John Prichard Squire

                   John Prichard Squire - My 2nd Great Grandpa
                   Essay written by Loren D. Squire, my grandpa

                                     Born: 30 March 1824
                                      Died: 25 April 1872

John Prichard Squire was born March 30, 1824, in Bainbridge, Geauga County, Ohio. He was a son of Aaron and Elizabeth Prichard Squire. He kept a journal or diary, from the age of 21 when he left his home in Ohio.

Lorenzo Snow, born in Manua, Ohio, April 3, 1814, became an early convert to the Mormon Churtch in Kirtland, Ohio, 1836, and began missionary work in his neighborhood. Among the families he visited was the Squire family in nearby Bainbridge. He converted John P. Squire and his older sister Harriet, who became one of Lorenzo Snow's wives.

John P. Squire came to Utah with the Lorenzo Snow Company, arriving in Salt Lake City, September 22, 1848. At the October conference in 1849, Lorenzo Snow was called to open up the mission in Italy. He hired John P. Squire to take care of his families during his absence. He returned from his mission August 30, 1852.

October 1, 1852, Mr. Squire left the employ of Lorenzo Snow and left for Manti, where he built a one-room log cabin for the purpose of opening a school, which he did December 13, 1852.

A couple of weeks after opening the school, Mr. Squire married Adelia DeMill, December 31, 1852. She was the daughter of Freeborn and Ann Knight DeMill, who was born in Jackson County, Missouri, September 19, 1832. This school room became their home, where they moved the school benches out after school and beds for family living.

This journal states that he taught school in this building until February, 1856, when illness forced him to close down. He died April 25, 1872, at the age of 48. They were the parents of 8 children -- 2 had died, leaving Mrs. Squire a widow with six children to raise. Mrs. Squire also raised 2 grandchildren whose mothers had died at his birth, and Alice Squire, a daughter of Oliver, the youngest son.


I (the author of this story) started school in Manti the fall of 1904, and got the job of getting the kindling wood and coal (when they had it) in for Widow Squire after school each night. She was 62 when I started this job and I did it for several years. I used to play with a sword that hung in a metal scabbard from a peg in the wall. My arms were not long enough to draw the sword without dropping the scabbard to the floor. Widow Squire said her father, Freeborn DeMill, had brought it all the way across the plains to Manti, as it was the one his father Garrett DeMill owned and used in the Revolutionary War, while he served in Duchess County, New York Militia, under the command of Colonel Abraham Brinkerhoff.

Loren DeLance Squire

Loren DeLance Squire 93, died Wednesday July 24, 1991 at his home in LaVerkin.

Born January 2, 1898 in Manti, Utah, a son of John Prichard and Christina Canny Kenney Squire. He married Amelia Sanders October 22, 1918 in LaVerkin, Utah; marriage later solemnized in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. Loren was reared and educated in Manti, Utah. He moved to Hurricane, Utah in 1917 where he met Amelia. They made their home in LaVerkin, where they raised fruit and children, seven boys and two girls. He was an active member of the LDS Church, serving in many capacities, including two times as bishop. Very active in community affairs; he served as Justice-of-the-Peace, Town Clerk, town Board member, and was elected Mayor three times.He became a member of the Utah Highway Patrol in 1933, retiring after 25 years as a Sargeant in 1964. He was elected to the House of Representatives, representing Washington County for three terms. He was also elected to a four year term in the state senate. Following retirement, he spent time on genealogy reasearch and writing. Loren loved farming, winning many blue ribons for his produce. He enjoyed hunting and fishing.

Survivors include his wife, Amelia, LaVerkin; sons, DeLance W., Orem; Phil E., St. George; Don S., Hurricane; DuWayne G., Bountiful; Jerald P., Buena Vista, Colo.; Adrien J., Bountiful; and Scott O. Squire, Orem; daughters, Mrs. Jim (LoRene) Turner, Las Vegas, Nevada; Mrs. Alan (Sandra) Howard, Leeds; also surviving are 50 grandchildren; 84 great-grandchildren. Preceded in death by an infant daughter in 1930.

Funeral services will be held Saturday July 27, 1991, 1 p.m. at the LaVerkin Stake Center, 481 North Main, LaVerkin. Friends may call Friday 7-8 p.m. at the Spilsbury-Desert Rose Mortuary in Hurricane, 525 West State Street, and also on Saturday at the LaVerkin Stake Center from 11:30 to 12:30. Burial, LaVerkin City Cemetery.

~Published in the Deseret News 26 June 1991

Squire Reunion 2012

It’s almost time for the SQUIRE FAMILY REUNION!!!

WHERE:  West Jordan Outdoor Pool (reserved just for our family)

8125 South 2200 West, West Jordan

WHEN:    Saturday, June 30, 6:15 p.m.-8:15 p.m.

It will be so much fun, and it will be great to be together again. 

Please let me know if you have any questions.  See you soon!

Love you, Sheralee

Missionary Experience of Joseph Edward Gubler, Sr.

MISSIONARY EXPERIENCE OF JOSEPH EDWARD GUBLER, SR.

Written by his granddaughter, Helen Gubler Squire

(As told to me by my parents, Joseph Edward and Thora Wilson Gubler, 1977)

This spiritual missionary experience of my grandfather, Joseph Edward Gubler, Sr., happened while he was in the mission field while traveling without purse or script in Mississippi. This experience happened near the end of his mission in the year 1906 and was told to my grandmother and to my father, who was eleven years of age when grandfather returned home.

This experience bears record to the truthfulness of the scripture found in Doctrine and Covenants Section 24 Verse 18, "And thou shalt take no purse or script, neither staves, neither two coats, for the church shall give unto thee in the very hour what thou needest for food and for raiment and for shoes and for money and for script."

My grandfather and his companion had been traveling for several days in the farming country where the homes were few and far between and they had many rejections and doors slammed in their faces and had been unable to obtain any shelter or food and nourishment of any kind. They were very weak and discouraged since they were tracting in an area in Mississippi which was very hostile and bitter towards the Church.

As they were walking down one of these country lanes, my grandfather and his companion went down into some bushes by the side of the road and knelt down and proceeded to pour out their hearts to the Lord, explaining their need for nourishment and telling the Lord of their desire to serve Him, but explained that the were very weak and were in desperate need of food to give them strength to go on. They then arose and as they came onto the road, they noticed a white object in the middle of the road. When they got to it, they picked it up and found it to be a warm loaf of bread wrapped in a white dish towel. He said, "I don’t ever remember anything tasting so good!" They gave praise to their Heavenly Father for this miracle and went on with renewed hope and vigor!

Grandfather had packed the dish towel in his suitcase and after returning home, my Grandmother, Mary Amelia Hunt Gubler, began unpacking for him. When she came across the dish towel, she exclaimed. "Joe, where did you get this dish towel?" He then related this account to her. Grandmother then related this story: "I had baked several loaves of bread that day and had taken them out of the oven and placed the loaves on the window sill to cool with the dish towel covering them to keep the flies off the bread. I then went out on some errands and upon returning noticed that a loaf of bread, along with the dish towel, was missing. I thought someone had come along who had need of bread, and since I was not home, had gone ahead and taken it and would return the dishtowel later and explain their need. I then put it out of my mind and never thought any more about it until now, two months later, having found the same dishtowel in your suitcase."

As a postscript to this, while we (DuWayne and Helen Squire) were on one of our trips down to LaVerkin, we attended a fast and testimony meeting where I, Helen Gubler Squire, stood and bore witness to this experience of my Grandfather. After I sat down, a stranger stood up and related that he was from a town in Idaho and was on vacation and wanted to attend sacrament meeting. They happened to be in the area so they had joined their war. He went on to say how thankful he was to have attended the LaVerkin Ward meeting because, he said, his father was Joseph E. Gubler’s companion when this incident occurred. He said he had heard his father tell this story several times. This was yet another witness to this missionary miracle.

LaVerkin's First Christmas

                                                LaVERKIN’S FIRST CHRISTMAS
                                                        by Sarah Wilson Sanders

The LaVerkin LDS Ward was organized on June 22, 1904 with Morris Wilson, Jr. as bishop. A rock schoolhouse, built in 1905, also served as a recreation hall and church building. A committee composed of Bishop Morris Wilson, Relief Society President, Hattie Woodbury, Primary President Sarah A. Sanders, and MIA President, Minnie Wilson, planned the first LaVerkin Christmas party and program in 1904. Bishop Wilson hauled a cedar tree from the foothills. The butt of the tree was thrust into the hub of a wagon wheel, which served as a stand. The committee decorated the Christmas tree with threaded popcorn, popcorn balls, colorful homemade paper chains, and wax candles. They brought mosquito netting from the Isom store in Virgin City and made bags that were crammed with nuts and candy as presents for the children. They invited Jim Cornelius of Virgin City to ride down and act as old Santa. The people attending the first Christmas party were the families of Bishop Morris Wilson, Joseph Gubler, Henry Gubler, William Sanders, George Jones, William Hardy, Arthur Woodbury, George Judd, and Allen Stout. The eyes of the children sparkled when the candles were lit and the program was presented. Then Santa appeared to distribute the sacks of candy and nuts. His beard caught fire while he was removing the candy from the tree. Mrs. Joseph Gubler began to claw the burning cotton from Old Santa and scratched his face. Although Santa lost his disguise, no serious injury was caused and everyone enjoyed the party like one big happy family.

Adelia DeMille Squire

               Adelia DeMille Squire - My 2nd Great Grandmother

                                  Born: 27 September 1832
                                  Died: 17 December 1917

Adelia DeMille Squire was born September 27, 1832 in Missouri. Her parents were among some of the first to join the Mormon Church. They experienced the early sufferings and persecutions of that people. They were driven from Nauvoo at the time of the exodus.

She crossed the plains in 1850, driving an ox team most of the way. She arrived at Manti the same fall and has been a good citizen ever since. She was married to John P. Squire, December 31, 1852. She has been a widow for 47 years and was the mother of eight children of whom four survive here. Besides rearing her own children she has reared two grandchildren. Of her posterity there are 17 grandchildren, 51 great-grandchildren and one great-great grandchild. The funeral was held in the Tabernacle at 3 p.m. Sunday. The speakers were Ezra Showmaker, Francis M. Cox, George E. Bench, Bishop N.R. Peterson. The pallbearers were six grandsons. Besides the relatives residing in Manti, her two children O. E. Squire and Eliza Winget of Monroe were present, grandchildren, Orson Allen of Salt Lake, Mrs. and Mrs. Milton Doxford of Austin, Luther Winget and wife of Monroe, Elmer Winget and wife of Austin, Ruby Squire of Monroe, Mr. and Mrs. Mark Waters of Richfield, Mrs. Leone Johnson of Salt Lake and son-in-law, Cyrus Winget of Monroe.
-The Manti Messenger, December 28, 1917 (Obituary)

                                      Another excerpt on Adelia Demille from Findagrave.com

In December 1833, when Adelia was only 1 year old, they were driven from their home by a mob to Clay County. In 1839, when Adelia was about 7, they were driven to Quincy, IL, and to other places. In 1842, they went to Nauvoo where they stayed until 22 April, 1846. Adelia was 14 when they were driven out of Nauvoo.
On the 26th of May, they arrived at Mt. Pisgah (Iowa) where they resided until 1850. Then they started for the Great Salt Lake Valley and arrived in Manti, Sanpete Co, UT on November 5, 1850. Adelia was just 18 and walked all the way across the Plains and drove the oxen team.