Edwin Harper was the eighth child and fifth son of Charles Alfred Harper and Lavina Wollerton Dilworth. He was born at the Harper Ranch on Silver Creek, near Park City, Utah July 31, 1858. His parents—Mormon immigrants—were from Pennsylvania and had arrived in Utah ten years earlier.
At about age 20, Edwin went to Mesa, Arizona. An older brother Harvey had moved his family to a Mormon settlement called Lehi in that area, and Edwin's parents spent some time on Harvey's farm during the early 1880s. Edwin came along on the excursion and with three younger brothers, he engaged in farming, ranching, sheep herding, and general community building at the genesis of Mesa's development.
Edwin died during his time in Mesa on July 24, 1881 just a few days before his 23rd birthday. The death was recorded in family records only as "from a very sudden illness." It may have been appendicitis, though that's only a guess. Several other members of his family also suffered from the affliction, and at that time in history it was frequently fatal.
Edwin was very close to his younger half-brother George (who was the son of Edwin's father with second wife, Harriet Taylor). George was the father of my grandfather, and through that connection, a few stories of Edwin have been passed down that leave us clues about his life.
George remembered spending much time with Edwin and looking up to him while growing up in Park City. Edwin was 10 years his senior and during George's childhood the two spent many hours together in the canyons of the Wasatch Mountains, hunting and fishing. On one occasion, when their father decided a pine tree ought to be planted at the family homestead in Holladay, Utah, it was George and Edwin who went deep into Big Cottonwood Canyon to seek out a satisfactory sapling. The tree in question was still standing in the lot over a century later and survives in photographs of the homestead.
Not long after Edwin's death, most of the Harper family left Arizona and returned to Utah. Three of the Harper brothers would eventually name sons after Edwin, signifying his importance in the family's pioneer history. He never married and has no living posterity. To the best of my knowledge, no photographs of him survive to the present day.
Brian Harper Tibaldo
At about age 20, Edwin went to Mesa, Arizona. An older brother Harvey had moved his family to a Mormon settlement called Lehi in that area, and Edwin's parents spent some time on Harvey's farm during the early 1880s. Edwin came along on the excursion and with three younger brothers, he engaged in farming, ranching, sheep herding, and general community building at the genesis of Mesa's development.
Edwin died during his time in Mesa on July 24, 1881 just a few days before his 23rd birthday. The death was recorded in family records only as "from a very sudden illness." It may have been appendicitis, though that's only a guess. Several other members of his family also suffered from the affliction, and at that time in history it was frequently fatal.
Edwin was very close to his younger half-brother George (who was the son of Edwin's father with second wife, Harriet Taylor). George was the father of my grandfather, and through that connection, a few stories of Edwin have been passed down that leave us clues about his life.
George remembered spending much time with Edwin and looking up to him while growing up in Park City. Edwin was 10 years his senior and during George's childhood the two spent many hours together in the canyons of the Wasatch Mountains, hunting and fishing. On one occasion, when their father decided a pine tree ought to be planted at the family homestead in Holladay, Utah, it was George and Edwin who went deep into Big Cottonwood Canyon to seek out a satisfactory sapling. The tree in question was still standing in the lot over a century later and survives in photographs of the homestead.
Not long after Edwin's death, most of the Harper family left Arizona and returned to Utah. Three of the Harper brothers would eventually name sons after Edwin, signifying his importance in the family's pioneer history. He never married and has no living posterity. To the best of my knowledge, no photographs of him survive to the present day.
Brian Harper Tibaldo
Edwin Harper was the eighth child and fifth son of Charles Alfred Harper and Lavina Wollerton Dilworth. He was born at the Harper Ranch on Silver Creek, near Park City, Utah July 31, 1858. His parents—Mormon immigrants—were from Pennsylvania and had arrived in Utah ten years earlier.
At about age 20, Edwin went to Mesa, Arizona. An older brother Harvey had moved his family to a Mormon settlement called Lehi in that area, and Edwin's parents spent some time on Harvey's farm during the early 1880s. Edwin came along on the excursion and with three younger brothers, he engaged in farming, ranching, sheep herding, and general community building at the genesis of Mesa's development.
Edwin died during his time in Mesa on July 24, 1881 just a few days before his 23rd birthday. The death was recorded in family records only as "from a very sudden illness." It may have been appendicitis, though that's only a guess. Several other members of his family also suffered from the affliction, and at that time in history it was frequently fatal.
Edwin was very close to his younger half-brother George (who was the son of Edwin's father with second wife, Harriet Taylor). George was the father of my grandfather, and through that connection, a few stories of Edwin have been passed down that leave us clues about his life.
George remembered spending much time with Edwin and looking up to him while growing up in Park City. Edwin was 10 years his senior and during George's childhood the two spent many hours together in the canyons of the Wasatch Mountains, hunting and fishing. On one occasion, when their father decided a pine tree ought to be planted at the family homestead in Holladay, Utah, it was George and Edwin who went deep into Big Cottonwood Canyon to seek out a satisfactory sapling. The tree in question was still standing in the lot over a century later and survives in photographs of the homestead.
Not long after Edwin's death, most of the Harper family left Arizona and returned to Utah. Three of the Harper brothers would eventually name sons after Edwin, signifying his importance in the family's pioneer history. He never married and has no living posterity. To the best of my knowledge, no photographs of him survive to the present day.
Brian Harper Tibaldo
At about age 20, Edwin went to Mesa, Arizona. An older brother Harvey had moved his family to a Mormon settlement called Lehi in that area, and Edwin's parents spent some time on Harvey's farm during the early 1880s. Edwin came along on the excursion and with three younger brothers, he engaged in farming, ranching, sheep herding, and general community building at the genesis of Mesa's development.
Edwin died during his time in Mesa on July 24, 1881 just a few days before his 23rd birthday. The death was recorded in family records only as "from a very sudden illness." It may have been appendicitis, though that's only a guess. Several other members of his family also suffered from the affliction, and at that time in history it was frequently fatal.
Edwin was very close to his younger half-brother George (who was the son of Edwin's father with second wife, Harriet Taylor). George was the father of my grandfather, and through that connection, a few stories of Edwin have been passed down that leave us clues about his life.
George remembered spending much time with Edwin and looking up to him while growing up in Park City. Edwin was 10 years his senior and during George's childhood the two spent many hours together in the canyons of the Wasatch Mountains, hunting and fishing. On one occasion, when their father decided a pine tree ought to be planted at the family homestead in Holladay, Utah, it was George and Edwin who went deep into Big Cottonwood Canyon to seek out a satisfactory sapling. The tree in question was still standing in the lot over a century later and survives in photographs of the homestead.
Not long after Edwin's death, most of the Harper family left Arizona and returned to Utah. Three of the Harper brothers would eventually name sons after Edwin, signifying his importance in the family's pioneer history. He never married and has no living posterity. To the best of my knowledge, no photographs of him survive to the present day.
Brian Harper Tibaldo
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