Marriage

Source: The James and Mary Murray Murdoch Family History, Pg 117
(a better picture exists in the non-digital version of the red book)

The following is an account of William Lindsay's wedding journey from Heber to Salt Lake in December of 1868 through Parley's Canyon and then a short time was spent in Salt Lake City:

"My brother Robert & his girl decided to go with us & get married also. About the 12th of Dec. we started out with 2 yoke of oxen on the wagon. Our mother went along with us & Ann Richardson & 3 children. It had snowed a few inches the night before we started but cleared & turned very cold. We got to Kimballs in Parley's Park & camped there in the camp house. A very cold night & next morning the roads were icey & slippy & the oxen could hardly stand on their feet but kept slipping & falling every little while. It got dark when we were still not more than half down Parley's Canyon. Some horse teams over took us & we let them pass. Mrs. Richardson thought it would be better for her & her children to get in their wagon. So she got in & they had only gone short distance when the horses fell down & were floundering under the tongue she got out again as quickly as she could & came to our wagon & got in saying oh the oxen are slow but I think they are more sure than the horses. So we plodded along in the dark as best we could although one ox was so lame he could scarcely walk. However we reached the home of N.C. Murdock's wife Esther about 10 O'clock that night where we fed our on hay we had in the wagon & we stayed in her house for 2 day & nights & bought hay to feed the oxen & ourselves.

On the 14th we went to the Endowment house but so many were there ahead of us we had to wait till next day. So we went & had our pictures taken. That picture we still have. In the evening we attended the Salt Lake Theatre the play was Romeo & Juliet by very good actors.

Salt Lake Theatre Orchestra, December 22, 1868

Source: http://content.lib.utah.edu/u?/USHS_Class,18805

Endowment House
Source: http://content.lib.utah.edu/u?/USHS_Class,5142

Temple Square around 1868
Source: http://content.lib.utah.edu/u?/USHS_Class,5477

Next morning we were at the Endowment house early & found 2 other young couple from Heber who were there like us to be married Joseph Moulton & Lizzie Giles & Albert Mcmullin & Nancy Jane Ross Wm Moulton also were sealed that day. They had been married some time before. I was ordained an Elder by Abidina Pratt, I believe and we were married for all eternity by Daniel H. Wells & had our blessings & anointings according to the sacred ordinances of the gospel & I received one of the greatest blessings any man can receive in this life a good true faithful loving wife. For so she certainly was up to the end of her mortal life more than 47 years afterwards.

Daniel H. Wells

Source: http://content.lib.utah.edu/u?/USHS_Class,3968

We bought a hundred pounds of flour $10.00 2 common chairs & a rocker. A gallon of mollasses & a brass kettle. I had bought some plates & other articles while back after emigrants. That night we stayed at John Muirs & made our bed on the floor & mother slept in the same bed with us. Next day we got all our things together & started on our journey home mother came with us.

Robert & Sarah stayed in Salt Lake a week or more. One ox was so lame I chained him & his mate behind the wagon & I gave Mary a long stick to make them walk up & not hold back. And of course I drove the other yoke hitched to the wagon. Of course we must have presented a rather strange picture for a bridal tour. But I want to say we were quite happy & cheerful & there was no complaints uttered by either of us. The only trouble was that,oxen were so very slow & that we were used to. So we plodded along cheerily. We got to Jamie Lairds in Parley's Canyon & camped sleeping on the floor in his house as it was very cold nights. The days were warm right in the sun but cold in the shade. Next day we took up our march slowly as usual up the canyon & kept trudging along. I let the women ride whenever I could & I attended to the oxen that were behind & let Mary ride & whack the oxen on the wagon when the roads were good So in this way we managed to reach Hailstone's ranch about dark. There we were kindly invited to stay all night but of course we had to make our bed on the floor again. Next morning we started on to Heber & arrived about noon having been gone a full week & a day. Of course we were very glad that journey was at an end & especially to get rid of the lame ox & get a bed to sleep on. It was arranged that we would live in part of Roberts house until I could build my own. I had logs on the lot all ready to put up as soon as the spring came. So of course we moved our few articles in & started house keeping.

We had taken considerable time & expense to get properly married & we talked matters over & decided it would only proper & right to attend to family prayers night & morning & to ask a blessing on the food we ate. And I want to say that we made the start then & kept it it up all through our married life & even up to the present time. I feel it has been a great help & a blessing to us in raising our family. I would certainly advice all young couples to do likewise.

Source: Autobiography, pg 289-291

The following passage seems too close to be a different written account, but there are differences including details about what Mary Mair was wearing at the theatre and other things. Could it be that it is a modified version of his Diary/Autobiography (transcription with commentary?) or a different account all together. It doesn't seem that he would have written this twice, put without copy machines, maybe? I've highlighted some of the changes.

The story of William and Mary from here on is one story, and here it is in William's own words:

"We were planning to go to the Endowment House to be married so my brother, Robert, and his girl, Sarah Murdock, decided to go with us. Sarah was 15 years old and Robert was 23. Mary was 16 and I was 21 years of age. On the 12th of December 1868, we started out with two yoke of oxen and a wagon. Mother went with us and also Ann Richardson and her two children. The first night we camped in the camphouse at Kimball's in Parley's Park. It was a very cold night. The
next morning we started out very early, but the roads were frozen and very slippery, so we traveled very slowly as the oxen kept falling down. It got dark while we were still up in Parley's Canyon. Some men with a horse team tried to pass us and their horses fell down and one was floundering under the wagon tongue. It was very dark and Robert and I went to help. One of the men said: 'You boys stand back, you might get hurt.' Mother quickly spoke up in her Scottish brogue and said, 'They are nae boys, they are on their way to get married! ’ "We finally reached N.C. Murdoch's house in Salt Lake, where we all stayed. The next day was Sunday and we attended church. On Monday we went to the Endowment House, but there were so many ahead of us, we had to wait until the next day. So we went and had our pictures taken and bought wedding rings for our bonnie brides. In the evening we attended the Salt Lake Theater and saw some very good actors present 'Romeo and Juliet.' (Mary had a sage green dress with white dots for this special occasion. She had an engagement ring with a green stone, and the wedding rings that were purchased were made of black guterperchie buttons. Aunt Sarah says the girls felt like queens at the theater and they were very proud of their grooms in their homemade clothes.)
"On December 15, 1868, we were united in marriage in the Endowment House, by Daniel H. Wells, for time and all eternity. Of course, we had our endowments and sealings. I received one of the greatest blessings any man can receive in this life, a good, true, faithful, loving wife.

"The next day we bought a hundred pounds of flour at $10.00, two common chairs and a rocking chair, a gallon of molasses, and a brass kettle. I had bought some plates and other articles while I was back after emigrants. We stayed that night at the home of John Muir. Robert and Sarah stayed in Salt Lake a week more. The next day we started our journey home, Mother, Mary and me. One ox was lame, so I chained him and his mate behind the wagon, and I gave Mary a long stick to switch the oxen to make them walk up and not hold back.

I drove the other yoke of oxen that were hitched to the wagon. Mary walked most of the way. I guess we presented a rather strange picture of a bridal tour. But I can say that there was no complaining and we all were quite happy. This was the start of our honeymoon, and I am sure with it all we enjoyed ourselves as well or better than some do in their fine cars. From this day on Mary Mair was Mary Lindsay.

Source: The James and Mary Murray Murdoch Family History, Pg 117

Election results

In an 1892 race for county recorder, the Wasatch Wave reported that he lost the election for recorder to Bond by 15 votes.



Apparently the jobs of clerk and recorder were combined in the 1898 election. William Lindsay challenged John Giles for the position of County Clerk and Record. William Lindsay was able to get 45% percent of the vote on the Republican ticket but lost the race as posted in the Wasatch Wave on 11/18/1898. John Giles won with 666 votes though, a bad sign all around.


William Lindsay did hold a civic position later in life; he was appointed as County Bailiff. In William Lindsay's own words regarding these elections and positions:

"At the death of Ed. Buys who had been acting as Court Bailiff I was appointed to fill the vacancy for which I received $20.00 per month. I held this position about a year & a half & I got on very nicely with Judge Morgan & the County commissioners but on the next election the Democrats won the county election & declared all appointive offices vacant & although Judge Morgan a Democrat asked that I be retained his wishes were not granted & another was given the job. Many years before I was run on the Republican ticket against John T. Giles for County Clerk & thought I ran ahead of my ticket I lost by some 16 votes so that was about all of my experience in politics or at least in running for Office."

Autobiography pg 325

Had he won these positions we would have had much more of his mention and writing in the Wasatch Wave!

Poem on Maggie Stevenson

The following is a small poem written by William Lindsay about a family friend, and fellow Scot, Mrs Margaret Stevenson (Maggie) who died 9/18/1917.

Park record 10/5/1917

Our dear old friend and neighbor's gone to meet a good reward.
Which will be granted her, before the bar of god.
We are sorry that she died away far from her cosey home,
That she worked so very hard to make in many years that's gone.
And where she had so many friends who loved her for her worth.
Who gladly would have eased her pains, while she remained on earth
But we know she'll meet her loved ones, Who have passed on before,
And they with her will now rejoice, upon that blessed shore.
For she was faithful good and true, to every trust while here,
And has earned a place among the just, in a high and holy sphere.
So let us every one take heed and every one prepare,
That when it comes our time to go, we'll all be welcomed there,
And have the blessed privilege of meeting thouse that's gone.
To dwell with them eternally within that heavenly home.

Park record 10/5/1917

As a side note, it was a walk to Maggie Stevenson's birthday party in 1914 that proved to be the last for William and Mary after Mary had suffered a stroke. In his journal he writes:

Along in May 1914 I had been taking Mary out riding in a bugg at times & we were invited to Maggie Stevensons birthday party. So I got Mary to consent to go along in the buggy. When we got there & she saw so many of her old friends all happy & cheerful she broke down & cried & I had to take her back home. She could not bear the thought of not being able to take part as she used to be one of the most cheerful in any gathering she ever was in. Of course I never took her into any gathering again away from home.

Indian War Veteran

Many years following William Lindsay's involvement in the Utah Blackhawk Indian War, 1865-1867, he and other veterans united to form the Indian War Association around the year 1900. This organization was involved in organizing campfire reunions, advocacy efforts for war pensions, honoring deceased soldiers and other civic events. William Lindsay was involved in the formation of the Indian War Association in Heber on March 18, 1900.

Deseret News. 3/20/1900

Along about the year 1900 an Association of the Indian War Veteran's was formed & I had become a member & later an officer in the Association & Campfires were held yearly in some of the towns where veterans lived & all veterans in the State were invited to come & spend 4 days & have a jolly time And besides that each Post was expected to have a gathering in their own town & have a Program a Banquet & a Grand Ball once each year & we sure had many right social gatherings & enjoyable times I was Adjutant & Quartermaster for many years & attended campfires in several Utah county towns At some of those campfires the subject of trying to get some enumeration for our services during the Indian wars in Utah was discussed & it was decided that each veteran pay one dollar each year into a fund to be used to pay a committee to go to Washington with a petition asking Congress to pass a bill allowing each man who could prove his services in the Indian wars of Utah a pension. But for years they could not get anything done. Finally about 1916 Mr. Howell our Representative & Reed Smoot our Senator were appealed to & Howell introduced a bill giving a pension to all who could prove 90 days continuous service which passed the House & came up to the Senate. Here Smoot amended the bill to read 30 days instead of 90 & got the bill passed & Pres. Wilson signed it March 4th 1917 The amount of the Pension was $20.00 per month for Veterans & $12.00 for their widows. So I with others received a Pension from that time on. Then in the Congress of 1916 & 1917 Representative Leatherwood introduced a bill asking that the amount of The Indian war pension be increased to $50.00 for men over 75 years of age & $30.00 for widows it passed the house & Smoot took hold of it & got it passed in the Senate & Pres. Coolidge signed it & so I am enjoying the benefits but a majority of of those who did service passed away before these Pension laws were passed & some who are still living but had failed to get their names on the Muster Rolls at the time of service & cannot prove 30 days service by living witnesses are left out. Of course at the time this service was rendered we had no idea of getting any remuneration whatever. What we did we were almost compelled to do to protect ourselves & our cattle & horses & we had to furnish our own firearms & ammunition. I sold the first steer I ever owned to buy a gun at that time.

Pg 324

October 1914 we had a very nice fair where all farm products & stock were shown & a large number of people were in attendance. James Price one of my old Pioneer friends got hurt by his team getting frightened & throwing him out of his buggy & he died the next day. He was a very good man & well respected by everybody. I attend his funeral at Charleston & was one of the speakers at the services. All the Indian war Veterans also attended as he was one of our comrades. We usually carried a large U.S. Flag & marched from the home to the place of service when it was possible. There was an old comrade of the Blackhawk writing a book telling of the battles with the Indians during that & the other Indian wars in Utah. He wrote to me asking me to give him what information I could with regard to our troubles with the Indians at that time so of course I complied with his request & sent him all particulars as near as I could & which he printed in his book (*Note: pg 250-251 "History of Indian Depradations of Utah" by Peter Gottfredson). We used to hold an election of Officers every 2 years of the Posts of the Indian War Association at which I was reelected Adjutant & Quartermaster for a great many years & untill we gave it up entirely. I still hold all the books & records of the different companies with the names of every man enrolled The office they held if any & the services they are credited with So of course when the pension bill was finally passed in 1917 nearly all the men or widows of men who took any part in the Blackhawk war came to me for what information they required to establish their claim to a pension & many came to try to prove claims that had no evidence whatever. There were some however who had done service who were not on the roll.

Pg 313

Advocacy

In the winter of 1916 & 1917 a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives by Mr Howell allowing a pension of $20.00 per month to all those whose names appeared on the Muster Rolls as having served 90 day in the Blackhawk Indian war. The bill passed in the House & came up to the Senate & Senator made an amendment to read 30 days instead of 90 days & in that form it passed the Senate & the House concurred in the amendment & President Wilson signed it March 4th 1917 & I with a number of others have been recipients of that bill up until April 1927 when Leatherwood & Smoot got the pension raised to $50.00 by consent of both houses of Congress & the signature of President Coolidge all of which I am very thankful for.

...

In March 1917 a bill was passed by both houses of Congress & signed by Pres. Wilson awarding a pension of $20.00 per month to all those who were enrolled in the Territorial Militia & served 30 days in the Blackhawk Indian war of 1866 but only those whose names appeared on a certain roll were acknowledged & it took quite a while to get a decision as to which was the official roll. I had been acting as Adjutant & Quartermaster of of the Indian War Veterans Association for some years before & had much to do in establishing claims of different individuals

Heber J. Grant and Reed Smoot, between 1918-1920
Source: Library of Congress

My claim was among those to whom the pension was granted but it was in Dec. 1918 when we received our first payment However we received at that time $240.00 for back pay to the time the bill was passed. We are indebted to Senator Smoot more than any other man for the passage of that pension bill. It has proven a great help to many aged Veterans & Widows who got $12.00 per month under that bill.

Pgs 340, 343

In 1909, William Lindsay ensured that he was officially recognized as a veteran, fulfilling the requirements of the affadavit by getting two witness signatures of two former soldiers that served with him, John Crook and Noah Mayho. This affadavit is on file at the Utah State Historical Archives, and a copy is provided below.



This affadavit was part of the process to ensure government pension. In the Salt Lake Herald 2/22/1918, veterans are named that were accepted to receive the $10 monthly pension. [
In 1919, William Lindsay "won" a pension of $20 a month. The accounts written in his journal show that the veteran's did considerable advocacy in order to "win" those pensions.

Salt Lake Herald, 1/29/1919

Campfire Reunions

On the 9th of August 1911 The Blackhawk war veterans camp fire was began here & held forth in the Stake Tabernacle I with several others had canvassed the town to find places for the older ones to sleep that did not care to camp out They had a grand 4 days celebration Programs every day & dances at night. There were 50 wagons in the yard & we the people of Heber furnished hay for the teams & wood for their campfires which were all in the Court house & Stake house grounds & there was 100 persons lodged in the homes besides. They sure had a grand time & I as one of the commitee did not begrudge the trouble & time we spent in trying to make a pleasant time for them. And they went home feeling they had been royally treated.

Pg 320

That fall (1913) we had the Blackhawk War Veterans here again to hold a Campfire & of course I had to spend some time getting ready for the event. My special job was to find lodgings for the aged & infirm ones. I secured beds for 50 persons & 2 others were also securing beds in the other wards I was solicitor in the lst ward. Many came with teams & camped in the Public square these were furnished feed or pasture for their teams & wood to make their fires. The Stake house was used for Programs. And again they had a splendid time all the aged were well cared for & there was many kinds of Amusements, Picture shows, Merry go rounds & Dances all free to Veterans & widows. A good kind friendly spirit prevailed & we had good Programs of speeches songs & recitations & everybody seemed to enjoy themselves as they had done here two years before. And our visitors went off expressing their praises of the Veterans & good people of Heber.

Pg 326

William Lindsay was on many committees involved with Indian War Association which coordinate the many activities and events including campfire reunions for Indian War veterans.

Salt Lake Herald, 8/16/1913.

In March 1914 The Veteran's held our usual party in the Amusement hall in Heber & had a fine program banquet & dance. As usual I called the roll only about 50 responded or were known to be alive out of 275 at the time of the enrollment in May 1866 There was a fine Ball at night all except Veterans & widows were charged 50 cents per couple & we generally sold from 150 to 200 numbers & in this way we increased our Bank account from year to year. Of course we had to pay the orchestra & some $15 for the Hall. But from year to year our numbers decreased & those left got old & feeble till only 10 were left in the county & we could not get the young sons & daughters interested So we decided to disband we had on hand at that time $163.00 that was in 1926. We voted unanimously to give $100.00 to the War Memorial Hill at Midway & the balance $63.00 to the Seminary building in Heber that had been built in 1925 & was in debt. I used to plant small U.S. flags on all the veterans graves in Heber every Decoration day for years & we took up the flags & saved them from year to year.

Pg 329

In August 1915 I attended the Indian War Veteran's Camp fire at Spanish Fork where we had a very nice time I went & came on the train. The Heber train left here at 2 P:M & I got to Spanish Fork about 7 P.M. Found a large crowd already there. I slept in a tent the first night next day had a fine Program. Among other things the subject of using every means possible to get the State & also the nation to acknowledge our claim as entitled to some remuneration for our services in the Indian was strongly urged. And it was decided to get the State to acknowledge us first. This we did & the Legislature voted some $3000.00 to be paid to Veterans & widows of Veterans an equal sum as far as it would go. So we got $20.00 each from the State. This I think had the effect to give us a better chance when our application for a pension came before Congress in 1917 ...

At these Campfires reports were usually made of the death of Veterans especially the officers of the organizations. At this time we reported the death of James B. Hamilton our Commander & that 16 of us attended the funeral at Midway in a body carrying our Flag & taking part in the services. Also that Robert Broadhead another of our war Veterans had passed away in March 1915 & whose funeral we also attended as usual & took part in the exercises Bro. Broadhead was one of the very first men to plow in this valley & for many years was one of our very prominent citizens & successful farmers, & a splendid neighbor. Soon after Commander Hamilton's death we met & elected James D. Shanks to take place. Those who had served in the Blackhawk war were all getting aged & several were passing away every year & we very often had to make changes in our officers on that account It was only a few years till J.D. Shanks died & Mark Jeffs took his position & he only lived a short time after & quite a number of the veterans had also passed to the other side. So early in 1927 we decided to disband as an organization.

Pg 334

Knowing William Lindsay's involvement in the Indian War Association, it was exciting, but not to surprising to find a photo of him among other veterans in the George Edward Anderson collection from the BYU Special Collections Library.

C.I.W.V. Officers and Officers' sons and daughters
Courtesy, L.Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library,

Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602. A zoomed in shot of William Lindsay.

William Lindsay remained involved in the Indian War association through 1927 when it was finally disbanded. George Edward Anderson's 1927 shot of the Indian War reunion in Heber is also available through BYU's special collections library. The photo may be one of the last of such a gathering. I can't seem to find William Lindsay in the photo, but I can't imagine he would have missed it. Can anyone help me know if this would be his son William Howie Lindsay?