History of Edward Gledhill and Betty Hague
written by Ida Belle Gledhill

Submitted by Brett Gledhill

Once in a far off England, lived the family of Edward and Betty Hague Gledhill, in the city of Oldham. Edward was born 31 July 1811 at a village called Crompton across from the shoreline of Shaw where Betty Hague was born on 8 July 1814. We have no marriage date. Grandfather Edward was called Ned. He had blue eyes, brown hair, and was 5 ft. 9 in. tall. He was quick spoken and abrupt. Grandmother had snappy brown eyes and was on the plump side. She wore white and black caps, with a lace trimmed one for Sunday. She was a peacemaker and always soothed Grandpa Edward's ruffled the spirits. She smoked a long clay pipe until she joined the church. Father Thomas said how he would like to fix her one again, as she enjoyed it so much.

They were the parents of thirteen children; Sarah, Ellen, John Edward, Mary, William, Ann, Sophia, Betsy, Alice, Violet, Joseph, Amelia and Thomas. They worked in cotton factories and some in the mines and were quite comfortable in a rock house with a sanded floor and fireplace. They would take baths in a wooden tub in front of the fire.

The family was religiously inclined. Edward was a member of the Methodist Church, and took an active part in the camp meetings. Some of the children were Methodist also but some were Presbyterian with Mother Betty. However, the family got along very well together.

In 1849, Betty sat down to rest from work in her rocking chair. As she rested, she had a dream. She knew that her religion was in conflict at times with Edward's and "came to know such should not be", that both could not be right. Then she saw in her dream or vision, two young men with satchels come to her door to tell her which was the right church. For two or three months she waited for them to come. Then she forgot her dream. Later two young men did come to door with satchels, then her dream came back to her and she remembered. She knew the young men as the men in her dream. She invited them in and told them she had been waiting for them. They told they were missionaries from Utah away off in America. As soon as she had fed them, her first thought was to ask them whether she should joined the Methodist or should Edward joined the Presbyterian Church. To her great surprise, they told her that she should join neither one of them. Having been told in her dream that these men should tell which church she should join, and never thinking that they could join one church together and that would all that was necessary. The Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints preached to her the restored gospel and told her what was necessary for her to be saved. After they left, she was more at sea than before and very much worried. She had asked them to come again in the evening when Edward and the family were at home. The Elders came and began to regularly preach to them. On 3 September 1849, Mother Betty was baptized by William Schofield and confirmed on 8 September 1849, by Luke Niold. This from the history Thomas wrote of his family. They kept open house for the elders and they were made very welcome. On the 3rd or the 11th of September 1850, Father Edward joined the church and was baptized and confirmed by the same elders. Sarah was baptized in 1850, September 6. The other children were baptized at different times up to February 1865, when my father Thomas was baptized.

William and Ellen died probably in England. Alice was the victim of an epidemic in route to Utah and was buried at sea.

In 1862, the four oldest immigrated to Utah; Sarah, Ann, Mary, John Edward and his wife Elizabeth Haudley. These came by ox team from Florence, Nebraska. Sarah married Edward Broadband of Lancastershire, England, 12 November 1859, in the Endowment House and raised her family at Mt. Pleasant and Siguard. John Edward and Elizabeth Haudley were married 31 December 1860 in Prestwich Church, Lancastshire, England and lived at Mt. Pleasant and Vermillion, Utah. Mary married William Gilbert Barton, brother to Mary Catherine Barton. At her death she had at least one other husband John Dallin of Springville. She died 12 March 1917 as his wife. Ann married Amasa Scovil and died in childbirth in Emery County.

Six years later the rest of the family came; Father and Mother, Thomas, Amelia, Joseph, Betsy, Violet and Sophia. They came on the sailing vessel EMERALD ISLE and took 3 months and 12 days to make the trip. The Saints were in charge of Hans Jensen Hols. An epidemic broken out among 876 saints and 37 of them died, among them Alice. Many more died in New York. They arrived there 11 August 1868. They traveled west by railroad, I imagine, as far as possible and then by mule team and wagon. Captain John A. Holmes was in charge. There were 650 people in 62 wagons. Brigham Young sent them to Mt.Pleasant to settle. Here the family lived for some time.

Grandfather Edward was a stone-mason and worked on stones to make the Manti Temple. He was used to getting paid every Saturday night in England, and paying his own bills. But here, at this temple work, the bishop always deducted his tithing. This hurt his pride. He wanted to, and it should have been his choice to pay, but the Bishop was over zealous, I guess, and it took Grandfather Edward sometime before he could decide to remain a member.

Grandfather Edward was a musician, and played the violin well. His girls and boys all sang and the boys could play the violin. John and Joseph more than Thomas, but Thomas changed off John and Joseph when they played for dances. At one time in England, Grandfather Edward led a choir of 300 voices at the Manchester Conference.

Betsy met and became engaged to Peter Gottfredson. He went away to work for eight months. They were to be married on his return, however, in the meantime, Betsy died. So he courted the younger sister Amelia and married her. Also, he had Betsy sealed to him, 22 December 1872 in the Endowment House.

Sophia was married and sealed to grandfather John L. Ivie, as was Violet. This took place 14 September 1881 in the Manti Temple. Violet died of a heart attack at Fish Lake on 25 May 1900. Joseph married Rebecca Acord. She died at San Diego, California in 1929. Thomas married Lilly Belle Ivie, on the 8th of January 1882 in the Endowment House. Dad died on the 12th of December 1934.

Edward and Betty, with their family, went from Mt. Pleasant to Vermillion. Until they made their house, they lived in a dug-out on the bank of the Sevier River. They built an adobe house where the railroad and road that north of Vermillion. I played in it as it was tumbling down.

Grandfather Edward died with what is believed to be pneumonia, 6 July 1888. Grandmother Betty took cold at his funeral, and died ten days later, 15 July 1888. They both died in full fellowship in the church, believing they'd be united again.