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TRADITIONAL Pioneer Stories
Since 1933, the National Society of Sons of Utah Pioneers has been dedicated to honoring and remembering our great pioneer forefathers and mothers.
We must never forget the great heritage they gave us – a heritage of faith in God – of devotion to family – of loyalty to church and country – of hard work and service to others – of courage in adversity – of personal integrity and unyielding determination! We must never forget!
All of us have heard and been inspired by the stories of the famous early pioneers of the West. However, there are many of our ancestors whose stories are not known – except to a few. These little-known pioneers deserve recognition. Your children and ours need to know more of their own heritage, to be inspired by their lives, by their examples of faith in God, and by the other pioneer virtues they exemplified.
PIONEER STORY INDEX
- ADAIR, Thomas Jefferson
- ADAMS, Arza Madsen
- ADAMS, Arza Matson
- ADAMSON, Allen Stewart
- ALEXANDER, Abel
- ALLEMAN, John
- ALLEN Jr., Daniel: A Life of Consecration
- ALLEN, Alanson David
- ALLEN, Albern
- ALLEN, Elihu Moroni
- ALLEN, Elijah
- ALLEN, Joseph
- ALLEN, Joseph Stewart
- ALLEN, Jude
- ALLEN: Joseph Stewart
- ALLEY: Stephen Webb
- ALLRED, James Anderson
- ALLSOP, Thomas Hill
- ALSON, Thomas
- ANDERSON, Editha Morgan
- ANDERSON, Hans
- ANDERSON, Neil
- ANDREWS, Amos Betts
- ARMISTEAD, James
- ARMSTRONG, Francis
- ARMSTRONG, Thomas Kirk
- ASH, Alma
- ASHCROFT, Henry
- BACON, Guinivere Ellen Kotter
- BAMBROUGH, Annie
- BARKER, Josiah
- BARLOW, James and Ann Crompton
- BARNEY, Lewis
- BELLISON, James Thomas and Louisa
- BELLISTON, Thomas & Sophia
MODERN-DAY Pioneer Stories
There are many great men and women today whose lives also reflect the pioneer virtues that inspired the lives of the early pioneers. Today’s challenging world also calls out for the same faith and purpose, the same sacred values that were required of the early pioneers.
Who do you know that has made a big difference for good in today’s world – whose life stands as a shining example to others in our day?
Remember, it is the character of the person, the pioneer attributes that made them what they were, the contributions that made their life rich and meaningful—these are the things to emphasize in your story.
Every accepted submission will be published on the SUP website and will be preserved in a special collection in the SUP Library.
Featured Pioneer Stories
LEE, Roland L.: Modern Day Pioneer
This was originally published in the December 2018 issue of the Cotton Mission Chapter Newsletter. (If your chapter has honored modern-day pioneers, please email admin@suponline.org…
ANDERSON, Hans
They had 37 deaths on this voyage due to an out break of the measles and the stagnant and unfit water. Just 4 days before arriving in America, August 7th, Hans' grandson Carl Fedrick Liljeroth died. The "Emerald Isle" arrived at the New York harbor on August the 11th.
WADSWORTH, James: A Return to England
This story originally appeared in the Nov/Dec 1980 issue of Pioneer Magazine Winner Senior Division Pioneer Story Contest 1980 Encampment Helen Free VanderBeek Route 5…
ALSON, Thomas
At the time there were no free schools held in Utah, so students were required to pay tuition, which was rather difficult to provide; while attending with Peck, my tuition became considerable in arrears, therefore, he proposed that I assist him with classes at a salary of $1.00 per week and my tuition, (in all about $1.35 per week) the $1.00 per week to apply on deferred payments.
I engaged to teach the Hoytsville School early in January 1876, at a salary of $45 per month. The school house consisted of one log room about 30 by 40 feet, heated by a stove in the center. The teacher was also the janitor etc.
I engaged to teach the Hoytsville School early in January 1876, at a salary of $45 per month. The school house consisted of one log room about 30 by 40 feet, heated by a stove in the center. The teacher was also the janitor etc.
BAMBROUGH, Annie
Submitted by Paul Bambrough Joseph Bambrough and Margaret Charlton were coal miners in Northumberland England. They heard about opportunities in America and in 1864 arrived…
JONES, Daniel Webster
This article originally appeared in Vol.60, No.1 2013 issue of Pioneer Magazine Daniel Webster Jones was born August 26th, 1830, in Booneslick, Howard County, Missouri.…
WATTIS, Mary Twinberrow
Mary’s Alter This article originally appeared in the Spring 2000 issue of Pioneer Magazine By Jay Greaves Burrup In 1842, at the age of 23,…
YOUNG, Brigham
From Whitney’s History of Utah, Vol. 4 VIRTUALLY the history of Brigham Young has been told in the preceding volumes; his great life forming the…
SMOOT, Abraham Owen
This article originally appeared in Vol.58 No.2 (2011) issue of Pioneer Magazine Abraham Owen Smoot was born on Feb. 17, 1815, in Franklin County (later…
MAXWELL, John Lambert
By Susan Lofgren Born on October 27, 1837, in Yorkshire, England, John Lambert Maxwell discovered his love for the land early. When he was only…
WEEKS, Allen
Submitted by Keith Lawrence In 1852 the Weeks Company, led by Allen Weeks crossed the plains with 241 Latter-day Saints. In the company were Allen…
SMITH, Judge Samuel
This article originally appeared in the Mar/Apr 1990 Issue of Pioneer Magazine Submitted by Eton Samuel Hanson, A great-great grandson There are few men of…
MILLER, William
William Miller was born Feb. 8, 1814, at Avon, New York. He started for Kirtland, Ohio, Oct. 12, 1834; remained there three weeks conversing with…
CORRY, William Henry
A Call to the Bishopric By Elwood J. Corry This story originally appeared in the Nov/Dec 1971 issue of Pioneer Magazine. I never knew my…
WELLS, Daniel Hanmer
Submitted by Bradley Clayton, Great-Great-Grandson of Daniel Hanmer Wells Born October 27th, 1814 in upstate New York, Daniel H. Wells was the grandson of two…
FRANKS, Sarah Ann
Sarah Ann Franks and George Padley: A Love Story Submitted by Michael Jordan Born: 05/09/1832, Shepshed, Leicestershire, England Died: 01/31/1911, Murray, Utah Sarah Ann Franks…
CLEMENTS, Albert & Ada Winchell
At the time of the martyrdom of Joseph Smith the Prophet and his brother Hyrum the Patriarch – Albert F. Clements, like many of the…
BINGHAM, Sanford
Submitted by John Elggren, Great-Great-Grandson of Benjamin Franklin Lewis Sanford Bingham, first son of Erastus and Lucinda (Gates) Bingham, born in Concord, Essex, Vermont,…
KILLIAN, Captain John
When the Elders administered to me, Brother Killian being mouth, I was in bed. He poured the oil on my forehead and I jumped right out of bed and put on my clothes. On hearing that Robbins was going to Quincy in the morning, I walked up to his house, three-quarters of a mile, and went with him in his carriage to Quincy, remained all day and returned with him at night.”
ADAMSON, Allen Stewart
Submitted by Larry Gibson, past president, Timpanogos Chapter My great-great-grandfather, Allen Stewart (Stuart) Adamson, was born April 29, 1823, at Dundee, Scotland. He was the…
NEWMAN, Elijah
George Washington was President of the United States when Elijah was born in Romney, Hampshire County, Virginia on September 17 1793. His parents were Solomon…
ANDERSON, Neil
One day, when it was soon time to harvest the beets, he called the boys together to show them how to top the beets. When he had them all around him he took a big beet and his best knife and toped the beet and at the same time he cut the end of his finger off. Then he said, "Boys, that will never do. Don't do it that way!"
HULSE, Charles Wesley
Submitted by Bill Morgan Born: 10/01/1822, Manchester, Lancashire, England Died” 01/07/1882, Millville Cache, Utah Territory This morning FamilySearch sent a link to me telling that…
WHITNEY, Samuel A.
Submitted by Bill Morgan, Timpanogos Chapter of SUP, American Fork, UT Date of Birth 11/10/1840 Place of Birth Palmyra, Warren, Ohio Date of Death 03/16/1923…
COWLES, Elvira Anne
Submitted by Tony Tidwell Elvira was born November 22, 1813, in Unadilla, Otsego County, New York, the first child of twenty-one-year old Austin Cowles, from…
PETERSON, Charle Sreeve
Submitted by: William “Bill” Morgan, Timpanogos Chapter, SUP Born: 7/28/1818 in Mount Holly, Burlington, New Jersey Died: 9/26/1889, Mesa, Maricopa, Arizona Charles S. Peterson is…
RICHAN, John
Date of Birth 24/Dec/1799 Place of Birth Sunderland, Durham, England UK Date of Death 21/Sep/1878 Place of Death Pleasant Grove, Utah, Utah USA John Richan,…
CALL, Helaman Pratt
My father had done a little experimenting. We had a large bathtub in one of the bedrooms in our home—it hadn’t been remodeled. They had just put in a bathtub and a toilet and a hand bowl in one of the bedrooms so there was quite a bit of room in there. It was a large oversize tub. I thought my father was going to baptize me but Charles Jones was going to baptize me. He had experimented how full he could fill the tub without running it over and still get me and him both in the tub. They put a stopper on the overflow so that the water would come up higher than the normal overflow would allow.
LEWIS, Tarlton
Submitted by W. Mike Nielson Tarlton Lewis was born in May, 1805 in North Carolina. The Lewis family moved to Kentucky next to the Gimlin…
KARTCHNER, William Decatur: Man of Steel, True to the Faith
The only time for any kind of play was at night, and on one occasion in the Spring of 1836 he stayed at play until after nine p.m. When he went to the house the doors were locked so he had to sleep in the hay in the stable. In the morning he went with the other hands to breakfast and to his surprise Mr. Miles, the old boss had prepared a large whip which he used on William’s back so unmercifully that it raised a solid scab half the length of his back. His cries were heard by all the neighbors, and then he was sent to work without breakfast. His oldest brother, Peter, came from the western country to visit him. Upon hearing his grievances, they laid a plan for William to run away and go with Peter. William had saved up five dollars and asked Peter if that was enough to bear his expenses. Peter told him that he could go without a cent.
YOUNG, Mahonri Mackintosh
“This is the Place Monument” By Wayne K. Hinton As we near the usually time for the SUPer-DUPer Day at This Is the Place State…
WOOD, William Sr.
He was with the body of the Saints on their western movement when the call came for 500 of their gallant men to volunteer to fight in defense of the Government against Mexico. He enlisted in the Mormon Battalion July 16th 1846, marching with the company from Council Bluff, Iowa over a trackless plain where foot of man had never trod.
On that perilous journey he helped to make roads, dig wells, and suffered untold agonies from hunger and thirst while marching on the desert day after day in the blazing sun. He was discharged at San Diego, California on July 16 1877.
On that perilous journey he helped to make roads, dig wells, and suffered untold agonies from hunger and thirst while marching on the desert day after day in the blazing sun. He was discharged at San Diego, California on July 16 1877.
CURTIS, Enos
Enos live a wonderful life, enduring the trials of crossing the plains, becoming a Patriarch, and helping to build up the Kingdom of God in Utah. He helped to build the city of Springville, Utah, and went with Brigham Young to the South of Utah, coming back in the winter of 1856. He didn’t feel well that spring, but kept on working.
WOOLLEY, Edwin Dilworth
By Calvin Woolley Submitted by John Elggren Edwin Dilworth Woolley, Senior, the son of John Woolley and Rachel Dilworth was born at West Chester, Chester…
HIOTT, John: An Overlooked Pioneer
As far as history is concerned he was a faceless cipher who passed through life leaving few tracks and no one to mark his grave. It is easy to overlook that John and thousands of other forgotten Utah pioneers like him were critical in settling the Intermountain West. They dug the irrigation ditches, herded the cattle, built the shelters, attended meetings, maintained the roads, cut fire wood, tended the ill, mostly followed orders, and buried the deceased without fanfare. The accomplishments of their famous leaders would not have been possible without the blood, sweet, and tears of humble people such as John Hiott.
CUNNINGHAM, Elizabeth: True Grit
“My father was a miner by trade and being a man of weak constitution was badly adapted for such a laborious occupation. Consequently, this threw the management of affairs nearly entirely upon my mother, and to speak of her in [a] phrase, I cannot do it better than by saying she was a rustler in the greatest sense of the word.” Elizabeth was the foundation and matriarch of the family. She was the force that carried the Cunningham family from Scotland to Utah."
PRATT, Helaman
Submitted by Tony Tidwell, Great-Grandson, From Histories by Bertha Pratt and Janae Olson Helaman Pratt, was born May 31, 1846 at Mount Pisgah, Iowa, the oldest…
ALLEMAN, John
JOHN ALLEMAN and his family arrived in Nauvoo in 1838 from Pennsylvania with two wagons, ten horses and their household possessions. He bought farm land and built a brick home for his family. He assisted in building the Nauvoo Temple and served as a cavalryman in the Nauvoo Legion.
JENSEN, Jens and Dorthea: Nearly Pioneers
Most pioneer stories involve building religious faith through hardships and challenges, but some early migrants to Utah don’t fit this mold. Some were disappointed by life in Utah and returned to their place of origin. Others moved on seeking greener pastures elsewhere. Still others remained in Utah but became disaffected with the dominant religion. Some became Jack Mormons, others became vocal critics of the LDS Church, and still others joined a different church. Jens Christen Jensen and his wife Dorthea were cases of the latter.
WOOLSEY, Thomas
This article originally appeared in the Jan/Feb 1990 issue of Pioneer Magazine by Thomas A. Woolsey, a great-grandson It was a sharp, cold winter day…
WOOLSEY, Abigail Shaeffer
John D. Lee had been ill with a heavy fever, probably the 'rocky mountain fever' and he was just starting to mend when Abigail, "Momma", came down with that same "rocky mountain fever", and soon went into a coma. Lee called for a stop here on the Sweetwater, where her family gathered around her and her daughters desperately tried to care for her. But to no avail. Abigail opened her eyes, looked lovingly on her worried, sad family and then died around midnight on the third of September 1848.
ALLEN, Jude
In May 1845, the company turned west from their northwestern trek and moved across western Iowa to Fort Vermillion, a French trading post in the present south-eastern part of South Dakota. This group of Mormons was probably the first Anglo American settlers in South Dakota. Jude and the others in the company spent the next ten months hunting buffalo, herding cattle, putting up log cabins, raising vegetables and putting up hay.
JENSEN, Andrew: Pioneer historian and traveler
Of the Danes who early joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Andrew Jenson left the largest historical footprint. During a career that spanned 65 years he authored more than two-dozen books, edited four historical journals, and compiled thousands of pages of biographical sketches and local church histories.
ALLEN: Joseph Stewart
He learned the cooper trade from his father in law, Isaac Morley. He was a farmer and shoemaker.
WADLEY, William
In most respects William Wadley was typical of many other people who joined the LDS Church in the mid-1800s in England. Many of them migrated…
ARMISTEAD, James
James Armitstead was a veterinarian, physician, lawyer, teacher, justice of the peace, school trustee, and city councilman. He filled two missions to La Salle County, Illinois (1852 and 1876-77).
WALKER, John
This article originally appeared in the Mar/Apr 1980 issue of Pioneer Magazine THE JOHN WALKER FAMILY—EARLY CHURCH STALWARTS by Rowland P. Corry The following is…
ALLEY: Stephen Webb
As a violinist he was much in demand. When the Salt Lake Theater was completed, in 1862, he played in the orchestra on the opening night.
ARMSTRONG, Francis
From this humble beginning began the rise of one of Utah's greatest entrepreneurs of his day or any other day. He obtained his own saw mill, then a lumber company, then a construction company. As the years went by, he purchased a flour mill, several huge ranches, and developed sugar companies, banks, savings and loan operations, railroads, transfer companies, insurance companies, and eventually electric street cars (the second in the world) and the supporting electricity production company.
