Jerusha Irene Spencer Hancock

Jerusha Irene Spencer was born 1 Mar. 1865 to George Spencer and Sara Marinda Thompson in Moroni, Sanpete County, Utah. She was their fourth child. Within a few days after her birth, George moved with his three wives and children to Washington, Washington County, Utah. For some time they were in Washington, St George and Pine Valley some twenty five miles north of St George where he had a ranch and some cattle. It was in Pine Valley a branch of a St. George Ward that Jerusha was blessed, at the age of two years. We don't know just where or exactly when, but likely in Washington when Jerusha was about five that Harriet, Samuel and Jerusha caught measles followed by scarlet fever. Their ears were affected. It is said that someone told their mother to get the oil of angle worms and put it in their ears. They say she did and all three lost their hearing (true or false). Anyway they went thru the rest of their lives deaf. Their mother taught them to read lips. About this time the father went on a short mission for the church. Upon his return he gave each of the children except Jerusha a book. That hurt her feelings and she went around the back of the house and cried. After a bit George found her and upon learning why she was crying he gave her a book. That is just one of the few things she remembered about her father.

George Spencer was called by Brigham Young to go into the Mountains east of Glendale in Wayne County to set up to make cheese. He and another man were on their way up into the hills and it began to rain. George had a good coat, the other man who had none began to chill. George loaned him his coat. George caught pneumonia and died. He had been dead nearly a week before the family in Washington and St. George knew what had happened. He died 12 April 1872 age 41. Jerusha was at the time of his death seven years old.

In May 1874, Jerusha's mother married William Morely Black of Glendale, Wayne County, Utah. By 1873 Jerusha had been baptized, the record fails to say where. Jerusha was remembered by Emma Segmiller as the good looking girl who waited on the table in Orderville, but did not talk. Jerusha was first attracted to Jode because she liked to dance and could either hear or feel the beat of the bass violin he played. After they became acquainted she preferred him over other suitors. They were married 31 May 1883 in the St. George Temple, in spite of some opposition from her mother. Their lives were one until Jode's death April 13, 1929. She then spent the rest of her life with her children, but I believe mostly with Abbie until her death 27 Feb. 1942 in Mancos, Montezuma County, Colorado. She was buried by the side of her husband in Blanding, San Juan County, Utah.

Memories of her daughter, Sarah Clarissa:

My mother knew how to make good butter. One time they took butter to Brice to sell and the merchant said, "No, I've got butter to throw away." Father took a pound in, molded in the butter mold with the flower on it and wrapped it in a clean cloth, and asked him to taste it. He tasted it and said, "Bring in all you've got like that." They never did have trouble selling mother's, or should I say father's butter. He taught her how to make good butter.

Father owned a lot in Huntington right beside the one where grandma M'riindy lived and he had a nice little blacksmith shop. Uncle Miller took us and showed us right where it stood and where the two houses were, one of them still standing and added onto. Grandpa Black had to take Aunt Louisa and hide so he took her to Mexico and stayed two years, then he wrote and told grandma and Aunt Maria to come. Mother wouldn't leave her grandma, or let her leave her, so father sold his home and shop for a new wagon and a good team and a good cow. There was quite a caravan. Aunt Maria had Dave and Morley who were big boys nd although Miller was married he took his team and went along to haul the feed and grain for the animals. He came right back. Grandma had an outfit and Aunt Mary was supposed to care for it with Uncle Sammy's help. Amos Cox joined them at Orderville. That was some trip, they stopped over in Glendale for a few days and at Orderville, mother's baby was born at Black Falls, Arizona.

Aunt Amy isn't sure whether they got into Diaz before or after Christmas but it was cold on those flats, the wind howls all the time. James LeRoy was born 17 Nov. 1890. He was supposed to be a seven months baby. If he was it must have really been a problem. Long before they ever got to Diaz mother wanted to turn around and come back. Father had nothing to come back to so he just went on. When they got to Diaz there was some town there. A few of the people had pretty good houses, some were living in huts with dirt roofs. Their horses ate loco weed before they crossed the border and some of them never were any good again. They stopped where grandfather Black had a home for Aunt Louisa and they still lived in their wagons until they could get some kind of shelter up. The towns people were very good to them, some of those friends were friends as long as any of them lived.

Grandma and father got lots side by side and the man of the town showed them how to make Mexican Adobe. It didn't take long for Uncle Sammy and father to get one large room up, I say large, maybe 16x16. Grandma took that house and they all cooked and ate there. Mother and Father still slept in the wagon, while the two men put up another one-roomed house. They had no lumber, no timber there, so they had to use long cottonwood poles to make rafters then cover it with sod or dirt. It made a cool roof in the summer and warm in the winter if the rain didn't come too hard, then it leaked or caved in.

Grandma had a little girl, Lizzie, who had dropsey. For months she was unable to lie, and then mother's little girl, father's pride and joy, took diptheria and was dead before they hardly realized she was sick. Lizzie died very soon and mother just couldn't take any more. She wanted to go home but father wanted to go on to Cave Valley in the tops of the Serria Madres. Grandfather had taken Aunt Maria to Jackson's mill but they soon moved to the mountains so grandma said if father and mother went and liked it she would come too.

We all remember that first night out. I have heard it so many times it is like I had gone through it myself. The wind came up, it was early spring, there was no green vegetation and in the afternoon came up a sand storm. Father drove the horses close to the windward side in a gulch and tied them and the cow to the wagon and did the best he could for them. He and mother tied the wagon cover as tight as they could and waited it out. By morning the wagon was half buried in the sand, he had to almost dig the animals out but they were all alive.

The first summer in Cave Valley it froze very late but they did raise a fine crop of potatoes. Father took a load to Juarez and sold them for other things they would need for the winter. The home they owned in Cave Valley was made of logs. Lydia May died on the 5th of Dec. 1892, and Roy died the 29th of the same month. Aunt Mary says father went to go bring Grandma and Sammy and Aunt Amy. When they got back mother met them at the door and held out her arms, "See, my children are gone, my children are gone." Cave Valley was purchased by one of the Snows, and Moses Thatcher married his daughter so she inherited this great tract of land in Mexico. Moses Thatcher was closely allied with the first settlers and he put many cattle on his holdings in the mountains. I think his brand was the T5. Anyhow the T5 cattle were all over the mountains as long as we lived there and we were scared to death of them. Moses Thatcher promised these people if they would go to Cave Valley and settle and watch out for his cattle they could have that lovely valley. They built good homes and then he got at outs with the Church and was later excommunicated. He just told the folks to get off his land. Abbie was born there and I'm sure she was about a year old when we moved to Pacheco. We didn't get one cent for our holdings and again we were homeless and moving in a wagon. I remember how Abbie's high chair was tied on top of the load and I was so worried for fear it would fall off.

Pacheco had been settled for some time. McConkie, Farnsworth, Jarvis, Kartchners, Palmers and maybe Lunts were there. Jensens were the only Danish family in Cave Valley except the Thompson family and they lived at Pratt's Ranch and were all killed by the Indians except the little girl and the old man. All of us moved into Pacheco.

As fast as he could earn the lumber and material father built mother the nicest home she was ever to won. It seemed like a dream house to me. At first he had two nice big rooms with a fireplace in each, lumber on the outsied, adobe inside and plastered. Then he added a T room with two porches at the back. We had about the nicest house in town and mother was so proud but she never did like Pqacheco. Who could like that rocky hillside? My great love was Cave Valley and still is. So was mother's. In this new home was born Francis Levi. We called him Franty. He was so sweet. I still choke up when I remember the very early morning they came and woke me and told me he had died of whooping cough. he was born the 25th of April 1897 and died in the same house, 14 Sept, 1898. They lost five children in all to early deaths.

Thoughts at her passing:

Jerusha Irene Spencer was born in Utah on March 1, 1865. While a very small child she and a brother and sister were stricken with measles and scarlet fever, which left the three of them deaf. Even though afflicted thus, Jerusha was married at eighteen to J.W. Hancock in the St. George Temple. Ten children were born to this union, five of them dying in infancy or early childhood. One of these children was born in a covered wagon.

Her life was not an easy one but never did she find time for complaint. She spent many years in Mexico with her husband and family but in due time returned to Utah and came to Blanding and Monticello. Her husband preceded her in death about 14 years. Most of the time since then she has lived in Colorado.

It was in Mancos at the home of her daughter Abbie, that she passed away on February 26, 1942. She leaves behind her a record of real pioneer life. Many articles of clothing she has knitted from yarn she herself has spun. Many days and nights she lived in a covered wagon; many the hardships overcome by "Aunt Jerusha" and her husband.