Blessed, Honored, Pioneers

                        Ellen Jane Perks Johnstun

BLESSED, HONORED PIONEERS

July 24, 2022, marks the 175^th anniversary of the Latter-day Saint pioneers entering into the Salt Lake Valley, when Brigham Young declared “this is the right place!”  Each year since, Latter-day Saints celebrate this culminating event with parades, rodeos, and devotionals.  Russel M. Ballard said, “what we celebrate on July 24^th is mainly the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ and His inspiration for our early leaders and faithful pioneers.”  Our family is blessed to have some of these faithful pioneers as our ancestors. These faith filled ancestors made great sacrifices because of their testimonies in Jesus Christ and his newly restored church they ardently believed and followed. We’ll highlight one of their stories here and encourage you to become acquainted with their faith filled lives, learning from their lives and emulating their noble character traits to enhance your own. 

Ellen Jane Perks was born on July 12, 1844, in Sheffield, Yorkshire England.  Her family joined the church, and she was baptized at age eight.  Her family wanted to join the saints in Zion but lacking sufficient funds, it was decided that their father, Samuel, would go to America, earn money, and then send for the family.  So that’s what they did.  About Sept 1854, Samuel sailed for America and as soon as he was settled in Alton, Illinois he borrowed enough money from a wealthy farmer and in April 1855 Ellen (10), sister Clara (3) and their pregnant mother Ellen sailed on the William Stetson from Liverpool, England, with 293 other saints.  Her mother gave birth the day they landed in New York, May 27, 1855.  The pregnancy and voyage had been hard on both mother and baby boy, William Stetson (named after the ship and its captain).  Mother became ill with convulsions and both mother and baby died on June 3, 1955.  My father had prepared a furnished house for his arriving family.  Hearing of the news of his wife’s death and that of his newborn son, he sent money to John Taylor (who oversaw the migration west) to get his two daughters, Ellen Jane and Clara, to St. Louis.  Father went to St. Louis to meet us and we arrived in Alton, Illinois on July 4, 1855.  The following spring, about May 19^th, my sister became ill with conjective chills and died.  Samuel decided that Ellen Jane would be better served to continue on to Zion to live with her grandma Perks who was already living in the Salt Lake Valley.  Ellen went with others by boat to St. Louis then up the Missouri river to Florence or Winter Quarters.  Eleven-year-old Ellen was assigned to the Bunker Hand Cart Co and left for the Great Salt Lake Valley on June 23, 1856.  Ellen turned twelve on July 12^th about 3 weeks into the trek.

On one occasion, Ellen and a few young girls pulled a hand cart full of small children.  They got separated from the group and had to keep pulling through the hot sandy terrain in the dark until they finally saw their campfires in the distance.  Coming upon Indian camps the Indians would approach, wanting to trade.  Once, the team master, Sandy, jokingly told a young Indian that he would trade Ellen for a pair of moccasins.  The Indian didn’t understand he was joking and followed the pioneers for three days determined to exchange his moccasins for Ellen.  Occasionally the company would have to pause their march because of a great herd of buffalo moving to a new feeding ground.  Finally, after over three months of pushing and pulling a hand cart daily for 10-20 miles (except Sundays) her company arrived at the Salt Lake Valley on Oct. 2, 1856.  Said Ellen, “the grasshoppers and crickets had destroyed the crops the year before she arrived, so food was in want” but the saints shared what they had with the new arrivals. 

Ellen met William James Johnstun, whom she married on January 26, 1864.  William had served in the Mormon Battalion, had lived for a time in the home of Joseph Smith Sr.  and was at Sutter’s Mill when gold was discovered. 

Ellen and James lived a dedicated life of service settling several communities at the request of Brigham Young.  Ellen gave birth to 9 children.  Her 2^nd child and oldest son was Samuel James Johnstun, my Grandma McAllister’s father!

We hope you will take the time to learn about your ancestors, pioneers or not, and appreciate the noble lives they lived and the sacrifices they all made to be the examples of faith and courage for all of us. When our posterity looks back upon our lives, may they see those same righteous examples.

Much Love – The Grandparent Chronicles