Freighting... and trying to get home with the money

Richfield

Territory of Utah -1878

After the demise of the United Order, the Ogden’s returned to the task of living life and making a living.  At the close of 1878, five of the seven Ogden children were married with young families.   Each of the families had acquired acreage; either through work, barter, or lottery, and were engaged in cultivating and developing farms.  In addition to farming they made additional money by freighting produce and supplies to other areas of the Territory, particularly the mining camps in Nevada.  This provided a market for the local crops and brought in much needed hard currency.  Although any man with a team of horses and a buckboard wagon could be a freighter, the enterprise was particularly dangerous due to the conditions of the roads and the also occasional patches of bad weather.  And probably worst of all there was always the danger of outlaws travelling the same stretches of roads and preying upon supply wagons.

All of the Ogden sons freighted at one time or another.  Typically two of them would travel together and would haul freight to mining towns like Pioche, Jackrabbit, Panaca, or Silver Reef, most of them just across the Utah border into present day Nevada.  On the return trip, wagon now mostly empty and pockets mostly full, they were particularly vulnerable to robbery.   

Many freighters would devise creative hiding places for their currency such as a small box built into the underside of the carriage or a hollowed out axle.  One Richfield man carved out the heels of his boots from the inside to carry what he had earned.  Another man from Redmond was not so fortunate in his efforts to conceal his earnings.  Robbers held him up a gunpoint and then proceeded to break four of his fingers until he showed them his stash in the hollow axle.

Butch

While we are on the subject of outlaws, it is interesting to note that Robert Leroy Parker, also known as Butch Cassidy, was born just 60 miles or so south of Richfield  near Circleville Utah, in 1866.  His family was some of the early Mormon settlers of the area.  Butch left home to begin his infamous career in crime in his early teens … which would have been around 1880 to 1884.  It is entirely possible that he visited Richfield sometime in his early years for supplies, etc. Later Butch joined up with Harry Longabough  (aka Sundance Kid), Matt Warner (native of Ephraim) and other men to form the Wild Bunch, pulling off several robberies in the central Utah area and then escaping to their infamous hideout, Robbers Roost, somewhere on the wild and isolated Utah Colorado border.  Yes, their travels might well have taken them through Richfield at times.  Perhaps they paused for a refreshing Coke, or to play a hand of cards, or maybe Butch wanted to drop in on a Sunday School class to keep current with the lesson schedule.

Where the "Almost Pure in Heart" Gave it a Try

In the Sevier County area  four other United Orders started; Glenwood, Salina, Monroe, and Joseph were communities that formed similar organizations and seemed to start off well.  Richfield  reported that all but seven families in the community joined.  William Ogden Jr.'s biographer records that initially there were some early successes in the Order which attracted new comers; but not all that joined had the necessary work ethic and soon there arose a spirit of contention and fault finding over the administration of the affairs of the Order.

The Order was administrated by a board of directors who sometimes were required to meet nightly to decide on issues such as permission to leave to visit sick relatives, change of work assignments, or requests for permission to have houses built, as William had done.  The record keeping which included reports of labor performed and distribution of goods fell woefully behind, to the point where it was impossible to determine where members were in their accounts.  Dissention and confusion grew worse and the “almost pure” of the people became noticeably less so. One night an unknown arsonist, thought to be a disgruntled member, set fire to the Order’s stacks of hay, a threshing machine, and other equipment completely destroying the lot.

People who had once known prosperity as members sought to withdraw and take their assets with them.  “I am leaving the Order," said one disgruntled board member, "because there is no order in it."  Before long Apostle Erastus Snow arrived and advised the saints to proceed with dis-incorporate and return to the former way of life. There were few that objected.

The task of shutting down and the distribution of the land and goods of the Order was a difficult one and took many months to accomplish.  William received back his original ten acres plus an additional ten more and also some flour, wheat, and other smaller items.  He indicated that he was always glad he followed the counsel of Church leaders to join with the Order, but he welcomed the change which allowed him to work out his own standard of living along with his brothers and father.

The Richfield United Order of Enoch lasted from August of 1874 to September 1877 and most all the other Orders in the Territory had very similar life spans.  Orderville Utah was somewhat of an exception from the others, operating rather successfully until about 1886.

In Search of a Pure People

In 1874 the Ogden’s were well on their way to financial independence when a small detour occurred.  Known formally as the United Order of Enoch, but more commonly referred to as just “the order,”  it was a new way of living; an economic and social plan for the Mormon communities in the Great Basin patterned something like what the saints tried to live back in Kirkland.   


Formed under the counsel and instruction of Brigham Young, families in a geographical area such as a stake, formed a cooperative organization and placed their land, cattle, sheep, machinery and all other worldly possessions into the order for the benefit of the group. There was somewhere around 220 different orders organized in the territory during this time frame. 

William and Mary and the offspring had been in the Sevier Valley over a year by this time and were beginning to show some signs of prosperity.  Their response to the counsel to form an Order is detailed in the history of young William Ogden Jr., who was 20 years old at the time.  From his history we read:

 “The Ogden’s, following their belief that they should obey council, joined the one in Richfield and turned in the goods, land, and money which they had accumulated both individually and collectively.  William Jr. had collected some little cash by his freighting and this was turned into the Order, along with a yearling steer and the land which he had drawn.”

“As William approached the age of twenty-three, he felt that he should begin preparations to get married; so he approached the United Order Board with a request that they build him a two room house with a cellar.  Some of the members thought this was too elaborate for a young man, even though he had been faithful in performing his duties as a member of the Order.  They wanted to compromise with one room and a lean-too with a cellar, or two rooms without the cellar; but William had his mind made up, and he insisted on what he wanted until finally they agreed to let him proceed to build the type of house he asked for.

William Jr. felt that he would like a little change in the color of his new home, so he spent many nights after work going to Glenwood to get white clay to make his adobes with. The United Order furnished most of the lumber and. other materials for his house, but he had to get the shingles outside of the Order.  William's father was a good mason and carpenter and work was commenced on the house in the fall of 1877.”

William married Emma Fraser on October 27, 1877 in the St. George Temple.  They returned to Richfield and lived with his parents until the white adobe house was completed in July of the following year.

Part two on the United Order will explain what happened on the way to being translated. 

Would somebody please invent a General Handbook of Instructions?

William Morrison

In the older part of the Richfield Cemetery rests the remains of William Morrison, one of the earliest settlers in Richfield.  Some 20 miles away in the Monroe cemetery the bones of Nelson Higgins are at rest, he also being one of the earliest settlers of the town.  It was between these two pioneers that some sparks of contention erupted starting in the year 1871, just after the resettlement & about the same time as the Ogden family arrived with their trunk.

Apparently Morrison had been appointed the Probate Judge by the Governor and then sustained as "President" of the settlement by someone or other.  The second title was the more interesting, inasmuch as there wasn’t really anything to be “president” of, unless a person felt this constituted the beginning of a Stake, which is quite debatable.  Morrison was a man possessed of a military background and was used to having and exercising a certain authority.  When he was thus appointed, his flock consisted of eight families which included ten men.

Nelson Higgins

Nelson Higgins was likewise a military man. He was a veteran of the Mormon Battalion, and prior to that, a member of the Nauvoo Legion.   In March of 1871 he was sustained as the first Bishop in Richfield, in some unknown manner, after which a petty rivalry erupted between the two strong willed men which grew increasingly bitter over the next year.  Finally an exasperated Bishop Higgins summoned President Morrison to appear at a Bishops Court for possible disciplinary action on some land matter.  Needless to say, when a Bishop demands the appearance of a President at a court, the lines of authority and protocol are anything but clear and organized... and quite possibly without precedent.

Judge/President Morrison appeared as requested at the proceedings, but just long enough to hear Higgins read the charges against him.  He immediately fired back that that the proceedings were without authority and were bogus.  Turning on his heel he stormed out of the room, and the rancor and strife escalated.

News traveled fast, (well actually not too fast), and in late 1872 Apostle Orson Hyde, who had responsibility over the central Utah area, arrived and took decisive action.  He chastised both men for exhibiting such a lack of harmony and further stated that “there was no good cause for the troubles that exist here.”   He then called Joseph A. Young, son of Brigham Young, to be “President of the Settlements of Sevier,” and told him to resolve all the contentions. He then promptly departed back to the safety of Salt Lake City.


Actually, despite the occasional cry of nepotism, President Young did an admirable job of bringing things under control.  The brethren from Salt Lake returned in 1874 to make the Sevier Stake official and also retained Young in his position.  Unfortunately, he died rather suddenly on August 5, 1875 while still the Stake President.  

Morrison and Higgins appeared to settle down after Hyde’s visit and actually both served in numerous church positions over the years with no further hint of the earlier hostility.   Morrison died in 1889 and Higgins followed him in 1890.  For all we know both men matured over the years, set aside earlier differences, and now rest in apparent peace, although still at a distance.


Was this the beginning of an era of peace?  Maybe... except for a few years later a retiring Bishop, apparently unhappy with his replacement, set up competition to Sacrament Meeting by playing his fiddle across the street and attracting a larger crowd.  But that exciting story will have to wait for another day.


What did the Ogden family think of all these doings???  We'll never know because no one bothered to write it down.

The Blessing of Posterity

Now that the William and Mary Ogden family are safely established in their red adobe house in Richfield we should catch up on what was happening with family relationships.  Consider this time line of events occurring within this closely knit family:

Sept. 24, 1868   The Ogdens arrive in Salt Lake with the Edward T. Mumford Company

Nov. 1, 1869       Mary Anne Ogden, 2^nd oldest child, marries W.C.B. Orrock in the Endowment House. Their romance first started back in England.

Oct 9, 1871          Jane Ogden, 4th child in the family, marries Henry Dall.  She is 19 at the time; he, 32 and a widower of nearly 8 years.  He brings to the marriage a son, Samuel, age 9.

Aug 24, 1872       James Ogden, now age 26 and oldest of the children, marries 24-year-old Alice Wray. Alice had arrived with her family from the Lancashire area of England via the ship Wisconsin on August 13.  

Allowing for a week’s train travel the marriage took place about 4 days after her arrival in Utah.  This also looks like a romance that had its start back in England and had been patiently waiting to develop.

Mar 31, 1873      Thomas Ogden, the third child of the family, marries Ann Marsh.  Ann had arrived in New York on September 17, 1872, on the ship Minnesota.  She came with her mother and 3 sisters from the Bolton area in England; perhaps another Lancashire romance.  At the time of this marriage, Thomas was 24 and Ann was 19.

Summer 1873    Approximate time the Ogdens relocated to Richfield.

Dec 27, 1873       Alice Wray, wife of James Ogden, dies in Richfield two days after the first Christmas in their new home. No details of the cause of death are available.  They were married only 16 months.  She was buried in the Richfield Pioneer Cemetery.

Oct 13, 1874       James marries Betsy Marsh, the sister of Ann, and oldest of the four Marsh daughters.

If the family gathered together in 1875 for Thanksgiving dinner, there would have been William and Mary, their seven children, four sons or daughters in-laws, and nine grandchildren at the table, a total of 22 people; more than double their family size in six short years.

The Ogden's (with their trunk) pack up and find a new home

William took his three oldest sons, James (26), Thomas (22), and William (17) and travelled to the Sevier Valley to reconnoiter the area.  They were accompanied by Wm. Orrock and his brother-in-law Steven Theobald.  When they arrived they found considerable discussion in the area about building a new town near where Central is today.  To irrigate the land it was proposed that a new canal be built to carry water to the town site and fields that would soon be developed. 

It seemed a great plan and the men were anxious to be part of the planning and building of the new town.  They returned to Santaquin, discussed the news with the rest of the family, and made the decision to make Central their new home.  The men returned to secure property while Mary wound up their affairs in Santaquin and packed the trunk.  However they would soon find that plans and events were not going as well as they thought.

When the men arrived back in Central they promptly acquired some lots in the township on which to build their homes; they also acquired by lottery some farmland between the town and the river. It was then that issues arose that would alter their plans once again.  Some of the settlers in the new town wanted the canal to be constructed below the existing Richfield canal and others thought it best to build above and divert water via a flume.  Disagreement became arguments which became heated contention and bickering; all the while the season of planting grew later.  

Finally the Ogden’s decided that they could afford to wait no longer and made a decision to move to Richfield where there also existed opportunity, but with a more harmonious population.  Much of the land there had previously been cultivated before the evacuation and now had to be cleared off again and prepared to plant.  Once more each of the men was desirous of having their own lot for a future home and they acquired such lots in the south west quarter of the town; adjacent to each other.

The plan was to work together to first build a home for William and Mary and then to help one another with the construction of subsequent houses.  The necessary tasks were divided up and some made adobes and bricks and worked at construction of the new house while some began to clear and plant land so that a crop might be harvested by fall. The house was a large adobe with two fireplaces located at the corner of 500 South and 200 West.  When the house was ready to occupy, the property in Santaquin was disposed of, and the family was reunited in their new, and hopefully permanent, community.

Thus the Ogdens establish their new home in a new land and a begin a new and exciting era.

They didn't get the Memo

Richfield in 1870 wasn't much to see... in fact there was very, very little to see.  The people had left in a big hurry and were now living elsewhere for the time being.  Many of them were questioning whether they even wanted to return.  It wasn't the red dirt on their carpets that was their concern, it was the red men in the hills.  Blackhawk and his warriors were still marauding and any peaceful farming saint wanted to keep his scalp and his life. Richfield sat in the middle of the valley had little to offer in terms of protection and safety.  When the year 1870 arrived it was an empty village and it would take another year before the place would be safe to return to.

But the Constitution of the land, which also included territories, explicitly stated that the people must  be counted every ten years, and this year of 1870 was a year for counting.  Apparently the task fell to a Mr.Wm.W. Rockhill, a newly minted "Census Marshall," who had taken the oath of office and was either not informed of the grave risk to life and limb that lurked in southern Utah, or was unconcerned and oblivious to the dangers of the Indian uprising; but his duty was to count...  and count he would. 

Use your best imagination and you can see him riding an old flea bitten U.S. Government mule down from the north country, pencils in pocket, satchel under arm, with a round derby hat perched on his head, and little wire rimmed spectacles on his nose.  No doubt he had been carefully trained in the Palmer Method of handwriting which would have been a perfect supplement to his emotionless, accountant-like personality.  Exercise that imagination some more and you might see him slowly making his way down what little main street there was, stepping around some errant tumbleweeds.  There would have been little or no wind in mid-June and an oppressive stillness filling the afternoon.  But there was a curl of smoke at the end of the street and to that spot Rockhill focused his attention and gave his old mule a kick.  The only live body in the entire town was an old Swedish sheepherder by the name of C.P. Anderson.  Picture him at the campfire whittling a stick and judiciously considering the uninvited guest who was dismounting from the mule.  Rockhill would have politely introduced himself as a representative of the US Govt, which probably made him less welcome in the deserted town than Chief Black Hawk himself.   Up to this time the only questions that had been asked by agents of the federal government had to do with the marital status of Mormon men, and that never turned out very well.  So as Mr. Rockhill asked the required questions the wary old Swede probably told him the basics at least.  But listed below Anderson's name were three young men, without names, ages 20,18,16.  The notations are puzzling and we are left to guess who they might be. Were they sons of C.P. Anderson? Did they not have first names, and if they did, why no recording of them?   These are good questions; perhaps they were sons that Anderson had not yet gotten around to naming.  Or perhaps he didn't want the US Govt to know their names.  Or better yet... maybe the interview was cut short by a Ute arrow that suddenly struck a nearby tree.   Me thinks we will never know the details of that June 14, 1870 day in Richfield, so our imagination is all we have to go on.  The motto is; when in doubt... make it good!.

The entire Richfield Census of 1870

So that was what Richfield consisted of in 1870.  Humble start for an exciting town!!

Mr. Wm. W. Rockhill, Ass't Marshall of the US Govt., concluded his census count of Richfield with the following notation:

Note:  After agreeing to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, the Ute's lived in peace for over 140 years and then decided to join the PAC 10 where they lived the rest of their days in obscurity.

Utahs Black Hawk War

Chief Black Hawk played an important part in the story of the Ogden family and where they would take their trunk and eventually settle.

Here are some “Bullet Points” to help the reader understand the tensions of the times:

The Black Hawk War wasn't really a war in the traditional sense; it was a series of skirmishes between Indians and settlers between the years 1869 and 1871. Like nearly any other conflict involving peoples of different cultures it had two essential elements; an abundance of tinder ready to ignite, and a spark that would set it off.

• The Tinder, was the encroachment upon the food, customs, and lands of the native people.  Settlements throughout northern Utah and growing settlements in southern areas of Cedar and St. George left the central area of Utah, comprised of the Sanpete and Sevier Valleys, as the last Indian lands in the state.  Not to cast blame, but it is obvious that settlers continued to alter the natural environment by logging, redirecting streams for irrigation, recklessly over-fishing rivers, and killing deer, elk, and other game. As both Indian and non-Indian competed for the land, tensions grew exponentially.
• The Spark.  During a conference between whites and Indians held at Manti the following incident is recited: “A local named John Lowry, believed drunk at the time, told the Chief to keep quiet, when someone yelled,  ‘look out he's getting his arrows!’ Lowry jerked the Chief (by his hair) off of his horse, and was about to abuse him, when some men stepped in and broke them up."-Indian Depredations in Utah - Peter Gottfredson. 

Thus the tinder was ignited by a drunken Lowry.  Tensions heightened, cattle were stolen, and a young Indian brave, newly named Chief Blackhawk, led the Indians against the settlers in what we now call the Blackhawk War.  Whites were ambushed and killed resulting in a backlash where settlers in turn hunted and killed Indians, including villages of women and children.  The settlers of Richfield were but many who were evacuated to fortified communities such as Manti for safety.  Not until the “red savages” were beaten into submission in 1871 were people allowed to return to their former towns.

Peter Gottfredson

Perhaps one had to live and experience the times to find any honor in the behavior of the white people in the Blackhawk War.   In a reunion of the veterans of the war, held almost 20 years later in 1894, John Lowry, the man who had probably ignited the conflict, spoke in praise of himself and his actions.  He boasted of his heroic action in pulling the chief from his horse by his hair and said, “I am confident that many lives were saved, because it put the people on their guard”.  No comment is made regarding his state of sobriety when making this claim.

Peter Gottfredson, who spent much time living closely with both whites and Indians, wrote a chronicle of the conflicts entitled “Indian Depredations in Utah.”  Gottfredson was a astute observer of interactions between the two cultures and his book is considered to be an accurate chronicle and reflection of the times and the conflicts.

South to Richfield

The year of 1872 was a watershed year for the Ogden family.  It was time to make a hard decision about where to permanently put down roots.  They had been three years in Santaquin but decided it wasn’t the place for them.  The biggest factor in making such a decision was to be able to acquire good land; preferable by using sweat equity, for money was a very scarce commodity.  In November of 1869 WCB Orrock married Mary Jane Ogden in the endowment House and his sister Mary Elizabeth Orrock married Stephan Theobald, who was also an English emigrant.  In December 1871 Theobald came to the Ogden family with the idea of possibly relocating to Richfield Utah, some 100 miles south of where they were.

The Sevier River valley seemed an attractive possibility.  The valleys to the north such as Manti and Ephraim were solidly established, primary with Scandinavian saints.  Further south the communities of St. George and smaller settlements extending north from it were also doing well.   But the central area of the state, particularly the area of the Sevier River drainage had experienced difficulties.  Someone obviously forgot to tell the local Native Americans they were now going to have to share their land and resources with fair skinned Mormon pioneers.  Tensions heightened, cattle were stolen, and a young Indian brave newly name Blackhawk led the Indians and settlers into what we know call the Blackhawk War.

Settlers came to the Sevier Valley in 1864, built dugouts in the ground and struggled to survive.  By the time the Blackhawk War began there were somewhere near 100 people living in the town of Omni, which would be renamed Richfield a few years later.  In 1868, due to the dangers of Indian attacks, the inhabitants packed wagons and evacuated to Manti.  This left the community deserted until 1871 when negotiations with the Indians brought to an end, at least for the most part, the Blackhawk War.  

The Ogden's and their traveling trunk arrive in Santaquin Utah

As mentioned earlier, the William and Mary Ogden family settled down in Santaquin Utah and began to learn the new lifestyle of the western high desert country.  Even today Santaquin remains a rather small rural community about 20 miles south of Provo Utah.  It is a crossroads and gateway of sorts where the roads divide and travelers must make a decision.  The trail to the west and south leads to the arid west desert, sparse in vegetation, but rich in minerals and precious metals.  And like any mining area it also hosted wild mining towns such as Eureka, Tintic, and numerous other camps. However a southbound traveler would find the Wasatch and Manti LaSalle mountains and the rich agricultural valleys of Sanpete and Sevier Counties.  And then in the very south there was Dixie, with its warm weather climate  and the town of St. George that hosted the beginnings of the first temple in the west.

The Ogden family had a mind to settle in Santaquin, mostly because they had family and friends there who had come earlier from the Bolton and Manchester areas of England.  Names like Openshaw and Greenhaugh appear in several family history's as some who helped the Ogden’s in one way or another and those names can also be found in Mary Vickers extended family genealogy.  Inasmuch as it was late in the season they immediately set about to prepare for winter by using their most abundant strengths: the ability to work hard and also to work together.  They cut and hauled wood from surrounding canyons and by winter had one of the largest woodpiles in Santaquin.  From then on it was a matter of trade, barter, and work on "shares" which meant receiving  a percentage of production.

When spring came they rented some land and learned to be farmers and planted wheat, corn, potatoes, and sugar cane.  William Jr. and John went to work in a shingle mill and were paid in shingles which were used on the home they were building.  They took the remainder to Salt Lake City and traded for supplies including a subscription to the Deseret News.

It was religion that compelled these immigrants to gather in Utah, at least for the most part.  But the added dividend was the ability to own their land.  Most of those who had come from Great Britain had spent their entire lives as tenants and share croppers for the wealthy aristocracy of the country; with never a dream of owning their own land.  When 5 acre parcels were put up for drawing north of Santaquin, the Ogden's were awarded four of them as a family. They immediately began to improve and fence and prepare for spring planting.  But after two years of work it became apparent that the land was marginal and also the water was scarce.  They had invested 3 years in this place and now they needed to make a decision on whether to pull up stakes and look for something better, or stay put and hope for improvement.  So with that decision looming we will close and wait for another entry...  soon to come.

The WCB Orrock Story-- almost an Ogden

There are occasional introductions that need to be made if you are ever to understand the bigger picture of the William Ogden family.  One such person already mentioned is William Cummings Bryant Orrock.  He was most commonly referred to as WCB Orrock.  When he was about 6 years old his widowed mother brought WCB and his sister Mary Elizabeth to Bolton where they settled and found employment at the cotton mills.  It was there they began their association with the William Ogden family and soon joined the LDS Church.   

WCB was the same age as Thomas and they became fast friends.  At some point a romantic relationship developed between Mary Anne Ogden and WCB.  However William Ogden did not want his children to marry in England for fear they would be hesitant to leave when the time came. He wanted his family intact and therefore any possible marriage for the two young lovebirds had to wait.  So it was no surprise when William and his sister joined the Ogden's when they left the British Isles and were part of the family from then on.  Their mother followed and joined them the next year.  One year after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, WCB Orrock and Mary Anne Ogden were sealed together in the Endowment House. So Orrock grew up with the Ogden family and then eventually married one of the daughters; almost as if to cement the bond further.  


Here's a quick peek at the future: The couple had 8 children together and then Mary became ill, apparently with appendicitis, and died shortly after the dedication of the Manti temple in May 1888.  At that time their oldest child was 16 and the youngest was one year old.

Just nine months prior to this tragic event, John Ogden, the second to the youngest of the Ogden children, died suddenly in August of 1887, leaving his wife Marie Outzen a widow with two little children.  They had been married only five years at the time of this tragedy.  So with these two Ogden spouses widowed, and with young children to care for, it was only natural that they marry one another, which they did about a year later.  They subsequently had an additional four children between them. So the Orrocks’ became a very blended family where the earlier children, who had once been only cousins, now took on the additional relationship of step brothers and sisters.  It was a very early rendition of yours, mine, and ours.

W.C.B. had a feed store on Main street in Richfield and townsfolk good naturedly referred to him by what they claimed his initials stood for: Wheat, Corn, and Barley.   He preceded his close friend Thomas in death by only two years and their graves are within comfortable visiting distance of one another at the Richfield cemetery.

This little synopsis of the life of WCB Orrock is but a brief glimpse of the life of a fine gentleman.  His full biography will be posted later.

Building the transcontinental RR

As the William Ogden family continued their journey from Benton to Utah, another interesting drama was unfolding.  The Union Pacific Railroad was working at a feverish pace to extend their portion of the transcontinental railroad as far as possible before meeting their western counterpart, the Central Pacific.  Huge financial rewards were being paid by the government for each mile of track completed and the competitors were anxious to garner as many dollars as possible.  

The UP, coming from the east,  had made great progress as they laid track over the relatively flat plains states, but when they started into Utah and hit the rugged Echo Canyon, work slowed considerably.  Forced to blast through quartzite and black limestone, and dig long tunnels and bridge canyons, they finally experienced what the CP, who started in California, had gone through crossing the Sierras. 

The typical railroad workforce was spread out over several miles. At the very front were the surveyors followed by the graders and the telegraph crew, just ahead of the actual rail laying. At the end of the laid track, workers unloaded wagons of rail. Gaugers set the tracks in place, followed by spikers and bolters who affixed the rails together. Camps for thousands of men -- workshops, offices, bunks, food supplies --advanced half a dozen miles each day.

Communication from Church leaders in Utah advised that any able bodied men in the emigrant companies should seek employment with the railroad and earn some hard currency for their labors.  They would probably need it for apparently during that summer of 1869 there had been an invasion of crickets in the valley (again) which had created a serious food shortage.  The record states that Thomas, James, and William Jr. along with W.C.B. Orrock followed that advice and when the company arrived at Salt Lake they then departed for Echo Canyon to build track for the Union Pacific Railroad.

However it was not long before James took very sick, and after a period of no improvement, the young men were advised to take him to join the family in Santaquin where they had settled.  A relative named Levi Openshaw volunteered to take them by way of Coalville, Heber City, and down Provo Canyon to eventually join the group south of Provo.  No description of the illness James suffered is ever provided, nor of his recovery, but in later years he suffered again from poor health and was released from his mission in England, having served 14 months.  Perhaps he had contracted mountain fever, a not uncommon ailment of the time.  James eventually died in Richfield in 1894 at the relatively young age of 49.
He was a good man and faithful throughout his life.

After all was said and done the Mormon men who had labored hard building track probably didn’t get paid a dime.  The UP plead poverty and claimed to have no cash to pay workers for the several months of labor prior to the completion. One of the most shameful facts in the construction of the railroad was that the Church had to go to New York and Boston seeking redress for back wages and then finally received only partial payment in the form of railroad equipment and other assets; but there was no cash to pay workers. The Union Pacific officers, crooks that they were, plead poverty while pocketing millions of dollars in profit through a enterprise known as the Credit Mobilier, the Enron of its day. 


Thus ends the railroad experience for the Ogden’s, but also heralds the beginning of life in Zion as the family reunites and looks for a permanent home.

Don't leave your manners at home!

Dear Miss Manners,

I desperately need some advice on a matter of proper etiquette that will surely come up in the next few weeks.  We are a company of emigrants travelling to the Salt Lake valley from England.  We rode as far as the railroad had been built and from there we are being transported by mule train to Salt Lake City.  The leader of the train is a very kind mule whacker named Captain E.T. Mumford.   We also have been blessed by four charming young Teamsters; all from either Tooele or Grantsville.  Being unfamiliar with this new country and the customs of proper etiquette, I am quite perplexed as to whether we should tip these men for their kind and generous services, and if so, how much?  

Most humbly,

Annie from England.

 Dear Annie,

I am most delighted to address the newly minted customs of propriety and decorum that should be present in any lady of proper upbringing.  You will no doubt bring a splash of culture to this territory of Utah.   Let me first explain some background and history.  You might not know that assignments have been made by Pres. Young throughout the various communities of Utah for wagon teams to come and assist the newly arriving saints and help them into the valley.  They are to provide their own teams and animals (some have oxen and others mules). Therefore, their labor is one of service and done to fulfill a Priesthood assignment.  However they are also compensated somewhat by the issuance of something called “tithing script” which can used to pay tithing on other earned income.  Barter for tithing! Don’t you just love the new economy??    So just to clarify; they are performing service, but receiving a little financial benefit in the process.  One would not tip a servant of the Lord for performing a duty, but perhaps if you could rustle up a little tithing script of your own you may pass that along with an expression of thanks.

Another side benefit of volunteering for this assignment is that the young teamsters, as you have no doubt noticed, are usually good healthy, single, young men.  What an opportunity for them to get to know the eligible arriving young women before anyone else back home.  You have also noticed how they enjoy teaching the English lassies to dance at the campfire socials and all the fun they all have.  But remember… its all in the act of service!

My best wishes to you, Miss Manners

They came when Brigham called

Before rushing recklessly ahead with this historical account, it would be prudent to pause and explore some very important context surrounding the journey of the Ogden’s. The first matter to address is how they were able to afford financially to undertake the journey. They were a rather large family of nine people and although they had scrimped and saved for years, the economic collapse of the Manchester textile mills during the Civil War had taken a toll on that savings. In fact they were helped, as were many others during this period of time, by the Church’s Perpetual Emigration Fund or PEF. This fund was created through generous contributions of already settled saints which was then used to help fund the trip for those who could not otherwise afford it. Then once established, these grateful recipients would become gainfully employed and pay back the debt, which in turn would be used to help the next family come to Zion. The names of William and Mary Ogden are recorded on the ledger books of the fund, as having been assisted, but with no amounts indicated.

Brigham Young was a leader with vision, and even those who dismiss him as a prophet of God will admit to that fact. He could see clearly that once the transcontinental railroad was completed, probably somewhere in Utah in 1869, that this new transportation route would open up western migration to thousands more gentiles eager to claim land of their own. It therefore became urgent to hasten the immigrating saints to Zion to colonize as much of the Great Basin as possible. The invasion of the gentile competition was on the horizon, and the clock was ticking.

At the general conference of the Church in October 1867, President Young urged that every effort be made to bring more souls to Zion. After instruction regarding the laws of life and happiness, he added that he would send to every ward in the territory and ask men of wealth how many of the poor Saints yet in the old world they would help to emigrate the next year. The president's efforts succeeded beyond all expectations. $70,000 was raised, helping the largest surge of saints yet to make the trip. William and Mary Ogden and their family were right in the thick of those that would come. In fact, the English and Scandinavian saints that started on the Emerald Isle ship were the last two companies of "rail and trail" pioneers to arrive in the valley before the completion of the railroad a few months later.

The Saints meet the Wild West

After a nearly 8 week miserable sea voyage, it must have seemed like heaven to board a train for the next stage of the journey. But not so fast… this was not the Amtrak of today, but a freight train where the folks were loaded in box cars. They travelled across the plains until they reached the end of the tracks at Benton Wyoming. Benton was about midway through the state close to what is now I-80. You have never seen Benton because it does not exist today, in fact its whole lifespan was about 3 months; from July to September 1868.

Benton must have been a real shocker for these English and Scandinavian saints on their way to the promised land. It boasted twenty-five saloons and five dance halls. Gunfights were common and it is is estimated that over 100 souls died in shoot-outs in those 3 months. One visitor referred to Benton as "nearer a repetition of Sodom and Gomorrah than any other place in America." Saloon keepers, gamblers, and soiled doves plied their respective trades. As the tracks were extended the inhabitants of the towns would pack up, load their wagons and move to the next town, hence the expression, "Hell on wheels." This environment was the unwelcome, but unavoidable, evil that followed along with the railroad construction.

During the months of August and September 1868, Benton was the jumping off location for about 5 companies of pioneers, totaling 2,000 Saints, heading to Utah. Edward Mumford was the captain of a 28 wagon mule team that awaited the saints in this frightening place. For whatever reason Mumford had been waiting with his teamsters for the emigrant passengers for nearly nine weeks. He had arrived in Wyoming about the same day the Emerald Isle had set sail from England! It’s no surprise that during that time several of the company's livestock were stolen. But despite his apparent calendaring problems he at least has the foresight to make camp about 6 miles outside of Benton and hopefully out of reach of the flock of soiled doves and hucksters.

When the company finally arrived on about Sept 25, 1868, we can imagine Mary Ogden hustling her young brood very quickly from the train to the safety of the waiting wagons. They went so fast they left their treasured trunk with the other baggage to catch up with them later!

One unrecognized stowaway on the packet ship Emerald Isle in 1868 was my paternal DNA. It was actually contained in the biological structure of my Great Grandfather Thomas Ogden, (with a backup in his father William). Of course neither of them had any knowledge of DNA strands or markers or even genetics in general. My genetic blueprint was just along for a free ride. But this particular voyage, according to written records and journals, was miserable and very deadly due to contaminated water, inadequate supplies, and a poorly disciplined crew. At one point when a crew member attacked a female passenger, he was yanked away by the scruff of his shirt by a rather larger Scandinavian saint. The surrounding crew immediately rallied to their shipmate’s defense and tension between crew and passengers escalated to the level of a British soccer match. The leader of the saints intervened and pointed to the Captain of the ship reminding him of prior agreements that had been made as well as rules of common decency. To make the point complete, he patiently explained that the Scandinavian men on board would have no problem sailing the vessel and could probably do it better than the existing crew. The not-so-subtle message was quickly understood and civility restored.

Of course my DNA strand heard none of this because it had separated from the action and was hanging over the rail; green, and sick, and occasionally heaving up a few particles of genetic material into the Atlantic Ocean. To this day I am easily nauseated on any sea faring boat and it’s obvious that the source of this weakness was there on the Emerald Isle.

This is what is known as a "Clipper Ship Card," made popular during the 1850's and 1860's. They were primarily advertisements used to entice passengers, but were also designed to inspire the confidence of prospective freight shippers. These cards were mass produced and distributed liberally throughout the major shipping ports.

Most clipper cards were printed in full color on coated stock, and represent some of the finest early American color advertising artwork. Various themes and artwork were represented on the cards including knights, Indians, and nautical scenes. Cards were sometimes done with great imagination and flair making them a popular collector’s item today. This particular card advertising the 1868 journey taken by the Ogden's, recently sold at auction for $2,250.

Just think… if Thomas and his siblings would have gathered up a few dozen of these and kept them in the trunk we could share a little pocket change to share today. But I suppose a rich and solid heritage is much better, right?

Photo Day at Bolton

The William Ogden family had been saving every farthing they could towards the cost of the voyage across the Atlantic and to Utah. It took nearly 20 years to earn sufficient funds, but by working together they accomplished the task. They were also aided to some degree from the perpetual immigration fund. Prior to leaving their home country they posed for a portrait in a local studio. Several family accounts indicate that they gave copies of this picture to friends and relatives who asked them for one, feeling that they would not again meet in this life. They gave out all that they had and people still wanted more.

I would suppose that after the photo sitting they went home to pack their travelling trunk, change into their boating clothes and climb aboard the sailing ship Emerald Isle for an adventuresome oceanic trek. However they may have had serious second thoughts if they knew in advance that this particular voyage would be remembered by church historians as the worst voyage of any that any of the saints had to endure during the pioneer migration. The culinary water was bad and serious bouts of measles and other malady's claimed the lives of no less than 37 people, mostly children, before the ship finally arrived at the New York Harbor after an 8 week journey.

What makes the above photo even more interesting is that another English family, the Edward Gledhill family, apparently also had their photo shoot in the same studio prior to their departure on the same ship. Coincidentally they would also settle in Richfield Utah (or in Vermilion to be absolutely precise). To stir the

pot of coincidence a bit more, their sons Joseph Ogden and Elder Gledhill, were called to return to England as missionaries leaving and also returning together. And just one more little connection; Thomas Ogden's daughter Jane would one day marry Thomas Gledhill's son Ivo in 1910. Can there be more??? Yes... William Ogden and Edward Gledhill each died in 1888 just 3 months apart.

More Collaboration and More Boxes

While conversing with some newly introduced extended cousins, I learned of an even bigger box. This one is in the Pioneer Museum of my old hometown Richfield, Utah.

The museum is a restored log cabin on first East just next to the library. Many a time I have driven past the quaint old structure, but never have I dared enter. Well... here is the story of the box that became a trunk:

TRUNK

“The outside of this trunk is 36 inches long, 21 inches wide and 23 inches high. It weighs forty pounds. It has a wooden frame. The outside is covered with heavy canvas, wooden braces, metal corners, and metal reinforcement strips. It has four tiny wheels at the bottom. It has leather straps metal clasps, and a lock. The inside has cloth glued to the wood frame, something like wallpaper. There is a place for a box to sit in the upper half of the trunk, but the box is missing. A black stamped number is on the bottom possibly put there by the manufacturer: 34NO.282. Handwritten painted letters are also on the bottom: GEE.
A paper sticker is on the side with printed letters. Part of these letters are torn and missing. The remaining letters say:

...NION PASSENGER ST...

CHICAGO

The trunk belonged to William Ogden, Sr. and his wife Mary Vickers Ogden. They were converts to the church, baptized in 1848 and 1849 in Bolton, England. The trunk left Bolton with them and their seven children in 1868 when they immigrated to Utah to be with the saints. They took the trunk from Bolton to the docks at Liverpool Harbor. There they boarded the old, tall-masted, full-rigged, three decked sailing ship Emerald Isle. It was a difficult voyage with the harshest treatment from officers and crew of any emigrant company. They docked in New York Harbor and traveled 1,900 miles west by train through Chicago to the end of the tracks at Benton Wyoming, somewhere near present-day Rawlings. They traveled with a down-and-back wagon train 300 miles to Salt Lake City and then on to Santaquin. Their wagon train was the last to cross the plains before the completion of the railroad, except for a contingent of the sick. They moved to Richfield in 1872.

This trunk was kept by the William Ogden, Jr. family and then by the Owen Ogden family in Richfield until 2005, when they presented it to the Daughters of Utah Pioneers.”

Bruce Ogden, descendant

Thanks Bruce for the story and the trunk!