As Sisters in Zion

This post is long, but it's an amazing story about my Grandpa's Grandma Martha and Harriett Campkin and their amazing story now published in the book, As Sisters in Zion.

Martha Webb was one of the many early converts to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day saints, but unlike many others she was not "one of a city and two of a family" to accept the gospel for two brothers and three sisters joined the Church and emigrated to Utah.

Martha was born in Litlington, Cambridgeshire, England, October 11, 1820. She was the daughter of DeGrass Webb and his wife, Mary Jackson. Martha married Isaac Campkin on February 13, 1847, and they located in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England where most of their six children were born. Isaac was a shoemaker and with his brother, George, had established a thriving business. They made excellent shoes. Martha assisted with the lining and binding.

When the gospel message was brought to them by the Mormon Elders, they accepted it and began to save money to come to Zion. They left England early in the spring of 1856 with five small children: Wilford George, age 8; Francessa, age 6; Harriet, age 4; Martha, age 2; and James Isaac, about six months. The oldest girl, Rebecca, was born on June 27, 1849 and died on April 21, 1852. This was shortly before they left England. She died from diphtheria.

They sailed from Liverpool, February 18, 1856 in the ship "Caravan". There were 454 Saints on board under the direction of Daniel Tyler. After five weeks on the ocean they arrived in New York on March 27, 1856.

Before leaving their home in England a missionary approached Isaac Campkin for a loan of $600.00. He promised to return the money by sending it to the Church Headquarters in New York or to personally have the money ready for them in New York when they arrived. The missionary failed, however, to keep his promise and never returned it. Years later Martha said she had only sympathy and pity for an Elder who would do such a thing, and that she would much rather be in her position than in his.

From New York they journeyed on to St. Louis, the gathering place for the European Saints on their way to Utah. Just two years before this a Stake of Zion had been organized in St. Louis. It consisted of six wards with a membership of 1810 persons.

Following is a paragraph from the St. Louis Luminary, a small L.D.S. paper dated February 3, 1855:

"St. Louis is a fine, large and flourishing city and has been a gathering place for our people from 10 to 15 years. There are few public buildings of any consideration in this city that Latter Day Saints have not taken an active and prominent part in creating or ornamenting. There are few factories, foundries or mercantile establishments but they have taken or are taking an active part in establishing or sustaining, either as employers, as artisans or as customers and there is probably more business done in this city than any other of the same magnitude in the world. Probably no city in the world where Latter Day Saints are more respected and where they may sooner obtain an outfit for Utah than in this city."

Isaac probably thought of establishing stores in St. Louis to replenish the funds lost by the Elder not returning the money he borrowed. Whatever his plans for the future, they were sadly changed for he contracted a severe cold which developed into pneumonia and in three days he passed away at the age of 33. He was buried in St. Louis.

Martha Webb Campkin                                                

Martha was a brave, courageous woman, full of faith and determined to be united with the Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. With five small children she left Iowa City on July 15, 1856, in one of the famous handcart companies under the command of James A. Willie. Progress was slow, due a great deal to the breaking down of handcarts. The cold weather came early in 1856 and it was soon necessary to ration the food supply. As the weary days passed the food supply was reduced until only one half pint of flour was allowed for each person a day.

John Chislett, a member of this company, who later became a prominent merchant of Salt Lake City, tells this incident:

"We traveled on in misery and sorrow day after day. Sometimes we made a pretty good distance, but at other times we were only able to make a few miles progress. Finally we were overtaken by a snow storm which the shrill wind blew furiously along. But we dared not stop for we had a sixteen mile journey to make on the Sweetwater, and short of that we could not get wood or water. As we were resting for a short time at noon, a light wagon was driven into our camp from the West. Its occupants were Joe A. Young and Stephen Taylor. They informed us that a train of supplies was on the way and that we might expect to meet it in a day or two. More welcome messengers never came from the courts of Glory than these two young men were to us. The captain went on ahead to meet them.

"One evening just as the sun was sinking beautifully behind the distant hills, on an eminence immediately west of our camp, several covered wagons, each drawn by four horses, were seen coming toward us. The news ran through camp like wildfire and all who were able to leave their beds turned out enmasse to see them. A few minutes brought them sufficiently near to reveal our faithful captain slightly in advance of the train. Shouts of joy rent the air; strong men wept till tears ran freely down their furrowed and sun-burned cheeks; and little children partook of the joy which some of them hardly understood, and fairly danced around with gladness.

"The brethren brought flour, potatoes, onions, and warm clothing, with quilts, blankets, etc., which were divided and given where most needed.

"That evening, for the first time in quite a period, the songs of Zion were to be heard in camp and peals of laughter issued from the little knots of people, as they chatted around the fire. A change seemed almost miraculous, so sudden it was from grave to gay, from sorrow to gladness, from mourning to rejoicing. With the craving of hunger satisfied and with hearts filled with gratitude to God and our good brethren, we all united in prayer then retired to rest."

They reached Salt Lake City on November 9, 1856. Martha and her children found a home with her brother in law, George Campkin and his family. She was proud and independent and in return for their kindness she shared with them her fine linen which she had brought from England.

In the spring of 1857 she married Thomas Young. They lived first at Bountiful, Utah. They took part in the "move South”, going as far as American Fork where they remained for three months, then returned to Bountiful. Later they moved to a farm north of Willard, Box Elder county, and in 1860 to a farm in Three Mile Creek, now Perry, where my mom and dad still reside. Their home for many years was a camping place for travelers.

Thomas Young

Martha was a good cook and housekeeper and did all work incident to pioneer life. She made straw hats for her family, and also for sale. The oldest girl, Francessa, did most of the spinning. Martha did most of the dyeing. The girls did the washing, ironing, scrubbing, etc. Generally Martha washed dishes in the morning, Harriet at noon, and Francessa at night.

Most of Martha's time was spent in her home with her family, though she took part in public and religious affairs. The people would take turns in giving dances, pay for the fiddlers, and taking them home for supper at intermissions, which was usually midnight. On one occasion when they were giving a dance the mother had prepared most of the supper before going to the dance. She told the children to stay up and cook the potatoes. Francessa was reading to the children to keep them awake when suddenly there was a tap, tap, tap on the window. The children were so frightened they did not want to move even to prepare the supper. When the parents returned the potatoes were not cooked. They assured the children it was only some boys playing pranks. Since Francessa was the oldest she was allowed to go back to the dance. Harriet and Martha did the dishes, and were glad to go to bed after the dishes were finished.

A great sorrow came to this brave woman in the accidental death of her oldest son, Wilford, who met his death by being run over by a team of horses while taking a load of hay to Corinne in January 1879.

After Martha’s marriage to Thomas Young she became the mother of three more children, a daughter, Fannie, and two sons, Thomas Harvey and Albert Herbert.

The last years of Martha's life were spent with her daughter, Harriet and family. Martha died on January 31, 1898, at the age of seventy four years. Her funeral was held on February 3, 1898, at the Perry meeting house. She was buried in the Brigham City Cemetery.

Martha's Grandson, which is also Harriett's son George Wallace, with his son and my Grandpa D Ross.

Carli is the 7th generation granddaughter of a pioneer in the Willie Handcart Company reading a book published about her great grandma.

                                         

  

                               Austin Thomas Jensen (named after Thomas Young)    

                                   

It took one missionary meeting in 1848 for Emily Hill to know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was true. It was four years before she was baptized against her family's will. Another four years to save money to join the saints in Utah. Six weeks on the Thornton ship and five grueling months in the Willie Handcart Company in 1856 to arrive in the Salt Lake Valley.

And it took more than 130 years for a promise a priesthood blessing Emily Hill received to be fulfilled.

In the recently-released book, "As Sisters in Zion: The Story Behind the Song," author Debbie J. Christensen delves deep into the lives of Emily and Julia Hill, two sisters from southern England, and the widow Martha Campkin and her five children in the 1850s.

Christensen's extensive research gives life to a story that has lain dormant for many years.

Emily was a gregarious 12-year-old girl who readily accepted the gospel when her cousin, Miriam, invited her to hear the Mormon missionaries. Emily's older sister Julia gained a strong testimony soon after. The sisters remained faithful over the years despite their family's disapproval and forbidding missionary contact.

However, prior to the missionaries' departure in 1848, a member named John Halliday was brought by to give young Emily a priesthood blessing.

She was told in her blessing that if she remained faithful to her testimony of Jesus Christ throughout her life, she "would write in prose and in verse and thereby comfort the hearts of thousands."

Little did she know that her poem would touch millions.

Back in 2000, Christensen was preparing for a ward trek in Provo and was encouraged to find her ancestors. She knew Emily Hill was her great-great-grandmother, but while doing further research, Christensen discovered that Emily penned the words to the beloved song "As Sisters in Zion." Emily wrote the poem 13 years after arriving in Salt Lake about her experience with "her own sisters in Zion."

"The priesthood blessing given to Emily about touching thousands with her prose is fulfilled every time we sing this song," said Christensen. "I felt obligated to write it. I know that if a faithful priesthood holder gives a blessing to a faithful recipient, the blessings will always be fulfilled. This one was fulfilled more than 100 years later."

Emily Hill's poem remained in the LDS Church archives until the 1980s when those putting together the new hymnbook searched for a song for the Relief Society women, Christensen said. They found Emily's poem and had Janice Kapp Perry write music to accompany the poem, making "As Sisters in Zion" the theme song for women worldwide, Christensen added.

For the last 11 years, Christensen has been documenting all of her discoveries in a diary, which are full of inspiring testimonies and stalwart examples of faith and endurance. In "As Sisters in Zion: The Story Behind the Song," Christensen spares no detail of the hardships and miracles that the Hill sisters and Campkin experienced on their travels to Utah.

Campkin and her five children were told not to make the trek so late in the season — the weather and her physically demanding haul would make the trip difficult for this widowed woman. However, Emily and Julia stepped up and volunteered to join this family, care for the children and take turns pulling the cart.

Together these women and children traveled more than 1,300 miles to the Salt Lake Valley, all surviving. This intimate book captures the essence of what women in the church are capable of when they rely on each other and genuinely serve.

The women profiled truly understood their purpose and responsibility as the verse says, "The errand of angels is given to women, and this is a gift, that, as sisters we claim; to do whatsoever is gentle and human; to cheer and to bless in humanity's name."