JOHN WILLIAM PRITCHETT

 

JOHN WILLIAM PRITCHETT

Born 8 Aug 1860 in Linn County, Mo. --Died 6 Jan 1943 at Fairview, Utah. Came to Utah in 1865, settled in Fairview--farmer and stock raiser: small dairy herd 20 cows witch Maggie Ann and Martha Ellen milked each morning before going to school and again in the evening. Owned 480 acres of mostly dry land, raised wheat and hay. Ran a grist mill, was constable, stock holder in the Co-op store. He was a carpenter and builder, had a good head for business and a working knowledge of law.

 He was honest, also shrewd in his business dealings. Not a person to be easily taken advantage of. He owned horses and sheep. In his youth, an horse he was riding stumbled and fell with him landing on top of him. One of his lungs was crushed leaving him incapacitated for hard work, so he had to make his living by his witts [sic]. It is said of him that he was a good thinker and people came to him for advice. He was respected for his sound judgment and wisdom. He was a good mathematician and was good at figureing [sic] out puzzles and problems. He was a man of his word and expected others to be the same. He was from the old school when a man’s word was his bond and could be relied upon. He taught his family these same principles so they also possessed [sic] many of these sterling characteristics. He liked to figure and his third wife (Aunt Mandy) as she was lovingly called, often said to him, John, you are going to figure yourself right out of your dinner.” They were hospitable and charitable. It is said of him that he would share right down to his last crust with someone in need. I sincerely believe this to be true as my mother was the same way. He didn’t want any fifth calves, as he expressed it, looking on while the rest ate. 

John William Pritchett and
Martha Ann Tidwell Pritchett
Martha Ann was a daughter of 
James Harvey Tidwell 
and granddaughter of
John Tidwell 

 

Grandpa liked to play checkers and whittle. He didn’t leave worldly wealth, but he did leave a noble family. They worked hard for what they got: pitched hay, rode horses, cooked for thrashers, made wedding cakes for people, and did all farm chores. Money was scarce in those days.

His wife, Martha Ann Tidwell died of typhoid pneumonia when she was 29 years old leaving him with five little girls to be father and mother to. He did a good job in this capacity as they were all astute, honest, good business heads with leadership ability, thrifty, great cooks, compassionate to others, good at sewing and quite versatile. I don’t know of anything they couldn’t do if they set their minds to it.

 The word “no” was not in their vocabulary. Grandpa always said, “I can’t is a sluggard too lazy to try.” They were taught not to say, “IQ” but “I will” and that anything was possible if enough effort were expended. It really worked in their case. They were athletic, artistic, industrious, and all of high moral character. To say nothing of being fun-loving, witty, and possessing a fine sense of humor into the bargain. They were not easily out-ran, out-spelled or outsmarted. They -- whatever they were, were real and genuine. This is not fantasy, heresay, or bragging. I knew them and it is the truth. I forgot to say that they plain spoken [sic]. They said it like it was.

      Some of his favorite sayings are as follows: “Some people want the whole world and a calf pasture on the outside.” “It is the wait that breaks the wagon down.” “You can’t put an old head on young shoulders.” “Take care of today, and tomorrow will take care of itself” “Keep your feet hot and your heads cool.” “Never go into debt for food or what you wear, or you are always paying for a dead horse.”

“A dollar saved is a dollar earned.”

John William Pritchett

Sarah Emily Rawson Pritchett  (2nd wife)

NORTH SANPETE COMMENCEMENT PROGRAM ~~~ MAY 6, 1931

 

1947 CENTENNIAL COMMISION PROGRAM

MT. PLEASANT BOOK ~~~ SURROUNDING COMMUNTITIES

BERT F. HAFEN and Buddies From the War and His Obituary

 

Bert Hafen as a child with N.P. Nielsen Jr., Maren Christiansen Jensen Nielsen, Karen Maria Christiansen, Bert as a child and Neil Nielsen Hafen as a child 

L to R: Sam Jones, Bert Ruesch, Bill Beck, Nick Nelson, Bert Hafen, Yours Truly, Boyd Seely,

PAST PIONEER DAY EVENTS ~~~ Taken From Louise Johansen's Scrapbook

 

RELIEF SOCIETY POETRY 1962

 

In Loving Memory of Carolyn Larsen Hafen

 

Young Blades ~~~From Louise Johansen Scrapbook (date unknown)

 

Assorted Photos From The Alice Peel Hafen Collection (three unknowns)

 

(on back:  Uncle John Peel's Wife)

Esther Matson 

Superintendent A.E. Jones

North Sanpete 

Unknown 

Unknown 

Unknown 

RELIEF SOCIETY POETRY ~~~ 1962

 

Home of Wilford Woodruff Brandon and his wife Margretta Wilcox~~~Researched, Compiled and updated by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

Home of Abram Jarald Burton and his wife Carole Augusta Jones ~~~ Researched, Compiled and Updated by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

Home of Francis T. Rudolph Strom and his wife Louisa Carlyne Rauche ~~~Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

MILBURN SCHOOL by Harold Vance, Saga of the Sanpitch

 

Someone, please send us a picture! 

Request Granted

Herald Vance

Fairview, Utah   1988

I hear the laughter of children. I hear the sometimes jovial, sometimes serious, and concerned conversations of adults. I hear music. I hear mischievous pranks giddily planned by energetic young people. I hear the solemn silence of reverence. Other sounds also drift through my century-old memory: the creak and clatter of wagon wheels over a rutted, rocky road; the heavy clop-clop of horse hooves; rhythmic sounds of a carpenter’s saw and hammer; the high-pitched ping of a rock mason’s chisel; sighs of fatigue; and proud comments of accomplishment. There are also the thousands of identifying odors that pleasantly linger, springtime and the changing seasons, the turning of the soil, fresh-sawn lumber, storm, new-mown hay, dust, rain, sweat, paint, food in various form, perfume, animals, and coal-oil lamps. Who am I? I’m a proud old building. I’ve served various purposes and seen many changes. In fact, my very own structure and location has been changed. In reality I’m not even the same building I started out to be. But I am very proud of my ancestral roots, and clung to those roots with every fiber of my stately structure. It all started about 1894, when the old pink-red brick, two-room Milburn school house, located below the mouth of Dry Creek Canyon was built. Its design was most prominently expressed by two large, arched entryways, above which appeared on one the word “Boys” and the other, “Girls” these entryways contained coat hooks around the walls and steps leading up into the two large rooms, one somewhat larger than the other.


The rooms were divided by massive folding doors which could be opened all the way to create an unrestricted hall for social events. There was also a teacher’ room near the front between the arches. The children of Milburn attended school in this building through the eighth grade, first through fourth in the “little room,” and fifth through eighth in the “big room.” A milestone in life had, indeed, been reached when one ‘graduated’ into the Big Room. Reading ‘Riting, and ‘Rithmetic were pounded into the young heads by able teachers like Rhoda Davis, Irene Edmunds, Maitland Graham, Marcella Graham, Coquella Jones, Mary Jones, Elva Madsen, Leah Nielsen, Leland Nielsen, Adriel Norman, Hilda Sanders, Mae Sanderson, Hannah Stewart, Otis L. Stewart, and Verga Ray Stewart. While the main purpose of the school was education, there were also the lighter, more carefree moments. The fun times participating in school plays, operettas, Christmas parties, May Day celebrations, dances, and scores of other events, should not be overlooked. But it should also be remembered that, even though these activities did provide untold satisfaction, pleasure, and entertainment, they did not take place without a price. It was not a monetary one, but one paid through inconvenience, determination, and sacrifice. In the early 1900’s people didn’t hop in a car and motor on down to the schoolhouse.


Transportation was either horseback or horse-drawn wagon, buggy, or sleigh. Upon returning home cold or wet, in the middle of the ngi9ht, the team still had to be cared for. The building did not light by the flick of a switch. Lighting was provided by candles, “coal oil” lamps, and later, gasoline lamps, usually brought in by some of those attending. If a youngster had to go to the bathroom, it was a long, cold, dark, and possibly snowy trek to the little house out back. Ahh, for the “good old days.” This building served the Milburn community as both school and I hear the laughter of children. I hear the sometimes jovial, sometimes serious and concerned conversations of adults. I hear music. I hear mischievous pranks giddily planned by energetic young people. I hear the solemn silence of reverence.


Other sounds also drift through my century-old memory: the creak and clatter of wagon wheels over a rutted, rocky road; the heavy clop-clop of horse hooves; rhythmic sounds of a carpenter’s saw and hammer; the high-pitched ping of a rock mason’s chisel; sighs of fatigue; and proud comments of accomplishment. There are also the thousands of identifying odors that pleasantly linger, springtime and the changing seasons, the turning of the soil, fresh-sawn lumber, storm, new-mown hay, dust, rain, sweat, paint, food in various form, perfume, animals, and coal-oil lamps.


Who am I? I’m a proud old building. I’ve served various purposes and seen many changes. In fact, my very own structure and location has been changed. In reality, I’m not even the same building I started out to be. But I am very proud of my ancestral roots, and clung to those roots with every fiber of my stately structure. It all started about 1894, when the old pink-red brick, two-room Milburn schoolhouse, located below the mouth of Dry Creek Canyon was built. Its design was most prominently expressed by two large, arched entryways, above which appeared on one the word “Boys” and the other, “Girls” these entryways contained coat hooks around the walls and steps leading up into the two large rooms, one somewhat larger than the other. The rooms were divided by massive folding doors which could be opened all the way to create an unrestricted hall for social events. There was also a teacher’s room near the front between the arches. The children of Milburn attended school in this building through the eighth grade, first through fourth in the “little room,” and fifth through eighth in the “big room.” A milestone in life had, indeed, been reached when one ‘graduated’ into the Big Room. Reading ‘Riting, and ‘Rithmetic were pounded into the young heads by able teachers like Rhoda Davis, Irene Edmunds, Maitland Graham, Marcella Graham, Coquella Jones, Mary Jones, Elva Madsen, Leah Nielsen, Leland Nielsen, Adriel Norman, Hilda Sanders, Mae Sanderson, Hannah Stewart, Otis L. Stewart, and Verga Ray Stewart.


While the main purpose of the school was education, there were also the lighter, more carefree moments. The fun times participating in school plays, operettas, Christmas parties, May Day celebrations, dances, and scores of other events, should not be overlooked. But it should also be remembered that, even though these activities did provide untold satisfaction, pleasure, and entertainment, they did not take place without a price. It was not a monetary one, but one paid through inconvenience, determination, and sacrifice. In the early 1900s people didn’t hop in a car and motor on down to the schoolhouse. Transportation was either horseback or horse-drawn wagon, buggy, or sleigh. Upon returning home cold or wet, in the middle of the ngi9ht, the team still had to be cared for. The building did not light by the flick of a switch. Lighting was provided by candles, “coal oil” lamps, and later, gasoline lamps, usually brought in by some of those attending. If a youngster had to go to the bathroom, it was a long, cold, dark, and possibly snowy trek to the little house outback. Ahh, for the “good old days.”


This building served the Milburn community as both school and Today this building still serves a dual purpose. While it houses a successful small business, it is also a lovely home with all the charm, character, and comfort that one could ever hope for. Friends and relatives bask in its warmth whenever they come to call, especially the grandchildren. They think it’s about the greatest thing this side of heaven. So you see, my rough-sawn native pine rafters and floor joists, though nearly 100 years old, still hear music, the conversations of oldsters, and the laughter of children. My Milburn stone quarry foundation rocks still hear an occasional sigh of fatigue. And my native pink adobe bricks still absorb the many sweet aromas of the changing seasons and most of the other smells that crowd my memory bank, as well as the tantalizing odors that drift from the kitchen.


While many changes have taken place during the past century, some things change very little. The couple who have called me “home” for the past sixteen years love me very much and cherish my heritage as they do their own. They are descendants of those hardy founding fathers who helped plant my roots. Mr. Vance has been associated with me since he drew his first breath nearly sixty-five years ago. His early teachings, both academic and spiritual, began within my walls as the old Milburn School and as the Milburn Ward Chapel. Even though my history goes back a century and holds many memories, I think I kind of like being a part of this modern age!


Sources: 3 Author’s recollection. 4 These Our Fathers, 1947, p. 120. 5 Ibid 6 These Our Fathers, 1947, p. 121 and Fairview North Ward LDS Church records. 7 Personal diary of Donna Brunger, Milburn, Utah.

Sophmores of North Sanpete High School 1927

 

 

Utah National Guard Infantry ~~~ Company D First Infantry ~~~ Presented to the Mt. Pleasant Pioneer Association by Ben Staker

 

Home of John Owen Jones and his wife Antoinette DeGraff ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

Home of George Druce Guiver and his wife Annie Mina Jacobsen ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

Home of Thomas C. Jensen and his wife Mary Christina Madsen ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee