What Happened to Alexander Gardner?
A MOSES GRIGG DECENDANT FAMILY RESEARCH REPORT
May 21, 2004
By Dick Grigg
A. WHAT HAPPENED TO ALEXANDER GARDNER?
Alexander Gardner and Ann Knox are my Great Grandparents on my mother’s line.My mother is Thankful Halsey Gardner b. 24 Nov 1880, Richfield, Sevier, Utah, her mother is Julia Houston Pratt daughter of Parley P. Pratt and Sarah Houston; Julia married John Gardner.John Gardner is the son of our subject, Alexander Gardner.
I am writing this report after 10 years of research on these people to try and clear up some conflicting and varied stories floating around among descendants, which seem to expand and grow with each generation.
I will start with two stories about the fate of Alexander Gardner as expressed in Blane Gardner’s book, Gardner Cousins, 1983.Blane did a great job on his book and I am not downgrading it one bit but thought I might throw a little more light on it.
“John kept in touch with his family and in 1852 his mother and sister, Agnes became members of the Mormon Church.It is not known for sure what happened to his father, Alexander.There are two different stories about what happened to Alexander Gardner.
(1) It was thought by some that he came to America to make arrangements for his family to immigrate and was never heard of again.Then an account appeared in a Lexington, Missouri newspaper of the explosion of the Steamboat Saluda in 1852 on the Missouri River; her captain was Francis T. Belt.("The Saluda Story, Worst River tragedy here 110 years ago." "Explosion turns riverfront into horror scene," Town aids survivors,” Three part series in Lexington Advertiser News, 9 April 1962.)Among the dead were as many as 200 Latter Day Saints enroute to the west.(Story in Ensign 1981)Very few of the dead was ever identified, and so the conclusion was drawn by some of the Gardner family that Alexander Gardner was on that boat and perished with it.
(2) The other story was that Alexander never accepted Mormonism so Ann brought her family to America in 1856 under the L.D.S. Perpetual Emigration Fund after she and some of her children joined the Church who were old enough.It was not known whether Ann divorced Alexander or just left him in Scotland.The death date in the family records is 1860, but no actual death records for Alexander in Scotland has been uncovered by research.”
The LDS Church Historical Department has assisted me in researching most of the available records of the church for Alexander Gardner and has given me the following report:
1. LDS BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA: A reference to him with Ann Knox Gardner.
2. EARLY LDS MEMBERSHIP:Nothing
3. HISTORIAN’S OFFICE RECORD OF MEMBERS- to some early members, CR 100 33- reel 5: Nothing.
4. CROSSING PLAINS INDEX: Nothing except for Ann Gardner and five children who crossed the plains with Daniel D. McArthur Handcart Company.
5. CROSSING OCEAN INDEX: Nothing except for Ann Gardner and five children sailed on the ship, Enoch Train 22 Mar 1856.
6. EARLY CHURCH INFORMATION FILE: FHL Reel 23, Nothing
7. PATRIARCHAL BLESSINGS: Nothing.
There was nothing found on him in Utah.If he did go to America in about 1853, it was probably not with any church emigrant group, or to Utah, but he might appear on some 1853 list of some ship arriving into some American port, such as New York, Boston or Philadelphia.
ALEXANDER GARDNER DID NOT PERISH ON THE STEAMBOAT, SALUDA!
The Steamboat Saluda started for Council Bluffs with Mormon emigrants and upon arrival at Lexington, Mo., April 9, 1852, her boilers exploded killing 27 and wounding many more.The children of some of the victims were adopted by residents of Lexington and grew up to be respected citizens.-----The Machapella Cemetery, Lexington, still contains graves of at least 25 victims.Ref. FHL, SLC, UT“Tombstone Inscriptions of Lafayette, Co., Mo.” By Marty Helm Brunetti, Call No. 977.8453 V3b V. 3. P. 4991.
LDS BAPTISM OF ANN GARDNER AND AGNES GARDNER IN SCOTLAND
MEMBERSHIP, GLASGOW BRANCH, 1847-1947
Mrs. Ann Gardner, Glasgow, Bonny Parish, Lanark Co., Scotland, b. 27 Apr 1805 at Glasgow- Baptized at Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland 21 Mar 1850 by T. Drummond.
Agnes Gardner; St. Georges Parish, born 20 Oct 1835, Glasgow, bapt. 25 Aug 1850, By L. Kirkwood.Confirmed 1 Sep 1850 by L. Kirkwood & I. Clemments.
ANN KNOX GARDNER MARRIED PETER GILLESPIE IN NOV, 1856 SETTLING IN TOOELE, UTAH.SHE LEFT GILLESPIE SHORTLY THEREAFTER AND WENT TO GOSHEN, UTAH TO LIVE.
PETER GILLESPIE, HISTORY OF THREE WIVES
MAXWELL FAMILY HISTORY
Robert McGavin and Janet Johnston had eight children; Janet and children joined the church 7 Aug1849 in the Glasgow Branch, Lanark, Scotland.All of the family joined the church except Robert.Janet divorced him and came to America.3 Dec 1859 Janet was sealed to Peter Gillespie.The book says Peter’s first wife died in 1856 and his second marriage (Ann Knox) had the sealing cancelled.Janet his third wife and all her children were sealed to him.He was 63 yrs. And she was 51.He died 20 Feb 1861, just been married little over one year.
Some Gardner sources have stated that Alexander Gardner married the widow of Peter Gillespie, but this is plainly not the case.
JOHN GARDNER’S LDS RECORD SEARCH
The LDS Church Historical Department also helped us do a search on John Gardner’s immigration to the United States from Scotland as follows:
Dear Mr. Grigg:
We received your letter about John Gardner. John Gardner came on the ship Falcon that left Liverpool on 28 March 1853. In the register for that ship in the mission office, the clerk indicated that he was living with Frederick Liffens at 31 Regent Street, Liverpool. The mission address was 15 Welton Street, Liverpool, England.
John Gardner came over on the Ship, Falcon with a regular LDS Immigration Company before the Perpetual Immigration Fund was established as will be attested to by the following information on the Falcon
Date of Departure: LDS Immigrants: Date of Arrival: Source(s):28 Mar 1853 Port of Departure: Liverpool, England 324 Church Leader: Cornelius Bagnail 18 May 1853 Port of Arrival: New Orleans, Louisiana
BMR, Book #1044, pp. 140-157 (FHL ~)25,690); Customs #204 (FHL #200,174)
Notes:"SIXTY-SIXTH COMPANY. -- Falcon, 324 Saints. The ship Falcon, with three hundred and twenty-four Saints on board, under the direction of Elder Cornelius Bagnail, sailed from Liverpool, England, on the twenty-sixth (or twenty-eighth) of March, 1853. After a successful voyage she arrived in New Orleans on the eighteenth of May. Four children died during the voyage, but the general health of the company was good. From New Orleans Elder John Brown, the Church emigration agent at New Orleans, accompanied the Saints up the river. They landed in St. Louis May 27th, and re-embarked for Keokuk the same day, arriving in the latter place in the beginning of June."
LDS BAPTISM OF JOHN GARDNER
Membership 1847- 1947, Glasgow Scotland District
First baptized 22 Jul 1849 by Matthew McKenzie, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland.
Rebaptism of John Gardner, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland, b. 22 Jul 1833, member, Baptized 2 Sep 1851 by D. Scruple, confirmed 9 Sep 1851 by R. Rowley and K. Pringle
John Gardner ordained a Teacher by Thomas Kirkwood, Glasgow, 5 Oct 1851.
John Gardner, Teacher moved to Renfrew, 12 Apr 1852.
The missionary who helped convert John Gardner was Elder David McReuzie, Salt Lake City, Utah.John was first baptized 22 Jul 1849.Elder McReuzie may have confirmed him 26 Jul 1849, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland.
We can plainly see that John Gardner could not have come to America before the above dates but he did come in the year 1853 on the ship Falcon.He was the first of his family to come to America as he left home for that purpose before any of the rest of his family.He was still in Scotland when the incident of the Saluda explosion took place in 1852 so it is pretty sure thing that his father did not perish on that steamboat.
Nothing is said about John working his way over to America, it shows he had the money somehow, and paid his fare and officially came with a group of saints.The record is silent on how John Gardner got from Keokuk, Iowa to the Salt Lake Valley in 1853.
Microfilm # 0104152, Membership, Glasgow Branch, Lanark, Scotland 1847- 1947.
Call No. 929.273 M451t Maxwell Family History- Arthur Maxwell, son of Ralph Maxwell Jr. and Isabella Barry McGavin, she was dau of Robert McGavin and Janet Johnston.
Dick Grigg, 965 Grand Ave., Nyssa, OR 97913, Ph. 541-372-2623 has a photo copy of the Falcon Ship’s manifest, FHL Film # 0025690, p. 143 which shows the Falcon to sail for New Orleans 23 March 1853 and shows John Gardner as the last entry on that page, Iron Fitter, age 19, acknowledged March 11th; Address at Frederick Liffens at 31 Regent Street, Liverpool, Deposit 100, balance paid ticket no. 51, transferred from page 121.
Microfilm #0104152, Membership 1847-1947, 1840- 1887, Glasgow Scotland District
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Re: What Happened to Alexander Gardner?
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Re: What Happened to Alexander Gardner?