My Grandfather Rawlins' sister, Leah Rawlins Day
History of Leah Rawlins Day, she was born 19 Sept 1827 at Green Co Ill. she was the daughter of James and Jane Sharp Rawlins. They came to Utah in 1848 and settled at Mill Creek. She was married to Henry Day 1 Jan. 1852 at Mill creek by Bishop Reuben Miller. they were endowned and sealed in the Endowment House Salt Lake City in 1861.
They came to Draper soon after their marriage, she suffered the hard ships of Pioneer life. Her husband was called to go as a gaurd at the time of the Indian troubles and she was left alone with her little children. When Johnstone's Army came into Utah they moved to Alpine, where her third child was born ther first girl. Later the troubles were settled they returned to their home in Draper where she remained the rest of her life. She like other Pioneer mothers did the spinning and weaving of cloth to clothe the family she was the mother of 7 children two of them died in infancy, she died at Draper 31 Aug 1866 leaving 5 small children. she died in full fellowship in the church of Jesus Christ, and the hope of a Glorous ressurection.
"Henry Day a Pioneer of 1850"
Henry Day one of the early pioneer of Utah was born 6 Feb 1824 in the Town of Limerick. He was the son of Henry Day, sr. and Nancy Eastman. He lived with his grandparents until he was ten years of age and then went out to work to help support his father's family until he was seventeen years of age. On the 3 Sept 1841 he left the State of Maine and started West and landed in Mississippi. there he worked on a platation for eight months at twenty one dollars per month, and he sent all his money but fifteen dollars to help pay for his father's farm. He then went to Cincinnati Ohio where he got work. While there he heard a Mormon Elder preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, for the first time On 3 Sept 1842 he started for Nauvoo in company with a member of the Mormon Church by the name of Elisha Turner. They arrived 1 Oct 1842. He was there hired to work in a livery stable and he often grooming the horse that the Prophet Joseph Smith used to ride. He often remarked that he cerainly made a noble figure mounted on a horse. He had some sort of majesty and imposing grandeur about him that seemed to inspire those who saw him. He there took up forty acers of land and built a house. He lived in that vicinity until 1844, at which time there was great excitement through out the country concerning the Mormon's Mr Day was then working on the road between Carthage and Warsaw, repairing a bridge that had washed out. While there he saw a large crowd gathering on the Pairie, out of that crowd some fifty-five or sixty men volunteered to go to the Carthage jail and murder the Prophet Joseph Smith, and the Brothern that were with him in jail.
The mob soon came plodding along the road behind a poor team of horses and an old dilapidated wagon, and in the back of the wagon they had a barrel of whiskey and a tin cup hanging on to the side. They were drinking whiskey and cursing and swearing and threating that they were going to kill "Joe Smith" and the Mormon's that were in the Carthage jail. When Mr Day heard their threats he stopped working on the bridge and would not complete it, but compelled the mob to go a long distance out of their way to get back on the road that led to the jail They cursed and swore at him because he would not let them cross the bridge but did him no harm. After they passed on he compleated the bridge, then went home. In about two hours the word came that the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum had been murdered by the mob.
Early the next morning 28 June 1844 Mr Day went to examine the jail where the Prophet was murdered. he there met a number of the brethern from Nauvoo who had come to get the bodies of the Prophet and his brother Hyrum, and take them back to Nauvoo.
In the winter of 1844 Mr Day chopped wood on the Mississippi bottoms to load steamboats. in July 1845 he took the fever and (ague) then he left Illinois and went to Wisconsin where he continued to be ill, untill the middle of October. he then worked at mining and other pursuits until he left for Utah.
On the 8 of April 1850 Mr Day went to St Joseph Missouri and bought an outfit and on the 8 of May he started for Utah. the same time he came the Great Emigration was going to California for (Gold) but he did not journey with any of them he had company all the way. some of the emigrants going to California because very disagreable with each other and made it very unplesant for traveling would fall out and divide up their out fits and what they could not take with them, they would burn they would say they would not want Mormons to get any of their things.
This was writen and given to the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers the Ebenezer Brown Camp. by Elnora Angeline Day Stringfellow a daughter of Henry Day.