George E. Vaughn Worked for the Union Pacific

We knew that. It shows on the 1930 Census that his dad, George Robert Vaughn, worked as a Machinist for the U.P. and son George was a Machinist Helper. Technically, he was an intermittent laborer at the start of the Great Depression. Fifty cents an hour was pretty darn lucky. And I was thrilled to see some Union Pacific employment records pop-up to show all that on Ancestry.com.

Not Guilty on Better than a Knock-out Punch

Found Uncle Samuel, one of Elinor's boys, in trouble with the law. He was up on Manslaughter and the criminal record had him not guilty. The full story is in the newspaper (thank you, National Library of Wales!):

Abednego Jones First Settled in Box Elder [Brigham City]

Nearing the completion of my audit of Welsh 102, I'm starting to get it. Learning a new language is an incremental process. I can now read some text and figure out the context even if I can't translate all the words. Once I realize the context, more of the words make more sense. It's a process of steady growth in understanding. We don't remember the process with our first language as children. And learning one second language helps with any others.

There is a wonderful new history and language source online from Signature Books. They have historical Mormon periodicals and newspapers, mostly from the 19th Century, and some in their original foreign languages. I have been collecting Ron Dennis's translations of Udgorn Seion [Zion's Trumpet] and Prophwyd y Jubili [Prophet of the Jubilee] in English, but the online, original versions are searchable PDFs and I found something in Welsh that I hadn't yet discovered in English:

LLYTHYR O DIRIOGAETH UTAH,
AT MR. ISAAC JONES, CAERFYUDDIN, ODDIWRTH E I FAB [David Jones].
Dinas Ogden, Rhagfyr 18, 1854.

. . . . Yr ydym yma mewn cyflawnder o bob peth ag sydd yn dda ar les ein cyrff a’n hysbrydoedd; dyma’r fan lle yr ydym yn cael clywed oin IJywydd Brigham, y Deuddeg, ac awdurdodau yr Eglwys,—y fan lie y cawn ein dyrchafu yn nheyrnas Dduw os y byddwn yn ftÿddlon. Yr ydym ni fel teulu yn mwynhau iecbyd da, ac mewn amgylchiadau cysurus, ac yn byw yn Ogden Fort, yr hwn svdd oddeutu 50 milltir yn ogleddol o Ddinas y Llyn Halen Fawr. Yr wyf yn gweithio wrth fy nghrefft, yr hon yw y gelfyddyd oreu yn y Dyffryn ; medraf ennill deg swllt yn y dydd. Yr wyf yn byw yn nghanol yr Americaniaid, ac nid oes yr un Çymro arall yn y ddinas hon.

Y mae Henry a’i dad, Capt. Thomas a Martha, William á Thomas Treharn a’i wraig, Abednego Jones, John Thomas o Cwmaman, David Williams, Gorslâs, a ’i wraig, ac amryw Gymry ereill yn byw yn Box Elder, 16 milltir ì’r gogledd o’r lle bwn. Y maent oll yn cofio atoch.

Here's the English translation courtesy of Ron Dennis's work (I'm not nearly that advanced and still hold my old friend in awe):

Joseph Smith III Visited the Johns Family in Jacks Valley, Nevada

OK. This is not a really bad April Fools joke. And it is all absolutely true.

Just as I don't support modern polygamy (FLDS) and still respect my ancestors for their historical, religious practices, I can respect my relatives who did not stay with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) but left and became members of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (RLDS). Yes, you may need a score card to keep track of this one.

Joseph Smith III

It is still of significant historical interest that Joseph Smith III, the son of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Jr., visited some of my ancestors and apparently stayed in their home in Jacks Valley, Nevada. The year was 1867 and this is from Joseph Smith III, the President and Prophet of the RLDS Church at the time:

"On the first of November we bade Sr. Lincoln and her family, Brn. William Anderson, Job Hall, Thomas J. Andrews, Peter Canavan, A. C. Bryan, and others farewell, and left the city of San Francisco, in company of Bro. Daniel S. Mills, who accompanied us as far as Sacramento, where we bade him good-bye, he bound for Salmon Falls on an errand of mercy; and we en route for Reno and Carson City. We reached the latter place early Thursday morning; and in the afternoon reported to Bro. A. B. Johns, president of the district, and spent a night and a day in Jack's Valley. On Saturday we returned to Carson, and on Sunday morning and evening we addressed those of the citizens of the city who chose to gather at the court-house to hear us; the attendance was good, on both occasions, and the Saints seemed to be pleased with the effort made.