companies.
We stopped at Independence Rock again on our way headed west. We walked around the massive rock and looked at a number of the signatures carved into stone from over 160 years ago. It was hot and we needed to get our little doggies along to Devil’s Gate.
I will write about this more in a bit, but Devil’s Gate was a major landmark on the trail going west for all pioneers on the trails. But Devil’s Gate became more than a landmark and became a historical site in the tragic fall of 1856. Fort Seminoe was based there on the west side of Devil’s Gate, but it had been abandoned earlier that same year. It was that fall that the Martin Handcart Company found itself stranded in the snow. Days later the stranded handcart company moved into a nearby cove to get away from the wind, snow, and cold. That cove is now known as Martin’s Cove.
The Sun Ranch from Devil’s Gate, now The Martin’s Cove: Mormon Trail Site
We found the visitor’s center much more hospitable than some of our ancestors. As I worked through my family history, I had some of my own ancestors who passed through this very Devil’s Gate and area. Here are my ancestral lines that came across on the Mormon Trail. I had counted only 3 while in Casper, but hadn’t realized the Williams clan came over in two separate trips.
William and Mary Ann Sharp in 1853. Wagon train. Moses Clawson Company. William and Mary Ann met in the wagon train and married in Nebraska in 1853. William and Mary are my 3rd Great Grandparents.
John Williams in 1860. Wagon train. John Smith Company. John came over with his two sons John Haines (1829) and Richard (1838). I don’t know why his son David went separately in 1864. I am a descendant of John through David. John is my 4th Great Grandfather.
Johanna Benson in 1862. Wagon train. Joseph Horne Company. Johanna came over with some of her children and their families, her daughter Agneta, came over in 1864 with her family. Johanna is my 4th Great Grandmother.
William Edward Stoker in 1863. Wagon train. Unknown Company. William was traveling with his family, including the baby Mary Ann. William is my 3rd Great Grandfather, Mary Ann is my 2nd Great Grandmother.
John and Agneta Nelson in 1864. Wagon train. William Preston Company. Agneta is the daughter of Johanna Benson who came over in 1862. John and Agneta are my 3rd Great Grandparents.
David D and Gwenllian Williams in 1864. David is the son of John mentioned above. Wagon train. William S Warren Company. Gwenllian came with her sister Mary. Both married on the ship in Liverpool before setting sail for Utah. Gwenllian and Mary’s parents, David and Margaret Jordan, came over in 1872 crossing the plains by rail. David and Gwenllian are my 3rd Great Grandparents.
That gives me 10 ancestors that crossed the plains by wagon, none by handcart that I can tell. The unknown companies were all wagon trains as there were not handcarts those years.
Devil’s Gate – 2024
Every single one of these seven ancestors of mine who came west on the trail would have passed through Devil’s Gate. Here I stood on this sacred ground and snapped this photo of my daughter, my descendant and their descendant, at Devil’s Gate.
Aliza Ross at Devil’s Gate
It took me a bit more work, as I am not as familiar, to find those family lines of Amanda’s that also would have passed along the Mormon Trail to the west before the railroad made it much, much faster and safer. It took me several occasions over a couple of weeks to spend the time to research all these lines.
Henry and Ann Jackson in 1852. Wagon train. James C Snow Company. This is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents.
Regina Hansen in 1853. Wagon train. John E Forsgren Company. Her son, Hans Hansen, also accompanied her on the trip. Regina’s husband stayed behind. Regina is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandmother, Hans is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Grave of Hans Hansen in Plain City, Utah. Edith Sharp Ross’ stone is the stone at 10 o’clock from the top of this stone, my Great Grandmother.
David Buttars in 1843. Wagon train. William Empey Company. He appears to have traveled alone. Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Birthe Jacobson in 1854. Unknown if wagon train or handcart company. Birthe’s daughter, Maria Jacobson, also accompanied her on the trip. Her husband Jorgen died in Missouri as part of the trip. Birthe is Amanda’s 5th Great Grandmother, Maria is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandmother.
Harriet Housley in 1856. Handcart company. Edward Martin Company. Harret’s son, George Housley, also accompanied her on the trip. Two other children came later. Harriet is Amanda’s 5th Great Grandmother, George is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather.
Richard and Christine Hemsley (1836 – 1915) in 1857. Handcart company. Israel Evans Company. This is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents.
Ole and Anne Jensen in 1861. Likely wagon train. Unknown company. Amanda’s 5th Great Grandparents.
John Crompton in 1862. Wagon train. Joseph Horne Company. John also had his daughter, Hannah Crompton, with him. John is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather, Hannah is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandmother.
Anna Nielsen in 1862. Wagon train. Christian Madsen Company. She traveled alone. Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandmother.
Joseph and Penelope Thompson in 1862. Wagon train. John Riggs Murdock Company. Their son, Joseph Thompson, also accompanied the family. Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents, Joseph is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Joseph Wayment in 1863. Wagon train. Unknown Company. Appears to have come alone. Although his parents and most of his siblings would come later by rail. Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Axel Boyer in 1866. Wagon train. Abner Lowry Company. Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather. Also traveled with the Keeps, other ancestors of Amanda.
James and Ann Keep in 1866. Wagon train. Abner Lowry Company. Their daughter, Sarah Keep, also accompanied the family. James and Ann are Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents, Sarah is Amanda’s third great Grandmother. Also traveled with Axel Boyer, other ancestor of Amanda.
Richard Hemsley (1801 – 1866) and his later wife Sarah in 1866. Wagon train. William Henry Chipman Company. Amanda’s 5th Great Grandfather.
Peter Peterson in 1866. Wagon train. Joseph Sharp Rawlins Company. Peter is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather.
That is the Hemsley line alone, Amanda’s Dad. I count 26 ancestors of Amanda’s Dad that came through Devil’s Gate.
James, Lillian, Hiram, and Aliza Ross at Devil’s Gate Mormon Handcart Visitor Center
Amanda’s Mom’s line, the Holden family, has the following:
Edwin and Ruia Holden in 1852. Wagon train. Uriah Curtis Company. Their son, Henry Holden, also accompanied the family. Edwin and Ruia are Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents, Henry is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Jesse and Temperance McCauslin in 1851. Wagon train. Unknown Company. Temperance passed away in Council Bluffs, Iowa. She did not make the trail in Wyoming or Devil’s Gate. Their daughter, Louisa McCauslin, also accompanied the family. Jesse is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather, Louisa is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandmother.
John and Adelaide Roberts in 1863. Wagon train. Thomas Ricks Company. Their son, Hyrum Roberts, also accompanied the family. John and Adelaide are Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandparents, Hyrum is Amanda’s 2nd Great Grandfather.
Thomas and Mary Ashton in 1851. Wagon train. Morris Phelps Company. Mary also passed away in Iowa. She did not make the trail in Wyoming or Devil’s Gate. Their son, Joseph Ashton, also accompanied the family. Thomas is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandfather, Joseph is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather.
Sarah Jarvis in 1854. Wagon train. Job Smith Company. She came with some of her family, but not with her son, Amanda’s ancestor, George Jarvis. Sarah is Amanda’s 4th Great Grandmother.
George and Ann Jarvis in 1853. Wagon train. Unknown Company. George and Ann are Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandparents. George is the son of Sarah Jarvis mentioned above.
William and Rebecca Finch in 1854. Wagon train. Daniel Garn Company. William and Rebecca are Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandparents.
Joseph Finch in 1853. Wagon train. Joseph Young Company. Joseph is the son of William and Rebecca Finch mentioned above.
John and Hannah Davis in 1851. Wagon train. Eaton Kelsey Company. Their daughter, Mary Jane, also accompanied the family. The family also has Davies listed for their last name sometimes. John and Hannah are Amanda’s 4th great grandparents, Mary Jane is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandmother.
John Evans in 1866. Wagon train. William Henry Chipman Company (same company as Amanda’s Richard Hemsley above). His wife, Sarah, died on the trip from the United Kingdom in New York. His son, John Evans, also accompanied his father and brother. John is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather, John is Amanda’s 2nd Great Grandfather.
James and Elizabeth Boyack in 1855. Wagon train. Milo Andrus Company. James and Elizabeth are Amanda’s 4th Great Grandparents.
James Boyack in 1853. Wagon train. Appleton Harmon Company. James is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandfather. James is the son of James and Elizabeth Boyack above that came in 1855 across the plains.
Margary Waterhouse in 1855. Wagon train. Milo Andrus Company. Margary is Amanda’s 3rd Great Grandmother. She came across with the same train as James Boyack’s parents, presumably that is how she met her future husband. The Company arrived 24 October 1855 in Utah, James and Margary married 23 November 1855 in Springville, Utah.
That is the Holden line alone, Amanda’s Mom. I count 26 of ancestors of Amanda’s Mom that came through Devil’s Gate. As an aside, I also looked at her biological line (as she is adopted), and not a single one of her biological ancestors passed through Devil’s Gate.
James riding while Hiram, Lillian, and Aliza Ross pull a handcart at Devil’s Gate Mormon Handcart Visitors Center
We also stopped and visited with the sixth crossing of the Sweetwater River. This was the location where, like the Martin Handcart Company, the Willie Handcart Company also got stuck in wind, snow, and cold in 1856. Their rescue occurred here.
The next day, on our way to Grand Teton National Park, we made a stop at Fort Washakie, Wyoming. This is one of the alleged graves of Sacagawea. We stopped and remembered her, whether her final resting place or not.
All in all, I was surprised by my own connection to the Mormon Trail. I had never considered that I have 7 ancestors who had literally come this way. Or that my children have 59 ancestors that literally come this way. They passed by Independence Rock, through Devil’s gate, and two of those 59 suffered with the Martin Handcart Company. I will write more on the Housley’s later as there have been other interesting interactions with that clan since our marriage.
Christian Petersen, Maren Sophie Pedersen, Rasmine Hansina Pedersen, Annie Christine Petersen
Another history found in the records of Golden Rulon Andra. This is the grandmother of his wife, Utahna Bird Andra (1927-2001). Archie and Emma Bird are Utah’s parents, Emma is the daughter of Annie.
“Annie Petersen was born at Lindberg Denmark on October 9, 1862. Her father was Hans Petersen and her mother was Kjirstin Jeppesen. They were a poor family as her father was a tenant farmer. Most of his time was spent working for a landlord to pay rent for a small piece of ground that he would call home. They lived in a small thatched roof house and as is recalled there were but two rooms. The landlords brother having come to America at a previous time had been sent to Denmark on a mission from Utah. The landlord was very bitter against the Mormons and forbid his brother to even come on his land but being a very sincere man with no fear the man held meetings at several places. One night he was at Annies fathers home in spite of all the mob warnings to her father. After the people came her brother Chris stood at the door with ax in hand to keep intruders out; at another time while the missionaries were at their home some of the non members climbed on the house and stuffed old rags in the stove pipe and smoked them out. Annie was the oldest of four girls and one boy Christian. When she was about fifteen years old she joined the Morman Church. At that time men of Zion were sending money to women and girls for them to come to America. She was sixteen at the time. As none of her family was able to come at the time, her parents gave her a gallon of butter and a feather pillow and she came alone. It was a rather rough and stormy all the way across the sea. Many were seasick and some died. The day she could see land a big storm came up and blew the ship back to sea and it was a week before she could land. Later her mother, brother and sisters were converted and came to America. Her father later came to America and joined his family. Brother Chris is the father of Mark E. Petersen who is now an Apostle. The family came to Mesa Arizona because that is where the missionary lived and no one was at the station to meet them so since they could speak no English they stayed in the station overnight. They were met in the morning. It took the family 3 years to earn enough to get to Salt Lake where all but Annie settled. Upon her arrival previous to theirs she had been met by Mr. Staley in Kanab, Utah and then went to St. George, Utah where they were married. By covered wagon they went to Old Mexico where she was to live in pologamy with the first family of Mr. Staley. He had children as old as she was at the time and she lived in an adobe house. The first Mrs. Staley was good to her in her way but the life of a pioneer isn’t too easy and she didn’t know the language very well. When she had four children Chester, William, Vermina, and Dicey Ann her husband died and left her 5 months pregnant with her fifth child Maryett (Marie). She gleaned fields, washed, worked in a store and was given the siftings of sugar that were in the bottom of the sacks. She did almost anything to keep the little ones fed. After Maryetta or Marie was born it really was a struggle. The boys helped what they could. With the first money that Chester earned he bought an oil lamp and a small white kettle for her. About 1896 she met Jorgen Jorgensen. He had two teenage sones. His wife had been dead for sometime. They were married and at the time they only place they could find to live was an old cow shed. They worked hard cleaning it up and fixing it to be liveable. She cooked over a campfire. They were later able to find an adobe house which seemed like a mansion. Her husband Jorgen was a miller by trade but because there was no mill there he farmed. While living in Mixico there ware five children born to them. Annie, Ephraim, Pernellie (nell), Emma and Clara. In 1911 there was a mixican uprising and all white people were driven out of the country. One of Jorgens sons had stayed in Arizona and when the uprising came the other stayed behind in Mexico. Minnie had married a Moroni Feen and they had stayed in Arizona. Dicey was married to William Chestnut and they came to the United States with their parents. Before leaving they made a lot of soft soap and made their own yeast cakes of hops and cornmeal dried in the sun. They had two wagons and a load of children. Hyrum Jorgensen and wife stayed in Airzona also. It was a long tireing trip. They stopped on Sundays to rest and when they came to water they stopped to wash and bake bread. Near Moab, Utah one of the mares foaled and they had to wait two weeks before the colt could travel. They settled in Ferron Utah and then moved to Blue Valley to farm. It was a beautiful place; very lush and fertile, but the dirty devil or Fremont river ran threw it and befor long lived up to its name and becuase of the floods in the river they couldn’t keep their dams in the river so they couldn’t keep water on their farms. The last few years they lived there they hauled water in barrels on a sled behind a horse to water their garden. Before long the Blue Valley settlers had to leave their homes and settle elsewhere. Annie and Jorgen moved to Fruita, Wayne Co. Utah in 1914 and had a Fruit Farm. Eph was getting old enough to help so he peddled the fruit during the summers and the smaller children picked fruit and had other jobs. Thus their children grew up. Annie married Floyd Pendelton, Pernellie, George Dewey Gifford: Emma, Archie Bird; Clair, Lamar Nielsen; Eph May Lerwill.
In 1929 they sold out to Nell and Dewey and moved to Salina, Sevier, Utah. There Jorgen died Oct. 1929. Annie lived along as long as she could take care of herself and then lived with her children. She died Aug 1953 age 91 at Salina, Utah.
Jorgen and Annie Jorgensen family, kids (l-r) Annie, Pernelle, Clara (sitting), Emma, Ephraim
Sagacity 