Margaret was born May 2, 1897 in Tooele, Utah. Her parents were James James and Hattie Chappell Gillette. She was the second daughter and her siblings were: Naomi Chappell, Samuel Gillette and John Ellis. She was given her earthly name and blessing by Apostle Francis M. Lyman.
Her father worked in business with his father James David James and brothers building houses along James Street (currently North 2nd West Street). They had several charcoal kilns in Settlement Canyon and provided charcoal to many smelters in the area. They were successful in many enterprises.
When she was quite young the family moved to a ranching area of southern Idaho where her father became a sheep rancher. This was known as "Ivins" and was a very small settlement adjacent to the "Chesterfield community" north and east of the town of Bancroft. The Union Pacific railroad ran through the area and there was a small station that was called "Alexander". This was the main railroad line and was full of traffic that ran from Portland to Chicago. The ranch was located on the old Oregon Trail that passed through the area which consisted of a very wide valley surrounded by low hills and not much timber. The winters were very severe and the wind created snow drifts higher than the fences. This made travel difficult and the children had to ride horses to the one room school.
he and her sister Naomi (Nonie) were very close and became best friends as well as sisters. She was baptized June 8, 1905.
The family home was a large two story frame house with a pond in the back yard. There were outbuildings and sheds that were necessary in the sheep ranching business. The two girls shared a bedroom on the second floor.
There was no heat and the windows were not covered. They would huddle together and share a "hot rock" that kept their bed warm through the night. There was a chamber pot under all the beds that was a predecessor to indoor plumbing and kerosene lamps to provide light after dark. Part of the chores the girls did was to empty the pots, trim the wicks, and refill the lamps every day. Once when the two of them were young they went to a friend's house to play, and they did as youngsters do today and went to their friend's bed room. They began jumping on the bed, the bed broke, and they never fixed it. She used this as an example, for the rest of her life, to never jump on the bed.
When she was young she wore her hair long and loved to dress up in fancy clothes. She always wished she had learned to play the piano when she had the opportunity.
Because she was small in stature, she was the favorite of her uncles and aunts when they traveled back to Tooele for visits. While on these visits her Grandmother Naomi Gillette loved to take her around the town to "show off" her lovely little granddaughter. The Gillette family showed their love for her by teasing her and taking her on special outings which included dancing at Saltair Resort and other favorite places of entertainment. Some of her favorite friends, that she enjoyed visiting, were ones she knew and played with when she came back to Tooele to stay with her Grandma Gillette.
She had many spiritual experiences, one of which happened several times while she was sleeping. She woke up in the night and saw a woman clothed in white standing by their bed with her arms folded watching them. She never moved or made any sound. Upon seeing this she ducked her head under the covers and snuggled up next to Nonie. One time Nonie awoke and saw the same figure and said, "What do you want Ma?" There was no reply and the girls ducked under the covers. Years later they commented that they couldn't remember seeing that person again. Margaret recognized the white clothing when she went to the temple many years later.
There were creeks and canals with clear water running throughout the area with pastures, and many of the ranches in the area had large herds of animals. She was walking with one of her friends a young daughter of the Gummersol family that owned a nearby ranch. On the path they had to cross an area full of quick sand, and a wooden bridge or plank had been used to prevent people from becoming caught in this dangerous hazard. While walking across this bridge, a plank came loose and she fell into the quick sand. Her friend ran and got help to pull her to safety. She was upset and worried because she would get in trouble when she got home as she was wearing Nonie's coat.
Her younger brother Sam reported that she used to sit on the oven door hoping to speed up drying her hair. It was reported that once he removed one of the round stove top lids and fire came out and burned her hair. He was in big trouble for this!
Nicknames were used frequently in her family. Naomi was called Nonie or Nona. Margaret found that some of her close family and friends who loved her tried to give her a nickname of "Maggie" which she didn't like. But some called her by that name anyway.
About this time Nonie met and married John Lewis Swenson and moved out of the family home. Thus Margaret was without the closeness of her sister.
When she was older she was called to the Stake Sunday School board and was required to travel over a large area. The Stake area included Wards in Soda Springs, Ivins, Bancroft, Chesterfield, Grace and other small settlements. She traveled by horseback, horse and buggy, and automobile when the weather was fine since there were no paved roads at that time. She was active in many church activities and early in her life developed a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She worked very hard to fill all church callings of which there were many.
There was a ranch close by theirs that was owned by a family by the name of Cornia. For a time they had a young man that was an extended family member by the name of Alma Larsen who came to work for them as a hired man. She met him and they became friends. He joined the army and they communicated afterwards by mail.
When she was nineteen she was called on a full time Mission to the North Western States Mission. She and her parents made the trip to Salt Lake City to the Temple where she received her endowments November 8, 1916. Her parents were sealed for time and eternity and she was sealed to them. At that time she was the only one of her siblings that was sealed to them. The sealing ordinance was accomplished later by or for all the other brothers and sister. The mission president at that time was Elder Melvin J. Ballard who later became a member of the council of the Twelve Apostles. She loved the areas she served in and the people that lived there. She served in Victoria, British Columbia and other places including Spokane, Washington.
After serving an honorable mission, she was released and returned home. She then went to Salt Lake City and enrolled in the nurse's training program at the L.D.S. Hospital. This school was in a large building adjacent to the hospital. While living there she was called upon to tend President Ballard's children and renewed the friendship that was formed in the mission field. The training ended in 1927 when she graduated and went to work full time for the hospital. She loved children and became the supervisor of the children's ward or pediatrics. With her last name being "James" it was only natural for all her friends to call her "Jimmie". About this time her friend Alma Larsen was back in Salt Lake after serving in World War one and had married and was divorced with two small sons. The oldest, Shirley Garr, stayed with his father while the younger one, Arthur McKinnon, lived with his mother in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Shirley lived with his father and grandparents in the Larsen family home in Salt Lake. Their relationship became serious and they were married on January 1, 1930 in Farmington, Utah. Thus Margaret became the stepmother to a nine year old boy that she grew to love dearly. A few months prior to their marriage Alma's father passed away so he became responsible for his mother's care as well as his new wife and son. Alma and Margaret went to the Salt Lake Temple on June 27, 1930 and were sealed together for time and all eternity and Shirley was sealed to them.
Margaret continued to work at the hospital and Al was working as a used car salesman. Their first child together was born on October 28, 1930. Her nurse friends met at the baby shower and the new baby's name was considered. It was decided the name should be decided by a majority vote. All the names were put in a hat and then drawn out to find the majority vote. Everyone had written "Jimmy" with one exception which was "Pierre" so the majority made the decision and that was his name. He was named "James A Larsen" and since he was premature required a lot of attention and care to start his life in the family. All of Margaret's nurse friends became his aunts and he was spoiled by them. Grandma Larsen was there and loved having a new baby in the home.
The next baby was born June 30, 1932, a daughter and was named after her mother and grandmother. She was named Margaret JoHanna Larsen; since there were others in the house with the same name she was called the English version of the same name (Joan). At this time Jim was learning to talk and he couldn't say baby so he called her buddy and much to her displeasure as a teenager the nickname stuck and from that time on the family and close friends still call her "Buddy".
For two years beginning in the fall of 1932 Margaret's nephew John Swenson (oldest son of her sister Nonie) came down to Salt Lake to attend junior high school. He found the large Irving Junior High quite a contrast to the small one room school he had attended in Ivins, Idaho. He enjoyed the life of the big city and was involved in the Boy Scouts. The Sugar House Ward scout troop #64 planned a super activity in the fall of 1933. There were 31 boys and the troop was divided into 5 patrols. The troop collected funds and the entire troop including adult leaders went on a two week trip by stake body truck to Yellowstone Park during the summer of 1934. The members of the beaver patrol were: Eugene Krantz, John Swenson, Gene Amundson, Shirley Larsen, Robert Bartlett and Charles Woodruff. George L. Crowther was the scout master and Al Larsen was the assistant scout master.
The third child was born on November 6, 1933 and was another son and was named Dean Gillette Larsen. He became the defender of the Larsen children in future years. Margaret went on with her nursing and Al with his selling used cars. There were friends of Margaret's that came to tend the children, Pearl and May Black. Grandma Hannah was there much of the time, though she was often out visiting the homes of her other children.
About this time she got a driver's license and took the car (1930 Chevrolet) on short trips around the city. A favorite trip was to the root beer stand where the children would enjoy the treat and Grandma Larsen called it "dirty water". She used the car to travel to Idaho to visit and care for her family. At the end of one of the Idaho trips she had her purse with her once on the streetcar and left her purse there. She lost her license and never got another. She decided never to drive again and she never did. She took the streetcar or the bus where ever she needed to go and did a lot of walking. She used to say when she left home that she was going to go on "shank's pony" which meant she was walking. She could out walk most of the family on her almost daily walks to Sugarhouse, there would be a stop a Woolworth's for a root beer as fortification for the walk back home.
She took the children to Idaho during the summers to visit and help her aging parents. Her father lost his hearing and his eyesight and her mother was happy to have the help during those months. Her father continued his active life and was able to go by himself to other ranches by following the fences and feeling his way. There was a lot of loud talk and yelling in order for him to hear the daily activities around the home. The children enjoyed life on a farm and didn't object to the time they were away from home. Al used this time to remodel the house during their absences. One trip to Idaho came when her Brother in law Lewis Swenson was burn severely and she was called to help in his recovery. He was in the hospital in Soda Springs under the care of Doctor Cackley who was the only doctor in the area. Her brother Sam had moved a small house into the town and it was an unfinished home. The children were with her and to them it was a holiday, since it was much like camping out. They had to enter and exit the house by walking on planks. They lived there almost all summer.
July 21, 1938 brought the last baby into the family. It was another boy and he was named Alan Boyd Larsen. He was a beautiful curly headed blond, blue eyed baby that became the darling of the family. A neighbor came to visit and told Buddy that they were here to trade babies and Buddy just about threw a fit because the other baby was a girl that had no hair. Boyd became Buddy's baby since she was just the right age to take over some of the mothering. This was a happy time for the family! There was a "great depression in the country. Jobs were scarce and money was tight. Most of the families in the neighborhood were poor but the children didn't know it.
Shirley graduated from South High School in 1938. There was a disagreement between Al and Shirley and since he couldn't find employment he joined the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps). This was federal project to employ men in public works projects around the country. They built camp grounds and improved national parks.
Margaret's father James James passed away on September 12, 1938 in Blackfoot Idaho and was buried on September 14, 1938 in Tooele, Utah. Her brother John Ellis lived on the ranch for a few years, but the ranch was sold and her mother moved to Soda Springs and eventually came to live in Salt Lake so Margaret could help take care of her.
While working in the Zion National Park in southern Utah in the summer of 1939 Shirley became ill with a severe stomach ache and high fever. He was taken in the back of a truck to the nearest hospital which was St. George. The medical staff called Margaret and Al to report his condition. He had appendicitis and is condition was so severe that they didn't operate. They had him packed in ice to make him comfortable since the appendix had ruptured. There were was no medication available at that time to stem the spread of the infection. Al and Margaret borrowed a car and traveled there as fast as possible. Margaret sat by his bedside, watched and heard him as he looked around the room and talked to unseen people. Once he told her not to worry the people were there to be seen only by him. This had her anxious because her medical experience told her what was to follow as once the appendix ruptures it is almost always fatal. It was only a matter of a few days when she called home to Salt Lake and told the family he had passed away. He died September 24, 1939, the viewing was at the family home and the funeral was in the new Bryan Ward meeting house.
She had a habit of talking to herself, she would do that when with members of the family and they learned of her concerns and worries by listening to her. She wished she had discussed with Shirley what went on while in the hospital. She was pleased that he had not had to serve in the army in World War II and possibly die in a far away country. At that time war had not involved our country, but there was a feeling that we would soon be involved. She once indicated to Buddy that Al had said he would like to be a farmer and she definitely said no to such a life.
In the early days of the war she spent most of her time at home with the children. She moved her mother to Salt Lake and tried to keep her in the home with the rest of the family; but eventually she placed her in nursing homes and spent a great deal of time there. Her mother's mind was not clear and many times she would mentally be back in her childhood. She talked of seeing Indians out the window in the yard surrounding the place she was in and talked of things that happened many years before. Margaret walked to the nursing home taking Boyd with her and bathed and helped her mother in anyway she could.
She served as the nurse of the neighborhood and the ward, was ready to help anyone that was in need, was really an angel of mercy. She was called as Primary President and was a visiting teacher that all the sisters enjoyed. Sewing was something she loved to do and even considered becoming a designer of children's clothes. World War II created many shortages and she was very good at remaking hand-me-downs and even making new clothes for the children. Buddy being the only girl had a new dress every Christmas and Easter. There was a Penny's store in Sugarhouse and she would be there standing in line to buy hard-to-get material for her sewing projects.
Fairmont Park was a favorite destination for family outings. It was a few blocks south of Sugarhouse, and she took the family there for picnics and there were dramatic and musical productions presented on a wooden stage. The audience sat on blankets to watch the program. Liberty Park was also a walking destination. Fireworks on the Fourth of July were presented there, and again they took blankets to sit on.
On April 10, 1946 her mother Hattie Chappell Gillette James passed away. The funeral was in Tooele and she was buried next to her husband in the Tooele cemetery.
Her Sister Naomi (Nonie) and family moved to Provo, and they had many family parties and trips together. Many times the two families traveled to the Uintah Mountains to spend time camping together and enjoying the great outdoors. Nonie's daughters called Margaret "auntie" and they loved being with her.
From her youth through most of her life, she was afflicted by migraine headaches. Her parents had taken her to a doctor and they were told she should drink coffee to get the caffeine. They were totally against this since it was contrary to the "Word of Wisdom". It was reported that she was three years old at this time, but much later in her life she did brew it and received relief because of this remedy.
Her skills in nursing helped her all her life. She did private duty off and on for many years. She had her name on the "register" and would receive assignments to private homes to help families take care of sick family members. She worked on the "Gold Coast" of the LDS Hospital as the charge nurse. This was the ward known as 7-A. It was where the important people such as the General Authorities of the church would stay while in the Hospital. She worked this assignment while Jim was on his mission from September 1950 to July 1953 to help pay his expenses. She attended and was with the Prophet at that time David O MacKay. This was a choice experience, except during her shift most of the patients were asleep. She enjoyed this work then because there were no children at home during the day and she could sleep much of the day.
Returning home
The small apartment that had been the home for Grandma Hannah was turned into a small rental apartment. She had several different "renters" and the extra money helped her. Some became good friends and gave her some company.
When old age came her migraine head aches left. She and Al did some traveling. During the summer of 1957 they went on a road trip to Alaska along with her sister Nonie and husband Lewis. Al made a camping trailer and they camped along the road to Anchorage. And they took a ocean voyage to Hawaii in the fall of 1961, she enjoyed the trip with the exception of the time on the ship. Sea sickness made the trip very hard on her. Al had been having health problems and they hoped the warm climate would help him improve. He did enjoy the vacation but his health did not improve. The doctor's decided to do an exploratory operation to find what the trouble was. It wasn't long before they found a cancer growing on the outside of his stomach. There was nothing they could do except give him medicine to relieve the pain and let the cancer take his life. After six months of suffering he left this life on June 28,1962.
The life of a widow became her life after Al's death. She had lots of friends and she went to Arizona with Nonie and Lewis to spend the winter months. There were bus tours to church historical sites, she would send postcards home to her grandchildren and would say "having fun wish you were here".
She loved to sew for her grandchildren and when she visited the homes of her children she was very happy with these special little ones. She lived alone and seemed happy, but the children were concerned about her daily meals. There was a "meals on wheels" organization that would deliver meals daily to the elderly. She became one of their clients and the family felt this would help to see that she had food to eat and ate at regular times. This worked for a time, but after a while the meals started to collect in the refrigerator and were thrown out.
Her health began to change for the worse and the children felt she couldn't live alone. She couldn't keep her balance while walking or standing and her memory began to fail. The doctors seemed to think she was having small strokes, so it was decided that she would stay with each of her children for a week at a time and then go to the next family for the following week. Since Jim couldn't take her unless he was home to care for her, he would provide transportation for her when she went to and from Holden. There were times when she would walk away and say she was going home, so she had to be watched all the time. She continued to go down hill and life became very hard for her. She could only move around the house by sliding around on the floor. Her short term memory was gone and didn't know most of those around her. At that time she moved in with Buddy's family and that became her final home.
She passed from this life on July 6, 1978 and was buried in the Salt Lake City cemetery next to her husband.
Her father worked in business with his father James David James and brothers building houses along James Street (currently North 2nd West Street). They had several charcoal kilns in Settlement Canyon and provided charcoal to many smelters in the area. They were successful in many enterprises.
When she was quite young the family moved to a ranching area of southern Idaho where her father became a sheep rancher. This was known as "Ivins" and was a very small settlement adjacent to the "Chesterfield community" north and east of the town of Bancroft. The Union Pacific railroad ran through the area and there was a small station that was called "Alexander". This was the main railroad line and was full of traffic that ran from Portland to Chicago. The ranch was located on the old Oregon Trail that passed through the area which consisted of a very wide valley surrounded by low hills and not much timber. The winters were very severe and the wind created snow drifts higher than the fences. This made travel difficult and the children had to ride horses to the one room school.
he and her sister Naomi (Nonie) were very close and became best friends as well as sisters. She was baptized June 8, 1905.
The family home was a large two story frame house with a pond in the back yard. There were outbuildings and sheds that were necessary in the sheep ranching business. The two girls shared a bedroom on the second floor.
There was no heat and the windows were not covered. They would huddle together and share a "hot rock" that kept their bed warm through the night. There was a chamber pot under all the beds that was a predecessor to indoor plumbing and kerosene lamps to provide light after dark. Part of the chores the girls did was to empty the pots, trim the wicks, and refill the lamps every day. Once when the two of them were young they went to a friend's house to play, and they did as youngsters do today and went to their friend's bed room. They began jumping on the bed, the bed broke, and they never fixed it. She used this as an example, for the rest of her life, to never jump on the bed.
When she was young she wore her hair long and loved to dress up in fancy clothes. She always wished she had learned to play the piano when she had the opportunity.
Because she was small in stature, she was the favorite of her uncles and aunts when they traveled back to Tooele for visits. While on these visits her Grandmother Naomi Gillette loved to take her around the town to "show off" her lovely little granddaughter. The Gillette family showed their love for her by teasing her and taking her on special outings which included dancing at Saltair Resort and other favorite places of entertainment. Some of her favorite friends, that she enjoyed visiting, were ones she knew and played with when she came back to Tooele to stay with her Grandma Gillette.
She had many spiritual experiences, one of which happened several times while she was sleeping. She woke up in the night and saw a woman clothed in white standing by their bed with her arms folded watching them. She never moved or made any sound. Upon seeing this she ducked her head under the covers and snuggled up next to Nonie. One time Nonie awoke and saw the same figure and said, "What do you want Ma?" There was no reply and the girls ducked under the covers. Years later they commented that they couldn't remember seeing that person again. Margaret recognized the white clothing when she went to the temple many years later.
There were creeks and canals with clear water running throughout the area with pastures, and many of the ranches in the area had large herds of animals. She was walking with one of her friends a young daughter of the Gummersol family that owned a nearby ranch. On the path they had to cross an area full of quick sand, and a wooden bridge or plank had been used to prevent people from becoming caught in this dangerous hazard. While walking across this bridge, a plank came loose and she fell into the quick sand. Her friend ran and got help to pull her to safety. She was upset and worried because she would get in trouble when she got home as she was wearing Nonie's coat.
Her younger brother Sam reported that she used to sit on the oven door hoping to speed up drying her hair. It was reported that once he removed one of the round stove top lids and fire came out and burned her hair. He was in big trouble for this!
Nicknames were used frequently in her family. Naomi was called Nonie or Nona. Margaret found that some of her close family and friends who loved her tried to give her a nickname of "Maggie" which she didn't like. But some called her by that name anyway.
About this time Nonie met and married John Lewis Swenson and moved out of the family home. Thus Margaret was without the closeness of her sister.
When she was older she was called to the Stake Sunday School board and was required to travel over a large area. The Stake area included Wards in Soda Springs, Ivins, Bancroft, Chesterfield, Grace and other small settlements. She traveled by horseback, horse and buggy, and automobile when the weather was fine since there were no paved roads at that time. She was active in many church activities and early in her life developed a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She worked very hard to fill all church callings of which there were many.
There was a ranch close by theirs that was owned by a family by the name of Cornia. For a time they had a young man that was an extended family member by the name of Alma Larsen who came to work for them as a hired man. She met him and they became friends. He joined the army and they communicated afterwards by mail.
When she was nineteen she was called on a full time Mission to the North Western States Mission. She and her parents made the trip to Salt Lake City to the Temple where she received her endowments November 8, 1916. Her parents were sealed for time and eternity and she was sealed to them. At that time she was the only one of her siblings that was sealed to them. The sealing ordinance was accomplished later by or for all the other brothers and sister. The mission president at that time was Elder Melvin J. Ballard who later became a member of the council of the Twelve Apostles. She loved the areas she served in and the people that lived there. She served in Victoria, British Columbia and other places including Spokane, Washington.
After serving an honorable mission, she was released and returned home. She then went to Salt Lake City and enrolled in the nurse's training program at the L.D.S. Hospital. This school was in a large building adjacent to the hospital. While living there she was called upon to tend President Ballard's children and renewed the friendship that was formed in the mission field. The training ended in 1927 when she graduated and went to work full time for the hospital. She loved children and became the supervisor of the children's ward or pediatrics. With her last name being "James" it was only natural for all her friends to call her "Jimmie". About this time her friend Alma Larsen was back in Salt Lake after serving in World War one and had married and was divorced with two small sons. The oldest, Shirley Garr, stayed with his father while the younger one, Arthur McKinnon, lived with his mother in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Shirley lived with his father and grandparents in the Larsen family home in Salt Lake. Their relationship became serious and they were married on January 1, 1930 in Farmington, Utah. Thus Margaret became the stepmother to a nine year old boy that she grew to love dearly. A few months prior to their marriage Alma's father passed away so he became responsible for his mother's care as well as his new wife and son. Alma and Margaret went to the Salt Lake Temple on June 27, 1930 and were sealed together for time and all eternity and Shirley was sealed to them.
Margaret continued to work at the hospital and Al was working as a used car salesman. Their first child together was born on October 28, 1930. Her nurse friends met at the baby shower and the new baby's name was considered. It was decided the name should be decided by a majority vote. All the names were put in a hat and then drawn out to find the majority vote. Everyone had written "Jimmy" with one exception which was "Pierre" so the majority made the decision and that was his name. He was named "James A Larsen" and since he was premature required a lot of attention and care to start his life in the family. All of Margaret's nurse friends became his aunts and he was spoiled by them. Grandma Larsen was there and loved having a new baby in the home.
The next baby was born June 30, 1932, a daughter and was named after her mother and grandmother. She was named Margaret JoHanna Larsen; since there were others in the house with the same name she was called the English version of the same name (Joan). At this time Jim was learning to talk and he couldn't say baby so he called her buddy and much to her displeasure as a teenager the nickname stuck and from that time on the family and close friends still call her "Buddy".
For two years beginning in the fall of 1932 Margaret's nephew John Swenson (oldest son of her sister Nonie) came down to Salt Lake to attend junior high school. He found the large Irving Junior High quite a contrast to the small one room school he had attended in Ivins, Idaho. He enjoyed the life of the big city and was involved in the Boy Scouts. The Sugar House Ward scout troop #64 planned a super activity in the fall of 1933. There were 31 boys and the troop was divided into 5 patrols. The troop collected funds and the entire troop including adult leaders went on a two week trip by stake body truck to Yellowstone Park during the summer of 1934. The members of the beaver patrol were: Eugene Krantz, John Swenson, Gene Amundson, Shirley Larsen, Robert Bartlett and Charles Woodruff. George L. Crowther was the scout master and Al Larsen was the assistant scout master.
The third child was born on November 6, 1933 and was another son and was named Dean Gillette Larsen. He became the defender of the Larsen children in future years. Margaret went on with her nursing and Al with his selling used cars. There were friends of Margaret's that came to tend the children, Pearl and May Black. Grandma Hannah was there much of the time, though she was often out visiting the homes of her other children.
About this time she got a driver's license and took the car (1930 Chevrolet) on short trips around the city. A favorite trip was to the root beer stand where the children would enjoy the treat and Grandma Larsen called it "dirty water". She used the car to travel to Idaho to visit and care for her family. At the end of one of the Idaho trips she had her purse with her once on the streetcar and left her purse there. She lost her license and never got another. She decided never to drive again and she never did. She took the streetcar or the bus where ever she needed to go and did a lot of walking. She used to say when she left home that she was going to go on "shank's pony" which meant she was walking. She could out walk most of the family on her almost daily walks to Sugarhouse, there would be a stop a Woolworth's for a root beer as fortification for the walk back home.
She took the children to Idaho during the summers to visit and help her aging parents. Her father lost his hearing and his eyesight and her mother was happy to have the help during those months. Her father continued his active life and was able to go by himself to other ranches by following the fences and feeling his way. There was a lot of loud talk and yelling in order for him to hear the daily activities around the home. The children enjoyed life on a farm and didn't object to the time they were away from home. Al used this time to remodel the house during their absences. One trip to Idaho came when her Brother in law Lewis Swenson was burn severely and she was called to help in his recovery. He was in the hospital in Soda Springs under the care of Doctor Cackley who was the only doctor in the area. Her brother Sam had moved a small house into the town and it was an unfinished home. The children were with her and to them it was a holiday, since it was much like camping out. They had to enter and exit the house by walking on planks. They lived there almost all summer.
July 21, 1938 brought the last baby into the family. It was another boy and he was named Alan Boyd Larsen. He was a beautiful curly headed blond, blue eyed baby that became the darling of the family. A neighbor came to visit and told Buddy that they were here to trade babies and Buddy just about threw a fit because the other baby was a girl that had no hair. Boyd became Buddy's baby since she was just the right age to take over some of the mothering. This was a happy time for the family! There was a "great depression in the country. Jobs were scarce and money was tight. Most of the families in the neighborhood were poor but the children didn't know it.
Shirley graduated from South High School in 1938. There was a disagreement between Al and Shirley and since he couldn't find employment he joined the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps). This was federal project to employ men in public works projects around the country. They built camp grounds and improved national parks.
Margaret's father James James passed away on September 12, 1938 in Blackfoot Idaho and was buried on September 14, 1938 in Tooele, Utah. Her brother John Ellis lived on the ranch for a few years, but the ranch was sold and her mother moved to Soda Springs and eventually came to live in Salt Lake so Margaret could help take care of her.
While working in the Zion National Park in southern Utah in the summer of 1939 Shirley became ill with a severe stomach ache and high fever. He was taken in the back of a truck to the nearest hospital which was St. George. The medical staff called Margaret and Al to report his condition. He had appendicitis and is condition was so severe that they didn't operate. They had him packed in ice to make him comfortable since the appendix had ruptured. There were was no medication available at that time to stem the spread of the infection. Al and Margaret borrowed a car and traveled there as fast as possible. Margaret sat by his bedside, watched and heard him as he looked around the room and talked to unseen people. Once he told her not to worry the people were there to be seen only by him. This had her anxious because her medical experience told her what was to follow as once the appendix ruptures it is almost always fatal. It was only a matter of a few days when she called home to Salt Lake and told the family he had passed away. He died September 24, 1939, the viewing was at the family home and the funeral was in the new Bryan Ward meeting house.
She had a habit of talking to herself, she would do that when with members of the family and they learned of her concerns and worries by listening to her. She wished she had discussed with Shirley what went on while in the hospital. She was pleased that he had not had to serve in the army in World War II and possibly die in a far away country. At that time war had not involved our country, but there was a feeling that we would soon be involved. She once indicated to Buddy that Al had said he would like to be a farmer and she definitely said no to such a life.
In the early days of the war she spent most of her time at home with the children. She moved her mother to Salt Lake and tried to keep her in the home with the rest of the family; but eventually she placed her in nursing homes and spent a great deal of time there. Her mother's mind was not clear and many times she would mentally be back in her childhood. She talked of seeing Indians out the window in the yard surrounding the place she was in and talked of things that happened many years before. Margaret walked to the nursing home taking Boyd with her and bathed and helped her mother in anyway she could.
She served as the nurse of the neighborhood and the ward, was ready to help anyone that was in need, was really an angel of mercy. She was called as Primary President and was a visiting teacher that all the sisters enjoyed. Sewing was something she loved to do and even considered becoming a designer of children's clothes. World War II created many shortages and she was very good at remaking hand-me-downs and even making new clothes for the children. Buddy being the only girl had a new dress every Christmas and Easter. There was a Penny's store in Sugarhouse and she would be there standing in line to buy hard-to-get material for her sewing projects.
Fairmont Park was a favorite destination for family outings. It was a few blocks south of Sugarhouse, and she took the family there for picnics and there were dramatic and musical productions presented on a wooden stage. The audience sat on blankets to watch the program. Liberty Park was also a walking destination. Fireworks on the Fourth of July were presented there, and again they took blankets to sit on.
On April 10, 1946 her mother Hattie Chappell Gillette James passed away. The funeral was in Tooele and she was buried next to her husband in the Tooele cemetery.
Her Sister Naomi (Nonie) and family moved to Provo, and they had many family parties and trips together. Many times the two families traveled to the Uintah Mountains to spend time camping together and enjoying the great outdoors. Nonie's daughters called Margaret "auntie" and they loved being with her.
From her youth through most of her life, she was afflicted by migraine headaches. Her parents had taken her to a doctor and they were told she should drink coffee to get the caffeine. They were totally against this since it was contrary to the "Word of Wisdom". It was reported that she was three years old at this time, but much later in her life she did brew it and received relief because of this remedy.
Her skills in nursing helped her all her life. She did private duty off and on for many years. She had her name on the "register" and would receive assignments to private homes to help families take care of sick family members. She worked on the "Gold Coast" of the LDS Hospital as the charge nurse. This was the ward known as 7-A. It was where the important people such as the General Authorities of the church would stay while in the Hospital. She worked this assignment while Jim was on his mission from September 1950 to July 1953 to help pay his expenses. She attended and was with the Prophet at that time David O MacKay. This was a choice experience, except during her shift most of the patients were asleep. She enjoyed this work then because there were no children at home during the day and she could sleep much of the day.
Returning home
The small apartment that had been the home for Grandma Hannah was turned into a small rental apartment. She had several different "renters" and the extra money helped her. Some became good friends and gave her some company.
When old age came her migraine head aches left. She and Al did some traveling. During the summer of 1957 they went on a road trip to Alaska along with her sister Nonie and husband Lewis. Al made a camping trailer and they camped along the road to Anchorage. And they took a ocean voyage to Hawaii in the fall of 1961, she enjoyed the trip with the exception of the time on the ship. Sea sickness made the trip very hard on her. Al had been having health problems and they hoped the warm climate would help him improve. He did enjoy the vacation but his health did not improve. The doctor's decided to do an exploratory operation to find what the trouble was. It wasn't long before they found a cancer growing on the outside of his stomach. There was nothing they could do except give him medicine to relieve the pain and let the cancer take his life. After six months of suffering he left this life on June 28,1962.
The life of a widow became her life after Al's death. She had lots of friends and she went to Arizona with Nonie and Lewis to spend the winter months. There were bus tours to church historical sites, she would send postcards home to her grandchildren and would say "having fun wish you were here".
She loved to sew for her grandchildren and when she visited the homes of her children she was very happy with these special little ones. She lived alone and seemed happy, but the children were concerned about her daily meals. There was a "meals on wheels" organization that would deliver meals daily to the elderly. She became one of their clients and the family felt this would help to see that she had food to eat and ate at regular times. This worked for a time, but after a while the meals started to collect in the refrigerator and were thrown out.
Her health began to change for the worse and the children felt she couldn't live alone. She couldn't keep her balance while walking or standing and her memory began to fail. The doctors seemed to think she was having small strokes, so it was decided that she would stay with each of her children for a week at a time and then go to the next family for the following week. Since Jim couldn't take her unless he was home to care for her, he would provide transportation for her when she went to and from Holden. There were times when she would walk away and say she was going home, so she had to be watched all the time. She continued to go down hill and life became very hard for her. She could only move around the house by sliding around on the floor. Her short term memory was gone and didn't know most of those around her. At that time she moved in with Buddy's family and that became her final home.
She passed from this life on July 6, 1978 and was buried in the Salt Lake City cemetery next to her husband.
Margaret was born May 2, 1897 in Tooele, Utah. Her parents were James James and Hattie Chappell Gillette. She was the second daughter and her siblings were: Naomi Chappell, Samuel Gillette and John Ellis. She was given her earthly name and blessing by Apostle Francis M. Lyman.
Her father worked in business with his father James David James and brothers building houses along James Street (currently North 2nd West Street). They had several charcoal kilns in Settlement Canyon and provided charcoal to many smelters in the area. They were successful in many enterprises.
When she was quite young the family moved to a ranching area of southern Idaho where her father became a sheep rancher. This was known as "Ivins" and was a very small settlement adjacent to the "Chesterfield community" north and east of the town of Bancroft. The Union Pacific railroad ran through the area and there was a small station that was called "Alexander". This was the main railroad line and was full of traffic that ran from Portland to Chicago. The ranch was located on the old Oregon Trail that passed through the area which consisted of a very wide valley surrounded by low hills and not much timber. The winters were very severe and the wind created snow drifts higher than the fences. This made travel difficult and the children had to ride horses to the one room school.
he and her sister Naomi (Nonie) were very close and became best friends as well as sisters. She was baptized June 8, 1905.
The family home was a large two story frame house with a pond in the back yard. There were outbuildings and sheds that were necessary in the sheep ranching business. The two girls shared a bedroom on the second floor.
There was no heat and the windows were not covered. They would huddle together and share a "hot rock" that kept their bed warm through the night. There was a chamber pot under all the beds that was a predecessor to indoor plumbing and kerosene lamps to provide light after dark. Part of the chores the girls did was to empty the pots, trim the wicks, and refill the lamps every day. Once when the two of them were young they went to a friend's house to play, and they did as youngsters do today and went to their friend's bed room. They began jumping on the bed, the bed broke, and they never fixed it. She used this as an example, for the rest of her life, to never jump on the bed.
When she was young she wore her hair long and loved to dress up in fancy clothes. She always wished she had learned to play the piano when she had the opportunity.
Because she was small in stature, she was the favorite of her uncles and aunts when they traveled back to Tooele for visits. While on these visits her Grandmother Naomi Gillette loved to take her around the town to "show off" her lovely little granddaughter. The Gillette family showed their love for her by teasing her and taking her on special outings which included dancing at Saltair Resort and other favorite places of entertainment. Some of her favorite friends, that she enjoyed visiting, were ones she knew and played with when she came back to Tooele to stay with her Grandma Gillette.
She had many spiritual experiences, one of which happened several times while she was sleeping. She woke up in the night and saw a woman clothed in white standing by their bed with her arms folded watching them. She never moved or made any sound. Upon seeing this she ducked her head under the covers and snuggled up next to Nonie. One time Nonie awoke and saw the same figure and said, "What do you want Ma?" There was no reply and the girls ducked under the covers. Years later they commented that they couldn't remember seeing that person again. Margaret recognized the white clothing when she went to the temple many years later.
There were creeks and canals with clear water running throughout the area with pastures, and many of the ranches in the area had large herds of animals. She was walking with one of her friends a young daughter of the Gummersol family that owned a nearby ranch. On the path they had to cross an area full of quick sand, and a wooden bridge or plank had been used to prevent people from becoming caught in this dangerous hazard. While walking across this bridge, a plank came loose and she fell into the quick sand. Her friend ran and got help to pull her to safety. She was upset and worried because she would get in trouble when she got home as she was wearing Nonie's coat.
Her younger brother Sam reported that she used to sit on the oven door hoping to speed up drying her hair. It was reported that once he removed one of the round stove top lids and fire came out and burned her hair. He was in big trouble for this!
Nicknames were used frequently in her family. Naomi was called Nonie or Nona. Margaret found that some of her close family and friends who loved her tried to give her a nickname of "Maggie" which she didn't like. But some called her by that name anyway.
About this time Nonie met and married John Lewis Swenson and moved out of the family home. Thus Margaret was without the closeness of her sister.
When she was older she was called to the Stake Sunday School board and was required to travel over a large area. The Stake area included Wards in Soda Springs, Ivins, Bancroft, Chesterfield, Grace and other small settlements. She traveled by horseback, horse and buggy, and automobile when the weather was fine since there were no paved roads at that time. She was active in many church activities and early in her life developed a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She worked very hard to fill all church callings of which there were many.
There was a ranch close by theirs that was owned by a family by the name of Cornia. For a time they had a young man that was an extended family member by the name of Alma Larsen who came to work for them as a hired man. She met him and they became friends. He joined the army and they communicated afterwards by mail.
When she was nineteen she was called on a full time Mission to the North Western States Mission. She and her parents made the trip to Salt Lake City to the Temple where she received her endowments November 8, 1916. Her parents were sealed for time and eternity and she was sealed to them. At that time she was the only one of her siblings that was sealed to them. The sealing ordinance was accomplished later by or for all the other brothers and sister. The mission president at that time was Elder Melvin J. Ballard who later became a member of the council of the Twelve Apostles. She loved the areas she served in and the people that lived there. She served in Victoria, British Columbia and other places including Spokane, Washington.
After serving an honorable mission, she was released and returned home. She then went to Salt Lake City and enrolled in the nurse's training program at the L.D.S. Hospital. This school was in a large building adjacent to the hospital. While living there she was called upon to tend President Ballard's children and renewed the friendship that was formed in the mission field. The training ended in 1927 when she graduated and went to work full time for the hospital. She loved children and became the supervisor of the children's ward or pediatrics. With her last name being "James" it was only natural for all her friends to call her "Jimmie". About this time her friend Alma Larsen was back in Salt Lake after serving in World War one and had married and was divorced with two small sons. The oldest, Shirley Garr, stayed with his father while the younger one, Arthur McKinnon, lived with his mother in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Shirley lived with his father and grandparents in the Larsen family home in Salt Lake. Their relationship became serious and they were married on January 1, 1930 in Farmington, Utah. Thus Margaret became the stepmother to a nine year old boy that she grew to love dearly. A few months prior to their marriage Alma's father passed away so he became responsible for his mother's care as well as his new wife and son. Alma and Margaret went to the Salt Lake Temple on June 27, 1930 and were sealed together for time and all eternity and Shirley was sealed to them.
Margaret continued to work at the hospital and Al was working as a used car salesman. Their first child together was born on October 28, 1930. Her nurse friends met at the baby shower and the new baby's name was considered. It was decided the name should be decided by a majority vote. All the names were put in a hat and then drawn out to find the majority vote. Everyone had written "Jimmy" with one exception which was "Pierre" so the majority made the decision and that was his name. He was named "James A Larsen" and since he was premature required a lot of attention and care to start his life in the family. All of Margaret's nurse friends became his aunts and he was spoiled by them. Grandma Larsen was there and loved having a new baby in the home.
The next baby was born June 30, 1932, a daughter and was named after her mother and grandmother. She was named Margaret JoHanna Larsen; since there were others in the house with the same name she was called the English version of the same name (Joan). At this time Jim was learning to talk and he couldn't say baby so he called her buddy and much to her displeasure as a teenager the nickname stuck and from that time on the family and close friends still call her "Buddy".
For two years beginning in the fall of 1932 Margaret's nephew John Swenson (oldest son of her sister Nonie) came down to Salt Lake to attend junior high school. He found the large Irving Junior High quite a contrast to the small one room school he had attended in Ivins, Idaho. He enjoyed the life of the big city and was involved in the Boy Scouts. The Sugar House Ward scout troop #64 planned a super activity in the fall of 1933. There were 31 boys and the troop was divided into 5 patrols. The troop collected funds and the entire troop including adult leaders went on a two week trip by stake body truck to Yellowstone Park during the summer of 1934. The members of the beaver patrol were: Eugene Krantz, John Swenson, Gene Amundson, Shirley Larsen, Robert Bartlett and Charles Woodruff. George L. Crowther was the scout master and Al Larsen was the assistant scout master.
The third child was born on November 6, 1933 and was another son and was named Dean Gillette Larsen. He became the defender of the Larsen children in future years. Margaret went on with her nursing and Al with his selling used cars. There were friends of Margaret's that came to tend the children, Pearl and May Black. Grandma Hannah was there much of the time, though she was often out visiting the homes of her other children.
About this time she got a driver's license and took the car (1930 Chevrolet) on short trips around the city. A favorite trip was to the root beer stand where the children would enjoy the treat and Grandma Larsen called it "dirty water". She used the car to travel to Idaho to visit and care for her family. At the end of one of the Idaho trips she had her purse with her once on the streetcar and left her purse there. She lost her license and never got another. She decided never to drive again and she never did. She took the streetcar or the bus where ever she needed to go and did a lot of walking. She used to say when she left home that she was going to go on "shank's pony" which meant she was walking. She could out walk most of the family on her almost daily walks to Sugarhouse, there would be a stop a Woolworth's for a root beer as fortification for the walk back home.
She took the children to Idaho during the summers to visit and help her aging parents. Her father lost his hearing and his eyesight and her mother was happy to have the help during those months. Her father continued his active life and was able to go by himself to other ranches by following the fences and feeling his way. There was a lot of loud talk and yelling in order for him to hear the daily activities around the home. The children enjoyed life on a farm and didn't object to the time they were away from home. Al used this time to remodel the house during their absences. One trip to Idaho came when her Brother in law Lewis Swenson was burn severely and she was called to help in his recovery. He was in the hospital in Soda Springs under the care of Doctor Cackley who was the only doctor in the area. Her brother Sam had moved a small house into the town and it was an unfinished home. The children were with her and to them it was a holiday, since it was much like camping out. They had to enter and exit the house by walking on planks. They lived there almost all summer.
July 21, 1938 brought the last baby into the family. It was another boy and he was named Alan Boyd Larsen. He was a beautiful curly headed blond, blue eyed baby that became the darling of the family. A neighbor came to visit and told Buddy that they were here to trade babies and Buddy just about threw a fit because the other baby was a girl that had no hair. Boyd became Buddy's baby since she was just the right age to take over some of the mothering. This was a happy time for the family! There was a "great depression in the country. Jobs were scarce and money was tight. Most of the families in the neighborhood were poor but the children didn't know it.
Shirley graduated from South High School in 1938. There was a disagreement between Al and Shirley and since he couldn't find employment he joined the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps). This was federal project to employ men in public works projects around the country. They built camp grounds and improved national parks.
Margaret's father James James passed away on September 12, 1938 in Blackfoot Idaho and was buried on September 14, 1938 in Tooele, Utah. Her brother John Ellis lived on the ranch for a few years, but the ranch was sold and her mother moved to Soda Springs and eventually came to live in Salt Lake so Margaret could help take care of her.
While working in the Zion National Park in southern Utah in the summer of 1939 Shirley became ill with a severe stomach ache and high fever. He was taken in the back of a truck to the nearest hospital which was St. George. The medical staff called Margaret and Al to report his condition. He had appendicitis and is condition was so severe that they didn't operate. They had him packed in ice to make him comfortable since the appendix had ruptured. There were was no medication available at that time to stem the spread of the infection. Al and Margaret borrowed a car and traveled there as fast as possible. Margaret sat by his bedside, watched and heard him as he looked around the room and talked to unseen people. Once he told her not to worry the people were there to be seen only by him. This had her anxious because her medical experience told her what was to follow as once the appendix ruptures it is almost always fatal. It was only a matter of a few days when she called home to Salt Lake and told the family he had passed away. He died September 24, 1939, the viewing was at the family home and the funeral was in the new Bryan Ward meeting house.
She had a habit of talking to herself, she would do that when with members of the family and they learned of her concerns and worries by listening to her. She wished she had discussed with Shirley what went on while in the hospital. She was pleased that he had not had to serve in the army in World War II and possibly die in a far away country. At that time war had not involved our country, but there was a feeling that we would soon be involved. She once indicated to Buddy that Al had said he would like to be a farmer and she definitely said no to such a life.
In the early days of the war she spent most of her time at home with the children. She moved her mother to Salt Lake and tried to keep her in the home with the rest of the family; but eventually she placed her in nursing homes and spent a great deal of time there. Her mother's mind was not clear and many times she would mentally be back in her childhood. She talked of seeing Indians out the window in the yard surrounding the place she was in and talked of things that happened many years before. Margaret walked to the nursing home taking Boyd with her and bathed and helped her mother in anyway she could.
She served as the nurse of the neighborhood and the ward, was ready to help anyone that was in need, was really an angel of mercy. She was called as Primary President and was a visiting teacher that all the sisters enjoyed. Sewing was something she loved to do and even considered becoming a designer of children's clothes. World War II created many shortages and she was very good at remaking hand-me-downs and even making new clothes for the children. Buddy being the only girl had a new dress every Christmas and Easter. There was a Penny's store in Sugarhouse and she would be there standing in line to buy hard-to-get material for her sewing projects.
Fairmont Park was a favorite destination for family outings. It was a few blocks south of Sugarhouse, and she took the family there for picnics and there were dramatic and musical productions presented on a wooden stage. The audience sat on blankets to watch the program. Liberty Park was also a walking destination. Fireworks on the Fourth of July were presented there, and again they took blankets to sit on.
On April 10, 1946 her mother Hattie Chappell Gillette James passed away. The funeral was in Tooele and she was buried next to her husband in the Tooele cemetery.
Her Sister Naomi (Nonie) and family moved to Provo, and they had many family parties and trips together. Many times the two families traveled to the Uintah Mountains to spend time camping together and enjoying the great outdoors. Nonie's daughters called Margaret "auntie" and they loved being with her.
From her youth through most of her life, she was afflicted by migraine headaches. Her parents had taken her to a doctor and they were told she should drink coffee to get the caffeine. They were totally against this since it was contrary to the "Word of Wisdom". It was reported that she was three years old at this time, but much later in her life she did brew it and received relief because of this remedy.
Her skills in nursing helped her all her life. She did private duty off and on for many years. She had her name on the "register" and would receive assignments to private homes to help families take care of sick family members. She worked on the "Gold Coast" of the LDS Hospital as the charge nurse. This was the ward known as 7-A. It was where the important people such as the General Authorities of the church would stay while in the Hospital. She worked this assignment while Jim was on his mission from September 1950 to July 1953 to help pay his expenses. She attended and was with the Prophet at that time David O MacKay. This was a choice experience, except during her shift most of the patients were asleep. She enjoyed this work then because there were no children at home during the day and she could sleep much of the day.
Returning home
The small apartment that had been the home for Grandma Hannah was turned into a small rental apartment. She had several different "renters" and the extra money helped her. Some became good friends and gave her some company.
When old age came her migraine head aches left. She and Al did some traveling. During the summer of 1957 they went on a road trip to Alaska along with her sister Nonie and husband Lewis. Al made a camping trailer and they camped along the road to Anchorage. And they took a ocean voyage to Hawaii in the fall of 1961, she enjoyed the trip with the exception of the time on the ship. Sea sickness made the trip very hard on her. Al had been having health problems and they hoped the warm climate would help him improve. He did enjoy the vacation but his health did not improve. The doctor's decided to do an exploratory operation to find what the trouble was. It wasn't long before they found a cancer growing on the outside of his stomach. There was nothing they could do except give him medicine to relieve the pain and let the cancer take his life. After six months of suffering he left this life on June 28,1962.
The life of a widow became her life after Al's death. She had lots of friends and she went to Arizona with Nonie and Lewis to spend the winter months. There were bus tours to church historical sites, she would send postcards home to her grandchildren and would say "having fun wish you were here".
She loved to sew for her grandchildren and when she visited the homes of her children she was very happy with these special little ones. She lived alone and seemed happy, but the children were concerned about her daily meals. There was a "meals on wheels" organization that would deliver meals daily to the elderly. She became one of their clients and the family felt this would help to see that she had food to eat and ate at regular times. This worked for a time, but after a while the meals started to collect in the refrigerator and were thrown out.
Her health began to change for the worse and the children felt she couldn't live alone. She couldn't keep her balance while walking or standing and her memory began to fail. The doctors seemed to think she was having small strokes, so it was decided that she would stay with each of her children for a week at a time and then go to the next family for the following week. Since Jim couldn't take her unless he was home to care for her, he would provide transportation for her when she went to and from Holden. There were times when she would walk away and say she was going home, so she had to be watched all the time. She continued to go down hill and life became very hard for her. She could only move around the house by sliding around on the floor. Her short term memory was gone and didn't know most of those around her. At that time she moved in with Buddy's family and that became her final home.
She passed from this life on July 6, 1978 and was buried in the Salt Lake City cemetery next to her husband.
Her father worked in business with his father James David James and brothers building houses along James Street (currently North 2nd West Street). They had several charcoal kilns in Settlement Canyon and provided charcoal to many smelters in the area. They were successful in many enterprises.
When she was quite young the family moved to a ranching area of southern Idaho where her father became a sheep rancher. This was known as "Ivins" and was a very small settlement adjacent to the "Chesterfield community" north and east of the town of Bancroft. The Union Pacific railroad ran through the area and there was a small station that was called "Alexander". This was the main railroad line and was full of traffic that ran from Portland to Chicago. The ranch was located on the old Oregon Trail that passed through the area which consisted of a very wide valley surrounded by low hills and not much timber. The winters were very severe and the wind created snow drifts higher than the fences. This made travel difficult and the children had to ride horses to the one room school.
he and her sister Naomi (Nonie) were very close and became best friends as well as sisters. She was baptized June 8, 1905.
The family home was a large two story frame house with a pond in the back yard. There were outbuildings and sheds that were necessary in the sheep ranching business. The two girls shared a bedroom on the second floor.
There was no heat and the windows were not covered. They would huddle together and share a "hot rock" that kept their bed warm through the night. There was a chamber pot under all the beds that was a predecessor to indoor plumbing and kerosene lamps to provide light after dark. Part of the chores the girls did was to empty the pots, trim the wicks, and refill the lamps every day. Once when the two of them were young they went to a friend's house to play, and they did as youngsters do today and went to their friend's bed room. They began jumping on the bed, the bed broke, and they never fixed it. She used this as an example, for the rest of her life, to never jump on the bed.
When she was young she wore her hair long and loved to dress up in fancy clothes. She always wished she had learned to play the piano when she had the opportunity.
Because she was small in stature, she was the favorite of her uncles and aunts when they traveled back to Tooele for visits. While on these visits her Grandmother Naomi Gillette loved to take her around the town to "show off" her lovely little granddaughter. The Gillette family showed their love for her by teasing her and taking her on special outings which included dancing at Saltair Resort and other favorite places of entertainment. Some of her favorite friends, that she enjoyed visiting, were ones she knew and played with when she came back to Tooele to stay with her Grandma Gillette.
She had many spiritual experiences, one of which happened several times while she was sleeping. She woke up in the night and saw a woman clothed in white standing by their bed with her arms folded watching them. She never moved or made any sound. Upon seeing this she ducked her head under the covers and snuggled up next to Nonie. One time Nonie awoke and saw the same figure and said, "What do you want Ma?" There was no reply and the girls ducked under the covers. Years later they commented that they couldn't remember seeing that person again. Margaret recognized the white clothing when she went to the temple many years later.
There were creeks and canals with clear water running throughout the area with pastures, and many of the ranches in the area had large herds of animals. She was walking with one of her friends a young daughter of the Gummersol family that owned a nearby ranch. On the path they had to cross an area full of quick sand, and a wooden bridge or plank had been used to prevent people from becoming caught in this dangerous hazard. While walking across this bridge, a plank came loose and she fell into the quick sand. Her friend ran and got help to pull her to safety. She was upset and worried because she would get in trouble when she got home as she was wearing Nonie's coat.
Her younger brother Sam reported that she used to sit on the oven door hoping to speed up drying her hair. It was reported that once he removed one of the round stove top lids and fire came out and burned her hair. He was in big trouble for this!
Nicknames were used frequently in her family. Naomi was called Nonie or Nona. Margaret found that some of her close family and friends who loved her tried to give her a nickname of "Maggie" which she didn't like. But some called her by that name anyway.
About this time Nonie met and married John Lewis Swenson and moved out of the family home. Thus Margaret was without the closeness of her sister.
When she was older she was called to the Stake Sunday School board and was required to travel over a large area. The Stake area included Wards in Soda Springs, Ivins, Bancroft, Chesterfield, Grace and other small settlements. She traveled by horseback, horse and buggy, and automobile when the weather was fine since there were no paved roads at that time. She was active in many church activities and early in her life developed a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She worked very hard to fill all church callings of which there were many.
There was a ranch close by theirs that was owned by a family by the name of Cornia. For a time they had a young man that was an extended family member by the name of Alma Larsen who came to work for them as a hired man. She met him and they became friends. He joined the army and they communicated afterwards by mail.
When she was nineteen she was called on a full time Mission to the North Western States Mission. She and her parents made the trip to Salt Lake City to the Temple where she received her endowments November 8, 1916. Her parents were sealed for time and eternity and she was sealed to them. At that time she was the only one of her siblings that was sealed to them. The sealing ordinance was accomplished later by or for all the other brothers and sister. The mission president at that time was Elder Melvin J. Ballard who later became a member of the council of the Twelve Apostles. She loved the areas she served in and the people that lived there. She served in Victoria, British Columbia and other places including Spokane, Washington.
After serving an honorable mission, she was released and returned home. She then went to Salt Lake City and enrolled in the nurse's training program at the L.D.S. Hospital. This school was in a large building adjacent to the hospital. While living there she was called upon to tend President Ballard's children and renewed the friendship that was formed in the mission field. The training ended in 1927 when she graduated and went to work full time for the hospital. She loved children and became the supervisor of the children's ward or pediatrics. With her last name being "James" it was only natural for all her friends to call her "Jimmie". About this time her friend Alma Larsen was back in Salt Lake after serving in World War one and had married and was divorced with two small sons. The oldest, Shirley Garr, stayed with his father while the younger one, Arthur McKinnon, lived with his mother in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Shirley lived with his father and grandparents in the Larsen family home in Salt Lake. Their relationship became serious and they were married on January 1, 1930 in Farmington, Utah. Thus Margaret became the stepmother to a nine year old boy that she grew to love dearly. A few months prior to their marriage Alma's father passed away so he became responsible for his mother's care as well as his new wife and son. Alma and Margaret went to the Salt Lake Temple on June 27, 1930 and were sealed together for time and all eternity and Shirley was sealed to them.
Margaret continued to work at the hospital and Al was working as a used car salesman. Their first child together was born on October 28, 1930. Her nurse friends met at the baby shower and the new baby's name was considered. It was decided the name should be decided by a majority vote. All the names were put in a hat and then drawn out to find the majority vote. Everyone had written "Jimmy" with one exception which was "Pierre" so the majority made the decision and that was his name. He was named "James A Larsen" and since he was premature required a lot of attention and care to start his life in the family. All of Margaret's nurse friends became his aunts and he was spoiled by them. Grandma Larsen was there and loved having a new baby in the home.
The next baby was born June 30, 1932, a daughter and was named after her mother and grandmother. She was named Margaret JoHanna Larsen; since there were others in the house with the same name she was called the English version of the same name (Joan). At this time Jim was learning to talk and he couldn't say baby so he called her buddy and much to her displeasure as a teenager the nickname stuck and from that time on the family and close friends still call her "Buddy".
For two years beginning in the fall of 1932 Margaret's nephew John Swenson (oldest son of her sister Nonie) came down to Salt Lake to attend junior high school. He found the large Irving Junior High quite a contrast to the small one room school he had attended in Ivins, Idaho. He enjoyed the life of the big city and was involved in the Boy Scouts. The Sugar House Ward scout troop #64 planned a super activity in the fall of 1933. There were 31 boys and the troop was divided into 5 patrols. The troop collected funds and the entire troop including adult leaders went on a two week trip by stake body truck to Yellowstone Park during the summer of 1934. The members of the beaver patrol were: Eugene Krantz, John Swenson, Gene Amundson, Shirley Larsen, Robert Bartlett and Charles Woodruff. George L. Crowther was the scout master and Al Larsen was the assistant scout master.
The third child was born on November 6, 1933 and was another son and was named Dean Gillette Larsen. He became the defender of the Larsen children in future years. Margaret went on with her nursing and Al with his selling used cars. There were friends of Margaret's that came to tend the children, Pearl and May Black. Grandma Hannah was there much of the time, though she was often out visiting the homes of her other children.
About this time she got a driver's license and took the car (1930 Chevrolet) on short trips around the city. A favorite trip was to the root beer stand where the children would enjoy the treat and Grandma Larsen called it "dirty water". She used the car to travel to Idaho to visit and care for her family. At the end of one of the Idaho trips she had her purse with her once on the streetcar and left her purse there. She lost her license and never got another. She decided never to drive again and she never did. She took the streetcar or the bus where ever she needed to go and did a lot of walking. She used to say when she left home that she was going to go on "shank's pony" which meant she was walking. She could out walk most of the family on her almost daily walks to Sugarhouse, there would be a stop a Woolworth's for a root beer as fortification for the walk back home.
She took the children to Idaho during the summers to visit and help her aging parents. Her father lost his hearing and his eyesight and her mother was happy to have the help during those months. Her father continued his active life and was able to go by himself to other ranches by following the fences and feeling his way. There was a lot of loud talk and yelling in order for him to hear the daily activities around the home. The children enjoyed life on a farm and didn't object to the time they were away from home. Al used this time to remodel the house during their absences. One trip to Idaho came when her Brother in law Lewis Swenson was burn severely and she was called to help in his recovery. He was in the hospital in Soda Springs under the care of Doctor Cackley who was the only doctor in the area. Her brother Sam had moved a small house into the town and it was an unfinished home. The children were with her and to them it was a holiday, since it was much like camping out. They had to enter and exit the house by walking on planks. They lived there almost all summer.
July 21, 1938 brought the last baby into the family. It was another boy and he was named Alan Boyd Larsen. He was a beautiful curly headed blond, blue eyed baby that became the darling of the family. A neighbor came to visit and told Buddy that they were here to trade babies and Buddy just about threw a fit because the other baby was a girl that had no hair. Boyd became Buddy's baby since she was just the right age to take over some of the mothering. This was a happy time for the family! There was a "great depression in the country. Jobs were scarce and money was tight. Most of the families in the neighborhood were poor but the children didn't know it.
Shirley graduated from South High School in 1938. There was a disagreement between Al and Shirley and since he couldn't find employment he joined the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps). This was federal project to employ men in public works projects around the country. They built camp grounds and improved national parks.
Margaret's father James James passed away on September 12, 1938 in Blackfoot Idaho and was buried on September 14, 1938 in Tooele, Utah. Her brother John Ellis lived on the ranch for a few years, but the ranch was sold and her mother moved to Soda Springs and eventually came to live in Salt Lake so Margaret could help take care of her.
While working in the Zion National Park in southern Utah in the summer of 1939 Shirley became ill with a severe stomach ache and high fever. He was taken in the back of a truck to the nearest hospital which was St. George. The medical staff called Margaret and Al to report his condition. He had appendicitis and is condition was so severe that they didn't operate. They had him packed in ice to make him comfortable since the appendix had ruptured. There were was no medication available at that time to stem the spread of the infection. Al and Margaret borrowed a car and traveled there as fast as possible. Margaret sat by his bedside, watched and heard him as he looked around the room and talked to unseen people. Once he told her not to worry the people were there to be seen only by him. This had her anxious because her medical experience told her what was to follow as once the appendix ruptures it is almost always fatal. It was only a matter of a few days when she called home to Salt Lake and told the family he had passed away. He died September 24, 1939, the viewing was at the family home and the funeral was in the new Bryan Ward meeting house.
She had a habit of talking to herself, she would do that when with members of the family and they learned of her concerns and worries by listening to her. She wished she had discussed with Shirley what went on while in the hospital. She was pleased that he had not had to serve in the army in World War II and possibly die in a far away country. At that time war had not involved our country, but there was a feeling that we would soon be involved. She once indicated to Buddy that Al had said he would like to be a farmer and she definitely said no to such a life.
In the early days of the war she spent most of her time at home with the children. She moved her mother to Salt Lake and tried to keep her in the home with the rest of the family; but eventually she placed her in nursing homes and spent a great deal of time there. Her mother's mind was not clear and many times she would mentally be back in her childhood. She talked of seeing Indians out the window in the yard surrounding the place she was in and talked of things that happened many years before. Margaret walked to the nursing home taking Boyd with her and bathed and helped her mother in anyway she could.
She served as the nurse of the neighborhood and the ward, was ready to help anyone that was in need, was really an angel of mercy. She was called as Primary President and was a visiting teacher that all the sisters enjoyed. Sewing was something she loved to do and even considered becoming a designer of children's clothes. World War II created many shortages and she was very good at remaking hand-me-downs and even making new clothes for the children. Buddy being the only girl had a new dress every Christmas and Easter. There was a Penny's store in Sugarhouse and she would be there standing in line to buy hard-to-get material for her sewing projects.
Fairmont Park was a favorite destination for family outings. It was a few blocks south of Sugarhouse, and she took the family there for picnics and there were dramatic and musical productions presented on a wooden stage. The audience sat on blankets to watch the program. Liberty Park was also a walking destination. Fireworks on the Fourth of July were presented there, and again they took blankets to sit on.
On April 10, 1946 her mother Hattie Chappell Gillette James passed away. The funeral was in Tooele and she was buried next to her husband in the Tooele cemetery.
Her Sister Naomi (Nonie) and family moved to Provo, and they had many family parties and trips together. Many times the two families traveled to the Uintah Mountains to spend time camping together and enjoying the great outdoors. Nonie's daughters called Margaret "auntie" and they loved being with her.
From her youth through most of her life, she was afflicted by migraine headaches. Her parents had taken her to a doctor and they were told she should drink coffee to get the caffeine. They were totally against this since it was contrary to the "Word of Wisdom". It was reported that she was three years old at this time, but much later in her life she did brew it and received relief because of this remedy.
Her skills in nursing helped her all her life. She did private duty off and on for many years. She had her name on the "register" and would receive assignments to private homes to help families take care of sick family members. She worked on the "Gold Coast" of the LDS Hospital as the charge nurse. This was the ward known as 7-A. It was where the important people such as the General Authorities of the church would stay while in the Hospital. She worked this assignment while Jim was on his mission from September 1950 to July 1953 to help pay his expenses. She attended and was with the Prophet at that time David O MacKay. This was a choice experience, except during her shift most of the patients were asleep. She enjoyed this work then because there were no children at home during the day and she could sleep much of the day.
Returning home
The small apartment that had been the home for Grandma Hannah was turned into a small rental apartment. She had several different "renters" and the extra money helped her. Some became good friends and gave her some company.
When old age came her migraine head aches left. She and Al did some traveling. During the summer of 1957 they went on a road trip to Alaska along with her sister Nonie and husband Lewis. Al made a camping trailer and they camped along the road to Anchorage. And they took a ocean voyage to Hawaii in the fall of 1961, she enjoyed the trip with the exception of the time on the ship. Sea sickness made the trip very hard on her. Al had been having health problems and they hoped the warm climate would help him improve. He did enjoy the vacation but his health did not improve. The doctor's decided to do an exploratory operation to find what the trouble was. It wasn't long before they found a cancer growing on the outside of his stomach. There was nothing they could do except give him medicine to relieve the pain and let the cancer take his life. After six months of suffering he left this life on June 28,1962.
The life of a widow became her life after Al's death. She had lots of friends and she went to Arizona with Nonie and Lewis to spend the winter months. There were bus tours to church historical sites, she would send postcards home to her grandchildren and would say "having fun wish you were here".
She loved to sew for her grandchildren and when she visited the homes of her children she was very happy with these special little ones. She lived alone and seemed happy, but the children were concerned about her daily meals. There was a "meals on wheels" organization that would deliver meals daily to the elderly. She became one of their clients and the family felt this would help to see that she had food to eat and ate at regular times. This worked for a time, but after a while the meals started to collect in the refrigerator and were thrown out.
Her health began to change for the worse and the children felt she couldn't live alone. She couldn't keep her balance while walking or standing and her memory began to fail. The doctors seemed to think she was having small strokes, so it was decided that she would stay with each of her children for a week at a time and then go to the next family for the following week. Since Jim couldn't take her unless he was home to care for her, he would provide transportation for her when she went to and from Holden. There were times when she would walk away and say she was going home, so she had to be watched all the time. She continued to go down hill and life became very hard for her. She could only move around the house by sliding around on the floor. Her short term memory was gone and didn't know most of those around her. At that time she moved in with Buddy's family and that became her final home.
She passed from this life on July 6, 1978 and was buried in the Salt Lake City cemetery next to her husband.
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