DAVID JENKINS
David Jenkins, son of Anna Evans and David Jenkins, was
born at Abercancaid, near Merthyr
Tydfil, Glamorganshire, Wales on October 20, 1843. He
was the oldest of eight children, three sons and four daughters. Their names
were: David, Esther, Anna, Evan, John, Sarah Jane and Mair.
The little sister Mary Ann died at the age of thirteen months and was buried in
Wales. (I
suppose at Aberdare because they lived there then.)
His father was baptized into the Church in the Merthyr Branch, September, 1844, and ordained an elder August 17, 1851 by Joseph Perkins.
His mother was baptized into the Merthyr Branch
September 1845 by William Phillips.
His father worked in the coal mines. David and his
brothers entered the mine pit at the ages of six and seven years. They picked
slate out of the coal and earned a small wage. They never saw sunlight and on
the short days of the year they went to work before daylight and came home at
evening after dark. David had very little schooling. He was baptized at the age
of eight years.
On May 10, 1852
when David was nine years of age his father was killed in the explosion at the
Middle Duffryn colliery near the old canal at Cwmbach, Aberdare. He was one of
68 persons who lost their lives. His father's parents and brothers and sisters
were living at Landore, Sansea
when this happened. His father was buried in the ancient churchyard of St.
John, Aberdare. The entry on
the ancient records is #173, Volume 5 of Burials for 1815-1853.
As the other children became of age they, too, worked at
various jobs to help with the living expenses. The mother received a small allowance
called a widow's pension and each month she would put on what was called the
widow's bonnet and go for her portion. The family lived in a rented house so
the mother cared for two lodgers to help with the expenses. At night after the
children were in bed she would sew frocks for the colliers by hand to bring in
some extra money.
David's father and mother had planned to come to Utah.
The desire grew in the hearts of the mother and her children. With careful
planning enough money had been saved by 1866 for the two oldest, David and
Esther, to make the journey.
On Monday, April 30, 1866, they sailed from Liverpool,
England on the ship John Bright, a sailing vessel, along with 764 other
Saints under the direction of C. M. Gillet. They were
many weeks on the ocean. The ship docked at New York
June sixth.
They went to Wyoming,
Nebraska by train, arriving there
June 19th. This was an outfitting station where they could obtain essentials
needed to complete their journey to Salt Lake City.
When they were ready for the trek to Utah,
they left Nebraska July 6th in
the Thomas E. Ricks' company. There were 46 wagons and 251 passengers. They
reached Salt Lake City September 4, 1866.
Their father's sister, Ann, had already come to Utah.
She had buried her husband in Wales
but by this time she had married a Morgan Jones and was living in Logan.
Her home was open to David and Esther.
It was not long before David found work. He worked at
whatever he could find to do. He had the privilege of working for some of the
leaders of the church. Esther worked in homes because both were determined that
they would bring the family to Utah
as soon as possible.
In 1868 when his mother and the other children arrived,
David had a rented home furnished for them. However, they stayed in Salt
Lake City but a few months. His mother wanted to spend
the winter in Logan close to her
sister-in- law. (Ann was now a widow again but during January
of 1869 married Francis Purser.)
Determined that her sons should have
the opportunity of owning farms of their own, David's mother moved to Samaria, Idaho in Malad Valley in the fall of 1869. Near this village the mother and her
three sons each took up homesteads of 160 acres. The boys built their mother a
home in Samaria and a home for each
of them on the same street.
Besides being a good farmer, David was also a very good
miller. He worked at that trade for several years at a place near Samaria
called Gwenford. He was thrifty, but out of the
goodness of his heart he was always helping others financially and, as a
result, he had very little surplus for himself.
David married Emma Reese Davis in 1875 at the age of 32
years. They were married in the Endowment House at Salt
Lake City on November lst
which was the same day that his brother John married Mary Ann Williams. They
journeyed to Salt Lake
together. They had a wedding supper that night at the home of David Williams,
who was the father-in-law to their brother Evan.
They were a devoted couple. They loved their family
deeply. David was a good provider and his wife an excellent homemaker. They
used the Welsh language whenever they discussed their problems. He built a nice
brick home for his family where friends and relatives were always welcome.
On April 8, 1904
Emma died. Four small sons had preceded her. At this time David R. and
Elizabeth, the oldest daughter, were married. Anna Mae had gone to San
Francisco to work and William was on his mission to
the Northwestern States. To help out, Elizabeth
brought her small family to her father's home. She stayed a year helping him
with the two younger girls.
After this period David was both father and mother to
these girls. He was a very devoted parent doing all in his power to provide a
good home life for them. He nursed them through their illness, prescribing the
medicines for their needs, and assumed many of the home duties to make their
responsibility less burdensome. Elizabeth,
although she lived a few miles away, continued for years to help in many
wonderful ways.
At this time David had the job as water master and with
his horse and buggy, and usually the two girls, but always the youngest one, Jane, he tended the water and visited with all the people
along the route. He was a very friendly person and was interested in everyone.
Whoever came to his door was invited in to enjoy his hospitality. "Uncle
Davy" was really everybody's friend. He lived an exemplary life. He was
very devout in his religious duties. Through his faith and administrations many
people were comforted. David was floor manager for years for the adult and for
the children's dances. He loved to see his friends enjoying themselves in good
wholesome entertainment. He would not tolerate foolishness,
or wasteful pranks if they tended to harm others. For many years he served the
school district as a trustee and did his part well.
He had a great love for children and was anxious to see
that those around him were not neglected in any way. He often said, "Small
children should never be left in a house by themselves." He expected
children to be prayerful and have reverence for everything pertaining to our
church. Family prayers and the blessing on the food were never neglected. He
spent hours reading from the Church books and was always interested in current
events. In later years he frequently visited his neighbors to discuss some of
these things with them.
While staying with some friends in Malad City
and attending quarterly conference he suffered a paralytic stroke and died November 15, 1915, at the age of 72
years. He was buried in the family plot at the Samaria
Cemetery, near the family stone he
had erected several years earlier.
- Rachel Jenkins Ricks, Daughter
