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History of Mary Catherine Dahling
by daughter Blanche Metcalf Minster
Mary was born July 10th, 1857 in Gia, Gotland, Sweden. [Note research confirms that her birthplace, and that of her parents, was Öja, not Gia. There is no Gia on the island of Gotland and the Öja church records contain the records of Mary and her parents.] Her father was Thomas Nicholas Dahling. He was born June 10th, 1830 in Gia. [His christening record gives his birth 2 July 1830 in Öja & his christening 4 July.] Her mother was Britta Cathrina Olsen. She was born September 10th, 1829 in Gia. [Her christening record gives her birth 19 Sep 1929 in Öja & her christening 20 Sep.] Mary was the oldest of four children. The others were Louisa Christine, Emma, and Niels Peter. Her father was a shoemaker by trade. Her parents joined the church September 5th, 1862 when she was five years of age.
After joining the church, their chief desire was to come to Utah. So every penny they could spare was put aside to pay their way to America. When Mary was eight years old her father died very suddenly from blood poisening following the extraction of a tooth. It was now necessary for her mother to make the living. This she did by doing housework and working for a florist. Mary took care of her sisters and brother during her absence from home. Although her earnings were meager, she still tried to save some money for the trip to Utah.
The missionaries were always welcome in their home, and frequently were invited to partake of their frugal meal. When Mary was twelve years old, a missionary from Fountain Green was released to return to his home. He offered to chaperone the family if they wanted to come to Utah at this time. But they had barely saved enough money for one fare. So it was decided that Mary should come, and the rest of the family would follow in a year, if possible. What faith and courage it must have taken to let a child of twelve leave her family and come to a strange land alone. She was very seasick as well as homesick on the voyage across the ocean.
Arriving in Utah, she lived with this missionary and his wife for some time. She helped the lady make artificial flowers, which they sold to the neighbors. They were very good to her, but she felt that she was imposing on them. So she worked for other people as they needed help in the home--at first working for just her food and clothes. It was very difficult for her because she understood so little of the English language at this time. She was often very homesick but she never once wished to be back in Sweden. Her only desire was for her family to come to Utah. So when she began earning money, she sent as much as she could spare to her mother. But it was five years before they were able to come.
In the mean-time, she had been persuaded by a distant cousin to come and live with her in Christianburg--a small community near Gunnison. This cousin and her husband were apostates from the church. They lost no opportunity to humiliate her by ridiculing the church and the Mormon people. She often wished that she had never come here. She was treated as a servant. Besides doing the housework, she milked several cows. One cow had a strong dislike for women, so naturally Mary was very frightened of it. To protect herself, she always carried a big stick with her when going into the corral. One morning, however, she was caught off guard and was tossed over the fence by the infuriated animal. The result was several broken ribs. Her cousin's husband cured the cow of this bad habit. Dressed as a woman with a stick behind him, he entered the corral. As the animal came charging toward him, he dealt it several blows. From then on the cow had respect for the weaker sex.
While doing the laundry one day, Mary scalded both her feet. As she lifted the boiler of hot suds from the stove, the handle broke, letting the boiling water pour over her feet. She couldn't wear shoes, so she wrapped her feet in burlap. It was winter, and her feet got frozen as she went about doing the chores. Pieces of flesh fell from her feet causing a great deal of suffering. So for awhile she was excused from doing the chores.
She finally left this place, and went to Gunnison to work for Bishop C.A. Madsen and his wife. While here, her family came from Sweden, so they settled in Gunnison. Her mother made a living by weaving rag rugs and carpets. Mary tried to get an education, but it was very difficult working and trying to go to school. Later on she went to Payson where she worked for a family by the name of Douglas. She helped Mrs. Douglas trim hats, as she had a millinery shop in part of her home. Then she went to Salt Lake City, where she worked for a family named Fox. These were both very fine people to work for. Her sister Louisa married Antone Jeppson of Gunnison. She died in 1881 when her first baby was born. Mary quit work to care for the infant, but it died shortly after.
Sometime after this, her sister Emma became ill with diphtheria. Mary again quit her job to take care of her. After a hard fight, she nursed her back to health.
On February [25th], 1886, she was married to John Edward Metcalf, Jr. in the Logan Temple. The next few years, she lived in Salt Lake City, Manti, Ephraim, and Gunnison. She was the mother of six children: two daughters and four sons. Blanche Evelyn was born in Salt Lake City January 12th, 1888. William Edward Verne was also born here September 22, 1889. Louisa Catherine was born in Manti January 13th, 1892. Lund Dahling was born in Ephraim August 16th, 1895. She then moved to Gunnison. Here LeRoy Cannon was born September 19th, 1897. Richard Leo was born October 5th, 1900.
Her brother Niels was accidentally killed in 1896 while working on the railroad.
In July 1901, she moved with her family to Manti. Sometime later her mother came to live with her.
On August 31st, 1907, her oldest son Verne was killed while hauling logs down Mayfield Canyon. The brake broke, and he was thrown beneath the wheels and crushed to death.
The same year, her mother died on Christmas morning. The following year, on September 6th, 1908, her husband passed away after a short illness of typhoid fever, and she was left alone to rear her family. When her mother passed on, she was left without any blood relatives, which made her feel very lonely indeed. Her sister Emma had died some years previous to this.
On August 25th, 1911 her daughter Louisa married Rowland Denison of Sterling in her home in Manti. The marriage was later solemnized in the Manti Temple December 17th 1913. After living in Manti for a short time, they moved to Sterling, then Gunnison and Centerfield. A few years later, they settled in Manti. To them were born eight children--two of whom died while small.
Her daughter Blanche taught public school for five years, and was librarian of the Manti Public Library for some time. She married Walter Minster of Wellington in Salt Lake City on February 17th, 1917, and went to Garfield to live. This marriage was solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple on February 17th, 1955. To them were born three children. They now reside in Kearns after living in Garfield thirty nine years.
Her sons, Lund and Roy, served in World War I, being stationed in France with the 145th Field Artillery. Returning home, they both taught school. Lund married Marie Goodliffe of Park Valley in the Manti Temple February 18th, 1920. They lived in Bear River City for some time, then Brigham City. They finally came to Salt Lake City to make their home. To them were born five children, one of whom is deceased. Lund died October 25th, 1963 following a long illness after suffering a stroke. Roy married Margaret Judd of Manti in the Manti Temple September 1st, 1920. After living in Bear River City for a year, they settled in North Ogden, where they now reside. They have no children.
On July 25th, 1924, sorrow again came into her life. Her youngest son, Leo, passed away after a lingering illness suffering from tuberculosis. Then on December 19th, 1934, Louisa's husband Rowl died after a prolonged illness of many years.
During her lifetime she had the misfortune of falling several times in which she suffered broken bones, among which were several broken ribs, a broken collar bone, and both wrists broken. Her life had been filled with trials, hardships, and sorrow, but her faith and wonderful testimony of the gospel sustained her and gave her courage to carry on. She was always ready to help her neighbors and friends in time of need and sorrow. Generous at heart, she always shared with her neighbors some delicacy she had prepared. Whenever she had a hog butchered, a choice piece of meat was taken to each of her neighbors. No stranger who knocked on her door asking for something to eat was ever turned away. He was given a meal and a lunch to take with him.
She was an active, faithful member of the Manti North Ward. She always attended Sunday School, Sacrament Meeting and Relief Society unless she was ill. She was always prompt on time. A neighbor, speaking at her funeral, said he could set his watch as she passed by on her way to church, because she was that punctual.
She was a Relief Society visiting teacher for over thirty years. For a few years she was a special visiting teacher, which required her to visit the sick and homebound sisters of the ward. For more than thirty years she worked in the Manti Temple doing endowment work for the dead. Many times she stayed for two sessions, and often walked to and from the temple--a distance of several blocks--in addition to climbing the temple hill.
She was very generous in her donations, tithes, and offerings to the church--one hundred percent or better. Besides cash, her tithing was paid in garden produce, eggs, and butter, which was customary in those days.
She was very skilled in the arts of quilting, knitting, crocheting, weaving rag carpets and rugs. Her quilts were beautiful in design and exquisite workmanship. Her crocheted and braided rugs were done in many lovely patterns. She was also skilled in making laundry soap. She enjoyed working in her vegetable and flower gardens, which she kept immaculate and free from weeds. Her windows were filled with beautiful house plants, geraniums, fuschias, pinks, and many others.
Her most enjoyable pastime was reading. She had read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, and the Doctrine and Covenants many times. What a familiar sight as she rocked gently to and fro in her old leather rocker, reading her favorite book--the Bible--her dear, sweet face furrowed by the cares and sorrows of the years, but shining with a peaceful radiance so lovely and serene.
Hers was a life of unselfish devotion and loving service to her family and church. Blessed with a kindly deposition and very humble, she was loved and respected by all who knew her. When she is judged by the Supreme Judge she will be one of God's noble women.
She passed away very suddenly June 13th, 1936 after a few days illness with pneumonia. She was laid to rest in the Manti Cemetery in the shadow of the beautiful temple, where she had spent so many glorious hours. She would have been seventy nine in July.
Her descendants at the end of 1964 number three children living (three deceased), fourteen grandchildren living (three deceased), sixty eight great-grandchildren living (three deceased), and twenty three great great grandchildren living (one deceased).
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