EMANUEL PRITCHARD THOMAS
Son of William Thomas
and Elizabeth Prichard
- Born 12 Jan 1831 Ponkey,
Denbighshire, Wales
Emanuel Pritchard Thomas walked along the country road in
the quiet hamlet of Ponkey in Denbighshire, North Wales (his birthplace) listening intently to what
the two men had to say. The Gospel of
Jesus Christ had been restored. A
prophet named Joseph Smith had been instructed to establish a church with
apostles as of old. Emanuel was 12 years
old (born 12 Jan 1831) just 2 years younger than Joseph Smith was when he began
his search for the truth. Emanuel took the
message to heart.
Emanuel's
parents, William Thomas and Elizabeth Pritchard Thomas, had 8 children. The
family had the opportunity to hear the Gospel from missionaries, and Emanuel
heeded the spirit. On 26 June 1855, at
age 24, Emanuel was baptized a member of the restored church, the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He
immediately began to plan for his passage to America. Within 8 months he boarded
the ship 'Caravan' and arrived in new York on Valentine's Day 1856.
Emanuel
later heard of the conversion and baptism of his youngest brother. On July 14, 1855, David entered the waters of
baptism. It was his 20th
birthday.
Since
he grew up in the Denbighshire coal tract, a 9-foot thick vein rich in coal and
ore, it is likely Emanuel had coal mining experience. Once in America,
he heard of opportunities for work in the coal mines of Pennsylvania,
so Emanuel joined a number of Welshmen already working in Minersville, Pennsylvania.
One of
these men was Jonathan Ellis. Ellis emigrated to America 6
months prior to Emanuel. Not only was Ellis from Denbighshire but he and his family had also
been baptized into the restored church. He
and his wife, Ann Davis, and their 3 children Mary (aka
Mari) born May 25, 1840; Lazarus born July 1, 1843 and Jonathan born August
18,1847, had arrived in New York on September 5, 1855. Mary, the beautiful 16-year old daughter of
Ellis caught Emanuel's eye, and they were married within a year.
Emanuel
and Mary were happy in marriage and started their family immediately. Their first child was a son, Elias, born 27
May 1858. Unfortunately he died in less
than 2 months on July 14. Elizabeth Ann,
named after both Emanuel's mother and Mary's mother, was born a year later on
June 1, 1859. Imagine the pain Emanuel
and Mary endured as their 2nd child died within little over a
year. Mary's mother must have been able
to offer comfort to her daughter since she, too, had
lost a child in infancy (Jonathan, born August 28, 1847, died January 25,
1848.)
Emanuel
and Mary desired to live among the Latter-day Saints who had established
themselves in Utah. However, their resources were meager. A move from Pennsylvania
to Utah would
require a great deal of money for supplies and transportation. So Emanuel and Mary bid a tearful farewell to
Mary's parents and brothers and began to work their way towards Utah.
Emanuel
found employment in the coal mines in Caseyville,
Illinois. In March, 1860, just as the long, cold winter
was subsiding, Mary delivered a son in O'Fallon (Opholand)
in St. Clair County, Illinois. They
named him William after Emanuel's father.
Again, tragedy struck. William
lived a little over a year and died on July 21, 1861.
At the
time there was a Perpetual Emigration Fund established by the church as a means
to help the poor and needy emigrants better their conditions in the "promised
land." Emigrants borrowed money from the
fund to pay for supplies and passage to the Salt Lake Valley.
The money was to be repaid to the fund once the emigrants reached the Salt Lake
Valley so others could
make the trek. Word came that Emanuel
and Mary were approved to use the funds, and soon they were part of a wagon
train headed for Salt
Lake. It was a long and difficult trip, but they
arrived safely. Finally, Emanuel's dream
was realized: to live among the Saints in Zion.
At the
April 2001 General conference President Gordon B. Hinckley established the
Perpetual Education
Fund patterned after the Perpetual Emigration Fund. Faithful
Latter-day Saints were called upon to donate money so members in less fortunate
circumstances could borrow from the fund for educational purposes to better themselves and repay the funds when they were able to do so.
Mary
withstood the journey remarkably well, considering she was pregnant. What a
joyous occasion when their 4th child, Sarah Jane (named after
Emanuel's sister) was born in Salt
Lake City, Utah, on
August 22, 1862. In addition to this
happy event, Emanuel was delighted to find his brother David and his wife Joyce
had also made their way to Utah.
David and Joyce joined Emanuel, Mary and Sarah Jane and they all moved to Provo.
While
in Provo, two
important events of Emanuel's lifetime occurred. First both he and David completed the
requirements and received U. S. Citizenship.
Second, on August 15, 1863, Emanuel and Mary went to the Endowment House
in Salt Lake City. Since the Salt Lake
temple was not finished, the Endowment House was built so temple ordinances
could be carried out until the temple was completed. Both Emanuel and Mary took out their own
endowments, and then they were sealed to each other for time and all eternity.
Disappointment
and despair did not elude them in Provo.
Although Sarah Jane was growing strong and healthy, Jonathan (born Feb 13 1865)
only lived for 3 months. He was named
after Mary's father and two brothers. He
was the first child born in the covenant.
Emanuel
and Mary continued to live in Provo
for nearly 7 years. They were blessed with 2 healthy sons, Emanuel Ellis named
after his father (Nov 26, 1866) and Lazarus Ellis (28 or 29 Nov 1869). As the custom of many families both sons had
their mother's maiden name as a middle name. Emanuel married Mary Melissa
Johnson on Nov 8, 1893, and later settled in Big
Horn Basin
in Byron, Wyoming. He lived to be 82 years old
(died Apr 24, 1949.) Lazarus
married Elizabeth Herbert in 1900/01.
They remained in Goshen,
Utah, until Lazarus died on 3 Sep
1946 at age 76.
Once
again mining brought about a change in their situation. The area just west of Goshen, Utah,
proved to be rich in ore. Employment
enticed Emanuel to move his family to Goshen. Emanuel was one of a team of miners who set
off the rounds that opened up the 'Black Dragon' mine in the vicinity.
Mining
can be dangerous work, and many miners have lost their lives over the
years. Early in his career as a miner,
Emanuel promised the Lord in prayer that if he could have the Lord's protective
care, he would always do the Lord's will.
Emanuel received a witness to the power of prayer and commitment while
in the mine one day. He was tramming coal over a canyon day in and day out. On a particular occasion, a voice called to
him and warned him to step off the tram.
He immediately obeyed the warning.
As the tram reached the middle of the canyon, it jumped the track and
fell to the bottom of the canyon.
Emanuel's life was saved through his obedience and the Lord's warning.
While
in Goshen,
Emanuel and Mary were blessed with 3 more children. David, a leap year baby
born 29 Feb 1873 (named after Emanuel's brother), Mary born 4 Nov 1876 (named
after her mother), and Alma
born 15 Feb 1878. They were a
happy family of 6 children flourishing in the small town. Mary was among the early school teachers of Goshen. The family
faithfully attended church and served the Lord with willing hearts. They felt they had finally found their
home. They lived peacefully for a number
of years.
But
there was to be one last tragedy. In the
winter of 1880 a deadly disease caught hole of David age 7, Mary age 4 and Alma
age 2. They were stricken with Scarlet
Fever, an acute, contagious disease that causes a sore throat, fever, enlarged
glands and a bright red, non-itchy rash.
Since Goshen
was such a small town and the disease was so contagious, the family most like
were quarantined. The three youngest
children were taken by the fever within 3 weeks of each other. Sarah Jane was married at the time and
probably not living in the family home.
Therefore, her life was spared.
Somehow Emanuel E. and Lazarus were miraculously preserved.
Emanuel
and Mary lived in Goshen
until they died. Mary died on July 14,
1883, at age 43. She lived to see Sarah Jane
get married to Soren (Sore) Powelson
on 22 Aug 1879. Sarah Jane and Soren remained in Goshen,
Utah to raise their family. Sarah Jane said her mother died with a broken
heart because of the tragic deaths of her children.
Emanuel
grieved the loss of 3 children all at once and then the loss of his dear wife
just two and a half years later. When
Mary died, Emanuel was left with 2 teenage sons still at home. Emanuel lived for 25 years after Mary's
death.
Eventually
Emanuel remarried Ellen Turner. Ellen
helped to fill the void in Emanuel's life and was a great blessing to the
family. To honor Mary, Ellen was
instrumental in getting temple work done for the family. Ellen stood as proxy on 28 June 1890 in the
Manti temple as Elias, Elizabeth Ann, William and Sarah Jane were sealed to
Emanuel and Mary as an eternal family unit. Ellen remained with Emanuel until
his death on 14 Jan 1904. The home in Goshen, Utah,
is still standing. (A photo of the home
is included in this book.)
Emanuel
was a good father and taught his children the trades and skills he knew. He also taught them to love the Lord. Sarah Jane and Emanuel E. were strong, active
members of the church their whole lives.
Lazarus was a good man although he was not always active in the church.
The
Thomas family is grateful that Emanuel Pritchard Thomas joined the church and
was stalwart in his faith. His legacy is
four generations who continued in the Gospel and a fifth generation being
raised to serve the Lord.
Compiled by Kathy Kinney at the request of David Emanuel Thomas
(grandson of Emanuel Ellis Thomas and great grandson of Emanuel Pritchard
Thomas.) November 2002
