OCR Text |
Show ing are some of the most valuable vehicles in Utah, among them Brigham Young's wagon in which he entered the Valley of the Great Salt Lake, and two of the original handcarts and wagons and buggies that have been given to the Daughters through the years. People who have visited the building say it is one of the most wonderful buildings in all the West. I take deep pride in saying that this building, an addition to the Pioneer Memorial Museum, is one of our greatest accomplishments. "During the last years we have purchased many display cases and our Relic Committee has filled them with valuable relics. We have also added to our art collection. On our walls are some of the most famous pioneer paintings and we are con¬stantly adding to both relics and the picture collection. "We have also accumulated several thousand histories of pioneers. I believe that we could say that these last years have been the most productive in saving pioneer histories. These con¬cern pioneers who came to Utah before the railroad in 1869. "We have registered many daughters during the past few years. We have averaged between nine and eleven hundred new members per year. This means new workers, new histories and new camps. "In 1943 an organization known as Days of '47 Inc. was formed and I became co-president with one of the Sons of Utah Pioneers. I have maintained that position ever since and have played an important part in the historical work done. For in¬stance, I write the parade subjects that are a great part of the July 24th Parade, naming events that happened in Utah one hun¬dred years ago. This I have done for the Days of '47 from the time of its organization. We also preside at the pioneer dinner which started long years before I was president, and no other thinking will come into that affair. We must continue to reserve this occasion as a time to honor our pioneers. "This year the Days of '47 Committee decided to have an authentic pioneer wagon built. The wagons (many of them built in St. Louis) which brought the pioneers were different than the prairie schooner that crossed the Plains driven by other organiza¬tions and individuals. This pioneer wagon, when completed, will be housed in the Pioneer Carriage House under the condition that only the Days of '47 Committee may take it out for any of the events. This is somewhat different from the policy we have had. We took part in a lawsuit which resulted in the ruling that a relic given to the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, wherever they are organized, cannot be taken back by any member, family or friend. The relic belongs to the Daughters of Utah Pioneers. This wagon will be the only item in our building that can be taken out, and that only by the Days of '47. "I have written a new outline of study and it has been ac¬cepted by the Executive Board. I am going on the hope that I shall live to write the lessons according to that outline. These lessons are combined yearly and published in the bound volumes, Our Pioneer Heritage. "Although the Daughters of Utah Pioneers have a wonder¬ful library of pioneer books, my own collection is used more than the library books of the Daughters. Throughout the years, I have done most of my work after I have left the building at night, using my own books." MY CHURCH, MY TEACHER "I was born in a humble pioneer home where each of my mother's seven children listened to her pioneer story. I had even heard it told in Church- how when only a child she started with an aged grandmother for Utah, thus fulfilling the promise made to her dying mother. The family was converted to the Church in Denmark and when my mother, Mary Jensen, was only five years of age, her mother died in childbirth, but before she died she exacted the promise from her husband that if her own mother ever came to Utah, he would allow Mary to come with her. Mary was eight years of age when her grandmother took her with her, joined the Saints, and crossed the ocean. Just before they were to leave with the wagon company across the Plains, the grandmother died, and little eight-year-old Mary came on to Utah. She lived from house to house, wherever people needed someone to help. The place she called home was with the Otteson family whom her grandmother had converted. "After her marriage, Mary vowed that since she had not been able to receive much of an education, her children should be educated. The first thing my mother and father did was to put good books in our home. For years, ours was the only family that subscribed to the Deseret News. Neighbors borrowed it, and mother would always say, "Be sure to bring it back." We had all the Church books and you can be sure that we read them. "My father came from the Isle of Iceland, with a background of parents who saw to it that every child had the best education |