As the persecutions came upon the Church, my parents were among those who were sought for on account of their marriage relationship and in the year 1887, my father was arrested by United States Deputy Marshals’ Steele and Whetstone on the charges of unlawful cohabitation. By this time father had married another wife, Vendla, so that she and mother together with their young children were taken into exile, those remaining living with Aunt Mary. Aunt Vendla had been taken to the home of friends who lived on Worm Creek east of Preston and mother was living with Aunt Mary in the home on Main Street in Richmond, just one-half block east of the bank location. Aunt Ellen and her children were living in a home one and one-half blocks south of the cemetery. The home on Main Street where mother was living, faced the south with the kitchen part of the house on the north facing the west and another outside door on the east. North of the kitchen was a bedroom which did not have any outside door but had a window on the north and east side.
At the time of father’s arrest, he was at his planing mill and lumber yard which was located on the County road, two and one-half blocks south of the present location of the Inter-Urban Depot, on the south bank of City Creek. He was engaged in setting up a new planer when they found him. The officers took him with them in their buggy and drove immediately to the home on Main Street where my mother and Aunt Mary were engaged in the laundry work for the week, using the old-fashioned tub and washboard, just in the middle of the task. On entering the home, father took them into the front door and was met by my brother Joseph’s wife, who were living in the two east rooms. She was introduced as Mrs. Monson and was placed under arrest, they thinking that she was one of father’s wives. In those days old apostate Mormons were the informers of the officers and among them in Richmond were some whom father had befriended when they first came to Utah and sheltered and fed them until they could find employment and make other arrangements. So with such informers the officers were supplied with intimate knowledge of the home and family relations. Father invited the officers to dine with them, as it was near noon and they accepted the invitation. This gave mother a better chance to escape.
As stated before, Aunt Mary and mother were in the back part of the house and learning what had happened and not knowing whether or not the officers would come around to the east or west doors of the kitchen, or possibly they might watch both doors to avoid anyone’s escaping, the north window in the little bedroom was quickly raised and mother climbed our with her babe Rachel, without time to get any change of clothing, but just in her working clothes, without anything to cover her head, other than her kitchen apron tied around her waist, she put it over her head and running north through the orchard into the lots of Henry Hendricks and on to the street north, then she went east to the Shepard corner, then north two blocks. She had in mind to go to the home of some friends by the name of Poulsen which was just another half block north. She had an impression not to go there as there would be a possible danger that the officers might be informed of the family friendship. She turned east, thinking she would go to the home of Swen Nelson which was two blocks which were on an upgrade, part of it quite steep. When she arrived at the corner, she again felt the same impression not to go there. She had now gone five blocks south of where she was. Without any time wasted she started for the Larson home where she was received and welcomed.
The delay to the officers occasioned by the invitation to dinner and waiting for its preparation gave mother the opportunity to get away without their knowing about her escape. They were quite contented thinking that they had mother and knowing that Aunt Vendla was out of town. On leaving, after placing father under bond for his appearance, they went to these apostate “spotters” of theirs and to their disappointment learned that they had my brother’s wife. They went to the Poulsen home first and searched it through, going into the attic from a ladder up the east end of the house to a door in the gable. They searched the cow shed, the chicken house and through the lot where the berry bushes were. Failing there, they went direct to the Swen Nelson home and made a similar search. At neither of these homes had they learned of father’s arrest. Failing at these two homes the search was abandoned.
A few days later, father got brother Nathan Porter of Preston to go and get mother and take her to Preston where her cousin Mrs. Annie Larsen was living and left her temporarily at the Larsen home. Arrangements were make for her to move to the Ephriam Swann home which was about three miles north and east of Preston. The home was built on the north slope of the hill so that only the upper part of the home, the roof, was in sight from down nearer to town. Aunt Vendla was moved from the place on Worm Creek, where she was staying, to the Swann home with mother.
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