Edward Gilbert Weaver (1799 - 1842)

Born 15 Aug 1799 in Saratoga County, New York, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Martha (Raymer) Draper — married 8 Jul 1820 in Dryden, Tompkins, New York

Descendants

Died 2 Sep 1842 at age 43 in Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States

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Edward Engaged as a Stone Mason.

Edward became a member of the LDS Church between 1830 - 1848.

Edward was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Biography

"Edward Weaver married Martha Raymer on 8 Jul 1820 in Dryden, Tompkins, New York. He was a farmer. Their oldest son, Horace Racio, may have been born there, although some family genealogists show the birthplace at Scio, New York. Edward and family moved to Scio, New York, and lived on a farm. Lucius E. Weaver's Genealogy Book states they later moved to Porterville, New York, and thence to Conneaut, Pennsylvania. Porterville is in Erie County, south and east of Buffalo. The family evidently went to Conneaut, Crawford County, Pennsylvania for a chance of new land becoming available. His sister Ann and husband Ebenezer Brown went to Pennsylvania before Edward and his family settling in Summerhill on 1 June 1829. The "History of Ebenezer Brown" states that Ann's and Edward's parents were also with them in Summerhill. Ebenezer sold his land in Summerhill and bought 100 acres in Conneaut, Crawford County, in 1833. Edward and his family probably moved to Crawford County shortly after this, joining Ebenezer and Ann's family and their parents, John Weaver and Catherine Reasoner.

When the family was at Conneaut, Pennsylvania, they became interested in Mormonism. It appears they joined the Church in either January 1835, or 1836, the Church being only five or six years old. Their son, Miles', baptism is recorded as 7 January 1836, when he was ten years old. The rest of the family who were at least eight years old of age were baptized no later than this. The "History of Ebenezer Brown" states that the Browns left Conneaut in 1836, (probably the latter part) and traveled on to Peru, LaSalle, Illinois, for the birth of their fourth child, John Weaver Brown. This child was undoubtedly named after Ann's father."^[1]

About 1836 the Edward Weaver's family joined other Mormon families and went to Missouri. The Brown history further states they joined the Saints in traveling to Far West, Missouri, in August 1838. The Saints were being driven out of Ohio and elsewhere and were gathering at Far West at this time. It is evident that Edward, Martha and family did something similar. Edward, Martha and family probably left Pennsylvania and traveled through Illinois to Missouri in the latter part of 1836 or very early 1837. The Index of Patriarchal Blessings: 1835-1963, for Church Members, Film # 0392693, shows that Martha Elizabeth, their fifth child, was born in the State of Missouri.

The Weaver family traveled as far as Huntsville, Randolph County, Missouri on the first leg of their journey. The Weavers would have been in Missouri during the bloodiest time, election day fight at Gallatin, Hauns Mill massacre, and confinement of Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail 1 Dec 1838. They settled on a 40 acres homestead in Caldwell County, Missouri, but were compelled to leave the land and the state because of the exterminating order delivered by Governor Lilburn W. Boggs of Missouri. The Missouri militia marched on our possessions and encamped there, burning a let of house longs (which were to be our home). Edward prepared a petition of grievance to the Congress of the United States in 1839, but nothing ever came of it.

William Draper Jr. and his family that was traveling through Huntsville in the forepart of June 1838, who became sick and worn out, said that the Edward Weaver family took them into their home, cared for them. "William Draper, Jr. (who later married the widow, Martha Raymer Weaver) states in his autobiography in June of 1838:

"After laying there for a few days I was taken up by a good Samaritan and lodge in the house of a good Mormon brother by the name of Edward Weaver. Where my wants were amply provided for. I soon began to revive and get better."

Amos Herrick purchased same land in 1836, from the government, possibly buying parcels of land up, then re-selling for a profit. Apparently Edward was purchasing this land, but later walked away from it when he and his family fled to Far West at the request of the Prophet Joseph Smith to gather the Saints together at the impending trouble with the Missourians. This property is just off the Road O towards Fort Henry...

It is thought that their daughters, Martha Elizabeth born 24 February 1837, and Miranda born 3 March 1838, were born at Huntsville, Randolph County, Missouri as Edward had a house there as stated by William Draper, Jr. It has been said that there were only eight Mormon families living in Randolph County during this time, none of whom owned land. In August of 1838, the Saints at Huntsville got word that they should leave and go to Far West as soon as possible.

The Weavers indeed traveled on with these saints to Caldwell County, Missouri, where Edward procured a tract of land consisting of forty acres lying in Section 30 T 56 North of the base line and west of the fifth principle meridian, Range No. 28. This information is obtained from the Individual Affidavits and statements of loss by the Saints who were exterminated from Missouri. See following page (Figures 1 and 2) of “Mormon Redress Petitions Documents of the 1833-1838 Missouri Conflict"; and the affidavit in Edward's original handwriting. These affidavits definitely show that the family traveled from Pennsylvania to Missouri and that they suffered under the hands of the Missouri mobs and persecutors. They suffered privations and loss of property including one set of house logs burned by the militia who encamped on their property without permission. They also witnessed the shameful abuse of a prisoner that was taken by the militia. Edward proclaimed their total loss against the state as $650.00, a considerable amount of money at that time."^[1]

By December 1938 the extermination (of Mormons) order had been issued by Governor Boggs of Missouri, Joseph and Hyrum Smith were in Liberty Jail in Missouri, and Brigham Young was leading the Missouri Saints northeast toward the area of Commerce, Illinois which name would later be changed to Nauvoo. They didn't know for sure where they were going, they were just getting away from their antagonists. By Mid 1839 Joseph Smith was at Nauvoo and was encouraging Saints everywhere to gather to Nauvoo. This gathering place was described as a hiding place from the tempests of the last days and where they may build a sanctuary to the name of the most high. About 5,000 British Mormon Saints came, which boosted the population by about 1/3.

"The Brown history states they left Far West, Missouri, in March of 1839, along with the rest of the Saints exterminated from the State. The Weaver family also returned from Missouri with the Saints. They settled with some of the other Saints, including the Brown's and William Draper, Jr. and his family, in Pleasant Vale, Pike County, Illinois, sometime later that year. Pike County was in the traffic pattern of the Saints going into Missouri as well as the exodus from Missouri. See the following map showing "The Scene of Missouri Difficulties".

Pleasant Vale was about thrity miles south of Quincy, Illinois. It was an out of the way place where the Saints did not receive much persecution. It is evident they had great testimonies of the gospel as they endured the hardships and difficulties in settling in new communities, building new homes and enduring the persecutions of outsiders. Edward did business in various places around this area.

The affidavits previously referenced show that Edward appeared before C.M. Woods, C.C.C., Adams Co., Illinois on 3 May 1839, certifying his dollar losses and before A. Brown, J.P., Pike Co., Illinois on 10 January 1840, stating his loss of land and house logs.

Records show that in September 1841, William Draper, Jr. was President of the Pleasant Vale Branch with Edward Weaver and Ebenezer Brown as counselors. William Draper, Jr. had the authority to perform church marriages. On 30 March 1841, he married Horace Racio Weaver, the oldest child, to Eliza Eihlburner. Julia Cecelia, the last Weaver child, was born in Pleasant Vale on 19 December 1841.

On 2 June 1842, Ann Weaver Brown, Edward's sister died. She had been ill for some time. The Brown records show she was buried on Honey Creek, supposedly about five miles from Carthage, Illinois. Although the saints were called by the Church Leaders to come in from the outlying areas to Nauvoo, some stayed behind. Being in the Branch Presidency probably prevented Edward and his family from doing that."^[1] After all this Edward's family settled on a small farm near Quincy, Illinois, in Pike County.

Edward, a stone mason, was called to help with the construction of the Nauvoo Temple. He probably returned to Pleasant Vale on weekends by boat traffic on the Mississippi River.

"From "History of the Church" the walls of the Temple were over four foot high at this time. Temple baptisms and endowments for the living and the dead, commenced long before the Temple was finished. Edward acted as proxy for baptisms in 1841, for his deceased grandfather, Edward Weaver, for his deceased uncle, Gilbert Weaver, deceased cousins, nephews, etc.

When work commenced at limestone quarries near Nauvoo, volunteers gave one day in ten cutting and hauling limestone blocks to the temple site. Although we do not have a journal entry from Edward, another volunteer, Luman Shurtliff recorded the following concerning his determination to labor in the quarries:

“We labored ten hours a day, and got something to take to our families for supper and breakfast. ... I mention this not to find fault or to complain, but to let my children know how the temple of Nauvoo was built, and how their parents as well as hundreds of others suffered to lay a foundation on which they could build and be accepted of God.”

Another journal states: “We esteemed it a privilege to work on the House of God . . . until it was finished. We were then called to the house to receive the blessings the Lord has in store for the faithful, which amply paid them for all their labors.”

In return for their labors, great blessings were promised. Blessings of eternity that would unite the laborers and their loved ones forever were to be received within the temple’s finished walls.

While working on the Temple, Edward contracted pneumonia November, 1842, and died within a month. His death is recorded in the Brown Bible, on 2 December 1842, leaving his wife, Martha, with seven children. Edward had declared his last will and testament on 1 December 1840, which reads in part: "First, I desire to be decently and privately buried in the church yard in district one in Township five south, sixth west, near Aury Brown without any funeral pomp and with as little expense as may be." This is probably now in what they call the Stoney Point Cemetery. No grave marker has been located for Edward. He named William Draper, Jr., "my trusty and much esteemed friend" sole executor of his estate. William Draper, Jr. carried out his wishes with the probate court in Pike County. The date and place of his death as recorded in the probate papers were also shown as 2 December 1842, at Pleasant Vale, Pike County, Illinois."^[1]

This was just a few months before the temple would be finished. By January 1846 the Temple was finished to the point that endowments and sealings were beings done.

"When the temple was almost finished, Martha stood in the temple and was sealed to her deceased husband, Edward, on 28 January 1846, just prior to the Temple closing due to the exodus of the saints from Nauvoo. Edward's good friend, William Draper, Jr. acted as proxy for Edward, Brigham Young performing the ceremony."^[1] While they were there and all dressed up they (Martha and William) tied the knot (for this life).

After Edward's death, the mobs drove the Saints from Nauvoo. The leader of the mob was a large, burly and murderous demon. He told Martha if she would denounce Mormonism and deny that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, she would be unmolested and her home would not be burned. Her strength and faith in our gospel was very significant, and she faced this wicked man with defiance and dignity, stomping her foot and saying, 'you may burn it and be damned'. His answer was, 'I'll give you twenty minutes to get out.' With the help of her 7 children, she got the most needful articles and threw them into a wagon. There was no time for packing. She had no team or horses. She had one oxen and a cow. The boys (Miles, Franklin, and Gilbert) yoked them together to the wagon and drove them away, bidding farewell to their burning home. Grandmother Martha remembered a nice fat pig, ready to kill, at the back of the house, so she sent the boys to see if it had been spared, but it was burned to a crisp.

Authors notes

"In 2008, while visiting in Nauvoo, Illinois, the following information was found: The Records and Land Office of Nauvoo reports that in 1872, Pleasant Vale name changed to New Canton, Pike, Illinois. That would account for the fact the family has not been able to locate his grave in Stoney Point Cemetery in Pleasant Vale. In 2008, I visited the Huntsville, Randolph, Missouri County Courthouse, where the Recorder found this information: Grantee Edward Weaver purchased land from Grantor Amos Herrick on August 29, 1837, Book B, page 226 for property located on the North East corner of the North East Quarter section 28-54-15 (marked on map)."^[1]

NOTE CONCERNING PARENTS

"The Lucius E. Weaver "History and Genealogy of a Branch of the Weaver Family" book reported that Edward Weaver was the son of Gilbert Weaver and not John Weaver. The information of John Weaver was taken from the Bible of Ebenezer Brown, husband of Ann Weaver, a sister of Edward Weaver, and Ancestral File ™, version 4.17, December 1996; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This Bible is considered a primary source of genealogy. A few years after the death of Ann on June 24, 1842, her husband, Ebenezer Brown, joined the Mormon Battalion and evidently brought the family bible with recorded events with him."^[1]

Religion

LDS Temple Builder Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States

(1841) Served as a councilor in the Branch Presidency at Pleasant Vale, Pike, IL. President was William Draper Jr, other councilor was Ebenezer Brown, brother in law to Edward. Pleasant Vale Township, Pike, Illinois, United States

Burial

(5 September 1842) Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6} WEAVER, Life history of Edward Weaver Ann Curfew Eagar 17 November 2013 https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/3509310?cid=mem_copy
2. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #40114457

See also:

• "History of Miles and Franklin Weaver" from a sketch written by Ethel Elsmore, a daughter of Josephine Weaver Harris with additional dates and information from records of Mary D. Weaver.

• "Information Pages from the Ebenezer Brown Bible". Copy in possession of Gordon H. Weaver, Kent, Washington.

• "A History and Genealogy of a Branch of the Weaver Family" by Lucius E. Weaver, 1928.

• "Ebenezer Brown and Descendants" by Jennie B. Hollist and Imogene Brown.

• 'Nauvoo Deaths and Marriages, 1839-1845", Lyndon W. Cook compiler; Grandin Book Company, Orem, Utah. Page 93.

• "Pike County, Illinois - Marriage Book I", page 23.

• "Church Journal History, Oct 9, 1848-June 1, 1850", LDS FHL Film # 1259737. Roster of 1849 Pioneers, Apostle George A. Smith Company.

• "Autobiography of William Draper, 1807-1886" by himself.

• "Index of Patriarchal Blessings: 1835-1963, Martha Elizabeth Weaver", LDS FHL Film #0392693.

• "1850 Census for Utah County".

• "Mormon Redress Petitions - Documents of the 1833-1838 Missouri Conflict" edited by Clark V. Johnson. Religious Studies Center, BYU, Provo, Utah.

• "The Restored Church" by William E. Barrett.

• "Franklin Weaver, A Time Line: 1828-1884" compiled and edited by Ellen Claire Weaver Shaeffer, 1996. Note: Ellen Claire Weaver descends through Riley Weaver, the fourth and last child of Franklin Weaver and Sarah Clark.

• "History of the Church, Period 1, Vol. V and VI; Period 2, Vol. VII".

• “The Nauvoo Temple”, Susan Easton Black

• Early LDS

• FamilySearch entry for Edward Weaver (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:LLQF-SBL).

• Pioneer Story: Franklin Weaver, Mormon Battalion