JOHN HOwn WILLIAMS

John Howd (named for an uncle of Lucille's. Howd Veater. Howd was his mother's

maiden name - and Howd Veater was born. and is buried in Panguitch. Utah. He was a

lifetime friend of our family). John Bawd Williams was born in El Paso. El Paso

County . Texas, on September 3D, 1912. My father, John Calvin Williams was a

rancher in the Mormon colony , Colonia Chuichupa, Mexico, in the state of Chihuaha.

My father and mother were parents of 8 children of whom 4 were born in the Mormon

colonies of old Mexico. The parents, John Calvin Williams was born 4 August. 1877,

in Alpine, Apache Territory (close to the present day Alpine). Arizona, and died

15 April 1963. and mother Louisa Susannah DAVIS was born 2 September. 1879. in

Panguitch, Garfield. Utah. and died 3 May, 1951.

The first child born to my parents was George Davis Williams on the date of

30 August. 1901. in Pleasanton. New Mexico. and he died 26 October. 1901. The 2nd

child Clarence "c" was born 10 November, 1902. in Colonia Juarez, Chihuahua, and

died 10 November. 1964. The 3rd child, Martha was born 9 October. 1904 in Colonia

Chuichupa, Chihuahua, Mexico, and died 14 January, 1972. The 4th child, Vila was

born 23 February, 1907 in Colonia Chuichupa, Chihuahua, Mexico, and died 20 February,

1974. The 5th child Louisa was born 31 December, 1910, and to this date (5 February.

1988. is still living. She too, was born in Colonia Chuichupa, Chihuahua . Mexico,

or Chupe. as it was fondly known . The 6th child was myself (Jack) John Howd

Williams. The 7th child Ivy "I" (we called him Billy). was born 27 October, 1914,

in Three Rivers, Otero. New Mexico. and died 29 December. 1919 . The 8th child.

Jack "M" (J.M.) was born 16 September. 1917, in Three Rivers, Otero, New Mexico,

and died 3 September, 1962.

During the Mexican Revolution in July. 1912. all Americans had to evacuate

their homes and land on a 24 hour notice. leaving most of their personal belongings

behind them. Most of them traveled by train from the colonies (there being about

7 other colonies under the same orders). This exodus from Mexico, caused an over­

flow of "people for the available housing in El Paso, Texas. The United States

government set up a tent city where Washington Park now is. I have been told,

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and the records show, that I was born in a tent (in Tent City) set up by the Army, and

was delivered by an Army doctor on September 30. 1912.

Dad worked in El Paso for two years for the city. and then took a job with

Senator A. B. Fall in 1914. in Three Rivers, New Mexico. My parents. a brother

Clarence. three sisters. Martha, Vila. and Louisa, and I moved t o Three Rivers.

New Mexico. at the foot of the White Mountains. west of Ruidoso. Dad was the

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cow foreman. and we lived there until 1917. when Dad went into partnership with

A. D. Brownfield. We then moved to Thoreau, New Mexico. where they leased quite

a large area of land .

Memories of Thoreau: When we were in Thoreau there were 3 white families

and all the rest were Navajo Indians. The railroad split the ranch into two

separate, large pastures. Next to the railroad tracks there was a large trading

post, a one room school house, a railroad section house, and a water tower for

servicing the trains (in those days all trains ran on coal and steam). Next to

the tower was a large shipping pen for loading out the cattle. A single lady in

her early 20's was the school teacher for eight students. four of the students

being my brother and three sisters, a Mexican-Indian boy, and three MCCullough

children (the section foreman' children). About five grades were taught in that

one room school. I was not old enough to go to school , but they sent me anyway ,

and I gave the teacher many problems. One day when Mother wasn't home, the girls

put me in rompers (short pants) over long- handle underwear and long black stockings

with the underwear bulging beneath the stockings. There was a gap between the

stockings and the pants . I didn't want to wear that kind of clothing to school.

and I began to raise hell about it, and began picking a fight with my sister Vilo.

Well, poor Vila happened to be Sitting closest to me, and got a good thrashing from

various pieces of my wearing apparel. The teacher, Miss Smith. grabbed me up and

put me in the closet and locked the door. Then came the climax of my school days

in Thoreau; I kicked the door and squealed so loud that Miss Smith had Vila take

me home, not to return. If Mother and Dad went anywhere after that 1 went with

them. not to school. My best recreation and pastime was watching an old Indian

silversmith in a hogan making silver jewelry with very crude tools. The hogan

was made of brush and mud, a hut type of building.

The ranching venture did not work out and we moved back to Three Rivers.

By that time I was getting old enough to ride with Dad, and those were some of

the happiest days of the early part of my life. While we were living there J.M.

and little Billy were born. When World War I broke out (1917) my older brother

lied about his age and became an ammunitions guard at Ft. Wingate, New Mexico,

some 30 miles from the ranch. They would ride around the fence on horseback .

Clarence got the best horse at the station because he was the only one who could

ride him. Another instance of interest was when we were let out of school to get

a glimpse of the president of the United States. Many Navajo Indians were there

also. As the train passed through very slowly, everyone gave the president some

small token. candy, jewelry (perhaps), etc.

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There was a small spur track off to the side of the main railroad track

(not in use). One day the station agent's boys and I managed to get a handcar

which had push-pull handle to keep it in motion. We managed to get it on the

tracks and got it going downhill. then we could jump on it. We were really

enjoying the ride until we came to a big wash (arroyo) where the track had washed

aut . The oldest boy. Billy McCullough knew where the track was washed out, but

had not told the rest of us. As we got close to the wash he hollered "jump",

which we all did and rolled down the track grade. We were lucky that none of us

were hurt, only bruised. The handcar we left in the wash, (I guess the railroad

crew finally got it out) but I never asked any questions to find out.

Dad told us one day, a sad day for me, that he was renting a house in Alamo­

gordo, New Mexico, and was moving us there so that we could attend school. He

would stay on the ranch. I wasn't much of a town boy. and don't recall many high­

lights there. except that it was there I saw my first airplane. It landed on the

street and taxied up to the school yard. All the school kids were turned out so

we could see it.

Another thing which happened in Alamogordo, our little brother Billy died

of diabetes. Ironically, insulin was discovered that year, but too late to help

him. Uncle Howd always called him "White Mountain BilL·' After staying two years

in Alamogordo, things were not working out too well, and Dad took a job in El Paso.

We rented a nice, small home located between the high school and Morehead grade

school. The three older kids went to EI Paso High School and Louisa and I went

to grade school. Louisa fit in real good, but I loved ranch life too much to

settle down to city life. But it was a must .

Clarence, Martha. and Vila gr~duated from high school, and in 1925 Louisa

started. I struggled through grade school and in 1927 went into high school.

In her 4 years Louisa graduated; she had earned many honors. and I had been her

younger brother for 2~ years. During the summer months before I graduated I would

go to Mexico to the ranch. Dad was not much of a city man either, so he had

decided to go back to Old Mexico. He went to work as cow boss on the Babicora

Ranch (a million acre ranch owned by the late William Randolph Hearst. located

150 miles south of Juarez, Mexico).

When Dad had been there awhile he was put in charge of all the cattle and

the farming. They farmed approximately 20.000 acres in corn, potatoes, oats, and

beans, and at one time ran 50,000 mother cows. The ranch contained approximately

1,000,000 acres. When school was out the year I was 10 years (1922) the whole

family, with the exception of Clarence, went to Old Mexico for the summer .

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Jack Morgan Fall had given my brother Jack M. (J.M.) a fine filly when he was born.

Dad had taken this filly and several good mares and a good stallion to Mexico when

he went back . When we went down that summer, J . M. had two fine geldings out of

his mare; he gave me the oldest one named Conde and he kept the younger one called

Cheque. They were both good horses and well broke. and we had many a good ride

on them . It turned out the following summer that I was the only one who would spend

the whole summer in Mexico . But for 9 months each year I looked forward to the 3 to

3~ months I would spend on the ranch. After I got big enough to make a hand, Dad

and I finally won out that I could stay through the first part of the roundup;

which didn't start until the latter part of August . So most years I got a late

start in school, but I got to ride, rope, and brand for 3 weeks to a month each

year. I rode some of the best cow horses that ever walked.

In 1928 I stayed out of high school and ran a farm 40 miles east of El Paso.

The farm was right on the Rio Grande river. Just across the r i ver was a town called

San Ignacio . I had a small stor e (or commissary) that I ran in connection with the

farm. Many Mexicans crossed the river at night to buy groceries . Groceries were

cheaper in the U.S . than they were in Mexico. After working a year, I bought a

car and went back to El Paso to finish high school . After graduating from school

I went back to work for Lamar Davis , a very fine man and a contractor, doing mostly

dirt work on the highway. In those days they used mules and horses to move dirt an ~

grade the road beds. When the teams weren't working they were sent to the farm

(where I was working) in Ft . Hancock, Texas (55 miles below El Paso) .

When these jobs were over I went to work for A.H. Kelly at Esperanza. We

raised cotton, alfalfa and other feed stuffs . It was a good farm of 700 acres (net).

And a store in connection that belonged to Gus Spinnler, Swiss. The store was run

by Guy and Ray McCoy. Guy ' s wife, Betty, cooked for 3 of us bachelors and Mr .

Spinnler. One morning when I came in for breakfast I made the mistake of calling Betty

an "Okie" . She grabbed an ice cube and hit me in the mouth, splitting it open .

This year (19B7) as we were moving back to Arkansas we stopped to visit Betty in

Shawnee, Oklahoma . She gave me a ceramic figure of a cowboy (which she had made)

and said this was in the form of an apology that she had never felt like giving me

before.

On the farm at Esperanza, my transportation was horses furnished me by an

ex-Texas ranger, Jess Walbridge. Most of these horses had t hrown or scared the

men to where they wouldn't ride them. One was a good little bald faced four year

old. He was really coming along good; one day we were along a ditch bank and

he kept ducking his head to eat grass. He stumbled and I hit him with a quirt.

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He pitched all over ~ acre of cotton and pulled my left hip out of socket. I

had to stay on him because I never had a chance to fall clear of him. When I got

back to the house I couldn't get off; I had to push myself off and wait until Barney

Higgins came along and helped me into the house and put my chest on one chair and my

knees on another; he nearly killed me, but he did put my hip back into the socket.

This hip has given me trouble ever since.

Wehn I left Esperanza in 1932. I went to work on a cow ranch near Carlsbad,

N.M. (Tom Helms father's ranch). We worked from daylight until after dark, mostly

horseback. I worked 60 days without Sunday, Christmas or New Years off. My net

pay was $60.00 plus board. As you can see, I was very happy to see Bill Thomasson,

a farmer and roadbuilder. come to get me to go on a road job near Sierra Blanca.

Texas. The pay was $75 a month plus room and board. I mention this because we were

in the middle of the Great Depression. I took care of his mules. hired and fired

teamsters and kept up the equipment. When the road job was finished, I took the

mules back to the old Spears farm that Thomasson-Locke had leased, and started back

to farming the 7000 acre place. Art Thomasson and I were over the whole thing,

dividing our duties as we saw fit and we got along as well as two men could. We

were life-long friends (he died in the early 1950's). Our equipment consisted of

300 horses and mules. 1 crawler tractor, and 1 wheel tractor. We kept 50 men irri­

gating during the day and another 50 at night; 4 men to each head of water, 2 at

night and 2 at day. Bill Thomasson's (Art's father) brother died and Bill sent me

to finish up the crop that year. This was in Coolidge. AZ, where I spent the year

of 1934, and then returned to the Thomasson- Locke farm in McNary, TX. I stayed with

them until they dissolved partnership and sold out. at which time, in the Fall of

1936. I went to the Green Reservoir (20 miles from Eloy, AZ). There we put in a

section of the best land in Arizona, 1936. We had to put in a 4 ft. levee all around

with a drain to keep the water out from the Santa Cruz wash which came out of Tucson,

AZ. I worked for John Goree (nephew of Bill Thomasson). The year was a good success,

but batching and working so hard in the hot weather almost got me . At that time

my yeild of cotton was a record.

In 1937 I went back to Babicora under Dad to work as a cow foreman on the Hearst

Ranch. This was a very enjoyable year, but after the roundup I went back to El Paso

and started to work for the El Paso County Highway Department crushing rock as a

foreman. I held various jobs around El Paso, and was hunting a wife. When I ~

found her, Luc\lle Moffett, we were married in the Mesa Arizona Temple on March

15. 1938 . We leased a farm near Ysleta. TX and had a very happy year, but not too

good financially. We moved into an apar t ment in El Paso, and I went to work for

R. T. Hoover, in a cotton warehouse. When the cotton storage season was over he

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wanted me to work for him on his personal farm. He and his associates had purchasf

the old Spears farm that Thomasson- Locke had leased. My wife and I moved to the

Hoover farm at McNary 1n 1939, to a long adobe house, one end room we used as a

store (commissary). It had no electricity, no water, or plumbing. 1 was making

$75 a month and had a pickup furnished. Lucy worked at the gin in the Fall. weighing

cotton, etc . When she became pregnant in 1941. I used to walk out to the highway

with her every evening for exercise . 3/4 of a mile. We were one of four couples

in 1941, selected to purchase (through the Government) a family sized farm. We moved

onto our farm under very rough conditions; very few women would have put up with.

On December 1, 1941, Corrine (later to be known as Cody) was born 9 weeks

prematurely at Hotel Dieu, a Catholic hospital in EI Paso. She weighed 3~ Ibs.

with a blanket, and was placed immediately in an incubator, where she stayed for

six weeks, at which time she weighed 6 lbs . Lucille had stayed in EI Paso for that

period so that she could take breast milk to the hospital each day, where they fed

Cody with an eye dropper, an ounce an hour . A week after her birth, the U. S.

declared war on Japan, and rumors were that the Germans would come through Mexico,

and attack EI Paso, since there was a military post there as well as an air base .

Finally, we moved into an old hotel apartment in Ft. Hancock, and had been ther

barely two months when the hotel burned with all our furniture, clothing, etc.

We had gone to El Paso that day to show off our new daughter to Louisa (my sister)

who was living in a mining camp in Mexico, and had come out to shop . When we got

home we found the hotel in ashes. We moved onto the farm in a two room portable

house, where we lived until our home was finished later that year. But, because

it was wartime, we had no electricity until 1946. The farm consisted of 63 acres,

a five room house, a barn, and a large new chicken coop. which we turned into a

guest room.) We lived there from 1942 until 1949, when we moved, first for a few

months on the North Loop road, and then on to Willcox, Arizona.

In 1948, John Sidney was born six weeks prematurely on October 19th . But

unlike Cody. he weighed 58 11 oz. and did not have to be put in an incubator. He

was delivered by Dr. Angus Treece in Fabens, about 30 miles from the farm. His middle

name was from one of my best friends - Sidney Richards, who with his wife Jennie,

have remained friends always . John was a good looking, dark headed little boy, and

got his 1st Levis on his 1st birthday .

My brother Clarence and I were able to buy part of the old Spears farm 1300

acres, and each take ~ the land. Irrigation water became scarce, and I was able

to sell our land at a pretty good profit, and it was then that we moved to Arizona. ~

We leased the Diamond-H farm and lived there a year. We then bought the Frank

Harris ranch, on which we leveled t he land and drilled wells for irrigation. We

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put 1000 acres (except for a pasture) in cotton and feed stuffs. I put in a feed lot,

scales. and a barn. and a large shop, with houses for workhands. We also rented a

farm closeby (400 acres) and raised cotton, milo. barley, and lettuce. Irrigation

water (wells) got deeper and deeper. We made our own ensilage and fed our own

cattle. When the bottom of the cattle market fell in 1955. our cattle topped the -market in San Francisco, but still would not pay cost of production . The water table

got deeper and deeper and what with several late spring frosts and early fall freezes.

we were finally forced to sellout. (In the 1970's a dam broke at Harry Hooker's Ranch

15 miles north. and spread mud clear into Willcox. Our farm was abandoned) We /1" /. .

stayed in Willcox another five years, and then moved to Kanosh, Utah. Cody was

then at BYU and John went to grade school and into high school.

Cody married Ken Labrum before completing her nursing school at Holy Cross

in Salt Lake City on December 16. 1961. Richard was born on December 4, 1962,

at Ft. Carson. Colorado Springs, CO. where Ken was in the Army. We spent 3 years in

Kanosh, farming wheat and feed stuff. raising cattle and sheep. We had 100 head

of mother cows and 700 head of mother ewes. In the spring of 1962, we had 167 % of

lambs. when we went to the mountains for summer pasture, and 100% calf crop. John

and Lucy helped to feed the twins. triplets. and orphan lambs with bottles. Then and

there Lucy had had enough of sheep.

The wheat (dry land) was not good, but above average for the area. I had a

4-H class in horsemanship, and was a scoutmaster in the Ward - once taking them to

Yellowstone, and once at Meadow Canyon. Lucy worked at ASCS in Fillmore during this

period. After three years we sold out, and moved to Lonoke. Arkansas. We lived in

two different houses on the Doyne (Louisa) Townsend farm. I helped Doyne with cattle,

cotton. and soybeans from 1963-65 . Robert was born in Little Rock on September 9.

1964. and Ken had left three months prior to his birth for Utah. I farmed the cotton

and beans on a 1/4 share basis. This we did until 1969, when we bought a section

of hill land in Conway. built it up. remodeled the home and barns. On May 15, 1972,

we sold this place, moved into a doublewide trailer. and I continued work making

trailer frames of mobile homes .

John finished high school in Lonoke, and went for a year of college in Conway.

He then went on a mission to Hawaii for two years. He went one semester to BYU,

where he met and married Marva Judd.

Cody divorced Ken in 1964, and married Don Thompson. Cyndi was born in Ft. Worth

Texas on October 17. 1967. They moved to Batesville. Arkansas.

During our stay in Arkansas we served on the Mutual Presidency. and after Arkansas

was made a stake, I served as a high councilman. and Lucy was Stake Relief Society

president. We pretty well covered the state visiting wards and branches. Lucy

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had started work when John left for college and Cody married Don Thompson. at Lonoke

PCA . Then in Conway she worked at

In May, 1973. we moved to the

Central Arkansas PCA. t" 5- " .: ~

Church 'Qe'lfare Farm in southwestern Phoenix. AZ.

where Jack was over the cattle. The farm was owned by six stakes in the Phoenix

area . We had a double-wide trailer there also. but moved to an old adobe type home

about i mile below the Welfare farm where I leased 80 acres of alfalfa. which I

made into haylage and sold to neighboring dairies . We had Richard with us for two

summers, and that 11 year old boy learned to work like a grown man. The second

year I was there I went to work for Max Christiansen at Hyder. and Lucy was working

at Arizona Farmers' PCA. In Hyder I levelled four sections of desert land; and ..L ~ C' ':

built roadways and ditches , and irrigated land, and relevelled the old part as well .

When we piled the brush and burned it many rattlesnakes would come out of the brush .

When taping a ditch-line I set my hand down on a sidewinder, but I found a stick

and killed him. I had 3 of the best 30 yard scraper operator's I ' ve seen and a

good chain man . I was given a contract to operate 12 sections, but the deal did not

materialize, so I went to work for Cecil who was the national president of the Farm

Bureau. I worked for him a year . moved to a lovely home on Baseline , and from there

we moved to Salt Lake City , with the intentions of farming in Burley" Idaho.

The Burley deal did not look good, so I went to work for I & R in Holladay, an

from this to Real Estate. We bought a home in Murray, and I served as Ward Clerk.

Richard lived with us for three years, going to high school. and working with me

at Foothill Apartments . In July 1980 . I had quadruple bypass heart surgery.

Infection in my leg kept me off work. and in and out of the hospitals for five months.

I then worked for Chris and Dick's until we bought Cody ' s house (built in 1980) in

1983. in St . George. UT. She was working for Dr. Stucki. a Urologist, and went

through some bad marriages there. Finally in 1986. she married Jerry Coccus and moved

to El Paso and then to San Diego. Cyndi was going to the University of Utah in Salt

Lake City and Richard was in Aspen. CO . Robert went on a mission to Kentucky for

one year. came home. and lived with us in St. George for a year while going to Dixie

College . He then married Anne Felsted in 1986. In August tragedy struck us all .

He is currently serving time in the Utah State Prison for manslaughter (2- 88).

We flew to El Paso in Chris t mas, 1986, and saw many dear o l d time friends and

enjoyed our stay very much . We got to meet Richard ' s bride . Mesikha O' Brien. whom

he had married October 31. 1986. Currently (2- 88) Richard and Mesikha are living

in Breckenridge. CO . Cyndi and Cody moved from San Diego to Little Rock. AR, where

Cyndi is attending UALR and Cody is working at the Children's Hospital .

John has four children. From Conway. AR. where he finished college he moved

to Idaho Falls, 10, working for his former Mission President, Ken Gardner. He moved

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from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City, and then to Pocatello while in his employ. He

then moved to Salt Lake City and opened his own business, a factory distributor

for wholesale electrical supplies, and a pole company.

children are Kristi, 15. J.R. 12, Judd 9, and Josh 5.

attending a court reporter school.

He is still there. His

Marva is currently (2-88)

We left St. George, in April 1987, when we moved to Hot Springs, AR. (Diamondhead)

to be near Louisa. Dayne had died in February, and she needed "family".

Currently I'm not working except with my horse and chores around home. I was put

in as 2nd counselor to the bishop in the Hot Springs Ward, January 31. 1988 . I had

been Executive Secretary before. and Lucy is Relief Society President.

John Howd Williams died July 12, 1992, in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

The graveside service was held in Hurricane, Utah. He is buried

beside Daddy John and Grandma Susie. Cody and Cindy designed the

casket p~ece to include his cowboy hat, spurs and lariat.