Family:James Barnes and Charlotte Cartright (1)

THE STORY OF JAMES AND CHARLOTTE BARNES

And Their Coming From England To The USA

Composed by Nellie Holt

James Barnes was born February 10, 1815 at Eldersfield, Worcestershire, England. He was the son of Thomas and Sarah Reeves Barnes. Thomas was an agricultural worker in the area. They had a family of nine children.

Little is known of his early years around Eldersfield. He must have learned the stoneworkers trade then for in later life he worked for thirty years as a stone mason in the building of the temple in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Any history of his early life is directly connected with the beginnings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon). Joseph Smith, its founder, had his first vision April 6, 1830, on Hill Cumorah, Palmyra, New York. It must have grown fast, as this church's custom, and is now, was to send its young men on missions all over the world to spread the beliefs of this "restored" church; for converts by the hundreds began to come from many countries to the USA to see the place of the restored church's birth and then later to follow Brigham Young by wagon train to peace and safety in the Salt Lake Valley.

In July, 1847, when Brigham Young saw this broad valley after a long trip over the plains by wagon train he knew and said "This is the place". He and his hardy pioneer followers established their colony and were soon joined by many others.

James Barnes was a convert to the LDS faith as a young man. He was baptized March 5, 1840, by Wilford Woodruff at Stanley Hill, England. He was ordained an Elder in 1840 at this same place.

On August 16, 1840, he arrived at Coventry, Herefordshire, to begin his mission. He kept a daily diary, noting how many people he contacted, where he stayed and his reception by the people he met.

He continued his mission for several months and then decided to come to America to see the place where Joseph Smith had his visions. This is best told from a direct quote recorded in his diary as follows:

"And by the time I began to think to leave England as it began to be a little more than a year since I was baptized, and I had been preaching most of this time so I left this region on the purpose to visit my friends, as the time of the gathering was commenced. And many of my brethren had gathered up to the land of Zion and I began to want to follow after them, and also to see the prophet of the Lord. And because I did not like to do anything that was contrary to the will of the Lord, so I consulted with one of the Apostles, Wilford Woodruff, and the information that he gave me was to go as soon as I could. And so I began to make preparations to get home to Zion. And Brother Garotrin, he took my place to labor amongst the people. And then I made up my mind to take a wife before I left the land of my nationality and so I made it a subject to prayer before I should do anything that was not pleasing to the Lord. We both prayed mostly to know the mind of the Lord about this matter. And the Lord did not show us anything to the contrary. And so we made up our minds and got married according to the laws of the land this being the 3rd day of May, 1841; also it was the 25th year of my age. Or rather being 25 years and two months old.

"My wife also was 22 years and 9 months old, and her name was Charlotte Cartright. Her father, in his day, was a cardweignner (leather weather) but was gone dead and the mother was married the second time. (Her father in his day was a cardweigmer, or leather worker, but had died and her mother had married again.) Her husband was a carpenter, that is, her second husband.

"The place of her nationality (Charlotte's) was Herefordshire near the borders of Wales, and that same day that we got married we returned to her father-in-laws, and we dined and spent some two or three hours with them. And about four o'clock we made our way for America or in other words, to the Land of Promise, or the Land of Zion. And we bid them farewell and we went our way with my wife's father-in-law (stepfather)? who accompanied us about 16 miles on our way,and tarried with us the same night until morning when we bid him farewell, and went our way a few miles onward till we met with a coach. And we got our luggage on the mart and our selves likewise, and travelling about 70 or 80 miles we found ourselves at Bristol at Elder Kingtons where we was received into his house and gave us intelligence where we could sleep. And we got to our bed and when we got a little refreshment, and afterwards lay down to sleep. For we was wearied with our journey this being on the 4th day of May, which was the fifth month of the 1841 year.

"The next morning we arose, somewhat refreshed. And after providing something for our journey, we at the close of that day, went with our luggage on board the ship, Harmony, while the ship was standing in the prince's dock. We tarried in this place for near seven days before we launched out into the ocean, and after a few days, we began to be very sick. This was expected because them that go on the sea in ships frequently get sick by the racking of the ship. And this was the case with us, so that we could not eat nor drink anything for some days. The storm was tremendous and the sea was very rough. And after being tossed about for some time we found ourselves being driven near to a harbor called Milford-Haven, Pembrookshire, Wales. Here we tarried near two days and nights, when we made our way again, and after being tossed about for 5 or 6 weeks we found ourselves near the port where we did intend to land, this being the 24th of June, 1841, this the voyage on the Atlantic at seven weeks passage.

"We got our luggage on board a steamer called Canada, which landed us a Montreal after 3 or 4 days voyage. And then we put our luggage on board and went a voyage about 9 miles. And then we got on railway carriage, and went 14 miles. We arrived at St. Johns and tarried at a certain house until the next day. We got on board the steamer Burlington and took passage near 200 miles to Whitehall. And in the morning at an early hour moved our luggage and put it on board a channel boat between 4 and 5 hundred mile voyage, and then we arrived at Buffalo." This ends the missionary journal of James Barnes.

Entry from Framis Hill Conference, Stanley Hill, Herefordshire, May 26, 1841. "The ship Harmony sailed from Bristol to Quebec May 10 1841, with Elder Kingston and Co. -- 50 in all. Elder William Pitt and Brother Barnes with their new helpmeets also went."

After spending some time in New York state they made their way to Kirtland, Ohio. They lived in this area until 1843, when they moved to Nauvoo, Illinois. Several children were born to them, but some died with diseases of infancy, like croup, etc.

From Nauvoo they moved to Denmark, Lee County, Iowa, in 1848. Many of the converts to the LDS Church were making their way by wagon train to the newly founded city of Salt Lake, enduring great hardships along the way.

James and Charlotte joined one of these groups, and had their share of trouble along the way. Their children became ill, and they buried two as they traveled over the plains.

They arrived in Salt Lake City in 1851. It was a frontier town, as all of them were in those early days of pioneering. Everyone was busy establishing homes, gardens, jobs and work of the LDS Church. We do not know just what Grandfather Barnes did at first. We have been told by some members of the family that he worked for thirty years as a stone mason helping to build the Salt Lake Temple; and that his name is engraved, with the names of other workers, on a plaque that hangs on a wall in this temple.

They had two children living. When they reached Salt Lake, William and Charlotte Maria, and Charlotte was expecting again. She died in childbirth, Feb. 6, 1852, at the age of 34. Grandfather Barnes was 37. The baby was named Charles Wesley.

One can realize what a difficult time this would be for a man to be left alone during this time in history with three small children.

Composed by Nellie Holt Wife of Vern Holt Vern Holt being the son of Elizabeth Catherine Barnes & William Holt; Elizabeth Catherine Barnes being the daughter of James Barnes &Mary Thompson West

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