John Edward McNeil

1848-1915

John Edward McNeil was born December 18, 1848, in Douglas, Isle of Man, England.  He was the son of John Corlette and Margaret Cavendish.  They were married October 10, 1847.  They belonged to the Church of England.  They also attended other religious groups, especially the Methodists, but none of these seemed to satisfy their spiritual hunger.  Finally John investigated the Latter-day Saint Church.  He was thrilled and satisfied at last.  He took Margaret to hear their teachings.  After some time she too felt it was right but hesitated to be baptized.  About this time, Margaret, who was always frail and often unable to do her work, became ill and had to be taken to her mother’s home.  It was feared she would not recover.  One day the Mormon Elders came and gave her a special blessing.  The pain left and she was restored to health.  To her, this was a testimony of the truth of the Latter-day Saint Church.  She was baptized April 4, 1851.  A month later, May 6, John was baptized and on the ninth of May he was confirmed.  He was ordained a Priest June 8, 1851.

This Latter-day Saint family living in the Isle of Man now had a strong desire to come to America.  They wanted to make their home with the Saints in Utah. IN January of 1852 John Corlette, his wife Margaret and son John Edward with two brothers, Richard and William, boarded a ship for Liverpool, England.  They later set sail for America, landing in New Orleans.   They were transferred to another boat, sailing up the Mississippi River to St. Louis, Missouri.  The family arrived there in May 1852 and soon set up shop.  Here, on June 27, 1854, Margaret passed away, a victim of the dread disease cholera.  John Corlette later met and married Mary Jane Quinn in September of 1854.  Little John Edward had a mother again, a very kind and good one.

The McNeil family now bent every effort to prepare to move across the great western plains to Utah.  They were unable to get everything ready for the trip with the immigrant train and this was a great disappointment, but they were not afraid to go alone.  Finally the day arrived.  With a wagon, two yoke of oxen, two heifers and a horse, John Corlette and his family started the journey.  In addition to John Edward McNeil, there were three other sons:  Thomas, William and Richard.  The distance was 1,700 miles across uncharted desert land.  There would be wild beasts, Indians, cold and heat, scarcity of food and drink, and many other problems, but there were happy to be on their way.  After traveling a few days, they came to a fork in the road.  Not knowing which road to take, they prayed to be guided.  Their choice was unanimous and right.  Once they saw in the distance what seemed to be a large band of Indians approaching.  The father said, “Do not be afraid, we must feed them; but pray as you have never prayed before.”  They then took soda crackers from their supplies and passed then to each Indian.  It took two dishpans full to go around.  The chief took some of his braves aside and they whispered together.    The McNeils were so relieved when he returned and gave orders for all to ride on.  I’ve always wondered if it wasn’t thirst, after eating the salty crackers that helped make the decision. 

Tired and weary after four months of traveling, they arrived and camped near Fort Douglas, Utah, August 1, 1859.  After a few days they moved to Woods Crossing where they lived in a log cabin belonging to Daniel Woods.  The boys and their father helped Mr. Woods harvest his crops that autumn.  Later the family moved to Bountiful where John Corlette started a small store.  In addition to this they had a shoe business.  They manufactured and repaired shoes.  He also bought land and built a home, for three more sons had come to bless their family.

Between the time of his arrival in Utah in August 1859 and March 1874 when John Edward was married, we have no written record.  But we do know that he had some formal education in medicine.  His father, John Corlette, decided he should have this after his son filled their home and barn with sick or injured birds and animals.  They both loved medicine.

The father became known as “Doctor McNeil” and his son as “Doctor John.”  They worked together helping the sick and needy.  It has been said that no man was ever turned away from the McNeil home and had plenty to do the year around.  We know what his father did so we can be assured that John Edward McNeil helped.  Their skills were so much the same.  They loved helping the sick, carpentering, raising cattle and farming.

They were industrious people.  They kept beautiful flowers growing in the yard.  They did truck gardening and had a find orchard and vineyard.  They sold produce in Salt Lake City.  They hauled logs of the First Ward Chapel in Bountiful, in addition to giving time to hauling material for the Salt Lake Temple, which was at that time under construction.

Of course there was always livestock to care for—cows, horses, pigs and chickens.  John Edward McNeil studied medical books and learned much about music and musical instruments.  He could play drums, various kinds of horns, the violin (or fiddle, as it was called), also the harmonica.  In later life he trained and led Ward choirs.

In 1871, a widow, Lavinia Duffield Snyder, with her two daughters, Margaret Conrad, age 32, and Maria Todd, age 16, came to Salt Lake City by way of train.  Lavinia heard Joseph Smith speak while on a tour through Pennsylvania and she was very interested.  Evidently her husband, George Snyder, was not.  However he was much older than she.  He died and left her a very young widow.  Lavinia left her home and farm in Philadelphia to her son, and wet west.  Lavinia was the daughter of Jesse Duffield and Mary Knowles.  She was born February 17, 1816 in Philadelphia.  Her parents and grandparents were wealthy landowners and business people.  She and her children therefore knew nothing about pioneering or western life.  Although they missed the easy life in the East, they were happy in Salt Lake City, and after becoming acquainted with the Mormon Church and its people they were baptized.

At age 25 John Edward McNeil married Margaret Conrad on March 16, 1874.  She was born October 5, 1850 and was 23 years old.  Margaret had a very good education for those early days, but she was a delicate girl.  Because a doctor advised John Edward to take her south to a warmer climate, they decided to move to Arizona.   Seven years passed, however, before they were able to go.  In the summer of 1881 they were ready for the move so they sent word to his father they were coming.  John Corlette, already living in Arizona, went to Kanab, Utah to accompany them to Show Low.  Winters in this locale proved too sever for one with delicate health.  Consequently, Margaret was told by an Apache doctor that she had consumption and dropsy.  Many of the Saints were currently moving to Mexico because of polygamy.  John Edward McNeil decided to join them, for it would be a warmer climate there.

John Edward and Margaret traveled in a company with others.  According to a record of Joseph Samuel Cardon, they left in early February, 1885.   My mother was told me of many experiences she had on the trip.  At night she and Joseph Cardon’s oldest daughter, Minnie, could see each other around their family campfire, but during all that trip these little nine-year-old girls could never get together to visit or play.  They were both the oldest ones in their families and there was always so much for the children to do. 

In March, according to this same record, they arrived on the Casas Grandes River, near the Mexican town of La Ascension.  They remained in camp a few weeks while making arrangements to pass the custom house. Then the camp was divided by Apostle George Teasdale.  Some stayed to build up Colonia Diaz, but the McNeils went on to the open country near Casas Grandes.  The Latter-day Saint Church had, in the meantime, bought large parcels or tracts of land from the Mexican Government.  The place to which John Edward McNeil’s family went was later named Colonia Juarez.  This was in honor of Benito Juarez, a great Mexican General and President.  Located on the Piedras Verdes River, the climate was mild and the valley wide.  One problem was scarcity of water, but with the Sierra Madre Mountains near, surely dams could be built to hold the water back for irrigation in the growing season.  Their hopes were high.  Streets were laid out, trees planted and a meeting house built.  It was a crude building with split logs for benches, but it was a good start.

The homes were dugouts along the high banks of the river.  Poles were set in front and across these three branches were laid, making shade for each one.  This would all be replaced someday with nice brick homes, gardens and orchards.  The settlers however began to hear rumors that they were on the wrong land.  After some investigation, this was proven true.  The land, after being surveyed, belonged to the San Diego Grant.  They had to move.  Their ground was about two miles on up the river in a long narrow canyon.  This was a shock to all, of course, but there was not time to lose and so they moved.  This disappointment proved a blessing they could not know at the time.  The soil in the new location was just right for fruit growing.  Warm days and cool breezes from the canyon at night helped to give fruit a good flavor.

These were some of the early experiences of the McNeils in Colonia Juarez.  When they arrived, there were four children. The McNeils had lost one daughter, Lizzie Duffield, born October 11, 1878 in Bountiful, Utah.  Margaret’s health did not improve greatly but they were happy in their new home in Mexico and were quite comfortable.

On March 29, 1886, Melissa Snyder was born.  Margaret seemed to be improving, and was able to sit up.  However, after helping her family sing a song, she slumped over and was gone.  This sad event occurred on April 8, 1886, 10 days after the birth.  Their grieving father wrote her mother in Philadelphia, telling all the family there the sad news.  This letter was preserved and later returned to the family.  In it he said he wished he could have gone with her, but he was glad to be able to stay and care for the children.  In those days it was almost impossible to raise a child without breast feeding it.  Melissa was given good care but she lived only a month.  She died May 1, 1886.  John Edward had now lost a wife and two children. He and the Relief Society sisters together cared for the motherless ones.

It was at this time that Rhoda Ann McClellan, about 14 years old, and her mother Alameda went to the McNeil home to see if there was anything they might do to help the family in their time of bereavement.  As they walked, the ground seemed to be moving under their feet.  They stopped and looked about them.  It was an earthquake.  They hurried on, anxious to visit and return home.  At the McNeils everything was in confusion, with broken dishes on the floor and precious window glass shattered to bits.  Otherwise the family was well and bearing its grief bravely.  The tremors continued in to the late afternoon and evening.  From the hills nearby, rocks, large and small, came rolling down.  Trees burned along the forest line, lighting up the surrounding country as if for some special celebration.  Many homes were cracked and some laid to the ground.  In general, there was concern and excitement everywhere.

After Mother Nature quieted down, the people of little Colonia Juarez were overjoyed.  There was a larger stream in the river, fissures the length of the Piedras Verdes had opened up.  Now there was more water.  This was a special blessing they had received.

On December 24, 1886, John Edward McNeil married Mary Emeline Johnson. This lovely girl was the daughter of Sixtus Ellis and Mary Stratton Johnson and was born November 15, 1870, in Virgin City, Utah.  They were neighbors in Colonia Juarez.  To this union five children were born.  Mary Emeline was a devoted mother and stepmother to the first family of children.  Two years after marrying Mary Emeline, John also married her younger sister, Luella Jane Johnson.  To this union nine children were born. 

From Colonia Juarez, John moved his two families to Colonia Chuhuichupa, also in the State of Chihuahua.  Here Mary Emeline died, August 11, 1896, when her son Eloy was four weeks old.  She left five children behind.  These her sister Luella Jane (Aunt Ella as she was lovingly called) took to her heart and home, to raise as her own.  She had four children but lost John Franklin soon after. 

About 1900 the family left Chuhuichupa.  It was such a lovely little mountain town, but cold in the winter and spring.  Snow would sometimes pile up three feet deep.  They moved to Colonia Oaxaca in the State of Sonora.  There it was a milder climate and the family all enjoyed good health.  Here they lied about ten years until, in 1905, a flood came down the river, washing out most of the homes.

On February 16, 1907, the McNeil family moved to Colonia Morelos, Sonora, where they were very happy, living in a brick home purchased from Bishop Orson P. Brown.  Ed and Joseph had to leave school to help support the family.  They found work at the El Tigre mines about 50 miles away.  They weren’t able to come home often as horses provided the only mode of travel.  The family owned a sheep ranch and also a cattle ranch in the mountains.

The Exodus in July 1912 forced all the Mormons to leave the colonies.  The McNeil family moved to Douglas, Arizona, the closest American town to the border.  As was true of all others at the time, they could take only a few clothes and a minimum of bedding.  Everything else was left behind.  At the time the weather was warm.  It was in October, 1912 and all got along fine, although I’m sure living in tents in the winter was not comfortable.  Douglas at this time was very small and the water supply was not sanitary.  In the fall of 1913 there was a typhoid epidemic and give of the McNeil children became ill with the disease.  The health authorities visited the family and tried to have all take to the hospital but John Edward McNeil wanted to keep them home.  He finally let them take three children, but two of these died.  They were Charles Leland, age ten, who died November 6, 1913 and Sixtus Earl, age 16, who passed away November 16, 1923. 

John Edward McNeil and his family were also among the pioneers of Pomerene, Arizona.  While living at Pomerene their grown son, Harlem Leon, was killed in the mines at Bisbee, Arizona, on November 16, 1923. 

Always a carpenter and able to do cabinet work, John Edward McNeil enjoyed building nice homes, churches and places of business.  He served as justice of the peace for a time while living in northern Arizona.  Before leaving Douglas, he was asked by our government to serve as a scout in helping to hunt Pancho Villa.  He directed the search several months in Sonora and nearby states.

John Edward McNeil was a sincere, humble man but also had a sense of humor.  With Ed McClellan he helped extend many short programs with spontaneous wit.  This he especially enjoyed in the early days of Colonia Juarez.  His funny streaked helped him over many rough spots.  Fortunately, several of his grandchildren today have been blessed with the same gift.

Early in 1915 he became so ill that Luella Jane, with two younger daughters, Edna and Ina took him back to Bountiful for special treatments in Salt Lake City.  Here he passed away among his cousins and relatives on September 4, 1915 and was laid to rest in the Bountiful cemetery.

Mary Johnson Cardon, granddaughter

Nelle Spilsbury Hatch

Stalwarts South of the Border, page 455