Life Story of Leo Thomas Grover

I was the third child and first son born to Thomas Martin Grover and Isabella Hogg, in North Morgan, Morgan County, Utah on March 3, 1897.

Morgan is in a beautiful little valley in Weber Canyon where the Weber River flows. Our pioneer families settled on both sides of the river dividing the town of Morgan into North and South Morgan. My father's family settled in North Morgan on property that his mother, my Grandmother Heiner, had inherited from her family. Grandmother Heiner passed away when my father was 15 years old. My mother's family, the Hogg's, had settled in South Morgan. The young people from both North and South Morgan would meet at the "Switch" (railroad station) to visit with one another. Father had hurt his hand and was having a hard time tying his horse up. Isabella Hogg helped him tie it up. This act of kindness was the beginning of their friendship and courtship, which later resulted in their marriage on 29 June 1892 in the Logan Temple. My three older sisters and I were born there in Morgan.

Probably, my earliest memories were of my Grandfather Grover staying with us on weekends. I later found out he had been an Ordinance Worker in the Logan Temple. I remember thinking it strange he would always wear his Sunday clothes to "work" when we weren't allowed to.

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When I was about three, my father and Uncle Bob (mother's brother, Robert Hogg), decided to move their families to the Snake River Basin where many of their relatives had already moved. So early in the spring of 1900 they made their long trek. They had 23 cows, several horses, chickens and other livestock; and they traveled with all their belongings stacked high on two wagons.The move took three weeks.My father rented a home in Sugar City. Mother and we four children came by train. 

Dad and Uncle Bob built two log homes on 160 acres they each homesteaded in Salem, Idaho. In order to homestead, you were required to plant at least 40 acres of trees to cut down on soil erosion. They planted fruit trees, berries and pine trees. We worked hard clearing the land and planting crops. Mother had a large garden and any flowers she could find to plant. Her father (Grandfather Hogg) had been a professional gardener for rich people in Scotland before coming to America.

I graduated from 8th grade and that same year we moved into Sugar City where we could attend high school and later, Ricks Academy. We enjoyed life very much in Sugar City. I was very active in the church serving in the Deacon and Teacher Presidencies.

The Wilding family lived on a neighboring farm and my sister, Merle, married Ellis Wilding. At that time, I started dating Ellis' sister, Leone. Once while courting Leone, I took another girl to a dance. On the way home, we fell asleep. The horse we always used with the buggy was used to going to the Wilding house. So it went there and stopped until Mr. Wilding woke to do his chores. He told us we better be gone before Leone woke up.

Leone and I were married 29 May 1918 in the Salt lake City Temple by Alvin F. Smith.

That same year, we moved to Chapin in the Teton Basin next to my folks. This was a bad one as it was a very cold winter and a flu epidemic broke out. Many people died. Mother, Dad and all my brothers and sisters fell ill. Norma and I were not living at home. Norma had been at the Academy studying to be a nurse. She cared for all the family and I helped all I could with the chores. We dug graves where we could get through the frozen ground. Sometimes we had to bury the dead in the deep snow banks until Spring. Merle's husband, Ellis, died leaving her with two small children. The rest of the family, with the blessing of the Lord, survived. That same year, World War I broke out and several of the younger boys went to war.

We lived in Chapin for about eight years where our first four children were born: Elmo Thomas, 4 July 1920; Della Leone, 28 September 1921, Ben Leo, 23 June 1924, Joel Sterling 15 March 1926. While living there, I held positions at different times as counselor in the Bishopric, scoutmaster (being one of the first in Idaho), Ward Clerk, and others. At that time the church would have farmers serve Winter Missions for three months. In 1920, the year Elmo was born, I was called to serve one of these missions. This was hard for Leone an a new baby being left alone in winter. 

Ducks and geese were plentiful in the Basin and I was able to kill enough to make a full feather tic. I believe it took about 300 birds.

In my Patriarchal Blessing, I was told I would have power to control the elements and heal the sick. The last year we were in the Basin, the crops were about ready to be harvested and a storm was moving in over the mountains. I knew if it hit, our crops would be ruined. I prayed to my Father in Heaven, with every fiber of my being. The storm split and left my fields to be harvested. We were the only ones to harvest crops.                                                     (google image)