History of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark
A history of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark can be found in the 2001 book, "The Ancestors of Michael Mickelson and Sarah Emeline Harris", which has been made into a digital book by the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is available for free online viewing. Also, this book is available on microfilm at the FHL (FHL US/CAN Film # 1440477, Item #10).
History of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark
A history of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark can be found in the 2001 book, "The Ancestors of Michael Mickelson and Sarah Emeline Harris", which has been made into a digital book by the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is available for free online viewing. Also, this book is available on microfilm at the FHL (FHL US/CAN Film # 1440477, Item #10).
Life history of Edward Weaver
Contributed by Ann Curfew Eagar on FamilySearch Family Tree.
Edward Weaver was born 15 August 1799, at Saratoga, Saratoga County, New York, the third of thirteen children to John Weaver and Catherine Reasoner. See note in SOURCES concerning his parents.
Edward married Martha Raymer in about the year 1821, and lived in Dryden, New York, probably in the old home. He was a farmer. Their oldest son, Horace Racio, may have been born there, although some family genealogists show the birthplace at Scio, New York. Edward and family moved to Scio, New York, and lived on a farm. Lucius E. Weaver's Genealogy Book states they later moved to Porterville, New York, and thence to Conneaut, Pennsylvania. Porterville is in Erie County, south and east of Buffalo. The family evidently went to Conneaut, Crawford County, Pennsylvania for a chance of new land becoming available. His sister Ann and husband Ebenezer Brown went to Pennsylvania before Edward and his family settling in Summerhill on 1 June 1829. The "History of Ebenezer Brown" states that Ann's and Edward's parents were also with them in Summerhill. Ebenezer sold his land in Summerhill and bought 100 acres in Conneaut, Crawford County, in 1833. Edward and his family probably moved to Crawford County shortly after this, joining Ebenezer and Ann's family and their parents, John Weaver and Catherine Reasoner.
When the family was at Conneaut, Pennsylvania, they became interested in Mormonism. It appears they joined the Church in either January 1835, or 1836, the Church being only five or six years old. Their son, Miles', baptism is recorded as 7 January 1836, when he was ten years old. The rest of the family who were at least eight years old of age were baptized no later than this. The "History of Ebenezer Brown" states that the Browns left Conneaut in 1836, (probably the latter part) and traveled on to Peru, LaSalle, Illinois, for the birth of their fourth child, John Weaver Brown. This child was undoubtedly named after Ann's father.
The Brown history further states they joined the Saints in traveling to Far West, Missouri, in August 1838. The Saints were being driven out of Ohio and elsewhere and were gathering at Far West at this time. It is evident that Edward, Martha and family did something similar. Edward, Martha and family probably left Pennsylvania and traveled through Illinois to Missouri in the latter part of 1836 or very early 1837. The Index of Patriarchal Blessings: 1835-1963, for Church Members, Film # 0392693, shows that Martha Elizabeth, their fifth child, was born in the State of Missouri.
The Weaver family traveled as far as Huntsville, Randolph County, Missouri on the first leg of their journey. William Draper, Jr. (who later married the widow, Martha Raymer Weaver) states in his autobiography: ‘After laying there for a few days I was taken up by a good Samaritan and lodge in the house of a good Mormon brother by the name of Edward Weaver. Where my wants were amply provided for. I soon began to revive and get better. ‘William Draper, Jr. states that this was in June of 1838.‘
Authors Note: In 2008, I visited the Huntsville, Randolph, Missouri County Courthouse, where the Recorder found this information: Grantee Edward Weaver purchased land from Grantor Amos Herrick on August 29, 1837, Book B, page 226 for property located on the North East corner of the North East Quarter section 28-54-15 (marked on map).
Amos Herrick purchased same land in 1836, from the government, possibly buying parcels of land up, then re-selling for a profit. Apparently Edward was purchasing this land, but later walked away from it when he and his family fled to Far West at the request of the Prophet Joseph Smith to gather the Saints together at the impending trouble with the Missourians. This property is just off the Road O towards Fort Henry.
The square marked is the property they lived on in 1837.
It is thought that their daughters, Martha Elizabeth born 24 February 1837, and Miranda born 3 March 1838, were born at Huntsville, Randolph County, Missouri as Edward had a house there as stated by William Draper, Jr. It has been said that there were only eight Mormon families living in Randolph County during this time, none of whom owned land. In August of 1838, the Saints at Huntsville got word that they should leave and go to Far West as soon as possible.
The Weavers indeed traveled on with these saints to Caldwell County, Missouri, where Edward procured a tract of land consisting of forty acres lying in Section 30 T 56 North of the base line and west of the fifth principle meridian, Range No. 28. This information is obtained from the Individual Affidavits and statements of loss by the Saints who were exterminated from Missouri. See following page (Figures 1 and 2) of “Mormon Redress Petitions Documents of the 1833-1838 Missouri Conflict"; and the affidavit in Edward's original handwriting. These affidavits definitely show that the family traveled from Pennsylvania to Missouri and that they suffered under the hands of the Missouri mobs and persecutors. They suffered privations and loss of property including one set of house logs burned by the militia who encamped on their property without permission. They also witnessed the shameful abuse of a prisoner that was taken by the militia. Edward proclaimed their total loss against the state as $650.00, a considerable amount of money at that time.
The Brown history states they left Far West, Missouri, in March of 1839, along with the rest of the Saints exterminated from the State. The Weaver family also returned from Missouri with the Saints. They settled with some of the other Saints, including the Brown's and William Draper, Jr. and his family, in Pleasant Vale, Pike County, Illinois, sometime later that year. Pike County was in the traffic pattern of the Saints going into Missouri as well as the exodus from Missouri. See the following map showing "The Scene of Missouri Difficulties".
Pleasant Vale was about thrity miles south of Quincy, Illinois. It was an out of the way place where the Saints did not receive much persecution. It is evident they had great testimonies of the gospel as they endured the hardships and difficulties in settling in new communities, building new homes and enduring the persecutions of outsiders. Edward did business in various places around this area.
The affidavits previously referenced show that Edward appeared before C.M. Woods, C.C.C., Adams Co., Illinois on 3 May 1839, certifying his dollar losses and before A. Brown, J.P., Pike Co., Illinois on 10 January 1840, stating his loss of land and house logs.
Records show that in September 1841, William Draper, Jr. was President of the Pleasant Vale Branch with Edward Weaver and Ebenezer Brown as counselors. William Draper, Jr. had the authority to perform church marriages. On 30 March 1841, he married Horace Racio Weaver, the oldest child, to Eliza Eihlburner. Julia Cecelia, the last Weaver child, was born in Pleasant Vale on 19 December 1841.
On 2 June 1842, Ann Weaver Brown, Edward's sister died. She had been ill for some time. The Brown records show she was buried on Honey Creek, supposedly about five miles from Carthage, Illinois. Although the saints were called by the Church Leaders to come in from the outlying areas to Nauvoo, some stayed behind. Being in the Branch Presidency probably prevented Edward and his family from doing that.
Edward was called to help with the construction of the Nauvoo Temple, probably as a mason. He probably returned to Pleasant Vale on weekends by boat traffic on the Mississippi River.
From "History of the Church" the walls of the Temple were over four foot high at this time. Temple baptisms and endowments for the living and the dead, commenced long before the Temple was finished. Edward acted as proxy for baptisms in 1841, for his deceased grandfather, Edward Weaver, for his deceased uncle, Gilbert Weaver, deceased cousins, nephews, etc.
When work commenced at limestone quarries near Nauvoo, volunteers gave one day in ten cutting and hauling limestone blocks to the temple site. Although we do not have a journal entry from Edward, another volunteer, Luman Shurtliff recorded the following concerning his determination to labor in the quarries: “We labored ten hours a day, and got something to take to our families for supper and breakfast.... I mention this not to find fault or to complain, but to let my children know how the temple of Nauvoo was built, and how their parents as well as hundreds of others suffered to lay a foundation on which they could build and be accepted of God.”
Another journal states: “We esteemed it a privilege to work on the House of God . . . until it was finished. We were then called to the house to receive the blessings the Lord has in store for the faithful, which amply paid them for all their labors.”
In return for their labors, great blessings were promised. Blessings of eternity that would unite the laborers and their loved ones forever were to be received within the temple’s finished walls.
While working on the Temple, Edward contracted a bad cold. Pneumonia set in, from which he died as recorded in the Brown Bible, on 2 December 1842, leaving his wife, Martha, with seven children. Edward had declared his last will and testament on 1 December 1840, which reads in part: "First, I desire to be decently and privately buried in the church yard in district one in Township five south, sixth west, near Aury Brown without any funeral pomp and with as little expense as may be." This is probably now in what they call the Stoney Point Cemetery. No grave marker has been located for Edward. He named William Draper, Jr., "my trusty and much esteemed friend" sole executor of his estate. William Draper, Jr. carried out his wishes with the probate court in Pike County. The date and place of his death as recorded in the probate papers were also shown as 2 December 1842, at Pleasant Vale, Pike County, Illinois.
Authors note: In 2008, while visiting in Nauvoo, Illinois, the following information was found: The Records and Land Office of Nauvoo reports that in 1872, Pleasant Vale name changed to New Canton, Pike, Illinois. That would account for the fact the family has not been able to locate his grave in Stoney Point Cemetery in Pleasant Vale.
When the temple was almost finished, Martha stood in the temple and was sealed to her deceased husband, Edward, on 28 January 1846, just prior to the Temple closing due to the exodus of the saints from Nauvoo. Edward's good friend, William Draper, Jr. acted as proxy for Edward, Brigham Young performing the ceremony.
Additional Note: At age 30 Edward Weaver had light colored hair and stood six feet tall.
Sources:
"History of Miles and Franklin Weaver" from a sketch written by Ethel Elsmore, a daughter of Josephine Weaver Harris with additional dates and information from records of Mary D. Weaver.
"Information Pages from the Ebenezer Brown Bible". Copy in possession of Gordon H. Weaver, Kent, Washington.
"A History and Genealogy of a Branch of the Weaver Family" by Lucius E. Weaver, 1928.
"Ebenezer Brown and Descendants" by Jennie B. Hollist and Imogene Brown.
'Nauvoo Deaths and Marriages, 1839-1845", Lyndon W. Cook compiler; Grandin Book Company, Orem, Utah. Page 93.
"Pike County, Illinois - Marriage Book I", page 23.
"Church Journal History, Oct 9, 1848-June 1, 1850", LDS FHL Film # 1259737. Roster of 1849 Pioneers, Apostle George A. Smith Company.
"Autobiography of William Draper, 1807-1886" by himself.
"Index of Patriarchal Blessings: 1835-1963, Martha Elizabeth Weaver", LDS FHL Film # 0392693.
"1850 Census for Utah County".
"Mormon Redress Petitions - Documents of the 1833-1838 Missouri Conflict" edited by Clark V. Johnson. Religious Studies Center, BYU, Provo, Utah.
"The Restored Church" by William E. Barrett.
"Franklin Weaver, A Time Line: 1828-1884" compiled and edited by Ellen Claire
Weaver Shaeffer, 1996. Note: Ellen Claire Weaver descends through Riley Weaver, the fourth and last child of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Clark.
"History of the Church, Period 1, Vol. V and VI; Period 2, Vol. VII".
“The Nauvoo Temple”, Susan Easton Black
NOTE CONCERNING PARENTS: The Lucius E. Weaver "History and Genealogy of a Branch of the Weaver Family" book reported that Edward Weaver was the son of Gilbert Weaver and not John Weaver. The information of John Weaver was taken from the Bible of Ebenezer Brown, husband of Ann Weaver, a sister of Edward Weaver, and Ancestral File ™, version 4.17, December 1996; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This Bible is considered a primary source of genealogy. A few years after the death of Ann on June 24, 1842, her husband, Ebenezer Brown, joined the Mormon Battalion and evidently brought the family bible with recorded events with him.
A history of Martha Raymer is listed in FamilySearch Family Tree, PID#: KWJ4-1GT.
History of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark
A history of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Bergion Clark can be found in the 2001 book, "The Ancestors of Michael Mickelson and Sarah Emeline Harris", which has been made into a digital book by the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is available for free online viewing. Also, this book is available on microfilm at the FHL (FHL US/CAN Film # 1440477, Item #10).
In the 1850 U.S. Census of Utah, "Samuel Clark" is listed as being 52 years old (born about 1798) and born in New Jersey; Rebecca is listed as being 43 (born about 1807) and born in Tenessee; and their children as follows: John Clark--age 18; Mary Clark--age 17; Jane Clark--13; Ann Clark--age 9; Samuel Clark--age 4, and Ellen Clark--age 2.
LDS Living Endowment of "Samuel Clark": On 20 March 1852, Samuel Clark (1798-1885) took out his own LDS endowment in the Endowment House, which record states that he was born on "18 Dec. 1798" in "Galway [Galloway], Gloucester, N.[New] Jersey", that his parents were "Joseph" and "Elizabeth", that he was first baptized into the LDS Church in "Nov. [18]32", and that he was member of a "Hi[gh] Priest Quorum". This information was recorded in the "Endowments of the Living, 1851-1884" (FHL Special Collections Film # 1255545).
LDS Sealing-to-Spouse of "Samuel Clark" and "Rebecca Garner": On 18 March 1852, "Samuel Clark" and ""Rebecca Garner" were personally sealed to each other by Brigham Young in his "office" at "4 PM". Their sealing record states that Samuel Clark was born on "18 Dec. 1798" in "Galway [Galloway], Glocester [Gloucester], New Jersey; and that Rebecca Garner was born on "13 Aug. 1807" in "Knox, Tennessee". This information was recorded in "Sealing of Couples, Living and by Proxy, 1851-1889" (FHL Special Collections Film # 183393).
LDS Sealing-to-Parents of "Samuel Clark"--who was listed as being "b.[born] 18 December 1798" in "Galloway, Gloucester Co., N.J." to his parents Joseph Clark and Elizabeth Sooy and who died on "1 Oct. 1885"--took place by proxy on 21 July 1938 in the LDS Temple in Cardston Alberta Canada (FHL Special Collections Film # 170745).
FamilySearch Note (2010): support@familysearch.org states, "The Endowment House was not open until 1855, therefore, all references to the Endowment House has been changed to "Other" or without a name under the ordinance date. Regarding the Sealing to Spouse of Samuel Clark, it was not uncommon during this time for Sealing to Spouse Ordinances to take place prior to the Initiatory and Endowment Ordinances. All official records show that Samuel Clark was endowed two days [on 20 March 1852] after the Sealing to Spouse ordinance [on 18 March 1852]. New Family Search now shows the record correctly and complete."
Historical Information about the "Endowment House"
(http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/endowment/)
Endowment House Facts:
Prior to the construction of the Endowment House, temple ordinances were being given on a regular basis in Salt Lake beginning in February 1851. This was done in a variety of locations including Brigham Young's office, the Council House, and the top of Ensign Peak.
Recognizing the need for a separate dedicated structure for the administration of the endowment, the Endowment House was built on the northwest corner of Temple Square to function during the construction of the Salt Lake Temple.
At the time of its dedication, President Brigham Young declared that the Endowment House was "The House of the Lord."
The Endowment House was designed by Church architect Truman O. Angell.
The two-story Endowment House featured a washing and anointing room, "garden room," "world room," and "terrestrial room" on the main floor with a "celestial room" on the upper floor.
A year after the Endowment House was constructed, it was enlarged to include a baptistry, which was dedicated on October 2, 1856.
Baptisms for the dead were administered in the Endowment House until 1876, the year before the St. George Utah Temple (1877) was dedicated. Endowments for the living were performed there until 1884, the year the Logan Utah Temple (1884) was dedicated. And sealings of living couples were performed there until 1889, the year after the Manti Utah Temple (1888) was dedicated.
Endowments for the dead were not performed in the Endowment House, which were reserved for the temple only.
In 1889, President Wilford Woodruff had the Endowment House razed. The Church had three operating temples by then, and the Salt Lake Temple (1893) was nearing completion.History of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
A history of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner can be found in the 2001 book, "The Ancestors of Michael Mickelson and Sarah Emeline Harris", which has been made into a digital book by the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is available for free online viewing. Also, this book is available on microfilm at the FHL (FHL US/CAN Film # 1440477, Item #10). This history of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner was written by Sarah Emeline Harris, and taken from the personal genealogical records of Sarah Adelaide Weaver Cowles, April 2001. Some additions and corrections were added in July 2016. This history is as follows:
Samuel Clark Sr. was the son of Joseph Clark and Elizabeth Sooy. He was born in Galloway, Gloucester, New Jersey on the 18th of December 1798. He married Rebecca Garner from Huron, Henderson, Tennessee, on 18 July 1827 in Clark Township, Coshocton, Ohio. They became the parents of 13 children: Joseph Clark, Riley Garner Clark, Sarah Bergion Clark (Mrs. Franklin Weaver-my grandmother), John Clark, Mary Clark (Mrs. John Higbee), Elizabeth Clark, Jane Clark, Emma Clark, Anna Clark, Rebecca Ann Clark, Samuel Clark Jr., Ellen Clark, and James Clark.
Samuel Clark joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in November 1832 at Clinton, Ohio. His wife, Rebecca belonged to the Quaker faith and it was eleven years later in August 1843 that she accepted the gospel. She dreamed that she attended an apple peeling bee (as the neighbors would get together and peel apples and dry them, as canning had never been heard of.) She dreamed that none could peel the apples the right way except Samuel, so that converted her. She thought his way was the right way, so the whole family became LDS. Elizabeth died in Ohio at the age of four years. Emma died at Nauvoo, Illinois, at the age of four. Rebecca died in Illinois when she was less than a year old. All the other children grew to adulthood.
In the early 1840's, the family left Ohio and moved to Nauvoo. They were living there at the time the Prophet Joseph Smith was slain. They were driven out with the other Saints in 1846. Rebecca had a small child, Samuel Jr., born 1st October 1846 at Bucharion, Missouri. They were in Winter Quarters, when their sons, Joseph and Riley Garner, were called to go into the Mormon Battalion to serve in the war with Mexico; so John was the only son that could help much, and there was Sarah, Mary Jane and Ann and a small baby boy. They suffered most of the hardships that the saints were subject to at that time.
They stayed at Winter Quarters until June 1848 when they started with all their belongings for Utah. Sarah drove one wagon with one yoke of oxen all the way across the plains. John drove another wagon. Samuel walked by the oxen to safeguard against Indians. Grandmother and baby Sam rode with Sarah. They were in the Heber C. Kimball Company and arrived at Salt Lake City in September 1848. Joseph Clark and Sarah Topham were the first couple married in Provo on the 17th of October 1849. They lived in the old fort the winter of 1848.
In March 1849, President Brigham Young called a great number of Saints to colonize a town south from Salt Lake City. Samuel and his family were among these; the town was named Provo. Fifteen of my relatives were in this party. Samuel immediately set up a tannery and tanned the first leather that was tanned in Utah. They run this tannery for about 16 years.
In 1871 they were at Cedar City where Mary Higbee lived. Rebecca awoke one night and said "I feel so peculiar Father" and immediately died in his arms. She is buried there. After his wife died Samuel came to Gentile Valley (Grace, Idaho) to live with his son Samuel Jr., and daughter Anna Hale. Samuel Jr., and family were the second Mormon family to move into the Mormon ward. Other Mormon families wanted to move in but were turned back at the point of a gun. Samuel Jr. lived where Letho Pond lives now.
After living in Gentile Valley for six or seven years, they moved to Preston, Idaho, where they lived for five or six years, then moved to Whitney, where they planted sugar cane and made molasses from the juice. They had a mill and it was motored with a horse that went round and round. Here Samuel Sr., lived for several years and died, 1st October 1885, at the ripe old age of 87 years. He is buried at Preston, Idaho in the Solomon Hale's lot.
Ann Clark Hale was the first Doctor in Thatcher. She was very good to doctor and treated pneumonia with herb poultices. She was on the go most of her time until she moved to Preston.
Jane Clark Bollwinkel was also a practical nurse and went into many homes as a midwife and brought many babies into the world.
Sarah Bergion Clark drove a yoke of oxen all the way across the plains in 1848. She married Miles Weaver and had four children: Miles Joseph, Zelnora, Sarah Jane, and Rebecca. Sarah then married Franklin Weaver and had four more children: Josephine Octavia Ann, Helen, Samuel Henry and Riley. She was the first Relief Society President in Liberty (Bear Lake County), Idaho. She lived in our home for 20 years and we all loved her dearly.
James Clark was a sweet singer and was considered the best in the west at one time. He lived in Liberty.
John Clark is the father of Arvilla Andelyn, a great singer and pianist.Additional Historical Information about Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
Quoted from the historical account of "Mark Clark Higbee 1"
which was contributed to FamilySearch Tree by CarleneLaub1 on 16 August 2013:
"Her [Mary Clark Highbee--the daughter of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner] family moved to Nauvoo Just before the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred. They suffered with the Saints the many persecutions following this dark period of Church history when the Saints were driven from Nauvoo and moved to Winter Quarters along on the banks of the Missouri River in Iowa, Samuel Clark and family were there, along with about 1500 other Saints they moved north along the river to find suitable land for farming.
"Orson Pratt describes this land: 'A great, extensive, and rich tract of country has also been, by the providence of God, put in possession of the saints in the western boundary of Iowa. This County is also some distance from all other settlements, there being none on the west, north or east; and on the south it is some forty or fifty miles to the thinly scattered settlements of Missouri. This country is called the Pottawattomie country; it was inhabited by a tribe of Indians by that name, until last season, when they were removed by the United States government, leaving the saints as the sole occupiers of the soil .'
"The Samuel Clark family spent two winters in.Pottawattomie and were well prepared to move with President Heber C. Kimball and 662 other Saints on the 29 of May 1848. In the company there were 226 wagons pulled by 737 oxen, 57 horses and 25 mules. Because of their preparation and the blessing of the Lord this company suffered 'few hardships in the westward movement, arriving in Salt Lake on the 24 th. of September 1848.
"The Samuel Clark family were among the first settlers to move into the Provo settlement. It was here that he set up the first tannery and made the 'first leather in Utah in 1849. ...
"On October 28, 1853, Mark Clark married John Mount Higbee in Provo. Thirteen days later they were sealed for time and all eternity in the 'Old Council House' in Salt Lake. Following their marriage they moved to Cedar [City] and lived in the Old Fort. In 1856 the drawing for lots was conducted for the new town. John drew Lot 10 in Block 24 in Cedar City Plat B. ...
"Their big home was built in 1857 on what is now Hoover Avenue on the east side of Main Street [in Cedar City, Utah]. ... Mary's mother and father spent a considerable part of their later life at her home. Her mother passed away while living with her and is buried in the Cedar Cemetery."Additional Historical Information about Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
Quoted from the historical account of "Mark Clark Higbee 3"
which was originally written by Ruth H. Seegmiller, Florence S. Highbee, Zelma J. Lunt and Arvilla H. Day,
and appeared in the "Higbee Family Magainze" of 1957, and was contributed to FamilySearch Tree on 16 August 2013:
"Samuel Clark was born December 18, 1798 at Egg Harbor, New Jersey, a son of Joseph Clark.
"Rebecca Garner was born August 13, 1807 at Knoxville, Tennessee, a daughter of James Garner and Mary Moon.
"Samuel joined the church in 1832 but Rebecca, who was a staunch Quaker, didn't join until 1843, and then much against her family's wishes.
"Grandma, with the older children, was baptized in the Mississippi River in Clinton County, Ohio by a Brother Cathcart. The family later moved to Quincy, and then to Pike County, Missouri. They were there when the mobbing were going on.
"While on the road from Ohio to Missouri, I wish to quote from one of aunt's notes on the life of the Clark family. They came to a dense forest of maples and remained there for about a year. Grandma Clark would bore holes in the trees to get out the sap, and then she and the girls would carry it to their father who made maple syrup from it.
"They later moved to Nauvoo where they were all sick with chills and fever except Grandpa Clark who had to take care of them. One morning as he went around to see how they were, he found one daughter, three years old, who was sleeping with Mary (my grandmother) dead.
"Before reaching Nauvoo Grandmother Clark had given birth to a baby girl at Quincy Illinois. At this time they were in extreme poverty. ...
"One night while the family was living in Nauvoo a panther went screeching by the house. All of them thought it was the mob. Grandfather armed the family as best he could and waited, but were really relieved when they discovered it was only a panther.
"The family next moved to Council Bluffs where the two older boys enlisted in the Mormon Battalion.
"In the spring of l843 the parent and six children joined the Heber C Kimball Company to come to Utah. They had three wagons and ox teams. The cows were being driven loose in the cattle herd. John Clark was about fourteen years of age and he was the only boy, he first helped to ferry the wagons across the Hon River and then drove the loose cattle by swimming along behind them. He recalled that Mary was driving her father's ox team as he had gone to help some timid women. When they came to the Sweet Water River they lost three or four oxen and had to replace them with cows. They were halted on the plains while the hunters killed some buffalo and antelope.
"The company reached Emigration Canyon in the fall. Some of the women who were driving the ox teams were afraid of the steep slopes in the canyon and had to call for some help from the men. The family stayed in Salt Lake all winter in the old fort and soon after the older boys came from California bringing horses and mules. Grandfather Clark, who had spent six year as an apprentice tanning leather, decided to start a tannery' in Provo. About thirty families headed by Colonel Conover prepared to settle there. When they were within two miles of the Provo River the chief of the Timpanogas or Rock Utes met them and told them they couldn't go on. After an interpreter parleyed a while, the Indians let them go. John Clark led the first company across the Provo River,
"They built a fort of log houses with a small gate leading to a spring. They had a cannon in the fort for their protection. They had a great deal of trouble with the Indians but succeeded in raising a small crop that fall, About August, during the gold rush, lots of men reached Salt Lake with worn out oxen, so the older boys traded mules and horses for a wagon, clothing, and blankets.
"When they first moved to Provo they were without flour for three months, only when neighbors would bring them a quart or two. They .saved it for making gravy with milk, and caught lots of fish in the Provo River.
"Once when they turned the cattle out to graze two of the Indian chiefs, Elk and Eagle, came riding up with forty warriors, giving war whoops and yelling. They kept it up all night but finally made peace and rode away.
"In the spring of 1850 they moved to a new fort and later moved out on farms. Grandfather Clark started his tannery and made the first leather in Utah, He ran this tannery for sixteen years. He joined the United Order, and when that was dissolved, he never worked at it any more.
"There was a great deal of trouble with the Indians around Provo, Manti and surrounding country, but the pioneer life went on.
"The Clark family operated the tannery, a saw mill, a threshing machine, a molasses mill, and a salt grinder with salt brought down from Salt Creek Canyon.
"...Different members were called upon by President Young to do colonizing in southern Utah and in Idaho. Two of the boys were sent to Panguitch, my grandmother and husband to Cedar City and two sisters to Idaho.... Mary Clark came to Southern Utah where [she and her husband, John Higbee,] help[ed] with the settlement of Cedar City."
LDS Living Endowment of "Rebecca Clark": On 20 March 1852, "Rebecca Clark" (1807-1871) took out her own LDS endowment in the Endowment House, which record states that she was born on "13 Aug [18]07" in "Huron, Tennessee", that her parents were "James [and] Mary Garner" that she was first baptized into the LDS Church in "Aug. [18]43". This information was recorded in the "Endowments of the Living, 1851-1884" (FHL Special Collections Film # 1255545).
LDS Sealing-to-Spouse of "Samuel Clark" and "Rebecca Garner": On 18 March 1852, "Samuel Clark" and ""Rebecca Garner" were personally sealed to each other by Brigham Young in his "office" at "4 PM". Their sealing record states that Samuel Clark was born on "18 Dec. 1798" in "Galway [Galloway], Glocester [Gloucester], New Jersey; and that Rebecca Garner was born on "13 Aug. 1807" in "Knox, Tennessee". This information was recorded in "Sealing of Couples, Living and by Proxy, 1851-1889" (FHL Special Collections Film # 183393). (Note: FamilySearch Note in 2010: support@familysearch.org states, "The Endowment House was not open until 1855, therefore, all references to the Endowment House has been changed to 'Other' or without a name under the ordinance date. Regarding the Sealing to Spouse of Samuel Clark, it was not uncommon during this time for Sealing to Spouse Ordinances to take place prior to the Initiatory and Endowment Ordinances. All official records show that Samuel Clark was endowed two days [on 20 March 1852] after the Sealing to Spouse ordinance [on 18 March 1852]. New Family Search now shows the record correctly and complete."
"Rebecca Garner" is listed in the book "Garner-Keene Families of Northern Neck Virginia", by Ruth Ritchie and Sudie Rucker Wood, 1952, (FHL Film # 1033596 Item #2), as follows:
"James and Mary (Moon) Garner had issue: 1) James Garner--died while quite young and was buried on John F. Garner's farm in Tennessee; 2) William Garner; 3) John Garner, married Eleanor Ratcliff; 4) Nancy Garner, married Seth Hockett; 5) Elizabeth Garner, married John Ratcliff; 6) Joseph Garner, married Rebecca West; 7) Mary Garner, married Josiah Graham or Grimes; 8) Jane Garner, married Thomas Hunt; 9) Rebecca Garner; 10) Rileigh Garner, married Mary Betterton; 11) Matilda Garner, married John McKibben; 12) Sarah Garner, married James Darby, migrated to Indiana; 13) Ira Garner, married Margaret Lightfoot; 14) James Garner." (pages 120)
"Rebecca Garner was born August 13, 1807 in Knox County, Tennessee, according to a church record made during her lifetime. On July 18, 1827, she married Samuel Clark, born December 18, 1798 at Galloway, Gloucester, New Jersey, son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Sooy) Clark. They, together with several children, joined a Mormon emigrant group and became one of the pioneer families of Utah. Samuel Clark died October 1, 1885 at Preston, Oneida County, Idaho and his wife on December 22, 1871, at Cedar City, Oron County, Utah. They had issue: 1) Joseph Clark; 2) Riley Garner Clark; 3) Sarah Clark; 4) John Clark; 5) Mary Clark; 6) Elizabeth Clark, b. Oct. 17, 1835, Clark, Ohio, d. Nov. 30, 1839, Columbia, Ohio; 7) Jane Clark; 8) Emma Clark, b. Nov. 15, 1839, Columbia, Ohio, d. Jan. 2 1841, Nauvoo, Ill.; 9) Anna Clark; 10) Rebecca Clark, b. Sept. 30, 1843, Nauvoo, Ill., d. Oct. 1, 1843, Quincy Ill.; 11) Samuel Clark Jr.; 12) Ellen Clark; 13) James Clark." (pages 123-124)History of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
A history of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner can be found in the 2001 book, "The Ancestors of Michael Mickelson and Sarah Emeline Harris", which has been made into a digital book by the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is available for free online viewing. Also, this book is available on microfilm at the FHL (FHL US/CAN Film # 1440477, Item #10). This history of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner was written by Sarah Emeline Harris, and taken from the personal genealogical records of Sarah Adelaide Weaver Cowles, April 2001. Some additions and corrections were added in July 2016. This history is as follows:
Samuel Clark Sr. was the son of Joseph Clark and Elizabeth Sooy. He was born in Galloway, Gloucester, New Jersey on the 18th of December 1798. He married Rebecca Garner from Huron, Henderson, Tennessee, on 18 July 1827 in Clark Township, Coshocton, Ohio. They became the parents of 13 children: Joseph Clark, Riley Garner Clark, Sarah Bergion Clark (Mrs. Franklin Weaver-my grandmother), John Clark, Mary Clark (Mrs. John Higbee), Elizabeth Clark, Jane Clark, Emma Clark, Anna Clark, Rebecca Ann Clark, Samuel Clark Jr., Ellen Clark, and James Clark.
Samuel Clark joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in November 1832 at Clinton, Ohio. His wife, Rebecca belonged to the Quaker faith and it was eleven years later in August 1843 that she accepted the gospel. She dreamed that she attended an apple peeling bee (as the neighbors would get together and peel apples and dry them, as canning had never been heard of.) She dreamed that none could peel the apples the right way except Samuel, so that converted her. She thought his way was the right way, so the whole family became LDS. Elizabeth died in Ohio at the age of four years. Emma died at Nauvoo, Illinois, at the age of four. Rebecca died in Illinois when she was less than a year old. All the other children grew to adulthood.
In the early 1840's, the family left Ohio and moved to Nauvoo. They were living there at the time the Prophet Joseph Smith was slain. They were driven out with the other Saints in 1846. Rebecca had a small child, Samuel Jr., born 1st October 1846 at Bucharion, Missouri. They were in Winter Quarters, when their sons, Joseph and Riley Garner, were called to go into the Mormon Battalion to serve in the war with Mexico; so John was the only son that could help much, and there was Sarah, Mary Jane and Ann and a small baby boy. They suffered most of the hardships that the saints were subject to at that time.
They stayed at Winter Quarters until June 1848 when they started with all their belongings for Utah. Sarah drove one wagon with one yoke of oxen all the way across the plains. John drove another wagon. Samuel walked by the oxen to safeguard against Indians. Grandmother and baby Sam rode with Sarah. They were in the Heber C. Kimball Company and arrived at Salt Lake City in September 1848. Joseph Clark and Sarah Topham were the first couple married in Provo on the 17th of October 1849. They lived in the old fort the winter of 1848.
In March 1849, President Brigham Young called a great number of Saints to colonize a town south from Salt Lake City. Samuel and his family were among these; the town was named Provo. Fifteen of my relatives were in this party. Samuel immediately set up a tannery and tanned the first leather that was tanned in Utah. They run this tannery for about 16 years.
In 1871 they were at Cedar City where Mary Higbee lived. Rebecca awoke one night and said "I feel so peculiar Father" and immediately died in his arms. She is buried there. After his wife died Samuel came to Gentile Valley (Grace, Idaho) to live with his son Samuel Jr., and daughter Anna Hale. Samuel Jr., and family were the second Mormon family to move into the Mormon ward. Other Mormon families wanted to move in but were turned back at the point of a gun. Samuel Jr. lived where Letho Pond lives now.
After living in Gentile Valley for six or seven years, they moved to Preston, Idaho, where they lived for five or six years, then moved to Whitney, where they planted sugar cane and made molasses from the juice. They had a mill and it was motored with a horse that went round and round. Here Samuel Sr., lived for several years and died, 1st October 1885, at the ripe old age of 87 years. He is buried at Preston, Idaho in the Solomon Hale's lot.
Ann Clark Hale was the first Doctor in Thatcher. She was very good to doctor and treated pneumonia with herb poultices. She was on the go most of her time until she moved to Preston.
Jane Clark Bollwinkel was also a practical nurse and went into many homes as a midwife and brought many babies into the world.
Sarah Bergion Clark drove a yoke of oxen all the way across the plains in 1848. She married Miles Weaver and had four children: Miles Joseph, Zelnora, Sarah Jane, and Rebecca. Sarah then married Franklin Weaver and had four more children: Josephine Octavia Ann, Helen, Samuel Henry and Riley. She was the first Relief Society President in Liberty (Bear Lake County), Idaho. She lived in our home for 20 years and we all loved her dearly.
James Clark was a sweet singer and was considered the best in the west at one time. He lived in Liberty.
John Clark is the father of Arvilla Andelyn, a great singer and pianist.Rebecca Garner's Conversion to the LDS Church
The following information was placed on FamilySearch on 2 July 2013 by Tiffany Scherbel, who stated it came from a published excerpt about Rebecca Garner Clark that appeared in the book "Pioneer Women of Faith and Fortitude" by the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, Publishers Press, 1998:
"Rebecca [Garner] had come from a Quaker family who had migrated from North Carolina, to Knoxville, Tennessee, where she was born. However, this was slave territory and as Quakers were opposed to slavery they migrated to 'free territory' near Clinton, Ohio, in the Spring of 1808. Here she met and married Samuel Clark in 1827. He joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, November, 1832.
"Being a staunch Quaker, Rebecca, was more than satisfied with her religion, and several relatives and friends urged her to leave Samuel. But her mother said to her, 'Rebecca, where he goes, there shall thee go also.'
"Eleven years later Rebecca dreamed she was attending an apple-peeling bee, a custom of the time where fruit was prepared and dried for storage. In her dream Samuel was the only one who could peel the apples right, and she felt this dream meant that his church was the right one. So she and her children accepted the gospel and were baptized, August, 1843.
"Desiring to be with the body of the Church they left Ohio, their home and most of their belongings and moved, first to Kirtland and then to Nauvoo. They were there at the time of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. "Additional Historical Information about Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
Quoted from the historical account of "Mark Clark Higbee 1"
which was contributed to FamilySearch Tree by CarleneLaub1 on 16 August 2013:
"Her [Mary Clark Highbee--the daughter of Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner] family moved to Nauvoo Just before the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred. They suffered with the Saints the many persecutions following this dark period of Church history when the Saints were driven from Nauvoo and moved to Winter Quarters along on the banks of the Missouri River in Iowa, Samuel Clark and family were there, along with about 1500 other Saints they moved north along the river to find suitable land for farming.
"Orson Pratt describes this land: 'A great, extensive, and rich tract of country has also been, by the providence of God, put in possession of the saints in the western boundary of Iowa. This County is also some distance from all other settlements, there being none on the west, north or east; and on the south it is some forty or fifty miles to the thinly scattered settlements of Missouri. This country is called the Pottawattomie country; it was inhabited by a tribe of Indians by that name, until last season, when they were removed by the United States government, leaving the saints as the sole occupiers of the soil .'
"The Samuel Clark family spent two winters in.Pottawattomie and were well prepared to move with President Heber C. Kimball and 662 other Saints on the 29 of May 1848. In the company there were 226 wagons pulled by 737 oxen, 57 horses and 25 mules. Because of their preparation and the blessing of the Lord this company suffered 'few hardships in the westward movement, arriving in Salt Lake on the 24 th. of September 1848.
"The Samuel Clark family were among the first settlers to move into the Provo settlement. It was here that he set up the first tannery and made the 'first leather in Utah in 1849. ...
"On October 28, 1853, Mark Clark married John Mount Higbee in Provo. Thirteen days later they were sealed for time and all eternity in the 'Old Council House' in Salt Lake. Following their marriage they moved to Cedar [City] and lived in the Old Fort. In 1856 the drawing for lots was conducted for the new town. John drew Lot 10 in Block 24 in Cedar City Plat B. ...
"Their big home was built in 1857 on what is now Hoover Avenue on the east side of Main Street [in Cedar City, Utah]. ... Mary's mother and father spent a considerable part of their later life at her home. Her mother passed away while living with her and is buried in the Cedar Cemetery."Additional Historical Information about Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner
Quoted from the historical account of "Mark Clark Higbee 3"
which was originally written by Ruth H. Seegmiller, Florence S. Highbee, Zelma J. Lunt and Arvilla H. Day,
and appeared in the "Higbee Family Magainze" of 1957, and was contributed to FamilySearch Tree on 16 August 2013:
"Samuel Clark was born December 18, 1798 at Egg Harbor, New Jersey, a son of Joseph Clark.
"Rebecca Garner was born August 13, 1807 at Knoxville, Tennessee, a daughter of James Garner and Mary Moon.
"Samuel joined the church in 1832 but Rebecca, who was a staunch Quaker, didn't join until 1843, and then much against her family's wishes.
"Grandma, with the older children, was baptized in the Mississippi River in Clinton County, Ohio by a Brother Cathcart. The family later moved to Quincy, and then to Pike County, Missouri. They were there when the mobbing were going on.
"While on the road from Ohio to Missouri, I wish to quote from one of aunt's notes on the life of the Clark family. They came to a dense forest of maples and remained there for about a year. Grandma Clark would bore holes in the trees to get out the sap, and then she and the girls would carry it to their father who made maple syrup from it.
"They later moved to Nauvoo where they were all sick with chills and fever except Grandpa Clark who had to take care of them. One morning as he went around to see how they were, he found one daughter, three years old, who was sleeping with Mary (my grandmother) dead.
"Before reaching Nauvoo Grandmother Clark had given birth to a baby girl at Quincy Illinois. At this time they were in extreme poverty. ...
"One night while the family was living in Nauvoo a panther went screeching by the house. All of them thought it was the mob. Grandfather armed the family as best he could and waited, but were really relieved when they discovered it was only a panther.
"The family next moved to Council Bluffs where the two older boys enlisted in the Mormon Battalion.
"In the spring of l843 the parent and six children joined the Heber C Kimball Company to come to Utah. They had three wagons and ox teams. The cows were being driven loose in the cattle herd. John Clark was about fourteen years of age and he was the only boy, he first helped to ferry the wagons across the Hon River and then drove the loose cattle by swimming along behind them. He recalled that Mary was driving her father's ox team as he had gone to help some timid women. When they came to the Sweet Water River they lost three or four oxen and had to replace them with cows. They were halted on the plains while the hunters killed some buffalo and antelope.
"The company reached Emigration Canyon in the fall. Some of the women who were driving the ox teams were afraid of the steep slopes in the canyon and had to call for some help from the men. The family stayed in Salt Lake all winter in the old fort and soon after the older boys came from California bringing horses and mules. Grandfather Clark, who had spent six year as an apprentice tanning leather, decided to start a tannery' in Provo. About thirty families headed by Colonel Conover prepared to settle there. When they were within two miles of the Provo River the chief of the Timpanogas or Rock Utes met them and told them they couldn't go on. After an interpreter parleyed a while, the Indians let them go. John Clark led the first company across the Provo River,
"They built a fort of log houses with a small gate leading to a spring. They had a cannon in the fort for their protection. They had a great deal of trouble with the Indians but succeeded in raising a small crop that fall, About August, during the gold rush, lots of men reached Salt Lake with worn out oxen, so the older boys traded mules and horses for a wagon, clothing, and blankets.
"When they first moved to Provo they were without flour for three months, only when neighbors would bring them a quart or two. They .saved it for making gravy with milk, and caught lots of fish in the Provo River.
"Once when they turned the cattle out to graze two of the Indian chiefs, Elk and Eagle, came riding up with forty warriors, giving war whoops and yelling. They kept it up all night but finally made peace and rode away.
"In the spring of 1850 they moved to a new fort and later moved out on farms. Grandfather Clark started his tannery and made the first leather in Utah, He ran this tannery for sixteen years. He joined the United Order, and when that was dissolved, he never worked at it any more.
"There was a great deal of trouble with the Indians around Provo, Manti and surrounding country, but the pioneer life went on.
"The Clark family operated the tannery, a saw mill, a threshing machine, a molasses mill, and a salt grinder with salt brought down from Salt Creek Canyon.
"...Different members were called upon by President Young to do colonizing in southern Utah and in Idaho. Two of the boys were sent to Panguitch, my grandmother and husband to Cedar City and two sisters to Idaho.... Mary Clark came to Southern Utah where [she and her husband, John Higbee,] help[ed] with the settlement of Cedar City."
Marriage Notes for Samuel Clark and Rebecca Garner-682
LDS Sealing-to-Spouse of "Samuel Clark" and "Rebecca Garner": On 18 March 1852, "Samuel Clark" and ""Rebecca Garner" were personally sealed to each other by Brigham Young in his "office" at "4 PM". Their sealing record states that Samuel Clark was born on "18 Dec. 1798" in "Galway [Galloway], Glocester [Gloucester], New Jersey; and that Rebecca Garner was born on "13 Aug. 1807" in "Knox, Tennessee". This information was recorded in "Sealing of Couples, Living and by Proxy, 1851-1889" (FHL Special Collections Film # 183393).
FamilySearch Note (2010): support@familysearch.org states, "The Endowment House was not open until 1855, therefore, all references to the Endowment House has been changed to "Other" or without a name under the ordinance date. Regarding the Sealing to Spouse of Samuel Clark, it was not uncommon during this time for Sealing to Spouse Ordinances to take place prior to the Initiatory and Endowment Ordinances. All official records show that Samuel Clark was endowed two days [on 20 March 1852] after the Sealing to Spouse ordinance [on 18 March 1852]. New Family Search now shows the record correctly and complete."
Historical Information about the "Endowment House"
(http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/endowment/)
Endowment House Facts:
Prior to the construction of the Endowment House, temple ordinances were being given on a regular basis in Salt Lake beginning in February 1851. This was done in a variety of locations including Brigham Young's office, the Council House, and the top of Ensign Peak.
Recognizing the need for a separate dedicated structure for the administration of the endowment, the Endowment House was built on the northwest corner of Temple Square to function during the construction of the Salt Lake Temple.
At the time of its dedication, President Brigham Young declared that the Endowment House was "The House of the Lord."
The Endowment House was designed by Church architect Truman O. Angell.
The two-story Endowment House featured a washing and anointing room, "garden room," "world room," and "terrestrial room" on the main floor with a "celestial room" on the upper floor.
A year after the Endowment House was constructed, it was enlarged to include a baptistry, which was dedicated on October 2, 1856.
Baptisms for the dead were administered in the Endowment House until 1876, the year before the St. George Utah Temple (1877) was dedicated. Endowments for the living were performed there until 1884, the year the Logan Utah Temple (1884) was dedicated. And sealings of living couples were performed there until 1889, the year after the Manti Utah Temple (1888) was dedicated.
Endowments for the dead were not performed in the Endowment House, which were reserved for the temple only.
In 1889, President Wilford Woodruff had the Endowment House razed. The Church had three operating temples by then, and the Salt Lake Temple (1893) was nearing completion.