History of the Armstrongs

typed by Alissa Empey 13 July 2010- sorry if there are typos I have scanned the pages I copied from and have them on file if any one would like to see them.

"History of Armstrongs"

by Goldie Toler

Uncle Dave was the first of the Armstrong family that came to Idaho from Virginia.

Uncle Dave was baptized fall of 1891, and two years later in the spring Aunt Jennie was baptized, and the following fall they left their home and came west. At this time, Brother George A. Smith (Afton's grandfather) was in Virginia on a mission. I would like to say here, I have heard Uncle Dave say many times when he heard the Gospel from these missionaries. He knew it was true, as he was in search for something different; he said it seemed he had heard it before. Now the fall of 1893, Uncle Dave, Aunt Jennie, Joe, Price, and Curt, as small children, came home with Brother Smith to Farmington, Utah. This was a long journey with winter coming, but Uncle Dave wanted to establish a home in the mountains with the Saints. They came by train to Brother Smith's home and spent the most of the winter there. But the first sign of spring Uncle Dave borrowed a wagon and team from Brother Smith. (Joe says they were black, Prince and Mauge.) He did not know where he was going, but as they traveled, Uncle Dave recognized the hills and valleys he had seen in a dream before he left Virginia. In fact, after he turned off the main road to come north, he made his own road through sage brush and desert. It took them seven days to make this trip, and no motels to stop and rest at night either; only the ground a place to sleep at night. The first place they lived was the place of Seth Glover that stood down under the hill on the south side of the road not far from Garden Creek bridge. When he arrived here, he had only $5.00 to begin the task of making a home. For a number of years he worked for wages of 50 cents a day. He did not live on the Seth Glover place long; he soon homesteaded the place where he lived and passed away. Later Uncle Dave bought and sold farm produce between Robin and Pocatello; he made many friends doing this; even the Indians were his friends, and he preached the gospel to all he met. This homestead did not have any water; he hauled water to his garden and animals way into the night after his day's work was done. I know this must have been discouraging at times, but Uncle Dave believed like Nephi of old. ("The Lord giveth no commandment unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the things which he hatch commanded them") He did not come here for financial conditions but for the purpose of the Gospel and to be with the main body of the church.

In December, 1901, Uncle Dave, Aunt Jennie, and seven children went to the Salt Lake Temple. It must have been quite a sacrifice to take a family that far under conditions in those days. To this family fifteen children were born, eleven of which are still living.

Then as the missionaries continued their work in Virginia, Uncle Dudley and Aunt Rice were baptized October 30, 1895. Two years later, they decided to come West, selling all their belongings and leaving all their relatives for the Gospel sake. The left Richmond, Virginia, by train on the 24th day of March, and arrived in McCammon on March 29, 1897. Uncle Dave met them at the train in a wagon. It was bitter cold, and it looked so desolate with snow drifts piled high over the fences. Uncle Dudley and Aunt Rice had two children; Alma and Lula. They spent some time at Uncle Dave's home. Then they moved to a log cabin on the Jim Taylor place, which later was known as the Bert Evans farm and now belongs to Howard Evans. He lived and worked the place that season and in his spare time worked for Thomas Jenkins. The following winter, Uncle Dudley and family moved to the John B. Chedgzey place. That winter Uncle Dudley worked for George Gittens for 50 cents a day and also cut and hauled logs to build a cabin on what they called a free homestead land over south of Uncle Dave's. He cleared a few acres of land on this claim and build a one room cabin with mud chinked walls and dirt top roof; they had very little furniture; a camp stove, and Uncle Dudley mad a table, and Aunt Rice bought a bed with her chicken money she had raised while on the Taylor place. At this time the greater part of the Valley was sage brush and very few settlers. Uncle Dudley also had to haul water in barrels, and they would walk 1/2 mile to the neighbors to get a fresh bucket of water to drink. They had many hardships, sickness, and sorrow. In the spring of 1902, the Indian Reservation Desert Land was opened for Homestead Rights, and Uncle Dudley relinquished his rights on the free homestead and filed on another place because the land was much better and had a spring on it. So now he had to proceed to build another log cabin on it with a dirt top. This home was added to, and he bought other lands and lived here until he passed away. Bill and Nolan both have built homes on this farm. To Uncle Dudley's and Aunt Rice's family twelve children were born, eight of which are still living.

In 1907 my father and mother, George and Etta, had missionaries visit their home. My father was undecided what to do about being baptized, so in November, 1907, Uncle Dave came back to Virginia to visit and while their encouraged my father to be baptized, and in January, 1909, they started to make preparations to come west. They came here for the Gospel sake, because everyone that joined the church in those days were persecuted, and I know just how prejudice they were against the Mormons. I can remember my father used to haul farm produce to Richmond for the neighbors along with his farming, and when they heard he had become a member of the Mormon Church, one of the said when he stopped to pick up his stuff, "I am not going to let no Damn Mormon haul my marketin'." And she didn't; and schooled all the rest on it.

It was quite a sacrifice to sell all your belongings, leave loved ones, and start for a new country. My father and mother were about ready to leave Richmond when us children, six of us, got sick with whooping cough. They lost the baby, seven months old. But in spite of the expense, sorrow, and sickness, they continued to make plans to come West. We left Richmond the 14th day of April, 1901, and arrived in McCammon the 19th day of April, 1909. My father got off the train, looked around, and looked pretty sad with only 50 cents in his pocket. He called Uncle Dave, and Joe came to meet us in a white top buggy drawn by a bay team of horses. We stayed at Uncle Dave's for some time. Uncle Dave helped us to find a place to live and the necessary things to keep house, which weren't very much. The first place we lived was the Purse Place, which is now owned by my brother, Saint George. That summer my father worked for Myers Cohn for $1.00 daily. He worked for Geoge Gittens and Thomas Jenkins also. He walked to and from work until he saved enough money to buy a pony, which was $15.00. He also filed on a homestead at the foot of Tom Mountain, which was at this time owned by Darwin Toler. He built a one room log cabin which was our home for years. I witnessed some hard times here and also some very happy times. In September, 1910, my mother was baptized and was a firm member until her death. In 1917, my father bought the Wolverton and Marley places south of where we live, built a home, and lived there until 1944, when he moved to Pocatello to 114 Taft, where my sister Ruphenia now lives and lived here until he passes away. As you all know, my father faltered. He joined the re-organized church. To our family there were thirteen children born, ten of which are still living.

Uncle Zack came with us to Idaho. He also stayed at Uncle Dave's until he got a job. He soon filed on a homestead over in Rattle Snake. He married Grace Keplinger, and they had five children. Uncle Zack joined the church in Virginia, but none of us could find a record of his baptism. Later he also joined the re-organized church and lived in Pocatello until he passed away.

In January, 1910, Uncle Dudley went to Virginia to visit; when he came home, Aunt Nannie came home with him as a widow and brought six children with her. She made her home with her brothers until she found a place to live, which was the Dave Taylow house that used to stand down under the hill from the old Crump place. The house later was moved to Robin, and at present Afton has it for his chickens. Later she moved to the Purse Place, then to Pocatello where she passed away. She joined the church after she got her in July, 1910.

This same year, the summer of 1910 or it might have been 1911, Uncle Shelton and Aunt Virgie and two children, Price and Asa, came to Idaho. However, he never joined the church but came to be with the rest of the family. Grandma came with Uncle Shelton and from what records I have, if Grandma joined the church before she passed away, the records were lost. This bunch also made their home at Uncle Dave's until they got a place to live. Their first home was the old Hudson place on the east side of the road at Robin opposite the old school house and a little south of the store. Later Uncle Shelton and Grandma file on homesteads in Rattle Snake, and at this time Max Pope owns Uncle Zack's Uncle Shelton's and Grandma's farms. Seven children were born to Uncle Shelton and Aunt Virgie. They moved from Rattle Snake to Pocatello; then to Portland. Oregon where Uncle Shelton passed away.

Aunt Ruby and Mr. Mac., the last to come, came in July, 1916. I don't think they came for the gospel, but for new adventures. Aunt Ruby, however, joined the church in April, 1896, but was never very active.

They came under different conditions from the rest of the family. They had all of their furniture shipped here from Virginia. They stayed at Uncle Dave's until their furniture came which was a lot longer than now days. Then they moved to Pocatello to 440 West Hayden. Later Mr. Mac. bought the Tripp place south of Uncle Dave's. He remodeled and built a home but did not stay there long; he moved to McCammon and went into the store business with Frankline Wells and built another home. Grandma passed away here in September, 1923, and they moved back to Pocatello where Aunt Ruby passed away. Aunt Ruby and Mr. Mac. had two children.

Some of you might wonder what became of Grandpa Armstrong. He passed away August 22, 1885 in Virginia, while some of the children were real small. My father was fourteen and Uncle Shelton, the youngest, was only one year. I have always heard he was a wonderful manned and a Bible student, and if he had lived he might have joined the church. This family had eleven children; nine grew to maturity. The other two lived and passed away in Virginia.

Now you can see the majority of the this family came here for the Gospel; if we don't live it, it will be an awful let down to them.

(If you want to know how we lived in the old day read Reminescings Relief Society Magazine, July, 1961.)

David Armsrtong 1866-1940

I am not sure who wrote this, but I think it must have been a friend or ward member of David Armstrong. Possibly written to share at his funeral or something. David Armstrong is our great great grandfather.

FAMILY HISTORY

Bishop David Armstrong was born in Huttonsville, West Virginia, 2 Nov 1866. The son of Zachariah and Willie Anna Amos Armstrong.

When he was five years old his parents moved to the state of Virginia. His father died when the Bishop was nineteen leaving him the oldest of eleven children.

He was married, April 24, 1888, at the age of 21 to Virginia E. Powers, who was sixteen years old at this time and she also had had the responsibility of a large family as her mother had died when she was thirteen.

The young married couple lived with his mother working on the place and turning all the income derived from his work to his mother.

One day while his father was chopping wood, two men came into the yard and explained that they were Elders of the Latter Day Saint Church and would like to explain the Gospel to he and his family.

At this time everyone in that section was quite bitter against the Church and the Bishop’s Father was not very sympathetic to the Elders of their message. But the Bishop in his own words, (which many of you heard a number of times) always said, “I recognized it the first time I heard it. I was in full sympathy with it. It seemed as if I had heard it before.” He read and studied and tried to find something better, but in his own words again he never could find anything that satisfied him as the Gospel did.

He was baptized by Elder John S. Curtiss 4 Oct 1891 and two years later 6 April 1893, his wife was baptized into the church.

In the fall of this same year (1893) the Bishop, his wife and three small children, Joseph, Price, and Curtis, and his wife’s sister Lily (who made her home with them until she was married), left their home and traveled almost 3,000 miles westward, with Elder George A. Smith to Farmington, Utah. Their main desire in making this long journey, with winter almost upon them, was to establish a home in the Valley’s of mountains with the Saints.

They traveled by train and stayed at Brother Smith’s home part of that winter. The following spring (in April) Bishop Armstrong borrowed a wagon and team and left Farmington to find the land, and hills and homes that he had seen in a dream while he was still in Virginia. Seven days they were on the road, part of it desert, sleeping one night on the ground.

Two years ago and one year ago this spring I rode to Salt Lake City with the Bishop and some of his family. He told me about the journey from Farmington to Robin, of the friendly help of scattered settlers. Along the way, I saw some of his camping places. He told me of his recognition of the valley and hills and showed me just the place where he turned north, off the main road to his farm. In fact he made a road over and thru the sage brush and sand hills. It seemed as if he must have known the way for as he said, he recognized the mountains and hills and knew the direction to go from the things he had seen in a dream.

The first house he and his family stayed at, was Seth Glovers. A house that stood on the south side of the road under the hill by Garden Creek Bridge just north of it.

This family arrived in Robin with five dollars in their possession to begin their task of making a home. For a number of years he worked for wages, earning fifty cents a day. He peddled, bought and sold, farm produce between Robin and Pocatello for years and many were the interesting stories, he has told his family of these numerous trips.

The Indians were his friends, many a night they have given up their own nice warm bed made over a bed of coals so that Bishop Armstrong could get warm and rested before starting again in the morning. Many of us know the beautiful home with its modern convenience he made for his wife and family which numbered 15. Three of these children have all ready passed on. His grandson Afton Smith, also made this house his home. He still lives there. Bishop Armstrong and his family have all worked hard to make their home what it is. They hauled water for many years, water for everything even a garden. Before they moved to the place there home is now, he started digging a well. He didn’t tell his family anything about it until a good part of the labor was done. This well is 70 feet deep. Later he piped water for a mile from a spring, to his place for domestic use as well as for the animals and his garden.

From the time of his arrival in Robin he was active in his Church remaining so until his death. He was councilor to Bishop Henry Henderson, a member of the High Council of the Stake, a Home Missionary and Bishop of this Ward for twenty years. At one time our ward was quite heavily in debt. This house had been built and the Ward was small. But Bishop Armstrong with his good management soon had the ward out of debt. He was a good financier with his own and with the property interested to his care by the Church.

He also served as a member of the School Board of Trustees for a number of terms acting as chairman most of these years. I won't even try to tell all the things he has done for this community, but here are a few: He worked for the betterment of the community, was very instrumental in bringing the electricity to our Ward. He carried hot water to the carbite lights when we used them. I always think of him each time I come in sight of this Church yard. To him should go much of the credit of the trees we are so proud of. I have seen him, week after week, hauling water to keep them alive when they were first started. Even this summer, he was worried about them during our dry spells.

Bishop Armstrong was a very sincere man. He loved the Gospel. He wanted everyone to know it and understand it as he did. Never an opportunity did he pass to explain the Gospel to anyone who would listen, his own family, every stranger as well as his friends. He has done a wonderful amount of genealogical work in the Temple and delighted so much in doing it. We will all remember his great faith, his wonderful example that he has set before us. God help us all to benefit by his life. May God bless his family. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Picture at top I found on Ancestry.com, Story I found in the family history papers of Peggy, The newspaper obituaries I scanned also from the family history papers of Peggy.