Joseph Alexander Rees

Mormon Pioneer:

"...My father became quite wealthy in Wales. We were a happy and contended family, but my mother desired to come to Utah. Her great faith and her determination decided my father to sell everything. We sailed for America, arriving in Salt Lake City October 29, 1855. I can picture the scenery crossing the plains even now quite vividly—the buffaloes—thousands and thousands of them stampeding, causing loss of life, loss of cattle. I can almost hear the "Gee" the "Whoa" and the crack of the whip. We would scramble through the woods gathering wild grapes and eating luscious, ripe plums. The Indians, at times, were quite hostile. We children would gather the firewood while the grown folks did the cooking. A double guard was placed around our grazing herd to keep the buffaloes from mixing with the cattle. Our camp consisted of nine wagons. Evening and morning prayers were said. Cursing, swearing or vulgarity I did not hear during the entire journey. On, on we wended our way, now slowly traveling over the boundless prairies, climbing sand hills, crossing rivers, up steep mountains, down steep rough grades, winding through canyons, sage brush, snakes, vile insects everywhere, and at last entering the valley of Great Salt Lake. I felt the spirit of the pioneers, and in my boy heart felt as the Prophet Brigham Young did, "This is the place."..."

SOURCE: Rees, Joseph A., A Biography of Joseph A. Rees. Retrieved from http://www.lds.org/churchhistory/library/source/1,18016,4976-21907,...

Military Service:

name: Joseph A Rees date of death: 21 Mar 1922
place of death: Santaquin, Utah, Utah
date of birth: 14 Aug 1840 place of birth: cemetery: City place of burial: Spanish Fork, Utah, Utah military unit: William W Caspers Co Inf branch of service: Ut Ter Mil war: Blackhawk War gsu film number: 485502 dgs number: 4236720 image number: 00160 SOURCE: "Veterans with Federal Service Buried in Utah, Territorial to 1966," Joseph A Rees, 1922. Retrieved from: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FL51-SPK