Comments on: Without Purse or Scrip in Texas: 20 October – 8 November, 1899

By: The Other Clark

The Other Clark — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:16:10 +0000

Interesting that Elder Jones still calls heading east to “the states” in 1899, when virtually all of the west had already acheived statehood. Must be like older members today referring to areas outside of Utah as “the mission field” when Utah baptizes as many converts as any other area of the country.

Looking forward to the series!

By: Mark B.

Mark B. — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:03:44 +0000

I wondered why Elder Jones and his traveling companions didn’t catch the train until Milford–so I looked it up.

They had no choice.

The Utah Southern Railroad and its successor the Utah Central Railroad got as far south as Milford in 1881, but never got south of there. About the turn of the 20th century, the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railway was incorporated, and that company completed the line from Milford southwest to Las Vegas and on to Los Angeles, in 1905.

So, to take the train from somewhere closer to home, Elder Jones would have had to wait for six years. I’ve spent a lot of my life waiting for trains–subways, mostly–but six years sounds like an awful long time.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 17:34:38 +0000

kevinf, Elder Jones is going to have slight references to the Galveston hurricane. Watch for ‘em!

By: kevinf

kevinf — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 17:25:55 +0000

Looks like a great series. Elder Jones was contemporary in this mission with my grandfather, Heber Nephi Folkman. I am late to this as I was out of town (and internet access) through the New Years weekend. I will have to compare dates, places, and people to those in my Grandfather’s journal. Should be great fun!

By: Ellen

Ellen — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 22:29:10 +0000

A group of which I am a member is recording and transcribing personal oral histories. It is interesting to see the kinds of things women record and remember compared to the things men record and remember.

In a similar way, this journal will record memories that were unlike any most of the rest of the (non missionary) world experienced at that same time.

Thank you for showing us this world, Ardis!

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:21:12 +0000

J., I really don’t know how typical Jones’s age was. Judging from his work habits as a missionary and from his later church service, he must have shown signs of exceptional leadership and maturity, which might have influenced the timing of his call. At one point you’ll see he has trouble with a junior companion who is significantly older than he is (I’ll have to do a little research to find out how much older, before that week’s entries go up) who rebels against having to take direction from such a young man. Fun times.

By: J. Stapley

J. Stapley — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 14:46:15 +0000

I’m really looking forward to this series, Ardis. What a great service.

A couple of things that surprised me:

Jones went on this mission at age 20. That seems surprisingly young to me. I know that it was at this time that they started sending more younger missionaries, but I had assumed that they were closer to 24 or 25 than 20. Two years before this, my great-grandfather was called in his 30s and he was married with several children.

He completed the live temple liturgy in four hours. The St. George Temple was not at all busy during this time. I hadn’t realized that it made such a difference on how long it took to go through the temple compared to SLC.

By: Maurine Ward

Maurine Ward — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 06:25:22 +0000

I caught the entry about not baptizing children under 8, also. I agree that there must be a valid explanation for this. I am really looking forward to this series.

By: Steve C.

Steve C. — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 03:56:13 +0000

This does look interesting. A couple of things; Amy T. is right. St. John (not St. Johns) had been founded by the Bickertonites. The colony was originally known as Zion Valley. The Bickertonites wanted to have a colony close to Oklahoma (Indian Territory) so that they could preach the gospel to the “Lamanites.” In order for the colony to survive, the Bickertonites opened it to outsiders (Gentiles) who quickly outnumbered the Bickertonites. In the late 19th century, Church leaders in SLC decided to try to reclaim some of the splinter groups in the Midwest including the Bickertonites. So the Church sent a large contingent of missionaries to places like St. John, thus the area being a mission center.

Both my parents grew up not far from St. John. My mother lived within about 15 miles of St. John until she left for college in 1951. She laughs that although her family often went to St. John on the weekends, she never heard of Mormons until she met my father at college (in Kansas). My Dad’s family converted when he was a boy in 1941. He, on the other hand, remembers St. John being a mission center.

Today I do not believe there is an LDS presence in St. John. My parents went through the area a few years ago and saw a Church of Jesus Christ, so they decided to stop in only to find out it was…Bickertonite.

One last comment on this already lengthy post; the town mentioned on the 4 November entry should be Kinsley rather than Kingley. Probably a transcription error. Kinsley is a small town about 30 miles west of St. John and is on the Santa Fe RR line.

By: Bruce Crow

Bruce Crow — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 03:11:17 +0000

This sounds fun. And even though the first installment isn’t a page turner, it does have enough to leave me wanting more. Looking forward to the rest of the year.