Gilbert Henry Van Schoonhoven journal and letter, 1866-1868

Series

Identifier: MSS 3315 Series 2

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Contains the missionary journal of Gilbert Van Schoonhoven, kept while he was serving as a Latter-day Saint missionary to the British Isles, from 1866 to 1868. Also includes a letter written to Gilbert from his wife Mary Emma while he was on his mission. Dated 1866-1868.

Dates

Creation: 1866-1868

Creator

Van Schoonhoven, Gilbert Henry, 1828-1903 (creator, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Open for public research.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from Brigham Smoot family papers must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical note

Mary Emma Greene Van Schoonhoven (1843-1907) was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Mary Emma Van Schoonhoven was born on January 18, 1843, in Batavia, New York, to parents Mary Eliza Nelson and John Portineus Greene. She married Gilbert Van Schoonhaven on September 14, 1859, in Albany, New York. They had four children together, three of whom lived to maturity.

She died on March 9, 1907, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Biographical History

Gilbert Henry Van Schoonhoven (1828-1903) was a Latter-day Saint stagecoach driver in Utah.

Gilbert Henry Van Schoonhoven was born on August 2, 1828, in Albany, New York, to Garrett VanSchoonhoven and Sarah Lester. On June 1, 1845, at the age of eighteen he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and moved to Nauvoo, Illinois. As the Church moved west in 1847, he joined the Brigham Young Pioneer Company, though he was sent back at the Green River for supplies. He returned to New York, where he married Mary Emma Greene around 1851; together they had four children. In 1856 he rejoined the Saints in Utah, traveling across the plains by handcart. Once in the territory, he helped with the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad and drove a stagecoach. Between 1866 and 1868 he served a mission for the Church to England.

Van Schoonhoven died on June 16, 1903, in Salt Lake City, Utah.