Pioneer Day 2013

In honor of Pioneer Day, I thought I would post the photos I took at the Historic Penrose Cabin in Farmington, Utah.  I have been to the cabin a few times, but had never been inside.  

This is me, back in the early 1990s, outside the gate at the Penrose Cabin

This last trip to Utah, we were able to get a hold of the DUP group that cares for the site and they unlocked the gate so we could see the interior of the cabin.

Our group was Marjorie Castle, Kathryn Berkowitz, Rebecca, Katrina and I.  

Charles W. Penrose left England and travelled, as a pioneer, across the plains, arriving in Utah in 1861.  This cabin was built in Farmington, Utah, for he and his family to live until another home could be built for them.  (This cabin is located behind an amazingly beautiful stone chapel in Farmington that I never remember to take a photo of, so I got this off Google Maps!)

There is basically one corner of the museum that has artifacts from Charles W. Penrose:

There are several items, including Charles' "dress suit" (which he is wearing in several photos), his rocking chair, and a portrait.

There were also many histories and photos in a binder on the front table.  To see photos of the histories, and all the photos I took at the cabin, click HERE.

It was lovely to get to see the interior of the cabin!

Rebecca, Katrina and Lora Nehring at the Historic Penrose Cabin

Direct line ancestry: Charles W. Penrose --> Frank W. Penrose --> Lu Penrose --> Kathryn Bond -->  Lora Marshall Nehring

Penrose Family Reunion

The Penrose Family Reunion was held on 18 July 2013 in Utah.  It was held at Mark and Shelly Evans beautiful home in the east Salt Lake area.  This is the second bi-annual reunion and I am SO glad I got to go this year!!  I drove out to Utah with Rebecca and Katrina, and my mom was able to come this year too!!  (She won the prize for having travelled the farthest, from Alaska!)

Cousins!! - Kristen Castle Dean, Jennifer Castle Critchlow, Lora Marshall Nehring, and Laurel Castle DeGroot

It was great to see my cousins and meet so many new ones!  I even found out that I have the "Penrose toe"!  (That is when your second toe sticks up farther than your big toe.)  Who knew?!

The reunion is a gathering of the descendants of the "Great Eight" - the children of Frank and Ruth Penrose: Marjorie, Dixie, Mil, Penny, Lu, Ann, Bud and Jean.  There was great food, swimming, prizes and lots of good conversation and catching up!

To see all the photos that I took at the reunion, click HERE.

The children of the Great Eight:

back row: Lloyd Drecksel (Dixie), Robyn Thompson (Penny), Sheila Penrose (Ann), Samuel Penrose Thomas (Jean), Larry Penrose (Bud), Jeff Thomas (Jean). front row: Kathryn Berkowitz (Lu), Marjorie Castle (Lu), Peggy Smith (Mil), Kathy Jones (Ann)

And the children of the children of the Great Eight:

back row: Lora Nehring (Lu), Shelly Evans (Ann), Patricia Kingston Quirk (Mil), Phyllis Vetter (Ann), Merb Jones (Ann), Erik Kingston (Mil), Kait Kingston (Mil). front row: Kristen Dean (Lu), Julie Smith (Mil), Jennifer Critchlow (Lu), Laurel DeGroot (Lu).

When we were taking this photo, someone directed that the people that were 45 and up had to stand in the back.  At first I was kind of bummed to be old enough to stand in the back row.  Then I looked around at the company I was standing with.  All these amazing, gorgeous women!  I suddenly felt very privileged.  We all have all inherited those great Penrose genes!!  (Erik too! : )

Here are the descendants of Dixie:

Alex Drecksel, Jill Drecksel, Paul Drecksel, Debra Howard, Gary Howard, Lloyd Penrose (attended but not pictured: Willie, Linda,  Tristin, Hilary and baby Jaxon)

Mildred:

back row: Ray Kingston, Vicky Kingston, Erik Kingston, Jim Quirk; middle row: Sha-Sha Kingston, Lauren Quirk, Sarah Quirk, Patricia Quirk, Julie Smith, Kait Eckman; front row: Gaylon and Peggy Smith

Penny:

Robyn Thompson, Terri James, Cloe James and Summer Thompson

Lu:

back: Nyle Critchlow, Marjorie Castle, Brent Castle, Kristen Dean, Tyler DeGroot, Laurel DeGroot, Kathryn Berkowitz, Lora Nehring. middle: Jennifer Critchlow, Tate DeGroot, Braxton Dean, Beckham and Brooklyn Dean (twins), Kaitlin Dean. front row: Dallin DeGroot, Brady Critchlow, Max Critchlow, Lucian Critchlow, Parker DeGroot, Katrina Nehring, Rebecca Nehring

Jennifer made these pedigrees of the family members who were there at the reunion

Ann:

Mikey, Mai-Mai, Phyllis Vitter, Gunther, (I don't know, sorry), Merb Jones, Kathy Jones, Sheila Penrose, Shelly Evans, Kelsey, Mark Evans.  (attended but not pictured: Sally and Bill Knowles)

Bud:

Kathy and Larry Penrose

Jean:

Samuel Thomas, Jeff Thomas, Linda Thomas, Wendy Thomas

(I didn't leave Marge out, she didn't have any children.)

We were all asked to bring any Penrose photos, documents, stories, etc. that we could share, as there would be a scanner there.  I had loaded up all my info on a memory stick before I left Kerman, and at the reunion, I went to hand it to Nyle, who was scanning away, and when I opened my thumb drive, I was startled to see only the case!  I traced my steps back to the car and searched it too.  I called home, and Kevin checked the computer, and sure enough, there it was sticking out of the back of the computer!  D-oh!!  So, Kevin loaded it all onto Google Drive and I was able to retrieve it to add it to the mix. : )  Thanks sweetheart!! 

Kevin took this photo of my memory stick, still in Kerman

It was a wonderful evening and I am so proud to be a member of such a great group of people!! 

Earlier in the day, the girls and I had been on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, and we took a tour of the Conference Center.  We went through a room that had portraits of all the Apostles and then into a room that had busts of all the prophets.  As we stood there, I could see another room, beyond where we were standing, that had more paintings in it.  I asked our tour guide what was in that room, and she said it was portraits of all the modern-day Apostles.  I said, "my 2nd great-grandfather is in there," and she said, "Go!"  The girls and I hurried down the hall and found the portrait of Charles W. Penrose, and took a couple of pictures.  Perfect timing! : )

Direct line ancestry -->  Charles W. Penrose and Louise Elizabeth Lusty --> Frank William Penrose and Ruth McQuarrie -->  Lu Penrose --> Kathryn Bond -->  Lora Marshall Nehring

Lu Penrose Bond - 28 October 1912

Today would have been Gma Lu's 100th birthday!  What a marvelous milestone!!  Yet, she would have been unfazed.  Haha!  She was a very regal woman, and just took things as they came. I miss her.

Lu Penrose Bond - 1983

I lived with Gma for a year in 1991.  I want to quickly share the story of that came to be.  I was going through a time in my life where things were not going the way I was hoping they would.  I was kind of stuck and I wasn't sure what I should be doing.  I was living in Tucson, AZ, going to school at the University of Arizona.  I had been praying about what I needed to be doing, and one day, as I was walking to work, I was in the middle of an empty parking lot, outside an abandoned building, and I heard a voice say very clearly, "move to Fresno."  I was so startled and I looked around to see who had said it.  There was no one anywhere.  It would never have occurred to me to move to Fresno!  I thought of Fresno as, and I quote (keeping in mind that I was young and stupid), the "armpit of California."  Nevertheless, I got to work, and called Gma Lu.  I asked her if I could come to stay with her.  She said yes, and within two weeks, I had finished everything up in AZ, and moved to Fresno.  I know I was supposed to be there, with my Gma, for that period in time! 

I joked for a long time that all my friends in Fresno were little old ladies, as I took Gma to DUP, The Silver Belles get-togethers, etc..  We would sit at her dining room table and I would ask her questions, and she would tell me stories, and I wrote them down as quickly as I could.  She told me about her youth, about her parents, about her marriage.  All wonderful memories to be preserved.

I remember that she always had a "round robin" going with all of her siblings.  They would send a manilla envelope with letters and photos in it from one person to the next.  You would read everyone's things, add your own, and take out what you had put in previously, then send it on to the next person.  I thought that was so cool, and wanted to do that with everyone when we got older, but by then there was email and digital photos, etc., and it didn't seem as necessary.  Kind of a shame.

For me, it was the WAY she told stories. I have very specific phrases that come to my mind, and I hear them in my head in HER voice.  When I am having nasal issues, I hear her voice saying, "By dose is rudding a streab."  She told the story about her father who always had such amazing sandwiches in his lunches and one day (at the other man's request) traded sandwiches with a co-worker. As he bit into the peanut butter sandwich he had been given, he yelled out, "Help!  I've been poisoned!!"  I remember how she called people "ding-a-lings" when they did something she didn't like.  I loved it when she told me the story of how after she and Gpa had gotten married, he shaved his mustache.  When he came out of the bathroom, he asked, "How do I look?"  Gma said, "Clean."  He said, "Yes, but how do I look?"  She looked at him harder, trying to figure out why he kept asking, and said again, "Clean."  As she was telling me the story, Gma took her hand and waved it over her head and said, "Woosh!"  That just cracked me up!

I remember sitting watching her paint her nails.  I always thought her nails were so beautiful, always long and thin.  I remember how she always sat up straight, no matter where she was.  Even sitting on a couch.  I remember what a prolific reader she was!  Always reading something!  I remember giving her two rolls of Certs for Christmas one year, and she treated them as if I had given her something very important.  I remember the "ACK!" sound she would make when she was telling a story where she had been surprised or startled.  I remember how the air felt and smelled and I would step out of her house onto the back porch.  That is how Fresno is supposed to feel and smell.  I can't describe that any other way.  

Last year, I did a post about her birthday as well, which can be seen HERE

Gma Lu was a special lady.  An old friend of Gma's calls my oldest daughter, "Little Lu".  I am glad to have that frequent reminder in my life of how much she meant to people.

I hope that we can always continue to share these wonderful stories of our family members so they continue to live on with us!

Happy Birthday Gma Lu!!  I love you!

Direct Line Ancestry: Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Preserving Our Heritage

I believe I have mentioned that I am a member of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers.  I will have been a member for twenty years in November of this year.  Our District's annual Convention was in Fresno this year, and I was in charge of the decorations.  I wanted to share the idea that I had for the decorations, as it had to do with my family history.


Using the theme, Preserving Our Heritage, I went with preserving.......preserves......canning......and this is the end result:

Several other people, including Carol, Kevin's mother, provided a great deal of the preserves and canning equipment for the centerpieces.  The photos in the jars are of many of my ancestors who crossed the plains themselves, and many others from mine and Kevin's families that were pioneers in coming to this country.

I used photos from my family history in the jars.  The invitations were done by another person and went perfectly with the decorations!

I also did a table showing different ways to preserve histories, including scrapbooks, Book of Remembrance, personal histories, journals, shadow boxes, scanning photographs and documents, blogs, and detailed artifact inventory.


I am applying for the DUP Honorary Heritage pin, as my grandmother, Lu Penrose Bond and my great-grandmother, Ruth McQuarrie Penrose, were also members of DUP.  I am honored to be in an organization that works so hard to preserve the heritage and histories of our beloved ancestors.

Charles William Penrose - Life History: Part 2

Upon further research, it turns out there may be a biography of my great-great grandfather, Charles Penrose.  A book entitled "Charles W. Penrose : his life and thought" by Kenneth W. Godfrey.  It is available only at the libraries at BYU and the Utah State University, so I won't be able to check it out any time soon.  Next time I head that direction I will have to take a look.


In 1851 Charles Penrose began a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. From a talk I gave in 1983:  "He rose in service in the Church in England, and forsook an opportunity for a career in the British government to fulfill a mission call.  He served as a missionary for ten years and traveled thousands of miles on foot" - and during which time he established a number of branches of the Church.


From the internet site: mormonhistory dot org it describes Charles Penrose's mission:


"His scriptural attainments and spiritual inclinations soon brought him under notice of the presiding authorities of the London conference, and in January, 1851, when not yet nineteen years old, he was ordained an Elder, and two months later was sent on a mission to Maldon, in Essex, to preach the gospel, "break new ground," and build up branches of the Church. This movement was much in opposition to the wishes of his friends, and to his own pecuniary interests, as he had been offered, on condition of his remaining home, a life situation in a government office. Shutting his eyes to the gilded bait of temptation, he took up the cross of the Master, and literally "without purse or scrip," taking not a penny in his pocket, nor even a change of dress, started out afoot upon his mission as a servant of the Lord. With bleeding feet but undaunted heart, he reached the town of Maldon, having slept out of doors for the first time in his life the chilly night previous. He was an utter stranger in the place, and the first "Mormon" Elder to visit that region of the country. He met with much opposition, but steadily worked his way in the town of Maldon, and the country round about, and succeeded in raising up branches of the Church in Maldon, Danbury, Chelmsford, Colchester and other places, baptizing a great number of persons of both sexes, many of whom are now in Utah, and being instrumental, by the laying on of hands, in the restoration to health of many persons afflicted with disease. He possessed the gift of healing to a remarkable degree, and several of the cures performed were of a miraculous order.


"He labored for seven years in poor agricultural districts, opening new missionary fields, building up branches, suffering many hardships and trudging on foot between three and four thousand miles every year."


The most famous story from his mission was that after seven years in the mission field, Charles was going to go home. The furniture in his flat, which was very nice, belonged to his parents.   Charles went to move the furniture out and the other missionaries rebuked him because they thought, since it had been so long, that the furniture belonged to the Church, not to him.  Elder Penrose said, I have taken all sorts of abuse from the people of this country, but I refuse to endure it from a fellow missionary!


Because of that occurrence, he wrote a poem that later became Hymn 336, "School Thy Feelings".


From ldschurcharchives dot com it refers to the circumstances surrounding Charles' writing of the hymn:


"Elder Charles W. Penrose, an apostle and later counselor to Joseph F. Smith, turned a false accusation against him into a poem, which later became one of our hymns: "School Thy Feelings," (Hymns 336.)


"Reflecting on the event that led to his penning the words, Penrose wrote: "This hymn was not intended for singing; it was written for myself. . . . I had been insidiously accused, not openly, but certain things had been said about me and my presidency of the Birmingham Conference . . . and this touched me to the heart. I did not know how to bear it. Weltering under these feelings I sat down and wrote that little poem, right from my soul, and intended it for my self. . . . President Brigham Young . . . later told me that he had it read to him several times when he had a deputy marshal guarding him in his house." (Our Latter-day Hymns, pp 323-24.)


"Later Elder Orson F. Whitney, then a member of the Council of the Twelve, expressed this thought: "Here was one who knew himself to be `falsely, basely slandered,' pleading not with his accuser but with himself against the passing of condemnation `on friend or foe.' Except for the infamy of his act, I could almost thank `the accuser of the brethren' for that `quiet slander' which wounded the poet's sensitive soul and gave us as the indirect and unintended result this beautiful hymn."


School Thy Feelings
School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.
Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.
School thy feelings; there is power In the cool, collected mind.
  Passion shatters reason's tower, Makes the clearest vision blind.
School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.
  Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.


School thy feelings; condemnation Never pass on friend or foe,
 Though the tide of accusation Like a flood of truth may flow.

Hear defense before deciding, And a ray of light may gleam,
Showing thee what filth is hiding Underneath the shallow stream.  
School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.
  Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.


Should affliction's acrid vial Burst o'er thy unsheltered head,
 School thy feelings to the trial; Half its bitterness hath fled.
Art thou falsely, basely, slandered? Does the world begin to frown?
  Gauge thy wrath by wisdom's standard; Keep thy rising anger down.
School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.
  Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.


Rest thyself on this assurance: Time's a friend to innocence,
 And the patient, calm endurance Wins respect and aids defense.
Noblest minds have finest feelings; Quiv'ring strings a breath can move;
 And the gospel's sweet revealings Tune them with the key of love.
  School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.
  Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.


Hearts so sensitively molded Strongly fortified should be,
 Trained to firmness and enfolded In a calm tranquility.
  Wound not willfully another; Conquer haste with reason's might;
  School thy feelings, sister, brother; Train them in the path of right.
School thy feelings, O my brother; Train thy warm, impulsive soul.  
Do not its emotions smother, But let wisdom's voice control.


There was 143 years in between the missionary service of Elder Charles Penrose and Sister Lora Marshall, but we served the same cause, the same Church, the same Savior.  I am grateful for that connection and how that draws his life closer to mine.

Direct line ancestry: Charles William Penrose --> Frank William Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Charles William Penrose - Life History: Part 1

I mentioned in a previous post that my great-great grandfather, Charles William Penrose has never had a book written about him.  I found that amazing, as he had a very full life, and he was somewhat famous in Church history.  There is a dorm named for him at BYU after all. : )

When I was on my mission I was in a missionary conference and my Mission President was speaking about Charles W. Penrose.  He asked if anyone had heard of him, so I raised my hand and told him that he my 2nd great grandfather.  My Mission President asked what I could tell everyone about him, and put on the spot like that, my mind went completely blank, and I couldn't remember a THING about Charles W. Penrose.  I was so embarrassed!  I didn't ever want to be in that spot again!

A picture of me, Sister Marshall, on my mission.  I was leaving for the Australia Melbourne Mission and my Gma Lu Penrose Bond, Aunt Marji Castle and Uncle Brent Castle met me at the Salt Lake City Airport to say good-bye.  December 1993

So, I want to compile all I can find about Charles W. Penrose.  I will compile his history the best I can.  And, with it all in one place, hopefully I won't ever go blank again if anyone asks me about my great-great grandfather.

Let's start with the basics.  Charles was born on 4 February 1832 in Camberwell, London, England to Richard Penrose and Matilda Sims Penrose.  Charles was Christened on 31 May 1837 at St. John Parish, Waterloo, Lambeth, London, Surrey, England.

A copy of Charles William Penrose's christening/baptism certificate

A photo of Matilda Sims Penrose (no date)

He was the second child, and only son, born to Richard and Matilda.  His older sister was Juliana, and his younger sisters were Matilda, Emma and Elvira.

In a talk that I gave in 1983, I wrote: "On February 4th, 1832, Charles W. Penrose was born to a well-to-do family in Camberwell England.  By the time he was four he was already reading the Bible.  He heard the Mormon missionaries when he was eighteen years old and when he joined the Church, he was disowned and disinherited."  He was the only member of his family to join the Church, being baptized on 14 May 1850, and my grandmother said that as far as she knew, he never talked to any of his family again after that.

I don't have any photos of Charles as a young man, but I think of all his sons, that Herbert looks the most like him, so I am going to say that this is probably what Charles looked like as a youth.

Herbert "Herb" L. Penrose

Next post I will write more about Charles W. Penrose's mission in England.

Direct line ancestry: Charles William Penrose --> Frank William Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Happy Birthday Gma Lu!!

I miss my grandmother.  She was a wonderful lady.  Today would have been her 99th birthday!  She died in 1997 right before my oldest daughter was born.  The last time I saw my Gma Lu, I told her that I really wanted my children to know her, but knowing she was going to be dying soon (I was told by the hospice nurse that she had been waiting for me to visit her before she died), she and I agreed that it was now my responsibility to make sure that my children knew her.  Hence, one of the reason for this blog.  

So, in honor of my Gma Lu's birthday, I am sharing some photos, and a story she told about one of her birthdays.

Lu Penrose - Senior photo

Lu right around the time of her marriage to Richard Bond - 1941

Lu Penrose Bond - October 1983

Lu and her granddaughters in 1993 - back: Lora Marshall, DeeDee Castle, Jennifer Castle

front: Laurel Castle, Lu Penrose Bond, Kristen Castle

My photos of Gma Lu from when she was young (that are not in profile) are copies of copies and are horrible.  If anyone has actual photos I would be so grateful to have a copy of them.

Gma talked about one of her birthdays:

One of my birthdays stands out in my mind, and I think it must have been when I was about twelve, because I invited bit girls and boys to my party for the first time, and because my birthday in close to Halloween, I had a Halloween costume party.  And everybody was coming to dinner and party and in costumes and one person came in particularly early, which we weren't too thrilled about, but we were polite, but I didn't know who the person was, but I was ashamed to admit that I didn't know who it was, and I said, "Come in."

"Am I early?"

"Well, yes, a little, but that's alright."

The rest of them were coming.  Well, so we had out dinner and played games and I kept thinking, "Who is that girl?  I don't know who she is, but I must have invited her."  And, I think, "Oh, that crazy Joe, he probably forgot the party was tonight.  His birthday is tomorrow and maybe he didn't even care about coming to the party tonight.  Well, he's the loser."

Anyway, we played games and did all those things, like bobbing for apples in a big wash tub thing and we had pumpkins with candles in them for lights.  We played spin the bottle and all those exciting games.  Had birthday cake and ice cream and when all the kids were ready to leave to go home, this girl came over tome and she says, "You don't recognize me, do you?"  Put me right not he spot, and I said, "No, I don't.  At first I thought you were so-and-so and then I thought, no I didn't invite her."  It was this Joe that I thought had forgotten to come to the party and he was in costume made up like a girl, everything about his costume and his makeup was so perfect nobody recognized him.  Nobody knew that the girl was a boy.  And that was Joe Paytrick that lived two houses away from me all my life, till I grew up and got married,  He was invited tot eh party and I thought he didn't come.  Nobody knew who that strange girl was who came to the party in a dress and long hair.  Absolutely perfect, and I think one of his sisters must have helped him.  Maybe he was wearing one of their dresses, who knows.  But that's the only party I remember from when I was young."

  (transcribed by Lora Nehring from a cassette tape recorded by Marji Castle 2 May 1982)

Here are pages from our family scrapbook that I made when Gma died.

Direct line ancestry: Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Honoring those who have served our country(?) - Frank William Penrose

It always amazes me how much I do NOT know about my ancestors until I try to sit down and write about them.



I know that my great-grandfather, Frank William Penrose, registered for the military on, interestingly enough, September 11, 1918. Below is a copy of his registration card.



Other than that I have no idea if Frank actually served in the military. I have never seen any photos of him in uniform or anything like that, and I don't remember my grandmother ever mentioning that he served in WWI. He was 42 years old at the time of his registration, so I doubt he served for that reason alone.

Does anyone know? Does anyone have any photos or documentation that he served?

So, this one is actually more about the fact that he registered on 9/11. And, I will honor him, regardless. : )

Direct line ancestry: Frank William Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Charles W. Penrose

I found out today that there are no written biographies of Charles W. Penrose, which I found surprising. I was looking for a feed on the lds.org website and I stumbled across the Legacy podcasts from the Mormon Channel. Episode 57 is The Life of Charles W. Penrose. It is a 45 minute discussion with Historian Kenneth Godfrey on the life of missionary, Apostle, and First Presidency member Charles W. Penrose. I learned quite a few things I hadn't known about him.



To hear the broadcast CLICK HERE

Direct line ancestry: Charles William Penrose --> Frank William Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Historic Penrose Cabin

I often complain that I don't have enough storage space for all the STUFF that we have as a family. I cannot image living in a tiny, one room cabin, yet many of my ancestors did.

In an interview with Lu Penrose Bond, recorded in 1982, she talked about her grandfather, Charles W. Penrose.



"My father's father, Charles W. Penrose, was born in England, February 4, 1832. I think that sounds right. Anyway, he came to America in about 1850 . . . . . I can't remember. When he first came to Utah, he and his first wife and a few children lived in a log cabin in Farmington, Utah, and that log cabin is in Farmington today. It has a plaque on that says he lived there."

This is a photo of me in front of the Penrose Cabin, taken in December of 1991.



The cabin was closed when I was there so I have never been able to see inside. I hope I can make it back there sometime when it is open and this time I can take my daughters to see it too.

The plaque on the cabin says:

In 1847 Hector C. Haight settled in North Cottonwood, now Farminton, followed by others and a ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized in 1849, Joseph L. Robinson, bishop. In 1861 this cabin, built for Charles W. Penrose by his friends, was typical of the homes of the day. It was moved log by log to the courthouse grounds, rebuilt and dedicated 1926 as a Daughters of Utah Pioneers relic hall. Returned to it's original site in 1856.

Margaret Steed Hees, historian for the Helen Mar Miller Camp, Daughters of Utah Pioneers wrote the following history about this little pioneer cabin:

"Friends and neighbors of Charles W. Penrose built this cabin for him. In those days the east winds blew fiercely, and one night one of those winds blew in the door and windows. Mrs. Penrose was in bed with a young baby and to keep them from freezing to death, it was necessary for Brother Penrose to work feverishly to nail up quilts to these openings. Soo after this, Brother Penrose left for a mission to England and while there he wrote the beautiful song 'Blow Gently Ye Wild Winds, My Loved Ones Are There. . .' . This marker was dedicated October 5, 1968." (From: Our Pioneer Heritage, DUP, Salt Lake City, UT, 1977, vol. 20, pg. 434)

I found the following undated article sometime around 1998.



Direct line ancestry: Charles William Penrose --> Frank William Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring