Thomas Nelson

• Name: Thomas Nelson
• Born: July 16, 1762 Orange County, North Carolina
• Died: July 20, 1846 Mount Vernon, Illinois
• Related through: Dan's grandmother Elvira Wilde Langford

Our Nelson line goes back to the early 17th century through Edmond, Thomas, Abraham and Thomas Sr., when the first Thomas moved his family into North Carolina with a group of Scotch-Irish settlers from Pennsylvania. His son, Abraham, born about 1732, helped survey the city of Winston-Salem when it was founded in 1677. Both men and their wives, whose names are unknown, are buried in a strip of jungle on the Nelson cemetery near Hillsborough N.C., surrounded by the graves of 20 or30 other family members. Their weathered headstones remain intact with a few inscribed letters still readable.

The names of Abraham’s nine children, all born in Orange County, North Carolina between 1758 and 1775, are given in the last will and testament of his oldest son, James. From information found in old deeds and other court records, it is known that Thomas, the sixth child, born in July 1767, married Martha “Patsy” Williams. At that time it was customary for couples to put up a 500 pound bond, (money, not weight) in order to get a marriage license. Another custom was for couples with limited means, who could not raise so much money, to be married by common consent.

Such was the case with Tomas and Martha. Soon after the birth of their first son, Martha, who already had a daughter by an earlier marriage, became discouraged and decided to leave her new husband and take the children with her. Since they were not legally married, she rationalized; he had no real claim to the baby. Thomas was of a different mind, and considered their vows to be sacred and binding.

When Martha was ready to leave, he refused to give up his son, and a bitter argument ensued. She took him to court and Thomas was ordered to give her the baby, but in defiance of the court, he took baby James deep into the southern jungle and left him in care of his two most trusted Negro slaves. Consequently, their story is recorded in the Orange Co. records of 1794.

As Thomas was well respected and honored by his neighbors and friends in the court, he was never prosecuted. In May, 1796, after he and Martha had settled their difficulties, they were married by bond and the law was satisfied.

(A genealogist, who explored the court records, was impressed by Thomas’ love for his little son, and made this comment: “The amazing thing about this incident was the way Thomas fought to keep his baby. Most men would have been glad to be rid of the responsibility. In fact, this is the only case of its kind, I have seen. Thomas must have been a wonderful man.)

Thomas left his mark on Monroe County. His name can be found in the 1818 Census and other public records. An example of interest is his appearance in the Court of Justice, April 20, 1818, to claim his legal reward for the wolves he had killed – at $2.00 a scalp. He was noted for his superior marksmanship with a rifle and could out-shoot most Indians with his bow and arrow. He prided himself on the amount of timber he could cut in a day.

We know very little about the Williams family, other than Martha had a sister named Penny, and a brother Price. Thomas and Martha had four more sons, Abraham, Hyrum, Edmond and Thomas Jr. born in North Carolina. In 1808, when their daughter Martha arrived, they were in Bedford Co. Tennessee, and by 1817, had moved into Monroe County, Illinois where Thomas filed on a quarter section of land.

After their children were all married and leading lives of their own, Thomas and Patsy, retired to Mt. Vernon, Jefferson Country, Illinois where they are thought to have lived out their remaining years.

The lives of Thomas and Patsy’s children closely coincided with the early beginnings of the Mormon Church. At least three of their children were early Mormon converts during the Missouri/Nauvoo period.

Taken from Their Roots were Long and Deep pages 202-205. Thanks to Lucy Alice Neves for providing this history on her family history blog.

George Peter Goez

• George Peter Goez
• Born: December 14, 1803 Bonfeld, Germany
• Died:  July 16, 1873 Dillon, Illinois
• Related though: Dan's grandmother Melva Castleton

George Peter Goez was born December 14, 1803 in Bonfeld, Wurttemberg, Germany. He was the only child of Johann David and Catharina Barbara Wacker Goez.

Peter, as he was known, married Katharina Kress on January 20, 1829. She was born February 22, 1802, also in Bonfeld, Germany. She was the second of seven children of Johann Gottlob Kres and Johanna Elisabeth Strassner.

Peter was a farmer in Germany and owned 40 acres of land. This land was not all in one tract, but a few acres here and there. He was also mayor (burgermeister) of his town.

Many problems arose with the government as they tried to pull away from the state church and follow a religious group known as the "Christian Congregation," also known as the "Baptizing Congregation." Their desire was to follow Jesus Christ entirely upon biblical principles. Later on they were known as the Apostolic Christian Church. They were persecuted by the people and some of their members and leaders were imprisoned.

Because of these problems, all of their children except one daughter, Hannah, whose husband, the Rev. George Welk and was in prison, had immigrated to America. When George got out in March 1859, they sold all their possessions. Peter, his wife, Hannah, son-in-law the Rev. George Welk and small granddaughter, Katherine began their journey to America to join their family.

After coming to America, Peter and Katharina retired and made their home with their daughter Katherine (Mrs. Kasper Koch) on a farm near Dillon Illinois. In this home Peter and Katharina lived and passed away July 16, 1873. He was buried in the little German cemetery near Dillon, Illinois next to his wife Katharina, who died six years earlier in 1867.

Thanks to Grandma Melva for providing this article for us.

James Harvey Langford Sr.

• Name: James Harvey Langford Sr.
• Born: April 30, 1831 Kentucky
• Died: May 29, 1908 Oaxaca, Sonora, Mexico
• Related through: Dan's grandfather Heber Langford

James Harvey Langford Sr. was under five years old when his father moved the family from Pulaski County, Kentucky to Clay County, Indiana. His father joined the LDS Church in Indiana in 1843 when James was 12. It is not known if the rest of the family was baptized at the same time but they probably were.

The Langford family crossed the plains in 1852 in the James Bay Company and arrived in the Salt Lake Valley August 13, 1852. There were about 190 souls in this company including a contingent under the direction of John S. Higbee with a number of British converts. Also in this same company traveled the Isacc Turnbaugh family whose father's people, like the Langfords, had come from Kentucky, before moving to Illinois. James Harvey Sr. was 21 years old on the trip and probably a great deal of help to his parents. Mary Caroline Turnbaugh, Isaac's daughter was then only 10, but must have attracted the eye of James, as he married her four years later when she was barely 15.

Although the Turnbaughs were part of this company crossing the plains, it is interesting to note that Isaac Turnbaugh was NOT a member of the church. Isaac and Parthena and their three children Mary Caroline, Isaac Newton Jr. and Thomas Jefferson Jones (a son through Parthena's former marriage) were on their way to Oregon or California. We believe Parthena might have been a member and persuaded her husband that it would be safer to travel west with a Mormon company than a California or Oregon wagon train. After arriving in Utah they headed on their way — but only made it as far as Centerville, Utah where their team was stolen by Indians. The Mormons in the area befriended them and so they decided to stay on and Isaac was baptized in 1854. In 1866 they were called on a mission to Panaca, Nevada where Isaac is given credit for founding the town. Parthena died in 1869 in Bountiful and is buried in Willard. Isaac died in 1892.

Mary Caroline Turnbaugh

James Harvey was 21 when they reached the valley. He waited until he was 25 before marrying Mary Caroline Turnbaugh (perhaps giving her time to grow up a little.) For nine years after Mary Caroline and James Harvey were married they lived in Willard. Then around 1865, after the birth of their fifth child, they moved to Panaca, Nevada. During the next 15 years Mary Caroline was a Relief Society President and also a pioneer midwife delivering many babies including many of her grandchildren. Many of the men and boys in the town took on work at the mines that were discovered near Panaca. Some became inactive in the church during these years, but records show that James, although he did work in the mines, continued to be active and hold leadership responsibilities in the church.

During these years James and Mary Caroline had six more children but then, sadly, in 1880 she and James Harvey divorced. By 1887 Mary Caroline had married, as a polygamous wife, her second husband, Isaac Riddle, whom she later divorced. During these years she did a lot of temple work. She died in Provo at age 72 and is buried in Manti.

After the divorce, James Harvey, Sr. went on a mission to his father's people in Indiana and then in 1900 at the age of 70 he moved to the colonies in Old Mexico to live near his son James Harvey Jr. Here he farmed, raising watermelons, walnuts, almonds, pecans and apples. He died and was buried in 1908 in Oaxaca, Sonora, Mexico, at the age of 77. He was a Seventy at the time of his death and was in good standing in the Church.

This article was written and compiled by Norene Green and Sharlene Gardner, July 1997. Of note is that James is wearing a Masonic pin in his photograph.

Keziah Fowler

• Name: Keziah Fowler
• Born: June 19, 1815 in Gibson County, Indiana
• Died: February 3, 1899 Centerville, Utah
• Related through: Erin's grandmother Margaret Udy Hanni

Keziah Fowler Brandon was born June 19, 1815 in Gibson County, Indiana. She was the daughter of George H. and Rebecca Stillwell Fowler. It is not known how many brothers and sisters she had but the 1820 census listed her parents with six children. Her father was named as one of the executors of this father-in-law David Stillwell’s will in 1822 in Gibson County.

We don’t know where she met her husband, George Washington Brandon, but they were married October 6, 1831. They took up homemaking in Henry County, Tennessee.

According to church records, there were missionaries in the area as early as 1834. George and Keziah were undoubtedly some of the earliest converts. George did missionary work himself, baptizing several people. He stated in a letter written to church headquarters that he had preached as many as 500 sermons.

Keziah and George were the parents of eleven children, seven of whom were born in Henry County, Tennessee before the move to Nauvoo.

Sometime between 1842 and 1844 Keziah and George moved to Nauvoo, no doubt to be near the prophet and other members. In 1844, a short time before the martyrdom of Joseph Smith and Hyrum, George and his brother, Thomas Jefferson Brandon, were appointed to go to Alabama to preach the gospel and to teach the prophet’s viewpoint on politics. This mission was cut short and he returned home to Nauvoo.

When the exodus from Nauvoo began they were not prepared to make the long trip to Utah. They took up residence for a few years at Kanesville (Council Bluffs), Iowa, were more children were born. In April of 1848 Keziah received a patriarchal blessing while they were living in Winter Quarters.

While working in the timber on Cow Creek in 1849, George was stricken with cholera and died. Keziah was not allowed to see him or to bring his body home for burial. The exact date of his death isn’t known by any of the family.

After George’s death, Keziah came to Utah in 1851 or 52 with seven or eight (available sources do not agree) of her eleven children, including our ancestor Elizabeth Jane. Our grandmother must have had a strong testimony and great determination to bring so many children so far, not knowing how she would feed or clothe them. She died in Centerville, Utah on February 3, 1899. She is buried in the Centerville City Cemetery.

This article was written by Gertrude Jackson for the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers.

Henry Brown Wilde

• Name: Henry Brown Wilde 
• Born: June 11, 1811 Crowd Hill, England
• Died: February 23, 1875 Coalville, Utah
• Related through: Dan's grandmother Elvira Wilde Langford

Henry Brown Wilde was born June 11, 1811 in Crowd Hill, Hampshire, England to John Wilde and Jane Brown. He was christened June 14, 1811 in Owslebury, Hampshire, England. He spent most of his early life in the Owslebury, Crowd Hill, and Fair Oak areas of Hampshire County in England. These towns were only four or five miles apart. His occupation there was that of a man-servant.

While living there, Henry Brown Wilde met Sarah Hewlett and they were married November 9, 1840 in Bishopstoke. At this time Henry was 29 years of age and Sarah was 23. Sarah had worked as a maid in the houses of wealthy individuals for seven years prior to this, four years at one home and three years at another.

Early on in their marriage, Henry and Sarah lived in Fair Oak and while they lived there they their first son came into the world on January 20, 1841. They named him Thomas Hewlett Wilde and he was christened July 18, 1841 there in Bishopstoke. The next year Henry, Sarah, and Thomas moved to Southampton in search of better employment for Henry. Then again, to a nearby town called Portswood.

It was that same year in Portswood that Henry Brown Wilde met an energetic young missionary named Thomas B. H. Stenhouse who was serving a mission with Lorenzo Snow. He told him of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ being restored to the earth. Henry believed and was baptized by Elder Stenhouse July 12,1849 at the age of 38. A week later his wife Sarah Hewlett Wilde was also baptized July20 at the age of 31, as was their first son Thomas Hewlett Wilde at the age of 8. About three months later on October 8 Henry Brown Wilde was given the Aaronic Priesthood and ordained to the office of a priest. Henry was instrumental in spreading his knowledge of the restored gospel to his friends and family. Henry baptized several members of his extended family and his children’s nurse.

About a year after their baptism, Henry Brown Wild and his family decided to accept the call to gather with the other Saints in the Salt Lake Valley far away in America. Shortly before leaving, Henry moved back to 4 Princess Street, Northam, Southampton. On January 6, 1851, they sailed for America on the “Ellen Maria” with their four small children ranging in age from 1 to 9 years old. Sarah was also pregnant with their fifth child. Traveling with them was Jane Brown Wild (Henry’s mother) age 81. His father had already passed away over 10 years prior. They also brought with them Martha Sparks, their children’s nurse. (age 67).

It took about nine weeks for them to sail across the Atlantic Ocean and when they were near the end of their journey, while the ship was passing through the Caribbean, Henry Brown Wild and Sarah Hewlett had their fifth child and fittingly named her Ellen Maria Martha Wilde, after the name of the ship they were on and also after their nurse who was in attendance.

After the family landed in New Orleans, Henry Brown Wild spent the year working to gather supplies for the journey to Salt Lake City. In the summer of 1852, they started their journey for Utah. On the steamship ride up the Missouri River, Henry’s mother Jane Brown Wild caught malarial fever and died in Jackson County, Missouri. She was a woman of uncommon faith. After burying her there, the family continued on across the plains.

They traveled north to Council Bluffs and from there crossed the plains with their own wagon with a team of oxen and one cow. Along the way, while camped near the Platte River, Henry and Sarah’s son Henry died August 20, 1852 from injuries sustained from falling from a tree, at the age of six. He was buried the next morning and they had to leave him there and continue on across the plains. His mother recounted the story many times years later to her granddaughter, saying that of all the trials she ever passed through, that was the hardest of all. To leave that precious body there buried in the grave, she knew would be dug open by wild beasts, was almost more than she could bear.

They arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in September and attended the October Conference of the church. They stayed in Salt Lake City for a while before moving to Provo where they spent the winter of 1852 - 1853. They lived that winter in a tent and covered wagon. Early that spring Henry returned to Salt Lake, leaving his wife who was now pregnant again, and his other children in Provo. He worked for a short time with the crew cutting the granite for the Salt Lake Temple.

Later in the spring the rest of the family came back to Salt Lake and they and Henry settled in Sugarhouse, named for the sugar mill that was built there. Henry worked as a member of the construction crew that built the mill, the first of its kind in Utah. There were some complications, however, and it was never used to make sugar. According to his granddaughter Margaret Carruth Rhead, they had 10 acres of land and Henry’s son Thomas Hewlett and daughter Emma herded cows where the town of Sugarhouse now stands. For church meetings, they walked to the Tabernacle block which was 2 ½ miles away. There were no sidewalks and not very good roads, and Emma would make cloth shoes to walk in and carried her other shoes with her to put on when they got there. While at Sugarhouse, they experienced many hardships. They dug roots and gathered greens to eat and were hungry many times. The family moved to Spanish Fork for a while, but soon returned to Sugarhouse and this is where they remained until 1859.

While living at Sugarhouse Henry Brown Wild was ordained a Seventy on April 10, 1853. He and Sarah both received their Endowments October 11, 1856 and were sealed in the Salt Lake Endowment House. Henry was ordained a High Priest April 21, 1856 by A. O. Smoot.

In the summer of 1859 Henry and his family left Sugarhouse to settle in the Weber Valley and he played an important role in the establishment of Coalville, Utah. William Henderson Smith and Andrew Williams had found by accident that wheat would grow in a place called Chalk Creek. They had observed that wheat dropped by travelers from Fort Bridger had grown. They determined to settle the Weber River. The two men made a temporary settlement at the mouth of Echo Canyon and then returned to Sugarhouse to enlist others in their cause.

Henry Brown Wilde, Joseph Stallings (husband of Elizabeth Sarah Wilde, one of William Wild and Eliza Phillips’ daughters), and Thomas B. Franklin agreed to come and settle the area. On 8 June 1859, they drove their ox teams into the Weber Valley. John Wilde and Frederick Wilde (two of William Wild’s sons) followed soon thereafter.

The new colony cultivated a field of four or five acres, taking water from the Weber River. This was on the same ground that is now occupied by part of the town of Coalville including the Stake Center. Even though they planted late, a fair crop of wheat and vegetables was raised. Henry Brown Wild came back out that summer and built a cabin there for his family. The Wilde cabin was on the site where the Coalville Co-op now stands. Chalk Creek was in the mountains at 5,550 feet elevation and the mountain winds made for extremely cold temperatures. For this reason the women and children stayed behind in Sugarhouse that winter and came out later in the spring. Word spread quickly of the desirability of the area, and by 1860 fifteen families lived in Chalk Creek.

It was not long before the discovery of coal in the vicinity was made and mines were opened in the area. This small settlement was initially named Chalk Creek because of the location of that stream, but after coal had been discovered on the town site, the name was changed to Coalville. Tulledge gives the credit to Henry Brown Wild for discovering coal on the Weber River. He wrote, “Joe Lewis and Henry B. Wilde were the first to discover coal on the Weber and open a mine there. Andrew Johnson, a miner, was associated with them and did the first labor in mining the mine in what was known as Allen’s Hollow in 1868, on ground now near the south end of the town of Coalville.” He made this observation about the quality of coal in that area, “The coal from this mine is the best in the county for domestic purposes, but has been abandoned on account of financial difficulties. The development of the coal beds under and around Coalville had been destructed by the Union Pacific Railroad refusing to convey the coal to market on reasonable terms.” They sold their share of the mine for this reason.

In 1870, a branch of the Union Pacific Railroad was built to Coalville, a distance of about five miles from Echo. Henry had a contract for a piece of the work and Sarah cooked for the men who were working for him.

Henry Brown Wilde was a political leader of the city and county. On March 4, 1861, a county organization for Summit County was established by the county court at Chalk Creek. Henry Brown Wilde was appointed county treasurer. He was also installed as Selectman for Summit County with A. B. Williams and Joseph Stalling on March 9, 1863. In 1867, Coalville was incorporated and the first election was held that year. Henry was voted in as one of the five councilmen on March 5, 1869 at the age of 57. They held their meetings in the vestry room of the Old Rock School House, which was built in 1865 and also served as the first church house, as a place for school classes, dances and social gatherings, and as a place to gather for safety in times of troubles. This building was dedicated by Brigham Young in the fall of 1868.

On March 4, 1871 he was elected mayor. He served in this capacity until November 12, 1872, at which time he resigned and he and his wife Sarah returned for a time to England to visit his place of birth and early life. They returned to Coalville in 1873 and he was again elected as Councilor, and as a member of the city council on February15, 1875.

Not only had Henry Brown Wilde been active in the economic development of Coalville, but he also served as spiritual leader. Like most early colonies in Utah, the spiritual and temporal affairs of the settlement for several years were under the fatherly direction of an elder of the Mormon Church. In this important capacity as presiding elder, Henry acted first as President of the Branch in Coalville and afterwards, when the Coalville Ward was organized in 1861, as Bishop. He remained the Bishop there until his death on February 23, 1875 at the age of 63.

Henry Brown Wilde was buried in the Coalville Cemetery. The following was said of him in the Deseret News following his passing, “He was a man of unblemished character and unsullied reputation, and possessed to an eminent degree, the qualities of God’s noblest work, an honest man. As a member of the church, he was earnest and sincere, full of integrity and a firm believer in the religion he had espoused. He was the first Bishop appointed over the Coalville Ward, and during the fourteen years of his incumbency of the office, he won the goodwill and respect of all with whom the duties of his office brought him in connection.”

This story was written by Mary A., a great great great grand-daughter of Henry Brown Wilde’s brother, William Wilde. Photos are courtesy of the John Wilde Research Foundation. Thanks to Mary for providing this history on her family history website.

Fielding Langford

• Name: Fielding Langford
• Born: October 24, 1804 Crab Orchard, Kentucky
• Died: August 1882 Near Oakley, Idaho
• Related through: Dan's grandfather Heber Langford

Fielding Langford was born October 24, 1804. He was the first member of the Langford family to join the LDS Church. He and his wife, Sarah Bethurum , were both born and raised in Kentucky. They were married in 1830 and sometime in the next five years moved to Clay Co., Indiana, being among its first settlers. In July 1843 Fielding was baptized into the Mormon Church. He was one of two individuals in the entire county that joined this "peculiar sect". The missionaries had been teaching in the area, and of the 10 children of Walker Langford, only Fielding joined the church. It is not known whether Sarah joined the Mormon Church at this time. If she did not, she certainly did not deter him from "gathering" with the Saints, and she was by his side during the difficult pioneering years in Utah.

Exactly when Fielding left Indiana to join the Saints is not known for sure. It is assumed that it was in 1846 after he sold his land. This was just after the Saints had just left Nauvoo. There, he must have found a dismal scene- the temple desecrated, homes deserted or taken over by others. Saints had been driven out of Nauvoo and had gathered in Council Bluffs and Pisgah Camps. For whatever reason, Fielding did not stay on at Winter Quarters for long, nor did he immigrate the next spring. Sarah had Kincaid relatives living in Platte Co., Missouri and so this is where they headed. While living in Indiana two of his eight children died and then he lost two more between the time he left Indiana and the time he crossed the plains in 1852. One was a teenage boy who had wanted badly to go to Zion and "see The Gatepost", but didn't make it. Perhaps it was because of the care given to these children that they waited, or for financial reasons. (Not sure what “The Gatepost” was if anybody knows let me know).

Finally in 1852 the Langfords headed back to Council Bluffs and joined a Mormon emigrant train to Utah. They traveled with the James Bay Company leaving May 27 and arriving in Salt Lake Valley August 13. There were about 190 people in this company including a contingent under the direction of John S. Higbee with a number of British converts. Also in this same company traveled the Isacc Turnbaugh family whose father's people, like the Langfords, had come from Kentucky, before moving to Illinois. James Harvey, Sr. later married Mary Caroline Turnbaugh, Isaac's daughter.

There is no information on where the Langfords moved directly after they arrived in Salt Lake Valley. By the 1860 Utah census we find them in Willard, Box Elder County, Utah and suppose that they were there as early as 1856. Fielding and Sarah moved to Malta, Idaho and sometime after that Sarah died in 1863 from an insect bite (we believe she was bit by a black widow spider) while harvesting her garden.

Fielding Langford and Christena Bocher family

Two years after her death, Fielding married a Swedish immigrant named Caroline Christena Bocher, 40 years his junior. They had five children and then divorced sometime after 1875. During this time he lived in Panaca, Nevada, which was then Washington County, Utah. The last two years of his life were spent at his daughter's home on Warm Creek Ranch near Oakley, Idaho. He was buried there in August of 1882.

This article was compiled and edited by Norene Green and Sharlene Gardner, July 1997.

William Bowden

• Name: William Bowden
• Born: October 7, 1827 at Bishopnympton, Devonshire, England
• Died: July 2, 1907 Brigham City, Utah
• Related through: Erin's grandmother Idonna Nuttall Madson

William Bowden was born October 7, 1827 at Bishopnympton, Devonshire, England. He was the son of Benjamin Bowden and Mary Steel. He was one of six sons; their names were John, Richard, Thomas, George and Benjamin.

He was converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was baptized in 1842 when he was 15 years old.

In 1852 he met and married Ann Grinny. They were married for 55 years. Three girls were born to them while they lived in England. They moved later to Wales where two more daughters were born to them. The work in Wales was plentiful and gave them the opportunity to save the money they needed to come to the United States.

They sailed from Liverpool in the spring of 1863 on the ship S.S. Synosure. After a very rough sea voyage, which took six weeks, they landed in New York City on July 19, 1863. One child died in Wales and another was buried at sea.

The trip from New York to Council Bluffs was made by trains. Here they joined a pioneer company. The long hot, dry trek across the plains was more than the young couple expected. William walked most of the way because of his good health and vigor. William and Ann were undaunted and anxious to reach the land of Zion.

Their lifetime wish was realized when they arrived in Salt Lake City on October 10, 1863 with the Horton Heights Company. After a few days rest they journeyed on to Brigham City where they made their home at the foot of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains east of town.

William was an exceptionally good farmer. A fruit orchard was planted. The peaches raised there were some of the first in the area. He made a large pond above his home where a natural spring kept it full of water and was used for irrigation purposes. It was also enjoyed for swimming by family members during the summer months.

The canyon immediately above his property was named “Bowden Canyon,” because he was among the first settlers of that area. It is the first canyon just north of the “B” and directly up from 5th or 6th North.

William and Ann were the parents of 15 children. Their names were Emma, Mary Ann, Mavia, Elizabeth, Nora, Jane, Priscilla, Abigail, Thomas, Rachael, Benjamin, John, Joseph, George and Henry. He and his wife received their endowments on January 19, 1869 at the Endowment House in Salt Lake City. They had eight of their children sealed to them at this time.

Music was their great love which brought many happy hours with the family gathered around the organ singing to their hearts content. This love of music was passed on to future generations. The Bowden’s have been known to be noted “songbirds.”

He passed away at his home July 2, 1907 at the age of 80. He is buried in the Brigham City Cemetery.

This article is a combination of articles by Vera Bowden Murdock and Verda B. Knavel from the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers archive.