Samuel Newton Adair

I, Samuel Newton Adair, son of Samuel Jefferson Adair and Jamima Mangum was born at Itawamba County, Mississippi, Dec. 11, 1839. I was baptized at the age of eight years into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by Samuel Jefferson Adair at Mount Pisgah, Iowa in the year 1847. My schooling commenced at Council Bluffs. I had very little schooling and at the age of six years, on January 10, 1846, I moved with my parents to Nauvoo, Ill. Here we were driven from our homes on account of our religious belief and came to Mt. Pisgah, Iowa where we resided for one and half years. Here my mother and three brothers died and on account of their deaths we could not go with the pioneers.

In the fall of 1848 we moved from Mt. Pisgah to Council Bluffs where we remained until 1852. Then in the summer with a company of Latter Day Saints we crossed the plains with the 10th company with Gardner as our captain. We encountered many hardships. We left our homes, crossed the trackless plains and were traveling in regions inhabited by only Red Men and wild animals. But with the thought that we were going to a place where we could worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience we pressed forward and reached Payson, Utah that same summer. In the summer of that same year I went home with Levi W. Hancock, one of the Seven Presidents of the Seventies, and remained the rest of the summer. During that summer the Walker War broke out in Utah and a large number of towns were deserted and destroyed, including Payson. During this time I stood guard and answered the roll call all summer. During the summer of 1853, with a company of men, we went in the night to Allred to move the Saints to Manti. The Indians had driven their teams off so they could not move without help. My father was called from Payson, Utah Co. to move to Nephi, Juab Co. to strengthen that settlement on account of the Indians. He remained there until the year 1856 then was released to move back to Payson, and remained there the rest of the summer. my father was called by President Brigham Young to the southern part of the state to raise cotton. We left our home in Payson in March 1857, and moved to the Rio Virgin in southern Utah. Afterwards the town was surveyed and named Washington. Here we remained until the first of June and then returned to Payson where my father had lived.

My brother-in-law was called to go back on the plains to stop the U.S. Army who were coming to kill the Mormons. I stayed with my sister until March 1858, then returned to southern Utah again. In April 1858, I was called with 59 men, 20 wagons, 5 animals to each wagon and three men to each wagon. We went west into Nevada. Each morning when we left camp, we left a note put in a split stick then stuck in the ground with the date and direction we were going. This was done expecting the mormon church to follow immediately. Our captain was William H. Dame of Parowan, Iron Co. We went into Meadow Valley, Nevada and crossed over into Parenigut Valley. At the head of this valley we found Indians so wild we had to run them down with horses to let them know we were their friends. When we caught them they were taken to camp and given something to eat. While camped at the big spring at the farther end of the valley a man by the name of Daniel Rawson and an older man Lon Rodes came to our camp with a letter from President Young advising us to move to a suitable place to put in a crop. We returned to Meadow Valley, now call Panaca. Here we put in our crop, stayed until peace was declared with the government of the United States, then was called home. We gave our crops to the Indians.

We reached home June 30, 1858. I was ordained an Elder in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by John Frieman and Gabrial Cooley. I and my father took a trip to Payson, Utah County and while there my brother Rufus was killed accidentally with a pistol from the hands of Charles Hall. We returned to Washington and remained there until the year 1860. Then I went to California and remained for a short while. In November 1862, I was called to the Moque Village with Jacob Hamblin and others. We remained there one week, left three men; Joel Hial McCloud, Thales Haskel and Ira Hatch with Indians. We took three Indians home with us. William Maxwell took them to Salt Lake City and brought them back again, saw them safe across the big Colorado and then went home. I arrived home from the Moque Village on the 10th day of January 1863. During the remainder of that year I stayed at Washington. I was married to Helen Gennett Brown, December 15, 1863 by Bishop Robert D. Covington in Washington City, Washington County, Utah. I was home missionary in St. George Stake for years. I had an appointment as home missionary in St. George and went and filled it and 43 years after, I found myself in St. George standing in the same pulpit and the same building talking to the people of St. George in June 1867. Apostle Lorenzo Snow came to my father's and asked if I and my two brothers had been to the Endowment House and had our wives sealed to us. We told him no. He then asked the reason. I told him it was too far to take our families in the winter and if we went in the spring we would lose our crops. Then he said 'Let your crops go and come this spring.' We all went, received our endowments and had our wives sealed to us. My wife and I were sealed by Heber C. Kimball. At this time Martin Harris returned to the church and made his confession. I and my wife were present when he made his confession in the tabernacle in Salt Lake City, Utah. We then returned home. We made the 700 mile trip in wagons. I have a card handed me by my Bishop, Robert D. Covington. It admitted me to those meetings, signed by Brigham Young. I attended the meetings for several years. It was called the Schooling of the Prophets. I was Deputy Sheriff in Washington County, Utah for years under David H. Cannon. I was Constable in the precinct of Washington City, Washington County for years. I had permission from the Governor of Utah to act in that position. I was policeman from the time the town was chartered until I left. I had a commission form the mayor of the city to act in that position. My next mission was to Arizona. I was called at the April Conference in 1879. I sold my home in Washington City and left with my family the 11th day of November 1879, and settled at Concho, Arizona. In 1883 I moved to Nutrioso, Apache County, Arizona. I remained there until the spring of 1885 and when land came into market there were thirteen of us on 160 acres and the town on part of that. Benjamin Brown was the only man of the thirteen that was able to buy us out. Our Bishop, Benjamin Noble, advised us to sell out to him so he could enter the land and secure it. When my land was gone and part of my children had crossed the line over into New Mexico, I went with them. We arrived in Luna, New Mexico in April 1885 and have remained here ever since. On November 24, 1886, I was ordained a High Priest by Apostles Erastus Snow and Marion Lyman at Luna, New Mexico and set apart as first counselor to Bishop Reynolds and remained as long as he held that position. I was home missionary in St. Johns Stake for years and tried to fill every appointment. I was set apart as Home Missionary by David K. Udall at Eagerville, Arizona. I am still in Luna and have had many trials but they have never weakened my testimony in regards to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have lived in Luna for 34 years. I will be 80 years old December 11, 1919."

b. "Luna, New Mexico, October 7, 1919. I, Samuel Newton Adair, will write what I know about my mother's folks. My grandfather's name was John Mangum and he married Rebecca Noles, so my grandmother's name was Rebecca Mangum, my grandfather Mangum was a revolutionary soldier with General Morgan (one of his minute men.) He was taken prisoner with a lot of other men by the british soldiers and they set them on a log and split their heads open, all but my grandfather's and he had some kind of varmint skin cap on and that and the skull stopped the force of the sword and it glanced off and cut his ear nearly off and they turned him lose. He married after the war was over as stated above. Their children are: Cyrus Mangum, Joseph Mangum, John Mangum, William Mangum and James Mangum. The daughter's names were: Jeney Mangum, Gemima Mangum, Rebecca Mangum, and Lucinda Mangum. They were all my uncles and aunts. Joseph Mangrum married Emiline Hanner, William married Aunt Sally Adair, John married Aunt Mary Ann Adair, James Mangum married Jane Clark, my father's niece. I don't know who uncle Cyrus Mangum married. Jeney Mangum married George Crawford, Gemima Mangum married Samuel Jefferson Adair, my father. Rebecca Mangum married Joseph Adair, my father's cousin. Lucinda Mangrum married James Richey, my father's nephew."

c. "Luna, New Mexico, January 22, 1920. I, Samuel Newton Adair, will write what I know about my father's folks. My grandfather on father's side was named Thomas Adair. He married Rebecca Brown. He lived at Lawrence County, South Carolina in 1806. My father was the oldest son of Samuel Jefferson Adair. Thomas Adair was the next oldest son. George Adair was next oldest son. John Wesley Adair was the youngest son and went with the Mormon Battalion in 1846. The girls names were Eliza Adair Price, Sally Adair Mangum, died on the plains in 1852. Mary Ann Adair Mangum married.

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“Incidents in the Life of Grandfather Adair Grandfather Samuel Newton Adair was born December 11, 1839 in Itawomby County Mississippi. This was just a new settled county so there was no town. Grandfather’s parents joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1845 in the state of Mississippi. They left Mississippi in 1846. We came to Nauvoo in time to be drove out with the rest of the Saints from that place. Grandfather was baptized in 1847 at Mt. Pisgah, Iowa. Samuel Newton Adair left Iowa in 1852 to come to Utah. There was eight in the family and they came across the plains 1,033 miles with one wagon, one yoke of oxen, and one yoke of cows.

He spent the first winter at Provo with his parents. The next spring moved to Payson. In the year 1853 what is known as the Indian war, or Walker war started in Utah. They, the Indians, killed one of our brethren (Alexander Friel) and the day he was killed, Grandfather left Payson with Levi W. Hancock to go to Manti. He came very near being killed by the Indians before he reached Manti. He camped at what was then called Uinta Springs, now called Fountain Green. He lived with L.W. Hancock all that summer. He stood guard and helped to herd the cattle in the daytime to keep the Indians from driving them away. Grandfather drove a team from Manti to Spring City in the night to help bring the people from that place to Manti to keep the Indians from killing them. He returned to Payson that fall. He helped to build the old Mud Wall around Payson and Nephi while he lived at Nephi.

President Brigham Young came to Nephi and wanted to have a peace talk with Chief Walker. At the time Walker was then camped at Chicken Creek about 16 miles south of Nephi. Walker just laughed and made fun of him (Brigham Young). President Young told him he would wither and die. Grandfather can truthfully say that Walker did die a walking skeleton in less than a year.

Grandfather went from Payson in the year 1858 down to Dixie in Southern Utah. A few days after he had been there he was called to go on what was called the White Mountain Mission. He was one of the sixty that was called. The object of this mission was to find a place for the Mormons to move to as the government of the United States had an army on the way to Utah to destroy the Mormons. While he was gone on this trip the Government sent Col. Kane to Utah. That good man who had always defended our people and the trouble was settled without blood being shed. Grandfather was called home. His father had some unsettled business in Payson and they went back to see about it. While he was on this trip one of his brothers was accidentally shot and killed.

In the winter of 1862 and 63 he with others were called to go with Jacob Hamblin on a mission to the Moqui Indians. He filled this mission and returned home on the tenth of January 1863. On this trip is when he would of gave one of his horses for three biscuits. When they got to Pahreah some of the company had shot a crow. There were 23 of them in the company and he and Masiah L. Hancock were behind with some give out horses and when they got to where the rest of the party were the gizzard of the crow was all that was left and they divided it between them.

In the summer of 1866 he was called with others to go out near the mouth of the Green River to see if they could find Black Hawk the Indian Chief that was making so much trouble for our people, but they did not find him. This was the trip that Elijah Averett was killed. He was killed on the 26 th of August 1866. He helped bury Elijah Averett. James Andrus the captain of the company.

In 1868 he was called to go on a Mission to the Southern States. He went as far as Salt Lake City and reported to President Brigham Young. He said he did not approve of calling men from the Dixie County as he could not keep men enough in that County that it was all right to pitch right in and do all the good I could at home. One of the President Lorenzo Snows sons was out here (Luna, New Mexico) on a mission. He stopped with grandfather for several days, Grandfather was telling him about it, he said Brother Adair you have a Mission recorded in Heaven.

Grandfather was in the Nauvoo Temple from top to bottom, also in the Carthage Jail where the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Patriarch were killed. He and Grandmother were present at the Salt Lake Tabernacle when Martin Harris made his confession, when he returned to the Church.

He was called to go to Arizona in 1879. He was a home missionary in the Stake of Zion for a number of years. Grandfather lived the rest of his life in New Mexico. He was a good worker. He died May 16, 1925 at the age of 86.

From: “Treasures of Truth” complied by June Clark 1932-35, Cannonville, Utah.”

• Reseach Notes of Helen Gennett Brown Adair

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