NATIONAL NEWS

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Nauvoo Pageant and Mormon Trail Trek

This trek will be held July 13-23, 2010 and will involve visiting LDS Church history and Mormon trail sites between Salt Lake City and Missouri and Nauvoo, Illinois. You can sign up on the SUP website: www.sonsofutahpioneers.org . A detailed day-by-day itinerary is also at the website. The deadline for signing is April 15.

Little Denmark/Scandinavian Heritage Festival Trek – May 27-29, 2010

The first of its kind three day heritage festival celebrating the Scandinavian pioneers who settled in Sanpete County will be hosted by the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area. This can be attended individually, as a chapter, or you can join in a National SUP trek on a bus. Local guides will be provided for each town. Additional information will be sent email to all Area Vice Presidents and Chapter Presidents. This would be a great activity for those of you who have Scandinavian ancestors who settled in Sanpete County.

National Genealogical Society Conference (NGS) 2010

The National Genealogical Society (NGS) conference will be held in Utah this year, Wednesday through Saturday, April 28 - 30. This is one of the largest genealogical seminars held in the United States. Experts from around the country will be invited to make presentations. The SUP needs volunteers to staff an SUP booth during the conference. Please contact the National Office if members from your chapters would be willing to assist.

New SUP Chapter

A new chapter has been established in the St. George area and will be called Dixie Encampment. Approximately 40 new members were signed up under the leadership of R. Wayne Pace. Congratulations!

Days of ’47 Coming Up

Each chapter is encouraged to participate in the ‘Days of ‘47’ celebrations in their respective home areas. It is not too early to plan for this event, particularly if you want to be included in city/home parades. Dil reported at the last National Board Meeting that at least a dozen handcarts are available for use. Volunteers are needed for the Salt Lake Days of ’47 parade to pull handcarts. Contact Dil Strasser directly for your intent to use the handcarts.

Reminder: Monument Maintenance for Spring and Summer

Many monuments throughout the Rocky Mountain area need to be cleaned and/or repaired. You can examine the monuments on the SUP website to determine the ones nearest your chapter. Stewart Radmall (801- 479-8308), National Director of Monuments, also has a list of the monuments located by chapter location. With some monuments we need pictures and GPS coordinates. You may want to consider this as a major project for spring and summer. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

This piano was recently donated to SUP. It is now located in the library at the National Headquarters.

CHAPTER NEWS

By Louis Pickett: louwill@utahbroadband.com

BRIGHAM YOUNG (Provo, Utah) The February dinner meeting speaker was chapter member, Brent Ashworth, who is a well known collector of rare religious and historical documents and memorabilia. Brent’s message focused on a rare and lost diary and some other writings penned by William E. McLellen. (left) Brent stated that William was once a school teacher and taught science. He joined the L.D.S. church and was a very active member. He went on a couple of missions and was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. However he later apostatized, having criticized himself out of the church. He just could not leave the church and the Book of Mormon alone. William wrote several journals and they have been found except for one. Brent stated that William’s journals were mostly positive about t he church but he had included several negative remarks. According to Brent, William later crossed out those negative remarks in his journals. Brent added that William had a deep testimony of the gospel and the book of Mormon but “had problems with some of the church’s leadership and members” at the time. Brent brought several displays of interest for the members to view including autographed documents by the prophet Joseph Smith, the infamous Extermination Order signed by Governor Ford, a copy of the first edition of the Book of Mormon, etc.

CENTERVILLE (Centerville, Utah) A fascinating presentation on Thomas L. Kane (right) was given by Dr. David J. Whittaker (right) at the March chapter meeting. Dr.

Whittaker told of the relationship of Thomas with the Mormons and particularly the close association and friendship between Thomas and Brigham Young. Dr. Whittaker is the Senior Librarian and Curator of 19^th Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts at the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at BYU. He helped obtain a trunk full of Thomas Kane’s letters and diaries that were located in Canada. The newly discovered correspondence showed just how close a relationship Mr. Kane had with the LDS people. He told of finding over 125 letters written between Brigham Young and his friend Thomas Kane that contain valuable information about the interactions between the two.

COTTON MISSION (St. George, Utah) Those attending the February meeting were very well rewarded. Eleven members were presented Life Memberships. The entertainment was performed by Susan Bruske, who sang a number of tunes which provided a “trip down memory lane”. Dr. Daniel Peterson, (below, right) a BYU professor, spent the evening recounting ways that the Prophet Joseph Smith “got things right” during the translation of the Book of Mormon. He stated that with his limited education and the short time involved, Joseph Smith could not have researched so many points that today have been substantiated. Some of the things he reported were: The concept that records were written on metal plates, that records were preserved in stone boxes in the ground as were the Dead Sea Scrolls, Nephites used iron ore in the Land Bountiful, (the presence of iron ore in that area has been confirmed by geologists), the Hebrew forms of speech used in the Book of Mormon was not used in America in the 1830’s, the complex Book of Mormon was translated at the rate of 11 pages per day. The Mayans were obsessed with time and measurement and frequently used 20 and 400. The Book of Alma uses 20, and 20 by 20. For these reasons and many more, Dr. Peterson stated that it should be obvious that Joseph Smith did not write the Book of Mormon. It was a very enlightening and interesting presentation.

HURRICANE VALLEY (Hurricane, Utah) David and Garth Isom told the story of a group of saints who came from England to America and eventually settled Mountain Dell in Southern Utah. The information came from the history of Owen Isom. Soon after arriving in Salt Lake City this group left for the south and settled a short time in Virgin. They then moved up near Millville in a valley they called Mountain Dell (above). Their lives included many hardships as they lived in dugouts, built their homes and planted their gardens, trees and grape vines. Their story included the Blackhawk Indian War and the necessity to move to Toquerville for safety and then back home again. Census data showed that at one time as many as 20 families lived in the community. Flooding from time to time caused the people to eventually abandon their homes and community so that there is little evidence of that settlement left. Music for the evening was provided by Laura LeBaron (left) with her beautiful, clear voice as she sang “The Girl in Room 14”.

JORDAN RIVER TEMPLE / TEMPLE QUARRY (South Salt Lake Valley) The Temple Quarry chapter arranged for an outstanding program which enlightened all present regarding the courage and sacrifice of the seventy families who participated in the San Juan Mission - known also as the “Hole in the Rock” expedition. Mr. LaMont Crabtree (left) was the presenter. He very effectively used “power point” to show and tell the story. He gave some background information on the courage and faithfulness of Jens Jensen, a member of the mission and who was also a member of the Willey Handcart Company. The presentation took the audience step by step through some of the more difficult travels of the party. It was pointed out that, even though this trek was only 200 miles in length, it took six months to reach the destination. The pioneer trek from Winter Quarters to the Salt Lake Valley was 1,000 miles long and took only three months. That gives some idea of the difficulty of the trek. Getting through the crevice known as the Hole in the Rock did not represent the end of the difficulty for the party. They still had to cross the Colorado River and very harsh terrain such as gullies, desert, mountains, a pinion forest and climbing to the top of Comb Ridge. This experience has gone down in history as the most difficult of the pioneer missions to settle the west.

MAPLE MOUNTAIN (Mapleton, Utah) An interesting pioneer ancestor account was given at the February meeting of the chapter by David

Hullinger (right). That was followed by Mike McPheters (left) giving fascinating accounts of his work as an FBI agent. While serving as an agent he also served as a bishop in several different cities. Mike emphasized that it doesn’t matter what happens to us, but it does matter how we respond to what happens to us. That is what makes the difference for eternity. He told how his life was saved a number of times by listening to t he Spirit.

LITTLE SALT LAKE (Parowan, Utah) Kent Bishop, Max Bonzo and Kent Humphreys were the guest speakers at the February chapter meeting. They gave accounts of Utah and LDS military units. Mr. Bishop gave a history of military units from the Nauvoo Legion through the Mormon Battalion, the 213^th Artillery Battalion and the 222^nd Artillery Battalion. He highlighted the miracle at Kap Young and pointed out the lack of heavy casualties in all of these units. Kent Humphries spoke of his involvement in the war in Iran. Max Bonzo talked about his experiences in the Korean War with the 213^th Artillery Battalion, including the return to Korea to participate in the dedication of a monument in honor of the 213^th Artillery Battalion at Kap Young. A film was shown about the visit to Korea and the interaction with the local people who expressed their appreciation to the Battalion.

MILLS (Southeast Salt Lake City) In recognition of Valentine’s Day the chapter was entertained by love stories provided by Michael and Jan Bennett. They spoke of the love of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. She fell in love with the king when she heard how wonderful and wise he was. She came from Ethiopia for a long visit and was tricked into marrying Solomon. She bore him a son who is still honored in Ethiopia. They told the love story of Robert and Elizabeth Browning. This couple first struck up a corresponding relationship over a common love for literature. It was some time before they met but they produced a long collection of tender letters before and after they married. They enjoyed 16 years together before Elizabeth died. The Bennett’s also reported the love stories of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn and Abraham Lincoln and Ann Rutledge.

MOUNT NEBO (Payson, Utah) Ted Peacock,(below) retired Director of Public Safety for Orem City, spoke at the Feb meeting. He chose two cases to speak about, one a homicide and the other a hostage case. The first case was that of Gary Gilmore who committed two homicides, one in Orem and one in Provo. Through the cooperation of local agencies he was apprehended in Pleasant Grove the same evening he committed the homicide in Provo. Gilmore requested the death penalty and groups throughout the country attempted to stop the execution. When it was carried out it was the first one to take place in the U.S. in over ten years. Norman Mailer wrote a book of the Gary Gilmore story entitled “The Executioners Song”. A movie was later produced carrying the same title.

The second case involved Danny Moore a 56 year old man addicted to drugs who held up a pharmacy. He took a hostage with him and returned to a home where he was living in Orem. He then held two women hostage and refused to surrender to the police. The law enforcement officers were able to safely rescue the hostages. Several rounds were fired during the encounter and one of them struck Mr. Peacock in the chest. The suspect died of a self inflicted gunshot wound.

PORTER ROCKWELL (Draper, Utah) The chapter enjoyed a wonderful presentation by Elder Richard E. and Sister Mary Cook (right). Elder Cook is an emeritus Seventy and

Sister Cook is First Counselor in the General Young Women Presidency. They spoke about the many spiritual experiences they had as they served as the first mission president in the Mongolia Mission. Opening any new mission is a unique experience but doing so in a country where it was necessary to deal with an unfriendly government made the task more daunting. They reported how the Lord’s hand was evident as they dealt with the problems, including selecting and training new church leaders and establishing the church in a non-Christian country. Elder Cook is an assistant to Elder John Carmack in directing the Perpetual Education Fund for the church. Unfortunately there was not time for a report on the great success of that program.

SALT LAKE (Salt Lake City, Utah) A presentation was made to the chapter by Craig and Laura Anderson who are serving as missionaries working on the Mormon Pioneer Overland Project. Brother Anderson’s quips were timely and entertaining. Sister Anderson wore period dress, which added to the interest in their presentation. They emphasized the need for each of us who have ancestors who arrived in the valley during the 1800’s to become involved in the search and help complete the record. They said that there are many individuals who we know were in the valley, but when they came or how they came is not documented. Sister Anderson gave an interesting history of one of her Danish ancestors as a result of searching through the Overland Project. The Anderson’s displayed some sketches by a Danish artist who documented the whole trip from Denmark to the West.

TAYLORSVILLE – BENNION (Taylorsville, Utah) The speaker and entertainer for March was local resident, Laurie Tye. She has spent a lot of time on the family farm in Hooper, has a degree from BYU and in 2004 she was awarded the title of Mrs. Utah. In 2005 she won the title of Mrs. Intercontinental. Laurie has done a lot of writing and has written children’s books, short stories, poems and songs. She is a member of the Cowboy Poets of Utah and of Idaho and the Western Music Association. At the meeting she performed a number of well known cowboy poems and several that she had written. It was interesting that she had personal stories to go with the poems she had written.

The Mountain Valley Chapter (Heber City, Utah) was honored to participate in an evening with the Utah Pioneer Heritage Arts (UPHA) at the Senior Citizens Center on March 25, 2010 at 7pm as they presented, "The Heart of a Pioneer".

"This is truly a rare occasion to have such a talented group of individuals come to our valley," said Erik Rowland, president of The Mountain Valley Chapter for the Sons of Utah Pioneers. "It's not often you can bring your entire family to learn about Utah's rich pioneer heritage while being entertained at the same time."

The evening's agenda also included the band "Willingly" - a four-man band consisting of, Clive Romney, Lindsay Griffin, Gary Voorhees and Dave Compton as well as Brigham and MaryAnn Angel Young rein-actors.

The ratio of members to non-members was easily 5 to 1 as many individuals and families where drawn to this wholesome experience. Those that arrived early where given the chance to learn a few authentic pioneer games. The evening was such a complete success that many individuals have asked when the next event will be.

Afterwards everyone was treated to light refreshments consisting of cookies, brownies and punch.

About the Mountain Valley Chapter

Please visit, http://www.themountainvalley.com for more information about the chapter and future events.

Pic - 02-18-10c UPPER SNAKE RIVER VALLEY (Rexburg, Idaho) Recognition of all past chapter presidents was given at the February meeting. Following dinner Garth Flamm (right) was introduced as guest speaker. He is the President of the Flamm Funeral Home in Rexburg and has served as mayor of that city. He gave a history of the Flamm and other families who were prominent in settling the Rexburg area. His principle subject was a history of how funeral parlors progressed to funeral homes in the Rexburg and Rigby areas. Many of the early funeral parlors were portions of a furniture store where funeral items were sold. Embalming, funeral preparations and viewings were all done in the deceased person’s home in the early days. As time went by most aspects of the funeral were handled at the mortician’s place of business. It was indicated that important aspects of the viewing and funeral is to give the living a chance to say goodbye and to have some closure. Garth said that it is important to include teachings of Christ in the funeral.

UPCOMING CHAPTER EVENTS

Send chapter events to Pat Cook: nssup3@gmail.com

Brigham Young Chapter – Jay Buckley speaking on the history of Orem.

Cedar City Chapter – Mon Apr 12-Service Project-Happy Factory

Cotton Mission Chapter – Tues Apr 20-Dinner Meeting 6pm at Staheli's Town Hall in Washington. Dinner $12.50 ea. Annual High School Scholarship Presentations (Sunday Dress).

Hurricane Valley Chapter – Apr 21-Honoring Essay Winners

Mills Chapter – Modern Day Pioneer Award to the Sitati's on April 12th.

Sevier Valley Chapter – April 19-20,Trek to Hole-In-The-Rock. April 23-Trek to St. George.

Temple Quarry Chapter – April-Mr. Pat Hearty, The 150th Anniversary of the Pony Express

Timpanogos Chapter – April 15th Chapter meeting-Dinner at the Developmental Center Cultural Hall (across from Mt Timpanogos Temple speaker-Richard Holzapfel on Pioneer Life, singing group "Friends in Harmony" Little Salt Lake Chapter-April-How to Access Digitized Utah Newspapers