One hundred fifty years ago,
Topping mountains crest with driven snow
With exclamation, "This is the place!"
They filled the valley with weary haste.
Our Mormon Pioneers believed
Sufferings soon would be relieved;
"Love lies here!", they were heard to say.
They thanked the Lord for a place to stay.
He touched the ground they tilled each day,
And blessed them as they knelt to pray.
They struggled, loved, and often cried;
But times were hard, and many died.
As each disaster took its toll
A site was sought upon a knoll.
A tiny plot was laid aside
And many graves there now abide.
"Love lies here" you must know-
Under summer rains and winter snow.
And hopes lie here, where memories stray,
Under skies of blue and skies of grey.
Some dreams lie here for beloved ones-
Grandfathers, Mothers, Daughters, Sons.
But faith lives on; and we feel so near
To those who've gone - for "love lies here".
~~~~~~~~~Shirleen Craig Farley, 1997
FIRST BURIAL ~ WILLARD, UTAH
Willard Pioneer Cemetery has been named several times since it was dedicated at this first burial of tiny John Memorial McCrary Jr. in 1854.
The Utah Pioneers had only been settled in the village of Willow Creek three years when this infant son of Samantha Hannah Wells and John Memorial McCrary Sr. died at just five days old. At that time it was called Willow Creek.
Baby John was the first white child to die in Box Elder County.
The settlement of Willow Creek was renamed Willard in honor of LDS Apostle, Willard Richards and Willow Creek Cemetery evolved into the "Old Cemetery" in 1869. It was called the "Pioneer Cemetery" after its' restoration.
It is unknown if this first burial was affected by the flood of 1923, but nestled in the southwest corner, it is now protected by DUP Memorial Marker #507. Seems a fitting tribute to the tiny boy who was the first to be laid in the soil of one of the first settlements of Box Elder County.
Many thanks to Merlene Thompson Braegger Jones for the years of care she has given this infant's grave and all those buried alongside him.
One hundred fifty years ago,
Topping mountains crest with driven snow
With exclamation, "This is the place!"
They filled the valley with weary haste.
Our Mormon Pioneers believed
Sufferings soon would be relieved;
"Love lies here!", they were heard to say.
They thanked the Lord for a place to stay.
He touched the ground they tilled each day,
And blessed them as they knelt to pray.
They struggled, loved, and often cried;
But times were hard, and many died.
As each disaster took its toll
A site was sought upon a knoll.
A tiny plot was laid aside
And many graves there now abide.
"Love lies here" you must know-
Under summer rains and winter snow.
And hopes lie here, where memories stray,
Under skies of blue and skies of grey.
Some dreams lie here for beloved ones-
Grandfathers, Mothers, Daughters, Sons.
But faith lives on; and we feel so near
To those who've gone - for "love lies here".
~~~~~~~~~Shirleen Craig Farley, 1997
FIRST BURIAL ~ WILLARD, UTAH
Willard Pioneer Cemetery has been named several times since it was dedicated at this first burial of tiny John Memorial McCrary Jr. in 1854.
The Utah Pioneers had only been settled in the village of Willow Creek three years when this infant son of Samantha Hannah Wells and John Memorial McCrary Sr. died at just five days old. At that time it was called Willow Creek.
Baby John was the first white child to die in Box Elder County.
The settlement of Willow Creek was renamed Willard in honor of LDS Apostle, Willard Richards and Willow Creek Cemetery evolved into the "Old Cemetery" in 1869. It was called the "Pioneer Cemetery" after its' restoration.
It is unknown if this first burial was affected by the flood of 1923, but nestled in the southwest corner, it is now protected by DUP Memorial Marker #507. Seems a fitting tribute to the tiny boy who was the first to be laid in the soil of one of the first settlements of Box Elder County.
Many thanks to Merlene Thompson Braegger Jones for the years of care she has given this infant's grave and all those buried alongside him.
Family Members
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William Austin McCrary
1850–1893
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Julia Matilda McCrary Bowen
1851–1879
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Margaret Ann McCrary Durfey
1853–1872
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Lovina Cemantha McCrary Moore
1855–1921
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Sophronia Loretta McCrary Gibbs
1857–1933
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Don Carlos McCrary Sr.
1860–1897
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Sarah Lovisa McCrary Harris
1862–1927
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Johnathon Adelbert McCrary
1865–1911
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Lois Amber McCrary Jacobson
1867–1951
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