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John Jones and John Jay Thomas journals

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 6780

Scope and Contents note

Nineteen journals belonging to John Jones and John Jay Thomas, a father and son residing in Fish Springs, Utah. The journals span the years 1900-1915 and relate the work of the family's everyday life on their ranch in Fish Springs. Sixteen of the journals are leather-bound, Excelsior brands. All have been recorded in pencil.

Dates

  • Creation: 1900-1915

Creator

Conditions Governing Access note

Open for public research.

Conditions Governing Use note

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from the John Jones and John Jay Thomas journals must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical History

John Jones Thomas (1852-1917) was the county commissioner for Juab Counter, Utah, and also operated a successful ranch there in Fish Springs.

John Jones Thomas was born to Daniel Stillwell Thomas and Martha Pane Jones 10 January 1852 in Salt Lake City, Utah. His parents were Mormon pioneers from the eastern United States who had settled in Utah. John married Myra Amanda Clark on 4 November 1873 in Salt Lake City, Utah. They had eleven children: Myra Lenore, Jerome Clark, Pearl, Victor Stillwell, Ethel Stanley, Genevieve, Hazel May, Inabell, John Jay, Beulah, and Myra. His wife died in 1900 in Lehi, Utah, and he remarried Leanore Genevieve Kearney 22 October 1901 in Salt Lake City. They had one daughter, Eva Kearney. John served as county commissioner for Juab County, Utah, and owned a ranch there in Fish Springs. He loved the desert, so he confidently homesteaded his land in Fish Springs despite the isolated conditions and ran a successful business. The ranch became a way station for travelers passing through the area. He operated the ranch up to the time of his death. His daughter described him as “a stand out man,” big, tall, and with hair as “black as tar.” The Thomas Range in Juab County was named for him. John died 17 April 1917 in Fish Springs, Juab, Utah. He was buried in his hometown of Lehi, Utah.

Biographical History

John Jay Thomas was born 9 June 1893 in Lehi, Utah, to John Jones Thomas and Myra Amanda Clark. He married Rose Winnifred Kirkham on 15 May 1913. They had ten children. John worked on his father’s ranch in Fish Springs before his father’s death in 1917. He died 11 February 1972, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Extent

2 boxes (1 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Nineteen (19) diaries belonging to John Jones and John Jay Thomas, residents of Fish Springs, Utah, spanning the years 1900-1915.

Custodial History note

Donated by S. Olani Durrant, great-grandson of John Jones Thomas, in 2009.

Immediate Source of Acquisition note

Donated; S. Olani Durrant; 2009.

Appraisal note

Utah and the American West (Collection development policy for 19th Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts, August 2007).

Related Archival Materials note

MSS OH 63 Ethel Goates oral history interview: Tape and transcript, 1974.

Processing Information note

Processed; Karen Glenn; 26 March 2009.

Title
Register of John Jones and John Jay Thomas journals
Status
Completed
Author
Karen Glenn, student processor and John Murphy, curator
Date
2009
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States