Son of Alexander Abednego Clarke and Martha Catherine Rymer

Married Ila Morrill, 13 Sep 1932, Manti, Sanpete, Utah

Biography - I, Sidney Penrose Clarke, son of Alexander Abednego Clarke and Martha Catherine Rymer was born November 18, 1907, in Fruita, Wayne County, Utah. I was blessed 15 December 1907, by Johnathan W. Cammeron in the old log schoolhouse in Fruita which was used to hold church in - 17 feet wide and 20 feet long.

During the summer and fall there would be fruit to pick and care for. I can remember climbing the fruit trees and picking fruit off the high and small limbs when I was only three years old.

While in Fruita times were hard and my parents one year had only squash to eat during the winter. My oldest brother, George, will not eat squash anymore. He doesn't like it. In Fruita we lived in a tent and covered wagon box then in a log shanty.

My mind gives memories of moving to Teasdale into a house on Dave Stewart's place until our house was torn down and rebuilt by Ernest Jackson for us. It did not have a wooden floor. We lived in it for some time with dirt floors. A fireplace was our heater; the old wood burning cook stove was our way of cooking too. Our house was one room. A covered wagon box was a bedroom for Mother and Dad until the house was built. An upstairs attic was where we children slept.

We had to walk 1/4 to 1/2 mile to church and school. Father had a small farm three miles east of Teasdale. Our transportation to and from the farm was team and wagon and by walking. I recall fixing fence between our place and Chris Pectol's and John Adams's farms. We children played on the white sandrock ledges around the farm.

Our fuel was wood - pine wood for the fireplace, cedar wood for the cook stove. We would hook up the horses on the wagon and go to the foothills near town and load the wagon with wood and haul it home to burn. A chore to cut the wood the right size to put in fireplace and the cook stove. It was the custom to haul enough wood in the summer to last through the winter for the snow would be to deep to get wood in the winter months.

Dad had a team of horses called Pete and Dick. Pete was balky and Dick was lazy. I went with Dad a lot to get wood, and the problems of this team caused a lot of uneasy days of hard work to get a load of wood home.

Mother would make root beer to drink at haying times. Riding to the farm I was holding a bottle of root beer which had a cork in it. Taking it to Father to drink, the bouncing of the wagon shook the bottle and the cork blew out, but we survived.

My brother, Alex, four years older than I; and myself herded cows for our neighbors about a mile east and north of Teasdale, a place called Jericho. Our lunch was a slice of bread dipped in grease and sprinkled with sugar, but we were happy. We would gather pinenuts off the pine trees on the hills and along the road by the Teasdale graveyard north of town.

The boys of all ages, big enough to hike, would go on Easter to the place called orchard hills. One Easter, being the youngest of the group, I sat down on a prickly pear bed. My fanny got full of stickers. My brother, Henry, and a friend, Alphus Lindsey, picked them our for me.

Mother did work for the town people to help make a living for the family. She did washings for three King brothers and their familes. We children would help her by going to the homes and getting the clothes, helping turn the washing machine. After the clothes were dry, Mother would fold them and put them in a big number three tub then Alex and I woould carry the tub of clean clothes to the home where they came from.

One day Mother was away from home. I was at the wood pile cutting wood. One of the other children spoke to me as I was swinging the ax. I turned my head to speak back to them and chopped my big toe. Letting it go I finished the wood chopping then went to the garden behind the house and was pulling weeds when Mother came home. She got the bottle of carbolic, washed the dirt out of the cut, and bandaged it with a clean rag. It is still a good toe (16 Aug. 1976).

Most of the people had pole fences around their homes. I was swinging myself on the bottom pole with my hands holding my head and shoulders up, my legs crossed over keeping my fanny off the ground. Somehow my hold on the pole gave way and I broke my wrist. Mother took me to Orson Allen who was talented in setting bones. He set my wrist - it is still good.

Another time I was across the street from the house north and was walking on the top pole. There was a pepper vine growing covering about six feet of the fence. The ants loved to make their home in the vines. I walked into the vines getting myself covered with ants and they began to sting me. I ran home. Mother took all my clothes off and put others on to get rid of the ants.

One evening my brothers were doing the chores for Jode Allen who was away from the home. He had a barbwire fence around his place. My sister, Ellen, and I were standing on the bottom wire and holding the top wire watching our brothers, George and Henry, milk cows. My foot slipped off the wire causing one of the barbs to cut my leg. I have a scar shining bright today just below the knee.

One Sunday School teacher had a cloth banner which she would let each class member have a turn taking it honme for a week and bringing it back the following Sunday.

We had a calf that needed watering every day, I had the rope on him and was taking him to the watering tub to drink. He got frisky and went running. The rope I had on him got wrapped around my feet and legs. The calf ran out of our lot and down the street dragging me on my fanny. A little excitement! Iwas about five years old.

I remember my sixth birthday. Sidney Rymer, my Mother's brother who I was named after, was there visiting and he stayed for my birthday dinner. Nothing special - we ate what we had. Mother was a good cook and could make a meal taste good. One thing Mother could do extra well was to fix a meal without any for-warning of company coming. Dad was always bringing someone in to eat with us without notice. Mother could fix a meal to fit the company in moments.

One Easter the Teasdale Ward was getting ready to go down to Hack Lyman's ranch for an outing which was by the Fremont River about 1-1/2 miles northeast of town. I was over to John Hiskey's place playing with Max Hiskey who was my age. Max put a rock in my hat and threw it upon the barn. In getting my hat I proceeded to come down by sitting down and sliding. I held the out edge of the roof, my hand sliding along the eves. I received slivers off the shingles between the first two fingers. Mother got some pine sticky gum and put on the places of entry of the slivers and bandaged my fingers and hand with a clean cloth. In a few days the slivers began coming out. There were seven of them a good inch long.

Another time the Teasdale Ward, as a family unit, went west and south of town between two and three miles on the slope of the Boulder Mountain to a small lake for a holiday celebration. There was a large tree with a limb out over the edge of the lake which a swing was hung and everyone was having fun swinging out over the water. Then it happened - one of the girls fell out of the swing into the water below getting all wet.

I remember my Father was the one to raise the flag on the Fourth of July. South of town is a high sand rock and clay narrow ridge with a round pointed steeple just perfect for a flag to stand on overlooking the town. Father would get up early and walk about 1-1/2 miles and put the flag on this pinnacle.

It was the custom at this time, the Fourth and Twenty Fourth of July, the holiday committee would have men who understood the use of blasting caps and giant powder to set off a few blasts right after 12 o'clock midnight to begin the holiday. About 10:00 a.m. parade, have a program in the recreation hall, church or school. Then children according to age ran races. All would get candy and a prize for the winner. Afternoon would be foot races, horse races, pole vaulting, high jumping and a few boxing glove contests - all clean fun. Also a dance at night to finish up the day's fun.

My Father rented John Larsen and George Coomb's farms on Government. Alex and I pulled weeds and dandelions for pigs, cows and horses. One day I was alone pulling dandelions and a coyote or wolf was lying down watching me. I saw him so I ran to the house. Mother and I got clubs and went back, but it was gone.

In Teasdale Alex and I pulled weeds and cut wood for Mary Williams and George Coombs.

My mother's brother, Sidney C. Rymer, who lived in Grover about ten miles east of Teasdale came to visit us and told my parents that Jess Pectol of Grover wanted to sell his home and farm in Grover. He talked to my parents about it and got them to buy it. So in June 1917 we moved to Grover where the rest of the family was raised.

Father had a very hard time to pay for the farm. My oldest brother, George, got a job working for the Meeks brothers of Bicknell who had a ranch in Cainville. His working helped keep the payments paid-up on the home. Father couldn't manage to take care of or pay for the farm. George took over the farm and paid for it.

After moving to Grover Alex and I herded cows in the foothills and flats around Grover. We also herded cows for different families in Grover. My sister, Ellen, and I herded pigs on the farm for our Dad. He had about 30 pigs to take care of. Having some to sell and baby pigs coming along to keep up the herd. When Marshall and Eugene got big enough, they helped herd the cows. We gathered dogie lambs when lambing season was on.

I went to school and grew up in Grover. The schoolhouse was also used for church. I went to Teasdale and stayed with R. J. Dalley and George Coombs and went to school the last year of my elementary grades.

I worked as a Deacon in the church until 6 May 1923, then was ordained to a Teacher in the Aaronic Priesthood. I would go Ward Teaching with my Father and others.

While as a child I tromped hay and loaded it and hauled it to the hay yard to put in a stack to be fed to the animals in the winter months. Dad wouldn't pile his hay with a rake so we piled it with a pitchfork. He raked the hay the way it was cut that made windrows so we could turn the hay swath over on the other swath making a perfect pile to pick up.

My brother, Alex, and I ran races to see who could pile the most hay. We would haul the hay on wagons and use pitchforks to pitch the hay on them. We would see who could pitch the fastest.

I irrigated the crops on the farm. My father taught me how to irrigate and get the best use of the water.

After the grain binder cut and tied in bundles the grain, we would shock the grain, standing it up in a shock so it would dry. Then we would haul it to the yard and stack it so the thresher could pull to the side of the stack and the grain could be put into the thresher. I worked on the horse power thresher to thresh the grain each year getting at the back end where the straw came out keeping the straw pitched away from the thresher. It took three or four to stack the straw back from the thresher, also carrying the grain to the granaries as it came out the thresher.

Father had the mail contract for six years. My brother, Alex and I carried the mail horseback. I carried it two years without missing a day. My dear Mother carried the mail horseback as well as going twice a week with the buggy to get parcel post to deliver. When Alex or myself couldn't take it, Mother did. While my mother was expecting my brother, Morgan, she took the mail - riding the horse. That wasn't good for her. Her life and the life of the baby were in danger. Mother about lost her life because she was in such bad condition when Morgan was born.

In November 1924, I went to Bingham Canyon and worked in the Apex Mine starting as a mucker then a timberman, cage rider (bell hop), hoistman. I worked in the mine 4-1/2 years. My brother, Henry, was also working in Bingham. I was in Bingham Canyon when they had a big avalanche come down Highland (one of the canyons) and did a lot of damage.

One winter I was sleigh riding down Carr Fork and had an accident. I got my ear almost cut off. It took some sewing to get it back on again. While still working in Bingham Canyon I received a mission call to the Southern States Mission. I entered the Mission Home in Salt Lake City May 27, 1929 and left June 6, 1929. I served 26 months under President Charles A. Callis who later become one of the Twelve Apostles.

I came home and found my most beloved wife, Ila Morrill. We were married in the Manti Temple September 13, 1932. When I was first married, we lived with my Mother for some time. I worked on the farm and herded sheep for different ones. I worked for Ernest Jackson at his sawmill, also my brother, Alex. Alex and I cut timber for him using the old Salmon Belle crosscut saw or ribbon saw to cut the trees down, then trimming the limbs off and measure the trees to the most productive length or the length he had to fill the orders of lumber he needed.

My Mother's brother, Sidney C. Rymer, had a small building built of 2x4's which he used as a store for a few years in Grover. He moved it up in his pasture and we lived in it for a year after moving from Mother's place. Our first baby Cloyd Penrose Clarke was born Oct. 1 1933 at the home of Lizzy Mott in Torrey, Utah. He was premature and lived only ten hours. A very sad experience for us.

My wife's grandmother Morrill had died and we bought her home in Torrey and moved to Torrey in April 1934.

(Ila has continued this history since Sidney didn't get it completed before his death in 1987.)

Sidney helped quarry and dress rocks for the new red rock Torrey chapel and culture hall, also for the Wayne County Courthouse in Loa, Utah, and the addition to the Wayne County High School Building in Bicknell, Utah.

Our second son, Miles Morrill Clarke, was born June 13, 1935 at home in Torrey. Sidney was put in as first Councilor to Arthur Lee Pierce. He retained that position until Bishop Pierce moved to Salt Lake City, then Sidney was made Presiding Elder and I was called as temporary Ward Clerk of the Torrey Ward.

February 6, 1937, our third son was born in Torrey. He had a open spine called Spina Bifida. We realized he might not live too long so Sidney gave him a Father's Blessing and a name, Wallace George Clarke. February 13, 1937 he died. We were really saddened, but we had put our faith and trust in our Heavenly Father and He knows best.

We both have held many ward and stake callings in the Church. We would go to the temple real often. Sidney has always been interested in genealogy and did a lot of genealogy.

In the fall of 1938 I got appendicitis and the doctor didn't want to operate on me, but the first part of February I got so sick I was taken to Richfield and had my appendix removed. Three days after I got sick and lost my baby st 6-1/2 months. That was February 9, 1939.

We always raised a big garden and I canned all my vegetables, fruit, jam and jelly for my family. In the fall of 1939 work was scarce so Sidney couldn't get a job so he went to Bingham Canyon, Utah and got a job working under-ground in the U.S.Mine. He worked until he got a pay check then came to Torrey and moved us to Bingham Canyon November 27, 1939.

Miles started school in Bingham. Our daughter, Marilyn, was born in Bingham Canyon Hospital June 27, 1943.

Sidney's brother, Marshall, lived with us for awhile in Bingham. It was in Bingham that he first me Leola. She was a school teacher. For Marshall it was love at first sight.

In the spring of 1944 we moved to the Fishcreek Ranch in Wayne County, Utah to take care of the ranch for my parents. We all enjoyed living on the ranch, especially Miles because he had a horse to ride. In the late winter or early spring 1945 or 1946, we moved back to our home in Torrey, Utah. Our daughter Delsa was born May 26, 1946 in Richfield, Utah. We were so happy to have three children the Lord had allowed us to keep.

In the fall of 1946, the Church was hurting for missionaries. The Church asked each Stake to send out a short-term missionary from the High Priest Group and the other High Priest in the Stake support him on the mission. NO one would offer to go so Sidney offered to go. He departed for the mission October 1946 to the Southern States Mission. He labored in Alabama.

In the spring of 1947, Delsa got really sick. The doctor said she had a congenital heart and for me to take her to a heart specialist. Sidney's whole mission fasted and prayed for her as well as the people at home. She was healed through the faith and prayers that were said for her.

Florence Covington quit the post office in Torrey so Sidney was asked to act as post master until another one was chosen. Sidney built a small building for the post office. He was a very good postmaster and had the post office for several years. He took the exam, but because he wasn't a war veteran they gave it to Loren Turner who was a veteran.

Our son, Sidney Callis Clarke was born May 3, 1950 in the Salina, Utah Hospital.

Sidney and Miles did a lot of logging and cutting of mine props off the Boulder Mountain. That was only seasonal work. Work was very scarce in Wayne County so Sidney got a job that Ella had recommended working for Winn & Company as a caretaker of their estate. February 24, 1954, we moved to Butler, Utah (Cottonwood Heights) and lived in one of the Winn homes on Wasatch Blvd.

December 13, 1955, Miles married Carol Bollschweiler in the Salt Lake Temple. March 15, 1955 Robert Leander Clarke was born in Murray, Utah.

Sidney worked for Winn & Company for 4-1/2 or 5 years. He got a second job driving school bus for Jordan School District. In order to continue driving the school bus we had to have a home in the Jordan School District. We bought a home in Draper, Utah. We moved to Draper in 1959. Sidney drove school bus for 17 years.

Our children all graduated from high school. Miles went to Pueblo, Colorado and took a course in teleography. Callis has his journeyman in electricity (licensed electrician). Robert is an accountant - still has a little schooling to become a CPA. Delsa went to beauty college and became a beauty operator. Marilyn was drill instructor and teacher in Highland High School in Pocatello, Idaho. She was also a teachers aid.

Marilyn married Gary Silcox June 19, 1961 in the Salt Lake Temple. Gary was drowned in Deadman Lake, Montana. She married Norman Mayhew January 13, 1990 in Pocatello, Idaho. Delsa married Daniel Nugent Doyle, Jr. June 6, 1964 in Draper, Utah. They with their family were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple August 1, 1974. Sidney Callis married Lorene Jackson September 24, 1971 in the Salt Lake Temple. Robert Leander married Susan Skoubye, July 1, 1976 in the Salt Lake Temple.

Miles filled a 2-1/2 year Stake Mission in Murray South Stake. Callis filled a two year mission in Bristol, England, 1969-1971. Robert filled a two year mission in the New England States March 1974 - March 1976. Sidney and I went on a mission to Tempe, Arizona Mission January 8, 1977 - July 1, 1978.

We have done a lot of genealogy research, also a lot of Temple work. Sidney was a veil worker in the Salt Lake Temple and the Jordan River Temple. Then we were set apart as temple workers in the Jordan River Temple. Sidney worked until he got sick and couldn't work.

Sidney passed away to his new mission July 12, 1987. We all miss him so much, but we know he is really busy and happy doing the Lord's work.