Sunday, June 1, 2014

Robert Price Family Reunion, 14 July 1962



On July 14, 1962 a reunion of the Robert Price Family was held at Fish Haven Resort. Ezra Poulsen was writing the Robert Price biography at this time and he reported on the book's progress. Three living children of Robert Price were in attendance: Fred J. Price of Paris, Joseph S. Price and Phoebe (Price) Booth, both from Salt Lake City. 50 family members were in attendance. Any of you remember this one? Joseph was a son of Robert & Susannah. Joseph and Phoebe were both children of Robert & Christina.

Thursday, May 8, 2014

The Law-Price-Juchau Annual Cousin's Meeting - April 2014


>The annual meeting of the Law-Price-Juchau Cousins' Group was a nice success. There were 28 in attendance. From the Price lines we had 16 representing the Susan Juchau Price line, 1 from the Mary Ann Price line, 1 from Elizabeth Price’s line and 8 representing the Joseph Stanners Price line. Each of these are children of Robert’s second wife, Susannah (Juchau) Price. There were none representing any of the children of Robert’s other wives: Matilda, Christina, or Wilhelmina. There were also none representing the following children of Susannah: Katie May (Price) Rich, George Benjamin Price, Emma Charlotte (Price) Clayton, Arthur David Price, Melvina Charlotte (Price) Ringel, Mercy Isabelle (Price) Kelsey, or Heber James Price.

Saturday, April 5, 2014

Land of the Sky-Blue Water


Back in 1963 Dr. Russell R. Rich, a BYU professor, reworked his master's thesis from BYU and published it as Land of the Sky-Blue Water: A History of the L.D.S. Settlement of the Bear Lake Valley. I've read this work and it is a fine little history and a great resource.

Now this resource has been made even more widely available, now that it has been digitized and published as part of FamilySearch Books: Land of the Sky-Blue Water.

Happy reading!

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Richard Price - The Burial Record, 2 April 1815

I've recently decided to turn my attention to Richard Price who died in 1815 and was born sometime before that. My approach has been to assemble and examine everything that we really "know" about Richard in hopes that some of this will allow us to determine exactly when and where he was born and who his parents were.

This entry for Richard's burial in the parish registers of Great Missenden (FHL 919241). Richard is the sixth entry down, no. 86 and gives the following facts:

Name: Richard Price
Occupation: Drover
Abode: High Street Village
When buried: April 2d
Age: 39 years
By whom the Ceremony was performed: R. Armstrong, Vicar



Age & Birth. Richard's burial on April 2, 1815, at age 39 years, put his birth between April 1875 and April 1876 (assuming his age has been correctly reported in the burial register).

Occupation. His occupation is that of Drover. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the following definition of Drover:


1.

a. One who drives droves of cattle, sheep, etc., esp. to distant markets; a dealer in cattle.
c1425   Wyntoun Cron. viii. xxiv. 53   The Dravere he gert, and oþir ma be examynyd, þat swne þa Tald hym, þat þe Carle þame stall.
14..   in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 585/10   Fugarius, a dryvere or a drovare.
1552   Act 5 & 6 Edw. VI c. 14 §13   Counties where Drovers have bene wonte..to buy Cattell.
1600   Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing ii. i. 183   Claudio I wish him ioy of her. Bened. Why that's spoken like an honest Drouier, so they sell bullockes.
1683   N. Luttrell Diary in Brief Hist. Relation State Affairs (1857) I. 254   A quarrell between some gentlemen..and a drover of sheep by Temple Bar.
1870   E. Peacock Ralf Skirlaugh III. 59   A little wayside alehouse..much frequented by drovers.

†b. fig. A dealer, trafficker. Obs.
1585   Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xiii. 207   Hauing entred the temple he findeth there..drouers and brokers making sale.
1602   2nd Pt. Returne fr. Parnassus iv. ii. 1763   The yong drouer of liuings..that haunts steeple faires.


So this tells us that Richard either drove cattle for a living or both drove & sold cattle for a living. There is good reason to believe the latter, as we will see later.

Residence. The register indicates that Richard lived at High Street Village. There is certainly a High Street in Great Missenden, but I'm not sure what what is meant by "Village." I'm guessing that High Street

The Vicar. "R. Armstrong Vicar" refers to Robert Armstrong, who was the vicar of Great Missenden parish from 1803 until his death in 1820.

Richard Price - 20 December 1803 - Five per Cent Annuities, 1797

Richard Price had a 5 per cent annuity purchased from the English government. This was similar to a savings bond in the U.S. today. It was purchased for £199.14.6 on December 20, 1803 and would be redeemable at a future date for £220.1.8. This would be equivalent today to buying a bond for $19,400 and redeeming it for $21,500.


Ezra Poulsen in his biography of Robert Price stated the following regarding this document:
Another document of unusual interest is a receipt to Mr. Richard Price for 199 pounds, fourteen shillings, six pence from "Five per Cent Annuities," dated December 20, 1803. The total maturity value of this investment was 220 pounds, 1 shilling, 8 pence. "Five per Cent Annuities," a governmental agency set up by act of Parliament in 1797, was a means through which the government borrowed money from its own citizens for a specified rate of interest. In principle, this investment operated like our modern United States savings bonds.
There are numerous examples of these annuities on a website entitled the AnnuityMuseum.

It is unknown when or how this was redeemed.

It is also unknown who has possession of this receipt today. The reproduction here was taken from the biography of Robert Price where it appears on the plates between pages 36 and 37. It would be nice to locate and scan the original in color--judging from the reproductions in the AnnuityMuseum it is likely that the words at the head of this document "Five per Cent. Annuities. 1797" were printed in red ink.


Monday, December 30, 2013

Richard Price and Maria Watts - Marriage and Banns Records, March-April 1802

Richard Price and Maria Watts were married in Isleworth, Middlesex, England on April 20, 1802 by W. Langford. The witnesses were Simon and Sarah Pearce. They were married by banns, the banns having been read on March 21st, 28th, and April 4th.

Banns:


Marriage Record (the middle entry, no. 10 on the following image):


Both the bride and groom must have been of age to marry, but beyond that, this record doesn't give us any clues to their age. It would be interesting to find out more about the witness couple: Simon Pearce and Sarah Pearce--probably husband & wife (but not necessarily). They could have been friends, neighbors, or relatives, or none of these, I suppose.

Friday, December 27, 2013

Richard Price - Militia Society Receipt, 10 Feb 1803

At the time of Richard Price, all men between 18 and 45 years of age were subject to being conscripted in the Militia. Wealthy individuals could pay for a substitute to go in their stead. Less wealthy individuals had an option to subscribe to the Militia Society. Members of the society would pay a nominal amount which collectively would be used to pay for a substitute for any members of the Society who were balloted.

Richard Price was one who joined the Militia Society, paying 16 shillings on February 10, 1803, as evidenced by the following receipt:



Do any family members reading this know where the original of this document is now located? It would be nice to obtain a modern, color, digital scan of this document.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Richard Price - Earliest Document? - Buckinghamshire Posse Comitatus, 1798


Right now--until we find an earlier document--the Buckinghamshire Posse Comitatus of 1798 is the earliest document mentioning Richard Price, grandfather to Robert Price.

The Buckinghamshire Posse Comitatus of 1798 is document containing "A Register of the Names and Occupations of all persons residing within the County of Buckingham (not engaged in any Military capacity) between the Ages of 15 and 60 years, And also of the Number of Draught Horses, Waggons, Carts of Burthen, Wind and Water Corn-Mills, within the same ... pursuant to a precept issued .. for the better ascertaining the Posse Comitatus."

Posse Comitatus means "force of the country;" however, it was not really used to conscript men into the military, as Roy Stockdill explains on his GENUKI webpage "Newbies' Guide to Genealogy & Family History," The following is a very informative explanation of the Posse Comitatus:
"Under the Defence of the Realm Act , lists known as "Posse Comitatus" lists and "Levee en Masse" lists were made in 1798 and 1803/04 respectively. These Defence Lists, despite their name, were not lists of those intended for military service. Their intention was to organise reserves of men not already serving in a military capacity for the defence of Britain against a French invasion. They would have been needed to evacuate the civilian population, remove wildstock and crops from the path of the invaders, gather arms and equipment and deal with food supplies to the forces and civilian population." (http://www.genuki.org.uk/gs/Newbie.html)

Richard is listed as a servant in Little Marlow on p. 236 of a copy of the Posse Comitatus, edited by Ian F. W. Beckett and published by the Buckinghamshire Record Society in 1985. The transcription was made from the original manuscript which resides in the Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies, Aylesbury.


This document shows us that Richard was residing in Little Marlow at least as early as 1798 and to my knowledge is the earliest document mentioning Richard Price.

Thursday, February 21, 2013


A few Prices in Wycombe, Bucks, England.

A Price descendant, Merlyn Cook, reports the following information from her recent research (this was done in May 2012)

High Wycombe Methodist Circuit (St. Mary's Street Chapel?)
  Births and Baptisms, 1792-1837 (GS 566020, item 2)
  No Prices found.

High Wycome, Crendon Lane Independent Meeting House
  Births and Baptisms, 1762-1836 (GS 566020, item 8)
  No Prices found.

High Wycombe, Ebenezer Chapel, Earton Street
  Births and Baptisms, 1823-1836 (GS 566020, item 1)
  Four Price entries found:

Thomas son of William & Ann Price of Beaconsfield born Sep. 18, 1821 and baptized Oct. 28, 1826 by me Daniel Campbell Minister.

Richard Price son of William & Ann Price was born Feb 2, 1828 in the town of Beaconsfield, Bucks. and baptized the 28th of the same month 1828 by me Daniel Campbell minister.

Nathan son of William & Ann Price, Labourer of Beaconsfield in the county of Bucks was born Jan 21st and baptized Feb 16th-18th 1831 by me W. Brockchurch.

Ezra son of William & Ann Price of Beaconsfield in the county of Bucks was born Mar. 13th 1832 and was baptized April 6th in the Wesleyan Bhapel Beaconsfield by me p. Jameson.

Any of you Price family researchers know where William & Ann might fit into the tree?

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Robert Price Biography online @ FamilySearch


The Robert Price biography written by Ezra J. Poulsen and published in 1962 has been made available online at FamilySearch Books this year. The digital scan of the book can be accessed using the following link:  https://dcms.lds.org/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE919857.  

The scan was made from a copy of the book in the Family History Center in Ogden, Utah. The book is presented in the form a pdf and can be easily downloaded or printed. 




A keyword search of the text would not work in the Chrome. Neither would it work in Internet Explorer; however, it did work in  Firefox. The text is embedded in the downloadable pdf so that when a copy is downloaded, that copy is keyword searchable as well. This is an improvement over what FamilySearch Books had to offer some time ago.


Saturday, August 11, 2012

George Price: Photographer


Those that have read the Robert Price biography will be aware that Robert's brother, George, came to Idaho and stayed for about 2 years living in Bear Lake Valley. During his visit George tried to make a go of portrait photography. In the biography Poulsen records:

George was a skilled photographer, in addition to other attainments, and took many pictures in Bear Lake, some of which are treasured possessions in the old family albums. For a while, he set up a gallery in a tent in Montpelier, and devoted his time entirely to that business. But photography in those early days was not very profitable, and he justifiably grew discouraged. Robert would have been happy to see George remain in Idaho and make his permanent home. But George grew restless and departed, going first to England, then on to South Africa, where he remained the rest of his life, married and became very successful in business. So far as we know, the two brothers never met again. (Robert Price, p. 152).

The following notice appeared in the Southern Idaho Independent in November of 1885:


Is anyone aware of Price family portraits that we know were taken by George Price? They would have to have been taken between 1884 and 1885.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Price Family: Nonconformists

There is abundant evidence that the family of Simon Price were nonconformists. When they became non-conformist is not precisely known. Simon Price and Mary Louisa Stanners were both christened in the Church of England.


They were married in the Parish Church in Great Missenden, Buckingham, England on 4 Apr 1833; however, prior to the introduction of Civil Registration in 1837, there were no legal marriages performed in England outside of the Church of England, therefore nonconformists were regularly married in the Church of England. Christenings and burials in the Church of England were different.


Then they had the following ten children, none of which appear to have been christened in the Church of England:


Mary Price
   Birth: 2 Feb 1833, Prior to Civil Registration
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Never Married.


Robert Price
   Birth: 19 Jun 1835, Prior to Civil Registration
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: 13 Oct 1855, Civil Marriage at the Register Office.


Annie Price
   Birth: 7 Mar 1837, Prior to Civil Registration
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: 28 Mar 1872, Type Unknown


Henry Richard Price
   Birth: 20 Dec 1838, Birth Certificate
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Died Young, Never Married.


Emily Maria Price
   Birth: 8 Apr 1840, Birth Certificate
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Died Young, Never Married.


Henry Simon Price
   Birth: 9 May 1842, Birth Certificate
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: 20 Dec 1866, Type Unknown


George Price
   Birth: 12 May 1844, Birth Certificate
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Date & Place Unknown.


Louisa Maria Price
   Birth: 14 Oct 1846
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Never Married


Miriam Martha Price
   Birth: 11 Feb 1849
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: Died Young, Never Married


Ellen Stanners Price
   Birth: 23 Jul 1851
   Christening: Unknown
   Marriage: 14 Aug 1880 to George Bland, Type Unknown


So does anyone have any christening records for any of these children--either Church of England or from a Non-conformist Church?


Does anyone have information on the marriages--when and/or where they took place? Whether they were civil marriages or performed in the Church of England?
Here are some places to look. Has anyone looked at these sources in the Family History Library?


Amersham Baptist Church, Lower Meeting House
   Births & Burials, 1773-1837 (GS 566017, item 1)


Chesham Independent Church, High Street
   Births, Baptisms, Burials, 1786-1837 (GS 566019, items 1-5)


Chesham Baptist Church, Old Meeting House
   Births, Baptisms, Burials, 1785-1837 (GS 566019, items 6-11)


High Wycombe Methodist Circuit (St. Mary's Street Chapel?)
   Births and Baptisms, 1792-1837 (GS 566020, item 2)


High Wycombe, Crendon Lane Independent Meeting House
   Births and Baptisms, 1762-1836 (GS 566020, item 8)


High Wycombe, Ebenezer Chapel, Earton Street
   Births and Baptisms, 1823-1836 (GS 566020, item 1)


High Wycombe, Primitive Methodist Church
   Births and Baptisms, 1832-1837 (GS 566020, item 9)


High Wycombe, Congregational Church
   Church Records, 1762-1902 (GS 994128, item 2)


The following appear not to be in the Family History Library, but are located (either in original form or on microfilm) in the Centre for Buckingham Studies, Aylesbury, Buckingham, England.
   Chesham Baptist Church, Blucher Street
   Chesham Methodist Church
   High Wycombe, Castlefield Methodist Church
   High Wycombe, Micklefield Road Meeting Room
   High Wycombe, Newland Methodist Church
   High Wycombe, Victoria Street Methodist Church
   High Wycombe, White Hart Street Methodist Church
   High Wycombe Primitive Methodist Station

Friday, May 28, 2010

Christening Record of Simon Price

Simon Price, father of Robert Price, was born in Great Missenden, Buckingham on November 1st, 1808 to Richard and Maria Price. He was christened on November 20th. Here's the record:

Monday, May 17, 2010

New Blog for Descendants of Robert Price

This blog is primarily intended for use by descendants of Robert Price (1835-1910) to coordinate and report their family history research relating to the Price lines. This will at least include the four surnames carried by Robert's grandparents: Price, Watts, Stanners, and Taylor. Findings regarding Robert's siblings and other collateral lines may also be included here. Virtually any historical tidbit relating to these families is welcome.

Robert Price was the second child of Simon and Mary Louisa (Stanners) Price. He was born 19 Jun 1835 in Great Missenden, Buckingham, England. This is according to his own report in various records, including his membership records in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which he joined in 1853. As Robert was born prior to the beginning of Civil Registration in England (1 Jul 1837), there is no Civil Registration of his birth. Most individuals in England at this time would have had their birth, or more specifically, their christening recorded in Church Records; however, if this was done with Robert, we have yet to locate his christening record. Consequently, the earliest record we have of Robert is his appearance in the Simon Price household in the 1841 England Census:


This record lists the Simon Price household on High Street in the parish of Great Missenden with the following details:

Simon Price, age 30, a tailor
Mary Louisa [Price], age 30
Mary [Price], age 7
Robert [Price], age 5
Ann [Price], age 4
Maria [Price], age 1

Source: England. Buckinghamshire. 1841 Census of England. Ancestry. 1841 England Census. www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 Mar 2008; citing Public Record Office HO 107/42 (also available on FHL microfilm 241211).