Willia Adam Maiben was born in England shortly after his parents’ move from Scotland. His parents were Adam Maiben and Sarah Osmer. William was the third child of seven born to his mother Sarah. She died when William was eight years of age. In 1814, William married Catherine Williams Cater. They became the parents of 12 children. Eight were daughters and 4 were sons. Two of those children heard the message of the missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints and emigrated with their families to America. Both brothers settled in Utah. Family history kept by William’s descendants tell us that he and his family were coach and carriage makers. By 1844, Pigot’s Directory of Cornwall lists William Maiben as a cabinet maker and a paper hanger. His residence was on Parade Street. Both William and his wife Catherine are buried in Brighton, England.
The migration of William Adam Maiben
England
William Lee McVey, also known as Willie was the son of William Franklin McVey and his wife Ophelia Pancake. Thus, William was one of many cousins of his generation which included our direct ancestor Everest Elliott Watrous. Willie is thought to be about four years old in this portrait, which was taken in Salt Lake City about 1884. It was a gift to us from Mary Emma who was William’s niece. At this time, William’s entire extended family was living in Utah and were heavily invested in mining. Little else is known about William until his marriage to Ethel Tufts in about 1906. William and Ethel became the parents of one daughter, Ethel Wilma who married Cecil Boucher. William’s posterity extends to the present day.
Hannah Elizabeth Winterbottom was the daughter of Elizabeth Sant and Thomas Winterbottom. She was born in England, where her parents lived on a boat and hauled freight up and down the waterways, rivers and canals. She was the youngest of six children and should not be confused with an older sister named Elizabeth Hannah who died as an infant. After the death of her father Thomas by drowning, her mother emigrated with her children to America. The family settled in the area of Fish Haven, Idaho which is on the border of Utah and Idaho. There, she met Justin Pugmire. They married in 1883 in Fish Haven which would have found Hannah to be only 13. Perhaps her birthdate is wrongly recorded or her marriage date. Perhaps she did marry young, although 13 seems too young. Nevertheless, Justin and Hannah became the parents of 13 children. The oldest, Justin Gerald Pugmire is our direct ancestor. Many of her posterity remember her and can talk about her. Some of her grandchildren were married with children of their own when she died. Those grandchildren have grandchildren today. None are very far removed from her and her death in 1958.
Hannah died in California at the home of her daughter. She is buried next to her husband Justin in the Midvale City Cemetery, Midvale, Salt Lake, Utah.
The migration of Hannah Elizabeth Winterbottom Pugmire
England to Utah to Idaho to California
George Morris was born in England to Joseph Morris and Elizabeth Vernon. He was the oldest child of seven. In 1840 he married Jane Higgenbothom who died the next year. He heard the missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints in his native England and emigrated to America where he lived in the new town of Commerce, Illinois . . . later know as Nauvoo. He was a personal friend of the Prophet Joseph Smith and kept a journal which was published and distributed to his interested descendants. He worked tirelessly on the construction of the Nauvoo Temple and shared in the persecutions of the early Saints. While living in Nauvoo he met and married Hannah Maria Newberry, the daughter of early colonists from New England. They became the parents of 12 children. The third child, Rozella Newberry Morris who married John Jenkins is our direct ancestor. In 1848, George crossed the plains in the first company which settled the Salt Lake Valley. His first winter was spent under his turned-over covered wagon with his small family. George had plural wives. They were Maria Allen and Annie Matthews.
His journal is his testimony. It talks of his faith and his sacrifices. It talks about his associations with early church leaders and his hardships and sorrows. Upon his death in 1897, he was the father of 22 children, 75 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. He is buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery and is mentioned in many historical texts about the Mormon Migration and the early days of the church.
The migration of George Morris
England to Illinois to Utah
Frank Chance was certainly a well-known baseball player and coach of the Chicago Cubs and other major league teams. Our interest in him is not about baseball but is in his marriage and connection to our family history. Frank was born in Fresno, California. He married Edythe Lillian Pancake, who was the daughter of Stewart Pancake and his wife Priscilla Jane Freeland. Stewart and our great grandmother Edith Glendora Pancake Watrous were siblings. When we discovered first, the children of Stewart and Priscilla Pancake we had hope that one of them . . . Carl or Edythe had posterity. If they did, we might be closer to finding answers to some questions about this family line. As fate would have it, Frank and Edythe lived a good life in Illinois and California. They did not have any children. So, when Frank’s brother had a son, his brother named him Frank Leroy Chance. One would think upon finding that name repeated that Frank had a son. Not so. Nephew Frank’s wife remembers Edythe. She called her “a lovely woman”. She didn’t know why Edythe and Frank, and Edythe’s brother Carl and his wife Margaret chose to remain childless. Thus, the posterity of Stewart Megge Pancake ended here.
When Frank Chance died, his wife remained his widow and did not marry again. When asked she said that there just wasn’t another person in the world like Frank. In the year 2010, Fresno, California dedicated The Frank Chance Field. Nephew and namesake was present for the dedication. He is in his 80s. He showed the gold watch that his Uncle Frank won when he played in the World Series with the Chicago Cubs. In fact, he played in four World Series games. Edythe had given the watch to him after Frank’s death. Sounds like a connection between Frank and Frank. Without a son of his own, I’ll bet that was nice.
The migration of Frank Leroy Chance
California to Illinois to New York to Massachusetts to Illinois to California
Flora Louise Maiben was the ninth child of eleven born to Flora Louisa Maddison and Henry Maiben. She was born in Provo, Utah and died in Richfield, Utah where she is buried next to her husband. She married Nephi James Bates (Jr.) in the Manti, Temple in 1901. Her uncle, John Bray Maiben performed the marriage. Flora became the mother of seven children. Six grew to adulthood while one, Irene, died as a child. Her daughter Mildred Bates Watrous is our direct ancestor. Flora was an excellent homemaker according to the firsthand accounts from her family. She was a good cook and seamstress. She made beautiful “blessing” dresses for each of her daughters. The dress in which ancestor Mildred was blessed has been preserved by her daughter. Her grandchildren remember her as being sober and unsmiling. They attribute her soberness to a change that occurred in her after the death of her little daughter Irene.
Flora’s husband Nephi was an attorney of note. As time passed, he became the 6th Circuit Court Judge which included responsibility for the county in which he lived among other counties. Upon the death of her husband Nephi, Flora sold her Richfield home to a daughter and took turns living with her other children for three months at a time. Thus, each family of grandchildren had the chance to get to know Flora and to help her in her old age. When she died, she was buried in the Richfield City Cemetery, Richfield, Sevier, Utah next to her husband Nephi and her infant daughter Irene.
The migration of Flora Louise Maiben Bates
Utah
Flora Louisa Maddison was born in Belgium to Maria Susannah Merrick and John Maddison. Her parents were not married but were living as husband and wife. Her father John was married to Georgianna Curtis until his death. With Georgianna, John already had two daughters and with Flora’s mother he had four children. Three of the four survived childhood. They were Hubert, John and Flora. The family lived in various places in England. At some point John and Flora’s mother parted ways. Flora’s father then lived with Christina Stewart and fathered children with her. Flora’s mother heard the missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints and was baptized. Those of her three children who were of the age of accountability were baptized also. Maria Susannah Merrick emigrated with her children from England to America and settled in Utah. Flora first married Emanuel Long with whom she had one son. The marriage lasted less than one year. She then married Henry Maiben. She was the second wife in a polygamous household. Together, Flora and Henry became the parents of 12 children including direct ancestor Flora Louise Maiben who married Nephi James Bates (Jr.). Flora and Henry lived most of their lives in Provo, Utah and Salt Lake City. When Flora died, she was buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery where she lies with her husband Henry Maiben and his plural wife Caroline Penn.
Research surrounding Flora was made complicated by the fact that existing family history was compiled of stories but not facts. Thus, when it was discovered that many of the stories that had been told about Flora, her mother Maria, her father John Maddison and the circumstances of their lives simply were not true, many a descendants were unhappy with the revelations and wanted to hold on to the old stories. The histories of Flora and her mother Maria have been published and widely circulated. Our personal records include documentation and a time line of the life of John Maddison and the chronology of his association with three women: Georgianna, Maria and Christina. Georgianna remained John’s wife until her death. Sometime after her death, John married Christina Stewart, with whom he had been living for many years and with whom he had several children.
None of these statements are meant to tarnish the names or lives of any person. However, when ancestral stories are told so as to hide vital statistics or keep secrets, the real stories in the lives of wonderful people are lost. Efforts to set the record straight, using documents and chronologies have been met with resistance. The truth of the matter actually makes the trials and sacrifices of Flora’s mother Maria Merrick all the more compelling. Flora was a wonderful person as remembered by her posterity.
The migration of Flora Louisa Maddison Long Maiben
Belgium to England to Utah
Everest Elliott Watrous was the third of four sons born to Henry Reynolds Watrous and Edith Glendora Pancake. He was born in the tiny Iowa town of Red Oak where his father Henry had gone to practice law. He joined an older brother named Earl and followed the death of an infant brother named Wayne. Everest migrated with his parents and brother to Utah where a younger brother Martin was born and died. Everest lived his life in Utah except for two years which he and his brother spent with their paternal grandparents in Terre Haute, Henderson County, Illinois. It is impossible to do justice to the interesting life Everest lived. His biography has been compiled by his grandson Thomas Watrous and provides the details of his life. He was a businessman, a miner, an investor, a father, husband and grandfather. When he was 19 he married Mary Maria Jenkins, the daughter of Mormon converts. They became the parents of three sons: Mervyn, Wayne and Raymond. Some of the time the family lived in Salt Lake City and some of the time they lived in Big Cottonwood Canyon or Park City. His wife Mary died at the home of her son Mervyn in California. She was only 44. Her body was returned to Utah for burial. Later in his life, Everest married Susan Irvine Shirtz. The family loved her and knew her as Grandma Susie. Everest died and was buried in the Murray City Cemetery in Murray Utah. In the same general area is his father Henry Reynolds Watrous and his brother Earl Pancake Watrous. His wife Mary is buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery. Her grave is marked with a stone which appears to have been handmade.
The migration of Everest Elliott Watrous
Iowa to Illinois to Utah
Elizabeth Sant was born in England in 1842 to John Sant and Mary Shaw. She was known in life as Betsy. She was one of twelve siblings. She married Thomas Winterbottom, son of Samuel Winterbottom in 1861 in England. They became the parents of six children. One, Elizabeth Hannah died as an infant. Another, Hannah Elizabeth who married Justin Pugmire is our direct ancestor. Betsy and Thomas lived on a boat. They hauled freight up and down large rivers often in side canals in order to make a living. Betsy’s parents and siblings emigrated to America and settled in Idaho. They longed for Betsy and her family to join them but, before Betsy and Thomas could do so, Thomas was caught between two boats and drowned in a large river. His body was not found for some time. One month later, Betsy gave birth to her sixth child. For two years she saved her money and eventually was able to make the journey from England to America. She gathered with her family and others who had joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints. Her home until her death was in Idaho, near the border with Utah. Eighteen months after Betsy’s arrival in Idaho she met and married Thomas Ravenhill McCann. She was 31 and he was 59. Together, they became the parents of five children. Betsy had now borne eleven children. Following the death of her husband Thomas McCann, Betsy married William Roberts. When she died, she was buried next to her second husband, Thomas McCann, in the Fish Haven City Cemetery in Fish Haven, Idaho.
The migration of Elizabeth Sant Winterbottom McCann Roberts
England to Idaho
Clara Lzina Barker was born to goodly parents John Thompson and Jane Pickett Barker in St. Charles, Idaho in the year of 1892. She was the youngest of many siblings and spent her life in close relationships with them. Her mother died when she was sixteen. She married Justin Gerald Pugmire in Paris, Idaho. They lived their lives primarily in Salt Lake City and Midvale, Utah. My grandmother Clara became the mother of nine children. Seven survived to adulthood. They are Gerald, Devearl, Lavon, Farrell, Theora, Glenn and June. When she died of cancer in 1969 she was the grandmother of 35. She was buried in the Midvale City Cemetery in Midvale, Utah next to her husband Justin who died almost twenty years earlier. Also buried with her are two infant daughters: Clara and Fawn. She was a blessed wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, friend, missionary, temple worker, daughter. Her legacy of love, frugality, generosity, faith and resourcefulness lives on in her children and grandchildren who love her and long to see her again.
The migration of Clara Lzina Barker Pugmire
Idaho to Utah