Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Travel Tuesday ~ Thomas J Smedley Brings Home a Bride


S.S. City of Rome
About seven months after Thomas Joynes Smedley's first wife died he traveled back to England for the purpose of gathering genealogical information. The following article comes from LATTER-DAY SAINTS' MILLENNIAL STAR, Vol. 58, 1896, page 169:


ARRIVALS. --- The American Line Steamer Pennland arrived in Liverpool on March 5, having on board for the British Mission -- Alvin B. Kempton of Curtis, Arizona; George Humphreys of Paris, Idaho; Christopher Wilcock of Huntington, Utah; Robert Winn, Francis C. Sella, and John H. Brough, of Nephi, Utah.  Elder Thomas J. Smedley of Paris, Idaho, also came on the vessel, for the purpose of obtaining genealogical information.  The weather was quite stormy during three days of the voyage, but except this there was nothing unpleasant experienced.  All are well.
Little did he know he would find something more valuable while there - my great-grandmother!

Thomas arrived in Liverpool as mentioned above in March of 1896. He met Ida Buck of Hucknall Torkard in Nottinghamshire and asked her to return to Paris, Idaho with him and be his wife. They boarded the S.S. City of Rome from Glasgow, Scotland. (I haven't figured out how they got to Scotland yet) They arrived in New York Jun 01, 1896.

They traveled by train through Virginia, across to St. Louis, then to Denver, Cheyenne and to Montpelier, Idaho. They were married in the Logan Temple on June 25, 1896.  So you see, they didn't have a very long courtship at all.

The following excerpt is from a history entitled "Faith Promoting Incidents in the Life of Ida Buck Smedley".

In the year 1896 Brother Smedley was serving a short term mission in England. He asked me to return to Paris with him and become his wife. We landed in New York on Decoration Day.
All the time I was on the water I was ver seasick, and was very glad to reach New York. While on our way to America, our ship stopped at Novine. At this point there were three hundred Irish girls joined us in our trip to America. They were coming to America to find work.
Brother Thomas Smedley and I were untied in marriage in the Logan Temple, June 25, 1896. We were blessed with six children, Calvin, Lillian, Irva, Ella, Gertrude and Arnold.
Below is a photocopy of a List of Second Class Passengers per S.S. "City of Rome" that was in grandma Smedley's genealogy book.

 I don't know where she got this from or even who put it together.  I can't imagine the ship giving something like this to passengers.

Here is their listing from the actual passenger list:

click to enlarge
Source Citation: Year: 1896; Arrival; Microfilm Serial: M237;
Microfilm Roll: 
660; Line: 1.

Thanks great-grandpa for taking this trip! I don't think I'd be here if you didn't.




Leslie Ann

2 comments:

  1. Well I'm glad your great grandfather made the trip. Glad to have you here. Great story!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have to wonder what he said that made her say yes! That would have been a really big decision...he must have had a way with words. ;)

    ReplyDelete

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