 1863 - 1939 (75 years)
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| Name |
Ella Rebecca Merrill |
| Born |
10 Dec 1863 |
Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States  |
| Christened |
7 Jan 1864 |
Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States |
| Gender |
Female |
| Died |
17 Mar 1939 |
Saint Anthony, Fremont, Idaho, United States |
| Buried |
20 Mar 1939 |
| Person ID |
I2792 |
Main Tree |
| Last Modified |
28 Dec 2009 |
| Family |
Marion Joseph Kerr, b. 6 Nov 1861, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 17 May 1942, Rexburg, Madison, Idaho, United States (Age 80 years) |
| Married |
2 May 1880 |
Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States |
| Notes |
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| Children |
| | 1. Mary Ellen Kerr, b. 25 Nov 1881, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 3 Apr 1968, Pocatello, Bannock, Idaho, United States (Age 86 years) |
| | 2. Joseph Marion Kerr, b. 12 Oct 1883, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 14 Oct 1902, Ora, Fremont, Idaho, United States (Age 19 years) |
| | 3. Ivan Earl Kerr, b. 21 Jun 1885, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 16 Jan 1942, Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States (Age 56 years) |
| | 4. Robert Marriner Kerr, b. 18 Mar 1887, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 29 Aug 1964, Rexburg, Madison, Idaho, United States (Age 77 years) |
| | 5. Alta Anette Kerr, b. 6 Dec 1887, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 3 May 1983 (Age 95 years) |
| | 6. Vera Alice Kerr, b. 8 Oct 1891, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 8 Jun 1987, Oregon, United States (Age 95 years) |
| | 7. Nancy Cyrene Kerr, b. 20 Apr 1893, Richmond, Cache, Utah, United States , d. 20 May 1977 (Age 84 years) |
| | 8. Ella May Kerr, b. 30 Sep 1897, Ora, Fremont, Idaho, United States , d. 8 Apr 1922 (Age 24 years) |
| | 9. Elda Rebecca Kerr, b. 6 May 1902, Ora, Fremont, Idaho, United States , d. 1 Nov 1970 (Age 68 years) |
| | 10. Ida Wynona Kerr, b. 10 May 1905, Ora, Fremont, Idaho, United States , d. 28 Jun 1988, Rexburg, Madison, Idaho, United States (Age 83 years) |
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| Family ID |
F933 |
Group Sheet |
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| Notes |
- Ploneering in Idaho Heart Throbs of the West, Kate B. Carter, Vol.5, p.174One can only marvel at the courage displayed by the women who stood so nobly by their husbands in all the hardships of pioneering a new country. Ella Merrill Kerr was one of these brave souls! They had left the old home i n Richmond, Utah, to make a new one in the Snake River Valley near the present site of St. Anthony. It became necessary to return to Richmond for the apple and honey crops which were retained in the sale of the home. There was so much work to be done on the ranch to get ready for the long, cold winter that Ella decided she must make this arduous trip. Undaunted by the pessimism of neighbors, she set out, with her young baby, through sparsely-settled territory , on a journey of more than four hundred miles, with only a twelve-year-old son to care for the team. With rivers to ford, sandy deserts to cross, camping by the roadside, this lone woman and baby and twelve-year-old boy finally reached the old home. After securing their load, t he return journey was begun. The autumn storms came early and the discomfort of these travele rs can only be imagined. The journey took three weeks, the snow had fallen to a depth of mor e than two feet, so it was with the greatest difficulty that they finally reached home. Heart Throbs of the West, Kate B. Carter, Vol.5, p.175The next autumn when the first precious crop was harvested, it was necessary to take the wheat to the grist mill to have it groun d into flour. The husband was ill, and this pioneer mother, equal to any task, set out, with her young son, to take the wheat to the mill, twenty-two miles distant, over bad roads with dangerous rivers to ford. Many others were on the same mission, so it was sundown before they started home. The river had risen during the day and as they plunged into the swirling stream, the water rose higher and higher, threatening the overturn of the wagon. Then the clip came off one of the singletrees. Imagine the feelings of these two! Their calls for help could not be heard above the rushing water. Joseph said he could get out and fasten the tug somehow, but mother knew he would be swept out into the swift current. Finally she told him to get out onto the tongue, reach over the horse and get the loose tug. This he did, then held the horses and spoke encouragingly to them while the mother took a halter rope, slipped one end through the eye on the end of the tug, then passed it over the singletree and around the king bolt. This she did several times, until she felt it would hold, then tied it firmly. It was a makeshift but it held. They had been in the river a long time and were very cold and wet , but they were so thankful to reach the shore they forgot their discomfort. Heart Throbs of the West, Kate B. Carter, Vol.5, p.175
Hours later they reached home to find t he husband, ill as he was, just ready to set out on horseback to learn what had befallen them .Mary E. Gee.
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| Sources |
- [S29] Family Records: Young, Sara -- CD, Sara Young, (Receive on CD January 2001).
- [S30] Family Records: Young, Sara., Young, Sara.
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