Elizabeth Jane Clarke

Elizabeth Jane Clarke was born January 29, 1857 in Rhosllanerchrugog, Denbighshire, North Wales. She was one of the children that were taken by her mother's extended family and hidden so her parents could not find them so that their departure for America would be detained. She came to America with her family in 1866 and crossed the plains in a covered wagon. At first they lived in Salt Lake City and then moved to Newton when she was ten or eleven. Elizabeth was the third child of Amos and Ann Clarke, and she had a beautiful singing voice as did her father and sisters. They often sang at church functions. She was married to William Sparks in the Endowment House on the 26th of Jan 1881 at the age of almost 24. It was a polygamous marriage. Soon after, she became ill with typhoid fever. Her mother and father felt she was not getting good care, so they went to Clarkston and brought her home so they could take care of her. Brother Sparks never came to get her. The marriage was canceled February 13, 1891,by Wilford Woodruff. When her son Roy was a small boy, she married William H. Griffin. Spencer, her son, said she really did not want to marry him, and I am sure it was because it would be another polygamous marriage. Elizabeth taught school in Newton and helped in the store. She and her sister, Annie, both had twins. Heber was one of Lizzie's twins. A little daughter died the day after she was born. When Elizabeth was 33, William Griffin's first wife died and three teenagers were added to her family. She had Roy, Heber, Nettie and was six months pregnant with Amos. It was a hard time for her with four small children and Bessie 13, Frank 16, and Bill 18 to wash and cook and keep house for. She cooked on a big black stove which she kept highly polished with stove black. At first washing was done on a board. Spencer, the youngest of the children, remembers when she made 12 loaves of bread every other day. He said she loved to sing and dance. In the kitchen she would dance the polka. She was a good cook, and for meat she liked two-year-old beef. But when she ate out, she liked to order salmon. Heber told Helen, Dave's daughter, that she had eyes like Elizabeth. They were so dark you could not see the pupils. She was a devoted wife and mother. One time Roy was singing a solo and became frightened and could not go on. His mother began singing with him from the back of the room. Spencer often told the story of how she would try to get the hay leaves brushed off William Griffin's coat before he would go to a meeting. We wish we could tell you more about Elizabeth. Nettie told Zeta that when Zeta was a little girl about two years old and she would go visit Elizabeth. Elizabeth would have her hold out her apron and Elizabeth would put raisins in it for Zeta to eat. Nettie also told her that when the children quarreled she would sing a hymn to them. Zeta thought the hymn was "School Thy Feelings," and Letha thought the hymn was "Let us Oft Speak Kind Words." Perhaps she sang both. William Griffin had a model T Ford, and when he and Elizabeth were coming back from Logan, they ran through a ditch. She was thrown out of the car. She was hurt and never completely recovered from it. In 1918 and 199, there was an outbreak of a terrible flu and many people died from it. People were so afraid of getting the flu that everyone wore masks wherever they went. They tried not to have gatherings, and funerals were often held at gravesides. Elizabeth was not very well and got the flu and died in Jan 1919. (Author unknown) 1) Thanks to Diane Hendricks (jvanceh@cableone.net) for sending the brief history of Elizabeth Clarke.

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Clarke, Elizabeth Jane

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Family photo (l to r): Nettie, Elizabeth, Amos, Hyrum
Photo of children (back row): Howard, Amos, Dave
(front row): Lula, Spencer, Nettie
Photo of Elizabeth and three children: Elizabeth, Leroy, Nettie, and Heber