Elisha Thomas was born in Castle Frome, Herefordshire, England, on 2 August 1834 and christened in that parish the following day, 3 August 1834. He was born the second of ten children and the oldest son of Charles Thomas and Elizabeth Carter.

Elisha’s parents, Charles and Elizabeth, actively sought the ‘true’ religion by visiting the different sects and praying for guidance. They heard about two young men in the area who claimed to represent a new church called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These two missionaries gave a beautiful account of how a young prophet had been raised up to restore the true church of Christ. This new belief came as a refreshing and inspirational way of life, and Elizabeth accepted baptism. Her husband, Charles, was converted but decided to wait to be baptized until arriving in America when they would
join the saints.

After settling their affairs and making all necessary preparations, the family booked passage with a large group of converts on a small sailing vessel. The first week of their voyage was uneventful, but the ship soon became lost and was tossed about in the rough seas. Many passengers became ill, including
Elisha’s younger sister, Louisa. Sadly, she passed away, which became a sore trial for her parents and little brother to witness her burial proceedings. She was wrapped in a tarp, tied with a rope, and slowly lowered into the vast Atlantic ocean. But, having been taught that nothing would be lost in the sight of God, the family felt hope. Elizabeth seemed stronger than Charles, who sometimes became depressed. She would try to help him by explaining that with so much light and knowledge, they could have hope!

After six weeks of being tossed at sea, they were delighted to see land finally. However, because they had been lost at sea on more than one occasion, the captain realized they had drifted to the St. Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada. If they were to land there, they would have to pay a fine, so he had to return
to sea and follow the coastline south to the Hudson River into the New York harbor. Following this, they went west to Nauvoo, where Charles was finally baptized in the Missouri River.

It was a wonderful time for the family to be among new converts and many enthusiastic saints who were busily engaged in planning and constructing a beautiful city on a bend of the Mississippi River. Here, Charles and new friends would hurriedly build a comfortable home for his family on a city lot in
Nauvoo. Before it was completed, he also sought work in the nearby quarry where stone was being cut  for the new temple. One day, while taking a break from his work, Charles went off a short distance and engrossed himself in the memory of his lost child, Louisa. She suddenly appeared before her father and
danced back and forth, expressing great happiness to him. After she disappeared, he realized her message was to let him know she was well and happy in the spirit world. This event brought a change to his life and strengthened his testimony.

Another significant tragedy the family experienced was when a man riding a horse came into Nauvoo on the 27th of June, 1844, and broke the calm of the day by calling all to hear what he had to say. He loudly declared, “Our prophet and his brother Hyrum have been shot in Carthage, and they are dead.” People
gathered together, crying and fearing for their future, as well as being struck with terror and disbelief.

About 2½ years later, the Thomas family and all other saints were told to evacuate Nauvoo ahead of the mobs immediately. Everyone had to pray for strength, have faith, and renew their courage for the journey westward. Elisha was just a young man, only fourteen years old, when the family had to leave Nauvoo. Their exodus took them first to Council Bluffs, Iowa, where they lived briefly to prepare themselves with wagons, teams, and provisions. The 1850 U.S. Census of the 21st District in Pottawatomie County, Iowa, lists the following members of the Thomas Family:

• Charles Thomas, 40, blacksmith, born in England.
• Elizabeth Thomas, 40, born in England.
• Eliza Thomas, 19, born in England.
• Elisha Thomas, 17, mason, born in England.
• Charles Thomas (Jr.), 11, born in England.
• John Thomas, 8, born in England.
• Jacob Thomas, 5, born in England.
• Joseph Thomas, 2, born in England.

When the family left Council Bluffs on 19 June 1852, they were members of a wagon company led by Isaac M. Stewart, which comprised about 245 individuals and 53 wagons. Elisha was responsible for driving the first wagon loaded with household equipment, including a large cookstove. Like many other women, his mother, Elizabeth, was assigned to drive the second wagon carrying seven children. His father, Charles, was driving the third wagon carrying the family’s provisions. The Isaac M. Stewart Company would arrive in Salt Lake City on 28 August 1852 after just sixty-nine days of travel. After arriving in the Great Salt Lake Valley, some decided to settle in the city, and others would scatter to new settlements being organized around the Utah Territory. Elisha, however, left his family and returned to Winter Quarters in Nebraska to assist in bringing another company of travelers westward.

At this time, he met a person he considered could be an excellent companion for him. She had walked with a handcart company under the most challenging conditions in her family’s journey to Zion. Her name was Jane Harris Baum, and Elisha found her attractive and noticed that she had many admirers. Jane was born on the 2nd of July 1832 in Brandywine Manor, Chestershire, England, the third child of John Jacob Baum, Jr. and Agnes “Nancy” Harris. Elisha and Jane married on the 10th of July, 1854, in Provo, Utah Co., Utah. From their marriage came seven children, two boys and five girls:

1. Sarah Jane Thomas (KGLM-G7H) was born on the 1st of June 1855 in Provo, Utah Co., UtahTerritory, when her mother was twenty-three and her father was twenty-one. Marriage information could not be found, and it is assumed that she had never married. She died on the 31st of May 1905, at 50, in Provo, Utah Co., Utah, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery.

2. Elizabeth Agnes Thomas (KGLM-B1M) was born on the 28th of November 1857 in Provo, Utah Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-five and her father was twenty-three. She married James F. Richardson, though no marriage information or children records could be found. She died on the 27th of September 1955, at 98, in Red Bluff, Tehama Co., California, and was buried in Los Molinos, Tehama Co., California.

3. Ellen Elena Thomas (K27R-G8P) was born on the 7th of January 1859 in Provo, Utah Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-seven and her father was twenty-five. She married on the 17th of April 1877 in Slaterville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, to James William Adams – nine children. She died on the 24th of October 1940 in Orem, Utah Co., Utah, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery, Provo, Utah Co., Utah.

4. Elisha Jacob Thomas (KWC6-SLT) was born on the 26th of August 1861 in Heber City, Utah Territory, when his mother was twenty-nine and his father was twenty-seven. He married on the 6th of November 1889 in Provo, Utah Co., Utah Territory, to Josephine Snow – nine children. He died on the 17th of February 1944, at 83, in Provo, Utah Co., Utah, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery.

5. Eliza Ann Thomas (KWV3-BQQ) was born on the 9th of November 1863 in Wasatch County, Utah Territory, when her mother was thirty-one and her father was twenty-nine. She married in 1881 in Provo, Utah Co., Utah Territory, to Thaddeus Harvey Cluff. They did not have any children together because she passed away less than a year after their marriage on the 14th of January 1882 in Provo, Utah Co., Utah, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery.

6. Rachel Louisa Thomas (KWZZ-TDD) was born on the 27th of September 1865 in Heber City, Wasatch Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was thirty-three and her father was thirty-one. She married on the 9th of October 1884 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, to her sister, Eliza Ann’s husband, Thaddeus Harvey Cluff.– five children. She died on the 29th of December 1938, at 73, in Maywood, Los Angeles Co., California, and was buried in the Provo
City Cemetery, Provo, Utah Co., Utah.

7. Charles William Thomas (KGL9-F2T) is believed to have been born on the 10th of December 1867 in Wasatch County, Utah Territory, when his mother was thirty-five and his father was thirty-three. He never married because he died just nineteen days after his birth on or about the 29th of December 1867, which is believed to have occurred in Wasatch County, Utah. It is also presumed that he is buried in the Heber City Cemetery. 

Around 1860, Elisha and Jane moved their family to the ‘Provo Valley,’ later called Heber Valley after Apostle Heber C. Kimball. While living here, they moved into the Heber Fort when the Indian Wars were in full swing. Their cabin was near the Fort’s northeast corner (See the image of the Heber Fort on page 8). Elisha enrolled in the Calvary Company, commanded by Capt. William Wall from 1 August 1866 to 31 October 1866. He signed an affidavit to these facts when he was 70 and living in Arizona. He listed his duties as a ‘Scout and Patrol Member’ in Wasatch County.

Sadly, Elisha and Jane separated, and little is known about the circumstances. Jane took the seven children and went home to Provo to live with her widowed father, John J. Baum, Jr. Elisha, on the other hand, followed his brother-in-law, Jacob Baum, into a small Mormon community outside Ogden called
‘Farr West,’ later known as Harrisville. These two would try their hand at farming but not very successfully, which caused Elisha to seek employment with the railroad in Ogden. Shortly after, friends introduced him to a lovely young unmarried woman, Elizabeth Lee. She was born on the 1st of December 18465 in Mission, Nottinghamshire, England, the fourth of twelve children of John Lee and Sarah Ann Roebuck. Elisha and Elizabeth married after a short courtship on 28
November 1866. Their marriage produced ten children, three boys and seven girls:

8. Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Thomas (KWJ1-R64) was born on the 27th of September 1867 in Heber City, Wasatch Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-one and her father was thirty-one. She married on the 21st of January 1885 in Logan, Cache Co., Utah Territory, to Jens Christian Jensen – no children were found to be connected. She died on the 22nd of October 1916, at 49, in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried in the Ogden City Cemetery, Ogden, Weber Co., Utah.

9. Sarah Thomas (KWCB-NQG) was born on the 25th of July 1869 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-three and her father was thirty-three. She married about the 26th of October 1887 in Logan, Cache Co., Utah Territory, to Alexander Morain Clement – nine children. She died on the 27th of July 1947, at 78, in Moreland, Bingham Co., Idaho, and was buried in the Moreland Cemetery.

10. Rosella Thomas (KWCH-TB3) was born on the 29th of January of 1871 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-five and her father was thirty-five. She married on the 26th of September 1895 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, to Joseph Lee – seven children. She died on the 24th of January 1953, at 82, in Ammon, Bonneville Co., Idaho, and was buried in the Ammon City Cemetery.

11. Elisha John Thomas (LYTL-82C) was born on the 7th of June of 1873 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when his mother was twenty-seven and his  father was thirty-seven. He married on the 8th of May of 1895 in the Logan Temple, Logan, Cache Co., Utah Territory to Eliza Jane Hancock – six children. He died on the 1st of November 1950, at 77, in Turner, Caribou Co., Idaho, and was buried in the Turner Cemetery.

12. Melissie Thomas (KWCG-5J2) was born on the 9th of May 1875 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was twenty-nine and her father was thirty-nine. She married on the 19th of July 1893 in Logan, Cache Co., Utah Territory, to William Heber Taylor – nine children. She died on the 25th of August 1946, at 71, in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried in the Ogden City Cemetery, Ogden, Weber Co., Utah.

13. Chancey William Thomas (KWJ1-R6H) was born on the 22nd of April 1877 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when his mother was thirty-one and his father was forty-one. He never married and had no children of record. He died on the 8th of May 1926, at 49, in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried in the Turner Cemetery in Grace, Caribou Co., Idaho.

14. Phoebe Thomas (KWZG-88R) was born on the 22nd of April 1880 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was thirty-four and her father was forty-four. She married in approximately 1905 to William Heber Taylor – four children. She died on the 10th of September 1962, at 82, in Ogden, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried in the Ogden Cemetery.

15. Samuel George Thomas, Sr. (KWZ3-FFC) was born on the 10th of May 1882 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when his mother was thirty-six and his father was forty-three. He married on the 14th of June 1905 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Co., Utah, to Mary Alfretta Hancock – ten children. He died on the 27th of September 1922, at 40, in Pocatello, Bannock Co., Idaho, and was buried in the Turner Cemetery in Grace, Caribou Co., Idaho.

16. Delina Thomas (K2H5-KB1) was born on the 9th of July 1884 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah, when her mother was thirty-eight and her father was forty-five. She never married because she passed away the same month as her birth in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, and was buried in the Ogden City Cemetery.

17. Delia Thomas (KWJ8-R25) was born on the 9th of July 1884 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was forty and her father was forty-seven. She married on the 5th of April 1905 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Co., Utah, to Carl Oscar Hanson – no children of record were found. She died on the 1st of November 1961, at 77, at Farr West, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried at the Washington Heights Memorial Cemetery, Ogden, Weber Co., Utah.

This second wife, Elizabeth, was a kindly and wonderful wife and mother. It was a very sad moment when the family learned from the doctor that the illness she had come down with was terminal cancer. She died on the 31st of December 1891 in Harrisville, Weber Co., Utah, and was buried in the Ogden City Cemetery four days later. This left Elisha a sad and lonely father with a large family that needed a mother.

Several years later, he was fortunate to meet another woman who appealed to him and appeared capable of taking over his family like a real mother. Her name was Mary Magdalene Grather, a German by heritage who lived in Salt Lake City. She was born on the 24th of September 1865 in Dossenback, Schworstadt, Lrrach, Baden-Wurttenberg, Germany, the fifth child of Johannes Grether and Anna Katharina Struebin. Elisha and Mary were wed in Ogden, Weber Co., Utah, on the 10th of April, 1895. Mary measured up to all expectations of her husband, Elisha, and his family. She was a good homemaker and a cheerful companion, but she also became ill from asthma after the birth of their third child. The doctor recommended a change of climate to help her condition and suggested southern
Arizona. Elisha and Mary had a total of three children, two girls and one boy:

18. Emma Lena Thomas (KW82-V4P) was born on the 26th of April 1896 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was thirty-one and her father was sixty-two. She married on the 13th of October 1912 in Benson, Cochise Co., Arizona, to Joseph McNeil – three children. She died on the 17th of November 1991, at 95, in Mesa, Maricopa Co., Arizona, and was buried in the Mesa Cemetery.

19. Mary Olive Thomas (KWJ1-PY6) was born on the 7th of March 1898 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah Territory, when her mother was thirty-three and her father was sixty-four. She never married because she passed away just three months later, on the 2nd of June 1898, also in Farr West, Utah. She was buried in the Ogden City Cemetery.

20. Herman Joseph Thomas (KWCR-2Q4) was born on the 14th of September 1899 in Farr West, Weber Co., Utah, when his mother was thirty-four and his father was sixty-five. He married on the 21st of December 1923 in Pomerene, Cochise Co., Arizona, to Bertha Mortenson – three children. He died on the 10th of June 1978, at 79, in Waterflow, San Juan Co., New Mexico, and was buried in the Kirtland Cemetery in San Juan, New Mexico.

Though difficult, they left Ogden because Elisha loved Mary very much and wanted her to be comfortable. When they arrived in Douglas, Arizona, they learned of a small Mormon Colony that had settled about sixty miles south in Mexico. It was called “Morelos,” in Sonora, Mexico. Elisha and Mary took their family and traveled southward to settle with those good people. This mild climate they found, with rich land and plenty of water, was a blessing for everyone, and they prospered. Elisha built one of the finest brick homes in the little hamlet and was known for his fine fruit and vegetable garden.

Their daughter, Emma Lena, was gifted in music and had a keen ear for tone like her father. Elisha drove to Douglas, Arizona, when she was twelve and purchased a fine Baldwin organ for her to learn to play. She was quick to learn, and she and her father, who had learned to play the fiddle in his younger
years, would play together for dances and other activities.

Over time, Elisha became weaker, even needing to put aside his fiddle. Eventually, he became very ill and was taken to Douglas, Arizona, where he passed away on the 11th of August 1921. He had always stayed close to the Church and held the office of a High Priest, in addition to serving as a member of the Seventies in the Bisbee District.