June ERIN HOOLEY/Standard-Examiner The World War I monument at Ogden City Cemetery will be part of the Ogden Cemetery Walking History Tour. Dressed in period attire, Shirley Slater Huesgen (left) stands near the grave monument for her ancestors at the cemetery. Huesgen and other guides will discuss their ancestors and others during the tours on Saturday and Monday. to the cemetery's other war memorial — dozens of stately trees lining Madison Avenue, which is dubbed "Gold Star Drive" in the cemetery. The American Gold Star Mothers was organized after World War I to support women who had lost sons or daughters in the conflict. "Each of these big trees along the street is planted by the mother of a serviceman who died from Weber County," Hanson says. At the foot of each tree — 52 Emerald Queen maples in all — are small plaques bearing the names of the soldiers. Some of the markers have been covered over the years by grass or dirt, Hanson says. During its decade of walking history tours, the Family History Center has spotlighted graves of various pioneers in the cemetery, says Hanson, a genealogy instructor at the center operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This year's focus is on four graves located along the cemetery's 12th Avenue. Sidney Stevens brought farming implements to Ogden and James Iverson sold real estate; Louis Frederick Moench founded the forerunner of Weber State University and Richard Slater founded the town of Slaterville. 'Knack for healing' Outfitted in a calico dress and cotton sunbonnet, Shirley Slater Huesgen will tell the story of her great-great-grandmother Ann Corbridge Slater. Slater and her husband, Richard, were born in England and came to America in 1840 as converts to the Mormon Church. "Her life is an interesting story," says Huesgen of Clinton, explaining her great-great grandmother had a "knack for healing" and caring for the sick. The Slaters arrived in Utah in 1852 and settled in what is now Marriott-Slaterville; their two-story brick home still stands there. Every summer, American Indians used to pass through the area, and one year Ann Slater cared for a young Indian child who was ill. The next year, the Indians brought her bags of wild berries — a luxury — to thank her, Heusgen says. A history fan, Huesgen says she hopes the walking history tour inspires others to research their own family's genealogy. Maybe 100 years from now, she says, "they might have a great- great-grandchild who will want to stand up and tell their story." Time to remember . The mystery of a son disappearing at age 3 and returning to his family at 17 will be told by Jerry Harrop of Ogden. The child belonged to James Iverson, Harrop's great-grandfather and a Danish immigrant, farmer and seller of property. Iverson's wife would pick flowers every day and send the couple's 3-year-old out to the field to give them to her husband as he worked; Iverson would in turn pick flowers for his wife and send the child back to the house with them. But one day, the boy never made it to visit his father in the field — and ended up being lost for years, Harrop says. "There are various theories as to what happened," he says, and he will explore those theories for visitors. Harrop has participated in the tour for several years, telling stories of various ancestors buried in the Ogden cemetery. "I cannot abide the fact that when somebody passes away, they may be forgotten," he says, "particularly when it comes to family relatives. It's important to remember their lives, their toils, their sacrifices that they accomplished so their descendants could live here." More walks to come Even folks who don't have relatives buried in the Ogden City Cemetery can learn something from the tours, the organizers say. "It's the culture and heritage of our community — our own city and county — that's being preserved," Harrop says. Hanson says she finds that history is "something that bites you and you just can't let it go." And even after 10 years, the cemetery hasn't run out of areas to spotlight on future walking tours. After all, she says, "Every grave has a story." 226