Comments on: Latter-day Saint Images, 1930

By: David Y.

David Y. — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 18:25:58 +0000

Wonderful images!

The photo of all the non-Mormon children surprised me — especially since the group was located in Texas. What right-thinking Texan mother would let her children participate with the Mormons?! [wink]

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 03:51:47 +0000

I’d love it, Mark. Obviously you have your own blog to post it on, but it would be perfect for Keepa if you’d be willing to do it here — anytime.

By: Mark Brown

Mark Brown — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 03:47:43 +0000

Ardis, sure, I’d be happy to. It is a great story, and somewhere I have a picture of his grave. However, it might take a while — month or two, maybe. It really is a wonderful story of an heroic man.

By: HokieKate

HokieKate — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 23:54:14 +0000

Natchitoches parish is in the stake next to mine.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:43:49 +0000

Mark, do you know enough about that to write a guest post? It would be a real crowd pleaser!

KLC, no, that one is correct. This may have been a government or NGO-like situation where missionaries or an expat Mormon mother organized a neighborhood Primary among families with a similar purpose for being in Chile, the way they did in those days; the caption (I didn’t reproduce it here) for this group of girls and a companion picture of some boys notes the nationality of each child, and virtually every child comes from a different country. They’re mostly European. There isn’t enough information in the caption to give a satisfactory explanation.

By: KLC

KLC — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:17:08 +0000

I also wonder about a primary in Rancagua, Chile in 1930. Parley Pratt was in Chile in the mid 1800s and got nowhere. The church didn’t go back until the 1960s as far as I know.

By: Mark Brown

Mark Brown — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:00:45 +0000

Ardis, if you don’t mind, there is an interesting story about one of the first members in the state. The Red Rock branch in Natchitoches parish was the first branch in the state and Alex Wagley was one of the earliest converts. He was a merchant and community leader. He was once accompanying two missionaries when all three of them were taken hostage. The kidnappers intended to do harm to the elders and they encouraged Wagley to leave. However, Br. Wagley knew that as long as he was with the elders they would be safe. He stayed with them and eventually they were all released without harm.

His gravestone is inscribed with the passage from Ezekiel 37:16-19, about the stick of Judah and the stick of Joseph.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 21:59:35 +0000

Got it! It *was* a typo, but not in the date. This picture appears in the June 1930 Children's Friend as the Primary of PAGO, Arizona. But that complicates things, too -- isn't it Papago rather than Pago? And these certainly aren't Indian children.

By: Mark Brown

Mark Brown — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 21:29:29 +0000

I attended church at the ward in Natchitoches, LA about 6 years ago. I was surprised to learn that there are 4th and 5th generation latter-day saints in the ward.

Fascinating to think that some of those young boys in the picture might have been the old men I sat in priesthood meeting with.

By: Researcher

Researcher — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 20:14:50 +0000

The hairstyle of the woman looks right for 1930. I also wondered about the large cut-stone wall behind the group. What could that be? It looks like a very substantial structure.