William MOYES

                   My grandfather, William Moyes, was the son of William and Mary Pearce Moyes.
He was born June 25, 1817, in Parish Othroham, Cornwall, England. In 1840, he married Mary Eastcott, the daughter of William and Elizabeth  Vendell Eastcott.
   She was born April 23, 1817, in Jacobstowe, Cornwall, England.
      In 1841, grandfather, with his wife and babe, emigrated to Sidney, Australia, where he rented a farm on Patterson River, and engaged in farming and stock raising. While here ten children were born to them, four of whom died soon after birth.
      In 1855, they first heard the gospel preached by Elder William Baxter.
They listened with interest to his wonderful teachings, and were soon converted and baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Shortly after this, they began making preparations to emigrate to Utah.
      In 1856, they left friends and loved ones and started on their long journey. While crossing the ocean their seven children had whooping cough.
They were on the sea eleven weeks, in a sailing vessel.
      After a long and tiresome journey, full of trials and hardships, they arrived in San Bernardino, August, 1856. They stayed here a little more than a year and raised a crop, and on December 1, 1857, they left San Bernardino with ox-team to cross the great desert to Utah; arriving in Beaver, February 15, 1858, after taking two and a half months on the road in the winter, they with their seven children and all their earthly possessions in one wagon. That night the snow fell a foot deep, but they had no home to go to and no shelter whatever except their wagon.
      The first home they had after their arrival was a cellar, where they lived one year, then they moved into a log room with a dirt roof and floor thinking themselves mighty lucky.
      Grandfather soon filed on some land, and did some planting, but the crop was a failure as the frost came very early and everything was frozen before it had a chance to ripen. After this experience, he learned to plant earlier and raised good crops. He got a few sheep and then grandmother carded and spun the wool into yarn, and dyed it with squaw-bush and rabbbit-brush, and wove it into cloth on an old hand-loom, then made it into clothes for the family. She and her three daughters also briaded straw and made their own hats. There was always plenty of work to be done so they had no time for schooling.
      In 1862, their oldest son, William Jr. with others, was called by Bishop Philo Farnsworth, to take their ox-teams and cross the plains to Florence, Neb.
   to meet the emigrants and bring them to Utah. In 1864, grandfather was called to make the same journey and in 1868, Richard the second son, was called to go and meet the last company of emigrants that crossed the plains by ox team. It required six months to make this journey. These journeys were full of trials and hardships, not only to the men, but also to the women folks left at home, for they had to work very hard to keep things going while their father and brothers were away.
      Grandfather and other men took their grain in wagons with ox-teams to Ruby Valley, Nevada, to sell because they had better markets and got better prices for it. The nearest gristmill was at Fillmore, so they had to haul their grain to Fillmore to have it ground into flour. It required one whole week to make the trip with ox-team.
      In the spring of 1866, William Jr., with company of young men, was called to go to Fort Sanford, Garfield County, to stand guard and protect the people from hostile Indians who were doing so much damage at that time.
     In the fall of 1866, grandfather was called by President Brigham Young to go and help settle the Muddy. He took his son John with him. While there the grasshoppers came and destroyed their crops, so that left them with more problems to solve. Their taxes were high and they had nothing to pay them with, so they released grandfather and he and his son went to St. George and worked on the Temple until it was ready for the roof. In 1871 they returned to Beaver, where they lived the rest of their lives.
      Grandfather and grandmother were free-hearted and generous, always ready to divide anything they had with those in need. Grandmother went about helping to care for the sick and those in distress, in those days they were like one large family. Although they had hard times and little to do on, they also had their good times together.
      Grandmother died April 26, 1874, at the age of fifty-seven years. Though only a young women, she had endured many trials and hardships, and was always true to the faith.
      Grandfather lived to the ripe old age of 91 years. He died February 16, 1909 and was buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Beaver, Beaver County, Utah.
                                      May Grimshaw Jensen