BENJAMIN BARNEY

Benjamin Franklin Barney was born 12 March 1832 in Springfield, Illinois. He was the son of Charles Barney and Deborah Riffie Street.

On one occasion, Benjamin, while still quite a young man, had to leave his family down Spanish Fork way, and go to Salt Lake to take produce for sale and pick up needed supplies . On his way back, he suddenly heard a war whoop and a party of Indians bore down upon him. He whipped up the horses, but they couldn’t outrun their pursuers, so he slipped into Utah lake and remained quiet until the Indians grew weary, probably thinking their quarry had drowned, and departed. When he was sure they had gone, he crept back to the shore and continued his journey.

Benjamin settled in Spanish Fork, Utah where he homesteaded. He helped build ditches and roads on the farms. He was an Indian war veteran, having been in the Black Hawk and Walker wars. He was a farmer, fruit grower and stock raiser.

Benjamin was a polygamist.

He married Caroline Beard Tippets on 27 April 1849. She was 23 years old.

He married Priscilla Ann Shepherd 8 April 1857. She was 15 years old

He married Karen Nielsen on 7 December 1865. She was 21 years old

When the Mormons outlawed polygamy in 1990. Benjamin had to chose one wife to keep. He chose his third wife Karen and the other two were left to fend for themselves..

Caroline remained in Lakeshore, Utah.

Priscilla and her 10 children were moved to a two room house with a dirt roof in Monroe, Utah.

Benjamin and Karen moved to Annabella, Utah where they started a dairy farm.

He died on 7 December 1904.