Judson Adonirum & Mary Ann Howard Tolman
25 Feb 1850 – 4 Jul 1915 11 Mar 1851 – 23 Sep 1931
Son of Judson & Sarah Lucretia Holbrook Tolman
Daughter of Joseph Howard & Ann Shelton Howard
Judson Adonirum, son of Judson Tolman and Sarah L. Holbrook was born 25 Feb 1850 at Tooele, Tooele Co, Utah. He married Mary Ann Howard, daughter of Joseph Howard and Ann Shelton, who was born 11 March 1851 in Birmingham, Norwich, England. They were married 23 Dec 1872 in the Endowment House, Salt Lake City, Utah.
Judson was the first white child born in Tooele. He was blessed by John Rowberry. He lived there with his parents until about 1858, when they moved to Bountiful, Davis County, Utah. He was baptized when eight years old and lived with his parents until he was twenty-two years old. He was ordained an Elder by Brother McAllister in May 1868. At that time he went east to Laramie, Wyoming to bring immigrating Saints to Salt Lake City.
After his marriage, he and Mary Ann resided in Woodruff, Rich County, Utah until 1877 when they moved to Knowlen, Tooele County, Utah. They made their home there until 1882 at which time they moved to Chesterfield, Idaho, being one of the first Latter-Day Saints settlers at that place. They still used oxen to do their work. He worked for wages earning fifty cents a day. The winters were so bad they had to stake the roads in order to get to church and to Bancroft. His early life in Chesterfield was one of true pioneering.
MADE PRESIDING ELDER AND BISHOP
In June 1881, Judson conducted Sabbath meetings in his home and continued to do so until November 27, 1883 at which time he was officially put in as presiding Elder. Under his leadership a meeting house was built during the year 1883. Presiding Bishop William B. Preston went to Chesterfield to install Judson as presiding Elder.
He was ordained a High Priest 23 August 1891 by Matthias F. Cowley. On October 26,1891, Apostle Francis M. Lyman ordained Judson as Bishop and set him apart as Bishop of the Chesterfield Ward. Bishop Willey having move to Bountiful, Utah. He held this position until 1903 at which time he was called to the high council. He was succeeded as Bishop by John Balfour.
Although Judson wasn’t ordained a Bishop until October 26, his name was presented and sustained as Bishop on August 23, 1891 at a meeting presided over by Apostle Matthias F. Cowley. Bishop Tolman selected Truman H. Barlow as first counselor and Ira Call as second, with W. T. Higginson retained as clerk.
STATEMENT BY LLOYD WILLIS TOLMAN:
“My parents both ranked high as leaders in the community and equally high as leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That such a statement is extremely conservative may be proved by listing just a few of their many activities, any of which would be sufficient to warrant my claim for their greatness.
“That they ranked high in the Church and as missionaries of Jesus Christ is attested by the fact that my father was Bishop and presiding Elder for a period of about twenty years, during which time it required the major portion of his time physically, mentally and spiritually. I say physically because my father was largely responsible, personally, in the design and erection of the first permanent chapel and amusement hall in Chesterfield. That the job was well done is evidenced by the fact that these buildings are still functioning well in their respective capacities. (Now 1950s)
“Much of father’s time as Bishop was given in the administering of tithing settlement, which was paid mainly in commodities from the farm such as grains, hay, potatoes and livestock. A special granary, barn, cellar, etc., had to be built and maintained. Commodities had to be converted into a form of exchange and made available to the Church Authorities. This work alone was enough to consume most of the time of an ordinary individual. In addition, father must ever be ready in a moments notice to administer to the sick and the needy. Many times I can recall when both father and mother have exposed themselves to contagious diseases such as the deadly diphtheria and smallpox in order to give aid in distress. Doctors were not available. After spending most of the night on such missions of mercy, I can recall my father would go into his shop and thoroughly fumigate his clothing and person before entering his home and thus protecting his family from any unnecessary chances of exposure.
MARY ANN HOWARD TOLMAN
“May I inject at this point and in connection with the sick, the part played by my mother. She was President of the Relief Society and in this capacity administered in all cases where relief was necessary and especially cases incident to sickness and death. Many nights she has left her own family to give her service to others in greater need. Mother never had a day of professional training as a nurse and yet I am confident that few graduate nurses of today were her equal. Whether her favorite remedies, turpentine and castor oil, mustard plasters, consecration olive oil and herb teas, would meet the approval of medical profession of today, I do not choose to argue but I can attest and I am sure many others could also, that scores of lives were saved and many persons relieved from suffering by her methods. The only doctor I can remember, during those days was Dr. Kackley of Soda Springs, Idaho and often when he came to Chesterfield on sick call, he would ask mother to accompany him. As a midwife, mother was especially efficient. Not only did she act in the capacity for a goodly number of her grandchildren but also for 10 to 50 percent of all confinement cases in our small community.
MORTICIANS
” Just where mother and father received their schooling as morticians, I never knew, but they operated efficiently in this capacity. They were better than the modern mortician because they
not only washed, laid out and prepared for burial, but mother together with her daughters and sisters in the Ward made the clothes and father would make the caskets. An then just for full measure, they sat up with the dead and kept them company during the long dark nights. Have you heard of a modern mortician fulfilling a similar assignment?
EDUCATION
“To my knowledge, father and mother had very little direct training at the little red school house on the hill. At most, perhaps, a fourth or fifth grade education, but from the standards of knowledge, they had much. Many a college graduate would be sorely deficient as compared with their ability to complete successfully the tasks of life.
AS A CIVIL ENGINEER
“When I recall some of the things father did, he must have possessed the equivalent of a Master’s degree from an accredited institute of learning. As an example, father displayed in many instances, traits of civil engineer. He was further handicapped by not possessing modern equipment. In order to run a survey, the engineer needs an instrument known as a telescopic transit. Father had none and so he made one. Well do I remember the instrument. Just a 1″ x 4” piece of lumber upon which was mounted an adjustable cross arm with a “bubble” for leveling or determining the proper slope. He had no telescopic sights and to serve the purpose he mounted to the cross arm and at either end, two pieces of strap iron into which small holes were drilled to provide a point of aim. Compared with the modern transit, such a device would be considered extremely crude and yet it worked. The Toponce Canal, the Twenty-four Mile Creek Canal and laterals and town ditches affording irrigation for the community, together with the Tolman reservoir were products of father’s ability as a surveyor. Much of the system is still in use and is being enjoyed by people living in that vicinity. I understand that the Tolman Reservoir now affords an excellent source of water supply and last, but not least, provides a place for the ‘Isaac Waltons” to ply their boats in an effort to catch the wily trout which abound in these waters.
WORKER IN METALS, WOODS, STONE
“Father’s ability extended far in many fields of activity which today marks the traits of the skilled technician. He was a worker in metals, woods and stone. A familiar scene at the ranch was his blacksmith shop and like the character enshrined in literature by Longfellow, he was indeed “the village blacksmith, for a mighty man was he.” In the spring and during the months of harvest, you could hear his anvil ring. Parts for broken machinery were not available and all work ceased until either the old part was repaired or a new one made. Not only did father keep his own machines in repair but many of neighbors depended entirely upon his services.”
CHARLOTTE’S EARLY RECOLLECTIONS
“My earliest recollection brings to mind a large frame house where we lived when I was about six years old. The green meadowland with a beautiful stream of water flowing through it seemed so spacious that I could lose myself in it. We children used to play in the stream catching pollywogs and pulling bull rushes which we would braid for hours at a time. We would gather the beautiful “red roosters”, a flower that grew wild in the meadow.
“Our family life was very orderly. Every morning we would kneel in family prayer. When the chairs were put up to the table for breakfast they were always placed with their backs to the table to facilitate kneeling in prayer.
JUDSON ALWAYS PUNCTUAL
“Father was a man of few words. What he said he meant and he said it in a way that you knew he meant it. He was a very hard worker and a strict man of his word. He was punctual in everything. I can picture him driving up to the gate in the winter time with a magnificent team of greys, the bell on their harness jingling as they walked. If we were not ready to go with him, he would go without us, for he would never be late.”
MYRTLE’S REFLECTIONS
“In a lot of homes the children think more of the mother than the father, but in the Tolman home the father was thought as much of as the mother. They both worked hand in hand in all their troubles and sickness.
“Swearing was never known to be a habit of father’s. At one time he broke his leg and they had to take him to Pocatello to get it fixed. While setting his leg all he would say is “be careful gentlemen, be careful gentlemen.” The doctor said to the people watching, “you can see this man never swears.”
“When father attended Stake Conference he would leave on Friday and would not arrive home until two or three o’clock on Monday morning. The Stake buildings were about 70 miles away. The ward teachers had to travel as far as 30 miles to do their teaching.
“Father would take the deacons and haul and chop wood for the widows of the Ward. His wife and daughters would come and bring food for them to eat. Father’s policy was always ‘come let us do this or that,’ but never ‘you go do it.’ He was very much loved by everyone in the Ward which was attested by there not being a dry eye in the chapel at the time he was released as Bishop.
“Among other things which father worked at besides those already mentioned, father worked in the sawmills getting out logs for the railroad and also in the lime Kiln burning rock at Bancroft, Idaho.” (End of Myrtle’s reflections.)
Judson also went into partnership with Nathan Barlow in the Mercantile and Creamery business. These two projects were very successful. Just before the depression hit, Nathan purchased, for the partnership, a large herd of pure bred sheep. This investment, with the sudden collapse in the market, the extending of a vast amount of credit at the store to the farmers, caused them to become insolvent.
MOVED TO PRESTON, IDAHO
The Depression forced Judson to liquidate all his holdings, losing practically everything and he with his family moved to Preston, Idaho (1908-09). At Preston and Riverdale, he built homes and barns, etc. He, also, had a little farm and garden up to the time of his death which happened July 4, 1915. He was buried at Preston July 7,1915.
EARLY NOTES OF MARY ANN HOWARD TOLMAN
Mary Ann b. 11 Mar 1851 to Joseph Howard and Ann Shelton Howard in Cottage Park Mill, District of Aston, Sub-district of Duddeston, Warwick, England (Birth Certificate).
In the year of 1861, the eldest Howard boys, Thomas and William, came from England to Salt Lake City to work and earn money to bring their parents and the rest of the family. Two years later, in 1863, they sent for their father, mother and seven siblings.
Mary Ann, the fifth child, was twelve years old when she came to America. They were six weeks and three days crossing the ocean. They landed in New York Bay and started to move westward. Her father and three of the children were very sick, while traveling through the states, until after they reached St. Joseph Missouri and started across the plains.
All through their journey they lived mostly on flapjacks and water. Her father hired a man and his team and wagon to bring them across the plains in the William Hyde Company. The driver was very cross and would never let any of them ride no matter how tired they were. They came across the plains in a little easier way than the hand cart company, but they certainly endured many hardships.
Mary Ann, with her friend (a young girl whose parents had sent her from England in the custody of the Howard family), walked along ahead of the wagon train whenever they could and picked their aprons full of buffalo chips with which they made a fire in the evening to cook their food.
One day they were lucky, they thought, because some rich people came along in a white top, two seated buggy. They invited them to ride which made the girls very happy. They rode as far as they dared because they had to build a fire for their folks that night. So, they got out of the buggy and thanked the people for the only ride they ever received in walking from Nauvoo to Salt Lake City. When their folks caught up with them they were criticized very severely for taking that ride. The parents were afraid they had been kidnaped or some wild animal might have killed them.
One day, Mary Ann’s mother became so tired that she asked the teamster if she could ride. He answered, “no my team has all they can carry now, you are just la/y that’s all.” So she was forced to continue walking while the driver sat unconcerned on the wagon seat. She grew weaker and hardly able to take a step farther. The next day the mother was put in the wagon by the father who told the driver she was too sick to walk any farther. (That was in Wyoming). Ann Shelton Howard died that night.
They were three months crossing the plains. Mary Ann’s shoes wore out and she prayed every day that somehow she might have some new shoes. One day, soon after, in their traveling they
saw a pair of shoes sitting along side of the road, evidently left by a company ahead of them. They were just her size and though they weren’t new, they were much better than her own. This was just one of many faith promoting incidents in her life.
MOTHER AND SISTERS DIE
Her two younger sisters died while crossing the plains and they were just 300 miles from Salt Lake City when her mother passed away. Mary Ann, age 12 and Emma age 10 washed and dressed their mother, wrapping her in sheets ready for burial. This was a very heart rendering experience for these two young girls. They gathered sage brush to cover and conceal the grave so the coyotes wouldn’t find it so easily.
The remainder of the family arrived in the Valley on October 27, 1863. The family moved to the W. S. Muir farm at Bountiful, Davis County, Utah. There she later met Judson A. Tolman, whom she married.
After her husband’s death, she visited among her children acting as mid-wife and making rugs, etc., for them. She, also, spent quite a period of time homesteading some land for her son-in-law, Denmark Jensen. She died September 23, 1931. She lived to be 80 years of age and at the time of her death there were ten children still living, 110 grandchildren and 58 great grandchildren.
[End of Tolman – Mecham Book of Remembrance compiled by Leonidas Devon Mecham ]
LATTER-DAY SAINT BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA
Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Andrew Jenson, Assistant Church Historian. Volume I; Published by the Andrew Jenson History Company; Printed by the Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah. 1901.
TOLMAN, Judson Adonirum, Bishop of Chesterfield Ward, Bannock county, Idaho, is the son of Judson Tolman and Sarah L. Holbrook, and was born Feb 25, 1850, in Tooele, Tooele county, Utah, being the first white child born in Tooele, where his parents resided until about 1854, when they removed to Bountiful, Davis county.
Judson was baptized about eight years old and lived with his parents till he was twenty-two years old. In 1868 he went east as far as Laramie after immigrating Saints, and in 1872 he married Mary Ann Howard, with whom he has had eleven children. He resided in Utah until early in 1881, when he removed to Chesterfield, Idaho, being one of the first Latter-day Saint settlers at that place. In June of that year the Saints in the new settlement concluded to hold meetings, and Elder Tolman was called to preside; he took charge of the meetings about one year.
Bishop Wm B. Preston visited Chesterfield and held meetings with the Saints there Nov. 27, 1883, in Elder Tolman’s house. On this occasion the Saints at Chesterfield were organized into a branch with Elder Tolman as president. When the branch was organized as a Ward June 5, 1884, Judson A. Tolman was chosen second counselor to Bishop Parley P. Willey. In 1890, when Bishop Willey removed to Bountiful, Utah, Elder Tolman succeeded him in taking charge of the Ward. He was ordained a Bishop by Apostle Francis M. Lyman, Oct. 26, 1891, which office he still holds. Judson Adonirum Tolman was ordained a High Priest in 1885 by Matthias F. Cowley.pages 388 – 389.
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