"To learn that they can do things that are hard"

My oldest daughter, Amanda, went on a pioneer reenactment this week.  Her cousins, Megan and Jeremy Vogel were going and invited her to go along.  At first she was not crazy about the idea of spending days on the trail in a dress, but she eventually decided that she wanted to go. 

I was grateful that she would be able to go and get a small taste of what so many of her 4th and 5th great grandparents went through as they crossed the plains.  I have told her many of our family stories and we watched the movie, 17 Miracles, the night before.

Everything that she took with her had to be able to fit into a 5 gallon bucket (except for a sleeping bag) and she had to carve her own wooden spoon.  They weren't allowed to bring anything the pioneers wouldn't have had.  For example, they could take a tooth brush, but not toothpaste, they brought a pie tin to eat from, etc.

Amanda, prepared for Trek, in her pioneer outfit and her 5 gallon bucket.  They were not able to bring anything the pioneers didn't have, except for tennis shoes, sunglasses, sunscreen and a camelback for water.

On Wednesday, 13 June, at 7:00am, all the 165 kids who here going on Trek met at the church in Mesquite, Nevada.  The kids were told that it was going to be hard, but at the end, they were going to be glad that they had done it.  At about 7:30am they were driven to the trailhead in the mountains east of Mesquite.

Megan and Jeremy Vogel, Amanda's cousins, and Amanda before leaving on Trek - Mesquite, NV

A small portion of the 165 kids leaving on Trek 2012 - Mesquite, NV

The kids were all broken up into families, with a Ma and Pa, and about 8-10 children.  They were specifically grouped so they would not be with family members, so Amanda saw her cousins occasionally, but was not in a family with them.  Amanda's family had eight kids with five girls and three boys.  They all took turns pushing the handcart, and each family took turns in their place in the line.

There were several kids who were amazed that Amanda came from California, by choice, to participate in such a grueling experience.

The first day they traveled eleven miles before stopping and camping for the night.  Amanda said they had broth and rolls for dinner that night and it was the best broth they had ever tasted.  They slept on the ground in their sleeping bags, in their clothes, and Amanda said she had never seen so many stars.  

For breakfast they had oatmeal, which she didn't like, but ate anyway, because that was all there was.  They had dried fruits as well.  Other mornings they had a "seed-looking thing" for breakfast, which she liked as much as the oatmeal.

There were "casualties", as some of the kids went home early for a variety of reasons, and one of the girls in Amanda's family got stuck between a tree and the handcart wheel and her foot was run over.  She was taken down to the doctor to get x-rays before being cleared to come back and finish the Trek.  It helped them to see what it was like for the pioneers to lose family members along the way.

The second day, they travelled ten miles.  Each day they stopped frequently for water and rest.  They played games the pioneers would have played and one night they had dancing and music.  

There last two days they traveled about six miles each.  On Friday, a Pony Express rider rode into the camp with letters from their families that we had written to them prior to when they had left.  I wrote to Amanda about her ancestors and what they experienced and why, and we told her how proud we were of her and how glad we were that she had an opportunity to experience this.

There was a photographer who went along with the group, and next month there is a reunion where everyone gets together again and gets a copy of the photos.  We will not be driving back to Nevada for that, so the Vogels will get a copy for us.  

On Saturday, 16 June, the Trek returned to the valley.  They had traveled 33 miles in four days.  When we saw the first heads pop up above the bluff, I, of course, started crying!  It was very emotional for me.  I imagine what it must have been like for the pioneers to have traveled so far, with so much hardship, so crest that last hill and see the valley below.  Knowing that they made it!  Later, Amanda told me, "I know you were all feeling spiritual, but we were just so happy to have a popcicle!"

This sign was on a house in Bunkerville, Nevada along the route that the handcarts would take as they entered the town.

These were the first heads we saw as they crested the bluff and came down the trail towards the town.

Making their way down the trail.

It was difficult to see where each of our individual kids were, so I just kept snapping photos.  I happened to get Amanda in this one.  To the right of all the people, there is a woman in a yellow shirt and blue shorts.  Just to her right is Amanda pushing the handcart.

Amanda pushing the handcart as it came into Bunkerville, Nevada.  I almost didn't see Amanda, as she was hidden behind the very tall boy next to her.

Amanda at the end of the trek.  Hot, dirty and tired, but happy!

Megan and Jeremy Vogel and Amanda at the end of Trek.

We gathered up their supplies and headed back to Mesquite for them to take well-earned showers.  This morning, Stephanie Vogel sent us a scan of the front page of the Mesquite newspaper.  Amanda made the front page!!

Amanda made the front page of the Mesquite Citizen Journal - 6/20/2012

There was a reporter that went along on the trip and wrote about it in two parts for the Mesquite Citizen Journal - Part 1 and Part 2.  There are a lot more details in the stories than I got from Amanda. I am glad that I got that perspective as well.

In the letter I wrote to her, I expressed to her about how I feel about what she was experiencing:

You have a strong pioneer ancestry, and you have many family members before you who had to do this too, and I hope that it helps you feel closer to them.  John Macfarlane, Charles Penrose, Agnes Gray, Louise Lusty, Hector Macquarrie, Ann Chatterley, to name a few.  

Ann is my favorite!  She was an amazing woman!  She came across the plains, in wagons her father had built, with her family when she was fourteen years old, like you.  The were in the John Brown Company.  She talked about the herds of buffalo "as far as the eye could reach".  She told of her fear of the Indians, and how wagons were stationed in a circle and how men stood guard, changing shifts during the night.  On the plains she learned how to make buckskin from deer hides, and she learned which herbs were best for food and healing the sick.  

I want you to know and understand how important a trek this was for them!  They had such a strong testimony of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ that they left their homes and family, everything that they knew and loved, and crossed the ocean and the plains.  They believed so strongly that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God that they sacrificed their comforts, and in some cases, their families as they made their way across the plains.  Many died on this trek, but they had a strong testimony of the higher purpose they were following.  They had a testimony of eternal families and they knew that though they lost family members along the way, they would all be together again.  They sealed their testimonies on the trails the forged across the plains and mountains they crossed.  These grandparents of yours are looking down on you right now, knowing that you are learning to more greatly appreciate the sacrifices they made so that you could have the gospel in your life.  You will know them when you see them again!  What a wonderful blessing!

Amanda says that she will not do this again, but that she is glad that she went.  She had a good time and we were so glad to see her home!

She learned, in a different way than she ever has before, that she can do things that are hard.

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

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

Hector McQuarrie

The McQuarrie name goes back to Scotland and genealogical research has been done back to the eighth century!

The McQuarrie clan tartan

Hector McQuarrie was born on 2 October 1834, in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire, Scotland.

Hector McQuarrie

From a biography by his son John Gray McQuarrie: "In 1850, members of the McQuarrie family were still tenant farmers at Kilmacolme in the highlands of Scotland. About this time a family council was held. There were then eight in the family -- too many for the small acreage to support.

"Allan McQuarrie, the father had his leg amputated perhaps three years before, had only a "peg leg." His sons were: Robert, the eldest, about eighteen; Hector, sixteen; Neal, fourteen; John, twelve; Agnes, ten; and Mary, eight.

"It was necessary for at least one of the boys to leave the home to go out on his own. Although Hector had never been more than twenty miles from his country home, he recognized that his father's handicap placed Robert as the responsible head of the family. He concluded that he was the logical one to leave, Beyond what he could carry in a knapsack, the family had nothing to divide -- not even a donkey to carry his bedroll.

"It required courage, principle, and sacrifice for a country boy of sixteen to cut himself loose from all his boyhood moorings, not knowing where or when he could find new attachments.

"When he reached Glasgow, his only resource was brawn and muscle. He bound himself as an apprentice in a blacksmith shop. His wages at first would be a mere pittance. But when he became a journeyman he would have a trade -- an opportunity to manage his own business. His decision was wise. His future experience prove that…on the last frontier, he would never be without gainful employment.

"In 1854, my father [Hector] heard the gospel message from Elder Baxter. Soon after this association commenced, he applied for baptism. He invited Elder Baxter to accompany him to his Highland home that [his family], too, might hear the warning message. This proved good news to the family…who were also baptized.

"The spirit of gathering took hold of the family. Again it was Hector that was the one to blaze the trail to find "The Place" to make the beginning of a new home."

Hector left Scotland with Robert Wright Baxter, who wrote about their trip to America: "On February 13, 1855 I started with my wife Jane and four children and Brother Hector McQuarrie for Zion. We sailed from Greenock to Liverpool. April 2 we arrived in Philadelphia. Our fare was $18.00 adult tickets and $12.00 fro children. We went on the steamship "Mongal" to St. Louis arriving May 13. The cholera was very bad four died in one family. I helped dig many graves.

"On July 3, we started in the Richard Ballantyne Company to cross the plaines to Zion. Sister Margaret Thomson fell out of the wagon, her legs were run over, but she soon got well. We had two yoke of cattle, one yoke of cows, 10 sacks of flour and 10 people, bedding, cooking utensils, etc., in each wagon. In my wagon was me, my wife, four children, Brother Hector McQuarrie, Arnold Goodluff, Sister Diamond, and Margaret Thomson.

"On September 26, 1855, we arrived in Salt Lake City. The grasshoppers had eaten the crops. I worked for Golding and Raleigh making shoes. They paid for shoes and leather, but we couldn't eat leather. For 13 weeks we never tasted bread. We lived on roots. At one time we paid $2.50 a bushel for weeds and roots."

From the diary of his brother Robert, "In February 1855, my brother Hector immigrated from Scotland to Salt Lake City. In April 1857, we immigrated to America with mother, father, 2 brothers and 2 sisters We left our home and sailed from Greenock to Liverpool per Steamship Vanguard. Besides father's family, we took with us Hamilton Garrnk and Agnes Gray, who after our arrival in Salt Lake City became the wife of my brother, Hector."

"My father made a wise choice when he settled in Ogden. He secured a full acre of ground which proved to be the most favored homestead in the city. He opened a blacksmith shop. He built a log house which provided a shelter for the balance of the family, which came in 1857." (from the biography by his son John Gray McQuarrie)

Hector married Agnes Gray on 29 November 1857 in Ogden, Utah. They had five children: Robert, Agnes, Hector, Matthew, and John.

Agnes Gray McQuarrie

"He was a blacksmith with nothing but his shop and tools and his homelot, with a one-room sandstone house, unfinished attic, and later a lean-to kitchen. The walls were of one inch boards.

"The boys and girls I associated with had store clothes, shipped from the States, I was still wearing coarse jeans from the Washington factory; also homemade shoes and hats. We still had rag carpets and homemade furniture. My father was the typical village blacksmith with his sinewy arms and black hands. His clothes were coarse. He wore a long leather apron stained with coal smoke and pitted by the hot sparks which flew from the anvil.

"Among his associates my father was honored because of his loyalty, industry, and, especially, for his much-needed skill.

"In 1861 Brigham Young and the Twelve decided to build a Temple in the St. George Valley. My father, being a skilled mechanic, was called.

"At the time my father had a wife and two children: Robert, age three, and Agnes, age one. He owned little other than his shop and an interest in the home lot. These possessions were sold for sufficient to buy a roomy wagon, a yoke of oxen, and a year's supply of necessary food and clothing. He then set out on a trip of 400 miles, which, considering the difficult roads, required greater effort than the thousand miles he walked across the plains.

"The journey south proved too difficult for little Agnes. She died at Indian Creek, six miles north of Beaver. [Hector] walked in to Beaver, secured a pine board, made a rough box large enough to contain the child's body. She is buried there in what has become an unmarked grave." (from the biography by his son John Gray McQuarrie)

Hector also helped many other members of his family and his wife's family come to and settle in America.

"When the foundation of the Temple was being laid, [Hector] was needed more in the quarry to sharpen drills, picks, and crowbars than in his town blacksmith shop. So he moved his bellows, anvil, and vice and set them up between the large black rocks on the ridge just west of town.

"When the Temple reached a stage in its construction where lumber was needed, it was necessary to build a road through Black Rock Canyon. My father and his tools followed the road construction.

"With the completion of the road and the establishment of the lumber mill, my father moved to Mt. Trumble. He repaired the mill, the logging carts, made chains and ox shoes, kept freight wagons in repair, etc. He could make bolts, hinges, etc. - out of old iron spikes for building. In fact, he was the most necessary general utility man in keeping the lumber rolling.

"As a result of hard work; poor water; exposure to storms, heat, and cold; and often poor food, he was forced to retire when he was nearing age sixty." (from the biography by his son John Gray McQuarrie)

It is mentioned in a "Report on Genealogy and Temple Work" by J.G. McQuarrie that "Hector…worked in the in the St. George Temple from the time he was 60 years of age until he was 80 (years of age)."

Hector's wife, Agnes died in 1900 and was buried in the St. George Cemetery.

Hector McQuarrie moved to Salt Lake City in 1919. There is no mention in any of my records as to why, or if he was living with any relatives. The 1920 Census has him listed individually.

Hector McQuarrie died 16 November 1920 in Salt Lake City, but was buried in St. George next to his wife.




I am always amazed at the stories of my family who immigrated to America and all the incredible hardships that they went through. I enjoy being able to hop into our air-conditioned van each Sunday to drive 50 miles to my husband's parent's house in the mountains. 150 years ago this would not be a weekly journey. It would be a difficult, several day journey.

Direct line ancestry: Hector McQuarrie --> Robert Gray McQuarrie --> Ruth McQuarrie Penrose --> Lu Penrose Bond --> Kathryn Bond Berkowitz --> Lora Marshall Nehring

Henry Innis

Henry Innis was born in May 1st, 1792 in Pennsylvania. Most of my information about Henry Innis, is from a book called, The McKendree Story: 125 Years of History of the McKendree Methodist Church. published in 1957.


"[Henry's] parents were devout Quakers of Pennsylvania but Henry was converted to the Methodist faith at a protracted meeting when a young boy. This fact led to unpleasant repercussions in the home as the staid and dignified Quaker parents were obliged to hear their son pray in the Methodist way as he went about his farm work.

"It is said that as he plowed he formed the habit of kneeling at the end of each row to pray. The longer he prayed the louder he became until he could be heard a great distance, much to the chagrin of his father, who felt disgraced before his neighbors. He was punished severely by his father but to no avail for Henry had become a true Methodist and could be nothing else. So his mother, in order to avoid an open, violent rupture between these two loved ones, advised Henry to leave the parental home even going so far as to say she had heard that there were some good Methodists!

"His home life thus dissolved, Henry, young and more or less unsettled, did as many young men have done, joined the army (War of 1812). Wounded and discharged, he started back home. His Christian faith still strong and his Methodist belief unshaken, he inquired for, and found, as he passed through Jefferson County, Ohio, others of like faith. He was directed to the home of Mr. Elias Pegg, asked for a night's lodging as he was weary and ill. Here he was kindly received, nursed back to health and later married the daughter, Isabelle Pegg."

Henry and Isabelle were married June 10th, 1813. They had eight children.



Continuing from the book: "Henry and Isabelle Innis finally established their home in Clinton Township [Ohio] in 1820, the home that was opened to their friends and neighbors for religious services; so long ago Henry Innis was the mainstay of the small group who felt the need of a church and his earthly remains lie in the small cemetery to the rear of the church which he founded."


from the book called, The McKendree Story: 125 Years of History of the McKendree Methodist Church.

Henry died May 20th, 1865, and is buried in the McKendree Methodist Church Cemetery in Columbus, Franklin, Ohio.




(photos by Jeremy Meadows)


A current photo of the McKendree Methodist Church in Columbus, Ohio


1850 United States Federal Census, Henry Innis listed on line 33, Louisa listed on line 36


1860 United States Federal Census, Henry Innis listed on line 1

Direct line ancestry: Henry Innis --> Louisa Annie Innis --> Anna White Durrett --> Florence Faye Alkire --> Wilburta June Love --> Donald William Marshall --> Lora Marshall Nehring