pitality of many of the best homes of the city being cordially extended to them.
WILLIAM H. WOODHEAD.
William H. Woodhead, of Kenilworth, master mechanic with the Independent Coal
& Coke Company, was born in England, June 13, 1877, and came to the United States
with his parents in 1880, the family home being established in Iowa. During his boy-
hood days he became a resident pf Almy, Wyoming, and there pursued a public school
course. He afterward took a mechanic's course with the Scranton Correspondence
Schools of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and an electrical course with the American Cor-
respondence School of Chicago, securing a diploma from each school in recognition of
the work which he did along each line. At the age of eighteen years he took up his
abode at Almy, Wyoming, where he worked in the coal mines as pump man for five years.
Vol. IV 28
436 UTAH SINCE STATEHOOD
In 1900 he removed to Sunnyside, Utah, and secured a position with the Utah Fuel
Company in connection with mechanical and electrical work. After six months he was
transferred to Clear Creek as master mechanic and there remained for three years. He
then went to Idaho with the Feris Engineering Company and spent two years in in-
stalling electrical machinery for the Oakley dam. Returning to Winterquarters, he
was made chief engineer in the power house, thus continuing through the succeeding
two years, when he was returned to Clear Creek as master mechanic. When three more
years had elapsed he again went to Idaho to assist in installing the Twin Falls power
lines and was chief operator at Shoshone when the work was completed. Later he
again came to Utah, where he accepted the position of master mechanic and chief elec-
trician at Kenilworth with the Independent Coal & Coke Company. He has attained
such a degree of efficiency along the lines of electrical and mechanical engineering
through his wide study and broad experience that he is today known as an expert in
his field. He has been connected with some of the most important projects of this
character in the west and his efficiency qualifies him for almost any undertaking in that
field of labor.
Mr. Woodhead has served on the school board of Kenilworth and is deeply interested
in all that has to do with the welfare and upbuilding of the community in which he
makes his home. His religious faith is that of the Episcopal church and his life has
ever been an honorable and upright one, gaining for him the confidence and respect
of his business associates and the friendship and high regard of all with whom he is
brought in contact socially.
GEORGE FRANCOM.
George Francom, county commissioner of Juab county and one of the leading
citizens of that part of the state, was born at Levan, Utah, where he resided continu-
ously until the fall of 1919,. when he purchased at Nephi the home that he is noW
occupying, planning to make it his winter residence, though he still retains his old
home and is one of the largest land owners of that part of the state. He was born
March 8, 1871, and is a son of Joseph and Martha (Eaton) Francom, who were na-
tives of England and came to America with their respective parents, who were pioneer
settlers of Utah. The Francom family first settled at Payson and afterward removed
to Glenwood but were there driven out by the Indians. They subsequently took up
their abode at Levan, Juab county, where Joseph Francom became a well known
farmer and churchman. The family numbered eleven children, six sons and five
daughters: Mattie, the wife of Walter Webb, of Lehi; J. W., living at Garland, Utah;
George, of this review; Samuel, who died at the age of eleven years; Nellie, the widow
of Thomas Orme; Frances, who married Oliver C. Dalby; Edith, the wife of Don
Jennings; Leonard; Owen; Louise, the wife of Shepherd Warlock; and Ray.
George Francom acquired a common school education while spending his youth-
ful days upon his father's farm, where he was reared, .early becoming familiar with
the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. At the age of twenty-one
years he was married to Miss Mary E. Tunbridge, who was the first white female
child born at Levan. Mr. and Mrs. Francom have become parents of eleven children,
eight of whom are living: Laurel, the wife of Perry Hall; Blanche; George W., who
died in infancy; Alice; Violet, who died in 1915, at the age of thirteen years; Walter;
Robert, who passed away in infancy; Wanda; Norma; Georgie; and Ruth.
After starting out in life for himself George Francom gave his attention to farm-
ing and sheep and cattle raising at Levan. He purchased the old home there a ranch
of seven hundred acres, of which one hundred and twenty-five acres is under irriga-
tion. He also owns several hundred acres of grazing land and is widely known as a
capable and successful raiser of horses and cattle, having one hundred head of cattle
and twenty-five head of horses. He was also in the sheep business for twenty-six
years, conducting his interests along that line very extensively, but at the present
time he keeps only about five hundred head of sheep. He is also the president of the
Levan Mill & Elevator Company, is a director of the Nephi National Bank, a director
of the Levan Cattle & Land Company, a director of the Juab County Farmers Associ-
ation, and also a director of the Juab County Mill & Elevator Company of Nephi. His
farm property at Levan is in excellent condition. There are good buildings upon it,
GEORGE FRANCOM
UTAH SINCE STATEHOOD 439
with full farm equipment of every character. The home which he recently purchased
at Nephi is known as the old Mynder place and is a large brick residence, surrounded
by spacious lawns, with beautiful evergreen and shade trees.
In public affairs Mr. Francom has been somewhat active and prominent and has
exercised considerable influence over public thought and action. He was elected
county commissioner of Juab county on the democratic ticket in 1917 for a four years'
term, so that he is now filling that position. He also served for two terms on the town
board of Levan and was chairman of the democratic precinct committee of Levan. He
has remained throughout his entire life a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints and is now one of its elders. His interests and activities have ever
been most wisely and intelligently directed and his labors have been of a character
that have contributed to public progress and prosperity as well as to individual success.
DAN W. SMITHSON.
Dan W. Smithson, 1 of Milford, well known farmer and stockman with large ranches
in Millarrt and Beaver counties, is contributing in a most substantial measure to the
agricultural development and commercial activities of southern Utah. He was born in
Alabama, January 10, 1866, his parents being Marion P. and Leva (Holliday) Smithson,
who in 1869 came to Utah, settling at Centerville. Later they removed to Santaquin,
where the father followed stock raising and mining. He was also at Eureka, Utah, and
established the Cherry Creek stock ranch. He afterward returned to Tintic and in 1876
became a pioneer in the live stock business at Milford. In 1880 he built the Smithson
Hotel, which is still being conducted, and for years it was the leading hotel of
southern Utah. Mr. Smithson continued active in the hotel business and in the raising
of live stock until his death, which occurred when he had reached the ripe old age of
ninety-three years and was in a measure occasioned by his cutting his third set of teeth.
He was a man of very strong individuality and character, resourceful and purposeful,
and remained an active factor in the community in which he lived to the time of his
demise. He belonged to the branch of the family of which James Macey Smithson,
duke of Northumberland, founder of the Smithsonian Institute of Washington, D. C.,
was a member. Marion Smithson, Sr., after coming to Utah, was identified with every
phase of its development and progress in various sections through many years, his
labors constituting a most important element in the upbuilding of the state.
Dan W. Smithson acquired a common school education in Milford and spent one year
as a student in the Brigham Young University of Provo under Dr. Maeser and also at-
tended for a time the Holy Cross Academy at Salt Lake. He spent the earlier years
of his business life in connection with his father, handling live stock and following
farming. In 1894 he bought a ranch and has since given his attention individually to
stock raising and farming. Nine miles north of Milford Mr. Smithson has established
the Home Ranch. This contains five hundred and sixty acres of land with water rights
and seven artesian wells. His principal crops are hay and Lucerne seed. As he has
prospered in his undertakings he has extended his investments until he is now the owner
of several excellent ranch and city properties, from which he 'acquires a most substantial
income. Mr. Smithson owns one hundred and sixty acres of land immediately joining the
town of Milford, on which he built in 1912, at a cost of ten thousand dollars, one of the
finest and the most pretentious modern homes in southern Utah. The building proper is of
reinforced concrete (cement) and the large and commodious plans include living rooms,
dining room, hall, breakfast room, office, bath and buffet kitchen, with halls, sleeping
chambers, billiard room and attics on the second floor. Window seats, bookcases, linen
chests and buffets are built-in features and the interior decorations of mahogany and
old ivory, together with the corresponding tasteful furniture, rugs and artistic drapings,
combine to make "Smithsonia," his town residence, a pleasant surprise on the desert.
In San Bernardino, California, on the 27th of June, 1888, Mr. Smithson was united
in mariage to Miss Julia Agnes Mooney, who was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1867, a
daughter of John and Bridget (Cronin) Mooney, who were natives of Ireland and on
coming to the United States settled in the Buckeye state. Her father was identified
with mercantile interests, with educational, political and philanthropic activities, and
continued a leading and influential factor of his community to the time of his death
in 1883. His widow afterward removed to California and passed away in Los Angeles
440 UTAH SINCE STATEHOOD
in 1889. Their daughter, Julia A. (Moqney) Smithson, was educated by the Ursuline
nuns at St. Malachi's school for girls in Cleveland, finishing the regulation high school
course. She then took a post-graduate year in the famous Spencerian Business College,
where she learned banking, bookkeeping, shorthand writing, etc., which she afterward
discovered was a most useful and practical asset. After completing her studies she
taught high school and did newspaper work in her native city until she went to Los
Angeles to reside. From both her father's and her mother's families, who number among
them distinguished Irish scholars and ecclesiastics of the Roman church, she in-
herited a taste for scribbling and she possesses marked literary talent. At this writing she
is engaged with the material for two books, "Autobiography of a Woman" (her personal
memoirs) and "The Metamorphosis of Bridget Desmond," a story of Irish-American evo-
lution and transitional activities of the early '80s in an eastern metropolis. She has also
a book of war poems ready for the press, one of which, "Boy O' Mine," has been most
widely read and published both in the United States and France. She is a versatile
writer and the historical poem here given, showing a marked originality and called
"The Building of the Temple," is very popular in Utah, as it refers to the Mormon temple
and Brigham Young.
Oh Deseret untrodden yet
On Bonneville's lonely shore
Save by some Lamanite chieftain brave
Whose war cry thrills no more,
Ere long upon these mountain crags
Shall Freedom's ensign wave,
The Stars and Stripes that ever float
Above the true and brave.
(And Jordan's banks with dews are wet;
Morn breaks o'er Deseret! )
Oh Deseret! Fair Deseret!
'Neath Wasatch's rugged crest,
Royal and square your city stands
Young giant of the west.
Your sons have waked to sentient life
The cold and pulseless stone;
Your daughters fair with song beguile
The king upon his throne.
The horseless chariots throng the streets
And music thrills the air,
Where Temple dome and turret rise
In beauty chaste and rare.
(On Jordan's banks the Saints have met
High noon at Deseret.)
Oh Deseret! New Deseret!
Aflush with fame and gold,
Behold your chief who stands aloft
In bronze engraved and cold,
The silent sentinel keeping watch
Above the surging mass;
Methinks I hear the echoes dim
"All's well, my brother, Pass."
(On Jordan's banks his sun has set
Night falls o'er Deseret.)
To Mr. and Mrs. Smithson have been born ten children. Aline, born April 15, 1889,
married Ingles Young Macintosh and they have two children. Marion Charles, the
second of the family, was born August 9, 1890, at Los Angeles. Theresa, born in San Fran-
cisco, November 26, 1891, married J. W. Macintosh and they have one child. Ursula, who
was born in San Francisco, February 22, 1894. married Vern Kesslar and they have two
children. The other members of the family are: John Bert, who was born in San Fran-
cisco, July 26, 1895; Mary Lee, born at Milford, January 4, 1897; Catherine C., born at
Milford, April 26, 1899; Geraldine A., born at Milford, January 10, 1901; James Macey,
UTAH SINCE STATEHOOD 441
born November 26, 1903; and D. W., Jr., deceased. These children have all received
school and college educations. The two younger girls, Catherine and Geraldine, are still
in universities and James Macey Smithson is a freshman in the Beaver county high
school at Milford. The military record of the family is a most interesting one. Marion
P. Smithson, the father of D. W. Smithson, served in the Confederate army during the
entire Civil war and his grandfather was an officer in the Revolutionary war. Marion
Charles Smithson, oldest son of D. W. Smithson, was the only volunteer from Beaver
county to go to the border during the Mexican trouble in 1916. He was in the cavalry
service under Captain Jorgenson and was transferred to the regular army near the Jordan
Narrows. In 1917 he was sent to the training camp at the Presidio and was with the
One Hundred and Forty-fifth Artillery that went to France, where it made a most splendid
record. This command was disbanded at Logan, Utah, in January, 1919. Another son,
John Bert, joined the army in 1917, going to Camp Lewis with the Ninety-first Infantry.
He was prepared to go to the front when the armistice was signed and he was with the
army of occupation in Germany, being discharged at Fort Russell in July, 1919. Both
boys were honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant.
t In his fraternal relations Mr. Smithson is an Odd Fellow and loyally follows the
purposes and teachings of that organization. His political allegiance is given to the
democratic party and he keeps thoroughly informed concerning the questions and issues
of the day but has never been desirous of holding political office. He has always preferred
to concentrate his efforts and attention upon his business affairs, which have been wisely
directed, bringing to him a notable measure of success.
CHARLES MITCHEL. '
Charles Mitchel, deceased, was a representative farmer and valued resident of
Wasatch county. He was born in Switzerland and came to America with his parents in
1891. After taking up his abode in Utah he turned his attention to the occupation of
farming and stock raising and throughout his life was thus actively identified with agri-
cultural interests.
Mr. Mitchel was married in Wasatch county to Miss Maria C. Schoney and they be-
came the parents of six children; Edward; Louisa; Ruby E., who is deceased; Lydia
M.; Pearl R. ; and Sylvia L., who passed away. The family circle was again broken
by the hand of death when on the 24th of December, 1918, Mr. Mitchel was called to the
home beyond, leaving a widow and four children to mourn his loss. Mrs. Mitchel now
owns the farm property of twenty-nine acres, which is splendidly improved with modern
equipments and conveniences and which is all under irrigation. She operates this farm
with the assistance of her brother-in-law, which is according to the wish of her deceased
husband, who desired that the work of the farm should be thus carried on. Mr. Mitchel
commanded the respect and goodwill of all who knew him and during the years of his
residence in Wasatch county made many friends.
RASMUS JOHNSON.
Rasmus Johnson, concentrating his efforts and attention upon farming and stock
raising in Emery county, has been a lifelong resident of Utah, his birth having occurred
at Ephraim, April 8, 1860. He comes of Danish ancestry, his parents being Rasmus
and Metta (Jensen) Johnson, who were natives of Denmark, and in 1853 came to,
Utah, crossing the plains with oxen. They remained in Salt Lake City for a brief
period and then removed to Ephraim, where Mr. Johnson carried on farming and stock
raising, becoming one of the earliest residents of that place. He was also a veteran
of the Black Hawk war and he and his family shared in all of the experiences, hard-
ships and privations incident to the settlement of the frontier.
Rasmus Johnson obtained a common school education at Ephraim and when
fourteen years of age lost his father, after which he managed the farm for his mother
and also carried on freighting in connection with farm work for ten years. Subse-
quently he settled at Emery as a pioneer, securing a homestead and timber claim and
proving up on both. He has been very progressive in the upbuilding of the town and
442
county and his private business affairs have ever been of a character that have con-
tributed to general progress and improvement. In addition to the cultivation of his
fields he has engaged quite extensively in the raising of sheep and cattle and this has
proven a profitable source of income. He is also a stockholder in the State Building &
Loan Association of Price.
On the 28th of December, 1881, at Ephraim, Mr. Johnson was married to Miss
Christena Christenson, a daughter of Mads and Mary (Brown) Christenson, who were
natives of Denmark and on coming to Utah in 1866 settled at Ephraim, where the
father followed farming. Their children are nine in number, as follows: Rasmus R.,
deceased, who was born November 21, 1882, and wedded Susie E. Keele, who passed
away leaving four children; A. M., who was born July 18, 1885, and wedded Beata Keele,
by whom he has five children; Clement, who was born March 13, 1888, and married Alice
Foote, by whom he has three children; Hazel, who was born January 19, 1891, and is
now the wife of E. E. Burr and the mother of one child; Stanford E., who was born
March 9, 1895, and wedded Artemesia Poote, by whom he has one child; Mary and
Stanley, twins, who have passed away, and Marion and Clifford, who are also deceased.
Mr. Johnson and his family are identified with the Mormon church and he filled a
mission to Norway. His political support is given the democratic party. He has
served as constable and member of the town board for a number of years and he has
been a director of the Emery Canal & Irrigation Company. He is also a member of
the County Live Stock Association and is chairman of the local Farm Bureau Asso-
ciation of Emery. His interest in all that has to do with the development of the dis-
trict is marked and his activities have resulted largely in the promotion of agricultural
interests, while at the same time his labors have brought him substantial success.
HON. HERSCHEL BULLEN, JR.
The name of Bullen is a word to conjure with in Cache county. It has always
been synonymous with the work of public progress and improvement and with
the advancement of all those interests which have to do with the development
of high civic and moral standards. Herschel Bullen, Jr., well known as a publisher
and as member of the Utah senate, resides at Logan but was born in Richmond
on the 13th of November, 1870. He is a brother of Asa and Roy Bullen and a
son of Herschel Bullen, Sr., who is mentioned at some length in connection with
the sketch of Asa Bullen on another page of this work.
After leaving the district schools of Richmond, Herschel Bullen, Jr., attended
the University of Utah, from which he was graduated with the class of 1891. He
then took up the occupation of farming and also taught school for a time in Rich-
mond and Lewiston, Utah, but afterward removed to Logan and for one year was
a teacher in the public schools of this city. He was then sent on a mission for
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, going to Great Britain in 1894
and laboring successfully there in the interests of the church as traveling elder
and president of the Sheffield conference for two years or until 1896. In the fol-
lowing year he was appointed to the position of head of the commercial depart-
ment of the Brigham Young College at Logan, so continuing until 1908. In 1905
he was elected from his district to the state senate on the republican ticket and
was a member of the upper house of the Utah general assembly from 1906 to
1908, during which time he was connected with much important legislation. He
was one of the leaders in defeating, against originally heavy odds, the bill to con-
solidate the University of Utah and the Agricultural College of Utah. In associa-
tion with Congressman Howell and other recognized republican leaders of this
section of the state Mr. Bullen, in 1903, founded the Logan Republican, now a
tri-weekly paper of large political influence in Utah. He is the manager and
editor of this journal, which originally was published but twice a week and was
edited by N. Ralph Moore, with Fred Turner as manager. Mr. Bullen took control
as editor and manager in 1910 and has occupied the dual position to the present
time. He has made the paper a forceful factor in shaping public thought, and
action in Utah, especially along political lines. His editorials are clear, concise
and cogent, his reasoning sound and his deductions logical.
Mr. Bullen's work as a journalist, however, constitutes but one phase of his
HON. HERSCHEL BULLEN, JR.
UTAH SINCE STATEHOOD 445
activity. In 1909 he assisted Ex-Congressman Howell, David Eccles and H. E.
Hatch in organizing the Promontory-Curlew Land Company, which was incorpo-
rated in Utah, and from its inception Mr. Bullen has been its secretary, while in
1911 he became secretary-manager and at the present writing is secretary, treasurer
and manager. This company has operated most successfully, owning and con-
trolling over four hundred thousand acres of land situated eight miles west of
Tremonton and Garland and extending westward for a distance of forty miles and
northward from Salt Lake into Idaho. The tract includes six thousand acres in
Cassia and Oneida counties of Idaho, while the remainder of the land is in Boxelder
county, Utah. Over two hundred thousand acres of this tract have been sold to
settlers and is in use for farming and grazing purposes. The progressive and
thoroughly reliable business methods of the company are indicated in the fact that
the company has never had a law suit nor a contract canceled nor has any tenant
ever been dispossessed. In this work Mr. Bullen has been a most active factor in
colonizing the district and promoting the upbuilding and development of a now
prosperous and populous region. Various other business interests have profited
by his cooperation and keen sagacity. He is the vice president and one of the
directors of the Allendale Land Company, which owns large tracts of valuable
land in Montana. He is also a director of the Panama Sugar Company, operating
large sugar plantations in Panama. Whatever Mr. Bullen undertakes he carries
forward to successful completion, allowing no obstacle or difficulty to bar his path
if it can be overcome by persistent, steadfast and honorable effort.
On the llth of April, 1894, Mr. Bullen was married to Miss Mary Hendricks,
a daughter of William D. Hendricks and representative of a very prominent family
of Richmond, Utah. The children of this marriage are as follows: Herschel Keith,
aged twenty-one years, who was discharged from the United States army on the
21st of December, 1918; Lavona, who was born April 1, 1902, and passed away
a year later; Helen, born November 29, 1903; Reed, November 17, 1906; and
Thurlow Hendricks, January 9, 1912.