Thomas Lewis
Evans and Jane Davis lived in Glamorganshire, South Wales,
and were the parents of five children, two of whom died in their infancy. Their
living was very meager as work was scarce. Benjamin at the age of eight years
was forced to work in the tin works. About the only food they could afford then
was bread and tea.
Thomas was a
tailor by trade. His family belonged to the Methodist Church.
One day two Mormon Elders, Dewey Elvoid and a Captain
Evans, came to this part of Wales,
holding meetings and tracting from house to house. At
the Evans home, tracts were left, read, and an investigation was started. They
became converts a number of years before being baptized, because of the lack of
missionaries at that time.
The family
embraced the gospel in the early part of 1863. They decided they would
immigrate to America.
It was decided that the father, Thomas, and the oldest daughter, Mary, should
come first and provide means for the rest of the family to come. In the early
spring, Thomas and Mary sailed from Liverpool
on the B. S. Kimball. They arrived in New York,
June 18, 1863, and joined the company of immigrants under the direction of
Captain Wooley (Gillett Company) arriving in Salt Lake City in
October 1863.
Three years later (1866), Jane, Ben and Jemima left on the sailing
vessel John Bright, traveling on it for five weeks and three days. They were
only able to procure the cheapest passage possible, creating a very unpleasant
journey in the hull of the ship where the freight was stored. A remarkable
incident occurred while sailing. A terrific storm arose. Jane's heart was
quaking with fear, but she being a prayerful woman knelt on the floor and
petitioned her Heavenly Father to protect them
and take them safely to Utah.
While she was praying, a voice told her to rise. She hurriedly arose just as a
large barrel of vinegar fell on the very spot where she had been kneeling. It
would have landed directly on her had she not listened to the promptings. This episode
was an inspiration to her. She felt sure they would arrive safely in Utah, which they did.
They landed at Castle Gardens, New
York. Their journey across the plains to Utah by mule team was
under the direction of Captain Ricks. In Salt Lake,
they were reunited with Thomas and Mary.
With the
exception of Ben. the family pioneered in Malad. They were among the first people to come to Idaho in the fall of
1866, where they resided the rest of their lives.
Ben remained in Salt Lake City where he was
employed with Morgan and William Davis as a plasterer until late in 1866. He
then came to Malad and was employed by the Western
Union Telegraph Company, working between Salt
Lake and Cheyenne
and later Montana.
He worked for three years for the company and then was promoted to company foreman.
He was nicknamed "Telegraph Ben". Ben married Mary Jane Jones on
October 10, 1872.
Mary Evans married George Stuart October 8, 1865. Jemima
Evans became the second wife of George Stuart on April 8, 1874.
Thomas L. and
Jane homesteaded a piece of land just a few rods from their daughter Jemima's home.
They built their house near a big
spring. Jane died in 1890 at the age of 78 years, 11
months and 3 days. Thomas died in 1893 at the age of 82 years, 9 months and 11
days. Thomas deeded his property to Jemima's boys. In exchange Jemima had
provided for Thomas and Jane for many years.
Information was obtained from histories by:
Jemima Stuart, Edith Stuart Harris (K.E. Harris),
Hannah Deschamps
and Malad
City Cemetery
Compiled and submitted by:
Bob and Lael Christophersen
Malad Valley
History Vol. 2
