Ann Collett Oakey

ANN COLLETT OAKEY

        Ann Collett Oakey made her first cry in this world on November 9, 1833, in the little farming community of Eldersfield, Worcestershire, England.  She was the first child born to Thomas Oakey and Ann Collett.  As time went by, she helped tend and care for her nine younger siblings.

        Ann’s parents were very religious.  They belonged to a branch off of the Methodists who called themselves The United Brethren.  Her father, Thomas, was a minister for this church. 

        When she was seven years old, her parents were converted and baptized by Wilford Woodruff. Shortly afterwards, her father became the first branch president of the Frogmarsh Branch. 

        While in England, her father “cradled grain” and farmed.  She helped her mother at home with the children.  She witnessed two brothers leave this world very young. James was born and died on May 27, 1849, and Walter died when he was just less than a month old in 1854.  They worked and saved for many years to make the trip to Zion and join the saints in Utah. 

Finally, in 1856, with the help of the Perpetual Emigration Fund, their family was able to realize their dream.  Ann, who was 23 years old, boarded the ship Thornton and crossed the Atlantic Ocean with her family.  According to the LDS production, Faith: The Musical, written about their family, she left a beau behind in England.

Her family joined the Willie Handcart company and set off on their overland journey to “the valley” in July, 1856.  Ann helped her sisters pull one of the handcarts while her brothers pulled the other one.  She witnessed her brother, Joe, leave their family determined not to leave that season and watched as her parents moved on with the hopes that he would come the following year.

The first Indians that they met came up to their carts, pushed them away, and pushed their carts into camp laughing at them.  Two times on the trip there were so many buffalo that they had to split the company so that the buffalo could pass through.  Sometimes the Indians would come at night and trade buffalo for salt and clothing.

Ann helped take care of the rest of the family while her mother took care of their ailing father and others who were sick in the company.  Towards the end of their journey, her sister, Rhoda, became sick.  Rhoda passed away the night before they arrived in the Salt Lake Valley.  Ann must have helped her mother a great deal as they pushed their carts into the valley that morning leaving their father and her sister’s body behind.  After they found her mother’s brother, Daniel Collett and his family, Ann helped the rest of the family while her mother returned for her father and Rhoda’s body. 

Before leaving for Lehi, Utah, where her uncle lived, they buried Rhoda in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.  They made the 29 mile journey to Lehi where they were cared for and recovered.  While there, Ann met Charles Price.  He, too, had hailed from England.  He had also been a member of the Cheltenham Stake. Although he was 33 years older than she (13 years older than her father), she agreed to marry him.  They traveled to Salt Lake City, and on February 19, 1857, she and Charles were married by President Brigham Young in the Endowment House.  She was not the only one.  Charles was sealed to his first wife, Mary Jane Shelton, and was also married to Caroline Gaston on the same day.  Little is known of Jane, but it is believed that she had passed away beforehand. 

Ann’s first child, Charles Christopher Price, was born on Dec. 6, 1857, in Lehi.  Her mother was not there to deliver him as they had moved to Kaysville earlier that year. This precious son passed away in 1859.

Charles moved Ann to Harrisville, Weber, Utah, and there their second child was born.  Her name was Esther Ann Price.  She was named after her aunt Esther Collett (Daniel Collett’s wife). Esther came into this world on July 14, 1860. 

Two years later, Ann had another daughter, Adeline Price.  She was born in Slaterville, which is just adjacent to the west of Harrisville, on January 24, 1862. 

The following year brought both joy and sadness.  Ann’s sister, Jane, passed away in July, being only 23 years old.  A son was born on October 31, 1863.  They named him Samuel Daniel Price.  He, too, was born in Slaterville.

Ann became ill and passed away on February 2, 1865, in Slaterville.  Charles had not been home, but came as soon as possible.  She was buried in the Slaterville Cemetery.  This cemetery was built on wetlands and was used for only a few short years before graves began to sink.  Those that could be moved were relocated to the Ogden City Cemetery; however, Ann’s was not one of them.

-Written by: Dari Peterson Thacker (3^rd Great Granddaughter through daughter Esther Ann Price Perry) on February 23, 2014.  

Thomas Oakey

THOMAS OAKEY & ANN COLLETT

I do not know where to begin with these two.  They left a trail of footprints hard to follow.  There are many stories out there of them and their children.

Thomas was born on September 20, 1813, at Eldersfield, England, to Thomas Oakey and Sarah Pritchard.  Little is known of his growing up years.  Ann Collett is the daughter of William Collett and Elizabeth Bromage, born on January 12, 1812, at Pendock, Worcestershire, England.  That's right.  She is older than Thomas.  

Somehow their paths crossed, and they were married in 30 September, 1836, in Gloucester, England, and settled in Eldersfield.  They were blessed with 10 children-two little boys died while young. Their family worked at farming grains and other crops.

 

Thomas was a Methodist Preacher. In the Spring of 1840, he stood up one Sunday and told his congregation that he did not have the authority and would never preach again until he had the proper authority. On the same day, 80 miles away, Wilford Woodruff was teaching to a group of people.  He told them that he would not be teaching them again for awhile.  He was directed by the Spirit to go south.  Wilford Woodruff recorded in his journal: "As soon as I arrived [in Eldersfield], I met John Benbow.  It was clearly made manifest to me why I had been called thither. I had left a good field, where I was baptizing every night of the week.  When I got to this place, I found a people-some 600 of them- who had broken off from the Wesleyan Methodists and formed themselves into a sect called the United Brethren... I saw that the Lord had sent me to them.  They were searching for light and truth, but had gone as far as they could, and were calling upon the Lord continually to open the way before them and send them light and knowledge, that they might know the true way to be saved.  I went to work amongst them and ultimately baptized their superintendent, forty preachers and some 600 members." 

Ann's mother, Elizabeth Bromage, was one of the very first baptized by Elder Woodruff.  This took place on March 9, 1840.  Thomas was not very happy about what was going on, so he called the local authorities to arrest Elder Woodruff.  The encounter resulted in his baptism on April 5th along with his wife, Ann.  Thomas served as the Branch President there for several years before they immigrated to Utah in 1856. 

After many years of waiting, they finally got their chance to go to Zion, because of the Perpetual Emigration Fund initiated by President Brigham Young.  They boarded the ship Thornton, and left on May 6th.  During the voyage, their baby, Sarah, celebrated her 4th birthday.  Her gift was a very hard sea biscuit! Six weeks of sailing landed them in Castle Garden, New York.  From here, they took the train to Iowa.  

Despite the late season and their son Joseph's pleadings to wait until spring, they were anxious to join the saints in Salt Lake.  They joined the rest of James G. Willie's Handcart company and left Iowa City, Iowa, on July 15, 1856, with two handcarts.  One for the boys to pull and one for the girls.  Joseph (Joe), however, refused to go.  He walked away from his family and hid in a neighboring farm house.  The family left without him.  

Ann delivered many babies on the trip and throughout her life as well as nursed the ill.  She was a renowned midwife.  Thomas suffered much during the trip.  "It was not unusual for Ann to leave Thomas resting under a tree or bush and take the family into camp.  When they were settled, she would go back and bring Thomas back into camp" (History written by Nora Caldwell).  

 

As they neared the end of their journey, his feet became so frozen, and he was so ill, that Ann spent a great deal of time by his side.  The morning before they arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, she tried to awake their daughter, Rhoda Rebecca, only to find she had frozen in the night while she had been tending to her husband.  With deep sadness, she wrapped her in a blanket and left both her body and Thomas and helped the rest of the family into the valley.  Then she returned to get both Thomas and Rhoda's remains. She pulled them both into the valley. They arrived on November 9th. Rhoda is buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.

Upon their arrival, they were met by Ann's brother, Daniel Collett, and his family.  They took them "home" to Lehi and nursed them all back to health.  In 1858, Thomas was ordained a seventy. A few short years later (1865), they were called to settle the Paris, Bear Lake, Idaho area with Charles C. Rich.  Thomas became the Patriarch for that area. 

Many years later, Charles C. Rich, and his son were called to serve a mission in Nebraska.  Thomas asked him if he would search for his son, Joe.  Elder Rich found him.  He had hid with a family while his parents had looked for him over 20 years before, served in the Civil War, then settled in Nebraska with his wife and raised a family.  Before his parents died, he came to Idaho and visited with them. 

Thomas and Ann remained faithful and served to their fullest throughout their lives- despite the trials they endured.  Of their 10 children, 6 of them preceded them in death.

Thomas passed away on April 15, 1890, and Ann passed away on April 4, 1892, in Paris, Bear Lake, Idaho.  They are buried there as well.