History of
Chester Richard Brough (1898-1967)
and Lula Robison

Quoted from the 1980 RBFO book:
Samuel Richard Brough, 1857-1947: His History, Ancestors & Descendants
Originally written by LeGrande Richard Brough in 1980

Chester Richard Brough was born October 6, 1898 in Lyman, Wyoming. His father was Samuel Richard Brough and his mother was Ann Eliza Carter. He had five brothers and three sisters: Horace, Reed, Hyrum, Golden, Lester, Viola, Eveline and Emily. His father was bishop of Lyman Ward for twenty years. His mother was the second wife of Samuel, his first wife being Phoebe Adeline Cherry. She had eight children.

Chester's father was a pioneer and settled the town of Lyman, Wyoming. Here my father grew up in a humble home and with what he referred to as a "heavenly mother." He was taught to work at an early age. He told stories to us as children of those early days. He loved foot races and he was good at this. He told about doing chores, mowing and hauling hay. He loved canned tomatoes and fruit from the field. He said they went sleigh riding down long dugways in winter and how much fun they had at school activities. I guess they had not much as they were growing up. He said they wore clothes a long time.

He learned many things from father Samuel. They raised and slaughtered pigs in winter and hauled them to Rock Springs for market in very cold weather. He was called at an early age to serve on a mission to the Central States in the years of 1919 to 1921 and labored mostly in Arkansas. He told of holding many street and cottage meetings and was "rotten egged" off one street corner in Little Rock. He walked many miles, washing collars of shirts in streams and carrying a small suitcase with all his belongings in it. I can still see the old suitcase as he carried it to the temple in Salt Lake City later, to do temple ordinances.

He served faithfully and his mission became a changing point in his life. His family moved to Bountiful in 1920 and bought two homes at 900 North Main, Bountiful, and 600 North Main Street. Both had about eight acres and each family settled here. His father then spent the next thirty years doing temple work during winter months. The farms became truck garden farms, and father learned this business and made it his life's occupation. He became a produce raiser, a peddler and produce salesman.

He bought an old Model T Ford and had a peddler's route up through Morgan, Utah and towns along the way. He there met Lula Robison and wooed and married her in the Salt Lake Temple on 15 Feb 1924. She was the daughter of David Alexander Robison and Rhoda Ann Smith. I was born April 1, 1925 and was called LaGrande Richard and it was said it was a rainy day on April Fool. Father worked at a Safeway Produce Store in the north part of Salt Lake, about 400 North. They lived at about 400 North. When I was six months old I was scalded with boiling water but was blessed with no scars.

Father became a very good salesman and told how he sold ripe bananas to everyone coming into the store. He made many friends here whom he later sold produce to. They moved to Bountiful, Utah some place on 200 North and 100 West, and from there to the basement of Horace Brough, his brother. Delmar Chester was born here and died at age six months, a very sad time for my parents, and I heard and felt their grief as I grew up. At this time my mother's uncle in St. George gave mother enough money to buy a house on 185 West Center. We moved there and father continued his produce peddling to Morgan and even out to Lyman and other towns in Wyoming. He also started to haul produce on commission to Salt Lake Growers' Market for other farmers. I accompanied my father on many trips. He owned several Model "T" and "A" and "B" Ford trucks and finally was able to buy an International Dualed Wheel, of which he was most proud.

During these years, Lula Marie was born, March 4, 1930. She now has ten children and is married to Dennis Elon Nielsen from Shelly, Idaho. Carole came later, and she has eight children and is married to Ned Allison Whiting from Mapleton, Utah. I married Julia Foy and we had six children. Julia was from Bountiful, Utah and the daughter of Florence Tuttle and Leslie T. Foy.

As we were growing up, these were proud days for Father and Mother. Father hauled his children everywhere in his truck. He was always making friends in his work and enjoyed discussing the gospel and bearing his testimony. This he enjoyed very much and many times I have heard his testimony.

He was a counselor to Haven Stringham in the Bountiful First Ward Sunday School. In 1937 Father purchased a 10-acre farm and everyone helped on it for many years. Father worked hard and paid his brother and farm off in eight years. It cost $5,000.00. He had worked hard on Center Street place. He had planted an orchard and garden and they built a grape arbor, barn, chicken coop, pig pen and a large double garage for produce. His neighbor complained and he had to stop raising animals so close, so that was moved to the new place.

We took canyon trips to· the mountains and other fun trips. We always walked to church and we had to walk fast with the pace dad would set. He was always busy. In winter he would haul coal and hay for people with his truck. He never spent many idle moments.

During the depression years of the 30's, father was out of work, and one winter spent all his time doing temple work in Salt Lake, riding the electric trolley called the Bamberger. We always visited relatives and go to Grandma Brough's house (Ann Eliza). We had many happy hours visiting and holding get togethers, especially at Christmas.

Father loved the out-of-doors and spent time hunting and fishing. One summer we all went to Yellowstone Park with Delbert Robison, and I watched dad fish on Yellowstone Lake and he almost tipped the boat over when they started to catch the fish, as reported by Delbert Robison, brother-in-law. We took trips to the top of Bountiful peak with the Myrle and John Ellis families. I rode with father one spring hauling water on the back of his truck to new trees planted on the new highway being built north of Bountiful. He worked at many odd jobs to supplement his income and was never too proud to stoop to any to earn a living. He hauled city garbage in Bountiful at one time to have work to do. He drove a church band through town on the 4th of July celebration. He would haul scouts to Grandaddy Lakes, or anything that was asked. After the depression one winter about 1934, he worked at the Market Wholesale Grocery in Salt Lake for $2.00 a day and felt so lucky to have a job. He raised chickens, milked a cow and raised calves and pigs to supplement food for the family.

His children had much sickness and went through quarantine periods where the family was separated. He and I lived in one room and would peek through the window of the house at mother and daughters with chicken pox. My father tried to be an example to others. He served in the Seventies Presidency and became Sunday School Superintendent in the Bountiful Third Ward. This job he held for many years and had many perfect records at stake meetings when all his teachers were present. Everyone loved him.

He spent many Saturdays helping his brother Horace who was a builder. Here is where I established my love for building. During Third Ward years we helped Uncle Horace build the Third Ward chapel and we all helped shovel a lot of snow. I was called on often to help. One day we helped pour a green-colored sidewalk for Harold B. Lee as I accompanied my father, and we used dad's truck to haul equipment.

Dad kept his children busy. When we bought a farm at 563 North Main, everyone in the family was pressed into service, and he ran a 10-acre truck garden farm besides hauling produce to market and selling it for 15 to 20 other farmers in town. Mother had house work and often we had to do house work and farm work too. He would write us all a letter every morning and tell us what to do that day. Feed the pigs, water the chickens, milk the cows, pull weeds, pick cucumbers and strawberries and help your mother wash, etc. etc. etc. He taught us to work and appreciate work as he set the example. He had a strong body and muscles. He used to wrestle on the floor in the front room with us children.

He would always get up at five in the winter time and build a fire and get the house warm before we got out of bed. He loved to go with our neighbor N. Lorenzo Mitchell and administer to the sick. He was a man of great faith and many sought for his administrations. He was good to his children and wife and always loved to share his good fortunes or wealth and often would visit his children who were married and leave them $20.00 or more without anyone asking. He was the head of the financial committee for the building of the 10th ward chapel and would say to the bishop, "Give me twenty faithful men and I will get the money." He did too. He supervised ward teaching in his later years as the growers' market was done away with.

Dad started a fruit stand at 563 North Main and did this faithfully until his death on July 27, 1967. His stand was always well kept for he would always say, "You have to watch your stuff." He meant keep things neat and straight and produce looking fresh and no bad produce. He knew how to use sacks to preserve the freshness, and this was hard because he had no cooler. He would carry everything down in our old basement to keep it fresh until morning. He took great pains to do this. He was a super salesman and learned how to move his produce and became a genius at this. I have often said, "He could sell anything and people went away friends and feeling good."

Dad had sugar diabetes for over ten of the last years of his life and suffered much. He had a prostate gland operation and died from pneumonia and emphysema. He was a great missionary. He served a stake mission in Bountiful.

When he visited his children in California, he went to Los Angeles market and got produce in his truck and went door to door peddling and telling people about the church. He fought a good fight and kept the faith, and it will yet be said of him, he was a great gospel produce salesman. Anyway, we who knew him and love him will ever be grateful for his teachings and example and his love and devotion to his family. May we all live to be worthy to enjoy his presence once again I pray, and may we emulate the life he stood for and lived for by the example which he set.

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