Smith, Noah (son of William Smith and Polly Whitney of Long Ridge, Stamford, Conn.) Born 1803, Stamford, Conn. Came to Utah Oct 5, 1862, Ansel P. Harmon company. Married Mary De Forest at Stamford (Daughter of Samuel De Forest and Elizabeth Chapman of Pound Ridge, Conn.) She was born Feb 20, 1816. Their children : Henry married Annie Ross, Mary Eliza married James Sanderson; Sarah Elizabeth, died; Harriet Emile married Theordore Bellwood; Cornelia Frances married Harrison Tuttle Shurtliff, Melissa Alice married John Malin, Charles Albert married Sarah Jane Shurtliff; George Edward, Cora Elizabeth, Ida Louisa, latter three died young, Ella Ethelina married George Laney. Noah was a shoemaker, Died 1863, Salt Lake City. [Photo on left and biographical information on Noah Smith from Pioneers and Prominent Men of Utah by Frank Essholm, p. 561.]

Mary Deforest was born Feb 20, 1816 at Pound Ridge, Westchester, New York, a daughter of Samuel De Forrest and Nancy Chapman. She married Noah Smith April 4, 1832 [she would have been 16 years old] at Long Ridge, Connecticut. They had three sons and eight daughters. They joined the LDS Church in the east but were afraid to let their friends know that they were Mormons because hatred for them was so great. They left New Haven, Connecticut June 12, 1862 for Utah and it was a sad parting because two married daughters [Mary and Harriet] and one married son [Jacob] stayed in the east. Only four children [Ella, Charles, Alice and Cornelia or Nellie] traveled to Utah with their mother and father as four [Sarah, George, Ida and Cora-twins] had died in their youth.

They took a boat from New Canaan, Connecticut to New York and met a large group of immigrants who had just arrived in New York. All of them started on their long journey to Utah by train. The train was so very crowded and the saints who had arrived by ship in New York had no time to clean up so for the most part of the journey it was very disagreeable. Two of the daughters [Alice age 17 and Nellie age 19] had thoughts of turning back but they knew it would grieve their parents so they stayed.

At St. Lewis [Louis], the baggage car caught on fire and most of their luggage was destroyed. They were advised not to purchase anything in St. Lewis, Missouri because of the hatred that existed there for the Mormons. The following evening after the fire they arrived in St. Joseph, Missouri and were obliged to stand up the entire night in a heavy dew at the side of a baggage room. The next morning they took a boat across the Missouri River to Florence. They had to sleep on the ground with nothing to cover them except some of their clothing which they removed from their bodies. Two babies were born that dark night and none suffered from the exposure. During their six weeks stay here they had to sleep on the ground, cook over campfires and their only protection from the elements was a large canvas stretched overhead.

[From Cornelia-Nellie's obituary in the DUP SLC Museum's files, it says..."On June 12, 1862, she with her family, left New Haven, Conn. for Utah, crossing the plains by ox-team. On this journey she was cook of the 'Captain's Mess' under Capt. Ansel Harmon. She arrived in Salt Lake valley Oct 5, 1862. She was married to Harrison T. Shurtleff, Feb 14, 1863." In looking for more information on the Ansel Harmon Company, it left 1 Aug 1862 and had about 500 individiuals when it began its journey from the outfitting post at Florence, Nebraska. Noah Smith was 59 years old, Mary Elizabeth Smith, age 46, Alice Melissa-age 17, Cornelia Frances (Nellie) age 19, Charles Albert Smith age 15, and Ella Ethelina age 6. From the same website there is a description of the daily journeying by a fellow camp member Ellen Hallett:

"We enjoyed the journey much. We used to get up in the morning, often when the moon and stars were shining, and get our breakfast, take down our tents and go up to the front of camp to prayers, and then off on the road. We stopped for dinner sometimes one, sometimes two hours, and then off again, stopping to camp at sun-down, perhaps a little sooner or a little later; this depending on our being near to water. We had plenty of good fodder all the way; and plenty of wood, with the exception of one part of the way where we gathered 'buffalo-chips.' When night came we were generally tired, but not too much so to enjoy the dance and song. Being scant of bed-clothes, I was thankful for the use of a buffalo-robe and some blankets kindly loaned to me by brother Hockings, one of the teamsters. There is some most beautiful scenery by the way. We saw no buffaloes; but we saw some antelope, deer, wild geese and ducks, and other kinds of fowl and plenty of fish. We got lots of plums, and grapes, and currants, and cherries, which we made pies of. Some places you could get a cart load of plums in a very little distance."] (1)

The Smith family arrived in Salt Lake Valley October 5, 1862. Ansel Harmon was the Captain of the company, James Malin night guard, Edwin Davis, William Hielz, Isaac Seely and others were also guards. John L. McAllister was foot guard and chaplain of the company. He was one of the best men who ever lived so thought Mary's daughter Alice. The only fault he had was in taking such long strides that it tired them to keep up with him. After their arrival in SLC, Alice's mother, her sister Ella and she herself were all sick. It all seemed strange to them as they had no relatives and only one family they knew, that of Albert Merril, the hatter. Brother Merril made most of the hats that were worn by the men in Salt Lake City, at that time. The Smith family was without money. Ella the youngest sister had Mountain fever, also whooping cough. She was so sick the family thought she would not live. On account of the sickness, our friends hardly thought it best to take us into the home. The Merril family put up a tent in their garden and took the Smiths there. Brother Merril was the Elder who baptized the Smith parents in 1843. Sister Ella however got well but the Merril children all took down with whooping cough which made it hard on them, as it was winter.

The Smith family finally rented the front room of the home of Mrs. Albert Lamson. Mrs. Lamson was the mother of Julina and Edna Smith, wives of Joseph F. Smith. Here in this home father Noah Smith died 10 July 1863. After a hard struggle to make a living, Alice's mother married [12 Dec 1863 in the Endowment house] Ephraim Green, one of the Mormon Battalion members. Ephraim Green was called to serve another mission in the Sandwich Islands (now Hawaiian Islands) and he took his wife Mary Deforest Smith and her youngest daughter Ella Ethelena Smith with him. Mary De Forrest was also know as Mary DeFrees. She died at Kamas, Summit County, Utah Aug 26, 1888.

Additional Sources:
(1)www.lds.org/churchhistory/library/pioneercompany/0,15797,4017-1-141,00.html

Notes taken from headstone located in a private cemetery above Rockport Reservoir in Utah for Mary and Ephraim Green as shown on the right."Mary Smith Green Born Feb 20 1816, Pond Ridge, Westchester Co, N.Y Died 26 Aug 1888, Kamas Utah, Ephraim Green Born Mar 5 1807 Rodeman Jefferson Co. N.Y, Died Oct 6 1874 Rockport Utah."

From a cousin I was told the following which seemes to be erroneous: "Grandma Green's first husband Noah Smith died on the plains with Cholera in Missouri." [Noah Smith arrived in SLC in 1862 then died the following year possibly of cholera.] Mr. Green looked after them, she and the children, since she was left alone. Mr. Green dressed the boys, etc and cared for them (perhaps in SLC in 1862-3?). Ephraim was in the Mormon Battalion in 1846, then in California coming east in 1848 and on a mission to Sandwich islands in 1854, while the Smith family wer still in New York until 1862.] She met him again (?) in SLC when she arrived [in 1862] and they got married (1863). (4)

After Mr. Green died, she brought him out to Rockport to bury him. The Francis Vernon family were later buried next to the Greens. The right of way belonged to Mr. Bean and Mr. Seamon. Joseph [Vernon] wanted to buy it. Sarah [Malin Vernon-his wife] told Joseph to buy a piece of ground next to Mr. Green above the current Rockport reservoir built over the old town of Rockport in Summit County Utah. This he did. They were poor and he had to sell a load of hay in Park City in order to buy the right of way from the neighbors, to buy another piece of burial ground next to Greens. He bought the deeds to Green's lot and bought piece of ground. In Apr 1970 Alice [Vernon Moore] bought the fence and Malin and his boys put a fence around Green's lot. Apr 27, 1970, Alice told about her Grandma Green up on the hill next to Francis Vernon's plot. "Grandma Green's 2nd husband died and her grand daughter Sarah Elizabeth said, Put him up there on the hill, it was nice." (4)

An old family group sheet from the Archives says wife Mary De Forest Smith Green and child #11 were baptized and confirmed into the United Order 25 Sep 1875 by John Malin. [Ephraim Green her second husband had died in 1874.]

GREEN, (Ephraim,) a member of the 16th Quorum of Seventies, was born at Rodman, Jefferson Co, New York, May 5, 1807, baptized in 1839, and in the summer of 1843 went to Nauvoo, where he made the acquaintance of the Prophet Joseph Smith and other leading men; after which he returned to New York. In the fall of 1845 he removed to Nauvoo (see postcard on left that I bought in Nauvoo during my trip there in 2000). He left there with the first company of Saints for the western wilderness early in 1846, and stopped at Garden Grove, [Iowa] where he buried his wife. [According the IGI on www.familysearch.org, he married Fidelia Thompson 6 Feb 1846 in Nauvoo.] While in Winter Quarters he learned of the demand of the government for a battalion of 500 men and enlisted. He marched as a sergeant in Company B through to California. On the journey he suffered severely from the want of food and excessive marching; he was also sick part of the time, and on several occasions was so exhausted that he had to crawl into camp on his hands and knees.(1) After the arrival of the Mormon Battalion in California, Ephraim received his discharge and started for the Great Salt Lake Valley. He was working on Sutter's mill-race when gold was first discovered in California, and subsequently worked at the mines, together with his companions, until 1848, when he came on to the Valley. (1) His experiences making a trail from California back to the Salt Lake valley are chronicled in a daily journal Ephraim made of the trip.(7)

Ephraim resided in Great Salt Lake City until he was called on a mission to the Sandwich Islands in 1854. He filled that mission faithfully and honorably. Previous to this he participated in numerous Indian expeditions and was one of a company of Indian missionaries sent to the White Mountains (in Nevada?) in 1855.(1)

On 29 January 1853 the Daily Alta California reported that the ship Huntress cleared the port of San Francisco bound for the Sandwich Islands [Hawaii]. This newspaper on 7 January had noted the vessel's arrival 146 days out of Boston. Aboard this Yankee square-rigger as she sailed through the Golden Gate were nine Mormon missionaries. These men had been called at the special conference of the church in August 1852 to preach in foreign lands. They were Joseph F. Smith, Benjamin F. Johnson, Nathan Tanner, Thomas Karren, William McBride, Ephraim Green, James Lawson, Reddin A. Allred, and Egerton Snyder. Captain James L. Lambert was master of the vessel. He had previously skippered the ship Glasgow on her 1844 voyage with Mormon emigrants from Liverpool to New Orleans. This experienced mariner and shipbuilder had also commanded the 669-ton ship Elizabeth in 1849. On 17 February 1853-after a "quick and pleasant" nineteen-day passage-the Huntress anchored in the Honolulu harbor. This square-rigger was built by her master and owned by William O. Moody. Her home port was Boston.(2)

In the correspondence of Joseph F. Smith, he states in a letter to George A. Smith that he had arrived safely with eight other elders in Hawaii to do missionary work. They found the people to be very kind hearted those who weren't opposed to the work. It also states...Ephraim Green (born 1807) arrived in the islands July 1854. Elder Green and Elder Karren (Thomas A. Karren born 1810 was a veteran of the Mormon Battalion) were presiding elders. With the original spelling here's an excerpt about Ephraim Green..."Brother Efriam grean. Sends you his love and r[e]spects and Sez that he is agoing to plant a vinyard of his one and will Shortly Send you all the wine that you can drink. after a while." [Note-Green was in charge of farming at the colony on Lanai.] Brothers Eferem green and Karrens are the presiding elders. They commenced ploughing last weak and are know pooting in thair crops. A great many of the elders are calculating to go home Jest as quick as thay can rear means." Because of difficulties in Utah with Johnson's Army approaching Ephraim Green was called home after about a year on his mission. He would later return to serve his mission, this time with his second wife Mary deForest Smith Green. (2)

"Located one mile north of here at the foot of the mountain between Wai'apa'a Gulch and Palikoa'e Gulch in the ahupua'a of Palawai lies the site of the Mormon community known as the "city of Joseph" in the "valley of Ephraim." On 3 October 1854, Ephraim Green, a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commenced laying out a community for the gathering of Church members in Hawaii on land leased from Chief Levi Ha'alelea. Green wrote, "I took my compass and commenced to lay out a town . . . at the foot of the mountain and laid out one street running south to the sea three miles to a fine little harbor." This colony became home to about 300 Hawaiian Latter-day Saints learning and living a 'practical religion' in the midst of their homes, gardens, a church and a school. Due to difficult conditions, three years later at the October 1857 mission conference, the decision was made to begin searching for a new gathering place. The land passed into the hands of Walter Murray Gibson, who made it his ranch. The Church eventually located another gathering spot in La'ie on O'ahu. However, the seeds planted here in Palawai in the hearts and minds of the people were later harvested in La'ie. These early pioneers faced many hardships, including crop failures, fleas and broken farm equipment. They struggled to cultivate farms with little water." (3) (6) Elder Ephraim Green was placed in charge of the little colony. A meetinghouse and a house built in native style 12" x 14" for Elder Green was constructed. He laid out the city in lots with two main streets, which was called the "City of Joseph" in the "Valley of Ephraim." As more Saints came to the valley to make their homes, food and other necessities were sent to them from Maui. Elder Hammond who was in general charge in Maui hired a number of whale boats which were used to transport cattle to Lanai to the great amazement of the natives. Later a large schooner the Lanai was purchased but it was sold because it was unprofitable to use.(5)

In 1865 at age 58, Ephraim was called to go again to the same Islands [accompanied by his wife Mary Smith Green who he married in 1863 and her youngest daughter Ella Smith about age 7]. They returned in August, 1868. Here are some quotes from letters Ephraim Green sent home to family during their mission:

In the fall of 1869, Ephraim removed to Rockport, Summit Co, where he resided until the time of his death which occurred Oct 6, 1876 [1874]. Elder Green was a man who everybody who knew him intimately loved; he was a generous, warm hearted, true man, strong in his affections and friendship and thoroughly devoted to his religion. That he was permitted to hear the Gospel and to yield obedience to its requirements was a never-failing source of joy to him from the time of his baptism until his death and as a consequence he never faltered, doubted or grew indifferent in relation to the Latter-day work.(1)

Sources:
(1) Jenson, Andrew. LDS Biographical Encyclopedia, p. 323-324.
(2) www.jfs.saintswithouthalos.com/pri/jfso54.htm
(3) www.mormonhistoricsitesfoundation.org/projects/lana'i.htm
(4) Notes on Joseph Vernon family group sheet made by Kathyrn Vernon of SLC
(5) Carter, Kate. Treasures of Pioneer History. SLC: DUP, Vol. 5, p. 144.
(6) Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of the Church. p. 323-4
(7) Bagley, Will. Road to El Dorado, SLC: Prairie Dog Press, 1991

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