Samuel Rose PARKINSON

Sources:

Ancestral File, version 4.19
Erma Parkinson Lloyd Smith History, by Erma Lloyd Smith (1994)
Internet IGI, Aug 2008
Pedigree Resource File
Ancestry World Tree
Pioneer Immigrants to Utah Territory
Idaho Death Index
Sons of Utah Pioneers Memorial Gallery Index
Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel, 1847-1868, William Field Company 1854
1870 Census - Franklin, Cache, Utah Territory (Now Oneida County, ID)
1880 Census - Franklin, Oneida, ID
1900 Census - Franklin, Oneida, ID
1910 Census - Franklin, Oneida, ID

Notes:

                   Biographical Sketches in notes

Samuel Rose Parkinson
Family Background
Samuel Rose Parkinson was a widely traveled man of tremendous capacity and
widespread interest. He was born at Barrowford, Lancashire, England, on April
12, 1831, the son of William Parkinson and Charlotte Rose. His father, who
earned his living as a twister in the local factory and who was also a preacher in
the Wesleyan (Methodist) Church, was drowned in November, 1831, leaving a
seven-month-old son, Samuel, and his wife, as well as her daughter, Elizabeth,
by a former husband, John Duckworth. They had previously buried their
daughter, Susanna, February 6, 1831, two month before Samuel was born.
Samuel's mother was a well-educated and refined woman, born of honorable
parents in the county of Kent near London. Following her husband's death, she
was in very humble circumstances. She moved to Stockport, where for four years
she taught school to support her family. In the year 1835 she married her third
husband, Edmund Berry, a coal merchant. Their daughters Sarah and Lucy were
born in Stockport.
Boyhood Travels
Because of labor agitations, business became extremely slow in England. Great
inducements were being offered colonists to settle Australia, which was then a
comparatively new country. Mr. Berry and his family started for that far-off land in
the spring of 1839, traveling from Manchester to Liverpool on one of the world's
first locomotive-powered railroads. Samuel was then eight years old.
They left Liverpool in April, sailed down the west coast of Africa, touched the
island of Sao Tiago in the Cape Verde Islands, and landed at the Cape of Good
Hope on July 30, 1839. They remained at the Cape eight days securing fresh
supplies, including live cattle and Cape sheep. Mr. Berry was the ship's butcher,
and her service supplied the family with meat. During their brief stay at the Cape,
Samuel's sister Ellen was born.
The party embarked from the Cape for Australia on August 8, 1839, and arrived
at the town of Sydney late in September. Mr. Berry secured work burning lime
from seashells, for which he received fifty shillings (about $12) a week. Samuel's
mother baked hot rolls and muffins for eight-year-old Samuel to sell at the
marketplace. According to the custom of the times, he would vend his products
with the call:
"One a penny, two a penny,
Hot cross buns,
If your daughters don't like them
Give them to your sons."
Fruits, green vegetables, and groceries were added to the breadstuffs, and
through Samuel's energy the sales were successful. Eighteen months later
Samuel quit his work to assist his father in the sealing and burning of brick in a
yard which Mr. Berry had purchased. Since this enterprise was not successful,
Mr. Berry decided to go to New Zealand. They left Australia in early October,
1842, and reached Auckland, New Zealand, on November 15. Dissatisfied with
that country, after only eight days they continued with the same vessel to South
America.
They landed at Valparaiso, Chile, January 15, 1843. They were the first English
immigrants from among the working class to arrive in that country. The governor
offered them the soldiers' barracks for living quarters until they secured a home
one month later, where Samuel's brother William Berry, was born later that year.
Mr. Berry obtained employment as a gardener from a Mr. John Martin. The
resulting exposure brought on a sunstroke from which he nearly lost his life.
Upon recovery, he was placed in charge of the English waterworks.
At twelve years of age, Samuel earned his board and lodging with Reverend
Armstrong, a minister of the Church of England, doing odd jobs such as waiting
on tables, working in the garden, watering plants, etc. While there he obtained
the only formal education of his entire life, which covered a period of six months.
During this time he learned the Spanish language and was later engaged by a
dentist as an interpreter. At the age of fourteen he obtained a position as clerk in
an iron foundry.
On one occasion, a group of Spaniards, supposing Mrs. Berry and her child
William to be home by themselves, attacked and made an attempt to rob the
place. Mrs. Berry screamed. When she refused to be silent, they struck her with
a sword. Samuel, attempting to escape to get help, was knocked down. One
blow of a sword left a scar on his head which he carried throughout his life. He
finally escaped, however, and brought a neighbor, Mr. Gibson, back to the
house. In the meantime, Mr. Berry who had been sleeping, awoke and, with a
large iron key about two feet long, cleared the house. The Spaniards retreated,
carrying with them some of their wounded. Finding his son Samuel gone, Mr.
Berry, with the weapon in his hand ready to strike the first man who might enter,
opened the door just as Mr. Gibson and Samuel reached the door from the
outside. Supposing the Spaniards were still inside, Mr. Gibson was armed with
an ax to strike the first man to attempt to escape. Samuel, realizing the mistake,
sprang between them and prevented the blow which might have been fatal to
either one. Samuel was taken to the doctor that evening and with good care
recovered rapidly.
The Return to England
After having lived in Valparaiso three years, the family decided to return to
England, where Mrs. Berry's married daughter, Elizabeth Duckworth Chappel,
was living. Samuel's mother made a money belt in which she put the family
savings. When they were traveling. It was worn by Samuel next to his body. Mrs.
Berry thought there would be less danger of thievery if a reliable young person
carried the money rather than an adult. They sailed in July 1845, and as they
rounded Cape Horn, the sea was so rough and dangerous that the ship was
nearly lost. They sailed up the eastern coast of South America to Brazil, crossed
the Atlantic at the equator, sailed up the west coast of Africa and thence to
Queenstown, Ireland.
As they sailed through the Irish Channel, they ran into trouble between the
mainland and the Saltee islands and were shipwrecked. After losing the lifeboats,
they put up a signal of distress. It seemed so apparent to Samuel's mother that
the end had come that she wrapped the young children in a blanket in which they
could all go down together. However, an Irishman, responding to the distress
signal, fired a rope over to them from a cannon, and by the rope a boat was
drawn back and forth until all the passengers had been rescued. Mr. Berry and
his family were the first brought to land. They were taken by wagons to Wexford
and thence by steamer to Liverpool, thus having circumnavigated the world. They
went from Liverpool back to Stockport by rail.
When the party reached Stockport, England, early in 1846, the inhabitants were
suffering from a severe famine caused by a potato blight. Mr. Berry found all of
his relatives destitute. Mr. Berry had between five and six thousand dollars,
which he generously distributed among those who were in greatest need. Among
them was his stepdaughter, Elizabeth, her husband, James Chappel, and their
two daughters. (Both of these children died during the winter of 1846-47). The
only income received by the family during that winter was what Samuel obtained
by selling milk from two cows. During 1847 and 1848 Samuel and his stepfather
were employed on railroad construction.
Immigration to America
In July, 1848, the family embarked for North America on the "ship European."
Elizabeth, although divorced from her husband, remained along in England. The
ship cleared customs at New Orleans, September 23, 1848. From there they took
passage up the Mississippi River, on Oct. 1, on the steamboat Josh I. Lawrence
to St. Louis, Missouri. The first family they encountered while looking for a place
to rent were Latter-Day-Saints. This family directed them to a neighboring
Mormon family named Clement from whom they rented. This was the first time
Samuel and his family had become acquainted with Latter-Day-Saints.
Samuel and Mr. Berry found employment for the winter in a packing house and
saved money to send for Elizabeth. In the spring of 1849 Samuel and Mrs. Berry
secured work at the Park Flour Mills. Shortly afterward, cholera broke out along
the banks of the Mississippi. On July 18, 1849, Samuel's mother, Charlotte, died
of this disease. Thus Samuel and the family lost a capable and devoted
companion and helpmate.
On December 25, 1849, Mr. Berry married a widow by the name of Thurza
Booth, a member of the Latter-day-Saints Church.
From the Clement family young Samuel had learned the gospel, and on January
23, 1850, Samuel, then almost 19 years old, was baptized into the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Elder William Clement. The baptism took
place in Chouteau Pond, which was situated where the Union Railroad Station
now stands. Because it was mid-winter, the ice had to be broken before the
baptism could be performed. He was confirmed by Elder Nathaniel Felt. From
that time on, Samuel was a loyal, devoted Latter-day Saint. This newfound
religion gave direction and purpose for the rest of his life to the fine work habits
he had already established.
In the spring of 1850, at the age of 19, Samuel left home, determined to support
himself. His first job was driving a team on the St. Louis levee for eighteen dollars
a month and board. It was not long before Samuel, though his industry, was
earning higher wages. He bought a team for himself and one for his stepfather. In
addition to assisting considerably in the support of his family, Samuel
accumulated security and independence for himself.
During the summer of 1851, he made the acquaintance of Arabella Ann
Chandler, a young English woman who had joined the Latter-day Saints Church
in England in March, 1844. Financial misfortune had overtaken her family in
England. By her own efforts she had earned enough to support and bring her
brother, Frederick, and herself to St. Louis. Samuel and Arabella were married
January 1, 1852. At the time Samuel had a good team, seven hundred dollars in
the bank, good employment and fair prospects.
To Utah by Mule Team
In June, 1854, Samuel, his wife, his infant son, Samuel, his sister Lucy (the only
other member of the family who had joined the Church), and Arabella's brother,
Frederick, all started for Utah. They traveled as far as Fort Leavenworth by
steamboat. There they purchased supplies and prepared to cross the plains by
team. On July 10 they left Fort Leavenworth with the St. Louis Company,
consisting of approximately sixty teams, mostly oxen. Samuel was one of the few
who had a mule team. The little company arrived in Salt Lake City September 23,
1854.
While crossing the plains, Samuel was one of the men assigned to be buffalo
hunters to supply food for the company. In later years, he liked to tell the story of
the buffalo hunt to his children and grandchildren and sing the song, "We'll
Chase the Buffalo."
Shortly after the family arrived in Salt Lake City, Samuel moved them to
Kaysville, Davis County, where he purchased the land and built a log cabin. Here
he earned the living of his family by farming.
A bear had been killing cattle in the community, so a group of men including
Samuel decided to go after it. They found the bear in a willow flat. Since that was
not a safe place for the group to encounter the bear, it was decided to draw lots
to see who would bring the bear out of the willows into the open. The task fell to
Samuel. He rode into the willows on his mule and found the bear with her cub.
The bear charged Samuel on his mule. They retreated at full speed with the bear
at the mule's heels. On arriving at the edge of the willows the bear stopped and
returned, undoubtedly to protect her cub. After some time Samuel quieted the
mule enough to return to the group. On reaching the party, Samuel said, "Well,
shall we draw lots to see who goes in next to bring the bear out?" He was
reminded that lots had already been drawn for that purpose, and he had not yet
completed the task. Whereupon, Samuel and his mule entered the willows again.
This time the bear charged and chased them not only out of the willows, but
continued chasing the fleeing mule on down the trail. The hunters followed
closely behind. In such a chase, very few shots could be fired safely. The chase,
with the bear literally at the heels of the fleeing mule, continued down the trail
until a threshing crew was observed. Samuel rode toward this group, shouting
and making such a noise as he could to draw their attention. The threshers,
sensing what was occuring, left their work. Shouting and with pitchforks in hand,
they formed a line through which Samuel rode. The bear chose not to engage
this group, turned, and ran up a ravine into the mountains. A few days later,
Indians succeeded in killing the bear and reported it was one of the largest that
they had found in the area.
In the spring of 1857, he journeyed east as far as Devil's Gate on the Sweetwater
to haul a load of goods left there the previous fall by a handcart company.
With the coming of Johnston's Army, Brigham Young called Samuel to serve for
three months on guard duty in the Echo Canyon War. He joined a company
captained by Daniel H. Wells, for whom Samuel developed the warmest
friendship and admiration. He returned late in January 1858. In the spring of the
same year he was called on a mission to help the Mormons in Fort Lemhi, on the
Salmon River, return to Utah for protection against Indians.
In the summer of 1858, Samuel Parkinson and his family moved to Central Utah
Valley, where they camped on the west side of the Jordan River, opposite Lehi.
They returned in July, 1859, to Kaysville.
Pioneering in Franklin, Idaho
The next fall Samuel went to Cache Valley, which had just been settled to look
the area over for possible settlement. He returned to Kaysville for the winter. In
the spring of 1860 the Parkinsons and twelve other families came to Cache
Valley to live. The southern portion of the valley had been settled the year before,
so they settled on Cub River, naming their town Franklin after Apostle Franklin D.
Richards. This was the first permanent white settlement in the state of Idaho.
They lived in wagon boxes for several months until they built their log houses.
Both wagons and cabins were arranged in circle formation for protection against
the Indians.
Peter Maughan, Bishop of Cache Valley, appointed Thomas Smart, Samuel R.
Parkinson, and William Snader5son to take charge of the group of settlers and
distribute the land. Since they had no compass, they used the North Star to
determine their base line and a carpenter's square for surveying.
Each family was allotted a ten-acre farm and five acres of meadowland.
President Young appointed Preston Thomas on June 10, 1860 as Bishop of the
Franklin Ward. He served for three years, followed by Lorenzo Hill Hatch, who
served until 1878. During the winter of 1861, Samuel helped construct a canal
from Cub River to the bench north of Franklin. During the summer he planted
crops, provided irrigation for his farm, and sold dry goods for Parry and Company
of Salt Lake City.
Samuel Parkinson's love for Franklin is evidenced by the following incident.
Brigham Young, interested in the Mormons colonizing further to the south, called
William G. Taylor and Samuel on a mission to Arizona to explore the country
between the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers and see if they could find a
place to settle and build homes for themselves and others. They left April 10,
1873. Not finding a suitable for settlement, they were released to return home,
arriving there July 28. The next time President Young saw Samuel he
humorously said, "Brother Parkinson, I thought that I sent you to settle Arizona."
To this Brother Parkinson replied, "You told me to go to Arizona, look around,
and then settle where I liked. I looked around in Arizona and didn't see any place
I liked as well as Franklin, so I returned here to settle."
Church and Civic Affairs
On June 28, 1878, L. L. Hatch was chosen as Bishop of the Franklin Ward to
succeed