William Jones, Rhoda Jones, John Jones Immigrants from Brimpsfield, England and My 2nd, 3rd and 4th Great Grandparents
Son of William and Elizabeth
Goodwin Jones
Born in Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England
Immigrant from Liverpool to New York via
Sailing Vessel “John Bright”
Pioneer from New York, Chicago and Omaha
via Union Pacific Railroad to
Laramie City, Wyoming and Salt Lake City, Utah
History written by: Erma
Stephens Richins/ Earl Stephens
Donna Stephens
Glissmeyer; Filed the history with the Daughter of Utah Pioneers
she is a great great granddaughter
William
Jones, son of William Jones and Elizabeth Goodwin, was born 7 Jun 1805 at
Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England.
On 26 Oct 1 828 he married Mary Shill, a
daughter of Robert Chappel Shill and Prudence Golding. she was born
12 Dec 1812 at Syde, Gloucester, England. To this couple was born eight
children:
Robert Jones: born 9 July 1
829 at Washbrook (Caudle Green), Gloucester, England. He married Harriet Tipper 18 Nov 1852 at
Cowley, Gloucester, England. She is the daughter of William and Jane Tipper.
Harriet died 12 Nov 1865. He married (2) Miriam Ann Richins, a daughter of
William and Charlotte Guy Richins, 2 Dec 1 866 at Croyden, Morgan Co.
Utah. Miriam died 11 Dec 1844. He
married (3) Agnes Caroline Peterson, a daughter of Charles S & Agnes G.
Anderson Peterson on 19 Mar 1 890 at Logan Temple. Robert died 27 Apr 1906 at
Henefer, Summit, Utah.
Ann Jones: Christened 15 Aug
1831 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. Ann buried 12 July 1848 in
Brimpsfield, Gloucester,
England.
Susanna Jones: born 24 March
1883 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She married Henry Randall 6 Dec 1854
at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She died 27 Jan 1907 at Henefer, Summit,
Utah.
Lucy Jones, Christened 3 Feb
1835 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She died and was buried
5 May 1852 in Brimpsfield,
Gloucester, England.
Rhoda Jones: born 5 Nov 1
840 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She married John Henry Stephen
Sargeant on 25 Jan 1858. They had one son, John Sargeant. They divorced, she
married (2) Samuel Bennion 25 Oct 1868 at Salt Lake Endowment House, they had
six children: Wilford, Lenore, Robert, Rhoda, Naomi and Arthur. She died 5 Feb 1914 in Taylorsville, Utah.
Mary Jones: born 16 June 3
842 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She married Thomas Henry Stephens 25
Dec 1865. She died 12 July 1905 at Henefer, Utah.
Elizabeth Jones: born 6 Jan
1844 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She married James Ure III 17 Oct 1868 at Salt Lake City Endowment House. She
died 6 Apr 1923 at Kamas, Wasatch, Utah.
Prudence Jones: born 4 July 1847 at Brimpsfield, Gloucester,
England. She married Joseph Edgeworth 10 Nov 1 867. She died 11 June 1907 at
Henefer, Utah.
Mary
Shill Jones, William's wife died 10 Aug 1 848 and was buried 14 Aug 1848 at
Brimpsfield, Gloucester, England. She died of scarlet fever. This left a family
of small children without a mother. Susannah was about fifteen at this time and
took over the responsibility for the family.
As
the family grew up they heard the message of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter- Day Saints. Robert was the first to be baptized 18 Nov 1 849 at Caudle
Green by George Shill. Later the other members of the family joined the church
and had a desire to come to Utah.
Mary
Jones left England in 1865 and came to Henefer, Utah to marry Thomas Henry
Stephens. Robert Jones, his three small children, Robert Allen, Jane, and
William along with Prudence Jones, Roberts sister, came to Utah in 1866.
Robert's wife Harriet Tipper had died and Prudence came to take care of the
children.
The
family wanted to be together, so
William, with two daughters Elizabeth and Rhoda and Rhoda’s son John,
made preparations to join them in Henefer, Utah. They sailed from Liverpool,
England 4 June 1868 on the sailing vessel "John Bright" with a
company of 722 Saints, of whom 176 were from Scandinavia and the remainder from
the British Isles. These saints were described “in fine spirits being full of
joy at being on their way to Zion” Captain John Howart was the master of the vessel. Before
departure President Franklin D Richards called all the immigrants on deck and
outlined their duties and responsibilities. He emphasized cleanliness, order,
unity, harmony and good feelings, obedience to counsel and “kindness and assistance to the aged, sick
and infirm”.
At
this meeting Elder James McGaw was appointed president of the company,
with Elders Christopher O. Falkmann and Frederick C. Anderson as councelors. Charles W Penrose, who would
later become an apostle and member of the First Presidency, dedicated the
vessel. It had been planned that this company would cross the Atlantic by
steamer, but because of the high cost
demand for steamers, the voyage was made by sailing vessel. The voyage was uneventful, and there was
little seasickness. One aged and ailing woman died during the passage and one
couple was married. Captain Howart was “very kind and obliging toward the
saints”. The ship arrived at New York
July 13,1868, a passage of thirty-nine days.
On July 14, 1868 the company was convayed by railroad westward. The
pioneers traveled via Chicago and Omaha and on the Union Pacific Railroad and arrived in Laramie City, Wyoming July
23, 1868. At this time, Laramie City was the western terminus of the Union
Pacific Railroad and also, temporarily the outfitting place for the journey
across the mountains with teams. Here the pioneers met the Church teams and
were on their way by July 27, 1868
with Captain John Riggs Murdock and a Company of 600 people. They arrived in
Salt Lake City, Utah 18 Aug 1868. William,
Mary, John and Elizabeth settled in Henefer, Summit, Utah.
William’s
daughter Susanna had married Henry Randall in 1854 in England, and 10 of her
children were born there. Susanna and her family came to Utah in 1872.
You
can imagine the joy when this family was again able to unite again. The family
settled in Henefer, Summit, Utah. Elizabeth, after her marriage to James Ure
III, moved to Kamas, Wasatch, Utah. Rhoda
moved to Salt Lake City, married Samuel Bennion and moved to
Taylorville, Salt Lake, Utah.
John
stayed with his grandfather, William, in a one-room cabin. Many of the descendants are still living in
Kamas, Taylorsville and Henefer.
William
had a one- room log cabin on the lot now owned by Mrs Marguerite Paskett. His
granddaughter Susannah Stephens Fowler says that he was a very kind and
pleasant person. She can remember as a small girl that her mother, Mary Jones
Stephens would pack a lunch for him and the children, and they would take it to
him each day to be sure he had plenty to eat. It has been said that he was a
very quiet man and as he grew older he walked with a cane. At this time many
people were leaving the Church and joining the "Josephite Church".
Each time someone left the church he would make a notch in his cane and he had
acquired quite a few notches. He lived to be 84 years old and died on 7 July
1889 in Henefer, Summit, Utah. He is buried in the Henefer Cemetery. His
headstone made from sandstone is nearly gone now but the following was taken
from it about 1953. William Jones original headstone has been replaced by a new
one in the Stephens family plot.
Written on the original
headstone for
William Jones
We miss thee from our home
Father
We miss the from thy place
A shadow o'er our life is
cast
We miss the sunshine of they
face.
Our Father, William Jones died
July 7, 1889
This
headstone at left replaced the original headstone
We feel this camp very
fortunate to have as a relic, a sword or small bayonet that belonged to William
and was given to the Henefer Camp of Daughters of Pioneers by William Jones, a
son of John W Jones, who is a great
grand son of William Jones. Since the writing of this history Inez Shill Eakins inform me that her father Leslie
G Shill purchased the William Jones home and moved it to his lot. At present
time it is used as a stable on their property. Written by Erma Stephens Richins
with dates corrected by Earl J Stephens 25 Apr 1965.
Pictured right is Anita
Smith holding the sword that belonged to her 4th Great Grandfather, William
Jones of Henefer, Summit, Utah. She took a trip to Henefer to the Daughters of
Utah Pioneers Cabin and was able to locate the Sword and the Log that was donated by the John William Jones
Family.
Also
since this history, Anita Smith has been told that the cabin has been torn down
and moved from Henefer. Pictured left is a
log from William’s cabin, located at the Henefer DUP building in
Henefer, Summit, Utah to see.