Myron Barber Child

A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF MYRON BARBER CHILD

By his son George C. Child

Myron Barber Child

  Myron Barber Child, son of Alfred Bosworth Child and Polly Barber, was born in Hammond, St. Lawrence County, New York.  As a child he grew up among the sugar maples of his native state, where the St. Lawrence River separates the United States from Canada.

The custom of buying goods in Canada where they were cheaper and evading the custom officers was a common practice in his boyhood days and he told many interesting stories of the way in which this was done.

When visiting his aunt at dinner, a cake was passed covered with white frosting.  He refused to eat it and when asked the reason, he replied, “Aunt, I couldn’t eat it with so much salt on.”  This was the first time he had every seen white sugar.  The family received the Gospel in the year 1837 and shortly afterward moved to Kirtland, Ohio.  From there they moved to Missouri and after moving several times finally settled across the Mississippi River from Nauvoo, Illinois.

On one of these journeys while the family was traveling mostly in the company of non-Mormons, a stranger suddenly appeared in front of the team and stopped them; he then got in the wagon and blessed each of the children, and after giving many promises and words of encouragement he stepped to one side and suddenly disappeared, although they were in a broad open prairie.  The family always believed this to be one of the Three Nephites.

Emeline Elmer

As a young man he started out for himself, with only his ax and his gun.  He married Emeline Elmer, February 14, 1846.  From this union eleven children were born as follows:

William Warren, born February 26, 1848

Asa Lonson, born December 9, 1849

Alfred Bosworth, born July 9 1852

Myron Jr., born July 3, 1854

Mark Anthony, born December 22, 1855

Emeline Lucina, born November 21, 1857

Cynthia Louise, born December 14. 1860

John Squire, born July 4, 1863

Chauncey, born August 13, 1865

Polly, born November 13, 1857

Henry Increase, born September 2, 1870

He also married Serepta Jane Cole.  The following children were born to this union:

Serepta Jane Cole

Nathan, born October 24, 1865

Hannah, born July 12, 1868

Myron Barber, born March 7, 1872

George Clinton, born January 22, 1877

Emma Theran, born July 26, 1879

Drucilla, born  July 29, 1882

When he left his old home and started out for himself he took only his ax and his gun, in reply to his fathers offers of assistance he replied, “Father, you have a large family, and need all you have more than I do.”

When the Saints were expelled from Nauvoo, he slowly made his way westward.  In the spring of 1851 he was ready to leave Council Bluffs; but his father was not able to leave till one year later.  His family on starting the long journey across the Plains consisted of himself, his wife Emeline and two children, William and Asa.  He was well equipped for the long and tiresome journey, having a team of horses, as well as cows and oxen.  On leaving, his father said, “Myron, I will not see you when I get to the valley; you will get the ‘gold fever’ and will go on to California”.

Myron Barber Child Jr.

Being an expert marksman, he was appointed one of the three hunters to kill game for the company.  Being a great lover of animals he captured a buffalo calf.  This calf got to be an expert, nursing any of the cows he came in contact with. He got as fat as a seal and finally became so tender footed that he was carried in the wagon.  This jolting didn’t agree with his wild nature, and he died after traveling 200 miles.

One night one of the horses which had gotten into the habit of breaking into sacks of grain, loosened the cover of the wagon enough to reach in and pull out the baby Asa two years old.  The horse was just in the act of pawing him with his foot when the father who had been aroused by the noise climbed through the small hole in the cover at the rear and rescued the baby unharmed.  On reaching the valley, he settled on the Weber River at Binghams Fort.  In the fall of 1852, his father with the rest of the family joined him, although the hardships of the trying journey had undermined his health so that he died the same fall.  Alfred Boswoth Child was one of the first persons buried in the Ogden City Cemetary.

For many years Myron B. Child was a member of the Ogden Police Force, serving something like thirty years.  About the year 1856, he purchased a farm in Riverdale.  He was a large land holder in Riverdale owning two large farms.  His first wife, Emeline lived for many years on the farm and the older children took care of it while he was a City Officer living part of the time with his second wife, Sarepta Jane in Ogden.

Myron Barber Child Home in Riverdale

In the fall of 1875 he built a small brick house in Riverdale and from then on both families resided there.  In the year 1868 he hired Neils C. Flaygare to build, which was in those days, one of the fine old houses of Weber County.  The lumber for this house was native red pine.  Being constructed the year before the railroad came through, the hardware was very expensive.  The nails, six kegs, at fifty dollars per keg, cost three hundred dollars.  This house at the present writing, January 1933, is still in a good state of preservation.  It was for many years one of the conspicuous landmarks of this part of the County.

Brother Child was a very active and robust man both mentally and physically, until the last two years of his life when he was stricken with paralysis.  He partially recovered from this, and retained his faculties up to the time of his death, June 16, 1896.

THE ABOVE SKETCH WAS FURNISHED BY THE NAUVOO LAND & RECORDS

   A news article entitled "Community Portraits" was written by Myron and Emeline's daughter, Polly Ann Child, sheds a little more light into their lives.  This article can be read below.

Ogden City Cemetery