JOHN HEBER STANSFIELD The Story of a Shepherd Artist

by Jesse Serena Stansfield Christensen and Jacqueline Christensen Larsen Contents

Preface vii Chapter One. The Stansfield Lineage, 1822-1872 1 Chapter Two. The Danish Lineage, 1823-1886 5 Chapter Three. John Stansfield and Ane Sophie Nielsen, 1869-1904 8 Chapter Four. John Heber Stansfield and Elvina Elvira Jensen, 1905-1916 15 Chapter Five. Winters in California, 1917-1920 27 Chapter Six. The County Infirmary, 1921-1923 35 Chapter Seven. Realizing Success, 1924-1928 45 Chapter Eight. Returning Home, 1928-1935 56 Chapter Nine. Art Instructor at Snow College, 1935-1945 68 Chapter Ten. Echo Lodge, 1945-1953 83 Epilogue 101 Compiled List of Known Paintings Index

2 Utah

I have trod the valleys of Utah, her rocks, her sand, and her sage. I have crossed her clear, cool mountain streams. I have watched her rivers rage.

I have climbed her cedar-crested hills where the crow and the blue jay dwell. I have smelled the quaint, sweet odor of sage and chaparral.

I have ascended her lofty mountains clothed in scarlet frocks. I have heard the eagle screeching from its perch upon the rocks.

I have tarried in the aspen groves with hummingbird and bee. I have carved my name in the tender bark of the slender aspen tree.

I have sauntered her shaded woodland among the fern and columbine. I have routed the bear, black and cinnamon tip, and the crouching mountain lion.

I have eaten her wild strawberries, and I have eaten her cherrychokes. I have seen the gray ground strewn with acorns from the oaks.

I have slept beneath the blue-green pines under the clear blue sky. I have heard the drumming of the grouse and have seen the deer go bounding by. Utah, my dear Utah! With palette and brush in hand, let me paint your sego lily and your fragrant, flowered land.

3 Utah, my dear Utah! Here let me live and love and stay, and when my earthly tasks are over; In your bosom let me lay.

John Heber Stansfield, 1935

Preface

I decided to write a biographical sketch of John Heber Stansfield, my father, to introduce a very human person to my grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I want them to know him as a talented artist who could capture the moods of nature on his canvas, and as a man who was no stranger to love, playfulness, graciousness, and on occasion, anger. John=s nickname was Jack. I will call him by his nickname throughout this sketch primarily to avoid confusion with his father whom he was named after..

I have drawn liberally from my childhood memories and stories told to me by my parents about their early life together.

My daughter, Jacqueline and I worked together on this history, and without her help, it would not have been written. Jacqueline did all the research and the coordinating. She interviewed many people and contacted those who were knowledgeable about my father=s life and art. As one result of her research, we located paintings that we had not realized existed. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information included. I am deeply grateful to the staff at the library of Brigham Young University for the use of their resources and for their assistance to Jacqueline throughout the project. We were surprised at the amount of information stored at Brigham Young University. The microfilms(of what?) were especially helpful in giving a picture of Jack=s development through his active art years.

4 I am grateful for the continuous supportive help and assistance of Jacqueline=s husband, Rey L. Larsen, and their son, Terry. My three other children, Phyllis, Barbara, and Richard have also helped in various ways to make this sketch possible.

Vern Swanson, curator of the Springville Museum of Art, has encouraged me in my endeavors. Others, including Inez Stansfield Peterson, Emily Valarida Pulos, and Roma Stansfield Tucker, all descendants of Samuel Stansfield, did (contributed?) some genealogy work. Russell Stansfield, a cousin, has also been a great help.(in what?)

I am honored to have had the opportunity to write this sketch of my father=s life. I have learned more about him through writing this work than I had realized while I was growing up with him. I regret that I was not cognizant earlier of his striving for art recognition, of the self-development of his talent, and of the stress and joy he must have felt as events evolved.

My mother lived in both of Jack=s worlds, family and art. She was a very good mother who helped her children to feel safe, stable, and happy. At the same time, she encouraged Jack in his endeavors and tried to minimize any disturbance to his painting time. My thought about her is as a rudder and anchor on a ship. The rudder to keep us all on the right course, and the anchor to hold us steady in times of stress and trouble.

Jesse Serena Stansfield Christensen

Chapter One

The Stansfield Lineage, 1822-1872

5 John Heber Stansfield=s grandfather, Samuel Stansfield, was born March 21, 1822, and was blessed at St. Mary=s, in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England. As the youngest of the four children of Joshua and Elizabeth Davis Stansfield, he was the only son. His sisters were Hannah, Elizabeth, and Ann.

In 1828 after the death of his wife, Elizabeth, Joshua married Sophia Wilkinson. As a result of Sophia=s abusive nature toward the children the family life was not happy, so the girls left home while they were still very young. Hannah married George Bradley and Ann went to live with Charles, George=s brother. Letters from England suggest that Ann and Charles never married, although their children took the Bradley name. Elizabeth married Joseph Slate when she was only fourteen years old.

Joshua Stansfield died of consumption when he was forty-four. He had owned a row of stone tenement houses, which he had let for rent. It was believed he had written a will to take care of his family, but when Samuel tried to make a claim on the estate, the will could not be found

Samuel apprenticed as a framework knitter making stockings and other woven and knitted goods. On December 19, 1843, in Basford, Nottinghamshire, he married a young widow, Elizabeth Bryan Amatt, the daughter of John and Elizabeth Dixon Bryan. They lived in Radford, Nottinghamshire with Elizabeth=s two daughters from her first marriage. Samuel and Elizabeth had seven children from their union, all born in Radford: John (b. 1844), Joseph (b. 1846 and lived only two years), Samuel James (b. 1848), Elizabeth [Lizzie] (b. 1852), Heber Charles (b. 1854), Emily (b. 1857), and Cyrus (b. 1860). While many families in England were poor at this time, and young children worked in factories; the Stansfield family was financially secure, so the older children could attend school.

Shortly after Lizzie was born, the Stansfields joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons. Elizabeth=s first daughter, Mary, also converted to the church. Young John Stansfield and Elizabeth=s brother, John Bryan, with his wife Mary, joined the church soon after. At that time, the Elders encouraged the converted ASaints@ to strengthen Zion by gathering in the Rocky Mountains area of America.

6 Elizabeth and her brother were keen to join the ASaints@ in America, but Samuel did not share his wife=s enthusiasm. He felt he could profit more by staying in England, and he declared he would not leave. Elizabeth vehemently retorted, she would take the children to Utah herself.

John Bryan died during the preparations for the journey. His widow, Mary, had to stay in England. She needed to sell her newly inherited boot and shoe business, and to settle other matters. Elizabeth did not want to leave without Mary. She feared that her sister-in-law would change her mind about emigrating. After some discussion, they decided Elizabeth would take Mary=s son, Thomas, with her. Samuel James would remain with Aunt Mary in England. Mary would follow with him when she was ready to travel. Both mothers would then reunite with their sons in America.

On May 14, 1862, Elizabeth Stansfield aged forty sailed from Liverpool on board the ship, William Tapscott, in company with John, Lizzie, Heber Charles, Emily, Cyrus, and her nephew, Thomas Bryan. William Gibson, a returning missionary, was in charge of the eight hundred and nine Saints on board. On June 26, the ship arrived in New York Harbor, and the Saints immediately boarded a train for Florence, Nebraska. During part of the journey, they traveled in crowded, locked cattle-cars. The layover at Florence lasted about three weeks as they waited for teams from Utah to arrive and take them to Zion. During that time a sudden thunderstorm killed two of the company=s travelers.

The Elizabeth Stansfield family was assigned to the John R. Murdock company and given a handcart for their belongings for the trek across the plains. The journey to Utah began on July 24, 1862, with seven hundred Saints and sixty-five wagons. Fourteen people died along the way, two couples married, and two children were born.

Following a difficult journey, Elizabeth and her family arrived in Salt Lake City on September 27, 1862. Lizzie had walked all the way, except when she was being carried across the rivers on the back of the leader=s horse. Elizabeth set up residence in Spanish Fork, about fifty miles south of Salt Lake City. The family spent their first winter in an adobe house. They all slept together in one long bed to keep warm. The bed was made from cane they had gathered. Elizabeth worked to support her family

7 by stripping cane, taking in washing, and doing odd jobs. Her pay was a pan of flour and other items in kind.

The family spent their first Christmas in America remembering how it had been in England with plenty of food and presents. Now they were cold and hungry, but as the day went on, neighbors brought food and wood to the newly arrived family. By late afternoon, Elizabeth was able to make a Christmas feast around a warm fire.

The following spring the family moved into a mud-walled house, and for six weeks they were without bread and survived on greens, but this deprivation did not dampen Elizabeth=s spirits. On April 19, 1863, she had Lizzie, Heber Charles, and their cousin Thomas baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Meanwhile back in England, Aunt Mary Bryan kept her promise to Elizabeth. She boarded the ship Cynosure on May 30, 1863, and sailed for America. During the voyage an outbreak of measles on board caused twelve children to die. Also, a young boy fell overboard. The Cynosure arrived in New York on July 2, 1863. Mary, with her child, John, and Elizabeth=s son, Samuel James, traveled to Salt Lake City and then to Spanish Fork. When they arrived in Spanish Fork, they found that, in the meantime, Elizabeth had married David L. Evans, a railroad worker, and was living in the Goshen area. Elizabeth believed that her former husband would never come to America, so she felt divorced. She had left the Mormon Church and joined the Josephites, her new husband=s religion.

David Evans did not want the responsibility of Elizabeth=s children, so he had them boarded out to work for their food and lodgings. Lizzie worked for a Dan King, and while there, she suffered from a serious bout of boils, possibly caused by malnutrition. She went home to her mother until she recovered. She then went to live with the John Given family in Thistle Valley, close to Fairview, Utah. The Given family lived in Spanish Fork during the winter months, migrating to the valley during the spring and summer months where there was grazing for their milk cows. It was Lizzie=s job to help make

8 cheese and butter to sell. She also cooked, washed clothes, and tended the children. Emily worked for a Mrs. Price, and Samuel James remained with his Aunt Mary=s family in Goshen.

Meanwhile, two years after Elizabeth had left him in England, Samuel decided he didn=t like being lonely, so he sailed for America aboard the Monarch of the Sea to find his wife and family. Patriarch John Smith was the leader of the company of nine hundred and-seventy-four converts on board the ship, the largest to carry Mormon converts from Europe. Unfortunately, for some reason there was a great amount of sickness on board and the death rate was unusually high. The ship docked in New York on June 3, 1864. The port of entry, Castle Gardens, was a formidable place with swindlers trying to take advantage of the immigrants. Mormon leaders took care of this problem by immediately boarding the ASaints@ on a steamer destined for Albany, New York. From there, they traveled by train to St. Joseph, Missouri, where they took another steamer up the Missouri River to Nebraska. Here there was a delay of nearly ten weeks in Nebraska while the travelers waited for church teams to take them across the plains to Utah.

Although Samuel=s name does not appear on any of the church lists, it is believed that he was with Captain William Hyde=s train that arrived in Salt Lake City on October 26, 1864. The people of the city greeted the new arrivals with hot soup, beef, mutton, potatoes, and pies. Samuel left immediately for Spanish Fork to seek out his family. Upon arrival he soon learned that Elizabeth was remarried and had a son, Evan Evans. (We suspect, Evan died as a child, but all that is presently known is that he died in California.) Elizabeth pondered whether to return to Samuel or to stay with David Evans. The relationship deteriorated with Samuel, and after a particularly bad quarrel, Elizabeth, in a fit of anger, took an ax and chopped up the harness belonging to Samuel=s horse. Elizabeth and David fled to California, leaving the Stansfield children with their father.

Samuel gathered his family together, including Lizzie who, fortunately, didn=t return to Thistle Valley. Fortunate because the following spring Indians attacked the Given=s property killing the family and stealing their supplies and cattle. A monument subsequently placed at the site tells of the tragedy.

9 In 1867, Lizzie, aged fifteen, became the fourth wife of polygamist John Lang who was twenty years her senior. She went to live with him and his second wife in St. George, Utah. Mr. Lang=s first wife had divorced him after his second marriage, leaving him with their two children. His third wife, who was the sister of his second wife, had died of childbed fever along with the newly born infant.

Chapter Two

The Danish Lineage, 1823-1886

As a young man, John Stansfield met Ane Sophie Nielsen, a Danish girl and a resident of Mt. Pleasant. She had been born February 1, 1852, on the island of Sjaelland, in Ravnsnaes, Frederiksborg County. Ane Sophie was the first child of Frederick Nielsen and Ane Margrethe Jorgensdatter. Ane Sophia=s father, Frederick, was born, in the same village as his daughter, in 1823. Her mother was born in 1832 at Hosterkob, also in Frederiksborg County.

In 1853 Frederick and Ane Margrethe Nielsen joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They were baptized by Elder Carl Christian Anton Christensen who later became a renowned Utah artist. Ane Margrethe=s brother, Niels, also joined the church, and he soon left for America where he settled in Weston, Idaho. Frederick and Ane Margrethe had four other children, Hanne Maria, pronounced Mariah, Jorgen, Maren Kirsten, and Albertine.

Frederick was an experienced tailor who had gained his experience making clothes for the Danish king=s servants. He and Margrethe enjoyed many feasts at the castle. They also enjoyed dancing, and each had a separate pair of wooden shoes just for that purpose. They owned a cow, and by Danish standards, they were considered wealthy. Frederick decided to immigrate to America, two years after the death of his mother, because of increased religious persecution. He and Ane Margrethe including their children sailed from Hamburg, Germany, aboard the Athenia on April 21, 1862.

10 Ola N. Liljenquist was in charge of the four hundred and eighty-four ASaints@ on board the ship. The winds were favorable for two weeks, but then there was calm. The captain had set a course toward the Gulf Stream where, for a week, the wind was so calm not even a feather stirred. When the winds freshened, Captain Schilling changed course to the north into a cooler climate. Consequently, the Athenia was at sea for seven weeks, and food and water became scarce. During the prolonged time at sea, Ane Sophie and Hanne Maria came across a can of clear mop water. Each day they would drink little sips from the can. They also made friends with the ship=s cooks who often gave them food from the galley, and this along with the water helped to sustain the girls.

Captain D. Schilling was a capable mariner but was very hostile toward his emigrant passengers. President Liljenquist spoke to him about the poor conditions, and Schilling threatened him with irons and handcuffs because he dared to speak out. The captain felt as though he had lost control over the passengers, and he disliked not having total authority.

Albertine, who had been feeling ill when the family boarded the Athenia, developed measles. Frederick had brought along a bottle of medicinal wine, and when he tried giving her some he dropped the bottle and it broke. Although unrelated to this incident, all the children soon had measles. Four- year-old Maren Kirsten died on June 4, just five days before the ship arrived in New York. Ane Margrethe was inconsolable when they buried her little girl at sea.

On June 9, 1862, the Athenia docked at New York. Everyone on board was taken to Castle Garden, a large amphitheater, to be examined by a doctor. The next day the immigrants boarded a train for St. Joseph, Missouri, and from there went by steamer to Florence, Nebraska, where they waited for church wagon trains to take them to “Zion.” Accommodations were difficult to find in Florence; the difficulty was exacerbated by the hostility of the local people against the Mormons. Eventually, a sectarian minister allowed them to move into an old abandoned Presbyterian Church where the Saints organized themselves into a routine similar to that on board the Athenia. Each family had a small area of their own. A centrally located large, pot-bellied stove in the building was used to prepare meals. The church became home to the immigrants while they prepared to travel west. Several children died during

11 this waiting period, including twenty-three months old Albertine - another heart-rending tragedy for Frederick and Ane Margrethe.

Those in authority assigned the Nielsens to Joseph Horne=s third church wagon train, leaving on July th 29 , for Salt Lake City. The trek was difficult, and the family walked most of the way. After arriving on October 1, 1862, Brigham Young sent the family to live in the Spanish Fork area where other Scandinavian Saints had gathered. Living in dugouts while building their adobe homes, the pioneers found life very difficult. Unlike Denmark, Utah was dry and parched, and it was a constant battle to find water and food.

The Indians had not been a problem when the settlers first moved into the Western Territory. Mormon President Brigham Young=s policy was, AIt=s cheaper to feed the Indians than to fight them,@ and the Saints taught the Ute tribe methods for growing more abundant crops. However, Ute Indian Chief Walker, not wanting to change the Indian way of life, was determined to stop white people from moving into the Great Salt Lake area. His resentment turned into hostility. On July 18, 1853, Chief Walker=s brother, Arapeen, with some of his braves, rode from the mountains into Payson and shot a guard. People being brutally murdered over the next few months caused much alarm. Thus, the Walker War began. Although most of the hostility was over by the middle of 1854, periodic isolated outbreaks of hostility occurred for several years after. The outbreaks were one consideration facing the Nielsen family when they arrived in Utah. Thus, Frederick and his family decided to avoid the unpleasantness and move further south to the Hambleton settlement on the Pleasant Creek, the area that would later become Mt. Pleasant.

Frederick used his oxen to do odd jobs and to farm. Once, while he was crossing the Sanpitch River to collect cedar stumps for winter fuel, the oxen balked in the middle of the stream. Frederick pushed and pulled the beasts until finally, he coaxed them into climbing the steep riverbank. This incident made him realize that odd jobs and farming were not for him. He needed more in his life than oxen, pigs, chickens, and cows. So, while still running the farm, and with the help of Ane Margrethe, Frederick went back to his former work, tailoring. He cut his first suit from a wagon cover because of a

12 shortage of material. A man named Taylor Peterson worked with Frederick to make vests, coats, and pants for the local community and no pay was accepted until there was a perfect fit.

Frederick was a frugal man who, unlike his wife, had grown up in poverty. He gave Ane Margrethe very little money. He even locked the granary so she could not take any grain to trade for supplies when home stocks were low. It seems Ane Margrethe had just given birth to another daughter, Josephine, and she needed more supplies because of the recent increase in their family. Nevertheless, frugal Frederick was a stubborn man and would not give in to an increase of supplies.

In 1865, an outlaw band of Ute and Navajo Indians, under the leadership of a warrior named Black Hawk, joined forces with Chief Jake Arapeen. They believed that the whites were in alliance with evil spirits against them, because a smallpox epidemic had killed many of their people, including Chief Arapeen, Jake Arapeen=s father. The band, which became known as the Black Hawk Indians, decided all white people must be killed.

When General Warren S. Snow took command of the Sanpete Militia on July 15, 1865, he immediately organized three militia-companies in Mt. Pleasant to suppress the ensuing uprisings. General Snow appointed Frederick as captain of Company A. The Black Hawks launched several guerrilla-style attacks against the settlers during Frederick=s term of service, and over the next three years dozens of whites and Indians were killed in the conflicts.

Frederick resigned his position probably because of the growth of his family. In 1866, their seventh child was born, another daughter, whom they named Emma Margrette. Emma died sometime before the age of six.

The great locust invasion of June 1867 added to the suffering being endured by the Saints as a result of the protracted Indian war. Farmers had expected good profits from a large crop, but vast swarms of locusts swooped down into the fields and stripped them clean. The farmers moved turkeys

13 and chicken to the fields to help eliminate the insects. At night the farmers placed straw where the locust would shelter; the straw would then be burned. Yet, despite all the farmers= efforts, few crops could be saved.

In early 1868, the town of Mt. Pleasant was incorporated, and a year later a local branch of Zion=s Cooperative Mercantile Institute (ZCMI) was established. Frederick was now able to buy materials locally making his tailoring job much easier. In the autumn the settlers organized a brass band, and Frederick made their uniforms. He also tailored the blue coats, trimmed with brass buttons, for the officers and soldiers in the militia.

The Nielsen family enjoyed playing gin rummy, and as they had done in Denmark a few years before, dancing. Indeed, Frederick is mentioned in the history of Mt. Pleasant as the one who taught the townspeople to waltz. Nevertheless, Frederick was a strict disciplinarian, taking his role as head of the household very seriously. He often whipped the children for bad behavior, and after the whipping, he expected them to beg his forgiveness by kissing the back of his hand.

One summer, the two older girls, Ane Sophie and Hanna Maria gleaned in the wheat fields and did housework to earn money through the summer. They earned enough money to buy material and shoes, and their mother sewed the cloth into pretty dresses for an upcoming social. When the girls stood before their father, ready for the dance, he was extremely angry they had spent all their money on such frivolities, and he forbade them to go to the social. Fredrick=s decision devastated Ane Sophie, who was dating John Stansfield, from Spanish Fork at this time

Ane Margrethe and Frederick subsequently had two more children, Elinore Elizabeth and Fred Alford. Ane Sophie and Hanne Maria received their education at the Joseph S. Day School that had been founded one year before the Nielsens arrived in Mt. Pleasant. Josephine, Elinore, and Alford attended lower classes in the old Presbyterian Church building and then went to high school at Wasatch Academy.

14 Hanne Maria had married Joseph Harrison Tippetts a year before the birth of her brother, Fred Alford, and the young couple settled in the Lake Shore area, close to Spanish Fork. Later, Josephine, her older sister, spent time staying with Hanna Maria and Joseph Harrison to help take care of their small children and a new baby.

This is where Josephine met and fell in love with Isaac Garner Shepherd. Frederick and Ane Margrethe, thinking the pair too young, forbade them to marry. The couple slipped away and married in 1881, and they subsequently made their home in Lake Shore, a few miles south of Spanish Fork. It was some time before they got the courage to visit Josephine=s parents in Mt. Pleasant. However, fortified with courage and resolve, Josephine and Isaac traveled by wagon to bring the news of their marriage to the Nielsen=s and were surprised at the cordiality of the meeting with her parents.

Hanna Maria and Josephine would spend the rest of their lives in the Spanish Fork area. Elinore Elizabeth would later marry George Clemensen and spend most of her life in Mt. Pleasant.

Chapter Three

John Stansfield and Ane Sophie Nielsen, 1869-1904

John Stansfield and Ane Sophie Nielsen were married in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City on December 6, 1869. They settled in Spanish Fork and their first child, Frederick, (Fred) was born on December 27, 1871.

John and his father, Samuel, both became successful during the ten years they worked together, farming in Spanish Fork. They owned a splendid home, and each owned a team of horses and a

15 wagon. In 1874 John along with his family and father moved to Mt. Pleasant where later that year Emily Philena was born.

The national financial panic of the year1873, and the need for greater self-sufficiency prompted Brigham Young to organize the United Order of Enoch throughout Sanpete County, but only the towns of Mayfield and Fairview fully embraced the program. On May 28, 1874, the Church leaders called Bishop William S. Seely, of Mt. Pleasant, to be president of the United Order. The United Order, leaving no choice, mandated that the head of every household pledged his money and his produce to the church. In turn, the United Order then gave each family an income suited to need.

Frederick and Ane Margrethe Nielsen, with John and Samuel Stansfield, were strong Mormons, participating in the United Order willingly. The local version of the program was little more than a multipurpose cooperative, which Leonard J. Arrington described as “a device to reinforce and extend the cooperative network already in existenc .@ Many people were unhappy about the mandate and there was some murmuring. However, until this point in time there had been no other religion in Mt. Pleasant - then the Reverend Duncan J. McMillan came to town.

Reverend McMillan had been a minister of the Presbyterian Church in Illinois but because of ill health moved into Utah. He wanted to organize a new school system where no one would interfere with his teaching. McMillan went to the Mt. Pleasant post office to ask about lodgings. The postmaster willingly expressed his dissatisfaction with the Mormon Church to him, so he and the minister arranged a covert signal to convey to the minister the staunchness of a particular Mormon upon his arrival at the post office. If a dissatisfied member came into the post office, the postmaster stroked his mustache with his right hand but with his left hand when a faithful Mormon entered.

The Mormon=s allowed Reverend McMillan to preach his first sermon in the Latter Day Saint Church of Mt. Pleasant. However he soon acquired the Liberty Dance Hall on Main Street, opening a school on

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16 April 20, 1875, with thirty-five students. Previously, in 1862, a group of Swedish immigrants had become upset when the Latter-day Saints Church wouldn=t hold services in their native language. Two Swedes were excommunicated because they became so vociferous in their anger and several of their supporters left the church. These were the people who had built the Liberty Hall. When Reverend McMillan opened a branch of the Presbyterian Church, the two Swedes and their supporters joined his congregation.

The Nielsens became disappointed with the Mormon Church when one of their friends went to the bishop for a shirt and was told to wait until Brother Larsen passes away and you can have his shirt. Ane Margrethe and Frederick subsequently apostatized and joined the Presbyterians.

On June 29, 1876, Samuel Stansfield died at age fifty-four. He had remained in the Mormon Church, as had all his children except John and possibly Cyrus. His son, Samuel James, did not attend church regularly even though he supported church projects helping those in need whenever possible. Samuel James had married four years prior to his father=s death, on July 9, 1872, to a girl named Elizabeth Dutson from Goshen. They made their home in Goshen and subsequently spent the remainder of their life in Goshen raising a family of eight fine children. They lost a daughter at birth.

Heber Charles stayed very active in the church. He also married a girl from Goshen who was of Scottish decent, Elizabeth Laird Jenkins, on December 25, 1876. They too made their home in Goshen where a son (who lived only two years) and a daughter were born.

John, Sr. worked at several trades to support his family. He used his team to freight goods to Pioche, Nevada. He was a rock mason and an expert plasterer who knew how to build with adobe. He built a new home for his in-laws and did the repair work when needed. He also did a small amount of farming.

17 John Heber Stansfield, known as Jack, was born on May 11, 1878 in Mt. Pleasant. He was the third child of John and Sophie Stansfield. One year after Jack had been born; John received word that his sister, Emily, had married Henry Laird Jenkins on May 1, 1879. Henry is a brother to Heber Charles= wife. Emily and her new husband made their home in Goshen where subsequently a daughter was born. They eventually had another daughter just before moving to Idaho, along with Heber Charles= family and Cyrus in late 1882.

Jack=s sister Anna Margaret was born in October 1880, but she was only five when she died of typhoid fever. In 1882 George Grady was born, and he was followed by Irvin Illiff in 1885, the last of John and Ane Sophie=s children.

There is little known about Jack=s childhood. Although, there is a story told of him and his grandmother, Ane Margrethe Nielsen. Despite Grandfather Frederick=s attempts to keep the granary locked, Ane Margrethe found a way to get her sacks of grain. She would instruct Jack to crawl through the granary vents atop the towers and fill small cloth sacks with wheat, and in turn, he would drop the sacks to the ground. Ane Margrethe would secure them and take them to town to trade for clothing.

When Jack was eight, he was working with his father up by the Round Hills, northeast of Mt. Pleasant. A mounted federal marshal came by hunting for polygamists and stopped and dismounted to talk. Young Jack was already bored and tired, so John asked the marshal if he would take him home.

The marshal mounted his horse and sat Jack behind him. As they were traveling, some shots rang out which spooked the horse causing him to buck nearly unseating the two of them. When the marshal regained control, he raked the horse with his spurs causing him to gallop. Horse, marshal, and Jack headed for Mt. Pleasant with Jack hanging on for dear life. After the marshal dropped him off, Jack felt contented to be back with his mother in the safety of their home.

18 Jack related another incident that happened when he was about nine years old. He and his father were in town buying flour when they met a young Indian. The Indian was bragging about his strength, claiming that no white man could beat him. Despite his wiry build, John was a good wrestler and challenged the Indian to a fight. It was a light-hearted bout, but neither participant wanted to lose. The Indian was very strong and it was some time before John finally dumped the Indian into a barrel of flour. The fight was over when John helped him out of the barrel, and they shook hands.

Jack loved to draw and as a child spent many hours doing so. His teachers often found him drawing instead of studying. One of them advised Jack=s parents to send him to an art school. Art school was for the more affluent people in the community, so Jack could not attend. However, his parents did buy him a few art supplies.

Mt. Pleasant was rapidly becoming a leading center for sheep and wool production. William D. Candland established the Candland Sheep Company, and he gained distinction breeding Rambouillet sheep

When Jack was about eleven, he began helping his father in the building business. In 1889, John agreed to lay the foundation of the new Presbyterian High School, now known as Wasatch Academy. Jack said that he and his brother, Fred, carried hod as their job, but Fred probably carried the hod, for Jack was still young. After finishing the foundation early in 1890, John received five hundred dollars for his work. He owed this amount to the Sanpete Co-op, but instead of paying off this debt, John became excited about the prospect of raising his own flock of sheep, and he bought one thousand four-hundred sheep on a share basis with Lon Calhoon. As a matter of closure, regular payments were made to the Sanpete Co-op until the debt John owed was paid.

The partnership was business only, and they did not enter sheep into competitions as other Sanpete ranchers did. In 1890, John=s two sons, Fred and Jack, went to the mountains to tend the flocks. They moved the sheep frequently to find suitable grazing and to protect them from predators. With their dogs to help, moving them was not too difficult. The boys cooked in a Dutch oven over the campfire cooking

19 fried mutton and sourdough bread. Jams, jellies, home canned food, and occasional fresh vegetables were welcome additions to their bill of fare.

Fred was a great tease, and he enjoyed telling his young brother wild stories about ferocious animals that could invade their campsite. Consequently young Jack was nervous about the possibility of a wild animal attack. One evening as Fred was bringing supplies into the camp, he saw an opportunity for mischief. He sneaked up to the tent and ran his fingernails up and down the canvas. Thinking it was a grizzly bear or mountain lion, Jack grabbed his rifle ready to defend himself. Fred stepped into the tent laughing, but it horrified Jack when he thought how close he had come to shooting his brother.

One day as Jack was climbing a mountain slope with a young dog at his heels; he met a huge bear towering above him with its hackles raised. The bear roared loudly, and Jack fled rapidly down the hill closely followed by the frightened dog. Jack thought the bear was right behind him or else why was the dog yapping so uncontrollably. “Why is that cowardly dog running and why does he not battle the bear”, He asks himself. He reached the camp, grabbed his gun, ran outside to face the bear, but there was no bear in sight, only himself and a trembling puppy. Later, he told some men at another camp about his experience, but they only laughed and teased him. When he returned to Mt. Pleasant, he found the grizzly bear tale had preceded him. Jack=s father, however, believed him and his story. Concerned about the danger to his boys, John bought a sheep wagon for greater protection. The boys considered the wagon a luxury with its small stove, table, benches, and beds.

John ran the flock for two years before he bought out his partner. In the summer the sheep grazed on the Wasatch Plateau, and in wintertime, John trailed them from the high-country down to the west desert in Juab and Millard counties. In the spring, the family sheared the sheep at the wool clip (shearing sheds) located at Jericho, in the Tintic Valley of Juab County.

Making whistles out of a willow branch, as did most of the boys, helped Jack pass the time while herding the sheep. His whistles worked well and made a fine, clear sound. He also enjoyed dancing and practiced on any flat area he came upon. He became proficient at what he called “steps dancing”.

20 However, the most enjoyable time for Jack was drawing pictures on the wagon covering of canvas. Jack used charred wood taken from the campfire to draw animals and scenery that were around him. As the pictures began to fade, he would rub them out and begin again. Jack appreciated the mountains and desert, and he watched closely as the colors and textures of nature unfolded before him. In later life, the images he saw would be transferred onto his canvases as he painted the scenes that were so much a part of his life.

John Stansfield, dissatisfied with the income from his sheep, unwisely invested in some mining stock that subsequently proved worthless. Jack related a time when a man came and took their only calf as payment for gambling debts his father had incurred. John=s speculative habits and overly harsh discipline were the only faults about him ever mentioned. John gave Fred, the oldest son, the hardest jobs. If Fred didn=t carry out orders as his father expected, he got a whipping with a small willow. Ane Sophie deeply grieved over the harsh discipline which was a reminder of her own father=s temperament. John didn=t make friends very easily, yet his virtues were many. He was industrious, generous, and honest. He had an appreciation for beauty and order, and he had a great love for his wife and children. It also disturbed Ane Sophie that while other boys of the town were in school, Jack and Fred were in the desert caring for the sheep.

During those early days in the sheep business, John was busy building a brick house in Mt. Pleasant for his wife and family. The yard around the house became a town showplace thanks to John=s gardening talents. He also grew vegetables to supply the household as well as his sheep-camp in the mountains. He built a gazebo on their lawn where Ane Sophie, who enjoyed entertaining, served light refreshments to visitors. Ane Sophie=s cookery was a delight. Her speciality was Danish dumplings, soup, and apple-pie. On one occasion she returned home from a meeting to find all four of her boys sitting on the fence like hungry ravens waiting to be fed and teasing their mother about their meal being late.

21 The Stansfield home was a comfortable place for the children=s friends to gather. Ane Sophie was so gracious and had such a good sense of humor. She served copious amounts of good food which young people enjoyed.

John told his children many stories about his memories of England and his two half-sisters, Mary and Hannah Amatt. He told them Mary had become a trained nurse. (Later research suggests that Mary was not a nurse, but was associated with the circus.) She married James Eaton and remained in England. The second sister, Hannah, married William Elliott and had several children. Accompanied by their eleven-year-old daughter, William and Hannah left England for America on September 27, 1894, on the steamship City of Rome. Previously two of their sons, Albert and George, with financial help from John and Samuel James had immigrated to Goshen to help Samuel James with his cattle.

Halloween was a special time of year for the town=s boys and some of their tricks were very elaborate. On Halloween eve the boys, including sixteen year old Jack, wanted to play a trick that would affect all the townsfolk. They carefully and quietly pulled some buggies and wagons from their owners= yards and pushed them to the crossroads in the center of town. They lined up the vehicles across each street of the intersection leaving a big gap in the middle. They then hauled some hay into the clearing and the young rustlers gathered cattle and horses from various corrals and herded them into the gap of their makeshift corral closing the entrance so the animals couldn=t escape. The next morning when the people went to milk their cows, no cows were found and the people were in an uproar. When they finally located their animals, they had one large headache: First, they had to separate the animals into their respective herds, then drive them back to their respective corrals. The prank involved so many youths that the ranchers just shook their heads saying, Aboys will be boys@ and no one was punished.

Philena was the first of the Stansfield children to marry. On October 18, 1897, she married Roswell A. McArthur. Two years later Fred married Mary (Molly) Carter who had a twenty-month-old daughter. Fred adopted the child.

22 Ane Margrethe died November 7, 1899, one day before her forty-ninth wedding anniversary. Ane Sophie and Elizabeth Elinore did all they could to help Frederick who was devastated by his wife=s death. Jack believed his grandmother regretted coming to America. He recalled how often she would say, AOh, Yonie, Yonie, first we come to New York, we all feel so bad. If I could fly back to Denmark, If I could fly back to Denmark. And our little girl, before she died, wanted to go back to where they had left the little white kitten.”

In 1901 Ane Sophie suffered a stroke that left her partially paralyzed and required a big adjustment to be made. She was able to get around but found working difficult, so John hired young girls to help.

One of the girls was Elvina Elvira (called Mina) Jensen. She hadn=t had much experience as a housekeeper, for most of her skills had been associated with helping her father around the farm. However, she soon learned from Ane Sophie. Mina had great respect for the family, and she was especially taken with their young son, Jack. He thought she was too young to be of interest to him.

Jack told this story. He and another young man were on the way home from a social event, and they were driving a two in one buggy (two seats in one buggy). Both young men were very tired, and they knew that the horses would find their way home. So they relaxed and fell asleep. However, they suddenly revived to find the buggy high in the air teetering from side to side. The horses had pulled the buggy over a cow sleeping in the road. Of course, the cow awakened suddenly to find a buggy scraping along its back and instantly got to its feet suspending the buggy in the teetering position that the boys awakened to. The cow moved and the buggy fell from its precarious position. After some sleepy puzzlement, the boys determined what happened, and they righted the buggy and alertly continued on their way, this time, very much awake!

23 The demographics in Mt. Pleasant were changing. Until 1873 only one political party had existed, the Church Party. Now there were two parties: the Church Party also known as the Peoples= Party, and the Liberal Party made up of mostly Swedish people from the Presbyterian Church. The political campaigns were hotly contested and torchlight parades staged by the Liberals were big events at election time. On the Fourth of July there were two parades, one for each party; one parade was held in the morning and one in the evening. Jack enjoyed himself at these celebrations. Also, He was beginning to take interest in his mother=s hired help. It delighted Ane Sophie when Jack started to date Mina, for she liked her and thought she would make a good wife for Jack.

Chapter Four

John Heber Stansfield and Elvina Elvira Jensen, 1905-1916

On September 12, 1905, twenty-seven-year-old Jack married twenty-two-year-old Mina. They drove to Manti County Seat in a buggy and returned the next day. They lived with Jack=s parents until settling into a rented house half a block south of the Stansfield home. Jack immediately began building a home, but it took a long time to complete, for Jack was still spending time herding sheep in the desert.

Mina bought Jack a box of oil paints and sent them with Fred to the sheep camp. Jack was thrilled when he opened the box and saw the paints, so when he returned to Mt. Pleasant in June, every inch of the canvas on his wagon, inside and out, was covered with sketches of rolling clouds, trees swaying in the wind, and rocks with shadows. On June 29, 1906, the Ringling Brothers-Barnum Bailey Circus came to town. They had a big parade down Main Street. Most of the people in the county were three deep along the street. Jack and Mina watched the parade and then returned home. They were looking forward to attending the afternoon performance, but soon after lunch Mina who was pregnant had a labor pain. Jack wanted to get a doctor immediately, but Mina believed the baby would not come until evening. She had heard first babies usually take their time. At two in the afternoon Mina realized the

24 baby had a schedule of its own and was about to arrive. Jack sent his brother in-law, Ross, to fetch the doctor who was at the circus with most of the other townsfolk. When Ross arrived at the circus grounds, he sent the ticket officer into the big tent to announce that a doctor was urgently needed. The doctor came running and mounted behind Ross on his horse. They left the circus at a full gallop with the doctor hanging onto the saddle with one hand and his medical bag with the other. They arrived just in time to deliver a healthy baby girl. Mina suffered minor complications after the birth of her daughter, but she was soon up and about caring for Jack and the baby. Jack didn=t help Mina because he felt newborn babies were so fragile, and he was very nervous around them. Once the children were old enough to walk, he felt comfortable playing with them. On October 17, 1906, Jesse Serena was baptized in the Methodist Episcopal Church, even though Jack and Mina weren=t members of this faith.

John Stansfield had a phone call from Goshen in 1907 telling of the death of his half-sister, Hannah Amatt Elliott. John was pleased when he found out that Emily and Heber Charles were coming from Idaho to attend the funeral. John and his siblings hadn=t seen each other for years because of the breakup of their parents. John took the train to Utah County hoping to stay at Samuel James and Elizabeth=s home. When John reached Goshen, his sister Lizzie was already there. Unfortunately, two years before, Samuel James had suffered a stroke that left him partially paralyzed. John, Samuel James and Lizzie spent the afternoon catching up on each other=s life. Lizzie had remained married to her polygamist husband, John Lang, and had five children. The Edmund=s Anti Polygamy Bill, around 1882, caused Lizzie=s husband to divide his two families into separate households.

Lizzie told John about their mother, Elizabeth. She said, @Mother and her husband, Mr. Evans, stayed a while in California, living about sixty miles from San Francisco.@ Lizzie explained, I received a letter around 1874 asking if I could come and visit her. In the letter she asked if Heber Charles and Emily could come and live with her saying Heber Charles could earn $2.00 a day and Emily could help her. She wanted us all to return together when the time was right. Though she waited for us daily, no one was able to go to California. Mr. Evans worked for the railroad, and she did the washing and cooking for the railway workers. She managed to save five hundred dollars, and they returned around 1878 to Goshen. It was common knowledge among family members that a few years after moving back to Utah, Elizabeth either divorced or abandoned Mr. Evans. She stayed most of the time with Lizzie in

25 Beaver. Lizzie=s husband built a room onto their house for his mother-in-law using the money she had saved. For a living, Elizabeth earned money making hair switches; a trade she=d learned in England as a young girl.

Emily and Henry arrived from Idaho about this time and joined in the conversation. Emily told John and Samuel James about their mother=s death, saying, AIn the summer of 1888, she came to Idaho to visit me. In August I sent for Heber Charles and Cyrus because she was gravely ill. She died on August 7, 1888, six days short of her sixty-seventh birthday. We buried her in Bellevue, Idaho City Cemetery. Samuel James, Lizzie and John expressed sadness they were not with their mother at the time of her death. Emily and Henry Laird told John about their family. They had nine more children after moving to Idaho, but only five survived to adulthood. Emily was pregnant at the time of her mother=s death and gave birth to Samuel John that December. He lived only five days and was buried beside his grandmother. Heber Charles and Elizabeth Laird had four more children, born in Idaho. Cyrus had moved to Idaho with Heber Charles. (He later died as a single man on February 28, 1898, aged thirty-seven, and he is buried at Picabo Cemetery in Blaine County, Idaho.) After Hannah=s funeral, John took the train back to Mt. Pleasant. Lizzie went back to Beaver and Emily and Heber Charles went back to Idaho.

Because of his time away herding sheep, Jack had little time to become acquainted with his daughter, Jesse, who slept with her mother when Jack was away. One night Jack came home and crept quietly into bed trying not to disturb Mina and the child. Before he could pull the covers up, Jesse awakened. The man with a beard frightened her, and she began to cry. Nothing would console her so Jack had to spend the night on the couch. The next morning Mina scolded him for not shaving before coming to bed. By December 1907, Ane Sophie became an invalid as the result of several small strokes. One evening Jack, Mina and little Jesse walked over to see her. Ane Sophie enjoyed Jesse and spent the evening playing with her. Later that night Ane Sophie suffered a massive stroke. She died on December 23, 1907. John could not bear to stay in the house without his wife so he took turns living with his children while renting out his home. His children urged him to store all the beautiful possessions and their fine furniture. John didn=t want anything disturbed in the house; he wanted

26 everything to be left exactly as it was when Ane Sophie passed away. In some ways he was a very stubborn man. Gradually, without John noticing Ane Sophie=s choicest furnishings disappeared.

Jack painted landscapes with his oil colors. This was a time mostly of practicing and experimenting so he either gave his paintings away or sold them cheaply. He gave Rock Towers of the Rio Virgin to the Mt. Pleasant high school. It had been exhibited in the St. Louis Worlds Fair in 1904. Another painting he sold for what seemed to him a princely sum twenty-five dollars! Often, to save canvas, he painted over his pictures. The museum in Fairview, Utah has one of his earlier paintings, Returning Home.

In September of 1908 Jack and Mina had a son, Andrew Paul, named after Mina=s father Anders. Jack felt his family was now complete. In the same year John=s brother, Samuel James, died. He had been injured when a bicycle ran over him three years before. The family believed the stroke he had suffered soon after was the result of the accident. Everyone realized that Samuel James= death was a blessing in disguise releasing him from the pain he had endured since the accident. His wife, two sons and six daughters survived him. Some of the Stansfield family lived close to each other. Jack and Fred lived on 200 East Main, kitty-corner from each other and only one block from their father. Irvin was living with Jack and Mina. Philena and Ross lived across Pleasant Creek with their two daughters. George Grady=s marriage to Smaphie Christena Jensen ended in divorce after seven years. He was living in Duchesne, where he soon married Sarah Anna Hamilton. John Stansfield went to Manti to his Aunt Mary Peasland Bryan=s funeral. She died October 20, 1911. Aunt Mary had married Francis Beardall in the Endowment House, Salt Lake City, two years after arriving in Goshen from England. They had later moved to Manti, but Mary always claimed that she would have returned to England if the money from her husband=s estate, sewn into her corset, hadn=t been stolen by a young immigrant girl. (The girl later wrote and confessed to stealing the money, asking forgiveness) Her second husband, as well as her son, John Bryan, and his family survived Mary.

The Stansfield Family made Christmas a big affair. Jack told his children about Santa=s travels around the countryside as he visited all good children. When Jesse was about five years old, she saw a

27 picture of Santa holding the hands of children who were dancing around the Christmas tree. Jesse dreamed that she could be in that circle holding Santa=s hand. She told her parents about her wish and Jack, determined to make it come true, arranged for his brother-in-law, Ross, to dress as Santa. About eight o=clock Santa came bouncing into the living room where the family was waiting. He lifted Jesse into his arms and waltzed around the tree. This was not what Jesse had wanted. She wanted it to be just like in the picture. She was a little disappointed.

Mina felt very lonely when Jack was on the desert. She would bundle up the children and go to the farmhouse to visit her parents and brothers and sisters who were living there. It is believed John had already sold his sheep to Jack and Fred. Soon after Jack decided sheep farming was not for him. He sold his share to Fred who was the only son to remain in the sheep business. Fred supported his large family with future profits he made and later bought a farm to supplement his income.

Now Jack had the time to put the finishing touches on the home he had built for his family. He did all the painting including a beautiful border around the living room ceiling with baby angels or cherubs in the corners. Jack was interested in learning all the techniques of decorating and had met an older Scandinavian man who had experience in decorating and house painting. He taught Jack to do wood- graining and marble veining. Through the years Jack utilized the teachings of the old gentleman on many occasions.

Jack had begun to smoke during his sheep-herding days. He always carried a pouch of tobacco and papers in his pocket but deciding it was an expensive habit, he quit. However, he continued to carry his tobacco pouch and papers but never smoked again. When asked why he carried the makings, he replied that it was to prove to himself that he had enough self-control to avoid temptation no matter how close it was.

He took a job as a janitor at the Wasatch Academy Boarding School to add to his income, but he was a proud man and felt the students talked down to him. He soon resigned and devoted his time to

28 interior decorating and painting houses. He spent the winter decorating inside of the town armory by painting a large mural on the west wall.

The following article appeared in the Mt. Pleasant Pyramid, May 24, 1912 YOUNG ARTIST MAKING GOOD John H. Stansfield is becoming widely known in this section of the country for his beautiful paintings which he has been producing of late. He is achieving great success as an artist, especially in landscape work, having produced a number of paintings worthy of special mention. The large painting which he presented to North Sanpete High School of the Rock Towers of the Rio Virgin is an excellent piece of art. It was taken from a photograph in Southern Utah, which is owned by D. O. Larsen of Moroni, and was exhibited at the World=s Fair at St. Louis. The Giant Monoliths, recently discovered in Southern Utah is one of his choice productions. The scene of one, the Teton Peaks of Idaho, which hangs in the Mt. Pleasant Commercial & Savings Bank and owned by Assistant Cashier, H. F. Wall, is one of his finest landscape scenes.The greatest piece of work which Mr. Stansfield has undertaken is the decoration of the Armory Hall of Mount Pleasant. The sides of which are decorated in a Roman design relieved from a back ground of grey-green, with pilasters of Terra Cotta, blending into a ceiling of cream and grey-green. A large picture measuring 10 x 48 feet representing music is seen on the west end. It was taken from a decorative painting in the Concert room of the Mendelssohn Glee Club of New York, which was originally produced by Robert Blum, one of the leading artists of America. The picture itself, which extends across the end of the entire hall, is a most difficult piece of art, including so many figures and is in perfect harmony with the decorations on the surrounding walls, which were designed by Mr. Stansfield. The young man is becoming an excellent landscape painter and has produced many original productions such as an evening scene which has lately been completed, showing the rays of the setting sun on the snow capped peaks in the mountains, below which is a small lake near the foothills surrounded by large and stately pines. Many ideas of Mr. Stansfield have been strengthened by his associations with Mr. H. L. A. Culmer, one of Utah=s best landscape painters.

In 1912 Jack and Mina joined the First Presbyterian Church in Mt. Pleasant where they attended service in a wooden building on Main Street. This was the Liberty Hall built by the Swedish immigrants when they had left the Mormon Church. Each Sunday the parents gave their children a dime to put in

29 the collection plate. Most of the adults gave a quarter unless they were very wealthy and could afford more.

Mina wanted to buy a cow and plant a vegetable garden. Jack wasn=t too enthusiastic about milking a cow but agreed to plant a garden. Mina often told stories about her family=s cows. Her father bought Old Halta (meaning lame) when they moved to the farm. She remembered a litter of pigs had been born. Her father had told her she could milk Old Halta and feed the runt of the litter. She was only four or five year of age at the time and couldn=t recall if she had gotten any milk from the cow, but she knew the runt had gotten fed. Old Meg, another cow, Mina also related, AWe could ride her all we wanted. She was twenty years old and so sway-backed. If two of us sat on her we became so wedged in we couldn=t fall off. Then there was Fanny she continued; one day Leona and I were at the house alone, and we put a carpet on her to ride, but the carpet slipped, and we fell off. I cut my head on a sharp rock, and I made Leona swear not to tell papa and mama, for they would have forbid us to ride again. I tied a fascinator, a head covering hood, over my head so they couldn=t see the blood on my hair. This ruse continued for several days, but the swelling became larger and larger, and I was getting really sick. The night mama discovered my deception; I was sleeping with her because of my high fever. I got up during the night and stumbled to a washbowl that had soapy water in it. I took off the hood and immersed my head. It felt so good! However, Mama was watching me, and I sure got a Agoing over.@ She cut my hair away from the sore and was aghast at the sight, for the wound was close to blood poisoning.

The childhood incident with Fanny, the cow, didn=t deter Mina from wanting her milking cow. She bargained with Jack saying, AIf you would buy a cow I will milk it as long as you want me to.@ She told him how much money they could save by having their own milk, cream, and butter. Jack both spaded a vegetable garden and bought her a cow.

Jack designed and built a seat to fit on the handlebars of his bike. He put a foot rest on it so the children=s feet wouldn=t get caught in the spokes. Jesse and Paul took turns cycling with their father around the town. Jesse remembered, AI can still feel the exhilaration as the wind blew my hair about, and the countryside flashed by. We would often cycle on the country roads outside of town. One of the roads

30 went by the Roller Mill for making flour and onto the Round Knolls that were east of Mt. Pleasant. In the early spring we would pick pussy willows to take home.@

Life was pleasant for the Stansfield family, but Jack felt something was missing. The children needed a pet. He came home with a small, tan-faced, penny-wise dog. Although the dog delighted the children, they couldn=t decide on a name. One day while Jack was singing Yankee Doodle Dandy, he stopped suddenly, and he announced the dog should be called Doodle. Doodle was a part of the family for many years.

To supplement their income, Jack and Mina took in boarders. Two young men from the Wasatch Academy moved into an upstairs room, and a lady teacher from the newly constructed public school, where Jesse attended kindergarten, moved into the downstairs room. Jesse thought the teacher was wonderful, especially after she allowed Jesse and Paul to have the leftover lemonade from a party she had held in the front room of their home. The young male students were often out, so the children hardly knew they were around.

Easter time was fun for Jesse and Paul. Mina boiled eggs, dipped them in colored water then - Jack took charge! The plain-colored eggs turned into clowns, old men with beards, and different kinds of birds and animals which all delighted the children. Mama fed, clothed, and kept them comfortable; she was the substance of life but taken for granted. Papa was the spice that gave life its flavor and delight. Jack was always thinking of new ways to amuse them. He practiced Aslight of hand,@ so he could make objects disappear before their eyes. He would take a pocketknife out of his pocket, make it disappear from his hand, then reappear in the their hair. They thought their father was a hero, especially, after watching him play in the newly organized baseball team.

Irvin, Jack=s only unmarried brother, planned to marry Schrelda Nicholson. After graduating from Wasatch Academy in 1907, he attended Westminster College in Salt Lake City and Occidental College in Los Angeles. He returned home and gave lessons on stringed instruments. Irvin played the mandolin in

31 most of the orchestras in Sanpete County. He was not only a talented musician, but also showed an artistic flare. Irvin and Schrelda=s wedding was held at the bride=s home on September 18, 1912.

In March 1913, John, Jack=s father now sixty-eight, received an invitation to spend two weeks with his sister Lizzie at her daughter=s home in Salt Lake City. Lizzie was in the process of moving to Duchesne County to live with her single son, George Herbert. John was delighted to find that his sister Emily, from Idaho, would be there also. It had been five years since he had last seen both sisters.

During the visit, the siblings discussed their Grandfather Joshua=s estate in England. Both Emily and John had been writing to England to find out what had happened to his will but there had been no satisfactory explanation. Some relatives claimed to have seen the will and many had seen the row of stone houses that Joshua had owned. John wanted to go to England to find out more, but Emily made him realize there was not enough proof that a will existed. She felt they needed more information before making such a journey. When John returned to Mt. Pleasant, he again said he needed to go to England to put in a claim on the estate. However, Jack and Mina also thought it a bad idea.

Still, John could talk of nothing else. Even his Black Hawk trip (an excursion for all the men who fought the Indians) to Heber City in August, did not deter him. Eventually Jack and Fred gave him the money to make his trip. John arrived in New York only to be bamboozled by a couple of men who had seen his money. They invited him to join them in a card game. Soon John had gambled away his fare. He went back to Utah and never spoke of going to England again.

Jesse was enrolled in the first grade at Wasatch Academy while the rest of her class went into second grade at the public school. The Academy rang their big school bell twice; the first bell was a warning that school was about to begin. Fifteen minutes later the second bell rang to tell the students they should be in line ready to march to their class. The elementary school used the first floor and the high school used the second. Each room on the elementary level held three grades. In Jesse=s class were the first, second and third graders. A glass case holding toys was in the room. While the teacher

32 was working with the third grade, the little first graders would go to the case and choose a toy. This kept them quiet and occupied while the teacher was busy.

In those early days painting pictures was not considered a worthy occupation, so Jack came in for a good deal of criticism from some of the community. Still, he went on painting. The Union Pavilion, built in 1894, ranked as the best dance hall in the area. It was renamed the Mt. Pleasant Opera House in 1905. Carl Christian Anton Christensen decorated and painted scenery for the productions. In 1912, he died of cancer and Jack took over the task. The citizens, including those who had been critical earlier on, now appreciated Jack=s talents

Bent Richard Hansen asked Jack to do the interior decorating at Mt. Pleasant=s newly built movie theater. The two men spent a few days at Salt Lake City in August selecting decorations for the building. Tuesday, November 25, 1913, the Elite Theater opened its doors to the public. The Mt. Pleasant Pyramid described the theater as A masterpiece of decorative art and John H. Stansfield Jr., Mount Pleasant=s young artist, has decorated the building throughout.

The article continued:

The color scheme of the Elite is one of its most attractive features, giving the house an atmosphere of luxury found in few of the moving picture theatres. French grey, lavender, ivory and gold are some of the colors utilized, these colors making the theatre a delight to that part of the public which pays especial attention to details. The decorations at the top of the pilasters are in gilt relieved from a bronze background. The walls are in lichen grey; the wainscoting is painted Egyptian green marble paneled with onyx. The pilasters are of white marble . . . The lobby of the theater is a fine piece of decorative art. The color scheme is old rose and gold, and while not gaudy, are warm and pleasing. Altogether the theater is one of the most perfect amusement palaces that can be found in smaller cities . . .

With the completion of the theater, Jack found more time to do as he pleased. He was at home resting one Sunday when he noticed five years old Paul looking out the window with the Salt Lake Tribune funnies laying at his feet. The sun was just perfect shining on the little boy=s blond hair. Jack hurried to gather his paints and brushes. The finished painting was

33 named, “Paul.” Jesse and Paul became so used to having their father painting they took it for granted.

When the children came down with measles, Jack moved their beds into the living room. He thought the children could be watched over more easily if they were closer to the family activities. Jack, being concerned about their well being, asked Doctor Winters what was the best thing for them. The doctor suggested that the disease might be hard on their eyes, and it would be well to keep them in a shaded room. The room had large windows so Jack pulled down the shades yet that did not satisfy him. He built a tent around the bed telling the children it was an Indian tepee, and they became two little Indian children. At first Paul didn=t seem as eager as Jesse to play an Indian child. Probably because he suffered childhood diseases much harder than Jesse and therefore was much sicker. Jack=s stories of what happened to two Indian children became a daily adventure for Jesse and Paul until they were well again.

Jack was always willing to help in the community or to help at the school. In May, the Wasatch Academy celebrated the onset of spring with a special program. A stage was built on the lawn and the children performed a version of the play “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” “May-Pole” braiding was another important event for the children. Each year the children of all grades performed in the annual production of a different play, but the fifth grade always braided the “May-Pole“.

In 1914 Jack bought a building-lot across the road from the Wasatch Academy. He and Mina planned to build a new house. They wanted a single story bungalow with a basement and storage room for Mina=s home-bottled fruit. The house was to be centrally heated by hot water circulating through radiators in all the rooms. Building started just before Jesse completed first grade. The living room was long, stretching all the way across the front of the house, with two built in seats on either side of the fireplace; it was long, but not very wide. The dining area was open to the living room with bookcase dividers on each side of the opening. The dining room had two doors, one leading into the hallway and the other into the kitchen. In the kitchen was a door to the basement and another door to the outside. The house had three bedrooms and one bathroom with a hallway leading to all rooms. Jack

34 intended to use one bedroom as a studio until his children became older and needed their own rooms. On October 27, 1914, John Stansfield=s father-in-law, Fredrick, died suddenly at his home in Mt. Pleasant. He had been in excellent health. The day before his death, he walked a mile, to register to vote, swinging his gold-headed cane. At ninety years, he was the oldest man in Mt. Pleasant, and a man of great integrity. The family held his funeral at the Presbyterian Church and buried him in the Mt.Pleasant City Cemetery. Frederick=s daughter, Josephine, had died the previous spring. Three children, Hanne Maria, Elinore Elizabeth and Alford survived him. Alford was only one of the children to never marry; he was bequeathed the farm and all the property.

Just before Christmas, Jack and his family moved into their completed brick home. Soon after settling in, Jack noticed he was running short of art supplies, so he boarded the train for Salt Lake City to buy more. The anticipation of papa, going to the city delighted Paul and Jesse, for he always returned with candy for them. A large sack of candy was enough to last the whole Christmas season.

Mina decided they should have a dinner party for family and friends to celebrate the completion of their new home. So, she did all the planning and preparation for the affair while Jack worked on a portrait of Jesse. Jesse, who was eight years old, found it hard to sit still for any length of time; therefore, the painting took longer than Jack anticipated. When the portrait was finally completed, he built a barn for Mina=s cow.

Mina was supplementing the family=s income by selling milk to the neighbors to include the Fred Jensen family, wealthy Presbyterians of Mt. Pleasant. Jesse and Paul delivered the milk in a two-quart bucket with a tight lid so the milk wouldn=t spill as they walked.

Jack continued to paint. His determination to be a successful artist was reinforced when his painting AAmong the Quaking Aspens@ was accepted in a Newark exhibition. He and Mina visited New Jersey to look at some of the art galleries. Mina was a good manager who knew how to scheme and plan to make ends meet. She loved to travel and had prepared ahead for the trip, so it was not a hardship on the family.

35 In May 1915 the following appeared in the Mt. Pleasant Pyramid - LOCAL ARTIST GAINS DISTINCTION IN THE EAST The Osborne Company of Newark, New Jersey, one of the largest art companies in the United States who have art galleries at Chicago, New York and London, accepted another picture from Utah on May 18th. The subject being AAmong the Quaking Asps@ painted by John H. Stansfield of Mount Pleasant, Utah.

Mr. Stansfield is the third artist from Utah to have a picture published by this company in New Jersey. Two pictures of Lambourne and one of Culmer=s has previously been accepted by this Eastern Company and published by them. Each year more than 100,000 pictures are presented to their committee of approval by many artists of the world in order that they may receive favor.AAmong the Quaking Asps@ was very favorably passed upon by the critics of the 14th Annual Utah Art Exhibit held two years ago at Provo. The picture was at the State Exhibit at Salt Lake City, and now the Great Eastern Company has classed it among the masterpieces of art.

Mr. Stansfield has some of the most beautiful landscape paintings in the state of Utah. And many of Mount Pleasant=s prominent people appreciate these beautiful paintings in their homes. Mr. Stansfield has excellent prospects of becoming widely known throughout the United States for his wonderful pictures. He is a young man and has a great future before him.

In the summer of 1915, Jack and Mina and the children took a week=s trip into the mountains with Mina=s brother Arthur, his wife Carrie, and their six-year-old son, Arthur Lynn. Also, Mina=s younger brother, Elmer and his wife Hilma with their little daughter Margaret went along. The group took two wagons traveling six miles to Fairview and another nine miles up a steep canyon road. The children probably enjoyed the trip more than the adults did. Paul, Jesse and Arthur Lynn explored the area until they were exhausted. Sleeping on the hard ground didn=t bother them at all. For the adults it was different. Mina remarked that before another night came, she would dig a hole in the ground, under her bedding, for her bony hip to fit in.

Jack baked scones in two Dutch ovens to eat with the mountain trout they had caught a plenty. The mountain air and extra activity gave everyone a huge appetite so they really enjoyed the food. Jesse still remembers it as one of her fondest times.

36 Soon after this trip, Mina announced she was pregnant again. Jack didn=t like the idea of his wife going through the ordeal of having another child. He thought two children were adequate.

Later in the year as Christmas drew near, Jack overheard his children talking about the time Santa had visited their old home. Jack arranged for Santa to visit again. He didn=t have a Santa costume but did manage to get a mask, red cap and beard. When the children were busy playing in the front room, he put on the outfit and peeked through the window. Both children saw him and began calling excitedly. Jesse had been told Santa was really her father playacting, but when she saw Jack just minutes later walking toward his studio with a canvas under his arm, she knew her friend’s stories weren=t true.

During the holiday season many people were suffering from chest colds. Arthur caught cold and soon developed a severe case of pneumonia. John also became ill, but soon both men recovered and were well enough to celebrate Mina=s birthday. A few days later, on February 23, 1916, Jack and Mina=s third child, Ethel Aileen, was born. Her cradle was the same one Jesse and Paul had used; the cradle is still in use today by successive generations.

By 1916, Mt. Pleasant was adding sidewalks and curbing to its streets. Andrew Carnegie, the steel magnate and philanthropist, had made an offer to build a public library in the town, and meetings were called to discuss the proposal. The town council accepted the offer, so Jack and his partner, Bent Hansen, submitted a bid to build the library. In August their bid was accepted and work began. The Latter-day Saints donated the land, with architects from Salt Lake City designing the building. August Larsen, Bent Hansen and Jack worked hard to prepare the library for the dedication date planned for 1917. In the years that followed Bent built many homes while Jack painted and decorated them. He also continued to work on his paintings.

To paint nature scenes Jack would make a sketch capturing mood, sunlight, shadows, and colors. Later he would paint using the sketch as a model for his picture. He crafted his own picture frames and was always looking for new ideas to enhance the paintings. He learned to mold decorative corners on the frames using gold leaf to cover the corners. Gold leaf was delicate and thin and had to be carefully

37 applied with a wide, thin brush. Jack loved to paint but making the frames was always a chore. Although Jack was selling a few paintings, profit margins were small, and he found other work to provide for his family.

Meanwhile, June of 1916, Mina=s mother, Jacobina Wilhelmina, passed away. After the funeral, Mina often visited the Jensen farm, and with her sister Hannah Lurinda (Rinda), spent many hours with their father. Rinda, who was widowed, stayed on at the farm with her children to keep house for Anders.

Chapter Five

Winters in California, 1917-1920

In January 1917, Jack and Mina took their children on a train to California. Jesse was ten years old, Paul eight, and little Ethel, eleven months. Jack reserved a drawing room complete with three berths, a private toilet, and a wash basin. Mina=s older sister, Selma, went with the family. Uncle George and Aunt Elinore Clemensen along with Jack=s partner, Bent Hansen, were on the same train. Mina and Selma prepared cold pressed chicken, potato salad, cake, pie, and fruit. They packed the food in a basket, which held enough food for a couple of meals, to eat in their drawing car. They only ordered coffee and milk from the dining car until their food ran out, and then they ate with the other passengers.

Jesse and Paul made friends with other children on the train, spending a good deal of time running up and down the aisles. When the train stopped to take on water, the conductor suggested they get off and walk around. The children were exploring various things when the train started to move, Jesse, thinking that her parents were going without her, started to run after the train. The conductor grabbed her, telling her it was only moving to a better position. Jack had noticed his daughter=s attempt to board the moving train, and he told her the railway workers would never allow children to be left at the water tower.

38 When the train arrived in Los Angeles Mina=s cousin, Emil Edward was at the station to meet them. Emil and his wife had stayed in contact with their Mt. Pleasant relatives and insisted Jack and his family stay with them while looking for a place to live. Jack took a bus to Long Beach where he rented a six- roomed house for his family.

Jack=s Family spent seven weeks in California where Mina enjoyed the warm weather and the flowers blooming. One day each week, the farmers set up a market in the city. Booths with produce for sale lined both sides of the street and extended around the block. They sold not only fresh produce, but also handcrafts such as crocheted and knitted items, clothing, hand carvings, and paintings. A machine that turned peanuts into peanut butter fascinated the children and they urged Mina to buy a jar of peanut butter, so she did. Mina and Selma=s shopping bags were soon full of fresh produce and Ethel=s baby- stroller had packages stored in spaces around her feet and sides.

California real estate brokers were selling properties all around the state. They advertised free boat rides with hot dinners for potential investors. People attending were under no obligations to buy so Jack and his family went to one of these outings. The only time sales were mentioned was during the dinner hour. They showed the properties on a large screen and anyone interested could contact the sales office which was in a small tent nearby. Since property didn=t interest Jack, he did not go into the small tent.

The beach was a couple of blocks away from the family=s rented house, so Paul and Jesse played for hours in the sand and waded in the ocean. They watched people clamming and tried it themselves with no success. One day, they tried in a hole that another clam-digger had left, and they dug up a clam. They took it home but didn=t know how to open it. After that they lost interest. While Mina, Selma and the children were enjoying their time in California, Jack was pursuing his interest in art. He visited all the art shops and museums looking at the different artwork. Jack visited with artist Thomas Moran who told Jack there had been a famous artist in England named Stansfield. Jack didn=t know if he was an ancestor but liked the idea of another artist in his family or at least with his family name.

39 Jack admired Moran=s work and over the years acquired many of his prints. Moran encouraged Jack to continue painting by stating that he had considerable talent

In early spring Jack visited the Kanst Art Gallery in Los Angeles taking several of his paintings to show Mr. Kanst. He was impressed with the paintings and asked Jack to send more of his work when he returned to Mt. Pleasant

The family returned to Utah and Sanpete County. That fall they sold their home to a missionary couple who wanted to be near their children while they were attending Wasatch Academy. Jack purchased a house with a building lot at the back on the main highway leading to Fairview for one thousand dollars. It was a medium size house built of lumber with adobe filler inside the walls providing excellent insulation. However, there were drawbacks to the home. Mina found the absence of a bathroom an inconvenience, and Jack didn=t have a place to put his painting equipment. Soon Jack painted in any corner not being used. He crated the finished paintings and sent them to the Kanst Art Gallery on a trial basis. The paintings sold and by summer Mr. Kanst was writing to ask Jack for more. Jack became one of ten artists chosen to exhibit at the Kanst gallery.

The children loved their new home, especially the big yard, and even the tin bathtub did not bother them much. They all loved the new location. To the northeast they could see foothills and the Round Knolls, and behind the Knolls the Wasatch Plateau. Sagebrush and wild flowers grew very close to their yard. The front yard had already been landscaped with grass and shrubs. Near the kitchen grew a huge, shade tree and was a favorite with the children who climbed around in its branches. One large Lombardy poplar grew on the southeast corner of the front lawn. These trees helped to keep the house cool in the summer. Jack, with Mina=s help, planted a large garden in the backyard.

Building in Sanpete County had slackened, and Jack had to find new ways to supplement the family income. He invested in farming land and brought a pair of beautiful, dappled-gray draft horses that made him very proud. He fed them the best feed available and curried and brushed their coats until they shined. Jack planted sugar beets on a section of his farm. After they had grown a few inches,

40 they needed to be blocked out and thinned. Mina helped with the hoeing; however, thinning became the children=s job. For the children, the worse part of the task was crawling down the rows of beets pulling out all but the hardiest plants. Jack kept them working despite their grumbles and moans. However, by noon they had the work completed. The children were hot and tired, so Mina set out sandwiches, a quart jar of fresh milk, a jar of thick cream for the coffee, and a beautiful brown apple pie. The children=s spirits lifted. While waiting for lunch, they played in the willow bushes, making a Abucking horse@ from supple willow branches. As the coffee brewed, Mina recalled how big her father=s grain field had appeared to her when she was twelve and started weeding. AIn the early days@ she said, ALeona, Elmer and I would count off five rows apiece. We would walk in the center row and scrutinize the other rows for weeds. By noon, we were really hungry, but we never quit early. At the beginning of the day we made a flat spot of earth and put a straight stick in it. When the stick=s shadow was shortest, we knew it was noon. We would then eat sandwiches of fit (lard) and sausages. After eating we found the largest of the willow trees and climbed to the lower branches. We would sway back and forth singing at the top of our voices. None of us could sing, but it was great fun. At one o=clock we were back weeding and by night ten acres had been cleaned.” While their parents rested, Jesse and Paul were busy exploring. They found a nest of little owls and summoned Jack, Mina and baby Ethel to investigate. The children picked wild flowers before the family started for home in a wagon pulled by the dappled gray horses.

Jack and Mina had never owned a car. Some cars had fixed tops with isinglass windows that could be rolled down when the sun was shining and others had soft-tops that could be folded down. Jack wanted a soft-top model. Soon, he drove a new car into the yard, but now he had a car with no place to put it, so he built a garage. This pleased Mina because the garage hid the unsightly old coal shed out in the back yard.

It was fashionable to dress up when driving. Since most of the cars were soft-tops and open to wind and weather, the store advertised car coats or dusters and hats to keep the dust off the clothing, for cars stirred up more dust than buggies did. Mina bought herself one of these outfits and felt well dressed while she was driving with Jack. Once they had the car, the family went on more picnics than

41 ever before. Sometimes Jack and Mina would drive Jesse and her friends to the outskirts of Milburn where there was a swimming hole in the Sanpitch River.

On June 19, 1918, Jesse and friends, Evelyn and Helen, were cooling off in Helen’s yard under the sprinkler. A mischevious Paul, watching the fun, ran over and grabbed the hose turning the water on full force on the unsuspecting girls. The girls ran into a disused outhouse to get away, but Paul directed the water through a crescent-moon hole in the door, and they soon came running out. As they ran away, they noticed smoke coming from Helen=s house. Helen took the hose and ran into the kitchen spraying water everywhere. She went into the bathroom to discover that the kerosene heater was smoking. Helen thought she had saved the house, but when the girls looked around there was much smoke and water damage. Jesse ran across the street to her house to get scrubbing brushes and cleaning equipment. They all set to work to clean up the house before Helen=s parents returned home. As they were finishing, Paul was running from across the street yelling, AMt. Pleasant is flooding. Aunt Philena almost got flooded away when she tried to hold the door against the mud,” Paul shouted, “and Uncle Fred=s house is flooded too.” Paul had always been a mischievous boy, and consequently, the girls thought he was teasing, and he was blaming them and their use of the hose for flooding all Mt. Pleasant.

The very real flood was probably Mt. Pleasant=s biggest flood of the time. Great boulders and rocks carried by torrents of water and mud invaded the yards and houses. The mud filled basements, destroyed gardens, and covered everything in its way. Rocks and debris filled all the irrigation channels. One man had been lost and drowned when he had slipped into the raging water.

A group of convicts from the penitentiary helped to clean up the town, and the State of Utah lent a steam shovel to help with the work. People remembered that the Indians had warned the first settlers the area was one of Aheap big waters.@

In the late summer the farmers harvested the grain taking turns using the threshing machines to help each other. The women also worked hard keeping the workers, fed and they usually served a meal fit

42 for a Thanksgiving feast. On Jack=s threshing day, he helped Mina erected a large table made by using planks resting on saw horses with cloths spread over the top of the planks. The men sat down to a meal of roasted chickens, hot bread rolls, vegetables, home made pickles and jams, and with pie for desert.

Paul and Jesse loved visiting at their grandfather Jensen=s farm. It was such fun drawing a bucket of water from the deep well. There were fruit trees for them to enjoy in the summer, and the irrigation reservoir made a great ice-skating pond in the winter. All Anders= grandchildren enjoyed running over the long roof of his straw-covered shed, making swallows fly out in all directions. Aunt Rinda still lived there with her children, Edris, Max, and Kent.

In June 1919, Jesse=s cousin Edris stayed with her overnight, and when it was time for Edris to return home, Jesse went with her to visit Grandfather Jensen and Aunt Rinda. As they walked along the road, a motorbike came from behind and struck Jesse throwing her to the roadside where she lay stunned. When she tried to straighten her leg, Jesse lost consciousness. The young man, who had struck her, carried Jesse the two blocks to her Uncle Elmer=s house then departed. No one was home so Edris ran to the farmhouse to get her mother. Shortly she returned with Uncle Elmer and Aunt Hilma. Edris=s mother had stopped to telephone Jack and Mina who soon arrived with two doctors close behind. One doctor didn=t want to touch Jesse=s leg, and he left. Doctor Winters cut off Jesse=s high button shoe and stocking. After examination of the stunned girl, Dr. Winters told the couple that Jesse=s leg was broken in four places with some bone protruding through the skin. The doctor removed the shredded flesh causing the leg bleed profusely. He told Jesse=s parents the bleeding would cleanse the wound that was full of dirt. After the cleansing, he splinted the leg leaving a window in the splint, so he could monitor the healing. Doctor Winters left a stretcher and with the help of Elmer and two neighbors, Jack carried Jesse home.

Jack was furious that someone could run down his daughter and then leave without giving his name. He phoned the county sheriff and asked for help to track down the motorcyclist. The sheriff made inquiries, but no one on a motorbike had been seen passing through the towns around Mt. Pleasant. No

43 information was forthcoming. As Jack was walking to the post office, a friend asked if he knew there was a man who had a motorcycle working on a construction job here in Mt. Pleasant? Jack went down to the revealed site and confronted the young man. He admitted that he had run into Jesse. The young man paid all Jesse=s medical bills and was a regular visitor for a time after that.

On the Fourth of July the town held a rodeo that upset Jesse because she was the only family member unable to attend. Jack did some quick thinking, and he asked the doctor if it was all right for Jesse to be moved. With the doctor=s approval, he built a bed in the back seat of the new car, a Nash. Some of the men in the neighborhood helped carry Jesse to the car. So, she went to the rodeo dressed in her best clothes, ate popcorn and candy, and had a great time.

Doctor Winters visited Jesse every other day for three weeks. In the course of his visits, he found that one bone was not knitting properly. The doctor removed the splint and without warning rotated the two broken bones together. Jesse screamed until she lost consciousness. As night came, she couldn=t sleep because of the pain, so Jack stayed with her and told her stories to distract her thoughts from the discomfort of the pain. The doctor’s harsh treatment did start the bones knitting. Later the doctor removed the splints long enough to lay Jesse=s leg in a bath of hydrogen peroxide. He told Mina to keep Jesse in bed and off her legs.

After spending the summer in bed, Jesse began using crutches. At first it frightened her, for she might fall and break her leg again, but Jack supported her; she was hobbling all over the place in a few days. At last, the long summer was over.

The family prepared to spend the winter in California, and this time they wanted to drive across the desert so they could use the car while in California. However, It concerned Jack about driving so far alone. He heard about a family in Ephraim planing to make the same trip. So, Jack contacted them, and they agreed to travel together, and they conjectured it would take about five days or maybe a week complete the journey. They planned to carry camping gear in case there was no place to stay on the way

44 When they left in November, Jack=s uncle, Alford Nielsen, went along. Uncle Alford wanted to visit his sister Elizabeth Elinore and her family who had just moved to California. Jack and his family spent the first night in St. George where they stayed at a hotel-boardinghouse. In the morning Jesse and Paul were up exploring, and they discovered many large spreading trees with big gourd-like balls hanging from them. However, neither Jack nor Mina could tell the children what the trees were.

They departed St. George and after driving for some time they came to the Virgin River. The river was wide and shallow and Jack had been warned not to drive through it because of quicksand. So, he hired a man with a team of horses to pull the cars across the river.

Mina was the navigator consulting the map and telling Jack where and when to turn. At one-place, directions said they should deflate the car tires to travel a sandy stretch of road. Mina, concerned about Jack having to hand-inflate the tires later didn=t mention it to him. She held her breath as they drove across the area,only telling him after they were safely across. Jack scolded Mina saying she should have let him know, but she was pleased that she had saved him the extra work.

As night fell, they happened upon an old abandoned building. Jack and Mina slept on the porch while the other couple slept inside. However, they didn=t realize they were near a railroad until the first train thundered by. All night long, every few hours, a train would pass and neither parents nor children slept very much.

The two families reached California in five days and then parted. After driving Uncle Alford to his sister’s place, Jack drove to Long Beach where he had leased a home on Ocean Boulevard, a short walk from the ocean.

When they were settled, Jack enrolled the children in school. Jesse attended a school close by, for she was still on crutches. The principal said Paul was capable to walk the eleven blocks to another school, so the children went to different schools for the first time.

45 In a short time the children felt at home in the city. They especially enjoyed the Pike Amusement Park they had visited so often when they were last in California. Jesse and Paul found a way to earn money, so they could take advantage of all the amusement park had to offer. There was a fun house with two exits, stairs or a slide. The children and men usually chose to exit by the slide. Often those who went down the slide would be on their backs at the bottom, unaware that small change had fallen from their pockets. Paul and Jesse quickly grabbed the fallen money and walked away prepared to enjoy all the attractions.

One day Jesse became tired and left the Pike early, but Paul stayed behind. At dusk Paul wasn=t home, and his parents got very concerned. Jack searched the Pike, but there was no sign of Paul. Mina and Jack were frantic, and then Jesse remembered that the theater was showing a cowboy double feature. Jack had the theater management page Paul. Paul, who was watching the show for the second time, heard his name being called, and he went to the lobby to find a concerned father waiting who did not know whether to hug or scold his son. However, the cowboy double feature episode was not the end of Paul=s escapades. Another day, Jack came home to find Mina very upset. Paul had not returned home from school. Although, the staff said, he had left school with the other children. As Jack was getting ready to look for his son the phone rang. The police were calling, and they told Jack they were holding Paul at the station. Jack went there to find a very frightened young boy waiting.

An officer took Paul and Jack into a room, and he explained to Jack why Paul was there. Several boys had invented a vandal-like game. At a construction site near the school there was a lot of construction work going on. The builders nailed thick, black tar-paper on the frameworks to act as a moisture barrier. The boys discovered, as boys, will that it was great fun to run and jump through the paper. The builders had complained to the police about the destruction, and the police were keeping an eye on the site. The boys had a lookout to warn them when the police were near. Paul who was an onlooker, not a participant, was the only one caught. The police believed Paul=s version of the story, and he left with his father. The episode soon faded into history.

46 Jack, meanwhile, was having some success with his artwork; yet, he still spent most of his time decorating homes. While he painted, Mina took long walks, enjoying the beautiful flowers and the city parks. She would have liked California to become their permanent home.

By the spring of 1920, Jesse had improved to the point where she could walk with a cane, and the cane soon became a nuisance, so she put it away. She became a friend to a girl who lived next door whose name, coincidentally, was Lois Jesse. She taught Jesse a lot about city life, and the two girls spent a great deal of time together

Jack returned from work one afternoon and told Mina he would like to return to Utah, but he had an offer with the movie industry in Hollywood. Jack told Mina he would be in charge of changing sets for different scenes. Mina advised Jack to take the job, but still Jack had doubts. He wondered if life in California would be good for his children. There had been Paul=s brief visit to the police station, and there was also an incident involving Jesse and her girlfriend to think about. A man had followed them, and only the quick thinking on the part of Jesse Lois, who had grabbed Jesse=s hand and ran into a house for help, had saved them. Jack considered Mt. Pleasant to be completely removed from these types of pressure. There he could concentrate on art and the children would be safe, settled, and out harms way.

A phone call from Mt. Pleasant helped Jack to decide about returning. Selma had been caring for the family=s dog, Doodle. Doodle had been yearning for his owners and would not settle down, So Selma had him shot. The family was so upset by this news that Jack decided to return to Utah immediately. He contacted the people with whom they had traveled to California to ascertain if perhaps they also desired to return. They too wanted to return, so they arranged to travel together again. Jack had received a good offer on some property he had purchased on Signal Hill, and he sold it before they left. (Later oil would be discovered on this property.)

Jack planned to meet their traveling companions in a small town near the desert. However, an accident in the San Bernardino Mountains made him late. Jack and his family, including Uncle Alford,

47 were driving along a narrow dug way. The repairmen, working on the road, had parked their truck on the mountain side of the dug way. Jack was on the outer side of the road with a sheer drop off next to him. A bus pulled out to pass the parked truck and sideswiped Jack=s car. No one was hurt, but the bus driver insisted the accident was Jack=s fault. The bus driver wanted the repairmen to support his claim, but they disagreed with the bus driver. They knew the bus driver failed to show his intentions and had pulled out without signaling, and therefore, the accident was his fault. The repairmen signed a statement supporting Jack=s counter-claim and gave it to him.

While the car was being repaired, Jack and his family stayed in Pasadena with Mina=s youngest sister, Afton, and her husband, H. Guy Wood. Afton had a tendency to regard all of her Utah relatives as Acountry cousins@ who were not knowledgeable of proper etiquette. ANow Jack,@ she would say, Awhen a lady enters the room you should stand until she sits first.@ Guy sat in silent embarrassment, and Jack would laugh and joke about her ideas of proper etiquette, causing Guy to laugh along. In spite of Afton=s superior attitude, she was a congenial hostess and the couples enjoyed their time together promising the visit would be repeated in the future. In a few days, Jack=s family and Uncle Alford were back on the road heading off across the desert with the traveling companions they had finally joined. It was a lovely time to travel, for the weather was not too hot and the desert plants were in full bloom.

En route Jack missed a necessary turn and drove about five miles along the wrong road. The traveling companions followed him along with several other cars. It was getting dark when Jack realized that he was heading in the wrong direction. When he stopped, the other drivers pulled alongside wanted to know why he had stopped. After Jack explained his mistake to the others, they all turned around and drove back to a nearby town they had passed and spent the night.

When the motor caravan reached the Utah border, they decided to tour Bryce Canyon. They arrived at Bryce Canyon and discovered that the facilities were still locked for the winter. The weather was extremely cold, so they removed the hinges from a cabin door and went inside. A warm fire was soon made along with beds. A small snack was prepared and everyone retired for the night, with the outer door left ajar. In the morning the refreshed travelers were horrified when they discovered mountain lion

48 tracks just outside the cabin. The men reattached the outside door, and the caravan started touring the canyon.

By late afternoon they had driven out of the park, and by the time they reached Fillmore, Utah, the accumulation of snow had closed all the roads. Here they were to spend several days waiting for the weather to improve. Jack found a local restaurant that served good steak, not good coffee. One morning the coffee improved and Mina commented to Jack how good the coffee tasted. However, the waitress soon came to the table and apologized for the quality of the coffee that morning. AWe had to make it fresh,@ she explained to the puzzled couple. AThe pot got too full of grounds, so we threw them away and began again.@ The restaurant=s novel idea of what made good coffee amused Jack and Mina, and the two of them laughed about it for the entire day.

Jack was becoming very impatient with the bad weather, for he was running out of money. Finally he sent a wire to the bank at Mt. Pleasant for more. It puzzled Paul and Jesse how money could be sent over a wire, but their father got the needed cash. They didn=t question their parents about how it had been accomplished.

Ethel was outgrowing her baby days and was restless in the hotel. Mina bought a little doll to keep her entertained. Ethel seemed satisfied spending time dressing and undressing the doll. Jesse thought it was fun to watch Ethel=s small fingers as she struggled with the doll clothes.

It was a great relief when the road was finally cleared. The family soon departed with the expectation of arriving home before night came, but a new snowstorm met them in Salt Creek Canyon. The road became slick with snow with minimal visibility. Mina had to stand on the running board to wipe the snow off the windshield while the car inched carefully up the road. They were all delighted when they reached their home in Mt. Pleasant.

49 The morning after their arrival, Mina walked to the farm to visit her father and sister. Rinda related to her that their half brother, Andrew, had passed away after an illness. Rinda had not been able to contact Mina to let her know that their brother was failing which saddened Mina.

In the summer of 1920, Jack was painting, but with work and family commitments, time was limited. On weekdays, at noon, he would take an hour and a half to eat his lunch and paint. Mina watched the clock, telling him when it was time to cycle back to work. After the days work, the light was too subdued to continue painting, and besides, he was usually too tired. On Sunday he spent part of the day in church and the rest on his art. Jack placed his paintings in the Manti County Fair and in the high schools in Sanpete County.

Paul and Jesse were happy their father made arrangements for them to attend school at the Wasatch Academy because they knew all the children in their classes as contrasted with the California schools where all the children were strangers to them. Jesse was now in the eighth grade and Paul the sixth grade.

Chapter Six

The County Infirmary, 1921-1923

Jack had heard that the Sanpete County Infirmary, northeast of Fairview, needed a new superintendent. So, Jack and Mina made a visit to Mina=s older sister, Annie, and her husband Jim Meyrick, the Sanpete County Commissioner, to verify if what they had heard was correct and if the need for a superintendent was true. Jim confirmed the story, and Jack sent in an application. The officials hired Jack, much to his surprise, at a wage of three hundred dollars per month plus room and board.

As Jack and Mina organized for the move, they were called to the bedside of Mina=s aging father, Anders. He died on March 23, 1921. Anders had been one of the original pioneers and had played an important part in the building of the settlement. Today his name is found inscribed on the Pioneer

50 Monument in Mt. Pleasant. Prior to his death Anders had divided his estate equally among his remaining children. Rinda could not manage the farm without help, so she bought herself a house in Mt. Pleasant. Her brother, Arthur, moved his family onto the farm. Mina=s older sister, Selma, already had possession of the Jensen home in town and had it converted into a boardinghouse.

The infirmary was the Apoor farm@ in actuality. Jack realized he would both have to supervise all the inmates and care for the associated farmlands. He found a couple, George and Utah Squires, to move into the Stansfield home in Mt. Pleasant and board Jesse. Jesse was to leave Wasatch Academy and enroll in the public school in Mt. Pleasant for her freshman year. On weekends she could ride the school bus to Fairview to visit her family. Fairview did not have a junior or senior class, so all students rode the bus to Mt. Pleasant. Jesse did not care for this arrangement, but Jack insisted she would receive a better education in Mt. Pleasant.

The County Infirmary was a two-storied brick building located at the base of the Wasatch Plateau near the mouth of Cottonwood Creek, locally called Fairview Canyon. At one time an addition had been built which made one part older than the other. The outside of the building was presentable, but the inside badly needed repair. Jack was confident he could do the work and save the county a great deal of money. It horrified Mina and Jack to find the place infested with bedbugs, and consequently, their first priority was to rid the building of these pests. They squirted an effective pesticide into anyplace that would harbor the obnoxious bugs and burned all the old mattresses. After they ridded the infested infirmary, they began renovations.

Mina would wash the walls, and Jack would paint them with a colored whitewash. The hall floors were made pf pinewood and they were very dull, so they put down linoleum in the hall and in the dining rooms. The couple labored long and hard to ensure that the infirmary was as clean and as cheerful as possible. Soon the Apoor farm@ was beginning to look like a home.

Most of the inmates were elderly people who had no one to care for them. Several had medical problems; one lady, called Old-lady Carne, was bedridden with arthritis and had to have extra care.

51 Jimmy De Witt had a badly twisted body and was also bedridden. Mina kept a supply of licorice for Jimmy. Indians coming through the cracks and doorknobs were Menie Frome’s concern, but there was no palliative for her.

Some younger and stronger inmates helped with the work. Eunice White, who was on crutches, washed and dried the dishes from the ladies dining room. Tremenie Thompson, crippled with arthritis, helped with the ironing, patching and cleaning. Some men swept and mopped rooms in their section. The younger men helped Jack out on the farm by feeding the animals and milking the cows.

One old woman named Mathesson was very aggressive and objected to everything that Mina and Jack wanted her to do. She didn=t want to stay in her room or sleep in her bed at night. She refused to take a bath despite all Mina=s pleading and coaxing. Finally Mina picked her up and put her in the tub. Mathesson shrieked, cursed, and scratched while Mina was bathing her. After Mathesson=s bath, Mina took her into the kitchen and gave her a cup of coffee. Suddenly Mathesson=s mood changed, and she turned into a sweet little old lady. Caring for these individuals took a lot of Mina=s time which left Jesse and Paul to rely on their own imaginations.

Jack was anxious to get back to his painting and had planned to convert a large storage room into a studio. On the shelf in this room were dozens of bottles of medicines and disinfectants. The room was kept locked and Jesse and Paul called it the poison room, a name that stuck from that time on. After he cleared it out, Jack arranged and decorated the studio. It had good light from windows on the west and north walls. A bed in the room could be used for guests or family members when needed.

Before Jack could use his new studio, he had to satisfy other commitments to the infirmary. They needed meat so he had a butcher dress out two porkers. Jack cut up the meat and cured the bacon, hams and shoulders while Mina rendered lard from the fat. Rendering pork fat was a tiring process. Jack made sure the basement coal room contained enough coal to last the winter. He cut ice from the local ponds to supply the large icebox in the men=s dining room. While doing these chores, Jack studied the mountains and cedar hills with an artist=s eye. He watched the color, the deep shadows, the rugged

52 rock formations, and vividly colored sunsets. Finally, with the heavy chores completed, he could go into his studio and put the accumulated visual stimulations on canvas.

As Christmas drew closer Jack and Mina realized that they needed to do something to please both the children and the inmates. Ethel was still young enough to believe in Santa Claus, and the two older children enjoyed all the festivities of Christmas.

The ladies= dining room was the best room to decorate. Saturday afternoon Jack sent Kris North, a deaf man, from the infirmary with Jesse and Paul to the cedar hills to cut two trees, a small one for the family and a larger one for everyone to enjoy. Kris accompanied by the children drove a horse and wagon to the hills, and they returned with two pinyon pines. The family and the able inmates trimmed the trees and decorated the dinning room. Mina placed a small gift for each resident underneath the large tree.

For many days= Mina had baked fruitcakes and cookies. She had also made a large suet pudding, and on Christmas Eve the inmates and the family celebrated the festivities. Everyone, even the bedridden joined in the fun. Some girls from the local Latter-day Saints Church put on a program of singing, skits, and reading. This was a treat for the residents who seldom had the chance to see such entertainment. After the program, Mina handed out the little gifts. Each person received something practical, and the gratitude shown by the inmates made Mina and Jack feel that all the effort was well worthwhile.

As Christmas morning arrived, Mina had arisen and was making pans of baking powder biscuits when the children awakened. The family quickly gathered to their small Christmas tree where to their delight they discovered toys and presents. For Paul underneath the tree was a large, coaster sled, three times the size of a regular sled, and the three children could sit on it without crowding. Naturally the children were anxious to try out Paul=s new sled, for the road, they would be sleighing on, was steep enough to allow them to coast nearly all the way to Fairview. However, Jack insisted they wait until

53 after Mina served the Christmas dinner at about one in the afternoon. After dinner, Jesse and Paul went to try the sled, Jack puttered around in his studio, and Mina took a well-deserved rest.

When the family got together in the evening, Paul told them how much fun he and Jesse had on the sled. Despite some disagreement about who was hanging on and who caused whom to fall off into the snow, but the children agreed the sled was a great gift. They went to bed anticipating more riding upon their great gift the next day.

In January of 1922, the children resumed school, and Jack returned to his painting. He was working on a landscape of the local mountains, and he was trying to capture the hazy, misty background that characterized the scene. He spent all the time he could in the studio, but occasionally he would leave the room to tell stories and jokes to the inmates. The inmates always called Jack, Mr. Stansfield; they had love and a great respect for him.

Jack hired Mina=s sister, Rinda, to help at the infirmary. One day the two sisters had changed all the bedding and were down in the kitchen preparing dinner. Mina glanced out the window, and she glimpsed a large bundle falling to the ground. She and Rinda went outside and found the bundle to be newly changed bedding. They ran upstairs to Mathesson=s room to find her calmly rocking in her chair, bed stripped. Mina found a hammer and some nails and nailed Mathesson=s window closed. Later in the evening the family discussed Mathesson=s contrary ways, and none could understand why a lady with such a sweet face wanted to be such a bother. Mathesson was unique enough that Jack wanted to paint her, but he also believed, she would never give her permission.

During the time the Stansfield family was at the infirmary, the area was experiencing a drought and water had to be carefully conserved. Jack walked the irrigation ditches to make sure they were free of weeds so that the limited water would run freely. Jack and Mina had a productive garden that supplied vegetables for the infirmary. Despite the drought, the infirmary garden was much more productive than those on the adjoining land.

54 The family acquired a little dog, named Teddie. He would run into the hills from time to time and return with his muzzle full of porcupine quills. Jack had to pull them out, a howling, painful procedure for the dog, but curiously, he would still go back into the hills for more. Teddie would accompany Fred, an inmate, when he took the cows to graze in the upper meadows. The little dog was a good herder and kept the animals from straying too far. He also kept the bull in bounds, for the bull liked to wander. Teddie would bite the bull=s tail and lock his jaws which would cause the little dog to swing from side to side as the bull ran. The mystery is how Teddie avoided the bulls sharp hooves. The bull and Teddie had a mutual respect for each other.

One afternoon Teddie came to Jack who was waiting impatiently for Fred to bring in the cows. Jack was surprised to see the dog alone, for Fred usually came in with the herd, so Jack looked in the fields to see why Fred was so late, and he saw a major problem. Fred had been cornered by the old bull and was desperately hanging onto its horns to keep from being gored. Jack pointed to the bull and told Teddie, AGo get him.@ Teddie raced to the bull and started nipping at its heels. The bull turned to defend himself, and Fred was able to escape. The dog then brought both bull and cows to the barn. The next day Jack contacted Oliver Clements, the co-owner of the bull, and suggested they butcher the animal for dog-food. Oliver objected, but Jack told him, AI=m going to butcher my half of the bull what will you do with yours?@ Oliver replied that he suspected he might have to butcher his half too.

One day Mina noticed that some jars of peaches in the pantry had loose lids and consequently the fruit had spoiled. She asked Kris North to bury the spoiled fruit. In the late afternoon when Jack went out to the orchard, he noticed that all his pigs were behaving strangely. He went back to the house and told Mina that the pigs had caught some disease. They called Oliver and asked if he knew of a good vet. Oliver wanted to know why, and Jack explained the strange way the pigs were acting. Oliver said he would be right over. Meanwhile an audience had gathered to see the pigs staggering all over the place, falling down, squealing, and grunting. Oliver looked at the pigs and then asked Jack what he had been feeding them. Of course Jack told him regular pig feed, AThey=re not sick, they=re tipsy,@ Oliver replied to Jack. Jack and Mina pondered for sometime before they realized the porkers had eaten the discarded fermented fruit. Kris never admitted he had given the fruit to the pigs, but he did suggest some might have spilled out of the bucket as he carried it.

55 Jesse got to know some young people from Fairview and attended the LDS Sunday school during the weekends. She was determined to live with her family at the infirmary and attend her sophomore year at Fairview Junior High. She was thrilled when her father finally relented.

Ethel was six years old and was attending school for the first time. Jack and Mina worried about the long walk she had to and from school especially when the winter snows came. Jack attempted to get a driver and wagon for Ethel and the other school children. He met with the school board several times, and they finally hired Jim Graham to transport the children by wagon. The wagon was much slower than the bus, but Jack believed it was safer and at least the children would be out of the weather. The wagon was equipped with long seats on either side of the wagon-bed for the children to sit on. In winter sled runners replaced the wagon wheels.

During the winter Jack was trying to paint a picture of group of calves, but he wasn=t satisfied with the results. He asked a couple of men from the infirmary to help him get two calves into the studio. Mina caught a glimpse of them as they were pulling a calf across the lawn. It horrified her when she saw the men carry the calf up the porch steps and into the long hallway. She burst into the studio determined to end Jack=s mad scheme. However, when she saw the stubborn look on his face, she knew it was useless to object. Jack quickly sketched the calves and had the animals removed. When she saw the finished painting, Mina stopped scolding about the calf from that point on.

Jesse and Paul spent many hours sledding with the AFlexible Flyer.@ Paul had received the AFlexible Flyer@ for Christmas the year before. The neighborhood friends joined the fun with their sleds and toboggans. The sleds smoothed out the snow and made the road very slick. However, not many people traveled this road in the winter months except for the families that had their homes at the base of the canyon. These families kept a constant watch for coasting sleds, for they were out mostly at night. After sledding for a few hours, the young people would gather at someone=s home for refreshments. It wasn=t long before Jesse and Paul asked if they could bring their friends over to the infirmary. Mina said if they left the dining room in tip-top condition, she had no objection. Sometimes they had a taffy pull with the young people divided into groups with each group making a different flavor. The teenagers

56 found taffy-pulling lots of fun. Jack and Mina felt contented with their children at home enjoying themselves and not Achasing all-round the countryside,@ as Jack put it.

In December of 1922, Jack ordered a large Edison, Chippendale phonograph from a company in Mt. Pleasant. He meant his order to be a surprise, so he told no one about it. When the phonograph arrived, the deliverymen brought the phonograph through the double doors, for it was too large to fit through the kitchen entrance. Jack had also bought several records including some for dancing. The family was pleasantly surprised, and Jesse soon held a dance for her friends. Some of the invited boys pushed the phonograph to the dining room, but it was too large to go through the doorway. So, they left it in the hallway, and with the dining room door open, they danced until they were tired and hungry. A wonderful time was had by all.

All the family enjoyed the phonograph; Jack especially liked a record called Valencia and played it repeatedly. The rest of the family soon became tired of the record. One day Mina sat on a newspaper that had been laid on the couch and heard an ominous cracking sound. She checked underneath the newspaper she had sat upon and sure enough there was Jack=s favorite record broken in pieces. Jack accused Mina of deliberately breaking the record, an accusation she strenuously denied. Nevertheless, Jesse and Paul felt relief that Valencia was no longer to be heard.

Some months after buying the phonograph, Jack came home with a radio. This incredible instrument, which seemed to pull sounds from nowhere, amazed everyone. To hear the sounds that were broadcast by this instrument, the person listening had to use headphones. At the time nobody knew how it worked, but the instrument delighted everyone

Through the years Jack entered paintings in the County Fair that attracted special attention, for interest in art was growing in Utah. James Taylor Harwood was head of the art department at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Jack took a painting for Mr. Harwood=s review; he was impressed by Jack=s talent, and he sent him an advisory, laudatory letter in January 1923. Jack later sat in on a couple of Harwood=s classes but did not enroll. Soon after, this article appeared in the paper:

57 Stansfield=s Paintings on Exhibition at U.

The oil paintings of John H. Stansfield of Fairview are creating much interest at the University of Utah where they are being exhibited in the art gallery under the auspices of the University art department.

Mr. Stansfield has had neither instructor nor any art instruction, and consequently his work is entirely original. There are twelve paintings on exhibit, the majority of which are landscape views.

Jack took Harwood=s advice, when he suggested, that Jack ask Alice Merrill Horne to exhibit and sell his paintings. After viewing his work, she accepted the proposal and over the following years sold many of his works.

Alice Merrill Horne was a determined, gifted woman who was dedicated to fostering Utah art. She worked with J. T. Harwood and Henry L. A. Culmer in organizing the Utah Art Institute, and which was sponsored by the legislature in 1899. In 1921 she had set up art galleries in such places as the Newhouse Hotel, Hotel Utah, and ZCMI, and by 1931 she was selling the works of many Utah artists. Also, due to her efforts many schools had art galleries and owned art collections. The Salt Lake City schools were the first to collect art works. Many other schools followed their lead.

One Saturday Jesse asked her mother about Ezra Day, the inmate who had calmed her fears about the infirmary when she first arrived. AOh he isn=t here because he is poor,@ Mina explained to Jesse, AHe is a well-educated bachelor who likes to live here because he has someone to cook and clean for him.@ Ezra enjoyed reading and spent most of his time doing so. He asked Jack to remove the partition between his room and the vacant room next to his for expanded space for his library. Mina told Jack that she thought he should have his library, for his books cluttered the small room. He paid for the remodeling, and he also paid his own room and board.

58 In May of 1923, a young man, named Arthur Linden Christensen, drove a team of horses pulling a sheep wagon across Fairview=s main irrigation creek to reach the farm his father owned near the infirmary. Jack walked over to the farm to talk with the young man and learned that he was living in his wagon, and he was cleaning out an old two-roomed farmhouse. Linden told Jack that he was moving back to Utah from Idaho, and his parents, Niels Peter and Johannah Elenora and their three younger children, would soon follow.

Jack was curiously amused by the whimsical imaginations of his older children. Jesse and Paul had watched Linden driving through the creek, and decided he must be a gypsy, for he was living in a covered wagon. Every spare moment, the children spied on the handsome gypsy while imagining fantasy tales of his wandering and exploits. They were having such fun that Jack couldn’t find the heart to tell them, he was just a young farmer. In time Jesse and Paul found out the truth, and they were somewhat disappointed because their romantic gypsy was only an ordinary young man.

Sometime later, Linden rode up to the infirmary on his white horse and met Jesse. He told her that he was going to irrigate his land up in the cedar hills. He invited Jesse to go with him, but it surprised him when she replied, “I have to get permission.” Mina and Jack felt it would not be right for Jesse to go with Linden. This disappointed Jesse, but Linden told her he would come and visit her again.

The infirmary yard was overgrown and neglected. So, Jack attended to it. He designed and built a decorative lattice fence to enclose the yard. He also built trellises and fastened them to the walls of the big building, and meanwhile, Mina was planting rose bushes to climb on the trellises. Jack dug gardens on each side of the long driveway leading to the house so they could plant spring flowers. The end result was delightful and brought many favorable comments from inmates and neighbors.

In the summer Jack=s father, John, came to live with the family. Until this time he had been staying with either Fred or Irvin. Jack felt it was time John came to live with them. His father seemed to settle down at the infirmary by making his presence felt with his constant story telling. Jack sensed that his children were fascinated by their grandfather=s stories. He also thought his father was happy living there,

59 until one day John announced he wanted to leave and go back to live with Fred. Apparently John=s pride was hurt when someone had mistaken him for an inmate. Jack realized there was no chance of changing his father=s mind, so he drove him to Fred=s home in Mt. Pleasant.

Jesse in the meantime was growing up. She was no longer satisfied with attending the local dances. Now, she wanted to go dancing in the neighboring towns, especially Fountain Green. Jack was adamant! Jesse would not attend dances outside of Fairview. However, Jesse from time to time went anyway.

September came around again. Jesse, Paul, and Ethel returned to school. Jesse had to leave an hour earlier to catch the bus to Mt. Pleasant where she attended junior high. She took a sewing class to finish her credits in home economics, and she was required to make herself a dress. All went well with her project until it came time to do the collar. Jesse wasn=t sure which color would contrast nicely with the dress. So, she asked her father, and he suggested a neutral color. She felt his suggestion was right, but her teacher had other directions. She told Jesse that her father might be a good artist, but he had no idea about ladies= dresses. Jesse didn=t believe that the teacher knew more than her papa, so she went ahead and sewed the collar as her father had suggested. Sadly, her decision counter to the teachers= s direction resulted in a low mark.

Autumn passed quickly with Jack devoting more time to his paintings. He painted for three hours every day between his routine chores, and although he painted some animals, most of his works were landscapes. He had a realistic, bold style and a talent for producing beautiful color effects.

One morning while Jack was painting, there was an accident in the men=s dining room. The cream separator was located in the adjacent pantry, an alcove in the large room. A retarded teenage boy, Peter, was running the hand-operated separator. Kris North was supervising. The cream separator running at full speed began making a strange noise terminating with a loud crash. Mina and Jack ran into the room to find a scene of utter chaos. There was a gaping hole in the window, and when Jack and Mina looked out the hole, they saw the spinning bowl that held all the separator discs buried in the

60 snow. Milk and cream had spattered the table, set for breakfast, and broken glass was all over the floor. Jack and Mina were thankful the flying bowl hadn=t hit anyone. As Mina cleaned up the mess, Jack escaped to his studio again. A new separator was ordered, and for the next few days until a new separator came, Jack gave all the surplus milk to the pigs.

Chapter Seven

Realizing Success, 1924-1928

Jack spent hours preparing his paintings for an exhibition. He sent the paintings to Salt Lake City on the first of the month to exhibit at Bryant Junior High School and West High School. During this time several sold, the remaining fifteen paintings were displayed in the art room of the Chamber of Commerce in Salt Lake City. Many articles appeared the newspapers. Two of the articles had interesting headlines. The Deseret News headed their article with ADesert Is Teacher of Utah Artist.@ Another article entitled ADone with a Master Hand@ complimented his horse painting.

After that showing, the remaining paintings were taken to the University of Utah and more articles appeared. The exhibit was later shown in Springville and the Deseret News again published an article about Jack on April 19, 1924:

John H. Stansfield=s Work Winning Praise; Sketch of Utah Artist

The interest that is being taken in and the appreciation expressed of the collection of John H. Stansfield=s fifteen oil paintings recently on display in the art room of the Chamber of Commerce by the Utah Art Institute as its seventeenth exhibition, later shown at the state university, and now on display at Springville, call forth a fuller statement of the career of this hitherto unknown Utah artist, and of the success that is crowning his efforts after years of incessant toil and application to his art.

Stansfield was born in Mt. Pleasant, Sanpete County, Utah in 1878. He has been interested in drawing and painting from his early boyhood days. During the few years that he was privileged to attend school, he spent so

61 much of his time in drawing pictures that his studies suffered in consequence. On one occasion the teacher called upon young Stansfield=s parents and told them that, no matter how great might be the necessary sacrifice on their part, that they should do everything in their power to give the boy the chance to study art, as he was possessed of rare talent for drawing. It was not, however, until after he had gone to Chicago and visited some of the large art galleries of the East that he returned to his native state, determined to be an artist.

Work Is Recognized

Much of the comment that is expressed relative to the Stansfield oils deals with the artist=s unusual ability to represent nature upon the canvas. Mrs. Alice Merrill Horne of Salt Lake City says that his pictures show a love for the hills and an understanding of the country that is unusual. After seeing one of the Stansfield pictures, AThe Hills,@ Professor J. T. Harwood, instructor of art at the University of Utah, wrote to the Sanpete County artist, AYou actually deceived me on sunlight. I looked up at the window expecting to see a ray of light coming in. I can pay you no greater compliment.@

This love of nature, which is so evident in the Stansfield paintings, is but the natural result of the artist=s manner of life for many years. From the time that he was a boy of twelve years of age until he was almost thirty years old, he lived on the frontier with the sheep. In the mountains, on the desert, among the rocks, he would idle away the long hours drawing pictures of the sheep or of the country of which he was almost a part. Never has he made a picture, and he has painted about three hundred and fifty altogether, with the thought while he was working upon it that he would be able to sell it for a goodly sum. AI paint because I love to paint@ is the statement of the artist, AI have never yet been able to lay aside my easel nor to stay my brush. There is an inner compulsion which will not let me so do.@

Not First Display

The collection now being shown is not the first of the Stansfield painting to be displayed, nor the first to call forth favorable comment. In 1918 this Utah artist was one of the ten artists eligible to exhibit his paintings in the Kanst Art Gallery of Los Angeles, along with the paintings of Windit, Wattell, and other well-known artists. After talking with Stansfield for some time and ascertaining his methods and guiding principles of work, Moran, the great desert artist, assured him that he was absolutely on the right track and predicted for him a brilliant future.

The story of Stansfield=s success as an artist who is just coming into his own is the story of one who loves, and who has ever loved, his art with the passion of a genius. He has had his discouragements. He has had to forsake his art in the past in the stern necessity of making a livelihood. Yet never for an instant has he relinquished his ambition of becoming a western artist of first rank. The praises which are being given his work on every hand attest his success as a desert artist.

Previously, in February 1924, Jack exhibited several paintings at the Logan, Utah Woodruff School. He received a newspaper clipping with an illustration of Horses: At Watering Trough. A letter from

62 Joseph Hansen, principal of the school, said Jack=s horse picture had created quite a sensation with one thousand two-hundred people in one week visiting the exhibit. The newspaper clipping read:

... Stansfield, the cowboy painter, has there a picture of western horses at a watering trough that would do credit to Rosa Ronbeur who painted the celebrated horse fair picture. ...

This was the beginning of Jack=s recognition outside Sanpete County. He was still working within his own community. He spent many hours painting a large mural in his hometown Armory Hall in commemoration of the Sixteenth Annual Celebration of the Mt. Pleasant Pioneer Historical Association. This work was called The Coming of the Pioneers.

Jack was impelled to continue his artwork, but the rest of the family was glad to see the snow leave the valley even if it meant the loss of precious painting time for Jack. Before finishing his painting time for the summer, he took his paintings to Salt Lake City to exhibit at the Literary Club. He also exhibited at the State Capitol for the Utah Art Institute=s Twenty-second annual showing.

In March of 1924, Jesse and Ethel had their tonsils removed because of repeated sore throats each winter. Their surgery was scheduled for early morning, and the two doctors were to come to the infirmary to perform the operations. They were going to use the kitchen as an operating theater, and Jack was very nervous about the whole thing. The day before the surgery, he told Mina he thought he would go to Salt Lake City to buy more paints. He said he didn=t like leaving her alone, but he didn=t think he=d be much help anyway. In her thoughts, Mina was encouraged to have Jack leave, for she felt that he would be more of a hinderance than a help to the event. However, besides the scheduled surgery, she still had to organize the inmates and keep the infirmary running smoothly.

63 Jack left for Salt Lake City telling Mina that he would return in three days. That evening, after arrival in the city, Jack soon became aware that he was just as nervous in the city as he had been at home. He hardly slept the night in the city before the operations. The next morning he bought the paints and gifts for the children, and then he boarded the old “Sanpete Swift” train for home. When he arrived at the infirmary door, the operations were over and the girls were in bed and doing as well as one can expect after tonsil surgery.

In April Jack sent paintings to the high school at Springville, Utah, for the third April Salon. Wayne Johnson, the art instructor and the first director of the salon, was impressed with one of Jack=s paintings in the exhibit. Jack=s instruction was to send this painting, Shadow Trail, to Alice Merrill Horne in Salt Lake City after the closing of the salon. Wayne wanted to purchase the painting, and was so insistent that Jack agreed, so the painting stayed in Springville. Jack had two other paintings, The Coming Storm and Winter Sunlight, selected to hang in the exhibit. This success pleased Jack. The April Salon was a highly competitive show with artwork being submitted from all over the country, and each submission had to pass a rigorous selection process.

Paul was given his first horse, a little buckskin filly with four white feet, which he named Socks. He spent many hours riding her. Jesse tried all sorts of stratagems to persuade Paul to let her ride Socks. When Paul went to visit his cousins in Mt. Pleasant for a few days, Jesse had Socks to herself. Mina found it difficult to get her to leave the filly long enough to do her chores. Sometimes Jesse would ride with Linden, the young man, who was farming his father=s land by the infirmary. Ethel liked to ride too, but Jack was very protective and wouldn=t allow her to ride Socks. Ethel would often go to the neighbor’s place and ride their horse Nellie. Jesse knew but never told her father, for Ethel would have been forbidden to ride again.

Jesse was starting her senior year and was riding the bus to school in Mt.Pleasant. Paul was a sophomore attending Fairview Junior High school and Ethel was now a third grader at Fairview where she was doing well. Jesse had to leave very early in the morning to catch her school bus, and she felt all her time was spent riding the bus. In good weather, she would ride her bicycle to Fairview to the

64 home of a friend where she would leave it. She would then walk with her friend to the bus stop. Weather sometimes had an adverse effect on the road between Fairview and Mt. Pleasant. The road would become so slippery that it was either dangerous to negotiate or impossible to transit. The city leaders addressed the problem, and they decided to gravel the road. However, the project didn=t get started until the middle of September which meant a road Atorn up@ well into winter. Asphalt roads were still years away and gravel was the only suitable material to use at this time. To complete the work, the construction crews rerouted traffic around the Round Knolls, another hazardous route.

One Friday Jack drove to the bus stop in Fairview to pick up Jesse. The bus did not arrive on time. He waited, an hour passed, and still no bus. The bus had slipped off the road, skidded, and rolled over down an incline. The students and driver found themselves in a tangled mess when the bus had stopped its roll. The driver crawled out the side door, and he went to the back of the bus, and he pried the rear door open allowing the students to exit. Most of the students only suffered bruising and shock. However, one young girl had a broken arm. Jack heard about the accident and immediately raced to the scene. He came across a horse drawn cart with Venna Christensen (Linden=s sister) and two boys on board. He asked them if they had seen Jesse. Venna told him that Jesse was further back walking, and that she was not injured. With relief only a parent can feel, Jack drove on. He soon found Jesse with another group of students. He told them all to pile into the big Nash, and they headed back to Fairview. As they passed the horse and cart that Venna was in, the girls hooted out the window. When Jack asked why they had hooted, they told him Venna was a traitor. When Jack ask the group why, he was told that they had made a pact no one would accept a ride unless they could all ride. This bemused Jack; these young people, just involved in a serious accident, showed more concern about a pact than about nearly being killed. The students rode to school by private transport for the next few weeks.

The winter of 1924 approached. The grain was harvested, and the pantry was stocked. So, Jack began a portrait of Mathesson. He explained to her what he intended to do for the painting of her portrait. It was a pleasant surprise when she agreed with his plan. She sat quietly while he blocked out the portrait, and through the weeks it took for the painting to be completed, her conduct fitted her sweet face. She posed willingly, and it seemed almost with pleasure. Even her baths and shampoos seemed to be more tolerable, which was quite a contrast to the Mathesson with whom all were familiar.

65 A civic group, interested in art, called a meeting at Mt. Pleasant=s high school to discuss and to plan for a traveling art exhibit for larger Sanpete County town=s of Fairview, Mt. Pleasant, Ephraim and Manti. Jack was elected president of the Sanpete County Art Association soon after the meeting. For the traveling exhibit, he contacted Elbert Hindley Eastmond, the head of the Art Department at Brigham Young University, and ask him to give a lecture at the opening ceremony for Sanpete=s first exhibit. Jack exhibited several paintings along with many other leading Utah artists. Names such as Young, Richards, Stewart, Wright, Midgley, and Fairbanks would become Jack=s acquaintances over the years, as well as others.

The Mt. Pleasant Pyramid of February 27, 1925 reported:

Professor Eastman of the B. Y. U. of Provo will be here and lecture on art Saturday afternoon and special music will be given by the Fairview Male Quartet.

On Sunday the exhibit will be open from 2 O=clock until 9 o=clock p. m.

Mondays will be ladies day, and all the women of the town are invited to attend the exhibit that day. Ludeen Christensen of Gunnison, who has two pictures at the exhibit, will speak to the visitors Monday afternoon. Miss Hullinger, Miss McNeal and Miss Bruce of Wasatch Academy, will give the musical program.

The paintings of John H. Stansfield, the pride of our home town, are attracting much interest and appreciative comment by the people of Mt. Pleasant, when they have an opportunity to compare his wonderful work with the paintings of those who have spent several years in Paris studying under the master painters. Mr. Stansfield has been under the tutelage of the great teacher, Nature. In his youth he loved to be out in the open where nature was his only guide. He loved nature, and as a boy tried to reproduce on paper and canvas that which he saw. Today he can paint the beautiful mountains, canyons, trees, rocks and streams as you see them. Nature taught him to produce that which is real. His pictures are most inviting and command an interest that is very seldom found in this line. They appeal to you from any angle, and one does not need to get the proper range in order to enjoy and appreciate his work.

Some have made the remark that Mr. Stansfield should go to the big cities where he could advance, but they lose sight of the fact that you cannot develop in a cloud of smoke and all the drawbacks of the big city. If he did that, his pictures might become smoky. At present his pictures are bubbling over with brightness and cheerfulness, which is naturally a part of Mr. Stansfield.Jack always enjoyed his winter of painting. Having several sketches he had drafted throughout the summer, he spent the winter months turning them into paintings. By this time the newspapers were referring to him as AThe Shepherd Artist.@ His only complaint was, in making his own decorative frames; his time painting was seriously diminished. Jack=s painting, Morning Sun, took first prize at the exhibit and the school bought it. Jack presented the school with another painting, Birch Creek also

66 known as Sunrise. He displayed several others: Child: Andrew Paul, and the portrait, Mathesson: Old Lady at the County Infirmary. (Snow College has this painting, although when they tried to find it in 1985 for a Stansfield exhibition at the Springville Museum, it could not be found.) The portrait caught the eye of a Fairview citizen, and she wrote a poem about it.

The Picture on the Wall For hours I have gazed upon it, Came noon of life, and children, This picture on the wall. Beside this woman=s knee The picture of a mother Learned of life=s truths. Oh matchless In quaint old-fashioned shawl. Her face deep-lined and furrowed, The mother-love I see, Grave eyes of faded blue, Great sacrificing, yearning, But in those windows of the soul, With every breath a prayer. Her life is mirrored true. The Valley of the Shadow, left The look recorded there.

I saw her as a baby, And now her cares and sorrows So dimpled sweet and fair. Are written on her face, Instead of silver on her brow They, like the waters on the rock, Lay curls of golden hair. Leave marks that don=t erase, Again in care-free maidenhood, While all the joys and virtues Mid meadow daisies gay, Make imprint on her soul, She chased the gold-winged butterfly, And these she=ll carry onward Or dreamed the hours away. To that eternal goal. The hand, blue-veined and hardened, For hours I=ve gazed upon it, That holds the worn old shawl, This picture on the wall. Had once been called by lover true, She seems to be in waiting So soft, so warm, so small. For angels summoning call. The old blackcap, in Springtime Small need has she of riches: Had been a bridal flower, A kindly friend, no more, Placed >mong her curls proclaiming To bid farewell in parting, The wondrous wedding hour. And softly close the door.

By Jesse Sundwall

In the spring of 1925, Jesse successfully completed her final examinations for graduation. The students voted to wear dresses and suits rather than caps and gowns. Jack and Mina discussed what they thought Jesse should wear. They didn=t give a second thought about asking her what she wanted

67 to wear, and she didn=t think it unusual her father would choose her dress. Jack went to Salt Lake and brought a dress back home. He and Mina thought the dress to be a little low in the neckline; so, they had a local seamstress cut some length from the bottom of the dress to make into ruffles for around the neckline. The finished dress looked as though it had never been remodeled.

Soon after Jesse=s graduation, the County Commissioners sent a crippled, thirty-year-old man to the infirmary. Jack and Mina were worried about this man=s assignment to the infirmary because he had a history of being arrested for molesting young girls. They protested to the commissioners but were told there was nowhere else for him to go. The worried parents kept a constant vigil over Ethel and would not let her go anywhere alone. The crippled man was a troublemaker, for he not only had a reputation of molesting young girls, but now he was trying to sneak into the women=s quarters. Mina had caught him in Tremenie=s room without permission, purpose, or credible reason. After a few months, much to Jack and Mina=s great relief, the commissioners removed him from the infirmary,

Mathesson had relapsed to her old ways and was again a constant concern for Jack and Mina. She would wander throughout the infirmary at all hours. When Mina locked her in her room at night, she screamed so loudly that no one got any peace. One day she wandered into Jack and Mina=s apartment and took their bedspread which she blatantly put on her own bed. Another day in August, Mathesson didn=t appear for lunch. After searching the big house, Mina called the neighbors to inquire if they had seen her. One neighbor had seen an elderly lady wandering by, and she was carrying a little red bucket. Jack organized some of the neighbors along with men from the infirmary to include Jesse and Paul. The group spread out and walked through the fields up into the cedar hills without finding tracks or signs of Mathesson, so they returned home. The next morning Jack saddled Socks and went searching for Mathesson along with other men. At last, Jack saw a showing of blue that didn=t fit in with the greens and browns of the surrounding countryside. He hurried toward the discordant bit of blue, and there to his great relief was Mathesson deep in sleep on the ground. Jack gently awakened her and he told her that everyone had missed her. He told her that she could ride the horse if she would come along home. She allowed Jack to lift her into the saddle, and with Paul leading the horse, the group slowly walked home. Mathesson seemed perfectly happy to be riding the horse and to be receiving so much attention. The group arrived to a relieved infirmary population. Later, Mina inspected the red

68 bucket that had been set aside at the happy return of the wanderer. The bucket contained possibly Mathesson=s most valued possession, a comb. The sight of the comb resonated and vibrated Mina=s compassion and concern and saddened her as she thought of the little old lady=s odyssey.

A short time after this event, Jack was glancing outside where he observed a number of inmates together. He soon sensed something was wrong. Jack hurried outside where he saw Florence and Tremenie. Florence, a very obese epileptic, was lying on the grass recovering from a seizure she had suffered. Tremenie urged, AFlorence get up. It=s time you should get up now.@ Florence was trying to get to her feet, but she could not stand up. Jack sized up the situation and quickly yelled, AFlorence, you stay where you are and don=t move! I=ll get the doctor.” Jesse and Paul, after responding to the commotion sat beside Florence to make sure she didn=t move. Dr. Rigby responded to the scene quickly and began his examination. He found that she had broken her leg. After some stout men carried her into the infirmary, Dr. Rigby set the break and immobilized the leg. Florence was young and strong, so her bones healed rapidly, and soon she was on crutches.

Jack arranged for Paul to attend Wasatch Academy to finish high school. In September 1925, he drove Paul to Mt. Pleasant and registered him to live in the dormitory during the school year. Ethel was their only child left riding the school wagon to Fairview.

Jack and Mina worried about Jesse, for she seemed more interested in writing to Linden than preparing for college. The two of them had written to each other throughout the summer while Linden was working at the Bingham Copper Mine as a carpenter, and they had been dating steadily for almost a year. Jack was concerned that Linden=s parents didn=t seem to worry about him attending school.

The young women in Fairview were talking about going to Clearfield for six weeks to peel tomatoes at the canning factory there. Linden=s sister, Ione, and her friend, Carrie Rasmussen, signed up to go. Jesse persuaded her parents to let her sign up too. She wanted to be closer to Linden who was still in Bingham Canyon. A chaperone, Mrs.Bjelke from Mt. Pleasant, escorted the three girls to Clearfield where she lived apart. The three girls lived together in a two-room row house. The girls found the work

69 at the cannery hard and tiring. Preparing their own meals and keeping their tiny house clean was no picnic either. The girls= families sent food and goodies regularly. During the last week of September, Jesse called the infirmary from Linden=s parents house in Fairview. She plaintively asked her mother, ACould Papa come down and pick me up, I=m hurt and can=t walk home.@ Mina asked what had happened. Jesse replied, AI will tell you about it when I get home.@ Mina gave Jack the message, and he immediately set out to get her. Jack picked her up, and on the way home, Jesse related that a car had hit her while on the way home from shopping in Ogden. The people who picked her up took her to the hospital in Ogden where it was determined she had torn ligaments in her rib cage along with bruising and scratching. She had remained in the hospital for three days before being released. The company was unable to find work she could do with her injuries, so they put her on the train and sent her home.

After hearing Jesse=s story, Jack was furious, for the cannery manager hadn=t called to tell him that his daughter was in the hospital. He was ready to drive to the cannery and give the manager a piece of his mind. Jesse was horrified that her father might cause a scene; she begged him to stay home. She told him that the company had paid her bills, and that it wasn=t their fault she=d been run over. To her relief, Jack calmed down over the weekend and decided against going to Clearfield.

In the early autumn of 1925, the Snow College Alumni Association of Ephraim was soliciting paintings for the beginnings of an art collection. Jack prepared a painting for delivery. At the same time, Jack hired temporary help to stand in for Mina at the infirmary, so that she and Jesse could go to the Utah State Fair in Salt Lake City. After Jack delivered the painting, he took Mina and Jesse to the train station. In Salt Lake, Jesse was surprised at how well her mother got around the city. The two of them visited many sights and places of special interest. They stayed at the Newhouse Hotel, and Mina, being the practical person she was, thought that was just fine. They stayed a week and enjoyed the city local.

Throughout the years, the family would go to Salt Lake many times. Jack loved being in beautiful surroundings; so, the luxurious Hotel Utah with its restaurant on the top floor was the place of his choice.

70 The winter brought its usual share of snow, wind, and cold. With its central heating, the infirmary was warm and comfortable. Each day Jack would finish his chores as quickly as possible and return to his studio. Linden was home from Bingham Canyon and spent most of his spare time with Jesse. The young couple had been talking seriously about marriage, but Jesse told Linden that he should ask her father for permission to marry her. Linden with trepidation visited the infirmary, and with Jesse=s encouragement he went to see Jack. Linden relaxed when Jack consented, and told him that he and Mina would be happy to have him marry Jesse. However, he suggested they wait a month or two so proper arrangements could be made. Jesse and Linden thought that would be a good idea. Jesse wanted to belong to the same church as Linden and on March 7, 1926, she was baptized a membe of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Jack wanted to paint a picture of Jesse in her graduation dress before the impending marriage. He promised to buy her the best stove available if she would sit for him. Every day for two weeks Jesse posed for Jack. The resulting portrait was excellent. After Jack finished Jesse=s portrait, he did one of himself. He used a mirror to capture the image he wanted and, like Jesse=s portrait, this one was of a more serious Jack

James L. Haseltine quoted in the Salt Lake Tribune, October 17, 1965: One of the finest portraits in Utah is this self-portrait by J. H. Stansfield painted in 1926.

The two-month engagement passed quickly. On March 17, 1926, Jack left with Linden and Jesse for Nephi where the marriage would take place. Mina desperately wanted to go with them, but could not find anyone to take over at the infirmary. She stayed behind to prepare a dinner for Jesse and Linden when they returned.

Jack drove to the courthouse to find someone to perform the marriage ceremony. The clerk suggested they ask a Mormon Bishop, giving Jack the name of one in Nephi. Bishop Thomas Bailey arrived in ten minutes and by twelve o=clock the ceremony was completed. After the ceremony, Jesse and Linden were hungry. They asked Jack to go with them for a hamburger. However, Jack had

71 brought along a painting to be hung at the high school and suggested the newlyweds eat alone while he took care of business. They agreed to meet later at the high school. The pair sat in the park and ate their first lunch together as a married couple.

Jesse and Linden moved into the small two-room cabin on the farm of Linden=s father. Jack had spent days repairing and painting the house getting it ready for them. The bright new stove, Jack=s gift to Jesse, set in its place in the kitchen. There were a new kitchen cabinet and a dining set. There were even groceries stored in the cabinet and storeroom. Jesse soon became pregnant. She spent many hours at the infirmary, for she found it difficult to acclimate to living without running water, a bathroom, or lights. Jack worried that the cabin was not a suitable place for her to give birth, so he insisted she should have the baby at the infirmary. The commissioners objected to the proposal, but said no more when Jack threatened to resign.

Jack and Mina=s first grandchild, Phyllis Lynn Christensen, was born on January 25, 1927. Jack agonized over the birth, but this was customary, for he agonized when any of his children were suffering. He told Linden to never again put his daughter through such an ordeal. Needless to say, the couple did not listen! Little Phyllis delighted Ethel and Mina. It pleased Ethel when Jesse allowed her to wheel the baby around in her doll=s wicker carriage. Sometimes when Jesse visited the infirmary, Jack stopped painting and left the studio to catch a glance of the baby, as most grandfathers would do, even when he desperately wanted to stay at his easel without interruptions. He resented the interruption to his painting that the daily chores made. However, what Jack really needed was time to go out and sketch Utah=s magnificent scenery and to have a larger variety of subjects to paint. Jack placed his pictures in the Manti County fair annually and in Utah=s high schools throughout the year. He was now being asked to lecture on art appreciation at clubs, youth groups and in schools. He used the lecture platform as an opportunity to convince students and parents of the importance of art in expressing social values. The manager of the Grand Central Art Galleries of New York requested that Jack submit his paintings to their committee. The opportunity of showing paintings in this exhibit gave Jack confidence.

72 Jack and Mina prepared for Paul=s graduation from Wasatch Academy. He had excelled in sports, and had received athletic letters along with his best friend, Nate Long. Nate would go on to become a well-known track competitor. The morning after graduation, the two seniors attended a breakfast to honor them at the Presbyterian Church.

About one year after Phyllis= birth, Jack=s father suffered a severe stroke. A few weeks later, on February 19, 1928, John passed away in the home he had built for his wife many years before. John=s death saddened Jack. Saddened him because of his belief that his father had not been completely happy in the twenty-one years since his beloved wife, Ane Sophie, passed away. At the time of his death John was eighty-three, the oldest man in Mt. Pleasant. His resting-place is in the Mt. Pleasant City Cemetery. John=s brother, Heber Charles, had died just one month before, at the age of seventy- three, and is buried in the Picabo Cemetery in Idaho. Heber Charles was survived by son and two daughters.

73 Chapter Eight

Returning Home, 1928-1935

The demand for Jack=s paintings had increased to the point that he felt a need to spend more time at the easel. To make the time, they would have to leave their job at the infirmary. Jack and Mina began preparations to return to their Mt. Pleasant home. Jack decided the house needed complete remodeling. A second story would provide for a good-sized studio, a bedroom for Ethel, a closet, and a combined hallway-library. The home needed several feet added to the south, on the ground floor, for the large bathroom and closet. A stairway was added leading from the kitchen to the cellar so Mina would not have to go out on the back porch and lift a trapdoor to get to her bottled fruit.

After Jack drew the plans, he hired a contractor to begin the remodeling. A mild winter had allowed them to begin work much sooner than anticipated. Jack took special care to ensue there were no corners where the walls and ceilings joined in the dining and living rooms, but rather a lovely cove. Around the coved ceilings he put a four-inch wide decorative Aplaster of Paris@ molding. He made the molding himself by carving a three-foot length of wood into the design he wanted. He used it for a pattern to make the trim. When painted the finished product looked very attractive.

Two large archways on the north end of the living room added interest. One led into the music room and the other to the bedroom and a stairway to the studio. Jack found a beautiful stained glass window to put in the large bathroom. The window had been taken from another building, probably from

74 the Mt. Pleasant Opera House that had burned several years before. The sea-foam green, pedestal, bathroom sink looked beautiful in its place. When the wiring and plastering had been finished, Jack installed new light fixtures throughout the house. Candle-shaped lights were placed on the walls and a matching chandelier hung in the dining room.

Jack was pleased with his studio. It was large with good natural light and spacious enough to display his paintings. When he wanted to speak to Mina, he would talk into a large ventilator in the floor, directly above their “Heatrola” stove in the living room. The “Heatrola” and a combination coal- electric range in the kitchen heated the house. The “Heatrola” also warmed Jack=s studio so he could paint in comfort year round. The tall spreading trees sheltered the house from the summer heat keeping it refreshingly cool.

That summer, Jack and Mina left the infirmary after seven years and moved into their refurbished house at the infirmary. Jesse was with Linden in the small Fairview farmhouse, Paul was enrolled at Westminster College in Salt Lake City and Ethel alone was still living at home. Jack felt he had established a reputation and his paintings demanded enough of a price to allow him to support his family on the income earned as an artist. Mina agreed, saying if they needed any extra money, Jack could always do some interior decorating. Finally, Jack devoted full time to painting.

Information about Jack=s paintings during the year 1928 is difficult to find. Possibly with all the remodeling and moving, he did not have time to paint. This was the only year he didn=t have paintings exhibited in the Springville “April Art Salon” or in the many other places where he had regularly exhibited. However this year, he did exhibits at the Utah State Fair in Salt Lake City and at the Sanpete County Fair at Manti. Jack won first prize for his collection at the County Fair.

Ethel enrolled at the North Sanpete Junior High School where she immediately began to make friends. A particular girlfriend was Dearwyn Sardoni. Dearwyn=s father, Lawrence, was a professor of music at the high school and an accomplished violinist. Dearwyn=s mother, Elizabeth, was a fine pianist who gave piano lessons. Dearwyn was also a violinist in her own right. Ethel and Dearwyn decided

75 that Ethel should have some music tutoring. Ethel was tutored on piano at the school for five months, and she was making excellent progress under the watchful eye of Elizabeth Sardoni. Although, Jack and Mina heard glowing reports of their daughters progress, they had never had the opportunity to hear her play. One day, at Ethel=s pleading, Jack withdrew money from the bank and headed for Salt Lake City to buy a piano. ABut it won=t be one of those flat ones.@ He warned. Yet in due time, a baby grand “Lyric Wurlitzer “piano was delivered to the refurbished home, and at last, Jack and Mina first heard the talent their daughter was developing. Although not a professional, Ethel became an accomplished pianist.

Jack and Mina traveled around looking for suitable places for Jack to sketch. Mina would pack a picnic lunch, and when they reached a particular scene they liked, she would quickly get a fire going and brew the coffee. Usually, while Jack sketched, Mina explored the area, picking wildflowers, or sometimes, she read or wrote letters. Jack didn=t like anyone around when he sketched, but Mina never disturbed him, so he didn=t object to her. Sketches Jack made would turn into paintings back in his studio. One of these sktches became the picture, Utah Domain, exhibited at the Springville High School Annual April Exhibit, captured a special award of honor. The Salt Lake Tribune printed an article about this painting with an accompanying illustration:

Stansfield Repute GrowingAUtah Domain,@ charming mountain landscape by J. H. Stansfield, Mt. Pleasant painter,now in the possession of a Salt Lake art patron.

Developing, almost unaided an innate gift for art expression, J. H. Stansfield has perseveringly continued in his painting, against many obstacles, and is winning an enviable reputation among Utah artists. Mr. Stansfield, formerly of Fairview, has recently built himself a studio at Mt. Pleasant, where he has executed a number of canvasses to which art connoisseurs are giving commendation. His large painting, titled AUtah Domain,@ which was shown at the annual Springville exhibit in April, is now the property of Albert Merrill of Salt Lake City, who has loaned it to the current exhibit at the Newhouse Gallery.

AUtah Domain@ is a fine accomplishment. It shows again the Fairview hills, which Mr. Stansfield is so fond of painting, enveloped in the delicate haze of Indian summer, with a foreground of gray sage mingled with the yellow of rabbit brush, and the ruins of an old brick cottage making an interesting point in the middle distance. Mr. Stansfield=s transcription of light and shadow on the firm undulations of the hills has subtlety and allurement, and there is a lovely tonal quality in the picture. It is done in low key, but there is warmth and life.

76 Two other pictures by this artist have attracted visitors at the Newhouse exhibit--a convincing winter landscape, which again shows his passion for light effects, and with a splendid snow treatment; and one of his earlier paintings, all in subdued tones of grays and browns and greens; yet with no somberness but rather a soothing charm.

First Art Work Done on Canvas Wagon Top

Mr. Stansfield has been called the Ashepherd artist,@ because his love of drawing and urge for expression first manifested itself when, in his boyhood, he herded sheep on the ranges of Sevier County. During the tedious days watching his flocks, he would amuse himself by sketching, using charred sticks from his fire for a brush and the cloth covering of the sheep wagon as his canvas. These rough drawings elicited so much admiration for his artfulness in reproducing nature, that the youth was encouraged to come to Salt Lake to take up art study.

He entered the classes of J. T. Harwood, but, whether the severe criticism of an interested teacher proved disheartening, or circumstances compelled his return, suddenly the young man was missing--he had gone back to his home. Nevertheless, he did not give up his painting, nor was any of the criticism forgotten. It was treasured and applied--as it has been his way since; he welcomes criticism, and sifts its values--and he has steadily forged ahead, developing power in his art.

Receives High Approval of Elder Artist

Seven years ago, when Mr. Stansfield brought some of his pictures up from Marysvale for exhibit and art opinion, older artists were astonished at the understanding shown by the lone worker. A comment made by a leading Salt Lake artist was: AThe greatest asset of a painter is individuality. You have your own way, have built up a personality, and individuality in your work that would be appreciated by any artist.@

This distinctive personality is evident in all of Mr. Stansfield=s painting. His manner is entirely his own; his painting shows him a close and appreciative observer. Long days and night alone with the desert and mountains have taught him much, his sensitiveness to nature=s moods is constantly revealed. He paints largely in his own locale, but frequently spends some time in California, where he does interior decorating, and paints with the coast art colonies. A few years ago he exhibited there with a group of California artists. His work is gradually taking on a spirit of modernism.

Mr. Stansfield is represented in the state fair collection, and in various school collection over the state, the West Junior, Granite High, Westminster College, Murray High, Boxelder High at Brigham and at Logan, Snow College at Ephraim also owns one of his paintings.

On the morning of September 24, 1929, Jesse was mixing bread dough when she realized it was time for her second child to be born. Jack was in his studio painting when he heard Mina=s voice calling him through the vent. When he reached the dining room, Mina told him Jesse=s baby was on the way, and they must rush up to the farmhouse to be with her. One hour after they arrived, the doctor

77 delivered a beautiful baby girl. Jack wanted to name the child Jacqueline and everyone agreed. Jesse chose Joyce as the second name, after a long time friend of hers.

The birth brought back memories to Jack of the infirmary where Jesse=s first child was born. A former inmate told Jack that the place had changed after he and Mina left, it wasn=t so homey anymore. Neither Jack nor Mina regretted the time they had spent at the infirmary, even though, it had been a very confining time. It was especially confining for Mina who had born the brunt of feeding and caring for the inmates. Jack felt the time spent there was beneficial to his children, for it taught them to relate to the more unfortunate and older citizens. It also gave him the time to develop his artistic skills.

Jack received a letter from Jack Sears, a Utah artist, who became well known in New York for his cartoons and magazine illustrations appearing in William Randolph Hearst=s newspaper. Sears had seen Jack=s artwork in the Newhouse Hotel Gallery where Jack exhibited April Snow, a painting in which Jack=s striking aptitude for cloud-shadow effects is demonstrated. Jack was delighted with the very complimentary letter.

In April of 1930, Irvin was redecorating the North Sanpete Bank (N.S.B.). Jack assisted by painting a beautiful design on one wall and adding the monogram N. S. B.

In May, the local paper sang Jack=s praises in the following article appearing with an illustration of Wild horses on the Utah Desert painted in 1922.

Local Artist Widely Known

John H. Stansfield, local artist, is becoming widely known throughout the state and nation for his achievements with the brush on canvas.

During the past several years Mr. Stansfield=s work has been exhibited at most all of the art exhibits given in the intermountain country and at the annual art exhibit held at Springville, Mr. Stansfield=s pictures received splendid positions, where great artists from all over the nation exhibited their masterpieces. His work is

78 appreciated by all classes of people because of their trueness to life and nature. He generally paints in a clear atmosphere and his pictures are full of life and reality.

Mr. Stansfield is a greater artist than he really thinks. When he sees something in nature or in his surroundings that greatly pleases him, he can put it on canvas, so like the real object, that one is almost deceived by his own eyes. It looks real. That is art.

When it comes to painting the sage of the prairies, the pines and aspens of the mountains, horses or landscape scenes, Mr. Stansfield is a marvel. In all the pictures we have seen of any of these subjects, we would class Mr. Stansfield=s work as masterpieces. Lovers of art and lovers of valleys and mountains are seeking Mr. Stansfield=s masterpieces of the beautiful. Mt. Pleasant is proud of her Cyrus E. Dallin, the sculptor, and she is proud of John H. Stansfield, artist.

In July 1930, Jack, Mina and Ethel went on an extended trip to the Southern Utah wonderlands and Grand Canyon areas. Marius and Fidelia Jensen, Dr. Edwin and Louisa Jane Mills, and their families went with them. Mina and the others fished while Jack sketched.

Jack was engrossed in his sketching when suddenly, he was startled by a yelping from behind. He turned to see a man, totally naked except for tennis shoes jumping over the rocks and bushes. Thinking he was about to be assaulted, Jack prepared to defend himself. Suddenly, the man turned around and went leaping and hollering up the hill. The laughing campers took the colorful story back to Mt. Pleasant. Among their comments was, Aif going nude makes one so jovial then perhaps we should all go nude.@ Jack later discovered there was a nudist colony in the vicinity.

Jack held an open house in his studio before shipping his paintings to the Utah State Fair and other exhibitions in locations around the nation. The open house advertised by the Mt. Pleasant Pyramid was such a success that many paintings sold. Jack was relieved not to have to pack so many paintings for shipping.

79 On October 17, 1930, Jack and Mina were with Jesse during the birth of their third child, Barbara Jean. Jack was clearly upset that Jesse was having children each year, but nobody listened to him. Jesse and Linden were happy with their Asleepy@ little baby who captured the heart of everyone.

After painting during the day, Jack spent the evenings reading poetry or detective novels. Often he asked Mina to write letters that he dictated, for Jack was a poor speller. He had been very busy through 1930 preparing for his first one-man show at the Newhouse Gallery. He also exhibited at the University of Utah and North Sanpete High School. During the last part of January 1931, he exhibited in the Consolidated Furniture Store window in Mt. Pleasant. In February Jack displayed a large group of his paintings at Hotel Utah=s Deseret Gym. Jack=s paintings were also displayed at Springville=s April Salon and the State Industrial school at Ogden.

Unfortunately, not everyone in Jack=s family appreciated his work. After Jesse and Linden married, Jack had given Jesse the portrait of herself as a child. One day when he was visiting them at the farm, he found the painting used as a screen against the wind and rain, in place of a broken window. Jack was insulted and hurt. He took the portrait with him when he returned home. He framed it and hung it in his studio. When Jesse was older and not so busy with children, she did appreciate her father=s art- works. She asked her father if she might have the painting back to hang in her living room. Jack said sarcastically, ADo you have another window to stuff Jesse?@ as he handed her the painting.

The stock market had collapsed in 1929. Jack and Mina read about it and talked it over. At that time, Sanpete County was affected minimally by the collapse, however by July 1931, things changed. The Commercial Bank of Mt. Pleasant collapsed. Many people lost money, including Jack and Mina who lost eighteen hundred dollars. It would have been more if they hadn=t already bought Ethel=s piano. They had also bought another farm that must have cost a substantial amount. Later they did receive part of their money back from Commercial Bank and used it to add another 9.3 acres to the farm.

It disappointed Jack and Mina when Paul left Westminster College before he graduated. He enrolled in Stevens Henager College of Business at Salt Lake City. The college guaranteed him a job after

80 completing his course. Paul didn=t like the job the college found for him. Instead, he went to work for the United States Park Service at Yellowstone National Park. He enjoyed this job because he could wander around and appreciate the beautiful country. In the winter, the government sent him to work in Montana, and later in Springville, Utah.

Paul bought a rifle and license to hunt deer in Sanpete=s Wasatch Plateau. He came home to Mt. Pleasant for his vacation bringing gifts for Jesse=s girls. He drove to the farm to visit them. His parents had told him Jesse hadn=t visited in months, and when Paul reached the farm he knew why. Jesse was pregnant again. She had stayed away because she knew her father would be upset. Paul offered to tell Mina and Jack, but Jesse begged him not to tell. She did agree to meet with Mina at Selma=s place later, but the agreed upon meeting never took place.

In January of 1932, Paul came home from Springville to stay with his parents while waiting for another assignment. On March 1, the manager of the fish hatchery sent Paul to Pyramid Lake in Nevada, to strip fish eggs from the lake trout. On March 30, Jack and Mina received a devastating telegram stating that Paul had drowned in the lake. Jack sent Rinda and her son, Kent, to the farm to tell Jesse and Linden of the tragedy. The next morning, after a sleepless night, Jesse, Linden and their children went to Mt. Pleasant to be with Jack and Mina where they found a home filled with friends and relatives offering help and sympathy. Jack murmured repeatedly, APaul was all alone, why did Paul have to be all alone! We should have been with him, Mina. No one was with him to ease the trauma of dying.@ Mina=s eyes were red and swollen from crying.

Jack left for Nevada with W. Keith Throndson, superintendent of the Wasatch Academy, and Reverent N. R. Smith, to join the search for Paul=s body. He hired Linden=s brother, Afton, to spend his time in Nevada walking the shoreline of Pyramid Lake for any sign of Paul. Jack would not accept the death of his son so he delayed Paul=s memorial service by using the impending birth as an excuse.

th Jesse=s baby was born four weeks later on April 26 at Selma=s boarding house in Mt. Pleasant. Jack had insisted that Jesse come to Mt. Pleasant for the birth. Jesse, realizing her father=s fear of

81 anything else happening, adhered to her father=s wish. The doctor suggested that Mina take care of Jesse=s girls in an attempt to help keep her mind occupied. The baby’s birth was without an incident, and Jesse had the baby named and blessed Richard Stansfield Christensen; she hoped the name would ease the pain for her parents after losing their only son.

In early March, before the accident, Jack had delivered Three Prophets to Salt Lake City for exhibiting in Alice Merrill=s Summer Salon. During the darkest time in Jack=s life this article appeared in , the Desert News on June 25 1932. He never knew the article existed:

Mr. Stansfield achieves a splendid effect of distance, of lofty height and of massive bulk. Here is more than a painting. Here is a work glowing with the spirit of the mountains.

The effect of tender, roseate light on remote snowfields, Mr. Stansfield paints with thrilling effect. One feels the mountains, their repose, their austerity, their solitude. This is not a picture painted by an artist who has casually sketched the mountains as and then painted them by memory. This is a creation of a man who seeing the mountains as a young man found in them his first and only love; who has loved the mountains with that love, which passeth all understanding; who on days of sun and storm has stood awed before their amazing changes of color and shifts of contour, and who perhaps has had his eyes fill with tears, when far distant he felt the call of their beauty and the need of their solace. Mr. Stansfield=s work does not always strike thirteen but it never misses a depth and a feeling that commands respect.

In July of 1932, at the urging of the Secretary of the State of Utah, Jack erected a monument as a memorial to Paul. A bronze plaque set into a very large concrete monument at Pyramid Lake, engraved with the following epitaph:

AWHILE WE LIVE

IN OUR HEARTS

HE SHALL ALWAYS LIVE@

IN CHERISHED MEMORY

82 ______

OF

ANDREW PAUL

STANSFIELD,

SON OF MR. & MRS.

JOHN H. STANSFIELD, BORN SEPT. 23, 1908

AT MT. PLEASANT, UTAH.

DIED MARCH 30, 1932

BY DROWNING NEAR THIS SPOT WHILE EMPLOYED BY

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT.

HIS BODY WAS NOT RECOVERED.

In August Jack and Mina finally gave their consent to a memorial service. Milton H. Welling, Secretary of the State of Utah, was the principal speaker along, and Dr. Parley L. Holman, W.Keith Throndson, and Reverend Smith also spoke. After the service Jack returned to his painting, however he only painted portraits of Paul copied from photographs. At times he tried to escape from reality by filling his canvas with a far away scene that was made up in his mind.

By spring of 1933, Jack was fully immersed in his painting again, and was exhibiting at many places. He painted Wild Horse Chase and two landscapes, A Day Gone Forever and Creeping Shadows, for the Twelfth Annual National Art Exhibit at Springville High School. The three paintings received several favorable reviews. In a booklet used in her Summer Salon, Alice Merrill Horne published an article about Jack=s picture Late Winter Mists. ALATE WINTER MISTS@ is a subtle, gray-toned rendition of late afternoon. The buildings in it are typical of the older homes of the outlying settlements whose charm is architectural balance and pleasant line, which we hope will endure until our children shall partake in a measure of the pioneer spirit of home--which is surely and swiftly passing. J.H. Stansfield, the painter of this lovely winter idyl, has done well to record this phase of Utah=s early day building . . .

A few of Jack=s admirers suggested that he was selling his art at too low a price, but he believed that many people who enjoyed his work did not have the money to invest in more expensive paintings. Jack felt selling art to people who really appreciated it meant much more to him than the extra money that would be generated by raising prices. If Mina had

83 any thoughts about the matter, she never expressed them. Jack=s ideas were usually carried out without any arguments from her.

Almost every morning Jack called to Mina through the air vent to ask her to come and give suggestions on his work. Mina would comply, but then, Jack would usually tell her that she was totally wrong about her critique. Mina would remain placid and unruffled. Later, Jack would try her suggestions, and he often discovered that she was right. Jack would comment on occasion that Mina was his best critic, for she knew a good painting when she saw one.

Jack and Mina were concerned about Jesse and Linden. The young couple had done well on their chicken farm until the depression of 1929 - 1930, when the income from eggs and chickens didn=t bring in enough income to both support them and pay their bank note. Linden heard the Utah Poultry Association was looking for someone to manage their Fairview Roller Mills plant. He applied for the job, and they immediately hired him with a salary of fifty dollars a month. The bank sold their chickens to Linden=s brother, Afton, to satisfy their note. Linden and Jesse moved to Fairview and rented Linden=s father=s house located just across from the Roller Mill. The family shared the house with another family who lived in the north section of the building. Sharing bathroom facilities was not convenient, and soon, Linden found another home, a lovely frame house, to rent which was much nicer than anything the couple had lived in. After a few months in the house, Linden learned that the house was to be sold. So, he went to Jack and Mina and told them about the problems of finding another place. Jack told Linden to go to the owner and offer him cash for the house; Jack would supply Linden funds, and he could pay him back. Linden gave the owner sixteen hundred dollars cash for payment in full. He paid Jack monthly installments until there was twelve hundred dollars left owing. Jack cancelled the rest of the debt saying it was a birthday present for Jesse.

Meanwhile Frank Seely, a Mt. Pleasant resident, purchased the farmhouse that Mina=s father had built and owned. Frank told a group of men he had been tearing out a wall where he had found a large leather bag filled with Swedish money. He had sold just one coin

84 supposedly for two hundred dollars. Linden had overheard the conversation to the group. Mina=s father had changed religions years ago when the United Order had begun. He had always sworn that AThe Bishop of the Mormon Church would never get any of my money!@ Apparently he had plastered the money from his father=s Swedish estate into the wall without telling any of his family. Frank Seely was a faithful Mormon. Linden and Mina laughed, saying, AThe Mormons got their hands on the money after all.@

On Sunday=s, Jack tarried from painting to spend time with his grandchildren. This pause was special for Jesse and Linden=s children who were never bored during their grandparent=s visits. Mina often made the girls doll hats from her old hats or hollyhock dolls from the blossoms and buds of the hollyhock plants. The blossom was the skirt and the bud the doll=s head. She used toothpicks to fasten the parts together. Jack wore his suit and tie for Sunday dinner with the family. Once the meal was over, he stood at the head of the table and fascinated the children with his exaggerated tales. Jesse and Linden felt Jack was getting as much enjoyment as the children by attention to the expression mirrored on their little faces.

In January of 1934, the State Capitol housed the thirty-second art exhibit of the Utah Art Institute. Jack=s painting, AIsles of GoldA was represented. The Secretary of State, Milton H. Welling, admired the painting, so Jack presented it to him. Mrs. David Moffitt, wife of Justice Moffitt of the State Supreme Court, also admired the painting and wanted it for herself. She spoke to Mr. Welling and he agreed to let her have it if Jack would paint another picture for him. At this time, Mrs. Moffitt was the Art Director of the State Fair. The month of March found Jack preparing for another one-man show at the Newhouse Hotel. He had twenty paintings to display. Mrs. Alice Merrill Horne, who called Jack Athe Utah painter known for his interpretations of mountain scenery,@ announced the exhibit. Many art critics wrote reports that were glowing of Jack=s works often echoing comments from other writers. The following is an extract from an article written by Gail Martin concerning Jack=s painting of Where Wild Delphiniums Grow.

85 In the current exhibition of John H. Stansfield at the Newhouse hotel, the public has an example of what great native talent and great love for nature can do. With little or no formal training, the Mt. Pleasant sheepman, Mr. Stansfield, achieves some things that many professional painters never attain.

Probably Mr. Stansfield himself, who is a most sensitive and humble worker, would not contend that his paintings are perfect. But in them all there is reflected a sincerity and a love of nature that at once commands respectful attention. ...

Jack was commissioned to do three murals in a, Hinckley, Utah, Mormon chapel. He agreed, for he could take time out from painting the mural to visit his cousin, Ishmael Harrison Tippetts. Ishmael lived with his family in Sutherland and Jack entertained them with his tall tales. After finishing the murals, he headed back to Mt. Pleasant where John K. Madsen, who raised prized Rambouillet sheep, commissioned Jack to paint a single sheep for him. Madsen used the painting for advertising purposes.

This was a year for a great debate in Utah about modern art. In Salt Lake City a Californian artist, Franz Brasz, had shown paintings of a nude drawn in modernistic style. Some art lovers were horrified at the frankness of the painting and some ridiculed the painting calling it grotesque and other protests were registered. Art lovers invited Mr. Brasz to present his views in an open discussion of his work hoping that all sides of the argument could be heard and rationalities established. Probably the calmest person at the discussion was Franz Brasz who declared, Ait is the artist=s privilege to distort form, to bend or twist the human body into any shape necessary to expound his ideals.@

Jack couldn=t understand why an artist would want to distort his subjects and, although he did not approve of modern art, Jack felt the artist shouldn=t be denied exhibition space. He freely declared that some people liked modern art and should have the right to view it.

In September 1934, Aunt Lizzie Lang died in Duchesne County leaving three daughters and one son. Lizzie's sister, Emily, and her husband Henry had moved to California in 1920

86 to get away from the harsh Idaho winters. Emily, who suffered from a muscle or nerve disease, felt better in a milder climate. In November 1936, Emily died in San Bernardino, California. Her husband, four daughters and one son survived her.

Chapter Nine

Art Instructor at Snow College, 1935-1945

Jack accepted a teaching position for the winter quarter at Snow College, a two-year junior college in Ephraim, Utah, in the art department. He supervised the arranging and decorating of room twenty-eight , an art center and studio, and he began teaching fine arts on December 2, 1935. Ethel was enrolled in the same school. She had graduated from Wasatch Academy in May of 1935 and had enrolled at Snow that fall. She thought it was an honor to have her father teaching at the same school.

Earlier, in the November 1935, election, Mt. Pleasant residents had elected Jack to the City Council. He had won by a large margin, over two-thirds of the vote. This delighted Jack, for he had lost by six votes in an earlier attempt to gain public office. He served four years with Mayor Justus O Seely, Anthony Poulson, Dr. Alden L. Peterson, Dr.L. A. Phillips, Mrs. Mada Hutchinson, E.W. Wall, and two years with O. L. Winters, Bert M. Wright and W. C. Olsen.

Jack entered a painting, "Our Utah" in the first annual art exhibit at Dixie Junior College, and the judges awarded him the grand prize. The following article was published with a photo of the painting: AOur Utah,@ J. H. Stansfield mountain scape, purchased prize in Dixie College show St. George--Wide interest was manifested in southern Utah communities in the art exhibition just held at Dixie College. Inaugurating a series to be presented annually. The show attracted much attention from both students and the general

87 public. The purchase painting, selected by vote of the student group, was J. H. Stansfield=s AOur Utah,@ a spacious mountain landscape marked by a dramatic light effect such as is characteristic of the artist. It was presented at an art ball held during the progress of the exhibition, Miss LaVerd Whitehead given the honor of unveiling.

While teaching, Jack met Evan Roy Anderson, son of Roy and Ruth Anderson of Ephraim. Evan was enrolled at Snow College to study arts and sciences. He had previously spent a year at Brigham Young University studying music and education before returning again to Snow College to complete his senior-year studies. Evan successfully auditioned for the opera, The Mikado, being presented at the college. He was cast in the role of Nanki- Poo. Jack painted the scenery for the production

In 1936, Ethel was the editor of the Snowonian, the college-yearbook, and Evan was the typist. The two of them spent many hours working on the project, and, wonder of wonders, they were soon dating. After graduation, Evan asked Jack for his permission to marry Ethel. With Jack=s consent, they planned for a June 26 wedding. More than one hundred guests attended the outdoor ceremony and a sit-down dinner. Tall spreading trees with flowers and lawn served as a backdrop for the happy occasion. In August, the couple along with Jack and Mina drove to Red Mesa, Colorado where Evan had been offered a position as headmaster at the local school. Jack was anxious to see the town where his youngest daughter would be residing. Ethel was already pregnant and they wanted to know that good care would be available. When they arrived at Red Mesa they found a small Mormon community of about one hundred and fifty residents who farmed the red soils of the area. The town had only one store set up in the front room of a house that doubled as a post office. Ethel and Evan=s assigned rented cottage was a three-room house in deplorable condition. The location horrified Jack. Especially, when he learned that the nearest town of any size, Durango, was thirty miles away and could only be reached by traveling a high mountain pass that was frequently closed in the winter. Jack pleaded with the young couple to return to Utah to find employment, but they declined. Jack returned home to pick up the

88 tools he needed to repair the deplorable house. Jack felt the young couple was too much in love to realize the hardship ahead of them but too independent to listen.

Evan was hired to be the principal and to teach the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades while Ethel taught the younger grades. They worked hard to make sure the children received an education equivalent to the standards in better equipped schools. They also involved themselves in church activities. Evan had been endowed with a fine tenor voice, so he conducted the choir and also the Singing Mothers. He was a good saxophonist, and he played in a dance orchestra in Durango, once a week, to help out with their finances.

In January 1937, Ethel=s daughter, Sharon Louise, was born. The baby received an injury during the birth, and she lived only a few hours. Evan had the tiny body of the baby shipped to Mt. Pleasant for burial in the family-plot at the City Cemetery. Ethel was in the hospital in Durango, so she and Evan were unable to attend the burial. Jack always felt that had Evan and Ethel returned to Utah the baby would still be living.

In April 1937, the newly built Museum of Art opened in Springville for the Sixteenth Annual April Salon, previously held at the high school. The museum is a magnificent stucco structure in Spanish style with a red tiled roof. A patio in the rear has a cloister overhang. The second floor and high tower is accessible by a winding tile stairway. There are tiles on all the floors. The galleries are all made in stucco with seventy-five hundred square feet of painted- burlap for the hanging of paintings. The building also contains an art instruction room, a little theater, an office, an auditorium, and a kitchenette. Wayne Johnson dedicated it on July 4, 1937.

A committee appointed by Governor Henry H. Blood selected five paintings from the Utah Art Institute Exhibit to be shown in the Second National Exhibit of American Art. Jack who was included in this group sent his painting Spring Morning Mist to the Rockefeller Center in New York City.

89 In June Jack and Mina received an invitation to vacation in Canada with friends, Estella and Robert Oldroyd. Estella was the daughter of Svend O. Nielson, a wealthy rancher, who lived in Milburn. The two families had been friends for many years. Mina was keen to go but Jack was not so sure. She argued that he needed a change of scenery to paint. Mina=s persistence paid off when he finally agreed to go.

As the group traveled through the barren areas of the United States and Canada, Jack started to complain to Mina about the whole venture. His complaints concerned Mina, for she felt he would embarrass her in front of their friends. They arrived at their destination, the John and Nellie* Johansen cottage by Waterton Lake, after dark. They went to sleep without having a chance to see the surrounding terrain. In the morning Jack opened the drapes to look at the view. He was astounded by the view of magnificent mountains draped with green forests. Immediately, his attitude changed and his spirits soared. Jack had spent most of his life in or near mountains, but the Canadian Rockies really inspired him. He spent most of his time sketching and painting the snow-capped peaks, deep sparkling lakes, towering pines, and clear, blue skies. *(Svend O. Nielson’s daughter)

After they returned home from the vacation, Jack concluded the obvious that in comparison to the Canadian Rockies the Sanpete Mountains were just rolling hills. The majesty of the terrain was shown in two of the three paintings selected for display in the Fourth Annual Exhibit of Fine Arts at the Union Building on the University of Utah campus. Comments on two of the paintings, Quiet Grandeur and Mt. Cleveland: Glacier National Park, were featured in the two Salt Lake papers. However, the Mt. Pleasant Pyramid printed the following:

J. H. Stansfield Has Three Paintings at U. Exhibit

90 Three paintings by J. H. Stansfield, Mt. Pleasant artist, are on display at the Fourth Annual Exhibition of Fine Arts in the Union Building on the University of Utah campus. They are: AMt. Cleveland: National Glacier Park, Canada,@ A Hills of Gold@ and AHell Roaring Canyon.@ The display started Sunday, November 23 and will run through Friday, December 17.

The catalog of the exhibition states, AThe purpose of the University of Utah=s art exhibition is to place before the public the finest creative work of representative Utah artists, from all sections of the state.@ Mr. D. O. Woodruff, member of the University committee on art exhibitions, explains that, as it is the desire of the University to maintain a high standard of excellence, the exhibition consists of two hundred of the best entries, selected by an authoritative jury from a greater number of pieces submitted. The work of sixty-six artists is on exhibition. It is an honor and a recognition of the merit in Mr. Stansfield=s work to be selected for this exhibit. ...

The Wasatch Academy yearbook staff, AOrange and Black@, spent the evening of January 11, 1938, at Jack=s studio. They announced they would dedicate the yearbook in his honor.

In late February, the college music department presented Gilbert and Sullivan=s HMS Pinafore, and Jack painted all new scenery for the production. Jack was spending less time at the easel because of his teaching position at the college and his role as council member. Both positions demanded much of his time. However, four of his recent paintings were selected for showing at the Springville Museum of Art for their April Salon.

Evan accepted a position at a school in Kirtland, New Mexico for the coming school year. The teaching would be easier for Ethel and Evan after their two years at Red Mesa. When school started they would still be teaching multi-grade classes, but the school was better equipped for the students because of a more affluent community. The town was located in the Navajo Reservation, but no Indians attended the school where they were to teach.

In March 1938, Jack and Mina drove to Red Mesa to collect a few of the couple's belongings then continued to Kirtland, New Mexico where they found an apartment for the young couple. Ethel and Evan were to follow later when their school year was completed.

91 Kirtland and vicinity were a new topography for Jack. The colorful soils, red, blue or yellow, depending upon their mineral content, excited him. The Navajo women wore colorful skirts with velvet tops decorated with silver jewelry. Further into New Mexico, Jack experienced other Indian tribes each with its own culture. Jack made many sketches of the different tribes and their different ways of living.

Before the trip to Kirtland, Jack had corresponded with Joseph A. Poncel, the former principal of the Wasatch Academy and his wife. The Poncel's had been transferred by the Presbyterian Missionary Society to a mission school for Indian children in New Mexico, four years prior to Jack and Mina’s trip. The Poncel's took both Jack and Mina and later Ethel and Evan under the influence of their hospitality. Because of their hospitality, Jack and Mina were able to experience as much as they did. One interesting painting Jack painted during this time was Indian Church: Laguna, New Mexico, which depicts the natives entering and filling the yards and buildings of an Indian mission. This painting would be one of the four, painted by Jack, chosen to be displayed in December at the Fifth Annual Invitational Exhibit at the University of Utah. After touring the area they all returned to Utah where Ethel and Evan attended Brigham Young University for the summer. They would return to Kirtland in the fall to begin teaching.

Meanwhile, the president of Snow College asked Jack to teach full-time which was a special honor for a man who had not even reached eighth grade in school. He accepted the offer and studied many hours in preparation to do his job well. The following article along with his picture (not shown) was published by an unidentified source.

Ephraim, Aug. 19 C John H. Stansfield, well-known Utah artist from Mt. Pleasant, has been named as instructor of art and head of the Art Department at Snow College for the coming season. He will teach during the entire school year. Last year he was at the College for two terms.

92 Mr. Stansfield has won recognition in many exhibits, both in and out of the state. He has sold pictures to collections or individuals in every state in the Union.

His specialty is western scenery. Just now he is working on two series, one of the Canadian Rockies and the other of Indian scenes and life in Northern Arizona. He also continues to paint Utah scenery.

Jack appreciated the many comments he received about his work as long as they were constructive and sincere. He often said, "he was painting to give pleasure to the public and not to please the art critics." One admirer sent a letter to him; the following is an excerpt:

“Your pictures made such a striking impression on me that I think of them constantly. “Morning on Skyline Drive” particularly knocked me off my feet. How you were able to catch those long, slanting morning rays of sun, dispersing that fine mist and put it on canvas for all to marvel at is beyond me. It’s wonderful!”

When absorbed in creating a new painting, Jack became annoyed if an interruption of his work occurred. Mina had wanted him to paint the kitchen walls where she had even pointed out some worn areas of paint. However, Jack had responded by telling her that he would get around to the repairs later. Mina, dissatisfied, started the job herself. She gathered all the equipment she needed and climbed on the table and began work. Soon, Jack wanted Mina=s opinion and called down to her. After receiving no response, he went to look for her. He checked the dining and living rooms and then tried the kitchen. Surprisingly, he could not open the door so, he went to the outside kitchen entrance where he looked into the kitchen and discovered his wife on the table with paint up to her elbows. Jack, clearly annoyed, demanded to know why Mina hadn=t waited until he was ready. There was silence and an awkward lack of communication in response. Sheepishly, he took the paintbrush from her, and in continued strained silence, he took up the task. In a few hours Jack finished the job and nonchalantly asked Mina if it was time for coffee. Mina replied she would clean up the mess first, but diplomatically added, she was anxious to see the painting that he was working on. Jack, feeling embarrassed by his inattentiveness and gruffness, went back to his studio. As a token of his penitence, He drew a cartoon of himself and presented it to Mina in hope that it would convey chagrin. It did!

During Jack=s time as council member, he conceived and drew up plans for the Mt. Pleasant City Hall which was to be built on the corner of main and first west. A Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant of thirty-eight thousand dollars was subsequently

93 approved. In anticipation, the site had been purchased from Andrew Nilson for thirty-five hundred dollars. When completed, the new city building was reputed to be the finest city structure in central Utah. Jack also had given much of his time and talent to the building of the city hall. The dedication took place on August 23, 1939; a year after construction had begun.

When Jack visited his grandchildren in Fairview, he would point out things around them and help them notice their surroundings and teach them to see through their artistic eye. Once while driving with Jackie, he pointed out a barn to her. AWhat do you see?@ he asked. AJust a tumbled down barn, Grandpa.@ ,Jackie replied. AOh, it is much more than that. Doesn=t it tell you a story?@ Jack continued, AThe loft of the barn used to be full of hay and there were cows and perhaps horses in the stables below the hayloft eating their hay. Now look how gray and broken down the barn is, for the roof is sagging in the middle like it is tired, and the sun is shining on the roof until it almost looks like silver. The grass and bushes are growing around the old barn as though they want to hide it from view. They have no need to do that; the barn is beautiful in its old age. The sun and rain have burnished the wood of the barn until it shines like gray silver with soft touches of pale blue and rust in it. Its shape is more interesting than when it was new and bright. When you think there is no beauty in nature or in a barn, Jackie, you=d better look again.@

The Sixth Annual Invitational Exhibit of Fine Arts was held at the University of Utah, Union Building in November 1939. The Salt Lake Tribune published the following excerpt.

A canvas attracting much attention in the exhibit is the impressive mountain scape by J. H. Stansfield, Mt. Pleasant artist, which discovers all his best traits. It is built up in smooth planes, sunlight making vivid patches of snow in the ravines yet not banishing the haze veiling the mighty range. He has, too, a small homey landscape of golden trees and inviting spaces beneath, which is the essence of charm.

94 Charles C. Pittinger, an artist who had worked with the Utah State Fair Art Board and was also manager of the International Art Studio, sent Jack a card expressing his feelings as follows:

Dear Stansfield Heartiest Congratulation on the paintings in the University show. ALL TOPS. The mountain practically runs away with the show. I think personally it is the best picture there. Sincerely, C. C. Pittinger

In April of 1940, Alice Merrill Horne had a booklet published called Art Strands. It was written in the interests of the Utah artists and the Horne Art Gallery. In it, Horne wrote a history of the pioneers= development of culture and art in the state. She expressed her disenchantment with the modern trend in art. In Horne's belief, the booklet included five examples of fine art. One of the five paintings was Jack=s Utah Domain. Jack believed that a painting should stand on its merits, and that fighting the modern art trend would not see it eliminated. He thought that, in time, people would make their choices about which trend they liked. Jack painted some pictures when he felt the need for diversion. He drew cartoons of his siblings and many of his friends. The diversionary painting was done in the spirit of good fun, and his friends enjoyed having their faces caricatured.

About this time Jack became interested in one of his students, Max Blain, a talented young artist from Spring City, Utah. They met often at Jack=s studio where Max was greatly influenced by Jack's work. In January 19, 1941, an announcement, published in the Salt Lake Tribune stated that Jack and Max were exhibiting together at the Art Center in Salt Lake City. The article also mentioned a painter of modern art, Esther Barrows Webster from Seattle, was exhibiting there as well. The Deseret News published the following article on

95 January 25, 1941: Sincerity of 2 Mt. Pleasant Painters Draw Praise From Salt Lake Art Patrons High in popular appeal is the exhibit of J. H. Stansfield and his student, Max Blain, both of Mt. Pleasant, whose water colors and oil are now hung at the Utah State Art Center. In recording the Utah scene faithfully, sensitively and naturally, a sincere viewpoint is expressed. The two artists work in a similar technique, both painting scenes familiar to every Utahan. A familiar note echoes from the landscape, through the artist to his audience. The works of the two artists are so truthful that to one who might have gone away from the West, this echo awakens nostalgic recollection of Utah=s mountains, atmosphere and mood at different times of day or year. None of the illustrator=s flashy cleverness finds it way into Stansfield=s or Blain=s canvasses. Painting literal moods and atmosphere of nature with the genuineness of artists seeking to depict truth as they see it, these two, Mt. Pleasant men are honest in their naturalism. The scenes which they depict are filled with atmospheric light and with a mood. The glow of the sun on peak, sage and cloud is luminous and real. The use of texture in a brush clump or on rock, the play of sunlight and shadow on the Utah hills-- these are the elements which Stansfield has given us. These are the observations which make him one of the State=s foremost recorders of the Utah scene...... Mr. Stansfield is now teaching at Snow Junior College in Ephraim. Max Blain is teaching and producing art in Mt. Pleasant.

National Art Week was in November and Jack had worked all summer preparing his paintings for displays in several places throughout the state. Jack=s Autumn Tranquility, shown at the Art Barn and highlighted in the Salt Lake Tribune, was of special interest to the public and artists alike.

After placing the paintings, Jack secured a leave of absence from his teaching duties at the college, for he and Mina were leaving to spend the winter in California. Mina wanted to spend time with Ethel and Evan. They had just moved to Los Angeles from Spanish Fork where Evan had been teaching music at the Junior High. Evan was now attending classes at the University of Southern California to obtain his masters degree. He was working as a security officer at the Los Angeles Times to provide

96 for his family and to pay his tuition. Mina and Ethel went sightseeing while Jack painted scenery on the California coastline.

Soon after their arrival in California, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attack by the Japanese, and the United States went to war. The government urgently needed to build transport ships for shipping war-supplies overseas. Evan left his job and studies to become a welder foreman supervisor at the California Shipbuilding Company at Terminal Island.

March came and Jack said, "It is time to return to Utah." Mina expressed disappointment, for she wanted to stay in California and make it their home. She also knew Jack did not agree. However, Jack, knowing how Mina felt, needed to do something to lift her spirits. So, he drew a cartoon of Mina with flowers in her hair, with tears falling from her eyes, and with a arrow piercing a heart on her chest with the words saying, AMy heart aches.@ She is standing on the beach surrounded by other people, and she is saying, AI want to stay. I want to stay here. I like flowers; I like to swim.@ The other side of the cartoon depicts Jack with thoughts of brushes, paints and a palette knife. He is saying, AI want to go home. I can paint you a rose and you can go home and swim in a barrel. You don=t have to have the whole damn ocean to swim in.@ Later Mina would discuss this cartoon with her grandchildren; she told them she had to buy her own roses, but Jack did set up a barrel of water. Mina related, she couldn=t get out of the barrel until she rocked the barrel back and forth and it fell over and the water washed out.

Mina didn=t prolong the issue too long; she knew Jack needed to paint the mountains, and soon, they boarded a train for Mt. Pleasant. The mountains of Utah seemed so far away from the California coast and the events of war. At home In Mt. Pleasant, Jack felt secure and safe. In June he exhibited some of his California studies at the Utah Art Colony 120th State Exhibit held at the Tiffin Room of ZCMI.

97 An article appeared in the Salt Lake Tribune referring to his California painting Pacific Beach Bathers.

... he brings us California coast studies, a refreshing, realistic impression of APacific Beach Bathers,@ full of color and interest, and in ASurging Tide@ the long rollers coming in, breaking in clouds of spray before they reach the sands. ...

The Deseret News held a somewhat different view, stating that:

Y his APacific Beach Bathers,@ on the other hand, seemed of rather dubious sincerity.

For some time Ephraim and Snow College had contemplated building a larger art collection. Exhibits had been annual affairs under the direction of the P. T. A., and with the help of the Snow College Campus Women, some paintings had already been acquired. In 1941 Snow College purchased Jack’s painting of the Indianola Mountains, Study in Gold and Silver and Jack donated another landscape. A second gift from the Ella Van Cott was one of George Ottinger’s paintings. Jack=s cousin, Alfred Irvin Tippetts, a professor of social science, was also on the Snow College faculty. He, his wife Eda, and three sons were living in Ephraim. In November 1942, Jack, Alfred Irvin and Alice Obray were selected to function as a committee to locate and recommend paintings for addition to the collection which would become known as The Ephraim-Stansfield Collection.

Jack lived in a time when men and women had clearly defined roles. His perception of duty as a husband was to support his family and make all the decisions. Mina=s job, Jack believed, was to look after the children and make the home comfortable for her husband. He believed the male was superior to the female, and he could do everything, other than child rearing, better than the female. His ego came tumbling down one summer day when he took his wife fishing on the Sanpitch River. Jack headed upstream and sent Mina down the stream to fish. They planned to meet at 2:00 in the afternoon with any fish they had caught. Jack spent two hours fishing but caught only two fish. He carried his two trout back to wait for Mina, feeling a superior sympathy, for he expected she would be feeling badly at her poor showing. When she finally appeared, consolatory Jack steeped in his male ego told her not to feel too bad. Mina just smiled, sat beside Jack, and pulled out trout after trout from her

98 fishing bag. She had caught her limit. Jack felt a little chagrined, grumpy, and threatened because his wife had revealed unexpected prowess contrary to his concept of the female.

In November of 1943, Ethel gave birth to a fine baby son named John Evan in honor of his father and grandfather. Mina went to California to help Ethel with the new baby, but Jack with his teaching responsibilities stayed at home. By December Evan was inducted into the Navy where he subsequently commanded a small landing craft. He spent his time rescuing victims of the Kamikaze attacks at Okinawa. To keep the soldiers well fed, the American people were given coupon books to limit the purchase of certain foods they bought, such as sugar, flour, butter, and eggs. Gas coupons were also issued. During the war, the art world was almost at a standstill. Only a few paintings were being exhibited--some were on display at ZCMI. Everyone was busy helping with the war effort. The Deseret News discontinued their art column, and the Salt Lake Tribune articles were very scarce.

Celia Van Cott of Provo, Utah was interested in collecting art. She and her husband, John, went to an exhibit where she bought a small painting by Bent Franklin Larsen. She wanted more paintings and after some research, she decided a J. H. Stansfield. Painting would be her desire.

Celia wrote to Jack to inquire if she could examine some of his work. He responded and promised to stop by her home the next time he delivered paintings to Alice Merrill Horne. Jack and Mina called at the Van Cott home with selected paintings, and Celia made her selection. She asked if Jack would leave the rest of his paintings with her for about an hour, so she could show them to her friends. Jack agreed and later when he and Mina returned to the house they found Celia=s friends trying to decide which painting each liked best. After the selections had been made, all the artwork intended for Salt Lake sold in Provo. Celia displayed and sold many of Jack=s paintings from that moment on.

99 On May 8,1945, Germany surrendered, but the war in the Pacific didn=t end until August 15, 1945. Ethel and Evan resumed their lives again after his return to California where Evan later became a very successful insurance agent. He still loved music and teaching, but they didn=t provide a sufficient living for his family.

Jesse, Linden, and family moved to Spanish Fork where Linden had been working for an explosive manufacturing company on the outskirts of the city. Phyllis, their eldest, had been living with her grandparents and had graduated from Wasatch Academy. Jackie had graduated from Fairview=s tenth grade. Barbara was ready to enter the tenth, and Dick would enter the eighth grade. Now Jack and Mina were able to stay overnight at the Christensen=s on their way to Salt Lake to deliver paintings.

Jack enjoyed living in Mt. Pleasant. Every morning, to collect the mail, he would walk into the business area of town. Most people realized this was also an excuse to mingle with them and catch up on the latest news. Upon his return home, he would tell Mina all the jokes and stories he had heard. He would then concentrated on home or civic duties needing his attention. After completing these tasks, he went to the studio to paint. In addition to his civic duties, Jack served for a period of time as trustee of the Presbyterian Church Board. He also spent many years with the Sanpete County Welfare Department.

Mina was a strong, healthy woman, but she was a little hard of hearing. One morning Jack returned from his walk and decided to clean the leaves out of the rain gutters. He used a long ladder to reach the gutters. As he was working, the ladder slipped leaving Jack hanging over the roof's edge. He tried to climb but had nothing to grasp to help pull him up. He yelled for Mina, but she didn't hear him. He continued to shout for help until some men working half a block away heard him and came to his rescue. Mina felt terrible about not being able to hear Jack when he related what had happened.

The art world was gradually recovering from the effects of the war, and Jack had many orders for his paintings. The exhibition places opened their doors again, so Jack spent many hours in his studio preparing for the summer showings. He also prepared for an exhibition at North Sanpete High School. The exhibit was under the direction of Max Blain who was now the school's instructor of art. When the exhibit was held on May 11, the townspeople honored Jack's birthday.

100 The Van Cott family and Stansfields, through their business association, had become good friends. They drove to the Fairview Mountains for a picnic and to visit one Sunday morning. Jack was sketching while the others visited and prepared lunch. Seven-year-old Shirley Van Cott wandered over to Jack to see what he was doing. She later related this story about the outing to Jackie. As I approached while he was painting, I thought he would pay no attention to me and go on painting. I would just watch him at his work for a short time; but, to my surprise, he laid down his brush and started talking to me. I was very curious about his painting, and I started asking questions that he tried to answer in the best way possible for a seven-year-old child. He told me how to balance a picture by moving a tree or a rock to a different place and how to use and mix colors. I learned many things in a few minutes from Mr. Stansfield, and it stirred my ambition to become a commercial artist. I learned that he was a likeable man who understood children and was kind and patient enough to advise and teach them.

Chapter Ten

Echo Lodge, 1945-1953

Jack wanted to fulfill his dream of having a cabin on the Wasatch Plateau east of the infirmary. He learned that the government was leasing land near a cabin that he had rented five years before, so he went with Mina and a forest ranger to look at site options. Jack and Mina selected what they thought was the best of the ten sites offered. It was midway up the rising terrain, overlooking an open area of grassy meadow filled with wild flowers. At the lower end were small ponds, built by beavers, connected to a larger pond with a man-made dam. The view was impressively splendid. In October 1945, they obtained the land on a one hundred-year lease.

Jack was very impatient to start building on his cabin. The blueprints, he drew, showed a large front room with a smaller kitchen divided by a large cobblestone fireplace. At the northeast end would be a large porch overlooking the hillside of Quaking Aspens and pines and to the northwest the Beaver Ponds in the distance. The upper floor would have a large

101 bedroom-loft extending over the porch and part of the front room. The other end of the cabin would have a smaller bedroom loft over the kitchen. The front room would be visible below either of the bedrooms.

Jack bought a Chevy pickup truck and hired an older man to help him. He arranged for a Caterpillar-bulldozer to excavate the mountainside in preparation for the concrete footings and foundations. Jack and his helper hauled cement to the site and searched out clean sand to use. All the concrete work was in place before winter with added help from Linden and Dick. Building stopped for the year soon after the deer-hunting season and subsequently winter set in. It would take another two summers to complete the cabin, but its quality attests to the worth of the time spent building it.

Through the winter of 1946 Jack spent all his time at the college or in his studio. He had several sketches set-aside that needed transformation to paintings. Mina, as customary, was his main critic, for she had developed a good eye for a promising painting. She could judge when enough was enough and Jack should leave a painting alone and she would tell him so. Sometimes Jack wouldn=t listen, and, as a result, he painted over some of his best work.

Jack had suffered angina pains and was under a doctor’s care. In December of 1946, he had a major heart attack and was not expected to live. After a long period of time, he defied conventional wisdom and his health improved. He was flat on his back for six weeks and most of his time was occupied by gazing out the window. The doctor insisted that he have complete rest. So, Jack didn=t touch his paintbrushes during that time, but gradually as he recovered, he began to paint again.

Because of his health, Jack retired from his college employment in the spring of 1947. He was now free to do as he pleased. He wanted to continue the work on the cabin, but

102 Mina wasn=t sure Jack would be physically able to build in the high mountains. Of course, he insisted he could.

Jack asked the forest ranger to survey the forest for standing pines that he could use for logs. The ranger was happy to oblige, so he and Jack spent a day marking the trees. After chopping them down Jack and his hired man used a horse to drag the logs to the building site.

Building a cabin was hard work. Each log had to be peeled and then fitted snugly, one on top of the other. The men rolled the logs up an incline of two other logs to reach the section of wall where they were to be placed. After working hard all day, Jack was exhausted when he returned home. Even so, he enjoyed the work. Jack=s family was also enjoying the building of the cabin.

One time, Jack rented the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) building about a quarter mile below the building site. The Christensen family moved into it with Jack and Mina. It was Linden=s vacation and the two weeks were an exciting time for his family.

Each day, after breakfast, the three men, Jack, Linden and young Dick would go to work leaving the women and the girls to wash dishes and make beds. They would make lunch to take to the builders, after which the girls helped peel logs. However, the girls soon tired of this and went off to explore. The men loved the hard work; the women were happy in the mountain air among the trees. In the evening they all returned to the CCC cabin with just enough energy left to prepare and eat dinner and then fall into bed.

There was a dairy herd in Flat Canyon, a few miles east from the CCC cabin. Sometimes the herd would wander from their meadow and graze near the campsite. Jack would drive the Chevy truck among them to herd them back to their area. In the herd was a

103 bad-tempered bull. Jack, concerned about it being so close to his family, considered talking to the owner of the animals. He felt they should not be wandering around the area.

One day Phyllis decided to walk to the building site. She was about a third of the way, when she saw the bull trotting toward her. He seemed agitated about her being in the meadow. Fortunately, Jack, who was on the cabin roof, noticed what was happening. He scrambled down and jumped into the truck, started it, and constantly pressed on the horn to distract the animal as he drove toward it. He picked up Phyllis and returned her to the camp; he then took off in a cloud of dust toward the dairy camp. No one ever knew what happened when Jack met the dairyman, but the following day the cows were not in the meadow.

The two weeks vacation passed quickly for everyone, especially the Christensen's. They decided they would return again next year, but they hoped, by then, the cabin would at least be livable. Linden went back to his job at the Powder Company, and Jack rehired the old man that had previously helped him, and they continued building.

The stone fireplace and chimney were erected using rocks that Jack had collected throughout the summer months. The family was very proud of their summer cabin and wanted to give it a name. Everyone tried to think of something suitable. One weekend while at the cabin, Jesse shouted a greeting to some hikers in the distance, and her words came echoing back to her. Echo Lodge seemed to be the best choice for the name.

Other people were building cabins in the area, and they got together to discuss their plans and experiences. Jack=s was the only cabin patterned after the old pioneer style. Two of the other cabins of a different had their roofs collapse when the winter snows proved too heavy.

104 In August, Mr. J.W.Young, owner of the Young=s Galleries in Chicago, came to Utah on a business trip. A judge friend of his took Mr. Young to visit the Springville Museum of Art Gallery where he saw Jack=s painting Mt. Nebo: Early Spring. He wanted to buy it, but it wasn=t for sale. The school had purchased the painting in 1942, after gaining third place honors in the Springville=s April Solon. However, the museum referred Mr. Young to Celia Van Cott, knowing she had sold many of Jack=s paintings. Mr. Young=s heart was set on the Nebo painting, but he had to go back to Chicago without it.

The last weekend in September, while Jack and Mina and the Christensen family were at the cabin, the girls decided something was missing and went about remedying the situation. They found two strong boards about four feet long and nailed them together, joining them with two narrow pieces of wood at each end. They drew a large circle on the board and asked Dick to cut it out with a saw. When he saw what they were trying to do, he braced the boards properly and cut the hole with a keyhole saw. The girls and Dick went down the hill, about fifty feet from the cabin. There were two large pine trees close together with a thick growth of quaking aspens where Dick put the prepared board between the two pines. He built a stand to hold it steady. After Dick left, the girls pushed and pulled vines and other growth around the platform until it was well hidden. Now no one visiting the area could see them; however, they could still see the road. This makeshift bathroom, called the “Eagle=s Nest”, served until a proper outhouse could be built to replace it.

Jack=s brother, Fred, passed away in September 1947, eleven years after suffering a debilitating stroke. After the funeral, Jack returned to his studio and thought about the times the two of them had spent together, especially their days in the mountains and desert herding sheep. Fred had the reputation of being a prominent “wool grower” and a renowned speaker at their conventions . In November of the same year the Mt. Pleasant Pyramid paid tribute to Jack.

Reversing a historical precedent--the one which concerns artists whose works go unrecognized during their lifetime--the city council this week purchased and hung a picture by John Stansfield.

It is altogether fitting that the recently purchased Stansfield picture should hang in council rooms in the city hall, for it was the eminent Mt. Pleasant artist who laid out the design for the city hall when he sat as a member of the city council in the late 1930=s. And while the building was under construction in 1938-39, John Stansfield, still a member of the council, gave freely of his time and talents to see that the structure was completed.

Yet, even if Mr. Stansfield had never set a foot in the city hall, it would still be fitting to hang one of his masterpieces there. His works, usually brilliant interpretations of nature=s wonders in the Sanpete area, help to lend charm and atmosphere to many a local home. Appreciation for the pleasures, which his pictures have thus brought to so many of us, should be given public manifestation.

105 And that is undoubtedly what the city council had in mind when they voted unanimously to purchase with city funds a picture by a native artist whose fame has spread far beyond the confines of the place he calls home.

The council is to be commended for bespeaking in this way the praise of the community for John Stansfield=s talent. The picture purchased is appropriate and features one of our local landmarks, AThe Bishop=s Chair,@ a unique mountain southeast of Mt. Pleasant.

The Stansfield picture has been hung on the south wall of the council room.

In announcing purchase of the picture, Mayor G. B. Madsen said, AI sincerely hope that the future city council will see fit to purchase another Stansfield picture for hanging on the west wall of the council room.@

Mina lost her third brother, Elmer, in April 1948, after a short illness. Mina arranged for those remaining of her family to come to Utah. For the first time in twenty-five years, all seven sisters were together.

Soon after the funeral, Ethel called Jack from California to tell him about some residential blocks on sale in Palos Verdes Estates, on the coast of Southern California. Jack caught the train to California, leaving Mina at home. He put a down payment on the lot of Evan and Ethel=s choice, and he arranged for final payment before he came home.

Jack had crated many paintings ready for display in Salt Lake City, and decided he could spend time in the mountains while they were being shown. He invited Jackie=s boyfriend, Rey L. Larsen, to join the family for a few days. The cabin was not yet complete with doors not hung and the large unusable loft. One evening Mina mentioned they were almost out of water. Dick and Rey L. volunteered to go down to the spring and carry some back. They took their buckets and flashlights and were at the stream when they heard a strange sound. Dick exclaimed that it sounded like a cougar! Rey L. jumped and headed up the hill. He raced up the steps, lost his shoe, and dove through the open window of his car while dropping the empty bucket to the ground. Dick reached the car a few seconds later, and, after a momentary pause, they went into the cabin.

106 ADid you hear that cougar?@ Dick asked. Everyone smiled as Jack entered the room grinning from ear to ear. Rey L. was unaware that Jack could do a realistic impression of a cougar and Dick was his conspirator. They all had a good laugh, and, by so doing, ensured that Rey L. never forgot his first visit to Echo Lodge. The next day the young people built a raft to put on the pond. On the way back to the cabin, they found a large white bird lying dead on the ground that they took back with them intending to bury it the next day.

Everyone went to bed, Jack and Mina in the upstairs bedroom and the rest on the floor downstairs. At midnight something awakened Jack. He thought a family member was walking around, but when he called out, he learned that all were still in bed. Linden couldn=t see anything when he panned his flashlight around. In the morning when the family looked outside, they saw the remains of the white bird with cougar tracks around it. As night fell again, Jack hung tarpaulins over the door openings. Jesse questioned the effectiveness of a piece of cloth in keeping out a wild animal such as a cougar, but Jack reassured her that unless the animal was hungry and looking for food, it would not push through. Further, he suggested they lock their food in the cars and not keep anything edible in the cabin.

The family could travel for miles on dirt roads radiating in all directions from the cabin. Each road led to another mountain or canyon. There were five lakes and many sparkling mountain streams where they could catch trout for breakfast. Mina would sometimes bake a plain layer cake in the blue coal stove, now at the cabin, that Jack and Mina had given Jesse years before. She would take the cake and layer it with vanilla pudding and bananas, then spread whipped cream over the outside. The Boston cream pie, served with coffee or milk, was a favorite with everyone. She also baked it for her friends at home.

Jack thought that he could slow down his painting, but the year 1948 was another busy year. Many paintings were ordered and many were sold.

107 After an extended trip to Grand Canyon and southern Utah, to obtain sketches, he spent the remainder of the summer at the cabin with his paints. Jack bought a used army battery power supply to furnish light for the cabin.

The Deseret News included this article on August 15, 1948, featuring a photograph of Jack in his studio, with brush in hand completing his Mt. Nebo: Salt Creek Canyon with the following caption:

Finishing Touch

J. H. Stansfield of Mt. Pleasant put the last touches on one of his lovely paintings of Utah scenes. His ARodeo@ is on the wall behind him, AGrand Canyon@ on the floor.

Stansfield Takes to the Hills

EASEL, BRUSH and palette are having a little vacation down at the J. H. Stansfield home in Mt. Pleasant, while their owner, the popular painter of Utah landscapes and western scenes, is busy building his mountain retreat high above the valley that has always been his home.

AThere=s a regular colony up there,@ Mr. Stansfield boasts, Aand we can hardly wait to get our place finished and move up.@

This will be only one of the artist=s homes, because he has the gracious family home in the little town, he has a home in California where he goes annually to paint the ocean, and he Aalmost lives@ in his car when he is out on a jaunt making sketches of Utah landscapes.

The cabin in the mountains would probably be finished by now if it were not for such a trip that the artist and Mrs. Stansfield just recently completed--450 miles to travel to obtain a series of sketches of southern Utah mountains and sage plains.

STANSFIELD=S SAGEBRUSH country and his Sanpete mountains are justifiably noted and among the treasures sought by Utah art lovers. But he has done other things equally as well. His horses are marvelously realistic and filled with animation and character. Since Mr. Stansfield usually puts them in a rodeo setting or out on the sagebrush flats, he maintains his western atmosphere in these paintings.

Loving the ocean, Mr. Stansfield has made some lovely paintings, particularly of the ocean off Laguna Beach, Calif., one of his favorite haunts. Portraits, wild animals--a wide variety of subjects line the walls of his attractive studio on the second floor of his Mt. Pleasant home. Especially interesting is a portrait of himself. Mr. Stansfield has painted and sold over 2000 pictures, and he has taught literally dozens of young artists of the state. Recognized for his ability and admired for his geniality, he is one of the Aart personalities@ of Utah.

108 Jack=s paintings took prizes in the professional division at the 1948 State Fair. He was also selling paintings all over the United States. Alice Merrill Horne had been a great help in ensuring his success. However, she passed away in October of that year and the art field lost a wonderful advocate. Elaine Mickelsen took over from Alice and continued the ZCMI display windows where Jack often exhibited his works. After Alice died, Jack decided against sending future paintings to Salt Lake City. It was more convenient to exhibit at the Spanish Fork Central school because Jesse lived nearby.

Mina was having problems with a goiter, and in April of 1949, the doctor scheduled her to have surgery. Jack had her admitted to the Latter-day Saints' hospital in Salt Lake City where the surgery was to be performed on May 2nd at noon. Jack asked Jesse and Linden to meet him at Hotel Utah at 9:00 a.m. so they would have plenty of time to reach the hospital before Mina=s operation. They arrived at 11:30 a.m. and went straight to Mina=s room, but she was not there. Jack learned that she had gone to surgery early and this upset Jack, for he had not been notified of the change in the schedule, and Mina had gone into surgery without her family around. Mina=s granddaughter, Phyllis, who had her nursing training at this hospital, had permission to help with nursing care of her grandmother. Phyllis explained the procedure to Jack and assured him his wife was fine, so Jack calmed down.

After her surgery, Mina spent ten days in the hospital recovering. During that time her oldest sister, Annie Fredrika died. Jack, concerned about the effects of both the operation and the death of her sister hovered over her until she impatiently told him to leave her alone and get on with his painting.

Jackie and Rey L. were married in the Manti Temple on July 14, 1949. Jack and Mina attended the reception at the 1st ward chapel in Spanish Fork. After the reception the couple started their honeymoon while family members removed the gifts from the cultural hall. Jack and Mina presented Jackie and Rey L. with the beautiful mountain-scape Mt. Nebo: Salt Creek Canyon.

109 Mina went to California immediately following the wedding, for Ethel had given birth to her third child on the day of Jackie=s marriage. They named the adorable new baby Karen Kristen. Jack stayed at home and spent most of his time in his studio.

The Deseret News--August 21, 1949

John H. Stansfield, the western poet of canvas and oil, recently completed his 2000th picture at his spacious studio in Mt. Pleasant.

Now 70 years old, and the dean of Utah painters, Mr. Stansfield is Alearning to interpret nature from day to day. One can never quite grasp, or even hope to, the marvel of God=s handiwork.@

Known as a colorist without peer, Mr. Stansfield began his career on the west desert while herding sheep. His first canvas was the topping on the sheep wagon. A piece of charcoal served as his only paint.@ Today his paintings of the great spaces hang in homes and galleries throughout the world.

In 1950 the collection of paintings created by many artists, and hanging in the Union Junior High School, was named AThe Stansfield Collection.@ The following quotation was taken from an unidentified newspaper:

The Union school art collection, accumulated and annually sponsored by the ninth grade, has been named the AStansfield Collection,@ George Barton, principal announced Friday.

The name was chosen to honor J. H. Stansfield, Mt. Pleasant, well-known landscape and animal painter. The first painting purchased was done by Mr. Stansfield.

Plans are now underway for an exhibit of the collection, and other paintings by Utah artists in April, Mr. Barton said. ... The committee also will sponsor a field trip to the Springville exhibit for the students . . .

Principal George Barton helped initiate the art collection at the Union Elementary and Junior High School. Initially on a field trip, the school children were allowed to travel to the Springville Museum of Art to make a painting selection. The first picture they bought was Jack=s Utah Autumn Scene, sometimes known as Golden Leaves.

Principal Barton later announced that in the future they would select their paintings from their local spring exhibits. Jack=s nephew, Earl Carlyle Stansfield, stayed in contact with Mr.

110 Barton and influenced the addition of another of Jack=s paintings, The Pounding Surf, to their collection. Earl had studied art under Jack=s tutelage, and he later taught art to the inmates of the Utah State Prison.

It was about one year after the marriage of Jackie and Rey L. that Jack and Mina received an invitation to the wedding of their oldest granddaughter, Phyllis Lynn. She was wed to Frank Arvil Taylor at the home of the groom's parents on June 6, 1950. Jack presented his painting, Sunrise, to the bride and groom. During this visit and happy occasion, another significant and joyous event transpired. Jack and Mina were introduced to their first great grandchild, Rae Lynne, by proud parents Jackie and Rey L.

Jack and Mina decided to spend another winter in California. Jack thought the pounding waves along the coast were beautiful, and he wanted to capture the ocean on canvas again. During the first week in December, they packed their car with Jack=s materials and their personal baggage and they headed for the coast. Jack had phoned Evan, his son-in-law, asking him to meet them in a small town on the highway approaching Los Angeles. Jack didn=t feel confident enough to drive through the big city. At the appointed time, Evan caught a bus to San Bernardino where he met them. He then drove Jack and Mina to Ethel and his newly built home in the Palos Verdes Estates. A few days later they all drove to Laguna Beach where Jack leased a small home overlooking the ocean. It was an ideal place for him to paint, for the beach was just a walk down a flight of stairs.

This was a great time for Jack and Mina. They were able to drive and explore to their hearts content in this artistic community. For nearly three months they enjoyed the beach and the colorful sunsets. Mina would sit on a blanket while Jack spent hours at his easel. They walked along the beach collecting shells and shopped for fresh produce at the local stalls.

As a palliative to Mina who had wanted to live in California for many years, Jack bought a building lot in Laguna Beach. He told her that they would build a home in the future in which they could spend the winter months. During the last part of February, an

111 urgent telephone call from Utah informed them that Mina's sister, Selma, had suffered a stroke and was dangerously ill. Immediately, they left for home but arrived one day too late. Selma had passed away. Jack had always felt his two daughters should have new homes built to their plans. So, he designed a home for Jesse after she had given him an idea of what she wanted. In the autumn of 1951, Jesse and her family moved into the completed home of her specifications in Spanish Fork. Now, the families would meet for Thanksgiving and Christmas in Jesse and Linden=s home, a home in which a Christmas Eve party became a tradition. During Christmas Mina baked fruitcakes for the men placing them under the Christmas tree, and she made popcorn and candy for the little ones.

Linden and Jesse’s two older girls were busy expanding their families. Paul for Phyllis and Terry for Jackie were both born in 1952. They all visited Echo Lodge on weekends during the summer months. Jack and Mina used the small loft next to the chimney for their sleeping accommodation and the other families used the larger loft on the opposite side. Mina cooked meals that were equal to any served at home -- chicken, beef, or pork roasted in the oven and served with vegetables and salads. Everyone brought ice-chests full of food stored on the porch alongside an old-fashioned “ice-box” where it was cool in its own right.

For the next eight weeks Mina and Jack spent many days at the cabin. In the later part of August 1952, Ethel and Evan arrived with Johnny and Kristen. They all explored the Wasatch Plateau together.

The Ladies Missionary Society of the Presbyterian Church asked if they could use Echo Lodge for their annual outing. Mina acted as the hostess for this annual event, and Jack made himself scarce for the time they were there.

Jack made good progress in his art, but he still felt a need to be better. He told his children that a lifetime was not enough to perfect ones art. He wanted to paint for his family, but time was against him. His paintings were selling soon after they were completed, and now buyers were coming to his studio from all over the States. There was little need to ship paintings out to exhibit any more.

Jesse had a hard time finding an uninterrupted moment to spend with her father and mother. Their home seemed to always have visitors or art buyers in it. Jack liked to

112 make people laugh, and they enjoyed his entertainment. They also enjoyed Mina=s hospitality along with her coffee and desert. She listened to peoples troubles and offered sympathy. She also had a sense of humor, and as with Jack, she knew how to bring out the sense of humor in others

Throughout many years, Jack had exhibited paintings in the ZCMI display. His paintings had been hung at the Hotel Utah and New House Hotel in Salt Lake City. The Lions House and the Beesley Music store also displayed his work. Samples of his paintings hung in most Utah schools with a perpetual display shown at the Art Barn in Salt Lake in the years past. He had won many honors at the Utah State and County Fairs. Every year his paintings were displayed at the University of Utah Invitational Show. Jack had also exhibited in Chicago, St. Louis, New Jersey, New York, Idaho, Nevada, and California. Each year, except 1928, between one and five of his paintings were accepted at the April Salon in Springville. Many of his works were illustrated in The Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune. He continued giving art lectures at schools and private clubs, etc. During his teaching years at Snow College, he initiated and helped arrange all of the Ephraim exhibits. He also painted the scenery for the annual operettas. In 1940, when Evan was the music instructor at Spanish Fork, Jack painted all the scenery for the school opera.

On January 28, 1953, Mina=s sister, Rinda, passed away after a long illness. Jack admitted to Mina that he often felt tired and painting was becoming a challenge. When he and Mina attended Barbara Jean=s wedding to Archie Duane Smith on July 2, 1953, they told no one how he was feeling. Jack gave the bridal pair an oil landscape, Colors of Autumn. On the way back to Mt. Pleasant after the wedding, he told Mina he was setting aside other paintings for his grandchildren. Dick would receive Fairview Mountain Meadow; John Evan was to have Beaver Dam, and Karen Kristen was to have Timpanogos.

In October, Jack=s doctor sent him to Salt Lake City for a complete physical examination. Mina wrote to the family saying Jack was to have surgery for prostate trouble. However, the doctors also found a tumor in his large intestine and tested it for cancer.

Jack was relieved when the doctor released him from the hospital, for he was a poor patient. He left the hospital believing that there was no problem, but Mina had been told a

113 different story. The doctors explained to her that Jack had cancer of the large colon that had spread to the prostate and even though they had operated, there was little more they could do.

As time went on, Jack became bedridden and had trouble sleeping. Jesse and Linden, suspecting there was something wrong went to see the Fairview doctor who had cared for Jack after his heart attack. Dr. Rigby told them to leave Jack alone; he would get up and about when he felt like doing so. Jack also soon realized he had not been told the full extent his condition. It was obvious to him that he was getting worse, and he soon came to the conclusion that he had cancer. When he confronted Mina with his belief she told him. He was angry that he had been misinformed, and frustrated when he was no longer able to paint. Jack, concerned about Mina, made Jesse promise to never allow Mina to drive a car saying, AShe will try to get to the cabin and run off the mountain road.@ He asked Jesse and Linden to take her to the cabin whenever they went. Jesse promised that Mina would always be cared for. The promise reassured Jack.

During the day Jack had lots of company, and at night Mina had someone in the family help with the nursing of her husband. Jack still tried to entertain his visitors even when he was in a great deal of pain. Mina had to tell him that people came to see him, not to be entertained. She was concerned about Jack getting tired and over extending himself.

At Christmas time Mina called Ethel and Evan=s home. She felt it wouldn=t be long before Jack would be gone. On Christmas Eve, a group came caroling to Jack. He listened intently and was able to rouse himself sufficiently to thank them and wish them a Merry Christmas. Jack died on Christmas night 1953.

The family lost more than a talented father. They lost a happy father and loving father who had brought laughter and fun into their lives, a sympathetic and compassionate father

114 who had tried to help his children and his wife through their sicknesses and stresses, and a good father who during his last illness wished he had done more for his beloved wife.

Mina spent the first months after Jack=s death visiting her daughters. In April, while visiting Ethel, she wrote to Jesse that it was time she returned to her home. In the house they had lived in for years, she felt Jack=s spirit close to her. She thought that she could hear his chair, by the easel, squeak in his upstairs studio. She stayed in their Mt. Pleasant home until she was ninety-two, and she moved to Spanish Fork to be near Jesse. After a bout of pneumonia at ninety-eight years of age, Mina moved into a convalescent home and resided there until her death, one month before her one-hundredth birthday.

115 Epilogue

When my mother asked me to undertake the research for this book I was at a complete loss, for I had never done anything of this nature before. When I first went to the Brigham Young University library the staff guided me through the use of their files until I felt comfortable at researching by myself.

I remember my grandfather as an excellent story teller and mimic artist. He might well have been a comedian. It almost seemed that Grandpa Jack was living two separate lives--his family life and his art life. He wanted so badly to progress in his art, but he wanted just as badly to create a happy family. At meal times he would entertain with stories of his past. AAll true@ he would say with a twinkle in his eye. He would make the children laugh not only at his stories, but also at themselves when he pointed out the things that they had done.

When Jack died the family lost more than a talented father and grandfather. They lost a happy, loving man who had brought laughter and fun into their lives; a sympathetic and compassionate man who had tried to help his family through their sickness and stresses, and a good man who during his last illness wished he had done more for his beloved wife.

My grandmother Mina, on the other hand, was like a deep, still river that was always buffering any distraction that came in Jack=s way. She was always a caring, industrious, reliable, loving person and a strength and support to her husband. Her great grandchildren were not deprived of her love and friendship through the years and that was a great privilege. The family misses these two dear people very much. They cherish the memories of the many times spent with them.

At a time when I was at a virtual standstill trying to get the book edited, I met Lynne Kirini. Lynne had come to America from Australia with experience in editing and agreed to help with this part of the book. Progress began again. During the time Lynne has been editing the book we have become good friends. I appreciate what she had done in compiling a very readable and interesting story.

116 My mother died before the book was completed telling me, just before she died, to do the best I could.

I appreciate my son Sandy for all his encouragement and counseling, as well as guiding me with the entire computer work.

Jacqueline Joyce Christensen Larsen

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