Person:Rose Francis (3)

Rose Hannah Francis Compiled by Jennie Harding

Rose Hannah Francis was born 2 December 1881 in Lake Shore, Utah.　 She was the daughter of Samuel and Emma (Anderson) Francis.

(Part of the history was given to me by Uncle Jack Francis when he came to Canada to attend Aunt Eva’s funeral on October 26, 1959.　 Uncle Ted also gave me part of this history.)　 Brothers and sisters are:　 Josephine, Emma, Jack, Edwin and Etta.

Samuel Francis first built a one room log cabin in Lake Shore then later added an adobe room on to the log cabin and later a lumber room.

Lake Shore is a little farming community, northwest of Spanish Fork, on the shores of Utah Lake.

Once when Rose was only four years old, their family went with other relatives on a fishing trip and some of the young boys went around a bend and went swimming.　 They went out in to the Lake until suddenly there was a sharp drop.　 Tommy Grant was drowned, but the other boys got out and came back for help.　 Rose’s Father was diving for Tommy and every time he would dive, Rose would scream and cry for her father until he would come up again.

Josephine, Rose and Emma were all near the same age, and they were very close sisters.　 They all had lots of chores to do.　 They did most of the chores and milked cows together.　 My Mother told me that she always had to milk five cows every morning before she went to school.　 Then she would have to wear gum boots to school because there was always so much mud and the boys at the school would point their fingers at her and say, “Boots, boots, boots.”　 This used to make her feel very bad.

She was a very peace-loving girl, and would take no part in quarrelling or teasing.　 She was very definite about wanting to keep peace at all times.　 Her ideals were very high and she lived them with a definite purpose.　 She had a striking personality and people were attracted to her by her inward goodness.　 She was very shy in company but loved to talk and visit.　 As she grew up she didn’t allow too many boys to be friendly, she blushed so easily.

Rose and her sisters sometimes had to help in the fields also they had to learn to stack the bundles of grain in a fashion so the moisture could not work into the stack and Rose became very expert in stacking the way thatched roof’s are made.

Uncle Jack said that he and Rose were very close.　 Once when he was only 15 years old, his Mother did some match making and she made a date for him to take a girl to the Ringling Brothers Circus in Provo.　 He had his first pair of long pants and Rose went with him, she had a beautiful rose-colored dress on.　 The horse they had was a pacer.

Along the road from Spanish Fork to Springville, a drunken fellow tried to pass them with his buggy.　 Jack whipped up his horse and so they traveled along the road together.　 They came to a culvert.　 It was not wide enough for both vehicles to pass together and so Uncle Jack’s buggy was crowded over the other side.　 He fell out and the lines dropped, the horse became frightened and started running.　 The wheel ran over Uncle Jack’s shoulder and his collarbone was broken.　 He didn’t think he was hurt　　 because it was so numb.　 Rose stood up and spoke softly to the horse and as she spoke she was climbing out on the buggy shalves.　 She managed to get one line, and speaking in soft low tones, she was able to get the horse stopped.

Uncle Jack decided to go on to the circus but later on his shoulder gave him a great deal of pain.　 He said that rose had a great healing power.　 She would take pain away by rubbing and laying her hands over the afflicted area.

When Rose and her sister Josephine finished high school they went to the B.Y.A. at Provo. Their Father used to take them over every week in the buggy.　 (I think they probably took food for the week and had a place to stay.)　 Aunt Emma went to the B.Y.A. also.　 They probably took several years at the B.Y.A.　 Then Rose taught school for two years in Snowflake, Idaho.　 By this time her folks had moved to Canada.

In 1905 or 06, Rose went to Canada to see her folks.　 She took a man with her, his name was Robinson, he was her sweetheart and she planned to marry him but something happened to her plans when she met Frank Milton Johnson.　 Mr. Robinson went back home.

Josephine was put in as M.I.A. President and Rose as secretary.

Perhaps the years of 1906 and 1907 were very interesting years for Rose.　 She was working in the mutual with her sister, Josephine.　 They both had boy friends, Josephine was going with John Henry Russell and Rose was going with Frank M. Johnson.　 They were also playing basketball with a team of girls their age.　 They had some neat looking uniforms, with high collars that looked like they had a couple of rows of braid on them, and ties of light material, with full bloomer-like pants.

Rose and Frank played in one of Aaron Johnson’s plays, (I have heard it was the first play that was ever put on in Taber, and it was called, “Katheleen Mauvorneen”, Frank was the hero and rose the heroine, so this is where they fell in love.

Rose was a great believer in prayer and she had a very strong faith, her love for the Gospel of Jesus Christ seemed to radiate from her very being.

One thing I learned about Rose.　 She and her sister Josephine had to make an agreement to share the living room so one night Josephine and her beau would have the living room and Rose and her beau would have the kitchen and visa-versa for another night.

There is one or two points I would like to correct in my Fathers history, first I would like to say that when they returned from Salt Lake City, with out having been married, that Grandpa told them to go and be married by the bishop, if they would promise to go to the temple in the fall and be sealed.　 Grandpa was always pretty definite about this, he wanted temple marriage for everyone of his children.

When my father went on a mission he had saved up quite a bit of money from his earnings, and sold his land so he was able to keep himself pretty well while on his mission.

History of Rose Hannah Francis

This letter is from Rose Hanna to her sister Emma Peterson shortly before her death.

Mapleton, UT April 26, 1920

Mrs. Emma Peterson, Barnwell, Alberta

Dearest Sister Emma, Henry and family.  Your dear welcome letter with beautiful lace came about a week ago and I was sure glad to hear from you.  I thank you a thousand times for that beautiful lace and I am going to send something to you for your new baby later on.  I sure appreciate that and I think it is the prettiest lace I ever seen.  I wish I could crochet as good as you.  Isn’t this weather cold.  We are still having it cold here.  the  ????  is just getting green.   The trees are not out yet and it don’t look like we will ever have spring weather.  Frank just got his grain in here the other day.  He is going to billies to try and get his crops in up there this week - It freezes at night here yet we put some of our garden two weeks ago.  Some of it is up  now    We have our early potatoes and garden in now.  Oh you  must be having it bad up there like we are here.  I do feel sorry for the poor men for it is so cold and disagreeable for them to work out.  We never scarcely have any wood here at all where we live and this spring it has blown nearly all the time.  Everybody is afraid the fruit is all frozen.  They don’t think there will be much fruit that there will be a fruit famine on.  Potatoes are so awfully bright they are $8.00 per hundred - I guess we will have to go without spuds until the new ones come one as they are so ?hughe? and scarce.   We have enough to plant and that’s all.  I do hope you can raise a good crop of potatoes this year, also of grain - I hope you are having better weather than we are as it is so hard on farmers to work when it is raining and snowing all time.  Hay here is $40.00 per ton and they are glad to get it at that.  We have had our cattle up to the ranch  since 23rd of March  I guess it is all they can do to gather a living as the feed don’t grow very fast.  I am home cleaning.  I got it all done but kitchen and will do it tomorrow. My, it is a job when a person is not well and is so miserable.  I can scarcely get around at times it seems.  But I just have to.  I’ll be glad when my next 2 weeks are over, if I don’t get fooled again.  I went 10 days longer last time.  I hope I don’t this time.  You poor thing, I do hope you are ok by now and can get out.  It is long enough to stay in before, without having to be housed up after too. I hope your leg is better and you feel stronger.  I sure feel all in the last few days.  I am so much worse since last Saturday.  I feel I can scarcely move.  I was sure thankful that Josephine is over hers as quick as she was.  I guess was not so sorry it came sooner so she won’t have to wait -  I was so glad she was home to Ma.s place.  How is Ma’s leg,  poor thing, she is always hurting her  Oh I am so sleepy to night .   I don’t sleep a bit good at nights and when night comes I am just worn out.  I do hope your dear baby keeps well.  Glad she’s so sweet and pretty.  I do not know any pretty girl names or I would send you some.  Leona will have to hunt some up - Frank is going to Billies Mt. tomorrow and try and get his crop in there.  He has go to put it all in to spring wheat.  Well I must close as it is so late.  I am so glad you and Josephine are okay  Hope you both keep well.  I must close .  With ???? of love and may the Lord bless you all.  Love, Rose

Oh, yes, Frank is feeling better this spring I am so thankful I could dance if I could.Love to all I do hope dear Henry keeps well too.