Isadora Adeline Brown (1842 - 1930)
Isadora Adeline Brown was born in Greentownship Erie Co., Pennsylvania the 13th of Aug, 1842. She was the youngest child in a family of seven children. Two boys and five girls. She was the daughter of Ezekiel Brown and Catherien Slauson. Isadora was sickly as a child, and often ill. She was very afraid of the dark and when she went to bed always asked her sister with whom she slept to stay awake till she fell asleep. When she was a baby she slept in a trundle bed by the side of her parents bed and in the day time her bed would be pushed under the big bed.
She grew to be 12 years old in Greentownship and could remember how he father and uncles cut down the forests, cleared the land, built fences and buildings. She recalled that the wood shet was always full of stove wood from the large trees from the forest.
Her playmates were her cousins and she was the smallest of them all. She recalled how they would go with their buckets picking wild straw and raspberries. Often their buckets would be full. In the fall they went gathering hazel and wall nuts. Isadora told of th time they were all in the woods busily picking berries when they heard the grunt of a wild boar. Immediately they were filled with fear and began running for their lives. She was the smallest one so the largr ones helped her run fast. Fortunately they reached the fence and got over it just in time to save their lives.
One thing that impressed Isadora very much was a little plot of ground that was chosen for a burial place for the Browns. It was over a fence not far from the house. She remembered that grand parents and uncles were burried there before she came to Utah. Naturaly her father who died when she was six was burried there.
When she was about six the circus was coming to Erie City and her father said to her if you will promise to keep well I will take you to it. She promised. At that time highways were called thoroughfaraes, and because of the mud getting so deep the Township had layed a plank surface on the thoroughfare to Erie City. They all went to the circus but before the day was over Isadora was sick to her stomach. She remembered so well the sound the horses hoofs made on the plant surface as they were traveling. She said her father and uncles drove the bet horses and carriages on the road and no one could pass them.
Isaodra said one day a man living two or three miles from their place sent word for her mother to come and see him. Caatherine went. His wife had died and left a baby boy and he wanted her to take it. She took the child an the father never came for it so when she came to Utah they brought him with them. His name was Meredith Ames, and he was a little older than Isadora.
Isadora often recalled another time when her mother went ot a funeral. She and Meredith stood at the window wishing she would bring a baby home with her. It was very cold and they were all eyes trying to see if she had something under her long full cloak. When she got in the house and the front of the cloak was turned back there was a baby boy. Isadora being the baby in the family she was very happy.
One day they got word that her father had fallen from a building he was working on. He is brought home but passes away. She was six years old. She told how some low stools were placed in front of the casket so she and the little boy Meredith Ames could go and look at the body any time they wished. Isadora said Meredith was always asking to go see his papa. This boys mother had died when he was a baby and his father had given him to the Browns.
In 1855 when 13 years old she leaves the place of her birth and starts for Utah with her mother and four sisters. They take the boat at Erie City and travel by way of lake Erie and the Missouri River to Atchison Kansas. Three of the daughters continue on that year to Utah.
Isadora and Eliza were baptized in a pon of water in Mormon Grove that winter on the 18th of November 1855. The dampness from the river caused her to have chills. Brother James McGaw told her if she would never have another chill he would buy her a new dress. Sister Eliza heard him make Isadora that promise so she gathered herbs and gave Isacora the tea from them and she never had another chill and she got the dress.
Isadora starts for Utah the next spring, 1856 with her mother and sister Eliza in Phileman Merrills Cmpany.
To save the animals the children walked most of the way so we find Isadora walking most of the way to Utah. She said they had good times often bathing in the streams of water. She said the larger boys got so they would jump on the head of the rattle snakes and pull off their rattles. When night came and camp was made the children would gather buffalo chips for the fires. (Buffalo chips the droppings from the buffalos)
The captain of the company often took Isadora on his horse with him to ride. No doubth he thought she looked delicate. He told her he had a fine young man picked out for her when they got to Utah. He joked with the children and said I know which one of you girls is going to boss your husband. Naturally they were very curious to know how he could tell. They often went bare foot to save their shoes. Then the captain said your second toe is longer than your big one. The Captains name was Phileman Merrill.
When they reached Salt Lake City they went to live in Centerville but only for a short time when they move back to Salt Lake.
When Isadora was sixteen she goes to a church dance with a young man. When the dance is about half over she sees that her escort has had too much cider. She decides she will get her raps and leave the dance hall unnoticed. When she get to the door of the dance hall she finds Thomas Campbell Beck there. He tells her he noticed the young man she came with had gotten too much cider, and he asked if he might take her home. Isadora accepted his offer to take her home and after that occasion she went with Thomas at different times.
At this time Thomas goes to Cache Valley as his father advised him to do. Isadoras mother has a chance of marriage to a brother McCaw who has a store in Wellsville. She accepts the offer and goes to Wellsville to live and she takes Isadora with her as she is the only daughter that is not married.
Isadora often wnt to the meadows for the cows and one day when she went Thomas was there to meet her. There was a tree that had fallen down and they would sit on the trunk of it and talk. This went on for a short ime and they decided to marry. On the 21 of June 1860, they were married in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City. He was twenty and she was eighteen.
Thomas began to build a house on the land he and Jonas had gotten in Wellsville and while he was building they lived in a covered wagon. Isaodra said it was very comfortable for the short time they lived there. She said they placed the bed in the back end, and she had a lovely counterpane on it. In the front end was the stove, cupboard, table, and chairs. It was their home and they were not in debt for it.
The house ws finished and they moved in. Thomas farmed for a living and they raised most everything they ate. People helped each other with exchange of work to get things they did not have. There pleasure came from simple amusement and associating with the best of people.
They did not live long in Wellsville for when their first two children came they were born in Salt Lake City. Elizabeth born 6 April 1861, and Catherine born 10 Oct. 1863.
A year later they move to Clarkston Cache Valley. Here Thomas was put in counselor to Bishop Rigby. Isadora was called to be president of the first Relief Society in Clarkston, with Sister Mary Rigby and Elizabeth Quigley as counselors. This was in 1868.
At this time Bishop Rigby organized a store (coop) and Thomas was made second superintendent. Isadora clerked part of the time in the store.
Elizabeth the oldest child of Thomas and Isadora told the following:
“She said produce was being taken out of the store that was not being paid for. It worried Thomas for he could see where those who had put money in would loose it. He put Isadora in as a clerk and told her to see that every one who got merchandise paid for it.
Then all one winter he hauled goods from Slt Lake City in the cold and snow to replace the goods that had been taken dishonestly. Then Thomas severed his connection witht he coop store.
About this time Brigham Young was making a visit to Clarkston and when he got out of the carriage he asked, “who lives in this town”, and some one said Tom Beck. She he went to Tom Becks home. On more than one occasion he ate dinner at theri home, and he showed Isadora how to place a box in a window with a set cloth over it to keep things cool.
While they lived here the indians became very hostile and they had to leave their homes till the troops under Colonel Corner from Ft. Douglas came and dispersed them. Then the family returned to their home.
Two childrn were born here. Thomas Jospeh and Ellen Amelia
From Clarkston they move just a short distance to Newton Cache Co. Here he builds another house and engages in farming. James William and Franklin Edwin are born here.
At this time they move to Payson which is about two hundred miles quite a distance to go by team. By this time work is getting more plentiful and with some farming he manages to keep his family which consists of seven children and wife. George Andrew is born here 2 November 1876. They stay here about wo years.
Their next move is to Burville Sevier County. Burville is located in a sage brush desert and at that time there were twelve or fifteen families living there. How were they going to make a living. They had hardley arrived in the Berg when one of the residents came to Thomas and asked if he would take over his large heard of milk cows and have all he could make from them for taking care of them. The man would furnish the feed.
It should be explained that the man was ill and not able to do the work. This was a great blessing to Thomas and the family. The children were large and able to do a good portion of the work. (Most of them)
Some of the neighbors gave them some chickens and a pig. They made cheese and butter to sell; had the whey to feed pigs and chickens besides having all they needed for themselves. They had eggs, chickens, pork for meat for the family and they raised vegetables.
While here Thomas was made Presiding Elder and organized the first Sunday School. Another child Hattie was born here 10 Jan 1879.
About this time the rai roads were being extended west and the Union Pacific Company were letting contracts for building rail road grade and Thomas took a contract to build fifteen miles of th rail road grade in Colorado.
Colorado ws a wild and rough country and not a desirable place to take a family. Up to this time they had always stayed together so they all went and worked together. They had to live in tents and half dugouts. Horse thieves were working and sever times drove away some of their horses. This meant that Thomas and his son Thomas or John Waters who worked for him must go and hunt for the horses and bring them back.
One time when they were hunting they came to a little valley with mountains surrounding it and when they looked won in the valley they could see their horses grazing on one side of the valley and on the other side the thieves had a fire and were busy getting some thing to eat. Thomas and whoever ws with him went in the little valley rode over to the horse and took them out and the thieves sat and watched.
Thomas’es faith was ‘never carry a gun and you won’t get killed.’ Another time he was out hunting: night came and they put their blankets down for the night so they could get some rest and in the middle of the night he was awakened with one of the thieves having his face directly over and quite close to Thomas’es. The thief ws likely looking to see if Thomas had a gun.
When he was out hunting for his horses the women were alone and it was not safe for them. They bought a pistol and learned to shoot it and they had a large faithful dog they would tie to the tent post. At different times men would come to the tent and tell the dog to lie down. The older ones in the tent were immediately awakened and were on their guard for a batte if it came. They would tell the dog to go after him, which the dog did as best he could being tied. Finally the person wherever he was would leave and they would hear no more that night.
Thomas had about twenty men working for him. Isadora, Elizabeth, Catherine, and Ella did the cooking, etc., for the outfit. Thomas had always siad the blesing on the food before eating. He did the same at this time. Some of the men were very surprised and had never seen it done before. Others were heard to say “I like that custom, it gives us all an even start at the table.”
One day two head men of the rail road drove up to their camp and ask if they could get someone to wash their underwear. Said they were having a hard time to get someone to wash it. Isadora did not like the idea very much and hesitated. Then the official said he will pay any price, if you will do it for us. It was against Isadora will be she told him to put his bundle of clothes in the fork of a tree and she would accomodate him.
When she was ready to wash the underwear she examined them and to her disqust whe found body lice. In those days body lice were quite common with people who were not careful. When the officials came for the clothes she charged a big price and then doubled that because of the lice. The men were very satisfied when they saw how nicely the clothes were laundred and insisted Isadora continued to do themm as long as they were out there.
Thomas and family did very well on this job. When the contract was finished he with his fmaily went to Pleasant Grove, Utah County, Utah. He bought a lot with a house on it in the center of town. But the family had been in the wide open spaces where they had plenty of room and they were not satisfied with so small space. They wold the city home and bught the little farm one mile north of Pleasant Grove. This was in the year 1883.
This farm had about nine acres of choice apple trees just begining to bear. Alfalfa was planted between the trees, which were small and it grew very tall and while the trees were not too large they raised quite a lot of hay.
Thomas raised wheat, corn, potatoes, squash, oats, and a vegetable garden. There was eighteen and a half acres with a fence dividing it and on the fence grew isabel grapes. There was a few peach trees and a small locust tree grove planted to furnish timber for wagons parts such single trees, neck yokes, tounges if necessary and so forth. They had cows, chickens pigs, and for a while they had some rabbits that run loose and when they wanted one ot eat one of the boys would go out and shoot one. As time went on a raspberry and strawberry patch was planted, a few cherry and peach trees.
One peach tree in particular was planted by the side of the large apple cider. Thomas and his sons built to store apples in. When the peaches were ripe all one had to do ws to stp up on the celler roof and there was the peaches handy to pick. We ate them as they ripened.
Thomas and his sons dug a well about thirty feet deep, and they had the old oaken bucket, the moss covered bucket, the iron bucket hanging in the well. The water was clear as a crystal and cool. All liked to draw up a bucket of water and sit on the well curb and eat Isadoras sugar Cookies and drink that cool clear water.
One year three thousand bushels of apples were picked and put in cellers barns, etc. In the winter every evening a pan of apples was brought up from the cellar to eat that evening. It was on the farm that Isadora commenced to make her famous mince pies. In the winter they would be piled his ready for eating.
One year three thousand bushels of apples were harvested. They sold for twenty five cents a bushel by the load. Before the well was dug the culinary water was dipped up early in th morning, before the bugs got active, and put in a large barrel that stood under a lilac bush that grew by the side of the front gate. A whie cloth was stretched over the top of the barrel to keep the water clean. This was done every morning.
A little stream of water from the canal ran in a ditch outside of the fence in front of the house, just for the purpose of furnishing the water for the house.
At the South East corner of the house stood the rain barrel and when I Hattie Beck Johnson was young I can remember that the rain barrel was always full of rain water ready for the washing. Why the rain water, because it was soft and would make the cothes shiter. Women at that time always wanted soft water for their washing. As the years came and went there was not so much rain fall so a different method must be found not so soft.
In the winter time one ton of coal was brought and the other means of heat was from apple wood that was trimmed from the apple trees every year. Isaodra would take the wood ashes from the apple wood and when she filled the barrel full of well water she would sprinkle the wood ashes on top of the water in the barrel and the ashes would carry every bit of hardness to the bottom of the barrel. In this way she made her water soft.
One by one the children married. James and Frances, Frank and Hattie, and Georgea nd Mamie came to live at the farm for a short time. Tom Beck and Howard Beck. So now there was Hattie, Ethel, and Edward at home.
At Pleasant Grove Thomas was Trustee of the Pleasant Grove district Number 15. He was bishops counselor to Bishop Warnic. Isadora was counselor and president in the Relief Society and Mutual in the Manila Ward Pleasant Grove. Every winter a dinner was put on for their choicest friends in the ward. It included the presiding officers in the ward. Brother and Sister Willam D. Atwood were there very choicest friends.
Isadora wanted to try her hand at something thinking she could make some money for the family. They bought a building located South of Pleasant Grove at Lindon, about a half acre ground and an old discarded two room school house on it. The one room was turned into living quarters and the other in a store. For awhile we went back and forth to run the store and then we moved in. If we had chosen a better location we would have had a better chance to make good. The store was run about a year and then closed and the property was sol. They made no money but got experience which is more valuable.
They moved back to the farm and it was not long when Thomas passed away, very quickly. The Doctor said it was either his heart or a blood vessel burst in his brain. In those daysthe Drs. did not understand the different ailments so well.
Isadora stayed on the farm one year and then rented it. Then she decided it was best to sell it, and locate in Salt Lake City with her three last children. Ethel and Hattie ahd gone to Salt Lake a little ahead of their mother and brother. Hattie had taken a job at the Paris Millinery Co. and Ethel had one more yaer at the University before graduatuion.
In the fall of 1906 she sold part of her house hold goods, horses and cows, and on the 17 November with her son Edward they left the old home and made their way to Salt Lake City. She sold the farm.
Isadora lived with her three last children till they were married and then she lived by herself. She had good health and worked in the Temple for the dead. When she was eighty eight years old she passed to the spirit world at her son Georges home at Jerome, Idaho, 17 June 1930.
Thomas and Isadora are buried in the Pleasant Grove Cemetery, Pleasant Grove, Utah.