PIONEER (full name) BIRTH (date and place) DEATH (date and place) PARENTS MARRIED (who and date) ARRIVAL IN UTAH (date) (Company arrived with) HISTORY (who wrote) (date written) (who submitted) (address) Abram Evans 14 Sep 1807, Merthyr Tydfil, Blamorganshire, South wales 26 Sep 1856, Wear the Green River in Wyoming Father jenkin Evans Mother Elizabeth Nicklos Jane Rees Davis, 17 December 1832 1856 (Died along the trail) Captain Edward Bunker, Third Compan Deon Creager Smith 14 March 1983 Juanita B.H. Creager Box 351, Morgan, Utah 84050 CAMP & COUNTY SUBMITTING Mount Joy Morgan Camp Morgan Utah County Edna Carter (Camp Historian & address) County Historian & address)208 N 2590 E. Morgan, Ut. Dena C. Rich 1266 North Morgan Valley Dr. Morgan, Utah 84050 SOURCE OF INFORMATION & PAGE NUMBERS: See page 4 of history 8 December 1986 HISTORY OF ABRAM EVANS - GRAVES ALONG THE TRAIL SUBMITTED by Juanita Burdett Hollingshead Creager Abram Evans was born 14 September 1807 in Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorganshire, South Wales. (The Southern and larger part of the Island of Great Britain.) His father, Jenkin Evans was born in 1778 and died 2 April 1884.His mother was Elizabeth Nicklos. When Abram was quite young he was apprenticed out to learn the stove mounding trade. He became very well educated and was expert at Shorthand and other scholastic endeavors. On 17 December 1832 he married Mary Davis the popular daughter of Thomas and Jane Rees Davis. Mary had a good education and spoke both English and Welsh fluently. Abram and Mary had eight children, all born in Merthyr Tydfil: 1. Jenkin Abram born 30 Sep 1833, md Sarah Ann Narris died 6 June 1910 2. Thomas Abram born 29 Sep 1836, md Phoebe Pendleton 9 Nov 1866 died 7 Mar 1922 3. Jane born 9 Feb 1841, md Steven Smith Barton 5 Feb 1857 died 11 May 1913 4. Elizabeth born 28 Feb 1844, md Nelson Stoyell Hollingshead 29 June 1861, died 18 Mar 1921 Elizabeth was my Great-Great Grandmother 5. John born 1 Sep 1847 - died in infancy 6. John born 13 Nov 185D - died in infancy 7. Hyrum born 19 Oct 1853 - died in infancy 8.. Mary Ann born 19 May 1855, md George Baker, Sr. 23 Oct 1875 died 4 or 14 Oct 1928 Abram was a good financier and Mary was a good manager. They collected valuable properties worth thousands of dollars at that time. They had several homes they rented out and they owned the Brewery which was the main business in the town. They had an excellent income. When Abram and Mary heard the Mormon missionaries from America preach of a new religion that had been revealed to Joseph Smith, the Holy Ghost testified to them of its truthfulness. They and their children joined the church and were faithful members. They were instrumental in the conversion of many people. Mary acted as interpreter for the missionaries as they taught their lessons to the townspeople. Their home was always open to the missionaries and they entertained them often. Abram was the Branch Clerk for several years. -2- HISTORY OF ABRAM EVANS - GRAVES ALONG THE TRAIL The "Spirit of Elijah descended upon them" and they diligently searched for the records of their ancestors in the churches of their native land. They had collected much valuable information when the "Spirit of Gathering impelled them" to join a large number of Welsh Saints who were leaving for America under the direction of Daniel Jones. In their urgency to go to America they did not take time to settle their estate but left their business in the hands of their employees whom they felt they could trust. They took the funds they had on hand and as many of their prized possessions they could put into their trunks, and they cast their lot with a total of 707 Saints. They set sail from Liverpool, England 19 April 1656 on the sailing vessel "Samuel Curling". During the five week voyage they encountered fowl weather and they suffered from severe nausea. On occasion "the nausea and the stormy weather threatened their very existance." When this happened they would huddle together and pray and then sing their happy Welsh songs. This would lighten their burden and raise their spirits helping them through another dreary, frightening day. They never lost hope because they knew Zion and a new life was ahead. Captain Curling told them he "always felt safe when he had Saints on board." Later the Evans heard that the ship went down with all on board and there was not one Saint amoung them. It was indeed a welcome sight for the Evans family when land was reached 23 may 1856 and they left the "Samuel Curling" in the Boston Harbor. They were met by church leaders who informed them that when they reached the end of the railroad in Iowa City, Iowa, they would be "obliged" to travel the long distance to the Great Salt Lake Valley pushing and pulling handcarts. Immigrants had been arriving so fast and in such great numbers that wagons and oxen, "the more pleasant and convenient mode of travel" were not available for everyone. Church leaders found that the two wheeled carts with a box attached to carry the bare necessities for the trip worked out very well. Abram stored all of their excess luggage in Boston with the understanding it would be brought to them in their new home in Zion. Their valuable genealogical records for which they had searched so diligently back in Wales were left behind in a trunk. Later it was learned a tragic fire struck the storage area. It was a total loss. This tragedy has been regrettable to the descendants ever since. -3- HISTORY OF ABRAM EVANS - GRAVES ALONG THE TRAIL The Saints left Boston with their thoughts on their opportunities in their new life in Zion, They had a relatively comfortable trip via railroad to Iowa City, Iowa. They had many inducements to remain in Iowa City to work but money was no inducement. Many of those who stayed behind to better their circumstances died of cholera, and many apostatized. After a three week delay getting their handcarts lined up, 320 Saints from Wales who were strong in the Faith of the church, were assigned to Captain Edward Bunker's Company, It was the third company to leave that year. They left the "Outfitting Station" in Iowa City, Iowa 23 June 1856 with 64 handcarts and 5 wagons that carried provisions. They started on the three hundred mile walk to Winter Quarters on the Missouri River. As they traveled through the communities many people made fun of them for walking and pulling their carts but they had fine weather and good roads and felt happy in being that far on their journey to the Great Salt Lake Valley. They left Florence, Nebraska 30 July 1856 and began their one thousand mile journey on foot across the plains. As they traveled they saw many buffalo and sometimes were fortunate enough to procure a little meat to help with their scant provisions. Each cart had 100 pounds of flour and at first they had a little coffee and bacon but that was soon gone. When the food got low it was rationed. They often went to bed hungry. Whenever they encountered trials and tribulations they remembered their happy Welsh songs and they kept their spirits up as they trudged along. Music had been an important part of their life in their native Wales, and now it was making their survival on this journey more bearable. The travel was strenuous. Elizabeth carried baby Mary Ann while the rest of the family pushed and pulled the handcarts. When their shoes wore out they used animal hides to make wrappings for their bare feet. Still they did not complain, for Zion was ahead. "Hunger, sickness and even death could not make them turn back." The faith, courage and sacrifice of these heroic pioneers is an inspiration to all of their posterity. Abram was a large robust man weighing 200 pounds, He had auburn hair and was nice looking. During the journey he was stricken with the dread cholera which "weakened his constitution." The arduous journey became too much for him. The family loaded all of their possessions onto one of their handcarts and Jane 15, and Elizabeth 12, pulled this one. The family made their other handcart as comfortable as possible and placed their sick father in it. Jenkin and Thomas pulled this one over the difficult plain. "Many weary miles were encountered before Captain Bunker gave his consent for Abram to ride in one of the wagons. But even then the 200 pounds that their father weighed was taken off the wagon and loaded onto the handcart Jenkin and Thomas pulled." -4- HISTORY OF ABRAM EVANS - GRAVES ALONG THE TRAIL In a letter written to Elder Orson Pratt dated 28 October 1856 Thomas Bullock stated "On the 20th (September) we camped on Pacific Creek, West of South Pass near a company of upwards of 650 Saints from England and Wales with handcarts, led by Captain Bunker." (This number was over-estimated.) Abram steadily became weaker as the days passed. The illness was too much to bear. At the Green River in Wyoming just about 150 miles short of their destination of the Great Salt Lake Valley, Abram succumbed. He was tenderly laid to rest by the hands of his loved ones in a lonely grave in the shade of a clump of trees 26 September 1856. He was just 49 years old. "Years later one of his Grandsons, William Evans, stopped in Green River, Wyoming and located Abram's grave. As he stood beside it with deep reverence and appreciation he shed tears of sorrow mixed with gratitude for the courage of his illustrious GrandFather. Remembering how he had left behind him in Wales such worldly wealth as he possessed in exchange for the wealth of the divine truth and the sake of the gospel that he believed, only to be deprived of reaching his destination." After three and one half months on the plains, the company arrived in the Great Salt Lake Valley 2 October 1856. Mary and her family were not there long when they were called to go South to Parawan, Iron County, They made a home for themselves. Their means ran out and when Mary wrote to Wales to have her property disposed of she learned it had been put into Forfeit and taken over by the employees. Since she did not have the Funds to return to Wales to protest the action all was lost. With the same Faith and courage that brought them to Zion, the Family built a new life for themselves. This life was strange and hard for Mary but she did her part in pioneering Parowan, and she and her family were faithful and true to the church. In her later years she was cared for by her children. She spent quite a bit of time in Paragonah with her daughter Jane Barton and in Minersville with Elizabeth and Mary Ann, where she died. She lived to be a little over 72 years of age and passed away 4 January 1885 and was buried in the Parowan Cemetary. SOURCES OF INFORMATION: 1) Short History of Abram Evans and Mary Davis by Carmen Evans Topham and Clarice R. Norri 2) History of Stephen Smith Barton by William 3) Family History of Juanita Hollingshead Crea 4) History of Elizabeth Evans by Delilah Holli 5) Hollingshead Immegrant Pioneers of America 6) Our Pioneer Heritage Vol 14 pp 258, 274, 2E 7) Our Pioneer Heritage Vol 6 pp 266 and 268 L B) Treasure of Pioneer History "They came in 9) GS F # 298433 (Liverpool, England Ship pas: GENEALOGY OF DEON CREAGER SMITH: Abram Evans- Eli: Abram (Abraham) Hollingshead - Juanita Burdett Holl Deon Juanita Creager Smith. 6154 S. 2900 E. Ogden, For your info Only: Abram Evans was a cousin of Pres. McKay's mother, also an Evans, born in Merther Tydfil