WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY (Washington County, Utah)
EDWIN DILWORTH WOOLLEY JR.
(early settler, businessman, church leader)
BIOGRAPHY
Edwin Dilworth Woolley Jr. was born April 30, 1846, in the Mormon community of Nauvoo, Illinois.His parents, Edwin D. Woolley Sr. & Mary Wickersham, were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Because of the extensive persecution waged against the Latter-day Saints in Nauvoo in the 1840's, the Woolleys were forced to leave their home, along with thousands of other Church members, and become part of the famous Mormon exodus to the Salt lake Valley. After a great deal of suffering and trial, they arrived in the Great Basin on September 27, 1848.
During the trek westward, young Edwin was an infant. During his youth, Edwin D. Woolley Jr., as well as many Mormon boys his age, was given many responsibilities and difficult assignments. When he was only 15 years old, he was sent as a teamster to the Missouri River to aid the Mormon emigrants in their trek westward. Later, because of problems with Indians, he was a participant in numerous expeditions against them, and saw service in the Black Hawk War.
At the age of 20, he was sent to Southern Utah to help colonize St. George.
On March 9, 1867, Woolley married Emma Bentley at the Endowment House in Salt Lake City. Following their wedding, the couple returned to St. George. There, they established their first home and became active participants in community affairs. Soon, Edwin was given ample opportunities for service in many different civic functions, such as Alderman, Constable, Policeman, etc.
On April 12, 1877, ten years after his marriage to Emma Bentley, Woolley married his second wife, Florence Snow, daughter of Apostle Erastus Snow and Elizabeth Ashby. On the day following his wedding he left for a mission in England, which, because of business problems, only lasted six months.
In 1882 Woolley moved to Upper Kanab to manage a church-owned cattle ranch, and in 1884 he was called by Erastus Snow, who was representing the Church leaders, to be the President of the Kanab Stake. In addition to his Church assignments, he was involved in organizing a bank, a store, a coal company, encouraging tourism, and so on. Because of these many efforts, he is a key figure in Mormon and Southern Utah history.
After a very colorful and productive life, Edwin D. Woolley Jr. died on July 20, 1920, following a two-year battle with cancer. Although five of his children had preceded him in death, he left behind eight sons and ten daughters in addition to his two wives, Emma and Florence.
FAMILY
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Parents and Siblings:
Edwin D. Woolley Sr. Mary Wickersham Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx |
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married xx/xx/xxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx) (xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx) (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx) |
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First Wife and Children: Emma G. Bentley Emma Lavina Mary Elizabeth Edwin Dilworth Olive Geneva Joseph Anthony Royal Bentley Rachel Henrietta Ruth Ella Grace |
(??/??/????-??/??/????) (married 3/9/1867) (12/22/1868-7/??/1881) (1/31/1870-8/20/1953) (married Thomas Chamberlain) (1/??/1872-Infant) (6/??/1874-Infant) (6/24/1876-9/1/1961) (married Margaret E. Holt) (9/3/1878-??/??/????) (married Eliz. V. Barney) (12/2/1880-8/26/1960) (married Julius S. Dalley) (11/24/1882-1/21/1963) (married David D. Rust) (10/3/1884-??/??/????) (married Israel H. Chamberlain) (5/2/1887-10/24/1965) (married O. C. Bowman ) |
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Second Wife and Children: Florence Snow Florence Evelyn Erastus Dilworth Herbert Elliot Elizabeth LeGrand Arthur Snow Marion Pruda |
(??/??/????-??/??/????) (married 4/12/1877) (8/26/1878-5/3/1881) (12/22/1880-??/??/????) (married Alice Snow) (5/19/1883-3/11/1952) (married Prescinda Ballantyne) (3/11/1885-??/??/????) (married Albert H. Day and George C. Jensen) (4/3/1887-10/10/1965) (married Alida Snow) (5/12/1889-6/4/1969) (married Ivy Houtz) (4/3/1895-6/10/1918) (7/7/1902-??/??/????) (married Glen A. Hamblin) |
PHOTOS
WCHS photos:WCHS-00987 Photo of Edwin D. Woolley returning from the Black Hawk War
Other photos on the web:
TBD
REFERENCES
Brief history of Edwin D. WoolleyEdwin Woolley Jr. and Erastus Snow Family Collection in the Harold B. Lee Library special collections
Edwin D. Woolley Jr. collection in the Southern Utah University Library special collections
Edwin D. Woolley Jr. collection in the Southern Utah University Library special collections