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Joseph William Summerhays, my 1st cousin 5 times removed, was born on 15th January 1849 at 5 Lacks Cottages, which was situated in a side street off the Vauxhall Bridge Road in Pimlico, and baptised at St. Mary, Tothill Fields, Westminster, London on 25th February of that year, the son of Caleb Summerhays, a Stone Sawyer of Pimlico, London and his wife Margaret (nee Moore).
Joseph's parents were baptised into the Church of England but in 1850 they converted to Mormonism (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints), founded in the USA by Joseph Smith, in its early days in England. Son Joseph summed up their conversion simply but powerfully, "They heard it, believed it, and obeyed it." Caleb and Margaret were baptised in March 1850 in the Chelsea branch of the London Conference, moving shortly to the Vauxhall branch and later to the Westminster branch. Although just a stone's throw from Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament, the neighbourhood in which the Summerhays family lived was tough. Joseph recalls in his Journal, "The Westminster branch where we lived was a hard environment to labor in. Animosity and hatred against our people were in the atmosphere, and I remember well some of the mobbings our folks were sometimes subject to when they would try and hold street meetings. It took valiant men and women to face this sort of thing, but such men and women were found in the Westminster Branch."
Joseph's schooling was in his own words "limited" up until the age of 10 or 11 when he started work, although he did gain some knowledge useful in later life and it was no doubt supplemented by trips with his father to see the sights of London including the British Museum, Hampton Court, St. Pauls and Westminster Abbey.
The family were poor and stuggled to keep afloat."While father pursued his church activities he worked at stone sawing and gained a living for the family. At this time work was dull, however, but mother could make the tops to ladies' shoes and cane chairs which helped out considerably. We children were too small to earn anything. I mean myself, Mary and Hester. Jane, poor girl, could not work and Eliza only worked part of the time. During this period we saw hard and bitter times. I have seen mother, many a time buy a half a loaf of bread and a cents worth of treacle (black molasses) share it up amongst us and we had to be satisfied. I have seen father so weak for the want of food that he would lean against the house for support. The bread riots in London were a fright. However, the Lord brought us through."
By 1866, when he was 17, Joseph and other members of the family had saved enough money for one person to make a trip to Utah. It was decided that he should go to Utah and prepare the way for the rest of the family to follow. On May 5 1866 as part of an immigration company of 389 Saints he left on what proved to be a five week voyage to New York. From there they went by boat to New Haven Connecticut, where they were loaded on boxcars to Chicago. They then traveled on passenger coaches to Quincy, Illinois, where they took a river steamer to Wyoming, Nebraska. There he hired out to drive three yoke of oxen hitched to a wagon to cross the plains. They left on August 9, and arrived in Salt Lake October 11. During the trip they had trouble with the Indians and severe snow storms and thirty members of the company died. When he got to Utah the only trade he knew was stone masonry. He worked at that when he could and filled in with other odd jobs including construction work on the Union Pacific Railroad.
He was ordained an Elder in the Church on June 27, 1870, and on the same day married Mary Melissa Parker. Among the 3% in the Church called to live polygamy at the time, he further married Mary Catherine Bishop on June 19, 1882, Sarah Berrett on June 5, 1884, and Hilda Johnson on November 16, 1888. By these four wives he had 39 children, establishing a Summerhays dynasty which flourishes to this day in the USA. By 1873, Joseph was responsible for bringing his parents and sisters, Mary and Hester, to Utah, thus fulfilling his promise to his father to "gather to Zion".
Joseph spent the rest of his remarkable life active in business, Church life and in service to his community. He died on 28th June 1929 in Salt Lake City, Utah and was buried in SLC cemetery. The SLC newspaper The Deseret News paid this tribute to him "In the death of Joseph William Summerhays the News loses a long-time and highly esteemed associate and friend. For many years he served faithfully and well on our Board of Directors. In business affairs he was energetic and capable, independent withal and courageous in pursuing the policy which appeared to deserve the approval of his integrity, promptness, and fair dealing. Those who came in contact with him always had the highest respect for him. He earned his place as one of our leading citizens. His activity and influence have been felt for good in many directions and the circles in which he has been a leading figure will surely miss him."
With acknowledgement to the Journal of Joseph William Summerhays (1849-1929)
