History of the Richard Fry family • Richard Fry was born in East Down, Devonshire, England and Ann Rawle Fry, his wife also born in England the town of Kentisbury. • • Richard was built rather like an oak, strong but supple. He was about 5 ft. 8 Y2 inches tall and weighed about 200 lbs. Before he came to Utah he took part in various athletic tournaments and games, including wrestling, and was an excellent horseman. Richard was the head man in charge of the horses and hounds on the estate of a very wealthy man by the name of Samuel Coffin. He was so well thought of that in 1858 Mr. Coffin's son made a trip to the United States together with Richard as a guardian and protector. Richard loved the outdoors and was an excellent shot. Ann Rawle Fry, his wife was fully as tall as he. She had a most exquisite head of nut brown hair, which she trained to trail her shoulders in ringlets. Her manner was dignified but she could always enjoy a good joke. Ann worked as a Maid-in-waiting for Mrs. Samuel Coffin for eight years. There she and Richard met, courted and became husband and wife in Liverpool, March 25, 1860. In two days they were on the sailing vessel, Underwriter, bound for a new world and the beginning of a new life. Richard was then 29 and Ann was seven months older than he. She had been converted to the Gospel since 1845, by her brother who converted members of his own family. Richard did not join the Church until 1858, two years before his departure for Utah. After five weeks on the ocean they arrived safely at New York harbor, May 1 si, 1860. Richard and Ann were not the only newly-weds on the ship for James Tucker and wife were married at Liverpool at the same time. These couples crossed the ocean together, went to Florence and crossed the plains together, and finally lived as neighbors within a stone's throw of one another at Morgan City, Utah. They remained at Florence for five weeks where they were busy preparing for their trip to Utah. These two couples bought their equipment together which consisted of food, a wagon, two yoke of oxen and two cows. None of the oxen and cows had seen yoke before and neither man had driven an ox before. After the long journey of eleven weeks they arrived in Salt Lake City on Ann's birthday Sept. 3, 1860. They camped on pioneer square the first night and for dinner they had turnips and mutton. Ann said she never before or since has food tasted so good. After a week in Salt Lake, Brigham Young asked the Fry's to come to Morgan. The passage through Weber Canyon was very, very difficult. As they approached "Devils Gate", they had to take the wagons apart to bring them over part of the mountain. They strapped parts of their wagons and belongings on the oxen and made many trips over the mountain, depositing their belongings and returning for more of the same. The women walked and carried what they could. They spent one week camped in the canyon in the process of getting through "Devils Gate". The first winter they lived in small log home that Richard built. They lived in this home until 1862. When spring came, the heavy snows began to melt and fill the rivers and creeks beyond capacity. Brigham Young advised the settlers to seek higher level for homes. They tore their home down and took the logs to Monday Town where they built another home in which they lived for five years. In the fall of 1867, the home was again tom down and moved to Morgan City. Soon Morgan was beginning to take form. A school house was built, which was used for church, amusements, and a general community center, as well as for school In 1869 the U.P. Railway was built through the country. It had a tremendous influence on the isolated pioneer town. Richard Fry and T .. R. G. Welch took a contract to build about one and one half miles of the bed from Como up through the • • • # ;Milliam's meadows . While crossing the plains Elder James D. Ross ordained Richard Fry an Elder in the Church of Jesus Christ or Latter Day Saints, July15th, 1860. He was ordained a High Priest Sept 5th, 1873. When the Morgan Stake of Zion was organized , Willard G. Smith was President with Richard Fry as first counselor and Samuel Francis as second counselor. This organization lasted for 20 years, when President Smith died. Richard Fry was made President on his 62 birthday, April 15th, 1893. Ann took part in community life and held positions of trust in the Church. She was secretary and treasurer for the Stake Relief Society for many years, and President of the Stake Primary Association over a period of many years. At this time, the Church was advocating and practicing plural marriages. Susan Lerwill Fry came to Utah for the sake of the gospel, as did many others. The following year, she became the plural wife if Richard Fry, by and with the consent of Ann Fry, mother of the first family. If ever the law of plural marriage was observed properly, Richard Fry and his wives lived it. By this union three sons and two daughters were born. Ann was 20 years older than Susan. They became very fond of each other and were more like sisters, each concerned with the other welfare. With the passage of the Edmund-Tucker bill by Congress, vigorous prosecution of those practicing plural marriage in the Church was instituted .. (From a family scrap book the following was copied)"On Tuesday last ( November 9th, 1896) brother Richard Fry, first counselor to President Willard G. Smith of the Morgan Stake, was arrested on a charge of living with more than one wife. He was taken to Ogden and when arraigned before the commissioner, pleaded guilty. He was placed under $1,500.00 bond and ordered to appear for trial in the First District Court." He was sentenced to 6 months in the Utah Penitentiary and fined the sum of $380. John Croft, an old friend of the family, loaned Richard enough money to pay the fine. This without any note or security of any kind. Every cent was returned to him in due time. The children and mothers followed the carriage to the gate, crying as we went. The tears were finally replaced by those of joy upon his return It was evening, lights streamed out of the windows of the old home. Long tables were spread and in the center of the largest table stood a roasted pig with an apple in his mouth All members of the two families bustled about in preparation of his coming and to make welcome the arrival of neighbors who had been invited. All ears were listening for the tramp of horses feet. They were bringing husband and father back to the old home. It was a gay family that night in the old Fry home. What a welcome. But there were lines in his face. His closely cropped hair and beard made them all the more noticeable. The foul air of the prison which was crowded almost to the point of suffocation at times had made inroads upon his health. He never was just the same in health afterward. His untimely death, the family thought was more or less due to the unsanitary conditions of the prison. With his strong physique he should have lived older than 69. Richard provided well for his family. He was superintendent of Morgan Co-op, Store, a small compensation as the County Treasurer, and proceeds from the farm of about 45 acres Richard Fry died 15 April 1900 Ann Blackmore Rawle Fry, died 3 May 1924 Susan Lerwill Fry died 6 Feb, 1919 Buried in the South Morgan Cemetery/ . Copied by Emma Loo Bell, Great Grand daughter.