DUPs gather for convention

By By

Daughters of The Utah Pioneers from Emery County and Carbon County held a combined Convention March 12 at the Museum of The San Rafael in Castle Dale. The Convention opened at 8 a.m. with a pioneer historical books sale. The books were brought from Salt Lake City, The International Headquarters for the Daughters of The Pioneers. Bettee Barton and Linda Hamilton from the International DUP Headquarters were presiding over the book sales. Around the San Rafael Museum meeting room were displays of scrapbooks, afghans, journals, flags, and memorabilia. The dining tables were decorated with a center piece of a coal oil lamp and framed photos of four or five ancestors.
At 9:15 a.m. all company, camp officers and assistants moved into the senior citizens center for training from the International DUP Headquarters by Hamilton and Barton. This instruction included how to qualify for and become a member of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. For a woman to qualify for membership she has to prove with her genealogy that she has at least one ancestor that came across the plains with the pioneers before May 1859. Hamilton the assistant registrar said, “The Daughters of the Utah Pioneers average more than 100 applications per month for the registrar to verify the authenticity of the applicants pedigree chart and qualification. Instructions were also given for registering camp officers and the handling of finances.”
The sale of books augment the expenses of the organization, because the dues are not sufficient to cover expenses. Barton said the DUP web site will soon be re-designed and discussed the growth of the DUP over the years.
Jo Sansevero, Emery Company President opened the main meeting and welcomed everyone. Chaplin Karen Cox offered a prayer for the meeting.
Boy Scout Troop 328 from Castle Dale marched in, presented the colors and led the pledge of allegiance. The opening song sung by all, “We Salute Our Utah Pioneers”, was conducted by Kathleen Clements with Cynthia Grant as the pianist. Sansevero then gave a Presidents report for the Emery Company. “There are six camps in Emery County with a total active membership of 164, and 14 histories have been turned in this year. We also have 14 new members in our Company this year. We have had three fund raisers at the Emery County Fair, at Peach Days and at the Pageant. These fund raisers were very successful. We hold our training classes at the Orangeville Community Center to pass on to our camps the information the International Headquarters gives to us. At our last meeting we handed out a packet to each of the captains of the camps. Cynthia Grant reviewed all the songs and we held a mock meeting to demonstrate how a meeting was to be held. We do celebrate Brigham Young’s Birthday on June 1. Last year we held a picnic in the park to celebrate. The ghost of Brigham Young showed up and talked to us at that picnic. He is looking good for being gone as long as he has. After the picnic we walked across the street to visit the Pioneer Museum.
“Our camps go into our five Emery County elementary schools each year and teach the students how to do some of the things the early pioneers did. We are very proud of our company,” said Sansevero.
Sherron Pulli, Secretary Treasurer of the Emery Company gave the Emery Company Treasurers Report. “We have no expenses right now but we will tomorrow after this meeting is concluded,” she said.
Helen Fox of Emery Company said there were 164 active members in her roll call report.
Helene Majors of Carbon Company said, “It is wonderful to be here. My relatives came from Ferron and I have been looking at the pictures on display to see if I recognize any of my family. We have six camps in our company, with a total of 127 members 94 active and 33 inactive. We have several daughters in rest homes and aren’t able to come out. We have had six new daughters join this past year.
“We had a training meeting in August, where we passed out new information. Five of us went to the convention in June and in October to the other convention. We get so much information from our leaders there. We worked on restoring the pioneer cabins in Pioneer Park, in Price. One of our camp’s won an award for their float in the local parade. We had four artifacts donated, which included two quilts. One of the quilts was more than 100 years old and in very nice condition. The Company also had a quilt drawing during International Days to raise money for the restoration of the Utah Pioneer Woman’s monument that is located in Pioneer Park. The plaques were missing and the statue of the lady was missing from the top of the monument. We found the records of the dedication of this monument in the minutes of 1931. We have a sculptor from Price that is making a new statue and should be ready to install by May 31. We need to raise $20,000 to pay for the statue.
“This year we entered two floats in the International Days Parade and received a trophy for each float. We presented six awards this year. One of those was for outstanding service. This went to a daughter that celebrated her 99th birthday. She will turn 100 in October and she is still with us. We will have a work shop this year about how to preserve books and papers,” Majors concluded.
Jo Simmons Carbon Company Treasurer reported the Company finances. She also said of the six camps from Carbon 26 members were present and were happy to be here.
Entertainment for the group was provided by Jackie Allred, Arilyn Allred, Kaden Allred, and Evelyn Huntsman who sang the following songs. “Does the Spearmint Lose its Flavor on The Bedpost Over Night?” and the old song ” I’m My Own Grandpa.”
Jo Sansevero in introducing Linda Hamilton and Bettee Barton, said, we are so lucky to have these two attend our convention and tell us about what is happening in the International Daughters of The Utah Pioneers organization.
Linda Hamilton Assistant Registrar stated that the job of a registrar is a very big job and more than most people think. Linda was born in Manti. Her grand father was a Braithwaite. She has a great line of ancestors and family members in Manti and the Sanpete valley. Linda married Baker Hamilton in Salt Lake City and lives in Layton, Utah. Her great grandmother Sarah Wilkinson Buchanan was a DUP member in Manti, her registration number was 203. Linda has been a member for over 29 years.
Linda Hamilton told a story of a couple that had been married for more than 60 years. They shared many things but in the top of the closet was a box that the wife cautioned her husband to never open or to ask her about. All the years the little man never thought about the box. But one day the little woman was very sick and the doctor told them that she would not recover. In settling their affairs at her bedside he agreed it was time to see what was in the box at the top of the closet. When he opened it he found two crochet dolls and a stack of money totaling $90,000. He asked her about the contents. She said, when we were married my grandmother told me to never argue. She told me if I ever got angry with you I should just quietly crochet a doll. The little old man was so moved that he had to fight back the tears. Only two precious dolls were in the box. He thought she had only been angry with him two times. He said that explains the dolls, but what about all this money. She said, “Oh that’s the money I made from selling all the other dolls.”
We need to have that same patience, love and control in our camps and company. We bring love and appreciation from the International Board to all of you. We need to be proud of our ancestors and our heritage. What special people and family they were. I am thankful for not just my family and ancestors but all of yours, that had the courage to go through the trials and the hardships and for their faithfulness to the Lord.
As we think about our theme Our Heritage Our Responsibility 1847 to 1859. We should recognize the commitment we have made to DUP, to honor the achievements of the many men, women and children who settled in our area. If the lives of these remarkable people are to be remembered and celebrated it is our responsibility to do so. It is our challenge to accept this responsibility with all our heart. We review the lives of pioneers so that we can teach their descendants lessons of love, faith, courage, fortitude and patriotism. If we do these things we will lift ourselves to a higher level as we help others find and appreciate their heritage.
At the June seminar in 2008 we were told that DUP is not just another club it is a privileged sacred place. What an opportunity it is for us to belong to such a special organization. We need to be proud of our birth right. Our love of our ancestors and our service to them is what we want to accomplish in our organization. DUP isn’t successful because of just one person, it is because everyone does her share.
Bette Barton the President of the International Daughters of The Pioneers was born in Salt Lake City and lives in Granger. Graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor’s degree in Home Economics and Education. She spent 14 years teaching in Idaho and Utah during this time four children were born, two boys and two girls. Bette joined the DUP in 1976 in Salt Lake City, served as captain of the Wasatch Camp twice, became treasurer of the Salt Lake Gilmer Park Company serving six years and then became President. She volunteered to work in the history department at the Pioneer Museum where she served four years. After that experience she volunteered to serve on the DUP board and served six years as Recording Secretary. She is currently the President.
Bette Barton “I am glad to be here. I am in a position to choose where I want to go and I chose to be here with some of my favorite people.” Bette awarded the Carbon Camp and Helen Majors a certificate for the 2009 and 2010 years in which they added 10 new members into their six camps now organized. She noted that there was a little competition between Carbon and Emery Companies. Jo Sansevero and Emery Company also received an award for adding 10 new members in the years 2009 and 2010.
“I want you to know we had Brigham Young at the re-dedication of our museum, only we did one better. We had one of his wives too. For the last year you have been reading articles about the re-dedication of our largest museum in Salt Lake City, which we consider to be the flag ship of DUP. We also have museums in Idaho Falls, Nevada, Oregon and Wyoming in addition to the 125 Pioneer Museums we have in Utah. These contain the artifacts that people used in their daily lives. We are doing our best to preserve them.
“By June of 2010 we were finally beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel for the re-dedication of our museum. Kent Lott the publisher of the Pioneer Magazine published by the Sons of The Utah Pioneers asked to do an article for the December issue about The Daughters of The Utah Pioneers Museum re-dedication. As I did the research for the article about the way the women worked to found our beautiful museum. I was amazed at what these women accomplished. There are women who struggled to get it going, but without the State of Utah I am not sure that it would have come to be. The State of Utah actually owns our building. We own all of the artifacts in it and the State of Utah paid for the renovation, they paid for the upkeep.
Mrs Barton said “I will give a brief history now of how the museum became a reality.” Two years after the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers was founded we began collecting artifacts. To perpetuate the lives of these pioneers and honor their accomplishment and the lives they lived.
Memorabilia from their lives which they collected and preserved. These early DUP members realized as we do today that nothing brings us closer to those pioneers than actually seeing and handling the things, the silent witnesses of their daily lives. It soon became apparent that they needed someplace to put those artifacts they were beginning to collect. They also needed a little space for their office. They had several early temporary places. The first was established in the LDS Tithing Office on South Temple, the next was the Lion House. In 1907 the next move was to the Vermont building where the Deseret Museum was housed. On Sept. 24 1907 at a birthday party for Sara Jane Cannon it was decided that DUP needed to construct a building of their own. It was decided that every line, wall and featured should reflect our Utah History. Everyone supported the plan. The first funds collected to begin that dream for the building came from Emily Richards by placing a $5 gold piece on the table. From that time forward the daughters collected money for the building. Another move came in 1916 when the collection was moved to Temple Square.
The Utah State Capitol was completed in 1917 and the legislature gave space to the Daughters of The Utah Pioneers. The space was for a small display and a gift counter. There they remained in the state capitol building for 31 years. After the Emily Richardson contribution the fund began to grow although very slowly. Fund raising began in earnest in 1956. It was determined that the triangle at the head of Main Street directly West of the State Capitol would be a perfect location for the Pioneer Museum. The first hurdle was to get permission to use the triangle to be used for the building. That permission was not easily obtained. Finally in 1941 the Bill 56 passed both houses. The lease was contingent upon the daughters raising 50,000 to the state by Feb. 1, 1943. There was $11,415 in the DUP treasury. That was a lot of money at that time. The daughters were optimistic. Kate Carter was elected president of the DUP in 1941. Without Kate Carter and the DUP membership, the DUP Museum would not have been built. She died in 1976 after serving 36 years as International DUP President. If you ask someone who founded the Daughters of The Utah Pioneers today, most will say Kate Carter. She was an important part of the DUP. When Kate took over there were to many problems to enumerate. Mrs Carter and her troops surmounted them all. Usually in a most lady like fashion.
Mrs Carter met the challenge of raising $48,585 with commitment, courage and determination. They worked wholeheartedly to overcome all obstacles that stood in their way.
The daughters contributed to the war effort in 1942 by salvaging everything they could sell, that would help the war effort. The daughters were recognized nationally for their contribution to the war effort. By 1943 the DUP had $41,500. The goal of $50,000 had not been met, but the State Legislature extended the date for the money to be deposited to Feb. 1, 1946. At the same time the State of Utah appropriated $225,000 for the building.
The DUP officers met with several architects for the design and construction of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneer Memorial Building. Ground breaking took place on March 25 on the triangle. However problems were not over. In 1946 property owners in the area around the triangle issued protests. Other protests came from several sources indicating that it was unconstitutional to build a new building to be turned over to DUP. It resulted in a long drawn out lawsuit. DUP, the Governor and State Officials were named as co-defendants in the lawsuit.
After two years the decision was rendered in favor of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers. The construction company said because of the long delay and rising prices an additional 54 thousand dollars would be required. With a belief in the future, money was borrowed to complete the project. The daughters continued their fund raising and the LDS Church contributed $10,000.
Then Kate Carter came up with a wonderful idea. The Daughters of The Utah Pioneers published their first volume of “Heart Throbs of the West”. This was the first book published by DUP. There were 27,000 volumes printed and they sold for $2.50. The slogan was “A Heart Throb in Every Home.” From this they were able to re-pay the loan, purchase new file cabinets, asphalt tile, paint the walls and hang drapery. So it all came to a happy ending. The beautiful building pictured in the minds of early members became a reality. This was the result of devotion and commitment by officers, county organizations and individual daughters. On Saturday July 22, 1950 the dedicatory service commenced. Those ladies really knew how to throw a party. The final dedication occurred July 23, 1950.
“We honored the realization of that dream when we re-dedicated our building on October 8, 2010.
If any of you have not visited the Daughters of The Utah Pioneers Memorial building, I hope that one day you will do so. We have more than 100,000 pioneer histories in our archives and we have 26,000 pictures of pioneers, landscapes, and beautiful art work. Those that visited 10 years ago will recognize a huge difference in the building. As I drive up the hill toward the building each morning the building just glows.
We are honoring our commitment to our pioneer heritage by what we are doing here today. What we do, we do in their behalf. Thank you all.
When the meeting ended, DUP Emery Company President Jo Sansevero thanked everyone for helping make the Conference a success. She thanked Julie and Kent Wilson of BK’s for catering the luncheon. She thanked the Daughters who displayed Afghans, scrapbooks, journals, flags, memorabilia and to the Scouts for help in unloading DUP International cars as well as the flag ceremony.
Photo Taylor Jensen, Andrew Gilson, Landon Barnett, Marshal Jensen, Cameron Price and Scout Leader Carl Jacobson of Boy Scout Troop 328 from Castle Dale. Prepared for the flag ceremony.
Photo of Jackie Allred, Arilyn Allred and Evelyn Huntsman who sang the following songs. “Does the Spearmint Lose its Flavor on The Bedpost Over Night?” I’m My Own Grandpa.”
Photo of Bette J. Frahm Barton, President of the International Daughters of the Utah Pioneers with Helen Majors Carbon Company, President and Jo Sansevero, Emery Company President
Photo of Linda Hamilton Assistant Registrar for the International Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, with Bette Barton, President of the International Daughters of the Utah Pioneers.
Photo of LeAnne Seely and Jannika looking at a display.