• • • MARY ANN SIMMONS SMITH Written by her daughter: Mina Smith Ovard In the spring of 1861 , Mary Ann, with her parents George and Mary Ann Ford Simmons, Her father. built them a one room log house, which had a dirt floor and roof. They gathered wild fruits from the mountains to cook and eat. The mountains at that time were infested with snakes, coyotes & bears. Quite often the bears would make a raid on their cattle and sheep. Her father planted fruit trees and soon their living was much better. Grasshoppers and drought destroyed their crops seven different times. Her youthful environment was mostly tending the smaller children while her mother was busy with her housework. Reading, writing, spelling and arithmetic were the main subjects taught in the school in those days. Mother was always at the head of her class in spelling. Elizabeth Crouch was her first teacher. She was very good at memorizing verses and poetry in school and in later years, when she had a family of her own, we could enjoy having her recite these verses, poems and nursery rhymes to us. Their school houses at that time didn' t have any desks. Only benches to sit on and had to hold their books and slates on their laps. When mother was a girl, she had her arm, from her shoulder to her elbow, scalded very badly. Her parents thought she never would be able to use her arm, but in time, it healed leaving only a terrible scar. She was very nearly drowned at one time, so when she became older she learned how to swim, so she was able to save her sister Agnes from drowning. Salt Lake city was our nearest trading place for supplies, so they would journey there, taking their butter and eggs to trade for groceries and clothing. In the fall of the year, she gleaned wheat, which helped a lot. Then she would select the best of the straw to braid and make into fancy hats. Her father had a small band of sheep and she would help them shear them, wash the wool and pick it ready for carding. Then she would weave it into cloth and yarn to clothes and stockings for the family. She was a very fast knitter at the time of the World War (I) and she knit sixty six pairs of men' s socks, five sweaters and 13 blocks fo r shoulder blankets. She could weave carpet, make tallow candles and was always handy at any kind of work. She would help her mother make lye from wood ashes, starch from potatoes, molasses from beets (sugar) and preserve carrots with molasses for fruit Mother has always been a great lover of flowers and in 1925 she took first prize for having the largest variety of flowers in blossom at one time in Morgan County for which she received some choice tulip bulbs. In 1914 she took first prize for having the best vegetable garden of any woman in Morgan County . , • • • Mother has had many faith promoting incidents in her life. I will only mention two of the most important ones. Her health was very poor and she felt that if she could fast and go to fast meeting and be administered to, she would be blessed. If we remember, in those early days they held fast meeting on the first Thursday morning of every month at 11 :00 a.m.. But when Thursday morning came it was very stormy and she was unable to go so she was very discouraged and blue. Shortly after mother bad gone to bed that night, feeling sick at heart, three women appeared in the doorway, then walked up to her bed. They were clothed in white. They laid their hands on her head and blessed her. She could feel their heavenly influence although she could not hear them speak. In the morning she felt so much better and stronger and was able to attend to her duties in the home. Another time, one of her children, a baby boy two months old, was very sick. After two weeks of much suffering, mother thought he was dying so she had father go for the Elders. After they had administered to him he went to sleep and slept for t\ivo hours. It seemed like he was instantly healed. When this child was l 7months old we moved up the canyon to the Morgan Tunnels as father had been sent there as watchman. It was a lonely place and no medical help couJd be obtained. This child became very ill again. Mother suggested that the family all fast and pray in his behalf This they did and at 5:00 p.m. that evening we all knelt around his bed and offered a prayer to the Lord in his behalf He started to recover from then on and enjoyed. Good health until the next summer, when he contracted whooping cough and pneumonia For seven weeks he was very sick and mother had scarcely and rest. He seemed to be much better and begged to go to bed with mother and father. But at 5:00 a.m. in the morning he asked that mother get up with him. This she did and as she was quietly going out of the room, she heard a voice say, "I have spared your child's life for one more year and he must go now". Mother thanked the Lord that he had spared him for one year yet she did not realize that he would go so soon. He wanted to be dressed and have something to eat. She gave him a small piece of bread and butter. As the little fellow took his first bite, his little head dropped and he was gone. She awoke father and told him what had happened. He told me to run to the neighbors for help, father was so excited, he asked them to administer to him. My brother came back to life and as he opened his eyes, he said, "I want to go. I want to go." Mother asked him where he wanted to go and he said "To Angel Land." The little fellow asked his sister to sing for him. He went into convulsions and for eight long hours he suffered terrible. When we all realized what we had done, we dedicated him to the Lord and we were all very thankful to our Heavenly Father when the little fellows' suffering was ended .