Leona Goodrich Manwaring

Leona Goodrich is the daughter of George Albert Goodrich and Harriet Maria Taggart.

Her father was a miller and operated the first flour mill in Vernal, Utah. Leona's husband claims he was attracted to her at a very early age. They grew up in the same small community and went to the same log school house where church functions were also held. Elmer was so smitten that when he was fourteen, he asked that the new baby girl born to his parents be named Leona.

Elmer was hired out, but a boy, to a farmer for 75 cents per day and Leona worked for this same farmer picking currants and berries on his small fruit farm. On September 14, 1910 they were married in Salt Lake City, Utah. That fall the school district was unable to get a certified teacher, so the trustee asked Leona to teach the primary grades.

The following summer the Uintah Stake decided to build a new Stake Building and Naples Ward was assigned the making of the brick with Elmer's father in charge. Facilities for drinking water at the brick yard were poor and Elmer contracted typhoid fever which caused him to be disabled for about a year. During this year their first little girl was born. The following summer they moved to the house on the farm where they had both worked much of their earlier lives and Elmer farmed on shares.

As they were anxious to secure a home for their children, and opportunities for homesteading were available, they filed on a tract of land on the Uintah reservation and moved there in order to comply with the homesteading laws.

However, the canal failed and to this day that part of town does not have water. They spent three years on the Stan Ashton farm in Vernal, three years on the Sunshine Ranch at Jensen, and later they bought a small farm in Naples. These years, during which their other five children were born, were full of change. They worked here and there, and if not too remunerative it was rich in experience.

In 1927 they moved to Roosevelt, Duchesne County, Utah and bought a larger farm where they grew alfalfa seed. Unfortunately, The Great Depression brought financial difficulty and with it drought which caused their crops to fail. They have six children: Genevieve Manwaring(Mangum), Hazel Manwaring(Hilbig), Venice Manwaring(Bascom), Hope Manwaring(Williams), Perry Manwaring and June Manwaring(Andreasen)

Leona and Elmer were remembered by their children as being cooperative, dependable, honest and trustworthy and only giving advice when asked. They worked hard. One of Leona's first pupils was Elmer. When they were in sixth grade, Leona helped Elmer in reading and spelling, which endeared her to him at an early age.

* Check out the Goodrich Family Organization

Children not listed below: Perry Manwaring