George Ault (1871 – 1878) – The Drowning of Little Georgie

sunset-wheat-field-856983-mobileCroppedWhile John and Rachel Tirrell Ault were living in Deseret, Millard Co., Utah their son, little Georgie, wanted to go to Cedar Fort with his uncle, Reuben Coles.  His mother said, “I need you, I can’t spare you.  Ride a little way with Uncle Reuben and then walk back.” Georgie went with his Uncle over the river, then Georgie came running back to his mother very frightened.  He told her he had seen a man all dressed in white, who had looked at him. Georgie said, “I was scared Ma.” His mother said she was so frightened when he told her this that she felt like her hair was standing on end. Later Georgie and his sister, Rachel, went out to the river to catch some fish for supper. While there, their father called Rachel. After telling Georgie to sit still, she ran to her father. When she came back there was no sign of little Georgie. Rachel ran on down the river and told her brother Jack, who was in swimming, what had happened. He jumped out and ran 2 miles bare naked to get a Hales boy who was an excellent swimmer and diver. The Hales boy went to the river and right to the spot where the body of little Georgie was held by willows. Mr. Hales came with his wagon and took the family and the body, to his home in Oasis, Millard Co., Utah and that is where George Ault was buried. The women stayed up all night to make the burial clothes while the men made the casket. The body was laid out on a sheet covered plank with Georgie’s faithful dog lying underneath keeping watch. (By Ina Calton Gilbert, Contributed by Susan Gilbert to familysearch.org in 2013. Used by permission of Susan Gilbert. Photo from LDSMediaLibrary) #AncestorClips

Rachel Ault Elton – Escaping Shipwreck

RachelAultElton“Grandmother, Rachel Ault Elton, was born April 19, 1859, at Stony Stratford, Buckingham, England… She was the third child of a family of thirteen children. Through misfortune of one type or another, Grandma had only two sisters and one brother who lived to adulthood. When Grandma was only five years old, her folks decided to leave England and come to Zion. They sailed from Liverpool on September 3, 1873, on the Steamship Wyoming. Mr. John B. Fairbank was the captain of the ship. In addition to her parents, two brothers, and a baby sister, there were 410 saints on the ship. Even though Grandma was very young, she remembered and has often told of how they barely escaped shipwreck when the ship became lodged one night on a large sand bar near the Sabel Islands (300 km southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia). On this occasion everyone was called from their beds to the deck and asked to kneel in prayer. After praying for safety, they all crowded to one end of the deck, and with human balance, they dislodged the ship from the sand-bar. I am sure that it was only the result of their praying and the will of our Father in Heaven that saved them.” (By Beverly Elton Hunt and others as compiled in Hardman Biographies – Ancestors of Sidney Glenn Hardman and Dorothy Mae Griffin, 2009. Photo from family archives)