James and Ann Shuttleworth Gibbons History

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3) Hyrum Dennis Gibbons and Kathy Follett

4) Hyrum Ray Gibbons and Amy Schiess

5) Hyrum Gibbons and Claudia Zina Johnson

6) Joseph and Mercy Weston Gibbons

7) James and Ann Shuttleworth Gibbons

8) John Aaron and Fanny Roby Gibbons

John Aaron (1794-1872) and Fanny Roby (1800-1883) Gibbons

Contributed By EDavidSwalberg · 4 November 2014 · 0 Comments

HISTORY: The History of John Aaron Roby Gibbons By Ruth H. Drury - taken from family histories  

John Aaron Gibbons was born February 10, 1794, Lechamstead, Berkshire, England, the son of William and Dorothy Head Gibbons of Berkshire, England. He was christened March 2, 1794. He married Fanny Roby August 14, 1818, at Maple Durham, Oxfordshire, England. She was born Dec.26, 1800 in Chieveley, Berkshire, England, the daughter of Aaron and Mary Lowe Roby.  

Originally they resided in Berkshire, England. Because of dissatisfaction with working conditions there, they moved to Wiltshire. Opportunities to make a living in Wiltshire were also very limited, so they decided to move to South Wales, as there was plenty of work in the mines there.  

They were the parents of seventeen children. Some children were stillborn, others died young, and only five grew to manhood. The eldest son, John, (born May 2, 1823) sailed for New York before the family heard of the Gospel. He was young, eager, and was searching for opportunity. Somehow, the family lost track of him and to this day, there is no knowledge of his whereabouts. The other four sons remained in England until they came to Utah.  

John and Fanny Gibbons joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1848, in Cowbridge, Wales, together with their youngest son, Thomas, then fourteen years old. On February 3, 1854, John and Fanny Gibbons and Thomas, sailed from Liverpool, England, for America. They recorded, "We arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana, March 24, 1854, and continued by way of the Mississippi River. Six weeks later we reached St. Louis, Missouri. Here Cholera was rampant. Many of our number were stricken with the dread disease and most of them recovered. While there, the power of God was made manifest to us through the faith and prayers and the labors of the Elders, and the blessings of our Heavenly Father. The Plague merely touched us, while hundreds all about us were dying. Later, we left for Florence, Nebraska, to form a company and prepare for the westward trek."  

The family crossed the Plains in ox-teams sent out to meet them. The trek across the Plains began July 4th. During the trip several bands of Indians visited the camp but gave no trouble. However, it was thought best to follow the custom of posting guards over the teams at night. Herds of Buffalo were seen almost daily. Sometimes they came so close their teams would stampede. Nothing of a serious nature occurred. Thomas speaks of killing buffalo and distributing the meat among the people.  

They arrived in the Salt Lake Valley October 19, 1854, penniless. It had taken all their money to reach Salt Lake after a seven-month journey Upon arrival, the family went to Tooele where they spent the first winter. Tooele was an established community. Grass, timber and water were abundant. There were two gristmills, a store, and a meetinghouse, 24-feet square, which had been built in 1850.  

The spring of 1855, they moved to Ogden and were able to acquire land for themselves. They were among the original settlers of that city and remained there the rest of their lives.  

Later (1867 or 1868), they sold some of their property on Washington Avenue from 4th North, known as the Cordon property (Five Points); and sent the money to Liverpool through "The Perpetual Emigration Fund", for their sons, James and Francis, and their families to come to America. Five years earlier, their son, William, had made his way to Ogden. The sale of their property was a sacrifice, but the desire to see their children in Zion was far greater than the sacrifice involved. They had built a home just east of 28th and Adams Streets in Ogden. This later became the property of Thomas and Caroline Evans Gibbons. John and his son, Thomas, helped to build the first road up Ogden Canyon to Huntsville.

James Gibbons (1825-1913) & Ann Shuttleworth (1813-1871)

Contributed By EDavidSwalberg · 4 November 2014 · 0 Comments

History of James and Ann Shuttleworth Gibbons  

James Gibbons, the son of John and Fanny Roby Gibbons, was born January 25, 1825, in Chieveley, Berkshire, England. James Gibbons worked for Queen Victoria in London when he met his future wife, Ann Shuttleworth, who was a "Lady-in-waiting" to Queen Victoria.  

Ann Shuttleworth was born January 26, 1813 in Bath, Somersetshire, England, the daughter of Thomas and Mary Williams Shuttleworth. Her mother died when she was 11 months old. Ann's mother, Mary Williams, came from a staunch Roman Catholic family. Her paternal grandparents (Thomas Shuttleworth's parents) were well-to-do and devout Catholics.  

As Thomas Shuttleworth grew up and read the Bible, he felt baptism was necessary to salvation. His parents and relatives disinherited him because he joined the Baptist Church and was a minister in that church until he died. Thomas came to Bath, Somerset, England, married there and raised his family there.  

Soon after their marriage, James became almost blind. He spent a lot of time in the warm pools in Bath and contracted an eye infection which they could not cure. They bathed his eyes, but it got worse and worse. This infection eventually led to almost complete blindness. (one account says a doctor poured acid in his eyes to see if that would work) He could only vaguely see. Through the kindness of some ladies who taught him how to make baskets, he became a basket weaver, which he did to earn money for his family. His children had to help earn the living for the family, so they weren't able to get much education.  

James joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1848. His wife joined in 1850. They were the parents of four children: James, Lucy Emily, Joseph, and Annie. They also had an adopted a daughter, Rosina Mary.  

Ann was anxious to give her children all the education possible and kept them in school as long as she could. When the two oldest were each about twelve, they had to go to work to help the family. Ann was a serious and devout person in her views and a firm believer in the Gospel. In the year 1868, on the 4th of June, James and his family left England for America. James's father, John Aaron Roby Gibbons, who had immigrated to America in 1850 and lived in Ogden, Utah, sold a large piece of property and sent the money from the sale to Liverpool, England, so his son and family could immigrate to Zion.  

Ann and James, and four children, Lucy, 18; Joseph, 16; Annie, 14 and the adopted daughter, Rosina, 6 years old sailed from England on June 4th 1868. Their oldest son, James, had died when he was a baby. With faith and courage, they felt certain of a safe journey to the place where they could mingle with the Saints and worship God without fear of molestation. It was a great blessing to them and an answer to their prayers. Now they could come to Zion and live in peace without the mobs and violence they had endured in Bath, England. The mobs would pelt them with rotten eggs and all kinds of refuse. Even their jobs were at stake if it were known they were Mormons. The ministers kept inciting the people against them.  

They sailed on the ship JOHN BRIGHT with 800 passengers aboard, most of them Mormons. The captain was James McGraw. The trip was a good one except for a severe storm, which tossed the ship and its passengers until they thought they would be lost. The ship rocked to and fro, the wind blew, and trunks, baggage and vessels of all kinds were thrown from one side to the other in the cabins. People clung to their bunks for safety each time the ship gave a lurch. They all prayed fervently and the next morning the sea became calm. Toward morning it gradually ceased and was so calm there was barely a ripple on the water. All were thankful to see daylight for a storm at sea at night is a weird and fearsome thing.  

At 9:00 a.m. that morning, President James McGraw, president of the company, called them together for prayer as he did each morning. He informed them the captain of the ship wished to speak to them. The captain said, "The storm last night was the worst I have ever experienced and I have made the crossing many times. We were spared because we had your company aboard. There is something about you I cannot describe. You are well behaved and prayerful!" This was a great testimony to all of us and one that would remain with us. The trip took six weeks and they landed in New York the 15th of July 1868. They spent two days in Castle Gardens, New York, as that was where the immigrants were sent. Later, it was known as the Aquarium. They then went by rail to Chicago, Illinois. In Chicago they were treated poorly. People threw rotten eggs at them. They continued by rail to Laramie, Wyoming where they joined up with a mule train. The roads were rough and the sand made for difficult travel. The children had to walk.  

They arrived in Salt Lake City four weeks later on 19 Aug 1868. They stayed in the tithing office for three days when they joined Captain Loveland's wagon train bound for Ogden, Utah. When they arrived in Ogden, James's father was so happy to have them with him. Their one-room log cabin with a dirt floor was on 28th Street and Adams Avenue in Ogden.  

In November of 1870, James and Ann went to Bear Lake and Laketown, a new settlement, with their son, Joseph and his family. They secured an old log house to live in with only a dirt floor, but it was the best they could get. The winter was long and cold, the snow was so deep in the canyons, not even the mail carrier could get through. Normally the mail came through about once a month. The town was cut off from all communication with the rest of the country.  

Ann hadn't been too well all winter. The privations she had to endure were too much for her frail body, and she contracted pneumonia and passed away February 26, 1871 in Laketown, Rich County, Utah. She is buried in the Laketown Cemetery. She can be numbered among the noble company of pioneers who endured the hardships of the early days.  

In 1872, James Gibbons, and his adopted daughter, Rose, came to make their home with his daughter, Lucy Emily Gibbons and her husband, Horatio Hancock. As soon as Rose was big enough to work, she left and tried to take care of herself. All through these years Lucy's father was a blessing to her. He washed dishes, tended babies, wove rugs and baskets, peeled fruit and prepared vegetables. Lucy's daughter, Polly recalls how she had to help through all these trying years. They could never have achieved what they did without "Granny's" help. All of Lucy's children called her father, James, "Granny"! It was a term of endearment - he taught the children to sing nursery songs and recite rhymes. Everyone loved him dearly.  

In about 1912, James, was too old now to be left alone and he needed Lucy's care. He passed away August 20, 1913 in Ogden, Weber, Utah. For years Lucy and her father had spent much time together making a record of family and friends that her father had known in England. She would take her father whenever possible to the temple and they were able to finish about 1500 endowments. This history was taken from a history written by Gayle D. Blamiers in February of 1975 with additions by other family members and The Daughters of Utah Pioneers.