The Short Life of Phillippa Commin

Phillippa Commin was christened on 16 May 1824 at Crowan, Cornwall, England. Her parents were Joseph Commin and his wife, Honour Mathews. Phillippa was the third child in a family of seven children. Since they were all christened at Crowan, we can assume that she grew up there. The parish has many remains of prehistoric times including barrows and stone crosses.The 15th century parish church of St Crewenna is entirely of granite, and was restored in 1872.


In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Crowan like this:

"CROWAN, a village, a parish, and a sub-district in Helston district, Cornwall. The village stands 3 miles S of Camborne r. station, and 5 NNW of Helston; and has a post office under Camborne, Cornwall, and a fair on 17 May. The parish comprises 7, 239 acres. Real property, £8, 836. Pop., 4, 131. Houses, 824. The property is divided among a few. The manor has belonged, since the time of Richard II., to the family of St. Aubyn. Granite, slate, and copper ore occur. Crowan Beacon is 850 feet high, and commands a fine view. A quondam logan-stone, thrown off its balance by some of Cromwell's soldiers, lies ½ a mile south of the village. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Exeter. Value, £451.* Patron, the Rev. H. M. St. Aubyn. The church has a tower; contains monuments of the St. Aubyns; and was recently restored. There are chapels for Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists. The sub-district is conterminate with the parish."(Taken from A Vision of Britain through Time)

There is a nice site with interesting information, including Cornish place names. It also has some photos. Click here for the link.

On 16 May 1824, Phillippa married John Baggs at Aberdare, Glamorgan, Wales. Their first two children, Emily and Elizabeth, were born there. In about 1856, John and Phillipa moved to America. Their son and our ancestor, Andrew, was born in Missouri in 1857. They had two other sons after Andrew, giving them five children. Shortly after their last child died, Phillipa died on 30 May 1861.

Mary Rivers White

A True Pioneer

Mary Rivers was born 4 May 1828 in Charlcott, Wiltshire, England. Her father, Abraham Rivers was born 1804 at Brimhill, England. He, being a sport, was disinherited by his parents. He married Hannah Dowswell in England. To this union were born three boys and six girls: Mary, Thomas, James, Emma, Jane, Ann, Martha, James, and Martha.

Mary Rivers married George White in 1845 at Brimhill England. To them were born three boys and one girl: Thomas Henry, Amelia, George Ofred Joseph, and Earnest Authenia. George died in 1859 leaving Mary with four young children. Mary was an accomplished seamstress. With help of her son Thomas (now 13 years old) she was able to make a living for herself and family. Having heard and accepted the Gospel (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) she opened her home to the Elders as a meeting place and as a place where they might stay.

Answering the call to gather with the Saints, she and her children sailed for America, on an old sailing vessel that had been white washed and tarred with coal tar. This vessel, the Antartica, proved not to be too sea-worthy. Sailors were kept busy many hours a day pumping water from this leaky ship. During the journey seven emigrants were buried at sea. The journey lasted seven weeks. The water was bad and they had to drink it without boiling it. Their rations included hard tack, which was eight or ten inches thick and thick fat bacon. Mary had toasted some bread very dry and brought it with her. This tasted very good and helped though the journey. They arrived in New York Harbor, 4 July 1863. It being a holiday they were not allowed to land until the next day.

They crossed the plains in the George Holliday Company, having come from New York with emigrants in box or cattle cars. As it was during the time of the War of the Rebellion, and soldiers were about everywhere trying to enlist (by force if necessary) men and boys into the army. The soldiers met the trains hoping to stop the Mormons and draft them into their rank. To avoid this the emigrants were loaded into the cattle cars to make the journey. They had to lie down to the bare floor, dirty as it was, like so many sheep. There were three passenger cars on the train and the soldiers watched these closely and at every station they would ask “When those Mormons coming through?”. No one seemed to know. They landed safely in St. Joseph, Missouri. This was a desolate looking town, no families and only soldiers looking for men to draft into the army. The soldiers received one dollar for each man or boy he could bring into the army. Their method was to pin a ribbon on the man and this accomplished, he was “in”. It was Thomas’ job to guard the luggage, as the soldiers would take anything that was not watched. They tried to pin a ribbon on him but did not succeed. The soldiers stole one girl form the company. One boy asked a soldier to let him ride his pony. At once the soldier reported the boy was trying to steal his horse. The boy was hidden for three days or he would have been taken.

Sailing up the Missouri River to Florence, Nebraska they met many Josephites who were eager to tell them what would happen to them if they went to Utah. The emigrants were met by Captains of the different Companies. Eight or ten emigrants were assigned to each wagon Mary and family were assigned to the Peter Nebekers Company. William Green was teamster (Who afterwards lived in American Fork, Utah was still alive in 1912).

They traveled along until we reached the Platte River. Some of the emigrants died from exhaustion and exposure. Some very hard storms were experienced on the journey. One incident of note was: Three young girls who always traveled side by side were walking together. A thunder and lightning storm came up. The lightning was very bad. The lightning struck the girl in the center entering the top of her head, coming out the soles of her shoes. It also killed seven of the oxen in the train of about seventy wagons, and knocked down some of every yoke running along the chain. One of the teamsters had the skin taken off his nose while sitting on his front endgate. Suffice to say after the long perilous journey across the plains, building bridges, making roads etc., they landed in Salt Lake Valley.

They landed in Salt Lake Valley close to October Conference in 1863. Mary followed her trade of dressmaking and sewing to support herself and family. In 1864 she married Carl Elver, a native of Germany, by whom she had three sons: Carl Arthur, Martin Dowswell, and Roy Edward Rivers Elvers. They built a small rock home on 3rd South and 2nd East and added two frame rooms later. She lived here the rest of her life. She died 5 February 1897, leaving her husband, five sons and one daughter.

She was kind and affectionate, well respected by her friends and neighbors, who loved her for her genial, kind disposition. She was an affectionate wife and mother and willing to help wherever duty called. (Author unknown)

Elizabeth Bull

Written by Guest Contributor: Karen

Elizabeth Bull and I were born on the same day exactly 177 years apart. I think this is pretty cool and worthy of a post. I thought it would be kind of fun to find out more about her life and who she was; or at least a little about the time she lived. Elizabeth was the sixth child of Mary Hillier and Abraham Bull. She was born in the village of Broughton Gifford, Wiltshire, England.

Elizabeth was born on April 27th 1799. She was christened on September 14th of the same year. The picture to right is of the St. Mary the Virgin church in Broughton Gifford. I think it's likely that she was christened here.

Wouldn't this be a interesting place to visit?! I think so too. And as long as we're going, we should stay at Honeysuckle cottage (pictured to the right), built in the 18th Century. Since Elizabeth was born in the last year of the 18th century, this seems fitting. I'm not suggesting that this is the house she lived in. But this house was in her village. She may have walked past it or known who did live here.

Broughton Gifford is a smallish village in Wiltshire county (today it boasts about 700 people). It's just east of Bath and about 30 miles northwest of Stonehenge. I don't know how often people travelled in Elizabeth's lifetime, of course we can't know if she ever saw this landmark, but it was definitely there so we can imagine that she may have heard of it even if she never saw it. Some things we do know:

• She was born in the same village as her Great-Great Grandparents.
• She married John Baggs also of Broughton Gifford, on Christmas Day, 1820, when she was 21 and he was 22. Together they had 13 children.
• About six years after their marriage it appears that they moved to Wales as many of their children were born in Caerleon, and they were both buried in Aberdare. (click on both the maps above and below to experience interactive exploration )
• Maybe they moved to Caerleon to find work? John's occupation was listed as a Tallow Chandler. A chandler is someone who makes or sells candles. Wax candles were customary in churches, while tallow (animal fat) candles were used in homes. Someone who makes candles from wax would have been known as a Wax Chandler. Interesting, huh?
• Sadly, Elizabeth survived many of her children. Her oldest daughter, Elizabeth, died when she was just 4. A few months after her death, another daughter, given the same name, died at birth. A third daughter named Elizabeth was born the next year. This Elizabeth lived to adulthood but died when she was 25, eight years before her mother. Two more children died in infancy and one son at 20. It's a heartbreaking story. One that may have been too common at the time, but I don't believe that its commonness made it any less tragic. My heart goes out to her.
• Elizabeth and John's oldest son, John, is my Great-Great-Great Grandfather. In 1844, at 21, he was baptized and became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. About 10 years later he joined the saints is Missouri and eventually moved to Arizona, where he died on Christmas Day in 1885. Although he lived near Elizabeth until he moved, it's possible that they did not see each other again after he left.
• Elizabeth died in 1860, 10 years after her husband John, at the age of 61. Both are buried in Aberdare, Wales.
• On May 11, 1972, John and Elizabeth were sealed together for all eternity.

Goar, Baggs, and the 13th of April

This is the church of St. Mary the Virgin at Broughton Gifford, Wiltshire, England; which is where Margaret Goar was christened on 13 April 1680 (at Broughton Gifford, not necessarily this church). Her parents were Nicholas and Elizabeth, and she was the sixth child in her family of seven children. On 23 August 1713, she married John Baggs. They had a son, John Baggs, in 1717. He had a son, John Baggs, in 1740. He had a son, John Baggs, in 1768. This John Baggs had a son, John Baggs, in 1798, and he married Elizabeth Bull and had a son named John.

On 13 April 1823, John Baggs was born at Shaw Hill, near Melksham, Wiltshire, England, which is just about eight miles SW of Calne, the market town. He was christened 17 August 1823 at Broughton Gifford, a distance of 1.9 miles S of his birthplace. His parents, as mentioned above, were John and Elizabeth Baggs. John was the second child and oldest son of a very large family of 13 children. Shaw is a little over two miles NW of Melksham, which has a nice website, with a picture of what looks like a lovely town center. Its description of Melksham says, "Melksham is a small market town (population 23,000) in Western Wiltshire on the banks of the Bristol Avon. . . It appears in the Domesday (Doomsday) Book and its prosperity was founded on agriculture and the woollen cloth making industry. . . The town still retains its old nucleus of houses grouped around the beautiful parish church just away from the busy shopping centre."

By 1838, the family was living in Wales. This must have been a huge event for a family whose roots went back in Broughton Gifford literally for generations. And not just the Baggs family, but also for the Bulls, as well. They already had a large family at the time of their move, so it was no small thing to pack up and relocate.

John was first married to Rachel Smith on 8 December 1845 at Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Wales. They had two sons, Edwin, and John. John died when he was a year old. Rachel died about five months after her son on 10 September 1849 at Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales. Edwin followed his mother in 1852.

John was next married to Philippa Commin at Aberdare, Glamorgan, Wales on 27 September 1851. She was from Cornwall. Aberdare is about seven miles SW of Merthyr Tydfil, and is located at the confluence of the Dar and Cynon rivers. From being, at the beginning of the 19th century, a mere village in an agricultural district, it grew rapidly in population owing to the abundance of its coal and iron ore, and the population of the whole parish which was only 1486 in 1801, increased tenfold during the first half of the century. It is possible they moved there to find employment. John and Philippa's first two children, Emily and Elizabeth, were born born in Aberdare in 1852 and 1854.

By 1857, when our ancestor Andrew was born, John was living in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States. Their son, John, was born there in 1859. Another son named Edwin is attributed to them, his birthdate being before Philippa's death in 1861.

John had two other wives, Catherine and Eliza. On the 1880 U. S. Census, John was living in Mill Creek, Salt Lake, Utah. He was married to Eliza at the time. Her son, John Bargery, was 25 years old and living with them.

John Baggs died on 25 December 1885, at St. Johns, Apache, Arizona.

John Greensides

John Greensides, the son of Robert and Elizabeth Lowson Greensides, was christened 11 April 1623 at Kirkleatham, North Riding of Yorkshire, England. While we know his parents names, we do not know about his brothers and sisters. He married in about 1653 and raised a family at Kirkleatham. Known children were Isabell, Elisabeth, Isabell, and Robert. John's son, Robert, is our ancestor.


Kirkleatham is a village in the borough of Redcar and Cleveland, located in North Yorkshire. Click on the village name for a link to wonderful photos of this picturesque place. It is the site of the only known Anglo Saxon royal burial site in the North of England. Click here to see the lovely jewelry that was found, the archaeological site, and to read all about it. These finds are housed at the Kirkleatham Museum, which was built in 1709 as a free school.

First Date

It was a Friday night that Diana, my former BYU roommate, had both George and I to dinner, on what is known as a "blind date." I hated blind dates. On the few I'd gone on I had considered them disasters. So when Diana called and said she had my future husband for me, I laughed and refused; but Diana was persistent so I finally consented. George later told me that he kept trying to say no to her but she talked so fast he didn't get a chance--he said yes too.

So we were both there and I am sure that it was the Lord's guidance. You say, "A blind date is inspired?!?" This one was because Diana prayed a lot about it and felt we just had to meet.

I arrived a little early that night and got dressed there in a new dress I'd made for the Young Adult Conference I'd attended the weekend before. It was very Christmasy because it was meant for the upcoming holiday.

Diana gave me some good advice. She told me I couldn't be my regular shy self around George. I was very outgoing around my friends, but a real clam with members of the opposite sex. She insisted that I hold his hand and let him open doors, etc. What did I have to lose being "sweet 22 and never been kissed?" I may as well hold his hand, right?

I remember walking out into the living room after he arrived and seeing him for the first time. He stood when I entered and I thought how tall and handsome he was. (Most blind dates are 4 foot 11 inches.) He was very gentlemanly and to my amazement, I was able to act my crazy self.

The dinner was lovely, pork chops, I think. Then we went to the DeAnza Planetarium to see a star show. Somehwere during the nice dark show I got up enough courage to place my hand on his. I loved it. We went back to Peterson's for a dessert and I asked George if he could give me directions on how to get to the performance of the Messiah that the Palo Alto Stake was putting on the next evening. He, of course, offered to take me and would pick me up. Later Diana said that was a brilliant piece of plotting to get a second date; but it was totally innocent and I really just wanted to go to the Messiah.

Written by Lorrie on R. S. Day, 14 September 1977. Married 10 April 1974. Emily, 2 1/2, Karen 1 1/2, so my memory may be fuzzy.