LIBBY, Hannah Maria

1828 - 1906  (78 years)  Submit Photo / Document

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• Name	LIBBY, Hannah Maria
  Birth	29 Jun 1828	Ossippe, Grafton, New Hampshire, United States
  Gender	Female
  WAC	20 Jan 1846	NAUVO
  _TAG	Reviewed on FS
  Death	21 Sep 1906	Provo, Utah, Utah, United States
  Burial	24 Sep 1906	Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States
  Headstones	Submit Headstone Photo
  Person ID	I42487	Joseph Smith Sr and Lucy Mack Smith
  Last Modified	19 Mar 2018

  
  

  Family ID

  F22872

  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	SMITH, George Albert Jr. ,   b. 7 Jul 1842, Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United Statesd. 5 Nov 1860, Spaneshanks Camp, Arizona (Age 18 years)
  Marriage	20 Nov 1845	Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States
  Family ID	F22739	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	24 Jan 2022

  
  

• Photos		HannahMariaLibby.jpg
  		At least one living or private individual is linked to this item - Details withheld.

  
  

• Notes

  (Life sketch of Charles Warren Smith, written by his daughter, Sophronia Lydia Smith Brimhall.) His kindred were of religious revolutionary men and women who assisted the cause of America in the years 1775-1785. Charles Warren Smith was the son of George Albert Smith and Hannah Libby, his fifth wife. Charles' father was a cousin of the Prophet Joseph Smith and was born on June 26, 1817, in Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co, New York. His father was John Smith, son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty, born July 16, 1781, in Derryfield, New York, and married Clarissa Lyman September 11, 1815, daughter of Richard Lyman and Philomela Loomis of Libarnon, New Hampshire. Charles Warren's Mother's father was Nathaniel Libby, born in Berwick, Maine, on December 22, 1790, and married Tirzah Lord of Lebanon. Hannah Maria Libby was married in Nauvoo, Illinois, November 20, 1845. Her sister, Sarah Ann, was married in Nauvoo at the same time to George A. Smith. They were both sealed to George A. on January 20, 1846. Charles Warren's Mother named him for two of his uncles--she having seven brothers. He was born at Carbonica, near Kainville, now Council Buffs, Pottawatomia, Iowa, January 16, 1849. The family was living there at this time. His father, George A. had gone to the Valleys with the original Pioneers and was on Vanguard, walking most of the way; and when he rode, it was on horse back. After building a house for his father, John Smith, George A. returned and moved his families to Winter Quarters where he helped with the emigration of the Saints. On July 4, 1849, he started with companies of three 50's and was captain of the first 50, so they traveled in order. Aunt Lucy Smith, one of George A. Smith's wives, describes the journey as follows: "Sister Sarah Ann and Hannah Maria with their two baby boys, John Henry one year and Charles Warren eight months, had a wagon to themselves, as Aunt Sarah Ann was in poor health. Hannah Maria had all of the care of the children and her sick sister who was ten years her senior." Grandma told me because one of Grandpa's drivers went with the Mormon Battalion, she took his place. She rode horse back in a man's saddle nearly all the way, sometimes carrying her baby on the saddle; and for hours, she drove cows. Aunt Lucy said she did the work for them all. They traveled five or six miles a day, sometimes even ten or eleven miles, and would camp where the water and feed was good for the horses and cattle. Hannah did the family washing, baking of bread, etc. They would always rest on Sunday and hold meetings. They endured many hardships. A severe snow storm and cold weather froze 60 head of cattle and horses, and many would have perished if help had not come from the valleys. They made the journey in 155 days, arriving in Salt Lake Valley, October 27, 1849, which was a great joy to them. Thus, my dear father, Charles Warren Smith, a pioneer baby traveling through the wilderness to Utah, was welcomed by his grandfather, John Smith, who gave them all a hearty greeting. Charles Warren's mother, her sister Sarah Ann, and the two boys went to live in the adobe house of Henry Bigler, who was away with the Mormon Battalion. George A. Smith was called to plant a colony in Iron County, and while he was away, Aunt Sarah Ann passed to the Great Beyond, leaving her only boy to the care of her sister, Hannah Maria, who already was a mother to him. The two boys grew up together and a great affection was always paramount between them. Grandma always made John Henry first in all things, and I have often heard her say, "I'll not be afraid to meet my sister. I have been a good mother to her boy." I can truthfully say Uncle John Henry returned the love she gave him. He loved and revered the mother who raised him. Father loved his brother and sisters and always showed great respect for all of his father's families. In July 1852, Grandpa (George A.) was called to preside over Utah Stake. He moved Grandma, Aunt Lucy, and the two boys to Provo to live. First they lived in two rooms of Jackson Stewart's home. Charles Warren was three years old and was left entirely to his mother's care to raise him because his father was an Apostle and was continually called away from home. He also became counselor to President Brigham Young of the Mormon Church. Grandpa had two other wives in Salt Lake and one in Parowan so his families were widely scattered. Much of his time was spent for the Mormon Church both at home and among the people of the world. He was kept so busy that he had little time to spend with his families. When he went to Provo to live, he took up land and city lots and soon built a three-room adobe house on one of the lots on the west side of Provo, moving Grandma and Aunt Lucy there. This became their home for many years. Grandma was a hard working woman. After her housework was done she either combed wool or spun. In this the children helped by picking out burs and pulling wool apart. The wool was brought to her as it was cut from the sheep's back, so they had to even wash their own wool. Grandma and Aunt Lucy worked so much alike that it was difficult to tell their work apart. They were very diligent and industrious. When one was weaving, the other was knitting stockings. These two pioneer women wove many beautiful bedspreads, table cloths, window curtains in beautiful designs, linen sheets and a coarse ticking for their beds. They filled these ticks with oat straw, wool or feathers. They pieced many beautiful quilts. They wove cloth for dresses and also for men's suits, They made hoods and capes and wove cloth for underwear. They sewed these by hand and often times by candle light. They made dye of bark and leaves which the boys gathered for them. Grandma said she cried when she got her first sewing machine. Grandma used to take father to the oats field to gather long straws of oats that had not been cut with the scythe. They carried bundles home and placed them in water. When they were ready, they would braid coarse straw hats. After the hats were sewed, they would steam and press them into shape. My father wore such a hat for years. He said he surely was pleased when he got his first store hat. He also wore shoes which his mother made from jeans or from cloth she wove. Also, he had worn buckskin moccasins and later calfskin boots. When I was quite a little girl, I asked Grandma to make me a hat, so father brought her some straw; and when my hat was done, wasn't I proud of it. She made one for my sister Isabelle too. Grandma loved her grandchildren. She tried to surprise and please them. One time Grandma and Aunt Lucy knitted my sister, Hannah Isabelle, some mittens and wristlets. They had knitted very nice flowers and leaves in them so they were very pretty. They told me that they were going to knit me some next, but I spoke up and said, "I don't want any, but I want some white stockings like Mary Jane Gee has." All they said was, "You don't! You don't!" They started their needles going, and I thought I was going to get wristlets and mittens; but as the mittens grew, they were for father. So I forgot about it; but when my birthday came, I received a parcel from Aunt Lucy, who was in Salt Lake and in it was one mitten, one wristlet and one white stocking; and my dear grandmother brought the mates in person. How I loved those stockings with pink roses and green leaves with just a tiny hole here and there. Aunt Lucy, as we lovingly called her, was George A. Smith's second wife. Having the misfortune of losing her children, she lived with Grandma and helped her with her children. She was as a second mother to them. Father said many of the good things of life he learned from Aunt Lucy, and she helped him over many rough places. Charles Warren grew to manhood in Provo, and it was the place he liked best. He lived his life there enjoying his neighbors and friends, and he had a host of them. Charles Warren's brother was George Albert Smith, who was born April 7, 1862, and died October 28, 1862. His sisters were: Sarah Maria, born January 1, 1856; Eunice Albertine, born March 6, 1860, and died October 4, 1861, and Grace Libby, born May 14, 1865. Charles Warren grew up with the pioneer boys of his day; and while he was quite young, he herded cows with them. He often filled his dinner pail with Sego roots to take home to the family. He was delighted when he found mushrooms. Sometimes he found tender milkweeds and his mother cooked them as she would asparagus with milk and butter. Many times he pulled cattails or flags in early spring. Taking about an inch off the bottoms, these were also cooked for food. He also gathered many buckets of dandelions for dinner greens, and even gathered water cress from a spring in the field. He fished, and hunted rabbits, ducks, and birds. He gathered service berries and choke-cherries for his mother, and he often brought her some wild flowers. He joined the boys and girls in ground-cherrying, and he was fond of ground-cherry preserves as long as he lived. Charles Warren learned to swim when he was quite young. His mother was afraid and whipped him for getting in the water. But Grandfather remonstrated with her saying, "Hannah, the boys won't lose their lives in water if they know how to swim." Grandfather's advice was good and proved a blessing to both boys later. The boys went to the canyon for wood when they were really to young to hazard the rough roads, but they had to have wood to burn. The river was high, and John Henry was thrown into the water; but his life was saved. And while the men were thanking God for his deliverance, Charles plunged in and saved the team and wagon. Those two young boys came home alive and with a load of wood. My Grandfather tells that at this identical time, being in Salt Lake City, it was made known to him that John Henry's life was in danger and that he called upon the Lord to spare his son's life. I want to thank my Heavenly Father for keeping these dear boys safe as one of them was my father. Charles Warren was put to farming at an early age. He passed through all the hardships of farming new land in early pioneer days. He witnessed the grasshopper war and the coming of the seagulls. He helped dig every ditch and canal in Provo in his time. His mother sent him to all the schools of those days. He learned to read and loved to do so. He memorized long poems and used to repeat them frequently. His mother was an educated woman for her day and helped him a great deal. She was especially good in arithmetic, and he excelled in it. Charles Warren had great faith in the Mormon Church and attended all the different organizations. He attended the first Sunday School held in Provo. He took part in the Priesthood activities. Charles Warren Smith was baptized a member of the L.D.S. Church in the year 1856. In the spring of 1865, he visited his father in Salt Lake City. He took him to the Endowment House where he was ordained an Elder by George A. Smith and Lorenzo Snow, his father being mouth, March 17, 1865. He also received his endowments the same day. He received a Patriarchal Blessing from his Grandfather, John Smith. Many great promises were made to him and his posterity. He was made president of the Elders Quorum of Provo with Vern Halliday first counselor, Erastus Snow second counselor, and Demmesk Snow secretary. Charles Warren married Isabelle Martin in Salt Lake Endowment House on October 5, 1867. She was the daughter of Jesse Bigler Martin and Sophronia Moore and was born August 8, 1851, in Salt Lake City, Utah. She grew to be a very beautiful woman with a keen intellect. They lived with his father's mother the first year of their married life. Their first child, Hannah Isabelle, was born November 26, 1869, in Provo, Utah. In the spring of 1870, Father finished his first house. He hauled the rock for the foundation and also the clay and made the adobes himself. He exchanged work to have it laid up, but he did a great deal of the building himself. Mother said that when it was finished and they moved, they were very happy. Father was 19, and Mother was 16 when they were married--just two happy children. At the time they moved, Hannah Isabelle was one year and a half old. Their second daughter, Sophronia Lydia Smith, was born February 8, 1871; the first of their children to be born in the new home. As she grew up, she became a companion to her father. Wherever he went, you would likely find her perched on the spring seat beside him. She often went to the field and canyons with him. He taught her to cut wood properly, milk cows, feed and water horses. She could do these chores when he was absent from home. She married Ether Record Brimhall on May 20, 1891. He came from a splendid pioneer family. He has been true to his faith in the Mormon Church. Sophronia has seven sons who are Elders and one who is a Priest; she also has four daughters. Two sons have been on missions. Father and Mother lost two little girls--Lucy Meserve, born September 20, 1873, and died March 24, 1880; and Tirzah Libby, born March 13, 1876, and died April 4, 1881. Jessie was born May 14, 1878, in Provo. Although never very strong physically, she has always had a very sunny disposition and keen sense of humor which has helped her over many rough places. Ethel was born January 12, 1880. She always wanted everything to be just right, and we all loved her for this virtue. Zora was born September 14, 1881. She was the baby of the family, and she had an alert mind and appreciated learning. Charles Warren Junior was born July 6, 1884, in Provo. He died September 18, 1884. It was a severe blow to Mother and Father when they lost their only son. Charles Warren Smith was ordained a High Priest and set apart as a High Counselor for Utah Stake of Zion under the hands of George A. Smith, Brigham Young, D. H. Wells, and George Q. Cannon at a conference held August 20, 1871, in Provo, Utah--George A. Smith being mouth. About the year 1873, Father spent the winter in Salt Lake. He was at the State Legislature. He had previously served as Justice of the Peace from February 5, 1872, and married many couples while he held this office. He was one of the first to donate books for the Provo City Public Library to help students get higher knowledge. He was a great reader of good books, and his shelves were always full of them. He kept the best books in his home and took the Church papers and magazines. Father was asked to go on a mission by President John Taylor, but he had no backing. In his later life he left off farming and turned to contracting and building. Many houses still stand to his credit. He donated to all the big buildings for schools or Churches. He hauled the second load of rock for the Brigham Young Academy--later University. George Bean drove in ahead of him. Father hauled rock for the Utah Stake Tabernacle, donated a forty gallon barrel of molasses, and also contributed money and labor on the building until it was completed. Charles Warren Smith married Esther Martin for a second wife. She has been a loving mother and has raised her six children to be fine men and women. She has two daughters, Lillieth and Esther, and four sons--Warren, John Henry, LeRoy, and Ezdras. The latter she buried when he was 15 years old. Father spent one winter in St. George helping in building of the Temple--the first L.D.S. Temple built in the West. He donated labor on the Salt Lake Temple and also money. He donated cash for the Manti and Logan Temples. Father went through the Manti and Salt Lake Temples to do ordinance work for some of his dead relatives; his mother assisted him. He began the work of the Lord family line of our ancestors. He was baptized for his grandfather, Nathanel Libby, among others. Father was six feet two inches tall in his stocking feet. His greatest weight was 235 pounds and averaged 190 pounds. His hair was light brown; his eyes were blue but at times looked the color of violets. While he did the hardest kind of work, his hands were generally soft and smooth. His arm reach was about 1 1/2 inches longer than the average man. He wore a No. 9 shoe. His face was rosy most of the time. Father had a pleasing personality,and a pleasant smile for every one he contacted. He sent his children to the best schools. No sacrifice was too great for their education. He played with his children. He built them swings, teeters, merry-go-rounds, croquet balls and mallets, and made jumpin ropes. When Sophronia was 14 years old, he bought an organ and all kinds of house games for winter entertainments. He liked to beat us at our games. One lesson he taught us was that "Yes" meant Yes, and "No" meant No. One day I said, "Father, I don't see why I should go to Sunday School." He said, "Sophronia, you feel the need of that drink of water now, and you know that you will go on needing. Another will taste as good as the first glass, and you will soon need to come back for more. The more we hear the Commandments of the Lord, the more we obtain His Spirit." The lesson never left me. When I was about four, Father owned a span of mules that he used to freight with. One day he came to the stable and found me on the back of one of them. All he said was, "Sit still, Sophronia and I will get you down." His father was with him, and I remember he said, "Charles, sell those mules." Father told me in later years that that mule was a terrible kicker. Father died January 25, 1903, in Salt Lake City and was buried in Provo City Cemetery on January 30, 1903. It was in Lowell some three years later that the two sisters Sarah Ann and Hannah Maria heard “the pure Gospel as revealed to Joseph Smith by a holy angel from heaven in 1827.” (Quoted from a letter Grandmother wrote to her descendants in April 1881, to be opened fifty years later.) In the above mentioned letter Grandmother wrote: “We were baptized and confirmed into the Church Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in May, 1844. We earned means sufficient to clothe ourselves comfortable and pay our fare to Nauvoo and have a little left. We left Lowell September 26, 1845 and arrived at Nauvoo the gathering place about 20th of October, the same fall.” They met George A. Smith after they arrived in Nauvoo. Sarah was twenty-six years old and Hannah sixteen years at this time.