Manuscripts

Autobiography of Samuel Miles [microform]: 1881

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Description: Microfilm of the autobiography of Samuel Miles, kept in about 1881. It includes a brief family history and descriptions of Miles' childhood and his family's move to Freedom, New York, where they were neighbors to Miles' uncle (by marriage) Warren A. Cowdery; Mormon missionaries in the area; the family's move to Missouri, where Miles worked on his father's farm; persecutions of Mormons in Missouri; a history of the Mormon expulsion to Illinois; various accounts of Joseph Smith; the family's 1845 move to Nauvoo and Miles' work as a teacher; a detailed account of Miles' time with the Mormon Battalion, first under Captain Allen (who died at Fort Leavenworth) and then Lieutenant Smith (who was unpopular compared to Jefferson Hunt), and their overland travels to San Diego and Sutter's Fort; Miles' move to Utah; a trip to California he took in 1858; the formation of the United Order at Enoch in 1874; and various notes on Miles' teaching and farming activities. The autobiography covers the years through 1881.
Type: Manuscripts(Opens in new tab)
Date: 1881

Autobiography of Samuel Miles [microform]: 1881

Manuscripts

Microfilm of a typescript of the autobiography of Samuel Miles, supplied by his daughter Minnie Miles Mathis to the St. George Ward Chapter, Daughters of the Pioneers. The autobiography was kept in about 1881. It includes a brief family history and descriptions of Miles' childhood and his family's move to Freedom, New York, where they were neighbors to Miles' uncle (by marriage) Warren A. Cowdery; Mormon missionaries in the area; the family's move to Missouri, where Miles worked on his father's farm; persecutions of Mormons in Missouri; a history of the Mormon expulsion to Illinois; various accounts of Joseph Smith; the family's 1845 move to Nauvoo and Miles' work as a teacher; a detailed account of Miles' time with the Mormon Battalion, first under Captain Allen (who died at Fort Leavenworth) and then Lieutenant Smith (who was unpopular compared to Jefferson Hunt), and their overland travels to San Diego and Sutter's Fort; Miles' move to Utah; a trip to California he took in 1858; the formation of the United Order at Enoch in 1874; and various notes on Miles' teaching and farming activities. The autobiography covers the years through 1881.

MSS MFilm 00376

Autobiography of James McBride [microform] : 1876

Manuscripts

Microfilm of the typescript autobiography of James McBride, written in 1874 and 1876. McBride traces his genealogy and family history in Virginia and Ohio, describes his family's conversion to Mormonism, and recalls their moves throughout Missouri from 1834-1836. He gives a detailed account of his father's death in the Haun's Mill Massacre of 1838 and of his own examination of the area in the following weeks. McBride describes anti-Mormon sentiment in Missouri and his family's move to Illinois, where he rented a farm near Nauvoo in 1841. He writes of traveling westward in 1846, living in Iowa until 1850, and traveling overland to Utah (including inscribing his name on Chimney Rock). He then describes his life in Tooele and Grantsville, conflicts with Indians and the building of a fort in 1853-1854, and the Utah War. Includes table of contents and index.

MSS MFilm 00192

Diary and autobiography of Samuel Hollister Rogers [microform] : approximately 1843-1885

Manuscripts

Microfilm of the two-volume autobiography and diary of Samuel Hollister Rogers, kept from approximately 1843-1885. The first volume opens with an autobiographical account of Rogers's early life in Ohio, along with extensive family history and anecdotes. The diary portions of the volume cover his mission trip to New Jersey, Maryland, and Pennsylvania in 1843-1844; his experiences in Iowa in 1845-1846; and his time with the Mormon Battalion from 1846-1848. The second volume includes diary entries sketching his life in Parowan and St. George from 1855-1881 and in Snowflake from 1881-1885.

MSS MFilm 00061

Autobiography of Joseph Grafton Hovey, compiled by M.R. Hovey [microform], 1953

Manuscripts

Microfilm of a typescript version of Joseph Grafton Hovey's autobiography, adapted from his journals by his grandson M.R. Hovey in 1953. The volume opens with a note on "The Hovey Book" and a page tracing Joseph Hovey's descent from Daniel Hovey, the "First American Progenitor of the Hovey Descendants." The autobiography begins with as account of Hovey's childhood in Massachusetts, including the death of his father, his move to Boston, and his interest in religious revivals. It then describes his move to Illinois and conversion to the Mormon Church, includes Hovey's critical reaction to John C. Bennett, and describes the days leading up to and following the death of Joseph Smith at Carthage. Hovey then gives an account of Sidney Rigdon's departure from the Church, of Hovey's own ownership of shares in the Seventies Hall, and of his departure from Nauvoo in 1846. He then writes of traveling to Winter Quarters with Joseph Young and of his experiences there from 1846-1848, including the death of his wife from illness in 1847. The first part of the account ends with a description of his overland journey to Utah and his colonization of Iron County through about 1854. The rest of the volume consists of portions of Hovey's writings from about 1855-1856, which cover his life in Palmyra, Utah, and his mission to Provo. This portion of the volume is annotated by M.R. Hovey. The volume concludes with a portion of Hovey's wife Lusannah Hovey's record of the family's move to Cache Valley in 1860 and of Joseph Hovey's death in 1868. Also included is some Hovey family genealogy.

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Autobiography [microform] : 1837-1874

Manuscripts

Microfilm of a typescript of Goudy Hogan's autobiography, typed by Muriel Hogan Hunter in 1935. This copy was owned by Margaret Hogan Traveller. Included are descriptions of Hogan's life from the time of his arrival in the United States from Norway until his travels to Dixie, Utah, in 1874. Hogan writes of his family's life in Illinois and Iowa and their journey westward to Utah, his experiences driving a government oxen team from Council Bluffs to Salt Lake City, his desire to joint the Mormon Battalion, and his involvement in several grist mills, including those at High Creek and Mink Creek. Hogan frequently details aspects of his daily life such as the raising of crops, the building of log cabins, and the types of clothing required for overland travel. He also describes his sorrow at the news of Joseph Smith's death, the debts acquired from his grist mills, his years of crops lost to grasshoppers, and the deaths of many of his children from illnesses. The microfilm also contains a portion of Hogan's original handwritten manuscript and a typescript portion of his biography/autobiography, written with his daughter Josephine Hogan Adair.

Autobiography of James W. LeSueur [microform]: 1929

Manuscripts

Microfilm of James W. LeSueur's autobiography, completed in 1929. LeSueur includes anecdotes about his childhood, including witnessing the shooting death of Nathan Tenney (which he mistakenly dates to 1884 instead of 1882) and a trip to Fort Bridger, Wyoming, with his father. He includes some genealogy before recounting his mission to Leeds from 1898-1900 and his visit to the family's ancestral home on the Isle of Guernsey. Much of the volume relates to his business activities, including his work at the St. Johns Co-op and his work in stonecutting and land dealing in Mesa, with detailed accounts of his business accounts and savings. He also writes of his work on the Salt Lake Temple and of a situation in which he was accused of "dealing unfairly" with a widow in a land case, although he was ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing. Portions of the autobiography are partially illegible.

MSS MFilm 00083

Autobiography of Samuel Miles [microform]: 1881

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Autobiography of Samuel Miles [microform]: 1881

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Autobiography [microform] : 1837-1874

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