PERSONAL RECORD AND HISTORY OF JESSE L. FISH

by Velma Jepson

I lived in Woodruff, Arizona until I was nearly 13 years of age. I attended school six years in an old store which had been converted into a school house. Levi M. Savage was my Bishop most of this time. On the 16th of April 1915 our dam which was constructed for the purpose of getting irrigation water from the Little Colorado River, was taken out due to a flood caused by the St. Johns' reservoir dam breaking.

My father decided to move to Utah and we left with three wagons and seven horses on the 12th of April. 1916. After three weeks journey we arrived in Parowan, Utah May 3, 1916. We (my father, mother, one brother and three sisters) moved to Beaver, Utah that fall where I attended the 6th grade in the old Belnap school house.

In the spring of 1917, we moved to Delta, Utah but did not like it there. On the 26th of March 1917, we left for Enterprise, Utah and arrived there on the 19th of March. I completed the 7th and 8th grades of school in Enterprise and then attended High School (first year) in St. George. It was then called Dixie Normal College. I lived with Dr. Donald A. McGregor who is my cousin until Christmas, then I stayed with George Smith. The next year I did not go to school but went to Delta, Utah and worked in the sugar factory.

During the winter of 1922 and 1923, I attended the 10th grade in Enterprise and as soon as school was out I went to California where I obtained work in San Pedro in the box factory. I worked until October then I returned to Utah and went to school in St. George. I boarded at Thomas P. Cottam's place and it was there that I met Lucile Cottam who later became my wife.

I finished High School and commenced College before we were married and finished 1st year college after we were married. A little less than a year after we were married, I went to Pioche, Nevada and worked in the mines there. Where I worked at first was out of town and I could not have my family there, but I later got employment with Combined Metals in Pioche and moved my family out there.

At first we rented a very small cabin and later built a house. At that time Pioche did not have a Bishop as it was an independent branch. The president of the Branch had about the same duties as a Bishop and I was ask to be first counselor to John H. Kroencke who was president of the Branch.

Being a small branch we lacked officers, so I had many duties to perform. I acted as Sunday school teacher, Ward Chorister, Sunday School Supt. and Ward Teacher. In 1940 we moved to the Anderson Ranch [north of Toquerville] but I continued to work in Pioche until 1953 driving home on week ends. I started dairying March 1, 1953 to 1963 and continued with it until Oct. 1964. I have had the duties of Ward chorister, Sunday School chorister, Sunday School teacher in Toquerville and have been one of the presidents of the 9th quorum of Seventies. I was also ward clerk for about 14 years which position I held until we moved to Los Altos in Jan. 1965.

We had learned to love Toquerville and hated to leave. Besides the duties I had in the ward Lucile was a very busy with church duties, having been teacher in many organizations, and always helped with the music. At the time we left she [my wife] was Stake Relief Society chorister as well as Ward chorister and was missed very much.

We are now getting into the harness again. She is teaching in the Junior Sunday School in the Los Altos Ward and I am a Home Teacher and secretary of the Seventies group.