Elva Lauree Whittaker

Elva Lauree Dalton, daughter of Charles Robert Dalton and Virginia Peterson. Born 13 July 1908, at Circleville, Piute, Utah. Married Earl Rexford Whittaker, 14 July 1926. Died 26 April 1980. Buried at Circleville; stone reads: "An artist who created beauty in a garden, her home, and the human heart".

Blessed 1 November 1908, by James E. Peterson; baptized by Charles R. Dalton and confirmed by Arthur M. Peterson, 22 July 1916.

1920: Living in Circleville; attended school in 1919; can read and write.

3 August 1939:

Ira Stormes Women's Relief corps No. 6, auxiliary of the G.A.R., met Thursday at the home of Mrs. Lola Smoot of Circleville. Plans for the meting of girls of the junior corps, under the direction of Mrs. Ina Chamberlain, for the purpose of organizing a drum and bugle corps were submitted, and the charter will soon be applied for. Mrs. McKinley Morrill was initiated into the organization at the June meeting. Mrs. Earl Whittaker applied for a transfer to a Salt Lake City corps. The next meeting will be held at the home of Mrs. Anna M. Long, on August 24, at Marysvale.

21 November 1941:

Mrs. Edna Peterson, who lives in Salt Lake City, is here visiting friends and relatives. She is staying at the home of her niece, Mrs. Rex Whittaker.

Biographical Sketch of Elva Lauree Dalton:

Elva was born on 13 July 1908 at Circleville, Utah. She was the fifth child of nine children. When she was nine years old her mother died. Her father married a women named Amy Robinson. The children called her Aunt Amy. She was very hard on the children and they didn't like her very much. Rex, Elva's husband, tells about their school days. He said, "They'd ring the bell to come in to school and we'd all get in line in front of the old school house and each grade would march in. Elva and Louisa Dalton would sit out on the woodpile and drill each other in spelling all during recess. They were the best spellers in the school." Elva was a couple of grades behind me. She'd take the younger kids out back of the school into the sagebrush and clear off a place and play school and teach them. She always wanted to be a school-teacher. Elva was quite a speller. She and her cousin, Louisa, would be the last ones up when they'd have a spelling bee. Elva married Earl Rexford Whittaker (Rex) when she was 18. They dated regularly for a few months. Rex Said, "On Sunday I'd go down to her house, invite myself to supper, and stay to talk to her. Elva was always fixing supper, and her stepmother (Aunt Amy) would scold her for serving me her best." Elva's family didn't eat well, except the adults. Elva was in charge of milking the six cows and doing the dairy work. She left home to go to Salt Lake City, Utah to earn enough money so that she could go to school. She worked there for a family who owned a jewelry store, caring for their children, under very strict circumstances. Rex came to Salt Lake City and proposed to her. While in Salt Lake City he took her to Salt Air, Elva spent most of her money to get her hair done, but it rained. Through out Elva's life she had to have her hair fixed just right. It was one of the few pleasures of life that she splurged on. They were married on the 14 July 1926, one day after her birthday. The day that they got home to the ranch, Elva went to work in the kitchen cooking for the hired hands. Elva cooked for the men from that day on, a large crew in the summer and the hired men all winter. She became a famous cook and it was easier to hire and keep men to our place because they liked her bread and pies. Part of a man's pay was the food and lodging. Pay for a month was about $60. 00. To manage all this and the house, Elva would get up at 4 a.m. and do the day's washing, on the washboard. She would hang out the liens and clothing and have breakfast ready by 7 a.m. so the men who were hired would start work at 8 a.m. Breakfast was fresh-baked baking powder biscuits, bacon and eggs, sometimes beef. She kept a spotless house, had a teen age daughter who didn't help much about the ranch and two little boys seven months apart. Rex relates this experience. One time we got on some horses and went down to the Meadow to get some cattle. Elva got saddle sores and claimed she was no cowgirl. We made it to the Meadow and back, but she never liked long rides after that. She'd sooner ride in a car's seat! They claimed that flowers couldn't grow near the ranch house, but Elva raised every kind there. She built a rock garden, a sunken lily pond, arbors and planted fruit trees. She completely landscaped the yard. Owen Applegate, who was going to school in landscape design and needed a project to work on, came and asked if Elva would let him help her design it. Elva knew all about what she wanted, and he and she designed the yard together, putting in Elva's wishes, as she knew should go where. She had a drinking fountain at the end of the rock garden, which became a rock waterfall running down a series of ponds. She was famous all over the state. She'd take her water turn in the middle of the night to get water for her yard. Rex relates this experience.

We hadn't been married long when we went up to the Steen Meadow to bring some cattle down. We led a horse beside the car on the way up there. Elva asked me how we were going to get the car back home. "I can't drive a car," she said. So I said it was a good time to learn! She got in and drove around the Meadow an hour or so, learning to steer and start and stop. Finally I said she could go on down the canyon towards home, the roads were quite narrow and I wanted her ahead of me. She said she made it to Alburn Allen's Ranch two miles away where he was thumbing a ride. She stopped for him and said if he wanted to take a chance on his life, he could get in, so he did. They drove into Kingston where Elva let him off at his home, and she drove on home, Ever since then she has been an expert driver. Elva had many problems with her health most of her life. She had many major operations. She had migraine headaches for the most part of her married life. With all her sicknesses she kept a spotless house and still worked in her yard, which she loved to do. She had the most beautiful yard in town even when the family moved from the ranch house to a house in town. She had planned for years to build her dream house. Rex came home one day and said that he had bought a house in town that was already built. It was a major disappointment in her life. They had already started buying the bricks for her dream house. Elva enjoyed teaching and worked as a teacher in the Primary Organization for over 25 years. Arthur and Mardell set up benches in the basement and invited young people their age to have Elva read classic stories like The Robe to us all. Many years later Michael Gottfredson commented on how much he enjoyed Elva's discussing and reading the books to us all.

During the last years of Elva's life Rex spent much time taking care of her as she was very sick. Elva died on 26 April 1980 in the Panguitch Hospital.

Birth: State of Utah File No. 38. Copy : Circleville Ward Record #25870 #628.

Baptism: Circleville Ward Record #25870 #628.

Marriage: License #46 County of Piute;

Endowment: TIB Copy #1875 Book D-Living, Page 96.

Death: Death Certificate State of Utah, File #143-80002797. Garfield Panguitch Hospital