Solomon was born 26 January 1845 in Johnsville, Wayne Co., Illinois. He was the second child of 14 children. His father was badly beaten by anit-Mormon mobs just before he was to leave for Utah so he had to remain behind. Most Mormons had left the area and it wasn’t easy to stay behind, especially with so many bitter feelings. His cousin, Berry Sessions, was murdered. Life was difficult. Berry’s father left in 1856 for Texas which meant a loss to Solomon’s family. However in 1864, the family began their long trek across the plains. They joined the first wagon train that came along, which happened to be 500 Danish converts, and traveled with them to Utah. They arrived in Heber City, Utah, on September 16, 1864. His father’s brother, Richard Sessions, lived there and it was good to be with family again.
His parents homesteaded in Center Creek, Utah, a short distance from Heber. There was a lot of work to do, preparing farmland and getting ready for the next spring planting. They had to have a house and the entire family was kept busy doing many chores.
Solomon married Emily Adams December 17, 1866 in Utah. They had 3 children: William born 5 January 1868, Sarah Elizabeth born 1870 and James T. born 26 January 1872.
Solomon was sent to pioneer Arizona and settled in Thatcher. He became a polygamist and is noted to have seven wives. Though we don't have much information on him, we know that he married Rachel Catherine Fuller and at some time, had his picture taken in Vernal, Utah.. Solomon died May 29, 1912 in Thatcher and is buried there.
Several stories are related about Solomon and his family:
Violet Mary, (Solomon’s daughter):
Vilolet Mary was young when Solomon left one winter and had been gone a long time. Her mother, Catherine, loaded up the family and moved to Meeker during this time. Later they moved to a ranch on Marvine Creek on the White River and her mother married James Fitzgerald. They ran a dude ranch and spent their summers on the ranch and their winters in New Castle, Colorado.
Aaron Wurts:
Catherine knew James Fitzgerald in Vernal. One winter when Solomon had been gone a long time, her and Fitz loaded the furniture and etc in a wagon and sent children, Frank and Lettie to Meeker, Colorado. Then about 5 days later, in the night, her and Fitz and youngest child, Violet Mary, left by buggy, going to Meeker and then to Fitz's ranch on Marvine Creek.
Lowell LaBranch:
Solomon had five brothers. They came with the Mormon pioneers. He and one brother settled the Uintah Valley for the church. The other two brothers settled in the Bountiful area for the church. Solomon had seven wives and when the government out-lawed this practice of plural marriage, he moved 6 of the wives and children to Bluff, Utah. He would spend the winter months in Bluff and return to Vernal, Utah in spring. One fall after he had left, grandma (Catherine) ran off with a man named Fitzgerald. Each fall, Uncle Joseph told Lowell, after the cattle and crops were in, they would load several wagons and about 50 pack horses and take these supplies to Bluff and stay the winter and come back in early spring. Bluff was the hideout for the extra wives. When Lowell worked at Fort Duchesne one time he tried to find someone who knew about the Sessions in the area. None of the old timers knew of the Sessions but several did know of James Fitzgerald.
In April 1978, Bud and Jean Jordan stopped at Bluff. Talked with one old timer and he had not heard of the Sessions. He did say however that the settlers had a tough time trying to get and keep water on their crops. Also their summer range for the stock was quite a ways away and after a while they most all moved to Blanding, which was quite a bit closer to the stock. Several old time families however stayed on.
We toured the cemetery and found no names which would tie in. Most of the records for the cemetery are in Blanding according to the old timer.
Paul Ganley:
A Deputy Sheriff named Pete Lyman one time told Paul that he knew Solomon
of Thatcher, Arizona. They called him 'Buck' Sessions.