JENKIN JONES
Jenkin Jones was born on July 17, 1840 at Park Isha Farm in the Parish of Ystradyfodwg,
Glamorgan County, Wales.
He was the eldest of six children born to Thomas Jones and Elizabeth (Betty)
Jenkins. His younger siblings were Catherine, born 1842; Mary, born 1845;
Thomas, born 1848; Evan, born 1850 and Ann, born 1852. After the birth of
Catherine, the family moved to the Maerdy Farm which was
also within the parish of Ystradyfodwg.
The family was better off financially than most. According to the 1851
census, they had a 400 acre farm and employed four farm laborers to help with
the farm work. Jenkin’s boyhood was very pleasant and
he had a good education. He was an apt pupil and was especially good in
mathematics. On one occasion, while still a student, he took charge of the
school while the teacher was in London
for a few days. Jenkin lived happily in Wales until one day he met a Mormon elder from Willard, Utah named Richard Davis, who
was preaching the restored gospel. Jenkin believed
the message and was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Jan. 13, 1866, at the age of 25. Two of
his sisters, Catherine and Mary, were baptized in April of 1867.
After his conversion Jenkin desired to join the
Saints in Utah.
His first stop on the journey was Liverpool
where he met a fellow convert named Sarah Boden. They
were soon married and they left Liverpool on June 21, 1867 on the steamship
"Manhattan"
under the direction of Archibald N. Hill, with 480 Saints aboard. Their ship
arrived in New York City
on July 4, 1867. The journey across the Atlantic
took only 13 days because they were fortunate enough to travel on a steam ship
instead of a sailing ship. The year 1867 was the first year since the
introduction of the Perpetual Emigration Fund that teams and wagons did not
travel from Salt Lake City to meet the Mormon
emigrants at the railroad’s end to escort them to Utah. Therefore, Jenkin
had to buy four oxen, a wagon and enough provisions to suffice for their long
trek. The journey was not a pleasant one and they suffered many hardships. They
arrived in Salt Lake City
in early Oct. 1867.
Jenkin had a soft heart and according to family
information the hasty marriage was his way of helping Sarah
reach Zion
as she did not have the funds to come otherwise. The couple
were not happy together, however, so immediately after arriving in Utah, Jenkin and Sarah divorced. Their divorce petition was
granted by the Box Elder probate court on Oct. 16, 1867. It allowed Sarah to
resume her maiden name. Jenkin was ordered to pay the
cost of the divorce but was allowed to keep all of his property. No children
were born to their union.
Jenkin lived in Utah
for a time and worked on completing the railroad before settling in the Malad Valley
in Idaho. He
made many warm friends in Malad. One summer he worked
up at Ross Fork, Idaho
cutting hay with the cradle and hauling it. Not long after arriving in Malad, the Indians on the reservation further north in Idaho went on a warpath.
In nearby Marsh Valley, the women and children were sent
from home to safer places, while the men stayed to face the danger and take
care of the homes and farms. In Malad Valley
the settlers were somewhat apprehensive of the Indians. One evening to their
pleasant surprise, a company of soldiers from Ft. Douglas, Utah
arrived. They encamped in Malad where the Castleton
residence stood later. Their white tents gleamed in the sunshine, making a
pleasing appearance. The soldiers placed guards around the encampment and no
one was allowed in without the password. In the morning they folded their tents
and marched off to the conflict, which fortunately, was soon settled.
Jenkin’s father, Thomas Jones, died on Dec. 10,
1869. As oldest son and one of the executors of his father’s will, Jenkin was required to return home to help settle his
father’s estate. Early in 1870 Jenkin journeyed back
to Wales
where he stayed several months taking care of business and visiting relatives
and friends. Although two of Jenkin’s sisters had
immigrated to Utah, his mother and other
siblings, numerous cousins, aunts and uncles were still in Wales. It
was during this visit to Wales
that Jenkin met his first cousin, Mary Jenkins. Mary
was the daughter of Griffith Jenkins, his mother’s brother. Both of Mary’s
parents had passed away and she was living with her uncle, Jenkin
Jenkins, in Ponty Pridd.
Mary was a lovable girl with beautiful brown eyes and hair. It was "love
at first sight" and the couple was married in the Sardis Chapel at Ponty Pridd, Glamorgan,
Wales
on Aug. 31, 1870.
The couple spent several weeks in Wales
before leaving for Jenkin’s home in Malad, Idaho.
They left Liverpool on Nov. 16, 1870, aboard the steamship "Manhattan" arriving in New York City on Dec. 11, 1870. Fortunately
the transcontinental railroad had been completed so they were not required to
make the rigorous journey to Malad by ox team. They
arrived in Malad on Christmas Day of 1870, having
stopped in Willard, Utah for a few days to visit friends.
Jenkin acquired land in the Malad Valley and began farming to support his
family. In the spring of 1871, after the snow was melted, the pioneering work
began. The snakes had not all been killed, sagebrush needed to be cleared
and the ground had to be plowed with the ox team and hand plow. Jenkin planted grain by scattering seeds with his
hands. The winters in Malad were cold, the country
was all new, and the ways of living in Malad were
much different than in Wales.
There was always plenty of work to do, but together Jenkin
and Mary braved the hardships and built a happy home in the "Valley
of the Mountains".
Jenkin’s two sisters, Catherine and Mary also
settled in Malad with their spouses, A. W. Vanderwood and W. W. Evans. In 1877 Jenkin’s
widowed mother, along with her two younger sons, Thomas and Evan, left Wales and
joined the rest of the family in Malad. Only sister
Ann, who was married to a wealthy man, remained in Wales. Jenkin’s
mother soon accepted the gospel and was baptized in 1880, but Jenkin’s younger siblings - Thomas, Evan and Ann never
joined the Church. Evan was killed in a tragic accident shortly after their
arrival in Malad. Thomas never married and lived with
his mother until she died.
Through hard work and initiative, Jenkin became
prosperous. He became an American citizen on July 12, 1875 and was involved in
public life. He was elected Oneida
county treasurer and served four years in this position. He served two terms as
president of the Malad Cooperative Company
(forerunner of the Evans Co-op). He was a faithful member of the LDS and served
in many positions. He was a high counselor in both the Oneida and Malad
Stakes and served as Bishop of the Malad Ward from
1890 to May 1896. There was only one ward in Malad at
that time. Idaho
passed a law in 1885 that prohibited Mormons from voting or being eligible to
hold public office. Church members were disfranchised by a test oath requiring
them to state under oath that they did not believe in or belong to a church
that believed in plural marriage. Because Jenkin was
politically minded and desired to vote, he was excommunicated from the Church
for a time, but when he was called to be a Bishop, he was rebaptized with all blessings restored.
In 1899 Jenkin was called on a genealogy mission
to Wales.
Leaving his wife at home with the children he journeyed back to Wales where he
spent several months visiting family members and doing genealogical research.
He was successful in gathering much information about his deceased ancestors
and other family members. Soon after his return home, Jenkin,
Mary and their oldest daughter, Catherine, did the baptisms and endowments for
these deceased relatives in the Logan
Temple.
Jenkin and Mary were the parents of seven
children. Catherine (Mrs. William H. Palmer), their oldest child, was my
grandmother. She was born March 29, 1872. Six more children soon joined the
family: Annie born Oct. 14, 1873; Mary Elizabeth
born Sept. 5, 1875; Margaret born July 10, 1878; Jenkin
born Nov. 25, 1880; Evan born Oct. 21, 1884 and Thomas born June 5, 1886.
Jenkin and Mary loved music and their children
also developed a love for it. When their sons were young and got into fights
with one another as young boys do, their father would have them sing hymns
together until they were friends again and out of the fighting mode. These boys
developed good singing voices and learned to enjoy singing together. It was
said by some that Jenkin Jr. had the finest tenor
voice in the Malad area. The boys formed a trio as
they grew older. Catherine, Annie and Margaret also sang together in a trio and
the Jones trios performed at functions around Malad.
Annie was an exceptionally fine pianist and Margaret was also an accomplished
pianist. When silent movies came to Malad,
Margaret was often called on to play the background music for the movies.
In January of 1908 Jenkin returned once more to Wales to
collect an inheritance which had been bequeathed to him by his uncle-in-law, Jenkin Phillips. Jenkin spent
several weeks visiting relatives and gathering more family history; however, he
was unable to prolong this last visit to Wales as the climate did not agree
with him and he became ill. In the genealogy notebook he kept during this visit,
Jenkin mentioned how thirsty he was. Although he was
not aware of it at the time, he was suffering from diabetes. During this visit Jenkin wrote a letter to his wife saying how he missed her
and their children and he wrote, if given the choice of the most beautiful spot
in Wales to live, or his home in Malad, he would
choose his beautiful mountain home which he had come to love so dearly.
Jenkin left Liverpool for America on April 2, 1908 aboard the ship "Canada", having crossed the Atlantic seven times. Upon his return home he was
diagnosed with diabetes. This disease interfered with his duties and shortened
his life as insulin as a treatment for diabetes was unknown at that time. Jenkin spent his remaining days surrounded by his beloved
wife and family. He passed away on July 25, 1911 at the age of 71 and was
buried in the Malad
City Cemetery.
His wife and six children survived him. One daughter, Annie, had passed away in
1906 of complications from childbirth.
Note: This biography was assembled by Kathryn Jones Cannon,
great-granddaughter of Jenkin Jones. Information
contained therein was obtained from "History of Jenkins Families"
believed to have been written by his daughter, Margaret Jones; "Life of
Jenkin Jones" written by his daughter,
Catherine Jones Palmer, and genealogical research conducted by the author and
by Barbara Jones Edward, a great granddaughter of Jenkin
Jones.
