Rexburg

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Blaine County Courthouse

Blaine County Judicial Building

Last week I found myself in Blaine County doing a land records search. I do not get to Blaine County very often for court related matters. In fact, I have never been to the courthouse in person before. All the hearings I have held there were by phone or videoconference. I walked in and imposed on one of the bailiffs for a tour. He took me to the three courtrooms and showed me around. As plain as it is on the outside, the inside was actually a bit fun. The district court room is in the round, of sorts.

I have tried to remember to take pictures of county courthouses while visiting, or at least nearby. The land record search was actually in the old Blaine County Courthouse, not the Judicial Building.

Blaine County Courthouse

This building was built for Alturas County. Construction began in 1883, and the building opened in the summer of 1884. Alturas County was created in February 1864 from Boise County. Alturas County limits stretched up the Snake River from CJ Strike Dam southwest of Mt. Home to about half way between Roberts and Rexburg, then north to the Montana line and west from there. Here is a map that was hanging in the old Courthouse.

Alturas County Idaho

I grew up in Jerome County and went to school and work in Minidoka County. All part of what was once Alturas County.

Alturas lost territory to the new Custer County in 1881. Then, in February 1889, the territorial legislature split Alturas again. The western portion became the new Elmore County, a strip on the east went to Bingham County, and the southern portion became the new Logan County.

During this time, the area that is now Minidoka, Lincoln, and Jerome Counties was all part of Logan County. The county seat was first in Shoshone, but an election in 1890 moved it to Bellevue, just five miles down the road from Hailey.

In 1891, the new state legislature abolished both Alturas and Logan and tried to replace them with two new counties, Alta and Lincoln, with county seats at Hailey and Shoshone. The Idaho Supreme Court struck the act down that same year because the people in the area being moved never got a vote, and Alturas and Logan were restored. There is some interesting history here, but in short, the split grew out of a long fight between Hailey and Bellevue.

In March 1895, Idaho combined Alturas and Logan back together and renamed it Blaine County. That same month, Lincoln County was created, including what is now Gooding, Jerome, Lincoln, and Minidoka Counties. This creation of Lincoln also recreated the panhandle and the present eastern boundary of Minidoka County.

Gooding and Minidoka Counties were created in January 1913. All of the cities presently in Minidoka County, except Acequia and Burley, were incorporated while the area was still part of Lincoln County. Burley was incorporated in Cassia County in 1909 and grew across the river into Minidoka County in 1960. Acequia was incorporated in Minidoka County in 1952. Eden and Hazelton were part of this Minidoka County. It was this same month that created Power County and carved the eastern portion of the Blaine panhandle as we know it now.

Butte County was created in 1917 carving off the eastern portion of Blaine, leaving the panhandle even more pronounced. Jefferson and Bingham also donated to the new Butte County. In the same legislative session that created Butte County on the east, Camas County was also created on the west, only from Blaine County. These are essentially the current boundaries of Blaine County, apart from a small land exchange with Custer County in 1925.

Jerome County was created in February 1919 claiming eastern portions of Gooding County, basically the south half of remaining Lincoln County, and the western portion of Minidoka County. I only knew Jerome County growing up, just over the border from the present Minidoka County.

This was once the courthouse for the areas I grew up, Paul and Hazelton, now in Minidoka and Jerome Counties. It served them from 1884 until Logan County split off in 1889, and again for a couple of weeks in March 1895, between the creation of Blaine County and Lincoln County.

Blaine County Courthouse
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Preston, England

Another more relaxed day in England.

Today we received word the paperwork and everything has all been signed for our home.  The paperwork is off to Oklahoma City for the official closing on Monday.  I don’t know what could really change now.  By all accounts, we are now the proud owners of a little home in Oklahoma City.  Or at least we have a title to a home with a significant lien for a bank somewhere.  Hopefully everything continues to work out like it has so far.

Downham Cemetery from steps of Downham Church
Pendle Hill from Downham, where prophets anciently dedicated the land
Downham Chapel
Chatburn Road in Downham Lancashire
More Downham
I think this is Black Moss Road to Barrowford

We ran to the Preston England Temple today.  It is one of my favorite temples.  There is something in the simplistic beauty of it I adore.  Amanda agreed.  It is on par with the Rexburg and Vernal Temples for the simple elegance within.  We snapped a couple of pictures. 

Preston England Missionary Training Center
Preston England Temple
Amanda and Paul Ross at Preston England Temple
Preston Temple Steeple

We also ran into a member I knew in the Wigan Ward.  He is now in the Temple Presidency and enjoyed a good visit with him.  We were supposed to go over and visit this evening, but our plans crowded it out in the end.  We had to reschedule it for tomorrow sometime.  We are going to work it out in church.

Afterward, Amanda and I ran into Preston.  I showed her the town center where the missionaries preached the gospel for the first time in the British Isles.  It is in Preston that the longest continuing unit of the church operates, the Preston Ward.  We ran out of time to go to the flat where Parley P Pratt and Orson Hyde were attacked by the legions of the devil.  We did not get a chance to see Avenham Park or the beautiful River Ribble where the first baptisms took place outside of North America.  We did not get over to see the apartment where President Hinckley received his famous “Forget yourself and go to work” letter on Wadham Road.  Perhaps sometime in the future.

We came back and were relaxed some more with the McCabes.  They treated us to a fine meal of South African descent.  They lived in South Africa for a number of years.  Later this year they are immigrating to Australia!  How is that for exciting.  When we make it to Australia, we know who we will be calling on!  Amanda and I made a call at Tesco today and purchased a Pavlova.  Boy, was I glad to get my hands on one.  We consumed it after dinner as one of our desserts.  Mmmmm.

I realized yesterday was the anniversary of Joseph Smith’s death.  I wonder specifically what he is doing these days.  What or where is he up to doing work?

Tomorrow we are off to attend the Wigan Ward.  Then we will go visit some of the new converts I helped bring into the church.  Sadly, I don’t think any of them are active.  But we shall find out.  I did find out Jim Monks knows where one of them lives.

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Welcome to June. It is already all planned out!

So, in the next few weeks, I am re-posting a series of posts from 2008. Back then, the glorious internet did not easily allow for photos to be included in a blog. Those photos then had to be posted separately as an album. With the updates of technology and wanting to more fully integrate those photos into the original posts from 2008, I am redoing all the posts from our 6 week European trip. This will help me link the photos with the steps of the trip. So, this is the 17 year reunion of this trip with photos integrated into the posts. This will also be fun to reconstruct and give inserts to the trip from 17 years more experience!

I freely edit any and all the posts to correct or update.

~

Boy, am I glad June is here!  My wife has joined me from Virginia after our long separation due to job and school.  What a relief!  I don’t have to worry about her stressing herself out or pursued by a much more dashing, intelligent, catch of a man.

We leave this week for what may be the trip of a lifetime.  How many times in a lifetime, if ever, does one get to go to Europe for 6 weeks?  We will be starting with friends in Belgium, working our way to Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Italy, Slovakia, Germany, The Netherlands, England, Wales, Scotland, and who knows where else we may stumble.  We cannot afford it, but why not live with some reckless abandon for a little while?  We leave on the 4th to return on the 16th of July.

Amanda packing for Europe

We signed a purchase contract for a home this month.  Somewhere around the 22nd of June we will be closing on a humble home in Oklahoma City.  Who would ever have thought my first home purchase would be in Oklahoma City?  Did I ever think I would move or live in Oklahoma City.  Most certainly not.

Amanda and I just hit all three of the Idaho temples this past week.  Amanda had never been to any of them.  We have now hit all three Idaho and 11 Utah temples.  Before year end, we will have three more in those states to hit to make it complete once again.  I am very sad I will be in Oklahoma City when the dedication of the Twin Falls Temple takes place.  Amanda and I will be helping with the open house in July.  I guess that is some solace for missing the dedication.  I believe Idaho Falls and Manti are still my favorite temples.  The Rexburg Temple has so many beautiful rooms.  However, for some reason I still prefer the sessions that are split up into all their sections.  Manti and Idaho Falls Temples both have you moving between all the rooms.  Manti has the pioneer value and beauty with a live session, but the simplicity of Idaho Falls with its rooms and movement make it a favorite.  Salt Lake certainly has the beauty but the place seems more like a zoo than a temple, especially in the summer with all the sealings.

This past week Amanda spent a day with me at work doing bench testing.  It was a beautiful day and we spent nearly all of it in Minidoka.  The Minidoka Longhorn Cafe and Whitesides Dairy were enjoyable for me.  The wastewater we play with is less than beautiful but it is part of life.  Whether we like it or not, we all have waste and somebody has to deal with it.  I thought Amanda was going to throw up at one point when we were doing some filtration.  She kept it down, luckily.  The day turned out well.  Except for the fact Amanda picked up a tick somewhere.  Not only did she pick him up, the tick dug in and started to sup near the middle of her calf.  She was not a happy camper when she discovered him.  A little polish remover and it backed right out.  Hope it got plenty to eat for the long stay in the septic tank.

For the first time in 8 years since Grandma Ross passed away, all my siblings were back together.  Becky was coming through Southern Idaho so Scott organized a BBQ.  All five of us where there.  It was really quite a bit of fun and I enjoyed myself.  Vicki, Dad’s first wife, was there.  Dad and Jan were there as well.  Andra brought Brian and Daniel and little Daniel was certainly a favorite.

I know I have not been writing as much.  Despite more people reading the blog than ever before, I just don’t feel like I have much to write.  A couple of people want me to write more relevant things that would pertain to them, but how does one write interesting things for everyone?  Then, how does anyone write for someone else and keep their voice and soul into it?

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Republicans debate merits of Idaho’s election reform initiative

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Pocatello Idaho Temple Open House

Ross Family at the Pocatello Idaho Temple Open House 25 September 2021

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints built another temple in Idaho! This makes it the 6th temple in Idaho behind Idaho Falls, Boise, Rexburg, Twin Falls, and Meridian.

We made a trek over to see the open house on 25 September. We met Amanda’s parents and siblings there as well. We enjoyed the tour, some ice cream afterward, and made our way home. It was a memorable experience and the kids had a number of questions afterward.

Jeremy Pittard and I also made the trek over again on 8 October with some of our dedicated staff. We treated them to the temple open house and some Himalayan food afterward. Bree, Erica, and Esbeidy also had questions afterward.

We are excited to have a new temple in Idaho! I attended my first endowment session in the new temple on its second day open, 17 November.

Paul Ross, Esbeidy Cruz, Bree Olsen, Erica Izaguirre, and Jeremy Pittard at the Pocatello Idaho Temple Open House 8 October 2021
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President & Sister Wightman

President & Sister Phil & Patsy Wightman, Paul Ross, Brad Hales

I have too many photos sitting in folders waiting for a post or a time.  Now is the time to write about the great eclipse of 2017.

I first found out about the eclipse nearly a year in advance.  I found out the eclipse would pass directly over Rexburg on 21 August 2017.  I reached out to Brad Hales, a former missionary companion, roommate, and still good friend.  I booked a weekend at the Hales Hotel in Rexburg for the weekend.  I had a good laugh because this was the first he had heard about the eclipse.

We made our way to Rexburg early to beat the crowds.  We arrived, set up in our quarters, and we went out to do some visits.  Brad and I paid a visit to our former Mission President and his amazing wife, Phil & Patsy Wightman.  They had been in a very serious automobile accident within a year or so before so we were very happy to see them and that they are well on the mend.

There were other missionaries there when we stopped.  We were not the only ones with the idea to pay a visit at the Wightman home.  While we were there, we had one of the other missionaries snap this picture.  It was a great experience to see them and spend a short amount of time with them.  Always inspiring.

If you would like, you can watch this talk given by President Wightman at Brigham Young University – Idaho.

https://www.byui.edu/devotionals/president-philip-c-wightman

We watched the great eclipse in Rexburg within a few hundred feet to the southwest of the Rexburg Temple.  Wightmans also served as Temple President & Matron at the Temple.  It was an experience I will not forget anytime in the near future.  One of those humbling experiences where you realize how puny man really is.

I thought about what other photos I might have of the Wightmans.  I found these four.  President & Sister Wightman served in the England Manchester Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints about 1999-2002.

President & Sister Wightman with the Byrom family in Runcorn, England.  Standing (l-r): Marie, Rose, Benjamin, Iain; On couch: Barnaby, Patsy Wightman, Phil Wightman, Jared; On floor: Jacob, Isaac.

I do not recall why Wightmans were in Runcorn, maybe it was a baptism, maybe it was just passing through, maybe a Sunday.  This would have been in spring 2000, I believe.

President Wightman, Paul Ross, Sister Wightman in Downham, England

This was taken in Downham, Lancashire, England as part of the Mission Tour.

President & Sister Wightman, Downham, England

Another photo from the same time, same location.

Goodbye at the Manchester England Airport

Last, a good-bye shot at the Manchester England Airport in December 2000.  Of course they saw us off at the airport as we went home.  Last time I saw them until I attended their homecoming in Rexburg, Idaho.

My life has been forever changed by the Wightmans.  I have mentioned them in other posts.  Phenomenal people.

 

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Racing Father Time

2017 is now ending.  Where in the world has it gone?  Here is a photo that I think more or less sums up the entire year.

Hiram, Lillian, Amanda, Paul, James, and Aliza Ross in 2017!

Ms. Brandi Teuscher took that photo and deserves the credit.  She had some difficult subjects to work with under the circumstances.

A 1956 Dodge Coronet with plenty of blemishes due to age.  She turned 61 this year.  Hopefully we can get her better looking in the future.

One of my favorite things in the photo, beyond the family and car, are the dandelions.  They make my heart happy.

Aliza turned 7, Hiram turned 5, Lillie turned 2, and James was born in March.  Amanda and I continue to mature in age and demeanor.  Our little family continues to grow.

In March we saw the raging Snake River over Shoshone Falls.

Hiram and Aliza at Shoshone Falls 19 March 2017

In April, the Snake River continued to rage so we took a picture at Minidoka Dam.

23 April at Minidoka Dam spillway

Our grass greened up and was beautiful and the kids enjoyed a new Radio Flyer wagon.

Lillie 23 April 2017

We attended the Open House and Rededication of the Idaho Falls Temple.

Idaho Falls Temple during the Open House

Hiram was antsy to start farming in June.

Hiram on Grandpa’s 1948 Ford 8N

During most of the summer, the kids loved to go for walks or bike rides in the evening.

30 July trip around Fairmont Street

We traveled to Rexburg for the 2017 Great American Eclipse!

Amanda during the Total Eclipse 21 August 2017

We enjoyed some hot miniture golfing in Twin Falls in September.

Twin Falls Miniture Golfing

The Annual Hemsley Camp Out also took place in September in Soda Springs.  We not only enjoyed the carbonated springs, we felt a few earthquakes too.

2017 Hemsley Reunion: Front kids (l-r) Aliza Ross, Lillie Ross, Olivia Hemsley, Hiram Ross; Second row Jill Hemsley, Amanda Ross, Derek Hemsley, Jordan Hemsley holding Jack Hemsley, Bryan Hemsley holding Red Solo Cup, with Zack Smart and Alyssa Hemsley behind; James Ross sitting in car seat

James grew up enough to look around, crawl, and Lillie grew enough to pull him in a wagon by September.

Lillie pulling happy James

Made a trip to Cedar City for the Cedar City Open House by November.

Paul, Amanda, Aliza, Hiram, Lillian, and James Ross at the Cedar City Temple Open House

And Cove Fort.

Paul, Amanda, Aliza, Hiram, Lillian, and James Ross with Jill Hemsley recreating a 1939 photo of David and Dave Donaldson.

What shall 2018 bring with it?

I find myself echoing Jacob.  “And it came to pass that I, Paul, began to be old… the time passed away with us, and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream.”  It passes too quickly.  We could make more memories, but health and money are limited.  Hopefully more memories and life in the upcoming year.