Clifford Bale Patriarchal Blessings

NOTE!!!  I have decided not to post this blessing online) please see my post on "Patriarchal Blessings" for the reason why.)  If you would like a copy of this blessing there are two ways to go about getting it:

1. You can ask me for a copy - just send me a message, or leave a comment, (if I don't know you, please let me know how you are related to our common ancestor!) and leave me contact information so that I can send it to you.
2. If you are a member of the LDS church, and a "direct line descendant" (meaning that you are a child/grandchild/ great grandchild, etc.) then you can go to lds.org and order a patriarchal blessing directly from the church.  If you are not a direct line descendant, then you will need to contact me for a copy.

Clifford Bale was the son of Richard and Sarah Miller Bale, and would be my Great Grand Uncle.  

Today we know that when you get your patriarchal blessing, you get one and only one in your lifetime.  So, why does Clifford Bale have SIX patriarchal blessings?  When Clifford was alive, it was common practice to get mulitple blessings (from multiple patriarchs).  I'm not sure when, but at some point the church put an end to this, mostly because the patriarchs in the church were swamped all the time with requests for blessings, and because people were going to get other blessings simply because they didn't like what they heard in the previous blessing. It is interesting to me that all of these blessings for Clifford Bale say essentially the same thing repeatedly, even though they were all given by different people.  Of course they would - because the gospel is true and inspiration is given by the same source, our Heavenly Father!  NOTE:  All these blessings have originals that I used to transcribe.  If you would like a copy of any of the originals, please let me know and I'd be happy to email a jpeg file image to you!  Also, you can obtain free copies from the church (for any direct-line ancestor) by going to LDS.org.

Obituary: Lenard Nicholi Pitt

Lenard Nicholi Pitt, circa 1908

Lenard Nicholi Pitt

UPDATE!  (2/18/2014)  Deb Stewart, my 2nd cousin, has found an article about Lenard's tragic accident and I am so happy that she has shared it with everyone  Here is the article, along with a transcript that Deb provided:

ROCKSLIDE CAUSED BY BLAST IS FATAL 

Explosion Sends Debris Hurdling Down Incline; One Man Killed, One Escapes Special to The Tribune 

NEPHI, March 16. -Yesterday afternoon an accident occurred at the Nephi plaster mill which resulted in the death of Leonard Pitt, a resident of this place. The accident happened in the gypsum quarry adjacent to the mill. A blast had been set off and after the shot Pitt, with his brother William, started up the incline. Some rock that had been loosened by the blast, but had not yet rolled down the hill, came plunging down the steep slope and deluged them with stones. The one brother, William, heard the rocks coming and ran. The other was caught by the slide and hit in several places by large rocks, one of them striking him on top of the head, killing him instantly. The brother who escaped was showered with small stones, but was not seriously injured.

Published in The Salt Lake Tribune (Salt Lake City, Utah), pg 28, on 17 Mar 1912

Lenard Nicholi Pitt was born 7 Jul 1888 to John and Mary Ann Lund Pitt.  He was their second son.  He married Emma Louisa Bale in a civil marriage 21 Sep 1908 in Nephi.  He immediately obtained work in the Nephi gypsum mine, also known as the plaster mine that was so close to Nephi city as to be seen from within the city (it is just on the East side of I-15).  Emma gave birth to their first son, Leonard (spelled differently from his father) Lund Pitt on 31 Jul 1909.

Meanwhile, Emma's sister just younger than her, Elizabeth May Bale (she went by May), married Lenard's older brother, John William Pitt on 14 Feb 1911 - St. Valentine's Day.

Lenard's headstone, with Gypsum mine in background, Nephi, Utah

Lenard continued to work in the mine, and on 15 Mar 1912 loose rock from the hillside fell and killed Lenard from a planned blast.  His brother, John William (he went by his middle name), was with him, but he managed to escape with no serious harm.  Lenard's body was so crushed that they could not have a viewing or open casket.  Emma was less than two months pregnant with Lenard's second child - she may not have even known that she was pregnant at the time of Lenard's death.  Emma was only 20 years old and she was a widow with one two-year old son, and one on the way.  On Oct 30, the day before Halloween, Walter Aschel Pitt was born, already fatherless.  One can only imagine how hard all of this was.

On March 18th, 1912, Lenard Nicholi Pitt, just 24 years old, was buried at Vine Bluff Cemetery in Nephi.  His parents were there, undoubtedly, with his pregnant widow, his young son, and many others.  As the mourners gathered around his grave, they could see, in plain view, the mine where Lenard was killed.  (see photo.)

Emma remarried in 1913 to Charles C. Jensen, a young widow himself with 3 young children.  They went on to have 9 children together.  She loved Charley, but always said that Lenard was her one and only true love.  Emma lived to be nearly 96, and died in 1987.

Obituary: Charles Christopher Jensen

Charles Christopher Jensen

Deseret News, 20 June 1948

(no picture included)

            PROVO – Charles C. Jensen,  74, of 713 West Fifth South St. died Sunday at 4:15 p.m. at an infirmary here of causes incident to age.

            Mr. Jensen was born July 2, 1874 in Richfield, son of Olaf P and Annie Jeppsen Jensen.  He moved to Goshen, Utah when a young man and resided there until 14 years ago, when he moved to Provo.

            On Aug 25, 1898 he was married to Laura Jane Rudd.  She died in February 1913, and he later was married to Emma Bale in Provo.

Buried in Goshen City Cemetery, Goshen, Utah

            A member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints he was an elder at the time of his death.

            Surviving, besides his widow, are five sons, and four daughters:  Mrs. George Cook, Goshen; Mrs. Peter Grieve, Salt Lake City; Edward Jensen, Bakersfield, Calif; James and Gilbert Jensen, Tooele; Leslie and Maurice Jensen, Provo; a stepson, Leonard Pitt, Layton; a brother, Joseph Jensen, LeGrande, Ore; a sister, Mrs. Lizzie Osborne, Riverton, Salt Lake County; a half brother, Andrew Nielson, Deweyville, Box Elder County; 26 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

            Funeral Arrangements will be announced by Valley Mortuary, Provo.

Courtesy State of Utah Archives (online)

Obituary: Rose Afton Jensen Whitehead

Rose Afton Jensen Whitehead 1933 ~ 2011

Rose Afton Jensen Whitehead, 77, passed away on February 11, 2011 due to complications from a stroke.

Afton (her preferred name) was born June 15, 1933 in Goshen, Utah to Charles Christopher Jensen and Emma Louisa Bale, as the youngest of nine children.

She was raised in Provo and graduated from Provo High School in 1951. She received secretarial training at the old Vocational School (now UVU). She was the school secretary at the Dixon Junior High School. She was a skilled seamstress making many of her own clothes.

She married Armand Toyn Whitehead June 21, 1954 in the Salt Lake Temple. They both grew up in the old 11th Ward of the West Utah Stake. Armand served in the USAF for 8 years so they resided in Texas, Mississippi, and England. They then returned to Provo while Armand went to BYU and then to Berkeley, California where he received his Ph.D. They lived in Orem for 42 years while Armand taught at BYU.

She is the mother of five children Steven Karl (Susan Law), Roseann (Ron Cram), Richard Ernest (Sandra Keller), Irene (Randy Lapp), and Mary Ann (Peter Overson). 15 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren lovingly remember her. Her parents and all her siblings preceded her in death.

Her church service included Gospel Doctrine Teacher, Relief Society President, Stake Relief Society Board, Ward and Relief Society Chorister. She and Armand have served full-time missions in Hong Kong, Albuquerque, NM, the Asuncion Paraguay Temple, and Fresno, CA. They recently served as service missionaries at the MTC in Provo. She was a very faithful servant of Jesus Christ.

She is fondly remembered for her love for people. She was very outgoing and interested in the welfare of all. She had a quick wit and a zest for life. She loved to go camping with her family. She loved her cats.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, February 19, 2011 at the Sharon Park 1st Ward Chapel, 100 East 300 North, Orem, Utah. Friends may call at the Berg Mortuary of Orem, 500 North State Street, Friday evening from 6 until 8 and at the church Saturday from 9:30-10:45 a.m. prior to services. Interment, Orem City Cemetery. Condolences may be sent to the family through www.bergmortuary.com.  In lieu of flowers, please donate to Primary Children's Hospital.

(The Daily Herald, Feb. 16, 2011)

Buried at Orem City Cemetery

John Phillip Jensen

Buried in Goshen City Cemetery, Goshen, Utah, USA

John Phillip Jensen was born to Emma Louisa Bale Pitt Jensen and Charles Christopher Jensen 8 Apr 1932, in Goshen, Utah, Utah, USA.  He was child # 8 for them.  He was born prematurely, which would have probably been just fine if he had been born today, but there was nothing to be done for premies back then.  He was a fighter though, because he lived to see the dawn of a new day, but it was not to be.  He died on 9 Apr 1932 in Goshen.

Death Record for John Phillip Jensen

Joseph William Jensen Obituary

c. 1941 Joseph William Jensen "Bill"

Joseph W. Jensen

June 14, 1945, Deseret News 

[No photo included]

            PROVO – Funeral Services for Joseph William (Billy) Jensen, 18 year old Provo youth, drowned Sunday at the mouth of Provo River on Utah Lake, will be conducted Friday at 1:30 p.m. in the Provo Second Ward chapel by Bishop J. Earl Lewis.

            Burial will be in the Goshen cemetery.  Friends may call at the Valley Mortuary Thursday evening, and at the family home 713 W. 4^th S. St. Friday prior to Services.

Youth Drowns in Provo River
(Published in the Ogden State Examiner, Ogden, Utah on 11 Jun 1945)

PROVO, Utah, June 11 (AP) - An 18-year-old Provo youth met death by drowning last night when his horse threw him while fording the Provo river.

Police said the animal apparently had pawed the boy, Joseph William Jensen, after throwing him into the stream.

Diving from a rowboat, Miss Norma Brown 20, swam 75 yards to where Jensen hit the water but was unable to locate him. She dived several times in an effort to bring him up but was forced to stop when the chill water numbed her body.

Buried in the Goshen City Cemetery, Goshen, Utah, USA

Bill, as his family called him, was very good with horses, but one day when he was only 18 he and his brothers crossed the Provo River when the spring runoff was torrential.  The undertow took the legs right out from under Bill's horse, and they both fell in the raging river.  Bill's horse made it, but Bill didn't.  He didn't know how to swim.  His youngest sister, Rose Afton Jensen, recalled how she stood with her mother on the banks of the Provo River as they dredged the river and brought up her beloved brother's body.  To add insult to injury, Bill was buried on Afton's 12th birthday, June 15th, 1945, in the Goshen Cemetery.  For the rest of her life, Afton never learned how to swim and was afraid of water, and all because of the impact her brother's death had on her.   She said that Bill was a character, her protector, and her greatest tormentor!  One day, Afton got so mad at Bill that, when she was about 11 years old she took the scissors she was using to cut article from the newspaper and hurled them at Bill for something he had teased her about; their mother walked in the room, just as the scissors nicked Bill's cheek and hit the wall.  Afton got a lickin' for that little stint, but she felt more badly because she realized how her actions could have led to disaster.  She said Bill didn't tease her quite as much after the scissors incident.

Death Certificate for Joseph William Jensen

Obituary: Thomas Bale

Thomas Bale

Thomas Bale Dies in Nephi

The Daily Herald, January 30, 1958

No Photo included

            NEPHI – Thomas Bale, 82 died at the home of a son, Norris Bale January 28, after a lingering illness.

            He was born April 18, 1875 at Coalville, England, a son of Richard and Sarah Miller Bale.  He came to America when one year old.  He married Violet V. Lamb of Nephi, July 1, 1896 in Nephi.  This marriage was later solemnized in the Manti LDS Temple.

            He was a farmer and a miner.  He lived in Eureka about 25 years.  He is survived by one son, Norris S. Bale of Nephi; 12 grandchildren, and one great grandchild; one sister, Sadie Cazier of Nephi.

            Services will be held Friday at 2 p.m. in the First-Second Ward Chapel, with Bishop Ray Worthington conducting.

            Friends may call at the Anderson Funeral Home Thursday evening and at the church Friday from 11 a.m. until time for the services.  Burial will be in the Vine Bluff Cemetery. 

Thomas Bale's Death Record

Obituary: Annabelle Bale Montague Christopherson

Emma Louisa Bale (left), Annabelle Bale (right)

Annabelle Christopherson

Deseret News, Aug 18, 1986

(No photo included)

            PAYSON – Annabelle Bale Montague Christopherson, 84, died Aug 16, 1986 in Payson.

            Born May 24, 1902 in Nephi, the daughter of Israel and Hanna Semester [sic] Bale.  Married Earl Tanner Montague Sept 29, 1919 in Payson, later solemnized in the Salt Lake LDS Temple.  He passed away May 12 1950.  Married Moroni W. Christopherson July 14, 1969 in Elko.  He passed away July 24, 1982.  Educated in Nephi schools.  Worked as a nurse’s aide for Utah State Hospital.  Member DUP.  Member Women’s Auxilliory [sic] of the American Legion.

            Survived by three sons, one daughter; George Bale Montague, Magna, Mrs. Harold W. (Gwen) Woods, Henderson, Nevada, Michael D. Montague, Louisville, Kentucky, 21 grandchildren, 30 great grandchildren, one sister, two brothers [two sisters, one brother], Mrs. Lou Jensen, Provo, Mrs. Millie Peterson, Bellflower, Calif.; Frank Bale, Ogden.  Preceded in death by a son and daughter, John Lynn Montague and Mildred M. Chase.

Payson City Cemetery, Payson, Utah, USA

            Funeral Service Tuesday non in the Payson 11^th LDS Ward, 175 North Main.  Friends may call at Walker Mortuary in Payson Monday, 6-8 p.m. or Tuesday, 10:45-11:45 a.m.  Burial, Payson City Cemetery.