Elizabeth Ann Nichols, as her name appears on the family group

Elizabeth Ann Nichols, as her name appears on the family group

ELIZABETH ANN OR “LILLIE” OR LILLIAN
NICHOLS MCDONALD PAUL
January 8, 1870 – November 8, 1947
Elizabeth Ann Nichols, as her name
appears on the family group sheet, was born
the 8th of January 1870 in Coalville, Utah, just
over a year after her parents, William and
Ellen White Nichols, had moved there from
Coxhoe, Durham, England. She was their 8th
child, but only the 4th that had survived, all of
which were girls. She was to later have one
more younger sister and an only brother.1
No other information on this child has come to
our attention.
The 1900 Census also shows a female
child by the name of Margaret. Her birth is
indicated to be in September of 1887 which
dates her to the marriage to John McDonald.4
By the taking of the 1910 Census, both Mary
Ellen and Margaret are no longer living with
the Paul family and indicates that one of the
children had died.
The only evidence we have of her birth
date and exact name comes from a family
group sheet with no source references but is
substantiated somewhat by the 1880 Census
which shows her by the name of “Elizabeth”
and, being ten years old at the time of the
Census.2
There is, according to the Coalville
sextant’s records, a Nellie Paul buried next to
Elizabeth’s mother and father, William and
Ellen Nichols. There is no birth or death dates
and it is an unmarked grave.5 If she was
named for her Aunt Mary Ellen Houston,
perhaps she went by the same nickname,6
maybe this is Mary Ellen McDonald, but we
have no way of verifying it at this time. If it is,
we can estimate her death date to be
somewhere between 1900 and 1910 from the
Census – that is assuming it was Mary Ellen
that died and not Margaret.
Very little is known of her and her life
other than some minor details. Her niece, Vera
Nichols Davis, mentioned her in her
autobiography and tells us she went by the
name “Lillian” and was married to a Mr.
McDonald, and later to a Mr. Paul.3 Our
family group sheet, which we believe to have
originated from information provided by Vera,
indicates that Elizabeth married John
McDonald in January of 1885 when she was
exactly 15 years of age.
Who John McDonald is or where he
went has not come to light, although much
effort has been made to locate a marriage
record and/or a death record. There is a
Samuel John McDonald buried in the
Coalville Cemetery who was born April 18,
1862, and died November 4, 18887 which
would fit the right time frame, however, we
don’t have any reason to know he may be the
right “John McDonald.” We don’t really
know where he went, but assume he must have
This same family group sheet lists a
child by the name of Mary Ellen McDonald
born the last day of December in 1886 in
Grasscreek, Summit County, Utah, which is
just outside of Coalville. This child is shown
on the 1900 Census to be living with the
family under the surname of “Paul” at age 14.
259
Marriage Record for Peter Paul and Mrs. Lillie McDonald
died, at any rate we do find that Elizabeth did
marry a Mr. Peter C. Paul on June 15, 1889, in
the home of her older sister, Catherine Stones,
in Almy, Wyoming. The ceremony was
performed by a Justice of the Peace named
“John G. Smith.” Elizabeth, an apparent
widow at age 19, was using the name Mrs.
Lillie McDonald at the time of her marriage to
Mr. Peter Paul, age 30.8 Other information
indicates that the “C” in Mr. Paul’s name was
for Christian,9 and other documents such as
the 1910 and 1920 Census indicate he was
born in Denmark.
Census, dated April 23, 1910, shows Peter and
Lillian Paul living in Park City, Utah, at 929
Park Avenue, with six children, two boys and
four girls.10 By 1920, the Census only shows
the two youngest children still living with
them.11
Their oldest son, a man by the name of
Lawrence Paul, was apparently born in Almy,
Wyoming, on April 27, 1892.
We found a cemetery record for
Lawrence which gives his death as 1918.12 13
After obtaining a copy of his death certificate
which contains information supplied by his
Other information from the 1910
260
Information Extracted from the 1900 Federal Census for Park City, Utah
253 Norfork Avenue -- June 9, 1900
Name
Peter C. Paul
Lillian
Birth Date Age at last
Mo Year Birthdate
Relationship
Head of House
Nov 1858
41
Wife
Jun 1870
30
Married for 10 Years
Birth Place
Denmark
Utah
Mary E
Margaret
Annie
Lawrence
Ethel
Petra
Peter C.
Daughter
Daughter
Daughter
Son
Daughter
Daughter
Son
Utah
Utah
Utah
Utah
Utah
Utah
Utah
Dec
Sep
May
Apr
Apr
Aug
Jun
1885
1887
1890
1892
1894
1897
1899
14
12
10
8
6
2
6/12
P400 Soundex FHL film 1249031 Vol 18 ED 141 Sheet 13 Line 52
Information Extracted from the 1910 Federal Census for Park City, Utah
929 Park Avenue -- April 23, 1910
Name
Peter
Lillian
Relationship
Age
Head of House
54
Wife
40
Married for 21 years
Occupation
Millman at Concentrator
Mother of 8 children 7 living
Annie
Lawrence
Ethel
Petra
Clyde
Helen
Daughter
Son
Daughter
Daughter
Son
Daughter
Cash girl at Dept Store
Works at Odd Jobs
19
17
16
12
10
4
FHL film 1375621 Summit County, Utah ED 170 Page 176 Line 41 – 48
261
262
Information Extracted from the 1920 Federal Census for Park City, Utah
949 Park Avenue -- January 12, 1920
Name
Peter C. Paul
Lillian
Peter C.
Helen
Relationship
Head of House
Wife
Son
Daughter
Age
64
49
20
14
Birth Place
Denmark
Utah
Utah
Utah
Occupation
Miner
Dress Maker @ Home
Metal Miner
FHL film 1821867 Summit County, ED 126 Page 10 Line 46 – 49
widow, we learn that his full name is
Lawrence Christian Paul. His mother is listed
as Lillian Nichols born in Utah; his father is
Peter C. Paul born in Denmark, and that his
wife is Florence Johnson. He was born April
27, 1892 in Alma, [Almy] Wyoming, died
November 5, 1918. We also learn that he was
employed as a Stationary Engineer for the
Silver King Consolidated Mining Company,
and that he died at age 26 from pneumonia as
a result of the great influenza epidemic of
1918 that killed millions.14
also indicates a second marriage to a Wm.
Pape. The source of the information appears
to be a relative working with incomplete
information for a family group sheet on
Theodore Johnson and his wife Lucy
Thompson Snyder, the parents of Florence and
several others. It lists her birthday as
December 11, 1893, and shows them getting
married sometime in 1914.
We also found an entry in the Ancestral
File for a Florence Paul Johnson, born 11
December 1894 in Snyderville [Parley’s Park].
It indicates a marriage to an unnamed Mr. Paul
June 5, 1916 in Salt Lake City. It shows his
death as November 16, 1918, and that she
remarried a Byron Wesley Pape August 25,
1925, in Milford, Utah. He died October 13,
1936, and shows that they had two children –
names withheld.16
In a search of recorded marriages in
Salt Lake County, we found that Lawrence
Paul of Park City and Florence Johnson, also
of Park City, were issued marriage license
024219 and were married June 12, 1916. No
parents or birth dates are included in the
documents.15
A search of the LDS FHL Ancestral file
disclosed a record for a Miss Florence Johnson
of Parley’s Park [Snyderville], a small
community very near Park City, married to a
Lawrence Wm. Paul and appears to be the
correct Florence Johnson for this Lawrence. It
We also found an entry in the U.S.
Social Security Death Index for a Florence
Pape born December 11, 1893, SS Number
issued in Utah, who died in September of 1983
in San Francisco, San Francisco, California.17
263
A search of marriage records in Salt
Lake County turned up a marriage record for
an Anna Paul of Park City, on August 15,
1917 to a Mr. Ralph H. Townsend, also of
Park City, both age 27 plus. Unfortunately the
information contained in the official record
does not reveal birth dates or parents, and
makes an exact match not possible.18 We did
find a sealing record for a Ralph Hunt
Townsend to his parents Herbert Scott
Townsend, of Readfield, Knnebr, MN, and
Mother, Eliza Abigail Hunt, of Echo, Summit
County, Utah, both of whom are buried in the
Park City Cemetery. It also indicates that
Ralph was married to an Ann Paul of Park City
and listed the marriage as having taken place
sometime in about 1916. It also indicates that
Ralph was also known as “Jack.”19
Another Salt Lake marriage we found
was that of Mr. Clyde Peter Paul, a resident of
Park City, to a Miss Blanch M. Baum of Salt
Lake City on February 14, 1925. The marriage
was performed by Bishop Geo. Graham.
Clyde is shown to have been born November
16, 1899, in Coalville to Peter C. Paul of
Denmark and Lillie Nichols of Coalville.21
A careful search of Utah obituaries,
vital records, marriages in Summit County and
cemetery records for Park City and Summit
County failed to turn up any additional
information on Lillian, her husband Peter, or
their children. To date we have been unable to
locate or identify any descendants of Peter and
Lillian.
Our family group sheet show
Elizabeth’s death date as November 8, 1947,
but no source is given and we have been
unable to find substantiation of any other kind.
Much time has been spent in an effort
to locate any living descendants of Ralph and
Anna, but it appears they may have left the
state, probably in the 1930's and the
depression. Ralph’s mother Eliza, died April
25, 1940, in La Crescenta, Los Angeles,
California, and this may be a clue to where
they went. She was buried in Park City next
to her husband.
The 1930 Census will be available
sometime in the year 2002 and may shed
additional light on the Peter Christian Paul
family whereabouts. If and when the living
descendants are found, much more information
could come to light.
We also found a record that Elizabeth’s
mother, Ellen, a nurse, delivered a male child
born to this couple in Coalville, Utah, on
November 16, 1899.20 This was most likely
Clyde who was listed as ten years old on the
1910 Census when it was taken in April.
264
END NOTES
Endnote
1.
Family Group sheet for William & Ellen Nichols in possession of Evelyn McConkie.
2.
Index to the 1880 Census of Utah / Compiled by the BYU Research Center, LDS FHL
Micro Film 0538591, Utah, Summit, Page 4, E-72, L-16.
3.
Davis, Vera Ann. “Autobiography.” Written shortly before her death in 1979.
4.
United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th Census, 1900. Utah, 1900 Federal Census :
Soundex and Population Schedules. Washington, D. C. : The National Archives. (LDS
FHL Micro film 1241686 and 1375621).
5.
Cemetery records, Coalville, Summit County, Utah. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Coalville Ward, Coalville, Utah, Genealogical Committee. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society
of Utah, 1957. FHL US/CAN Film 873714.
6.
Davis, Vera Ann. “Autobiography.” Written shortly before her death in 1979.
7.
Cemeteries in Summit County, Utah. LDS FHL 979.214 V39m, Page 359.
8.
Uinta County (Wyoming) Marriage records 1872 – 1925, Cheyenne, Wyo.: State
Archives and Historical Department. LDS FHL Micro Film 0973807. Affidavit of
Marriage dated June 11, 1889. No 565, Page 33. Filed June 15, 1889.
9.
Family Group Sheet for William & Ellen Nichols in possession of Evelyn McConkie.
10.
United States Bureau of the Census. 13th Census, 1910. Utah, 1910 Federal Census and
Population Schedules. Washington, D.C.: The National Archives. (LDS FHL Micro film
1375621).
11.
United States Bureau of the Census. 14th census, 1920. Utah, 1920 Federal Census:
Soundex and Population Schedules. Washington, D. C.: The National Archives. (LDS
FHL Micro film 1830792 Soundex P400 Index cards).
12.
Cemeteries in Summit County, Utah. LDS FHL 979.214 V39m, Page 177.
Lawrence C. b Alma, Wyoming, son of Peter, b. Denmark, and Lillian, b. Utah,. d 25
Nov 1918, age 26 years 6 mo., 28 days, bur City Cemetery, Park City Utah – Married.
13.
LDS FHL Micro Film 1654374. Page 60 Death #79 for 1918. Lists occupation as
Stationary Engineer; Cause of Death is pneumonia – influenza.
14.
State of Utah – Department of Health, Official Death Certificate for Lawrence Christian
Paul of Park City, Utah. Deceased November 25, 1918.
15.
LDS FHL Micro Film 429092, Salt Lake County Marriage License 024219 dated June 12,
1916.
265
16.
LDS Ancestral File AFN: 7H3C-3L, and AFN F21S-L3, AFN F21S-M8, also AFN
1LGB-MWX, and AFN 1LGB-MVQ
17.
United States Social Security Death Index, SSN 529-26-3112 for Florence Pape.
18.
Salt Lake County Marriage License No. 27608 issued August 15, 1917 to Miss Anna Paul
of Park City and a Mr. Ralph H. Townsend of Park City. FHL film 0429096. It indicates
both parties are over age 27.
19.
Individual Record from International Genealogical Index, and LDS FHL film 538171,
537342, and 471873, showing Ralph Hunt Townsend, Born July 23, 1891, in Salt Lake
City. His parents, Herbert Scott Townsend, born Readfield, Knnebr, MN, on January 14,
1860, died October 1931 in Park City, Utah; married Eliza Abigail Hunt June 30, 1886 in
Park City, Utah. She was born September 7, 1868 in Echo, Summit, Utah, died April 25,
1940 in La Cresenta, L-Ang, California and buried in Park City, Utah. It also indicates
Ralph married an Ann Paul in about 1916. In notes that Ralph also went by the name of
“Jack” and died November 21, 1950. The Endowment was performed April 20, 1957 in
the Logan Temple, and Sealing to Parents March 20,1968 in the Idaho Falls Temple. The
Submitters name was a Mrs. Edith A. Stier, Route 1 Box 59, Benton City, Washington.
Additional information obtained includes parents of Herbert Scott Townsend: Father,
Thomas Jefferson Townsend; Mother, Mary Jane Abbott. Parents of Eliza Abigail Hunt:
Father, Cornelius Hall Hunt; Mother, Jane Mabelma Roberts.
20.
Summit County Vital Records, Birth and Death Registers 1898 – 1905. FHL film
481098.
21.
Salt Lake County Marriage No. 46475 Issued to Clyde Peter Paul of Park City, born
November 16, 1899 to Peter C. Paul of Denmark and Lillie Nichols of Coalville to a Miss
Blanch M. Baum of Salt Lake City born October 26, 1908 in Provo Utah to Bert Baum of
Provo, Utah, and Miss Marard D. Epperson of Midway. FHL Microfilm 429120.
License issued February 14, 1925
266