Barker

Jeanne Marie Gaudin-Moise 1810 gravesite

Ben Mathews — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 19:25:57 -0800

Elizabeth Bocock Autobiography

Ben Mathews — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 14:29:58 -0800

My maiden name was Elizabeth Bocock, my father’s name was William Bocock and my mother's maiden name was Sarah Brough. I was born at Tinsley Bar near Sheffield, Yorkshire, England on May 11, 1837. My parents were in comfortable circumstances and gave me a good common education, intending to send me to a Normal School to educate me for a teacher, but my father died when I was eleven years old (13 May 1848) and mother died four years afterward (8 Mar 1852).

...

After my parents death, my sisters and myself continued to keep the Toll Gate where we lived.

Ann Bligh research

Ben Mathews — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:10:23 -0800

This is a most interesting family. The archive record of this family was prepared as if Mr. Bligh and Ann Bligh were a married couple. This is very misleading, as Ann Bligh never married. The archive record [LDS] shows 5 children born at Shelfanger to Mr. Bligh and Mrs. Ann Bligh. There were in fact 7 children born to Ann Bligh, a single woman, at Tibenham, not Shelfanger. The 2 children not shown on the archive record are Mary, christened 15 October 1769 and the second John born 13 January 1789.

William Hickenlooper

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:16 -0800

Bishop William Haney Hickenlooper Obituary

At a quarter past 2 o’clock this morning (Jan. 14,1888), Bishop William H. Hickenlooper, of the Sixth Ward, breathed his last at his home in this city, at the advanced age of 83 years, 3 months and 23 days. The announcement of his death comes suddenly, even to his most intimate friends, the sickness which was the immediate cause of his demise having attacked him but yesterday morning. At the time of his death he was the oldest Bishop in the Church, and for over forty years he had held the position now made

William Hickenlooper Conversion Story

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:16 -0800

William Hickenlooper

Conversion Story

In the winter of 1838–9, William and family (first wife) were residing in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania at the time that the Latter-day Saints were being so bitterly persecuted in Missouri. Rumors were current throughout the country that the “Mormons” were burning and pillaging the houses of the citizens in that State; these rumors having been spread by the enemies of the Saints to draw public attention from their own horrible crimes and provide a temporary excuse for the infamous

Priceless Gifts

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:16 -0800

It was just a few days before Christmas. I was a 17 year old high school senior. Although my grandmother had been in the hospital for several weeks and was dying from cancer, it had been awhile since I had seen her. I was shocked at what I saw when I went with my parents, aunts, uncles and grandfather to visit her that cold snowy wintry night. There on a sterile hospital bed I saw someone I loved very much, incoherent and full of pain. She did not recognize me or anyone else in the room. She screamed. She cried. She made sounds.

A Trip to Southern California

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:15 -0800

A Trip to Southern California

A few weeks before my mission was over I saw an advertisement in the newspaper that really caught my eye. It stated that a car dealer was looking for people to drive cars to Los Angeles at no cost to them. Elder Ferguson and I went to the dealer to see what the ad was all about. We were told that used cars were more expensive in Los Angeles than in Tulsa. As a result the dealer was buying cars in Tulsa and getting people to drive them to Los Angeles where they were sold for a profit.

The Beginning

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:15 -0800

The Beginning

On July 27, 1930, when I was born into the Frederick and Della Hickenlopper Barker family, the Great Depression of the 1930?s was only nine months old. When I arrived my mother was forty-two, and my father was fifty-four years of age. I am sure the indications of my arrival were met with anything but joy, due to the age of my parents and the economic environment that existed at the time. However, I have never known anything but great love and caring from my parents, my two sisters and my four brothers.

College Orientation

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:15 -0800

College Orientation

A couple of days before classwork began at Weber College I finalized my registration for the Fall Quarter and attended the required orientation class. The class instructor put on a memory demonstration that is still hard to believe. When I registered, I was assigned a room and a time for my orientation class. The instructor had several orientation classes to teach during a two-day period in order to reach all the new freshmen.

The Transition

Ben Mathews — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:55:15 -0800

For most people going from elementary school to junior high school was a significant change in their lives. They went to a different school with completely different teachers. This was not true in my case. The North Ogden Junior High School included kindergarten through the tenth grade in one building. The biggest change when going from our elementary school to junior high school was the addition of matinee dances and intra-school sports. Basketball, baseball and track were fierce competitive sports between the different junior high schools in Weber County.