Last Page | Return to Index | Next Page
Mary started school when she was six years old at the home of William McGee. Later they built a log schoolhouse and she went there until the end of the first year of high school. She was active in church activities.
Mary was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ when she was in her eighth year in Dry Creek ditch by Samuel Wind and confirmed by Emanuel Richmond April 28, 1882.
To avoid confusion with her mother's name, Mary was always called May. Many of her friends did not know that her name was Mary. She was known as Aunt May by much of Heber City.
During her childhood, Mary would go to her grandmother's place when Indians came to her own mother's home, for she was afraid of Indians and taught the children to be the same way. There were five boys and seven girls in the family.
Many family gatherings, birthday parties and other activities were held at May's home. At one family celebration the house was full of family. Grand daughter Sue and her husband Don Wilberg were talking about a rabbit hunting trip that they had just been on, when their Grandma spoke up and asked them if she had told about the time she shot a gun. The whole house became silent as everyone knew that Grandma was not fond of guns, though men of the family always hunted and had guns around the house.
May told the following story from her youth. At one time when she was a young woman her family lived in Eastern Utah, somewhere around Roosevelt or Duchesne, near the Indian reservation. May's father was ranching at the time. The Indians in the area were free to roam around the land. A young Indian boy took a liking to this pretty young woman and would follow her around, and try to get her attention. He always had a big grin on his face. May did not like the boy at all. She would throw rocks at him, but he was too quick for her to hit him. She would try to run away from him, but he was too fast for her to out run him. This went on day after day, as she would walk home from school or her chores. One day she had all that she could take. The boy was following close behind her, the big grin on his face. As May opened the door to the family cabin, she noticed her father's gun in it's holster hanging on a peg on the wall. It was a six-shooter, the old black powder type. May reached up and took the pistol from its holster, she turned around, pointed the gun at the Indian boy and cocked the hammer. He just looked at her with the big grin on his face. She did not mean to, but somehow she pulled the trigger. The sound was deafening. The smoke bellowed to fill the air, there was the strong acrid smell of sulfur in the air. May looked to see where the Indian boy was, she couldn't see him. As the smoke slowly cleared, May still could not see the boy standing there. She was overcome with fear as she was sure that she had killed him. As she looked again she could see him running down the trail back to the reservation. May said that the Indian boy never bothered her again, and that she never fired a gun again.
Her greatest sport was running. When she would run a race, everyone would bet on her and she didn't loose many races.
When she was nineteen she had a terrible case of typhoid fever. It left her deaf, dumb and blind. Her parents called the elders and they would come and administer to her. Through faith and prayers she was restored her sight and could talk and hear again.
She married John Carlos Chapman May 12, 1897, in Heber City. They were married Bishop Robert Stone Duke of the Heber East Ward. Don Carols was born July 27, 1873 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the son of Joseph Smith Chapman and Jane Matthews. Family traditions indicate that Don Carlos Chapman deserted May not long after they were married. He never came back. A letter from Arthur Chapman 310 North 700 East, Orem, Utah 84057-4931 indicated that his Uncle Don Chapman was rather irresponsible and probably deserted May. The family learned that he had joined the U.S. Army as Edward McAnay (spelling uncertain) and that he had deserted the Army. After seven years she divorced him.
May received her Patriarchal blessing September 4, 1899 given by Patriarch John M. Murdock at Heber City. It was given as follows:
"Sister Mary Janet Nelson, by your desire, I lay my hands upon your head to give you a Patriarchal Blessing, to tell you thou art of the house of Israel, of the seed of Joseph that was sold into Egypt, there for you or a lawful heir to all the blessings, of the Holy Gospel, that you have been inclined to receive in the days of your youth, that spirit sayeth unto me that thy pure spirit dwelt in the presence of God, in the eternal world long before the foundation of this earth was laid, and that you were numbered with that happy throng when the morning stars sang to gather, and all the Son's of God shouted for joy. And by your own desire you were permitted to take a tabernacle here upon this earth, that you might be able to fulfill the duties encumbered upon you while you shall remain here, you shall be called to assist the Holy Priesthood in helping to teach the youth of Zion in the principals of the holy Gospel, and in the ways of the Lord. Because of your kindly disposition you shall have power to do much good among the children of Zion. Therefore seek unto the Lord that the spirit, and power of the gospel may rest upon you that you may be able to accomplish much good.
Sister Mary Janet, I seal upon you the blessing of life and health that you may live upon the earth to accomplish all the good that you have in your heart to do, you shall live as long as life shall be desirable unto you. Your guardian Angel shall watch over you and preserve you from evil and from any serious accidents you shall have according to your desire. all things that will be for your good, while you live upon the earth.
I seal upon you the blessings of eternal life, and say that you shall come in the morning of the first resurrection and be gathered with your kindred to enjoy all the fruits of your labors that you have performed here upon this earth. I seal upon you the blessings of the holy gospel both in this life and that which is to come. Therefore, dear seek to persevere in the ways of the Lord and you will have much joy, in the labors of your hands all which I seal upon you upon condition of your faithfulness by committing by authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen." (Typed by Isabella C. Murdock.)
She dated Adolphus Sessions, an identical twin. He had lost his wife, Rachel Emma Hicken at the birth of their second child, Thomas, who also died at birth child. The two brothers were so identical that the only way she could tell them apart was expressions they used in talking. They would go to a dance and changed partners during the dance. Before they did this they would tell each other what they had been talking about. Adolpha and him had a lot of fun with their dates.
She married him December 26, 1900 in Heber City. The marriage was performed by Bishop Thomas Hicken Jr. who was a stepbrother of his first wife. Adolphus was born May 13, 1963, in Heber City, the son of Daniel Alexander Sessions and Janette Rachel Baum. They had 11 children. Cordon was the first born. She named him Corridan after a Corri Hanks and her brother Dan, but church christening records show it spelled as Cordon and he was legally named Cordon. In these histories you will see his name spelled both way. He was known as Corridan throughout his life until he applied for social security and records of the church read so his family tried to change the spelling to the legal way. Next children were: Chloe Ellen, Ella Janetta, Burnell Alexander, Agnes Lorna, Ervin, Phebe La Vern, Erma Rose and William Earl (twins). Earl died at four week old. Then there was Vilda and Lizzie Deon. They also took Adolphus's five year old son to live with them, Charl. He was very upset because he had lived with his grandmother all that time and did not want to leave her. He would always pick on Cordon and that upset May. They also raised two of Lorna's children, Ruth Gettle from the time she was 10 months old and Dale Sessions from the time he was born. May would not give them up. They were considered hers and she raised them. Dale has been sealed to them in the temple as their child. Someday Ruth hopes to be sealed to them as well. Her uncle John, never married and he lived with she and Tobe for many years. He was a happy man, always giving the little ones rides on his foot and singing to them. He ate with a knife and when he got older the peas would roll off, but he wouldn't use a fork. He never ate many peas that way.
May, as everyone called her, had many faith-promoting experiences.
When Cordon was four years old he took very sick with diphtheria. The doctor was called three times in one day and he didn't improve, so they called another doctor. The doctor put a long tube in his throat. It took him over an hour to put it in. He told her if it ever came out or he swallowed it he would choke, so they tied a string on it for May to hold. One doctor said there was one chance out of hundred he would survive. May went outside and there were a group of people standing there to see how he was. You could hear him breathing in the street in front of the house. May ask Margaret Hicken to pray that the Lord's will be done. One day May went to sleep while rocking him and when she awoke the tube was gone and has never been found. Cordon improved from that time on and made a complete recovery. May said it was Margret Hicken's prayer that saved him for she was so full of the Lord's spirit.
May's health failed early in her life. She would take spells and black out and the family would rub her. Some said her liver would touch her heart. She came out of them, but had quite a few of them. She fell in a trench in the backyard on December 18, 1938. It was winter and freezing ice. She was wedged in the trench and could not get out. She lay there over an hour before the family started looking for her and found her. The doctor said she would never walk again. The elders came and administered to her and before the year was over she was walking again, but she walked with a limp the rest of her life. Still she could walk faster than anyone she walked with. You would walk so far and then you would have to run to catch up with her.
Tobe speculated in land buying. A gypsy on the street in Heber City asked May if she could tell her fortune, but May told her she didn't believe in such things. The gypsy said, "I have to tell you this—you will be asked to sign a paper, don't sign it for if you do you will loose everything you own." Later Tobe asked her to sign the mortgage papers. She refused, but he got one of the girls to forge their name. They lost all their land but the house they lived in and the pasture. It was a sad day for them.
When they lost their property, she had to do house work, tend children and do whatever she could to pay the bills. She worked for Murdocks for many years. She did not have the strength to keep up two houses so hers was not always the way she would have liked it. Life was difficult for them for quite a few years. Cordon left school and went to work, gave her his checks to help with the family. When the children were married and left home, she would visit them when she could. She went to California, Nevada, Colorado and Idaho where many of her brothers and sisters lived. Cordon took her to Idaho many times and in later life Burnell took her to many reunions there.
She and Tobe, as Adolphus was called, were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple May 16, 1923. Most of their children were sealed to them, but Cordon was not. They also had the sealing of Tobe to his first wife done at the same time. May insisted that it be done first.
Tobe was not well for many years. He laid in bed a great deal of the time. There were always children around and the noise bothered him at times. May loved to have them there as she loved each one very much, so he learned to put up with it. He died May 3, 1938, at Heber City, Utah and is buried there on the family plot of his fathers. They were married for 37 years and May lived another 25 years after his death.
May did not like to be alone and somehow there was always someone living with her until her later years. She loved a garden and especially flowers. She loved yellow roses and had several bushes. Even in her 80's she still dug up the ground and worked hard in her gardens. The family tried to help her but she insisted she didn't want to become childish as so many old people did and she would not let them.
She used to hide money in many different places and could always find some when she needed it.
She loved to play rook cards but would never bid unless she had a sure thing as she hated to loose. If she had a careless partner, she would tell them.
Her patriarchal blessing came true in every sense of the word. She had many accidents and survived them all. She lived as long as she desired and she was a great influence on everyone she met. Every grandchild thought she loved them the most by the things she did for them. She took care of Cordon's girl, Eva, when they went fishing. Eva would rather stay and go to church with Grandma than fish. She taught Eva many things without her even knowing it. She would take her to see Aunt Christy, always taking her lemon drops or peppermints. While visiting Aunt Christy would tell Eva about crossing the plains. She would also play the organ that was brought across the plains in the wagon and have a wonderful time doing it. Eva didn't know it but she was learning about her heritage. She took Eva to Salt Lake City. They boarded the bus and went to the genealogical building and paid a researcher to teach Eva how to gather genealogy. She made a quilt block and told Eva to make her a quilt. Then when it was made, she taught her how to quilt. All this was done before Eva was 10 years old. She would put candy and nuts in Eva's shoes on New Years Eve telling her that she was such a good girl, Santa passed by on his way home from delivering Christmas gifts to let her know what a good girl she was. She did things like this to all her grandchildren. She made a barley and carrot soup all loved, and her suet pudding was the best. She always had time for you and always gave love unfeigned.
She made every son, daughter, grandson and daughter a crocheted a bed spread, or baby bed spread, back and arm rests for the davenport, and chair and a crocheted tablecloth for each. She crocheted even when her eyes could hardly see. She would set for hours listening to Stella Dallas and other soaps on the radio and croquet, very content and happy.
Her children would pool their money and buy her large appliances, refrigerators, stoves, washer, etc. One day she told Eva, "I like the gifts they give me, but just once I'd love to have beads, perfume or nice things." From that day on, Eva always gave her perfume etc. She loved pearls.
Whenever Eva would go back to Utah if the green peas were ready to be eaten, she wouldn't let anyone in the pea patch until she was there. She knew Eva loved peas and Eva would set out there and eat to her hearts content.
She would cook Thanksgiving dinners for at least 30 to 50 people each year. Having her family together at that time meant much to her. May was very modest. She always wore the long garments even though she could wear the shorter ones. On day, she and Eva were walking up town near Christmas time. As they were passing the stake house and listening to musical carols by bells from the tower, she started moving so fast Eva thought she had slipped on ice. Later she came to find out that her bloomers elastic had broken and they had come down. "I never knew she could move so fast! She had them picked up and tucked under her coat before I knew what was going on. I had to laugh but I don't think she thought it was very funny."
As families do, the children grew and married and moved out of the family home. There were many difficult situations that developed over the years. Her daughter, Lorna Gine's baby, Melvin, burned to death in a fire. Lorna left Donna Rae, 4, and Russell, 14 months to watch the baby while she gathered eggs. The house caught on fire, the two older children escaped. Lorna was burned in the fire trying to rescue the baby but it was too late. Ella Janette, who married James Leo Dunn, passed away in June of 1944, at the birth of her last child, Marilyn, leaving 10 children. May helped where she could. Francis Doyle and Betty went to live with Charles and Vilda Bridget, Ella's oldest daughter took Marilyn to raise and Cathaleen had identical twin baby girls. John went to California to Chloes, Geraldine went to Cordons for awhile. Cathaleen Lucille and Renee did what they could to hold the family together. They did a good job as they are a close knit family today.
Tragedy struck November 15, 1951. Her youngest son, Ervin, had arrived home from night shift at the mines and was out milking the cows. He happened to look up towards the house and saw smoke coming out of the upstairs window. He ran to the house, threw open the door to the upstairs and fire jumped everywhere. He had put aluminum siding on the outside of the house recently and it probably held the fire in so when he opened the door it exploded. He threw Rose Marie down the stairs and was found with his arms around Judith Ann and Steven lying on the floor. Rose Marie died later of severe burns. This loss was almost unbearable but May had the strength to bear it. She had fed and cared for Ervin's children every day. They would always go to her house and spend most of the day.
May carried a secret all of her life, but near the end she felt she should tell her children that she was an illegitimate child. This bothered her very much and she had a great compassion for such children. When her mother married Henry Nelson, he accepted her as his own and loved her as much as his own children. She had a happy childhood with her parents and brothers and sisters.
The last time Eva visited her, she told her she was ready to die. No one lived with her any more and she felt her life's mission was over and she was ready to go. She had gallstones removed in her 80's and came through the operation good. She had a very strong heart. The only way she could go was the way she did. She fell down the cellar stairs that were near the bathroom. Burnell tried to nail the cellar shut but she said if he did she'd take the nails out herself -- and she would have. Her sight was gone because of cataracts and she must have gone to the wrong door by mistake. She broke all the bones in her body and died sometime later. While in the cellar she somehow moved her body to a table and pulled a tablecloth off it and wrapped it around her body trying to keep warm. She died before anyone found her around noon on, Wednesday, December 4, 1962, just one month before her 90th birthday. She is buried in Heber Cemetery next to her husband.
She touched the lives of all her grand children for good and many others.
She fulfilled her mission with mighty works and all of her patriarchal blessing was fulfilled completely. She completed her earthly mission with high honors.
Her grand daughter, Eva, wrote this poem which was read at her funeral.
MY GRANDMOTHER
Almost everyone chooses someone as a guide that they live by,
I chose a special person whose standards were very high,
MY GRANDMOTHER.
She had no malice in her heart, but love for all she knew,
She truly loved her neighbor, as only a few can do.
Whenever someone needed help, she gave of her time and her means,
She knew the joy of service and the happiness it brings.
MY GRANDMOTHER.
She wanted people around her, there was always a small one near,
She did little things that meant so much, that made her ever so precious and dear.
She wasn't rich in worldly things , but the things that count she had,
Tenderness, charity and patience, a way to cheer the sad.
MY GRANDMOTHER.
She loved to work, she was busy all the time,
Minutes were very precious, each hour was sublime.
She left a mark of spirituality for her testimony was very strong,
She lived; God's laws and commandments, on her lips was a prayer and a Song.
MY GRANDMOTHER
She planted a flower garden, with colors of every hue,
She planted seed of kindness in everyone she knew.
She nurtured her vegetable garden, that the food in it was good,
She nurtured the family God gave her the best way that she could.
God has given many precious gifts through the amenity of time,
But one of the greatest that he gave to me, was that wonderful
GRANDMOTHER OF MINE.
May all of her posterity be worthy of her love, live by the examples she set. She deserves the very best. We can be a living tribute to her.