PRISCILLA ANN SHEPHERD BARNEY BLACKHAM

Priscilla Ann Shepherd was the second child of Moses “Trader” Shepherd and Eliza Jane Adamson. She was born 4 May 1842 in Delaware County, Indiana. Moses joined the LDS church in November of 1846. The family traveled west with the saints, staying for several years in Council Bluffs, Iowa, then they journeyed across the plains to Salt Lake City, Utah. Priscilla walked most of the way - she was only 9 years old.

In 1852 her family was among the first settlers of the Utah area now know as Spanish Fork. Priscilla was very talented in many ways, especially in music and art.

When she was only about 15 years old she became the second wife (his first wife was Caroline - Polygamy was practiced) of Benjamin Franklin Barney. They had fifteen children. Elia Pearson Chavis, Priscilla’s grand-daughter, said her grandmother told her that Benjamin’s first wife was very kind to her, taught her a lot of valuable lessons in homemaking and better ways of doing things.

When Priscilla’s fourth child was born in 1865, a young woman who had recently arrived from Denmark came to work for them. Benjamin took her, Karen Nielsen as his third wife.

Priscilla and Benjamin had 15 children of whom 13 grew to maturity.

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 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.

Priscilla had to work very hard to make a scant living for her family. She carded wool and made rugs for sale. She spun and wove the wool for their clothing, sewing all by hand, and knitting all their stockings and scarfs. She did knitting for other people to earn money to buy necessities. After the farmers had harvested their grain, Priscilla took her children to the fields and gathered the wheat heads that were left with which to make flour. When a beef or hog was killed for meat, she stripped the fat from the waste and made soap for her own use as well as to sell.

Some time later Priscilla married a man named James Blackham. There is good indication that this was a happy marriage for her, but he passed away after only a few years.

She died 20 September 1916 at the age of 74. She is buried in Monroe City Cemetery.