Bessie Morgan. Salt Lake Tribune Society Page, April 7, 1901 .

Salt Lake Tribune, April 7, 1901

In Society

Bessie Morgan turned eleven in 1901. That Spring she was mentioned “In Society” in the Salt Lake Tribune for Sunday, April 7, 1901. It appears she was one of twenty-two young people who attended a party during the week before Easter.

The newspaper article began, “Holy Week was without any large or important event, society devoting most of its time to church-going and millinery openings. The weather last evening was not of a description that would denote a brilliant Easter parade today after the church services, a custom of the day in fashionable circles in nearly every city in the country.

“The festive high ball is to be relegated to obscurity at the Country club.

“The Easter bonnet is quite gay this year. 

This picture of Bessie Morgan from among her older brother, Nicholas Groesbeck Morgan’s papers (thanks to cousin Karen M.) is of Bessie as a young woman. Her daughter Winnifred had never seen it before I showed it to her in 2010. Bessie's hat makes the picture fit well with this article. Bessie does not look eleven-years-old in her hat. 

  

The newspaper article continues, “On Tuesday evening Miss Ruby Thomson entertained, her guests being Genevieve James, Elsie De Groo, Ruby Thomson, Gail Morgan, Jessie Freeman, Jennie Freeman, Bessie Morgan, Rosella Price, Ethel Liddle, Julia Smith, Florence McFarlane, Perry Liddle, John W. James, Harold James, Ralph Kunkle, Art, Kunkle, Clarence Van Saub, Guy Hart, Earnest Smith, Will Thomson, Wallace Burt, Raymond Thomson.”

I recognized some of these young people and put them together using their last names. There were twenty-two young people at Miss Ruby Thomson’s party and many of them were there with brothers and sisters.

James; Genevieve, Harold, John W.

Thomson; Ruby, Will, Raymond

Morgan; Gail (13),Bessie (11), Wallace Burt (12)

Liddle; Ethel, Perry

Freeman; Jessie, Jennie

Smith; Julia, Earnest

Kunkle; Art (12), Ralph (14)

Clarence Van Saub

Elsie De Groo

Rosella Price

Florence McFarlane (13) (Florence was 22 in the 1910 Salt Lake Census—Waterloo District)

Guy Hart

In 1902 Bessie’s older sister, Ruth, married Sol Burke Kunkle. Kunkles also lived on York/Bryan Avenue. Bessie’s oldest sister, Helen, was married to Andrew Burt. Wallace Burt, Bessie’s nephew, was born to them in 1890, the year before Bessie was born. 

A different Tribune Society Page explained that the party Bessie Morgan and twenty-something other young people attended was a surprise party. Such interesting trivia!

Helen Melvina (Mellie) Groesbeck Morgan's children search for sego bulbs. 1895.

Continued from this post.

In 1895 Mellie sent Ruth and Nick up Capitol Hill on a May day hike. She sent a bandana with them to fill with sego lily bulbs. Their search among the Capitol Hill rock and rubble from the 1876 Arsenal explosion, and remnants of the old Salt Lake City adobe wall was fruitful. The gathered a bonanza of sego bulbs.

“Let’s go, Ruth. We’ve got enough.” Nick held up the bulging bandana, tied at the corners.

“All right, Nick, but you’ve got to promise not to run all the way.” She threw her head back and tossed a bulb into her mouth. …

“I wish Papa was here to eat some of these. He loved them.” The two started down the hill, Nick swinging the loaded bandana.

In 1897 Mellie received a Civil War pension she had applied for during the previous year, with retroactive payments. She was able to move her family south of the city into the Farmers Ward area where they lived in three different homes. Each home is still standing. I will post pictures of them here next.

(To be continued.)

Picture from Wikipedia. Nicholas Groesbeck Morgan; The Man Who Moved City Hall, by Jean R. Paulson, published 1979 by Marjorie Morgan Gray, pgs 40, 56.

John Hamilton Morgan Cemetery Plot. September 9, 2010.

Because They Lived!

Some time ago John Hamilton and Helen Melina “Mellie” Groesbeck Morgan descendants became concerned about the children buried in the Morgan plot who did not have gravestones. That dilemma is not new to the John Hamilton Morgan plot at the Salt Lake City, Utah Cemetery.

A little history of the plot follows:

The first need for a gravestone for John Hamilton Morgan is discussed here.

Last year’s call for assistance is posted here.

The location and pictures of John Morgan family gravestones can be found here and here.

Thursday, September 9, 2010 new gravestones were being set in John Morgan’s Plot at the Salt Lake City Cemetery

John and Mellie’s three children, Elizabeth, John, and Flora Groesbeck.


John and Mellie’s daughter Ruth.

The new stones were set according to the Sexton’s directions. The stone for the three children is in the upper left, near the NE corner of the Morgan plot. The stone for daughter Ruth, with her husband, Sol Burke Kunkel, is near the center of the west plot line in front. The two stones to the right of the large John Morgan marker are for John and Mellie, and went in following Mellie’s death in 1930. The two stones in front of the large John Morgan marker are (left) for daughter Eliza Ann, with her husband, James Frank Smith. The stone to the right of the Smiths is for Marie Polly Bovee Groesbeck (Mellie’s grandmother). The stone east of the Kunkels, near the north plot line, is for Jennie Whipple, who was presumably buried here under Mellie’s direction.

John Hamilton and Mellie Morgan’s descendants, through children Nicholas Groesbeck Morgan and Bessie Morgan Rex, contributed to these stones. A special thank you to Bessie’s youngest daughter, Flora.

“The place where a man is buried is sacred to me” Joseph Smith – From the bronze monument of a grieving family in the Old Nauvoo Burial Grounds

John Hamilton and Helen Melvina Groesbeck Morgan, Part 7

The baby Helen Melvina Groesbeck Morgan (Mellie) is holding in this picture is John, born February 12, 1881 (John dies December 4, 1881). Mellie is twenty-nine years old and her daughters are Helen Melvina (also called Mellie), born January 19, 1870, Eliza Ann, born 8 February 1875, and Ruth, born October 4, 1878.

This is the only picture I’ve seen of Mellie with any of her children. It is beautiful! Again, we have John Morgan descendent, Karen, to thank for making it available. Thank you so very much, Karen!

In October of 1883 Mellie accompanies her husband, John Morgan, on a trip East. She is thirty-one years old and takes their youngest baby, Flora (born 19 September 1882) with them. They are gone from their Salt Lake home from October 23 to November 20, 1883. It is the only extended trip of this nature I’ve found Mellie participating in. John mentions Mellie in only a couple of entries during this time, however, it is evident, they do a lot of remarkable things together.

Mellie travels with John to the Eastern United States where he was born, raised, served in the Civil War, and currently serves in the Southern States Mission. She meets his parents for the first time, and stays with them and other family members. They enjoy the sights and attractions of the times together. She travels to mission headquarters in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and regions there-about, meeting the people and seeing the places she’s previously only heard about.

Their return trip is unique in its own right, Mellie and John Morgan accompany Southern State emigrant converts to new settlements in the West.

From John Morgan’s journal, University of Utah, Marriott Library, Special Collections.

1883
October 17
At work at my reports, and making preparation to start to the states taking my wife with me…

October 18
Took Mellie up town to make some purchases…

October 23
Took train at 10:20 a.m. over the D. and R. G. Had a pleasant run, bright and nice weather. On time at the supper house.

October 24
Rested well last night and had a lunch-breakfast at Cimmon Station. Passed Marshall Pass and through Royal Gorge arriving at Pueblo at 4:30 and laid over until 2:10 a.m., having quite a time to get to sleeping car.

October 25
During the day ran through the states of Colo. And Kansas and had a very pleasant run. The weather remained remarkably good.

October 26
Arrived at Kansas City at 5:30 and at 6:45 took Wabash train for St. Louis arriving at 6:25 and stopped at the St. James. Met brother A. H. Snow. Raining and storming heavy.

(To be continued.)

John Hamilton and Helen Melvina Groesbeck Morgan Salt Lake City Cemetary Family Plot.

At last year’s P. H. Rex family reunion, John and Helen Melvina Morgan’s descendant Flora Rex Lamborn asked if I’d found their three young children’s grave sites. Three of their eleven children died as children. I didn’t know then, but I’ve since discovered they are all buried in the plot John and Helen Melvina are buried in. Lots 15 and 16 North Rod Block 10.

This picture from the John Morgan photograph collection at the Marriott Library shows some stones beyond the gravestone that could have named the children. They’re all gone now.

It appears that a woman is sitting in the carriage just beyond the monument. Could it be Helen Melvina? Could it be one of his other wives? Is it someone who is with the photographer taking this picture?

The Ancestor Files posted a letter inviting contributions to purchase a suitable gravestone for the John Hamilton Morgan grave site. The letter was published in the Deseret News (February 18, 1899 and November 25, 1899) and the Southern Star (March 4, 1899). You can read it by searching for “manifesting” after clicking here. I don’t know when the Morgan gravestone was actually placed at the grave site.

I copied the following burial dates for the family members buried there from the cemetery sexton’s log.

Marie Polly Bovee Groesbeck 29 Apr 1873
Elizabeth Morgan 1 Aug 1874
John Morgan 4 Dec 1881
Flora Groesbeck Morgan 1 Apr 1885
John H. Morgan 19 Aug 1894
James F. Smith 27 Jun 1915
Helen M. Morgan 20 June1930
Burk Kunkel 2 Jun 1935
Ruth Morgan Kunkel 27 May 1949
Eliza aka Lila Ann Morgan Smith 31 Jan 1952

Click on the picture to enlarge. You can see the names on the front markers. The markers mid-right are for John and Helen M. Morgan. They appear to be of the same granite and age. Perhaps they were placed together after Helen Melvina’s passing in 1930.

Are their John and Helen Melvina descendants interested in a project to place a stone at this site naming their children buried here? Would any John Morgan descendants be interested in a project to list his wives together? On the existing monument or a separate stone? A walk through this pioneer section of the cemetery illustrates that information is missing here.