N. S , H, SENIORS BID FAREWELL ~~~ 1930

 

 

HOME OF JOSEPH JENSEN and wife ROSELIA ANN FARNSWORTH (from our archives)

 

 

 

MT. PLEASANT BOOK ~~~ SURROUNDING COMMUNTITIES

Deseret News May 28, 2001 ~~~Poor Farm

 

Memorial is dedicated to 'Poor Farm' inhabitants
By Deseret News May 28, 2001, 10:40am MDT
Carma Wadley senior writer

 https://www.deseret.com/2001/5/28/19588594/sanpete-honors-forgotten-souls

 

William Ditmer was a blind shoemaker who lived and worked in Fairview. At the end of his life, he went to live at the "Poor Farm," as the Sanpete County Infirmary was called in those days. When he died in 1916, Ditmer was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave.

Legacy's a quirky thing. Those who try to manufacture it are not always successful. Those who never give it a thought are often the ones who have untold impact.

When William Ditmer lived out his quiet, useful life in Fairview, he probably had no idea that all these years later people would be remembering him. Or that because of him, others whose only claim to fame might be that they did the best they could would be honored.

This Memorial Day, the town of Fairview is dedicating a monument to all those who lived and died at the Infirmary. They need to be remembered in a positive way, said Norma Vance, who has spearheaded the the memorial project. "At the time, there was a bit of a stigma attached to going to the Poor Farm. Maybe this will help to exonerate them."

Many of them were immigrants, far from their families. But to come here showed such faith and courage, she said. And many were simply caught by circumstance. "When age came upon them, some fell victim to ill health and could no longer do for themselves."

The story of the monument actually began on a wintry day in 1992. A former resident of Fairview came to the home of Norma and Herald Vance with an old clarinet. It had belonged to William Ditmer, the man said, and it should go in the Fairview Museum.

"I had read a little about Ditmer, but when I actually saw and touched his clarinet, he seemed so real, and I wanted to know more about him," Norma said.

She thought about him from time to time. But it wasn't until 1998, when she and Herald were asked to speak at Fairview's Patriotic Program, that she did more research. "I knew I wanted to talk about William Ditmer."

He had been born in Denmark in 1857, she found. As a small boy he had contracted the measles, which had taken his sight. He learned the shoemaker trade at a school for the blind in Denmark. He joined the LDS Church and came to Fairview in 1886.

Golden Sanderson, one of Fairview's long-time residents, remembered Ditmer in his life story. "He did his shoe repairing mostly by feel," Sanderson wrote, "and could always pick up the right tool or tacks. . . . He lived an isolated life and barely lived off his trade. My parents often helped him with a bowl of soup or other food."

But Ditmer was also a skilled musician. "When darkness came with only the flicker of the kerosene lamp, it was comforting to hear strains of music coming from the old man's house," wrote Sanderson. "It was Ditmer who started some students out on reed instruments until finally a band was organized."

That's what struck her about Ditmer, says Norma. Here he was, blind and barely getting by, "but he gave something back to the community."



Norma went to the Fairview sexton's office to get Ditmer's exact birth and death dates, and that's when she found out that he had gone to live at the Poor Farm. "And I was shocked to see so many more names on the sexton's records of people who had died there."

At least 34 other men and women had died at the Infirmary during its years of operation, and many had been buried in unmarked graves at the Fairview Cemetery, she found.

After the talk at the Patriotic Program, one of the audience members commented on the need for a monument, and that kept nagging at the Vances, who finally took the matter to the City Council in September 1999.

The council agreed, but it has taken awhile to get it all put together. And it has become a community project.

"The Poor Farm was a special spot. Everyone knew where it was, and that's what everyone called it," says Margaret Bench, chaplain of the North Bench Camp of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, which has been involved.

"One of our DUP themes is that our heritage binds us together," adds DUP secretary Becky Roberts. "And this is our heritage."

The infirmary was built in 1895. At that time, not only was the county's population increasing, but the economic depression of 1893 had created a growing number of indigents, and county commissioners looked for ways to support them.

"They settled upon the idea of purchasing a farm where able-bodied indigents could work," Norma said. A two-story building was constructed, with separate wings for the men and women. At any one time, it could accommodate between 16-20 men and eight women.

It operated until the early 1930s. The abandoned building was finally torn down in 1980.

Nowadays, you probably couldn't get away with calling it the Poor Farm, but it was an important part of Fairview history, Mayor Ron Giles said.

The granite marker has been created by Leon Monk, who owns a monument shop in Mt. Pleasant. The marker features a drawing of the building on one side, and a tribute to those who lived and died there on the other. They decided not to list individual names, Monk said, because there were some discrepancies in names and dates and they weren't sure they even had all of them.

It's been quite a project, but he's been glad to be involved, said Monk, who has donated all his labor in creating the monument. "Those people had tough lives. But we need to remember them."

Remembering, after all, is what this day is all about.

But it is not just for their sake that we remember the William Ditmers of the world, Norma said, it is also for our own. The very act of remembering can make us more aware, more appreciative, more connected to each other.

And that, as much as anything, may be the legacy of the blind shoemaker of Fairview.

My Love Affair With Fairview Canyon ~~~ James L. Jacobs ~~~ Saga of the Sanpitch 1979

CARATAT CONDERSET ROWE AND THE MORMON BATTALION SICK DETACHMENT (1846-1847)

Taken from Saga of the Sanpitch Vol. 21

FIRST PLACE HISTORICAL ESSAY Mary Louise Seamons 

  Much has been written about the Mormon Battalion's 2,000-mile forced march under adverse conditions; a number of diaries and journals provide further insights into their trials during those trying months of heat and cold, reduced rations, starving oxen, desert sand, and little or no water. Not nearly as much is known about the men, women, and children who left the Battalion, wintered at Pueblo, Colorado, and entered the Salt Lake Valley soon after Brigham Young's main party arrived.

 Caratat Conderset Rowe was born in Perry Township, Indiana. He was a member of the Mormon Battalion sick detachment.1 Brigham Young had endeavored to get assistance from the U.S. Government to help the Mormon Saints preserve their homes in U.S. territories. When that failed, he sought help to move them where they could live apart from those desiring their "extermination." He prayed to the Lord for help. 

When Captain James Allen arrived at Mount Pisgah on 16 June 1846 and spoke with Church leaders, Young was convinced this was their answer and espoused Captain Allen's recruitment of five companies of Mormon men to serve with the U.S. Army in their war against Mexico.2 Most of the able-bodied men were away earning money to help the main body of Saints on their westward journey. Those at Mt. Pisgah and nearby Council Bluffs were mainly men with families, not enthused about leaving them to travel alone. 

The Brethren made impassioned pleas to the men to join. Young at one point told the men that if they wouldn't go, he would: Let the Mormons be the first men to set their feet on the soil of California. If we want the privilege of going where we can worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience we must raise this "battalion.3 He felt if the Mormons failed to earn the respect of the nation, further criticism would be their downfall. The men were promised that if they went with the Battalion and obeyed the Lord's commandments and their leaders' counsel, they would not fight against other human beings and would return to their families. The Army promised $42.00 per man per year plus pay while in the ranks. A Captain received $50.00 a month; a Private, $7.00. They could keep their "arms and accouterments." A flag was hung in a tree in front of which 549 men took the oath to serve their country. Church leaders counseled the Mormon officers to treat their men with respect and dignity, as if they (the officers) were the men's fathers, and to wear and honor their temple garments at all times. On 20 July the new recruits marched four to miles downriver and camped. "On July 21st they started on the march to the tune, 'The Girl I Left Behind Me '."4

Caratat was a member of Company A; his cousin, William Howe, in Company D. Another cousin, Manning Rowe, is reputed as also being a member of the Battalion, but his name does not appear on Battalion rosters in any of the companies.5 The new recruits marched to Fort Leavenworth where they received their first supplies, then headed for Santa Fe — across the whole of Kansas, a tiny corner of Oklahoma, and into New Mexico. They endured many hardships, particularly after Captain Allen, whom they had come to trust, died at Port Leavenworth a few days after the company left for Santa Fe. Although some good officers remained over the Battalion, some were not so good. 

When the detachment reached the last crossing of the Arkansas River, the commanding officer insisted that most of the families, with some food and supplies, be sent under guard up Arkansas to Pueblo, Colorado. This was unquestionably "in the best interests both of the families and of the Battalion."6 Water was scarce and often impure causing many to become ill. Food rations were cut, and a number of the men were without blankets or warm clothing, having left as much as possible with their families, possibly misunderstanding exactly what they would receive from the Army. It is quite possible their commanding officers were harsher because they understood the need for as much speed as possible so all could reach Santa Fe before supplies ran out or the weather turned cold. When they did reach Santa Fe, they were greeted by a 100-gun salute ordered by Colonel Doniphan, their supreme commander. 

There was much criticism and complaint about Dr. George H. Sanderson who had been appointed surgeon to serve with the Battalion. Sanderson seemed to enjoy tormenting the men who became ill and caused the whole company to travel more slowly. He made them come before him each day to prove they were incapable of walking, then dosed them with medicine from a despised iron spoon. One man complained that he had been given a large dose of laudanum, but was warned by the orderly in charge to get rid of it quickly or it would be fatal.7 

Caratat's cousin William was apparently treated somewhat the same. When William became ill and unable to walk, Caratat was advised to leave him where he was and move on. Caratat sat cross-legged on the ground beside his sick cousin, his musket across his lap, and refused to leave. Finally, the officer in charge ordered that William be lifted into the wagon.8 The commanding officer felt he could not keep so many disabled men, so he ordered a sick detachment back to Pueblo. Some men were afraid they would be mustered out and lose their pay if they went back; their fears proved unfounded. 

On 17 October, Caratat, William, and the others were placed "on detached service by orders of Captain Doniphan" and remained so until they were mustered out of the Army,9 Now the sick detachment traveled under difficult circumstances: little water, short rations, cold and rain, with poor equipment and oxen. Some of the latter died along the way. One day several Battalion members came to camp with thirty fresh oxen. . . followed shortly by some men who claimed to have lost their teams. The Battalion commander told them they could take any of the animals they found. The men left with only four head, leaving the Mormons with thirteen additional teams. Right or wrong, the Mormons felt it was Divine intervention that had provided these animals in their time of need.10 

The detachment arrived in Pueblo nearly a month later and set about building houses and a church, of split cottonwood logs, and a small fort apart from the original site of Pueblo. They passed the winter "drilling, hunting, and having a good time generally: dancing in the church, attending church meetings, and preparing for their springtime journey west. They were first to know the final destination of the Mormons."11

 While at Pueblo, a settlement of trappers and hunters in a natural crossroads setting, they left their mark: theirs was the first white baby born in what is now Colorado. They were able to supplement their meager supplies with "buffalo, deer, and elk meat, thereby saving the necessity of killing any of their stock of cattle of which few remained.12

 Early in the spring—about 15 April 1847—they began their journey west to join the Saints traveling to Utah, heading due north for Port Laramie, west to Fort Bridger, and thence to Salt Lake, Although they found tracks of the main body of pioneers and knew they were not far ahead, the detachment entered the Salt Lake Valley five days behind—20 July 1847. Their enlistment had expired on 16 July 1847» They were officially mustered out of the Army and once again came under the command of Brigham Young, the man they had followed for their beliefs. The empty cabins at Pueblo were never occupied by others, 

On 16 August 1847, 71 men, with 33 wagons and 92 yoke of oxen, some horses, and mules, left the Valley and returned to the Missouri River area to rejoin the families they had left behind, Caratat among them. - There he married Mary Napier, a demure red—haired Scottish lass; two children were born before they returned to Utah. Three more children were born in what is now Payson, and their last child was born in Mt. Pleasant, where they went in early 1860, less than a year after its settlement. There Caratat died on 12 February 1904» not quite two years after Mary's death.14 

His cousin William died 25 July 1905 and was buried in Thayne, Wyoming. Although Caratat and William did not make the long march with the Mormon Battalion, they left a heritage of commitment and loyalty, of responding to the call of their leaders. As B. H. Roberts wrote: Since the Battalion march has not been equaled by any march of infantry. . . it is not likely ... that the Mormon Battalion march across more than half the North American continent will ever be equaled.15 Caratat and William were a part of that march. Note: Caratat Conderset Rowe was the author's great-grandfather. 

END-NOTES 1 . Caratat Conderset Rowe, son of William Niblo and Candace Blanchard Rowe, B. Perry Township, Delaware County, Indiana, 11 May 1823* Mary Loretta Rowe Burnside, "Biography of Caratat Conderset Roue" (unpublished typed manuscript prepared for Mount Pleasant Camp, Daughters of Utah Pioneers, n.d.). Mary was the granddaughter of Caratat. 2 . Kate B. Carter, compiler, The Mormon Battalion (Utah: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, 1956). 3 . Kate B. Carter, compiler, Heart Throbs of the West (Utah: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, 1946). 4 . Carter, 1956, P. 9. 5 . Burnside* 6 . B. H. Roberts, The Mormon Battalion: Its History and Achievements (Salt Lake City. Utah; Deseret News, 1919). P. 30.. 7 James S. Brown, Life of a Pioneer: Being the Autobiography of James S. Brown (Salt Lake City, Utah; George Q. Cannon and Sons Company, 1900). p. 51. 8. Burnside. 9 . "Mormon Battalion (1846-1847). Service Records, n.d. Film. 10. John P. Vurtinis, "Colorado, Mormons, and the Mexican War," Essays and Monographs in Colorado History (Denver: Colorado Historical Society, 1983)» p. 51. 11. Vurtinis, p. 136. 12. Ralph C. Taylor, "Pueblo Mormon Village: First Anglo-Saxon Settlement in Colorado," Colorado South of the Border (Denver: Sage Books, 1963)f p. 386.13. Garter, 1946, p. 186. 14. Family records in possession of the author. 15. Carter, 1946, p. 187-

   Caratat Conderset Rowe                                   Mary Napier Rowe

Elva Porter Has Passed ON

 

Elva Z Porter

February 4th, 2022

10/10/1944 ~ 2/4/2022

Elva Z Porter, 77 returned home to her heavenly father February 4, 2022. She was a wife, mother, grandmother, sister and friend. She struggled for a 12 year battle with dementia disease. Elva was born October, 10th 1944 in Heber Utah. Her parents were Herman Gilbert and Elsie Frances Potter Zufelt. Elva has six brothers and five sisters. Elva met Bert M. Porter at the SnoCap lanes in Ephraim Utah. They married June 8, 1963 and made their home in Mount Pleasant, where they raised two beautiful daughters, Tracy (Porter) Larson and Kim (Porter)Sanderson.
Elva grew up valuing hard work. Elva worked at the Moroni processing plant, sewing plant and was the supervisor at Wasatch Academy until she retired. Elva enjoyed watching her grandchildren open their Christmas gifts each year. Her grandchildren have very vivid memories of this. Elva enjoyed doing crafts and had much talent doing this. She was an excellent seamstress. She enjoyed her time she spent at her computer and enjoyed doing jigsaw puzzles as a pastime.
Elva is survived by her daughter Kim (Dale)Sanderson; her son-in-law Chad Larsen; her four grandchildren; Candice (Layne) Holman, Lindsay (Brady) Wootton, Cory (Jade) Sanderson and Alisha Sanderson and five great grandchildren; Keerah, Braylin, Dreyson, Cooper, and Oaklee. Preceded in death by her husband Bert M. Porter and her daughter Tracy Porter Larsen.
Funeral services will be held Friday, February 11, 2022 at 11:00 at Rasmussen Mortuary with a viewing from 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. prior to services at the Mortuary. Interment in the Mt. Pleasant City Cemetery.

Click Here to Watch Recorded Funeral Service.

Click Here to Watch Recorded Graveside Service.

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.

SANPETE RABBIT DRIVES ~~~ James L. Jacobs

 

This picture gives us another view of Main Street. Recognize anyone you know?

Rabbit Hunts were a common activity in the early 1900s.

 

Home of Christian Joseph Jensen and his wife Rosella Ann Farnworth ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

Home of Brigham Young Porter and his wife Christina Christensen ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

Family Group Sheet of Fredrick Fechser

Our Family Group Sheets are Original Documents recorded by the original families (circa 1880).

They have been microfilmed and are on the Family Search Website. They are considered to be original source documents.

 

Tracy Jean Larsen Returned to Heavenly Father

 

Tracy Jean Larsen

2/14/1964 ~ 10/29/2020

Tracy Jean Larsen, 56, returned to her loving Heavenly Father on October 29, 2020.

Tracy was born on February 14, 1964 to Bert and Elva Porter. She married the love of her life, Chad Larsen, October 25, 1986. Together they raised their two beautiful daughters, Candice (Larsen) Holman and Lindsay (Larsen) Wootton in Spring City, UT. Their marriage was later solemnized in the Manti, UT Temple on their 20th wedding anniversary, October 25, 2006.

Tracy dedicated her life to helping special needs children. She started her career as a Paraprofessional with the North Sanpete School District in 1992. She touched the lives of many students over her 28 years of service.

Tracy was a devoted grandmother. She loved to go swimming, to the park, having sleepovers, reading and singing with her grandkids. Oftentimes you could catch her climbing through the playplace at McDonald’s. Her grandkids were her everything. She had always dreamed of becoming a grandma. She was loved deeply by her 3 beautiful grandkids, Keerah (Cook), Braylin (Wootton) and Dreyson (Wootton).

Tracy is survived by her husband Chad; children, Candice (Layne) Holman and Lindsay (Brady) Wootton; three grandchildren; mom, Elva Porter and sister, Kim (Dale) Sanderson.

Preceded in death by her dad, Bert Porter, grandma, Norma Jansson, aunt, Betty Jansson and great uncle, George Porter.

A viewing will be held Friday, November 6 from 6:00 to 8:00pm and Saturday, November 7 from 9:30-10:30am and Rasmussen Mortuary in Mt. Pleasant.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00am in the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery. Online condolences at rasmussenmortuary.com

The State of Utah and Tracy’s family ask if you are attending please wear a mask.

Bert Marlin Porter Has Passed On

 

 

5/21/1940 ~ 10/11/2020

Bert Marlin Porter

5/21/1940 ~ 10/11/2020

Bert Marlin Porter 80, returned to his loving Heavenly Father October 11, 2020. Bert was born on May 21, 1940 to Norma Porter Jansson. He married the love of his life, Elva Zufelt Porter on June 8, 1963 and built their home to raise their family. Together they lived their lives in Mt. Pleasant, UT where they raised their two beautiful daughters , Tracy (Porter) Larsen and Kim (Porter) Sanderson.

Bert graduated from North Sanpete High School where he excelled in track, football and basketball. Upon graduating, he joined the Utah National Guard.

Bert spent most of his life working at the Moroni Processing Plant doing odd jobs until he found his passion as a mechanic. Bert worked alongside some of his lifelong best friends. He was a very hard worker but knew how to crack jokes to get the guys to laugh.

Bert loved to be outdoors, riding in the hills and hunting or working in his garage building and fixing. He was a handyman. Nothing could keep him down. He was also a gardener and a landscaper. He would pride himself on having a beautiful yard, no matter the season. Bert loved to go out shooting. He taught many of his grandkids and even great grandkids. The mountains were his sanctuary. If he wasn’t hunting with his sons-in-law, he was driving his side by side with his wife, daughters or great grandkids, finding beauty in every ride.

Bert is survived by his wife Elva, his children, Tracy (Chad) Larsen and Kim (Dale) Sanderson, his 4 grandkids, Candice, Lindsay, Cory and Alisha, and his 5 great grandkids, Keerah, Braylin, Cooper, Dreyson and Oaklee.
Preceded in death by his mom Norma Porter Jansson, his sister Betty Jansson and his uncle George Porter.

Graveside services will be held Friday, October 16 at 11:00 am at the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.Bert Marlin Porter 80, returned to his loving Heavenly Father October 11, 2020. Bert was born on May 21, 1940 to Norma Porter Jansson. He married the love of his life, Elva Zufelt Porter on June 8, 1963 and built their home to raise their family. Together they lived their lives in Mt. Pleasant, UT where they raised their two beautiful daughters , Tracy (Porter) Larsen and Kim (Porter) Sanderson.

Bert graduated from North Sanpete High School where he excelled in track, football and basketball. Upon graduating, he joined the Utah National Guard.

Bert spent most of his life working at the Moroni Processing Plant doing odd jobs until he found his passion as a mechanic. Bert worked alongside some of his lifelong best friends. He was a very hard worker but knew how to crack jokes to get the guys to laugh.

Bert loved to be outdoors, riding in the hills and hunting or working in his garage building and fixing. He was a handyman. Nothing could keep him down. He was also a gardener and a landscaper. He would pride himself on having a beautiful yard, no matter the season. Bert loved to go out shooting. He taught many of his grandkids and even great grandkids. The mountains were his sanctuary. If he wasn’t hunting with his sons-in-law, he was driving his side by side with his wife, daughters or great grandkids, finding beauty in every ride.

Bert is survived by his wife Elva, his children, Tracy (Chad) Larsen and Kim (Dale) Sanderson, his 4 grandkids, Candice, Lindsay, Cory and Alisha, and his 5 great grandkids, Keerah, Braylin, Cooper, Dreyson and Oaklee.
Preceded in death by his mom Norma Porter Jansson, his sister Betty Jansson and his uncle George Porter.

Graveside services were held Friday, October 16 at 11:00 am at the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.

Home of Christian Joseph Jensen and his wife Rosella Ann Farnworth ~~~ Researched and Compiled by Tudy Barentsen Standlee

 

Family Group Sheet of Frederick Fechser

Our Family Group Sheets are Original Documents recorded by the original families (circa 1880).

They have been microfilmed and are on the Family Search Website. They are considered to be original source documents.

 

MEMORIES OF SANPETE Ruby F. Thomas

   I was born in “our new house” in Mount Pleasant, Utah. Papa had built it himself, mostly, of cream-colored brick. And there was a porch all across the front, with a porch swing, And room for rocking chair and other chairs beside, To sit on a warm summer day. 

Grandma Sanderson came from Fairview, for a visit and held me on her lap, As she rocked on the porch when I was just a baby way back in nineteen hundred and fourteen. Mama and Papa and my sister Crystal stood nearby. And we had a picture taken. 

Papa was born in Mt. Pleasant and Mama in Fairview, So, of course, the Mt. Pleasant boys thought Fairview girls were prettier, and vice versa. 

Papa was part owner of a confectionary called Crystal ice Cream, And that’s where my sister got her name. They name me Ruby because it seemed to go well with Crystal. She was blond and I was sort of dark, always the heart wants to return home Until the circle is completed. For this we all yearn. But some of me will remain until I’ve tasted more beneficence, More appreciation, and can discern. When sorrow has sculptured all the hollows of my heart. When history of all my own I’ve prepared and know, I shall answer then, (Across the silent deep.) But reluctantly I’ll go.  

And our 4th of July dresses were generally blue for Crystal And red for me. After we moved to the City, we usually went back to Sanpetefor the 4th of July and to visit Grandma Sanderson in Fairview And Grandma Fechser in Mt. Pleasant. There was the patriotic meeting in the church house, and the parade down the street, with the band playing, And Crystal and I each had our own little flags to wave. There was the Rodeo, and an afternoon dance for children, And a night dance for grownups and even Grandma went to watch. And babies were put on benches to sleep. And when we walked down Main Street, in our new dresses, Those who sat and watched speculated as to who we were and we felt important. When we drove up to Grandma’s house, She was always sitting by the window watching for us. And Mama said, “Now run inside And give Grandma a big kiss.” 

I sat on her lap and marveled at the big wrinkles In her face and hands. I told her a nursery rhyme once about Little Joan who said when nobody’s with me I’m always alone, And Grandma laughed so hard the tears rolled down her cheeks. She went out in the back yard and caught a chicken and chopped off its head, and we watched it flopping around, and making clucking noises without any head. Grandma talked a lot about dying, And once when someone was fixing the wall of her house, she said, “Now don’t you boys fix that too good, Or I won’t want to die.”

Sanpete Honors Forgotten Souls

Memorial is dedicated to 'Poor Farm' inhabitants
By Deseret News May 28, 2001, 10:40am MDT
Carma Wadley senior writer

 https://www.deseret.com/2001/5/28/19588594/sanpete-honors-forgotten-souls

 

William Ditmer was a blind shoemaker who lived and worked in Fairview. At the end of his life, he went to live at the "Poor Farm," as the Sanpete County Infirmary was called in those days. When he died in 1916, Ditmer was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave.

Legacy's a quirky thing. Those who try to manufacture it are not always successful. Those who never give it a thought are often the ones who have untold impact.

When William Ditmer lived out his quiet, useful life in Fairview, he probably had no idea that all these years later people would be remembering him. Or that because of him, others whose only claim to fame might be that they did the best they could would be honored.

This Memorial Day, the town of Fairview is dedicating a monument to all those who lived and died at the Infirmary. They need to be remembered in a positive way, said Norma Vance, who has spearheaded the the memorial project. "At the time, there was a bit of a stigma attached to going to the Poor Farm. Maybe this will help to exonerate them."

Many of them were immigrants, far from their families. But to come here showed such faith and courage, she said. And many were simply caught by circumstance. "When age came upon them, some fell victim to ill health and could no longer do for themselves."

The story of the monument actually began on a wintry day in 1992. A former resident of Fairview came to the home of Norma and Herald Vance with an old clarinet. It had belonged to William Ditmer, the man said, and it should go in the Fairview Museum.

"I had read a little about Ditmer, but when I actually saw and touched his clarinet, he seemed so real, and I wanted to know more about him," Norma said.

She thought about him from time to time. But it wasn't until 1998, when she and Herald were asked to speak at Fairview's Patriotic Program, that she did more research. "I knew I wanted to talk about William Ditmer."

He had been born in Denmark in 1857, she found. As a small boy he had contracted the measles, which had taken his sight. He learned the shoemaker trade at a school for the blind in Denmark. He joined the LDS Church and came to Fairview in 1886.

Golden Sanderson, one of Fairview's long-time residents, remembered Ditmer in his life story. "He did his shoe repairing mostly by feel," Sanderson wrote, "and could always pick up the right tool or tacks. . . . He lived an isolated life and barely lived off his trade. My parents often helped him with a bowl of soup or other food."

But Ditmer was also a skilled musician. "When darkness came with only the flicker of the kerosene lamp, it was comforting to hear strains of music coming from the old man's house," wrote Sanderson. "It was Ditmer who started some students out on reed instruments until finally a band was organized."

That's what struck her about Ditmer, says Norma. Here he was, blind and barely getting by, "but he gave something back to the community."



Norma went to the Fairview sexton's office to get Ditmer's exact birth and death dates, and that's when she found out that he had gone to live at the Poor Farm. "And I was shocked to see so many more names on the sexton's records of people who had died there."

At least 34 other men and women had died at the Infirmary during its years of operation, and many had been buried in unmarked graves at the Fairview Cemetery, she found.

After the talk at the Patriotic Program, one of the audience members commented on the need for a monument, and that kept nagging at the Vances, who finally took the matter to the City Council in September 1999.

The council agreed, but it has taken awhile to get it all put together. And it has become a community project.

"The Poor Farm was a special spot. Everyone knew where it was, and that's what everyone called it," says Margaret Bench, chaplain of the North Bench Camp of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, which has been involved.

"One of our DUP themes is that our heritage binds us together," adds DUP secretary Becky Roberts. "And this is our heritage."

The infirmary was built in 1895. At that time, not only was the county's population increasing, but the economic depression of 1893 had created a growing number of indigents, and county commissioners looked for ways to support them.

"They settled upon the idea of purchasing a farm where able-bodied indigents could work," Norma said. A two-story building was constructed, with separate wings for the men and women. At any one time, it could accommodate between 16-20 men and eight women.

It operated until the early 1930s. The abandoned building was finally torn down in 1980.

Nowadays, you probably couldn't get away with calling it the Poor Farm, but it was an important part of Fairview history, Mayor Ron Giles said.

The granite marker has been created by Leon Monk, who owns a monument shop in Mt. Pleasant. The marker features a drawing of the building on one side, and a tribute to those who lived and died there on the other. They decided not to list individual names, Monk said, because there were some discrepancies in names and dates and they weren't sure they even had all of them.

It's been quite a project, but he's been glad to be involved, said Monk, who has donated all his labor in creating the monument. "Those people had tough lives. But we need to remember them."

Remembering, after all, is what this day is all about.

But it is not just for their sake that we remember the William Ditmers of the world, Norma said, it is also for our own. The very act of remembering can make us more aware, more appreciative, more connected to each other.

And that, as much as anything, may be the legacy of the blind shoemaker of Fairview.

Betty Mae Jansson ~~~~ Rememberd by Many

Betty Mae Jansson


3/11/1945 ~ 9/14/2019

Betty Mae Jansson, 74 of Mt. Pleasant, Utah passed away peacefully in her sleep on Saturday, September 14, 2019 in Centerfield, Utah.
Betty was born on March 11, 1945 in Mt. Pleasant, Utah to Norma Porter Jansson. She shared her life alongside her brother and best friend Bert Porter. She was an angel walking this earth. Her love for family and friends was unsurmounted. She enjoyed meeting new people and welcoming them into her heart. She loved sharing stories about the old days.
Betty worked at the turkey plant in Moroni for most of her life, where she met many life-long friends. She loved being out in the community and spending time at Terrell’s, having a drink at Wheeler’s, getting her hair done at the salon, and riding with her brother on the side-by-side to look at the leaves up the canyon.
Betty is survived in life by her brother Bert (Elva) Porter, and her two nieces Tracy(Chad) Larsen and Kim (Dale) Sanderson. She adored her three great nieces and nephew; her 3 great-great nieces; and 2 great-great nephews; Lindsay, Cory, Alisha, Keerah, Braylin, Dreyson, Cooper, Oaklee. She is preceded in death by her mother Norma Jansson.
Graveside services will be held Thursday September 19, 2019 at 12:00 noon in the Mt. Pleasant City Cemetery with a visitation from 11:00 to 11:45 a.m. at Rasmussen Mortuary.

Family Group Sheet of Napoleon Bonaparte Pritchett and Olive Loretta Sanders Pritchett