Alice Mills Page
Alice Mills, daughter of Thomas and Alice Allen Mills was born January 2, l847 at Radcliff, Lancashire, England.
Through the Mormon Elders, her father and family were converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and shortly after Alice was 8 years old, they started for Zion, crossing the Atlantic Ocean. When they were a few days out Alice was baptized on board the ship.
While on the ocean, Alice saw a whale spouting water not far from the ship. They were delayed in sailing by stormy weather and after a month on the water they landed at New York, they settled in Pottsville, Pennsylvania where they lived for some time. While here the children would gather walnuts by the bushel from the woods and store them for winter use.
Alice’s father was very industrious and desired the children to be the same, so he required the girls to knit so many rounds on a stocking every day.
They moved to Alton, Illinois and while living here Alice’s brother Willie was very ill and her father went to get some Mormon Elders to administer to him. He had to run all the way as the Elders were leaving that day and he was afraid they would be gone before he could get there. He arrived just in time, but in doing so he over did himself and never recovered.
His death was a very heavy blow to the family as they were left to provide for themselves as well as earn money enough to migrate to Utah. While there Alice worked at a boarding school (a girls’ seminary) as a nurse maid for two lady teachers who taught her in the evenings.
Later they moved to Council B1uffs, Iowa, always getting a little closer to Utah. From Council Bluffs the family started on their journey across the plains in l86l in a wagon with ox team. I have heard mother tell how the young folks would gather around the camp fire, sing songs and enjoy themselves until bedtime.
After reaching Salt Lake City they lived there for awhile then moved to Mt. Pleasant, Sanpete County, Utah. Here Alice became acquainted with Joseph Page who married her sister Elizabeth. After three children were born to them his wife died and later he married Alice. Joseph was the mayor of Mt. Pleasant and postmaster for fifteen years. He also taught school eighteen years and Alice assisted him, she was also assistant postmaster and did the business at the office while Joseph freighted with an ox team, which consisted of three yoke of oxen and two wagons, to a mining camp in Nevada.
While he was freighting, the Black Hawk and Indian War broke out and he enlisted in the Utah militia. He was made adjutant general with the rank of major. During this war, he was shot through the left knee crushing the bone. He was taken home and as there was no doctor nearer than Salt Lake City. Alice had to take care of him until the doctor arrived from Salt Lake City, a distance of over one hundred miles, by ox team.
When Dr. Anderson arrived he said there was no use of doing anything for him as the bone was so badly shattered and the leg was swollen so badly, but Alice being so determined to do all that could be done to save him. She wanted the doctor to dress it and she took care of him. Finally through their faith and prayers after one and a half years he was able to get out of bed though the leg was bent straight back from the knee leaving him a cripple for life.
Alice became the mother of ten children in Mount Pleasant. She had many friends and was loved and respected by all who knew her. When her youngest child was 6 months old she with her husband and family moved to Orangeville, Emery County, Utah. Soon after arriving in Orangeville their next to the youngest child died.
While living in Orangeville she made many friends and was secretary of the Relief Society for many years. After living in Orangeville, some years her husband bought a ranch ten miles east of that place on Huntington Creek, and during the winter months the children attended school at Orangeville.
While living here they had a herd of over 100 hogs. One day 6 or 7 of these hogs had got into the granary under which was a potato cellar. They had gone down a dozen stairs to get into the cellar when Alice found them. Joseph wasn’t able to get them out on account of his leg, so Alice coaxed them and tried to get them out every way they could but finally could see they would stay there until they had eaten all of the potatoes. So she carried 30 bushel of them up and put them in a bin in the granary above the cellar. When the hogs got hungry enough they walked up the steps and came out. Joseph thought Alice had left the door open but the next day he saw one of the hogs climb over a tight pole fence which was around the granary and stand on its hind legs with its front ones against the wall while with its teeth it pulled the spike out of the staple which held the door shut. Then he knew Alice hadn’t left the door open.
When the Uintah Indian reservation was opened in 1906, Alice and her husband and family moved to Roosevelt where she with her husband went into the bee business.
Four years later her husband died at the age of 8l leaving Alice to finish life’s journey alone. Nine years later she had an attack of the influenza from which she never recovered and on the September 13, 1920, she died at the age of 73 years.
This history written by her daughter Lorana Page Anderson
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