Reuben Perkins

Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel 1847–1868 Allen Taylor Company (1849) Approximate age at departure: 66

Author: Brigham Young Perkins

Text: My grandfather, Reuben Perkins, oldest son of Ute and Sarah Gant Perkins, was born in North Carolina, Lincoln County, March 1, 1783, and was raised in South Carolina. He married Elizabeth Patillo, June 15, 1802. She was the daughter of Littleton Patillo and Elizabeth Perkins, born November 10, 1782. There was born to them seven sons. My Granfather, Reuben Perkins, was Baptized in Grundy County, Mo., July 11, 1848; grandmother, his wife, in the same place soon after. They emigrated with the Saints to Council Bluffs, Iowa, and then to the "Valley of the Mountains", where they arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah, October 18, 1849. Here they lived during the winter, moving to South Bountiful, Davis Co., October 30, 1850. He was ordained a High Priest under the hands of Pres. Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball. Grandmother died December 30, 1863 in South Bountiful, in full faith of the Gospel. She was buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery, Jan. 1, 1864. In stature, Grandfather was a large man and weighed over 200 lbs. He was a very kind man in his nature and disposition. He died at his home in South Bountiful in full faith of the Gospel, and in the hope of a glorious resurrection, October 22, 1871. He was buried in the Old Salt Lake City Cemetery, October 25, 1871, making his age eighty-eight years, seven months. A monument marks the spot.

Added by Brad York

An intersting part of the story of this ancestor is that he was a slave owner when he arrived in Salt Lake. He "owned" a family of eight. A father and mother, whose names are not recorded and three boys, Wesley, Isaac, and Ben, and three daughters, Sarah, Mary, and Downey. The children were all sent to school along side with the "white" boys and girls in South Bountiful. A Josephine Doman tells of a story (as recorded in the DUP records) that one day Ben was sold away from the Perkins family to two merchants in Salt Lake City by the names of Kinkaid and Livingston. These merchants came to the school yard and picked Ben up and drove off, leaving all the children, both his black siblings and the white children, sad and depressed. Josephine tells us in her story that the family was freed when President Lincoln emancipated all slavery.

• Updated from Find A Grave Memorial via brother William Gant Perkins by SmartCopy: Mar 2 2015, 17:42:32 UTC

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http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=25526561

Reuben Perkins, oldest son of Ute and Sarah Gant Perkins, was born in North Carolina, Lincoln County, March 1, 1783, and was raised in South Carolina. He married Elizabeth Patillo, June 15, 1802. She was the daughter of Littleton Patillo and Elizabeth Perkins, born November 10, 1782.

There was born to them seven sons. Reuben Perkins, was Baptized in Grundy County, Mo., July 11, 1848; his wife, in the same place soon after. They emigrated with the Saints to Council Bluffs, Iowa, and then to the "Valley of the Mountains", where they arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah, October 18, 1849. Here they lived during the winter, moving to South Bountiful, Davis Co., October 30, 1850. He was ordained a High Priest under the hands of Pres. Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball. Elizabeth died December 30, 1863 in South Bountiful, in full faith of the Gospel. She was buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery, Jan. 1, 1864. In stature, Reuben was a large man and weighed over 200 lbs. He was a very kind man in his nature and disposition. He died at his home in South Bountiful in full faith of the Gospel, and in the hope of a glorious resurrection, October 22, 1871. He was buried in the Old Salt Lake City Cemetery, October 25, 1871, making his age eighty-eight years, seven months. A monument marks the spot.

Reuben Perkins