Person:Robert Walters (1)

BEP England Timeline (1850), Emmigrate to Utah in 1863, Utah Timeline (1860,1870,1880,1890), Idaho Timeline (1900,1910,1920),

Robert Walters was born 12 Feb. 1855 at Preston, Lancashire, England, the son of Henry Booth Walters, who was born 2 Aug. 1827 at London, London, England, and Sarah Smalley, who was born 2 Mar. 1822 at Preston, Lancashire, England.

In 1863 Roberts parents joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints, and decided to migrate to Utah, and the father gained passage to America on a sailing vessel. After all the preparations had been made to leave, the father was called to stay in England to fill a mission for the church. It was decided that the rest of the family would sail without him, and so the mother, accompanied by her sister, Jane Smalley, took her children, Henry 11, Samuel 10, Robert 8, Ellen 5, and Ephraim almost 4, and sail from Liverpool 23 May 1863 on the ship ‘Antarctic’.

Tragedy overtook them at sea. The mother gave birth to a baby girl on 14 June 1863, and died shortly afterward. When the baby was eight days old she too died. They were both buried at sea. The lowering of his mother’s body into the water was one of Robert’s most vivid memories. After their mother’s death, their aunt Jane cared for the children.

The ship reached New York on 10 July 1863. They traveled by railroad to Omaha, where they joined a wagon train of the Church members going to the Salt Lake valley. On the way the pioneers killed a buffalo and took some of meat with them. Many of the people let the wagon train go ahead of them while they cut the meat and then caught up with it later. That day the aunt missed Robert and he was not to be found anywhere, she went back to where the buffalo had been killed, there she found him, all alone, struggling to cut off a piece of meat with his dull little pocket knife. It was late at night before they caught up with the wagon train again.

The hardships to endure proved too much for Jane Smalley. She became ill and died while crossing the plains.

Kind people on the wagon train then looked after the children. But they had to walk most of the way and in a short time their shoes were worn completely out. They had to go barefoot and soon their feet were sore and bleeding.

They arrived in Salt Lake Valley in October. Until homes could be found for them, the children were left in the tithing yard office. Ephraim died shortly after they reached there.

One day James Turner, a farmer from West Jordan, had his attention called to the homeless children. Having no children of his own, he bundled them into his wagon and took them all home with him. He and his wife kept the girl and one boy and they found homes for the others.

Some years later the children’s father, who had remarried before he left England, came to Utah and tried to gather his children, but only one boy, Samuel, went with his father. The others stayed with the kind people who had given them homes.

Robert Walters and Emily Ann Bateman were married 20 December 1875 in the endowment house at Salt Lake by President Wilford Woodruff. For a few years they lived in East Jordan. Then they moved to West Jordan, where Robert bought a farm and also a small grocery store.

In 1904, they decided to move to a farm in Coltman, Idaho. They lived in Coltman until 1914. In March of that year, Robert purchased an eighty acre farm in Thomas,

Bingham County, Idaho where he spent the remainder of his life. This farm is now owned by Everett and Irvin Goodwin.

In Thomas, Robert was water master of the Duncum Ditch for many years.

He was always an active church member. On 13 November 1878 he was made second counselor to D. R. Bateman in the West Jordan YMMIA and served until 1881. On 1st November 1881 he was chosen as 1st counselor to Hyrum Goff in the YMMIA. On 13 July 1884 he was set apart to preside over the 12th quorum of the Elders of the Salt Lake Stake. He was ordained a High Priest 1 June 1891 by Joseph E. Taylor and made 2nd counselor to Bishop John A. Egbert of the West Jordan Ward. He ordained President James Duckworth and Elder.

During the night of 29 September 1922 he died suddenly of a heart attack at his home.