As I
read about the country of our forefather’s birth, my mind becomes as a cinemascope
and I see a land less than half as large as our dear Utah. It is bordered on
the east by England, the Dee River and Irish Sea on the north, on the south the
Bristol Channel, and the Carnarvon Bay forms and irregular boundary on the
west. This small country has many hills, valleys and mountains. Much rain is
blown in from the Atlantic Ocean making the grass lush and green, providing
feed for the small herds of sheep and cattle. The mountains of Wales contain
vast coal mines and other minerals. This land was the land of King Arthur and
his Round Table.
There
is much to be said about the Welsh people and their love for music, their
beautiful voices, and their ability to compose stories and poetry. The Bennetts
were true blooded Welshman and with the above traits also possessed the desire
to be known as hard working, trustworthy, God-fearing and happy people.
Our
Bennetts lived in Flintshire near the shores of the Dee River. The water rushes
down from Chester and becomes a great shipping channel as it widens and flows
on out to the sea. Because of the channel, it was a matter of logic for the
villages along its banks to have shipyards. To be the scene of weary fishermen
checking their nets after a long day of hauling in their catch; for one to be disturbed
with the blast from the fog horns as the schooners signal their going and
coming through the soupy mist, or to be able to quietly hear the lapping of the
water against the pier, jetty or boats laying anchored in the port.
In the
late 1700’s and early 1800’s it was the ‘set of the sail’ and the breeze that
was so important to the success of the voyage; and the fate of the ship and her
crew depended largely on the capability of the captain.
Our
Bennett male ancestors were seafaring men who loved the smell of the sea. They
depended on their catch of fish and their knowledge of ships for their
livelihood. A good sailor learned to read the heavens and know the meaning of
the clouds, and our grandfathers knew their lessons well.
Benjamin
Bennett, the son of Benjamin Bennett Sr. and Elizabeth Millington was one of 10
children born to this couple. He was the seventh one in line.
Children of Benjamin
Bennett Sr. and Elizabeth Millington
Ann Jul. 14, 1786 in Shotton, Flintshire,
Wales
Edward Jun. 23, 1788 “
John Mar. 10, 1790 “
Maria Feb. 12, 1792 “
Elizabeth Dec. 22, 1793 “
Margaret Nov. 15, 1795 “
Benjamin Dec. 31, 1797 “
Jonathan Jul. 10, 1800 “
Rachel Dec. 26, 1802 “
Mary Sep. 1, 1805 “
Benjamin
was a good lad and learned the trade of his father. He met and fell in love
with a young lady by the name of Catherine Jones from Northop. She was the
daughter of John Jones and Elizabeth Barclay and had been christened in the
parish Church at Northop and chose to be married in the same place. They were
married on Benjamin’s 21st birthday, December 31, 1818. It was
probably a happy New Years Eve that night and the gathering place for many of
the family members of both Jones and Bennetts.
Benjamin
took his bride back to Connah’s Quay so he could continue with his trade, a
distance of few miles. They would be living in Hawarden Parish and within this
parish there were other villages where some of the best brick and tile were
made and shipped to many countries of Europe; shipped from the Connah’s Quay
port.
Catherine
was a lovely young girl, just past 23 years of age. From her picture taken
later in life she appeared to have dark hair and a rather short neck-a feature
that many of her descendants have today.
Benjamin
and Catherine became the parents to the following children, the first living
child being born nearly four years after their marriage.
Name Born Place Married Died
John Sep. 4, 1822 in Connah’s Quay Jane Roberts Apr.
20, 1870
Benjamin Mar. 6, 1827 “ Elizabeth
Bowen
Jonathan Aug. 5, 1831 “ Jane
Jones 1866
Catherine May 10, 1834 “ Thomas
Hewitt
Edward Mar. 14, 1837 “ Mary Ann Coppack
Elizabeth Sep. 29, 1839 “ John Kenney
It is
not hard to picture a young wife with her little children walking to the
water’s edge at the close of the day as they watch for that one special boat to
dock. It is also easy to understand why young John and his brothers turned to
the profession of fisherman and seamen.
Before
the Gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints came to England, Catherine
Jones Bennett’s father, John Jones, had a vision or a dream where he saw some
men coming to them with a book and bringing a new Gospel. He told his
son-in-law, Benjamin about this and promised him that when the men did come, he
and his family would join with them and would go to a new land and see a copper
colored people. Sometime later Brigham Young, in 1840 and his companion did
come to them bringing the true church. John Jones recognized these men and told
his family that these were the men he saw in his dream and this was the true
church of our Lord Jesus Christ.
John
was then an old man and sick in bed but he insisted that they take him to be
baptized at night-he was 80 years of age. Several members of the family were
baptized at that time, August 20, 1841. They had faith in their leaders and
were willing to do all they could for the new church and it became a great
dream for the family to come to America.
Time
changed the scene and the children of Benjamin and Catherine were nearly all
grown and had families of their own. This was the case of John. John had become
acquainted with a lass from Shotton-a small village also in the Parish of
Hawarden. She was the daughter of Edward Roberts and Elizabeth Jones.
Children of Edward
Roberts and Elizabeth Jones
Name Born Place Died
Mary
Roberts 1804 Shotton 1837
William (Chr.) Feb. 1807 Hawarden
John Oct. 17, 1809 “
Elizabeth Mar. 5, 1813 “ Dec. 30, 1899
Thomas Nov. 17, 1815 “
Edward Sep. 15, 1818 “ 1853
Samuel Oct.2, 1821 “ 1852
Jane Jun. 22, 1824 “ Apr. 17, 1905
Anne Jun. 23, 1827 “ 1876
Her
father, in his early life, was the pilot of a riverboat and worked many years
at this trade. In later years he became a coal miner. Edward Roberts was also a
small dairy farmer with a small farm to care for. Jane’s mother died when she
was only 8 years old leaving the care of the family to Mary, her oldest sister.
One day Mary and her girl friends went shopping to Chester, across the River
Dee. As they were crossing, a terrible wind storm came up capsizing the boat
and throwing its occupants into the rough water. Mary was drowned so their Aunt
Elizabeth-lovingly called “Aunt Betsy”- came to stay with the children.
When
Jane was fourteen or fifteen years old she went to work as “dairy maid” on
Padmer farm near her home. She worked there for awhile and at the age of 19,
she and John Bennett were married on October 22, 1843. They made their home in
Connah’s Quay and there John worked-fishing and hauling paving stones by boat
up the Dee to Chester. The stones were used to pave the streets of Chester and
also to form “course-ways” or channels for “keep deep” water. This made about
eight miles of deep water for larger ships to go up to Chester, one of the
oldest cities in England.
John
was the most efficient in his profession and became a sea captain. This expert
mariner launched the “Royal Charter”, second greatest ship known in the world
at that time, from her stocks in the shipyard into the River Dee. Her first
voyage was to be to American shores. Jane had christened the ship and broke a
bottle of champagne or wine over it for luck, but luck however did not go with
her and it was good that John wasn’t assigned to take her out because she was
lost at sea.
In
1860, Benjamin and Catherine and Elizabeth-their youngest child-packed their
belongings lovingly as they sorted through each item, taking only so much
poundage that was to be shipped with them to the new world. We can imagine the
scene as they said their goodbyes to family and friends. Many they knew they
would never see again, but it was decided that other family members would
follow later as they earned the money necessary for the trip. Benjamin and Catherine
would establish a home among the saints and be ready to welcome others when
they arrived.
After
their departure, John and Jane were more determined than ever to save so they
too could leave for distant shores. One day while two of the boys, Benjamin and
Edward, were fishing, they had a good catch of fish and were washing their nets
in a strong current tide. They had their anchor drudging. About half through it
caught and their nets got away from them. They felt very bad, for those nets
were the means of the family’s livelihood. When they rowed ashore they were met
by their father, mother and Elder E. L. Slone. The boys cried and told them of
their loss. They had had three nets, each 80 yards long, fastened together
which meant 240 yards called trammel nets. Elder Slone comforted the family and
promised them they would find their nets and they would be full of fish.
Mother
Bennett took the catch of fish the boys had to the Chester Market as she always
did. That night the family prayed fervently to our Father in Heaven that he
would help them find the nets. The next day, when the tide went out, the father
and his boys-Ben and Ted as they were called-went down and anchored about where
the nets were and waited for the tide to go out again. When they finally were
able to pull the nets free they had so many fish, it was all the boat could
carry. The young men went many times to
the same spot to fish after that and were always met with the same success:
full nets.
Finally,
with enough money saved, they were ready to depart. Plans were made and as they
walked to Queens Ferry about 1 ½ miles, such a crowed of friends and family
walked with them, bidding them farewell and giving them all kinds of small
remembrances. Then on to Liverpool, and on the 30th of May, 1863,
they set sail on the Cynosure with David M. Stewart as Captain of the
company-total of 754 souls bound for New York harbor.
It was
a long and weary voyage, many of the 49 days of sailing found the ship battling
the raging sea. Measles, a dreaded disease at that time, broke out among the
passengers causing many to become very ill. Twenty-nine children died while on
ship and had to be buried at sea. John and Jane’s three year old son, John, was
one of the number. It was a trial indeed to submit one of their little ones to
a “watery grave”. On July 19, 1863 they landed in New York Harbor and passed
inspections Gateway at Castle Gardens, only to find that America was fighting a
Civil War. Travel was difficult, but they were able to take the train to St.
Joseph, Missouri, from there up the river by riverboat to Florence, Nebraska
where they prepared to cross the plains. Florence being the outfitting post for
the trip west.
Here
the family bought two yoke of oxen, one cow, one wall tent, one wagon and
provisions to last until they reached Salt Lake City. They bought dried apples
because they were less expensive than some other food. Jane could make good
dumplings but she had no yeast, no baking powder, soda or anything to leaven
them. No sugar but a little molasses or honey which could be used to sweeten
them. She did have a few lumps of sugar which she kept in the bottom of the
trunk for something very special. John would chuckle, in later years when he
told how large the dumplings became when they were cooked and the apples
swollen.
When
they came near Independence Rock, Wyoming, they gathered saleratus which served
as a leavening for their bread. Bicarbonate of soda is a mineral substance
which formed in a crust on the ground as alkali forms in Delta, Utah.
John
killed some game with his gun such as rabbit and various birds, and
occasionally one of the boys would kill an antelope which was divided among the
emigrants. It helped with their supply of food and gave some variety to their
menu. They saw Indians many times but were not molested by them.
The
family was anxious to arrive in Utah to see their dear grandparents and Aunt
Lizzie, as they called her, for they had not heard any word from them since
their departure 3 years earlier.
Benjamin Bennett and Elizabeth were in Salt Lake City to meet them on October
14, 1863, but it wasn’t until then they learned about Catherine Jones Bennett’s
death. She had not lived to see Salt Lake, but had passed away on September 27,
1860 and was buried near a stream called Little Muddie in Wyoming about 100
miles from the Salt Lake Valley. She was a heavy set woman and the walk across
the plains had been more than she could bear.
The
family was sent directly to Fillmore and arrived there before the end of
October. They were taken into the homes of John Bowen, Charles Wood and
Nicholas Paul, who with their wives had come from South Africa. Good people had
crossed the plains earlier with the Benjamin Bennett family and had become the
best of friends.
In the
spring of 1864, this family went to Deseret and while there suffered while
enduring pioneer life. Their daughter Mary Ann Stephenson wrote, “We went
through hardships in Deseret, many times going without food and becoming very
hungry. Sometimes, all we had was greasewood greens with a little butter. Bread
was very scarce. Many times we were destitute for clothing-my father went to
church many times with bare feet. The dirt dam in the river broke out so often,
leaving our crops to burn up under the hot desert sun. While we lived there,
the Indians became very troublesome, so a fort was built for our protection-father
and the boys helped to build it. It was made of mud and mixed with rushes and
salt grass that grew along the riverbanks. The walls were thick and high with a
gate in the east side. As the mud dried in the sun it became very hard.”
It was
extremely difficult to provide food for a family of ten, and their neighbors
were in the same condition, but they were all very kind and generous-hearted to
one another. John and his sons were often required to go to the fields to work
without their breakfast. One time in particular there was no flour in the
house, and one of the daughters went to a neighbor, Christian Overson, and he
kindly shared his portion with her. When she arrived home they gathered some
native currants and made a boiled pudding in a large camp kettle and took it
across the fields to the harvesters. When the men saw them coming with their
camp kettle they gave three cheers and, on meeting them, shed tears of joy for
the meal that had been provided. They had no fruit other than native currants.
Sugar was very expensive and hard to get. Jane boiled carrots and made a syrup
and afterwards used it for preserving.
While
the family was in Deseret, Jane gave birth to another son born March 5, 1865.
The family moved form Deseret in the fall of 1868 and went to Holden, Utah,
then called Buttermilk Fort, because John’s health was failing. He had not been
accustomed to this type of work, being a sea man. They were in hopes that the
move to Holden would improve his health but the improvement only lasted a short
time. Another daughter was born into their home on the 17th of
January, 1869, making the eleventh child. On April 20th, 1870, John
Bennett closed his eyes in death.
After
the death of her husband, Jane struggled to support her family and was
determined to be strong and go forward, raise her children to be good American
citizens as well as helping them gain a testimony of the true church. She was a
widow for thirty-five years. She struggled to support her family and bring them
up in light and truth. She was a woman of much faith and in deep sympathy with
widows and the fatherless. She had a kind word and a helping hand for all she
met. Jane took up practical nursing. She understood the value of herbs as
medicine and was always in demand by the people of the area when sickness
plagued their family members or even their cattle. She helped nurse the people
of Holden through the terrible typhoid epidemic. About two weeks before her
death she helped deliver a baby.
For
many years she milked her own cow, in a little brass bucket that she kept clean
and shiny for that purpose. She did beautiful handwork and her sewing was
always just so. There was a beautiful handkerchief, apron or a lovely
decorative piece for the home of family members or friends on birthdays, anniversaries
or at Christmas. She was on to remember her grandchildren with little
remembrances as some of them today still cherish a valentine or little card
that Grandma Bennett had given them. Those few grandchildren who are still
living and who knew her remember her with loving thoughts and say she was one
of the sweetest, kindest persons they ever knew.
Jane R.
Bennett served the Relief Society as a counselor of Lemira Badger Ashby for
over twenty-five years and held that position at the time of her death. In her
funeral, many kind words were spoken of her. It was stated, “She and her
husband loved life together. Her whole family were good singers and often
furnished programs for the town as well as neighboring towns. We see this
musical talent carried over into many of the descendants of John Bennett and
his faithful wife Jane as we read the histories in this book.”
Their
posterity has multiplied and scattered from coast to coast of these United
States, in less than 150 years. Since these two beautiful people were united in
marriage it can be said, “we number into the thousands.” A grand and great
posterity, many have served their country in the military forces; others have
become prominent civic leaders or great professional people; many have gained strong
testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ and would give their lives, if
necessary, to defend it, as did our noble ancestors. It would be impossible to
number how many have given years of service to the church as leaders in stake
or ward positions. The Bennets all seem to possess leadership ability. Scores
have given two years of their lives to preach and teach the gospel. We had a
great heritage and we have given them a grand and glorious posterity, one they
can be proud of.
