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>From Angel621@aol.com
Wed Apr 23 08:40:12 1997
Joseph Bracken Lee was born at Tooele, Tooele County, Utah, on
Sept. 18, 1860. The son of Isaac Lee and Mary Ann Bracken. In his
boyhood days, he worked in a saw mill with his father in Tooele.
He was baptized in Bear Lake by William Budge.
In about the year of 1876, his father's family moved to Grouse Creek, Box Elder County, Utah. At a time when young Joseph 16 years of age. Here in Grouse Creek valley the boy helped his father clear the land of sagebrush to begin to farm. The boy had no easy task of it, but helped his father willingly.
About 2 years after they settled in Grouse Creek, the people there had a terrible Indian scare, A fellow coming from a town called Terrace reported that the Indian's were on the war path. Immediately the people of Grouse Creek began to gather together at a ranch called the "Fletcher Ranch". The young man Joseph, then about 18 years of age, and some companions were riding on horses to the Fletcher Place. They were wearing some old soldier coats which were long and hung about them. On their way, they came in sight of Mr. Albert Richins, who was driving a team of mules and carringing some women and children to safety in his wagon. When Joseph and his companion's saw them they began tride hard toward's them, yelling like Indians, while their soldier coats blew in the wind like Indian blankets. Instantly the women and children began to scream and Albert Richens drove the mules so fast that their backs were rolling with persperation. It was all in fun but perhaps those in the wagon thought differently. The Indian scare proved to be a false alarm entirely. For no Indians whatsoever came to molest them.
About 3 years after this incident, he went trailing cattle from Grouse Creek, to California for a company. Joseph helped to trail the cattle westward, because in those days they did not have shipping facilities. He drove the ox team that followed the herd across the plains, and he was gone about three months. When he came back he worked for another livestock company by the name of Parr(?) and Egars. He worked here up to the time he was married and sometime afterward.
He was married to Mary Ann Mecham on the 11th day of November, 1884. They wer not sealed, however, until October of 1896. The continued to live at Grouse Creek for some time, and for a time of about six months. They lived in Terrace where Joseph worked for wages on the railroad. After that they went to the 12-mile Ranch in Nevada, where they lived for 18 months. They then came back to Grouse Creek, where Joseph worked at odd jobs such as hauling wool, taking over hay contracts and such. After a few years they moved to Marion, Idaho, where they lived for 8 years. Then he, his wife and family of eight children moved back to Grouse Creek. They moved to the Hales Ranch about five miles west of Grouse Creek which is called Etna. 2 or 3 years later he owned a saw mill and moved it up in the mountains east of Grouse Creek, which is called PineCreek. The people of Grouse Creek would haul the trees to the mill and many of the homes in Grouse Creek which is made of the lumber that was sawed by Joseph's mill.
Two years later they moved on their second boys homestead. here they lived for 4 years and then they moved to Dry Canyon where Joseph took up a homestead, after proving up on his homestead he moved to Kirkland Ranch which is 2 miles north of the Hale Ranch. They lived at this place 11 years. Then they moved to Heyburn, Idaho in 1929, where part of his children lived. At Heyburn Joseph did mostly garden work. He died October 11, 1932 and was buried in the Heyburn, River Side Cemetary. He left his wife and twelve children. Two girls and ten boys.
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