Morgan Pioneer History Binds Us Togelhei Thomas Shore Wadsworth From the "Wadsworth Family in America," we find that there are various interpretations given to the name Wadsworth. The one most generally accepted is Woods-court, or court in the woods, from which we may infer that some ancestor held court or lived in a wooded area. Another meaning, which is preferred by some authorities, is a farm or place in the woods. Therefore, it may be assumed that those who first bore the name were foresters or woodsmen. It is evidently a Saxon name, not Celtic; we are not old British stock, which fought the Romans, nor are we of Norman or French extraction. Our name is not found in the roll of the Battle Abbey, nor in the peerage list. We probably were Saxons who came into England about the fifth century, before the Romans, but long after the Celts. Thomas Shore Wadsworth was born on October 6, 1840. When he was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in November of 1849, and when he set sail from England to come to America, on January 6,1850, he was also nine years old. Thomas's parents were Jonathan Wadsworth from Sowerby, Yorkshire, England, and Ann Shore Wadsworth from Halifax Yorkshire, England. They were married in Halifax, but moved to Bradford, Yorkshire, England, to raise their family. Jonathan and his father and grandfather had been in the weaving business and Jonathan may have gone to Bradford because that was where the work was. Thomas Shore was born there, followed by a twin sister and brother named Hanna and Richard. They died at birth. A second sister also named Hannah was born June 7,1844. She survived and made the trip to America. Thomas's parents were converted to the Gospel ofjesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, by Mormon missionaries. They were baptized on March 10, 1845. They were members of the Bradford Branch. In February of 1849, Jonathan died and Ann made preparations to go to America. These preparations may have been under way before Jonathan died. Ann and her two children left England in the company of a family friend named William John Mason. He booked passage for Ann and the children under his name as his wife and children. Whether this was done to give Ann some protection on ship board or for financial reasons or both, I do not know. The ship's name was Argo and it docked in New Orleans. How the family got to Utah or by what company is unknown. William may have accompanied them or may have turned them over to someone he could trust to ensure their safety on the journey. They settled in Ogden, Utah. In 1853 William John Mason came to Utah. He asked Ann to marry him and the couple were joined together in a civil ceremony on June 5,1853. William bought property at 192 W. 20th Street, and the next year he built a house on the place. It was 1000 feet long and 180 feet wide. It bordered the Ogden River. Thomas spent fifteen years of his life in this home; three of his children were born there. It was where he brought his bride, Catherine Moore. Catherine and Thomas Moore met at the Third Ward in Ogden. They were married December 2,1864; Thomas was twenty-four and his bride was seventeen. As a boy, Thomas made a lot of trips to Layton, a distance of about twenty miles round trip, to gather sego lily bulbs. This was during the first few years after they came to Ogden. His mother would pound these, add molasses and bread to make their meals. Thomas was a studious youth. He was often found ploughing or doing other chores with a book in his hand. As he grew older, he wanted to be a doctor. While he was living in Ogden and Hooper, he was active in the Church and in civic affairs. At the age of eighteen, Thomas served in the Echo Canyon War under Captain Switzer. In the years 1857-1858 he served as Captain of the Militia in Utah. Before that he was the bugler. He was also Captain of Artillery in the Nauvoo Legion under General Chauncey W. West. In 1869 he was the bugler at the celebration of laying the "Golden Spike." He is in the picture of this event. Between 1870 and 1873 he was the Schoolmaster in Hooper. He made $675.00 a year. While he was there, he organized a Sunday School and served as its Superintendent. From Hooper, he moved his family back to Ogden. During this time he was a member of the Jedediah Morgan Grant reconnaissance group that surveyed Morgan Valley on horseback and pronounced it a good place to locate.