Mary Matthews Marler
My mother, Mary Mattehws Marler, was born in Swansea, Glamorgan, South Wales April 26, 1847, a daughter of Hopkin and Margaret Morris Mathews. Her father was a collier by trade an received the Gospel when a very young man as also did her mother before her marriage. Hence, Mary was born into the Latter-day Saint Church and baptized at the age of eight years.
When Mary was nine years of age her parents decided to bring their three children to Utah to be with the Saints. They left Wales in April, 1856 and crossed the Atlantic on the sailing ship Samuel Curling. When they landed in Boston her father bought bread, cheese and a bottle of Port to celebrate the occasion. The family traveled in sheep cars from Boston for three days and were then given better quarters. When they arrived at Iowa City they were assigned to the Edward Bunker handcart company.
Grandfather was stricken with rheumatism in his feet and legs and often had to be put in the cart. Mary walked all the way every day and cried at night with weariness and hunger. Her mother tried to comfort the children by promising them a little piece of bread.
A young man with a team and wagon overtook a group of girls who were walking head and persuaded a young woman to go with him. She took Mary with her. They rode for a long distance and then Mary became frightened and started to cry. In the meantime the parents were franctic when they found the girls had disappeared and declared they would not go on until the girls were found. The young woman finally persuaded the man to take them back to camp where they arrived long after dark.
After the company arrived in Salt Lake City the Mathews family moved to Ogden where they remained until the spring of 1859 when they moved to Providence, Cache Valley. Here Mary met George W. Marler, and later married him in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City. Mother passed away May 9, 1931 at the age of eighty-four years, the last of the 1859 pioneers of Providence, Utah.
