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Taken from Summit County Bee," Dec 1, 1932 By Mrs. Walter Lee.
Elizabeth Barber Simister was born 5 Dec. 1846, at Meller Derbyshire, England, the dau. of
Thomas Barber and Lissie Hadfield Taylor Barber. Joined the Mormon church, being baptized in
Sept. 1862 , at the age of 16. The Missionaries at this time useing the Barber home as a central
point and holding many of their meetings there. Elnathon Eldredge of Salt Lake City was the
Presiding Elder at that time and his helpers were very glad to be at the Barber home as they were
assured of food and a bed, as many times the members of the household gave up their beds and
went without their meals so that the missionaries could have something to eat and a place to
sleep.
Due to the Crimean war during her childhood conditions in England were bitterly hard and it was
a daily struggle to get enough to keep body and soul together but as she grew older times got
better and the Barber family accumulated enough moneys to emigrate to Utah and had enough
left to give them a good start after arriving in Utah.
They arrived in Liverpool on the night of June 18, 1868 and at once started to organize the
company that was to sail on the sailing vessel. Mr. James Salmon, of Coalville, Utah, was placed
in charge of the English, Scotch and Irish and remained as such until the company arrived in
Utah and handled the situation very well under the circumstances. The company set sail June 20,
1868 on the sailing vessel the Emerald Isle. Owning to the fact that the vessel had just returned
from a trip to Australia it did not take on any fresh drinking water and all of the water in the
tanks was what it had taken on in Australia which brought about a terrible condition and much
sickness. After being out three days something went wrong and the vessel had to return to Cork
Ireland to be repaired. Starting out again a sickness came upon them, many of the passenger
becoming very ill. Thirty-seven of them died on the trip across, one of the being Mrs. Ellen E.
Beard, Mother of George Beard, now manager of the Coalville Co-op. The vessel arrived Castle
Gardens on the 11th of Aug. 1868 being 51 days in the crossing It was held 3 days in quarentine
then they landed and boarded a train for Omaho. As passenger cars were few they had to ride in
box and cattle cars living the best they could knew how for 12 days, arriving at Omaho on the
25th of Aug. 1868, then on to Benton City where they had camp in the swamps until the wagon
train was gotten ready. The wagon train had to leave Benton the middle of the night on account
of some Apostates wanting to take a young girl from among the company. The Captain of the
wagon train were Mumford and Holman. On account of the wagons being so heavily loaded all
of the company that could had to walk and as the dust was knee deep it was very tiring. After
leaving the Platte river the water was very scarce. They were compelled to drink from puddles or
bogs along the road which caused a terrible sickness to come upon them, causing many deaths,
they were compelled to bury as many as three in a common grave. Arriving at the Sweetwater
River they camped for three weeks to give rest to the horses and oxen and while camped there
some of the wagons taken on fire and some of the company lost everything they had, Elizabeth
Barber was one of the those that was taken sick and was sick all the way across the plains. The
railroad was laid across the plains but was not used to transport passengers or freight but to haul
material for furthur building of the road. Arriving at Hilliard, Wyo. they came on to the
construction_men laying the rails for the Union Pacific towards Utah.
And here we digress to a pay a tribute. Some of the people in Utah who were building the
railroad hear of this wagon train coming with so many sick on it and one of the girls at the
grading camp went to meet them and took a cake which she had made. Imagine a cake in that
disolute place. The woman's name was Emma Wilde Carruth, and many were the blessings she
received from the sick for it. The company arrived in Utah on the 21st day of Sept, 1868, and the
Barber family settled in Coalville, and on Oct. 5, 1868, and the Barber Mother died and five days
later the father died of mountain fever. Their caskets were made by Jake Hoffman, then a
resident of Coalville, They were burried in what is known now as the Coalville Cemetery, being
the 11th and the 12th grave therein. Miss Elizabeth Barber was married to John Simister June
27th, 1869 in the Endouwment House at Salt Lake City by D.H. Wells. There being eight
children born of this marriage, four of them dying. Three of them died of that dread disease
diptheria within a few days of one another. Elizabeth Barber Simister died on the 18th day of
Dec. 1924. She was a faithful worker in the Mormon church till the day of her death.
Hear are a few of the name of the people who came on the ship Emerald Isle and settled in
Summit county., Thomas Barber and wife, Joseph Barber, Elizabeth Barber Simister, Lissie
Barber Richins, George Beard, Mrs. Mary Ann Beard Copley, Mrs. Elizabeth Beard Stones. Mr
James Salmon, and Wife and family. Grandma and Grandpa Vernon of Rockport, James Staples
of Coalville, John Madson of Peoa.
The Emerald Isle was loaded with lumber and started back but it never returned.
Transcribed from original copy compiled by Rhea Simister Massey and currently in possession of
Marcie Simister Palmer. All spellings and punctuation from original.
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