The History of Nathan Benjamin Robinson

The History of
Nathan Benjamin Robinson

Written by his 3rd Great Granddaughter,
Anjanette Stone Lofgren
2006

Nathan Benjamin Robinson was the son of Joseph Lee Robinson (b. Feb. 18, 1811, in Shaftsbury, Bennington County, Vermont, d. Jan. 1, 1893, in Farmington, Davis County, Utah) and Laurinda Maria Atwood (b. May 3, 1821, in Mansfield, Tolland, Connecticut, d. Mar. 1, 1895, in Farmington, Davis County, Utah). He was born on Aug. 5, 1850 in Farmington, Davis County, Utah and was Laurinda’s 2nd of 8 children: Jane Geneva b. Jul. 14, 1848, Josephine Elnora b. Nov. 9, 1852, Mary b. Nov. 13, 1854, Laurinda Eliza b. Sep. 7, 1855, Jedediah Nephi b. Dec. 1, 1857, Jennett Orilla (Twin) b. May 25, 1860, and Annette Luella (Twin) b. May 25, 1860. His father had 27 children from his 5 wives.

Nathan and his parents were strong members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. His father had been instrumental in the affairs in Nauvoo, IL and was a friend to the Prophet Joseph Smith. He served in the Nauvoo legion and served as a Justice of the Peace for Farmington, Utah. He was in several bishoprics and eventually ordained a Patriarch by Franklin D. Richards. He rubbed shoulders with many of the men who were the early church leaders in this dispensation. He was ordained into the 40th Quorum of the Seventies.

After the Robinsons moved to Utah, Nathan was born shortly before his father left to serve a mission for the church. His mission was not to bring souls into the gospel, but rather to help make a new settlement which was named Parowan, Utah. He took one of his wives and her children from a previous marriage with him. Nathan’s mother moved in with friends in the city so she would have help while her husband was away. His father stopped to see Laurinda as he was leaving for his mission and gave baby Nathan a blessing and added “Benjamin” as a middle name. His father returned in the fall of 1851, leaving his wife and children in Parowan. He would go there often to visit them and continued to help settle that part of the state for several years.

Nathan married Annise (Annice) Adelia Bybee on Apr. 10, 1873, in Salt Lake City, Utah. They were the parents of 5 children; Nathan Oscar b. Mar. 8, 1874, David Lee b. Dec. 19, 1875, Laura Annice b. Oct. 17, 1877, May Adelia b. Feb. 7, 1880, and Phileon Benjamin b. Jun. 15, 1882.

Nathan received a call from the church asking him to help settle Arizona. He left in January 1876, leaving his wife at home with their small baby, David. He left with the first company leaving for Arizona with Lot Smith as their captain. They arrived in Sunset, Arizona, in April or May and joined the United Order.

Nathan returned to Utah in the late fall of 1876 to bring his family to Arizona. While they were preparing for their journey, Nathan’s father outfitted them with the best kind of wagon, horses, and cattle. They left late the same fall in a big covered wagon, going by way of Salt Lake and down to the dedication of the St. George Temple (dedicated April 6, 1877). From there they traveled to Johnson, Kane County, Utah, where they lost one of their horses, forcing them to stay there the following year to get means to travel with.

They rented a farm at Skutumpau where they raised corn. The farm was thirty-five miles from Johnson, and they had to cross the Skutumpau River seventeen times within five miles. They had some trouble with the Indians while there, as they lived near an Apache trail. The Indians would come often to sell beads, blankets, and liquor.

While passing through Cannaro, Kane County, Utah, they broke a wagon wheel and had to stop and have it repaired. When they came to the Little Colorado River they almost lost their lives trying to cross. The river had risen so they could hardly tell where the crossing was. They ventured in and were almost across when the wagon started sinking in quicksand and the horses just had their feet on the bank and could go no farther. Nathan asked Annise what they should do. She quickly took their baby Laura and handed her to him. He climbed over the horses and laid her on the ground, then returned and took the two little boys. They had three sacks of flour with them and it was the main staple in their diet so they didn’t want those to get wet. Annise handed the flour to her husband over the horses. All the time the wagon was sinking more and more. They also had a crate of chickens, six hens and a rooster. Annise could see they were drowning so she reached in and threw them one at a time onto the bank to Nathan. When he saw they had almost drowned, he wrung their necks. Then Annise got out. In order to save the wagon they took the horses off and fastened a big chain to the wagon tongue and then to the horses. They pulled the wagon out. They cooked their chickens and ate supper with thankful hearts. They thanked the Lord for sparing their lives. They found out later that one foot away from where their wagon had been there was a twenty-foot hole, and as the stream was very swift, they would soon have been carried into it. Wagons arriving on the other side of the stream that night had to wait several days to cross because the water was so high.

Another trying experience happened on their way to Arizona. Nathan and Annise’s 3 year old son, David Lee, jumped off the wagon the way he saw his father do it, and his right leg was hurt by the heavy wagon wheel. It never healed from the open sore and Nathan had to take David back to Salt Lake City in the summer to have it amputated just below the knee. His mother’s arms were then David’s legs for several months after this. In addition to this handicap, he had also developed a disease that no one knew how to treat. We know now that he had suffered from arthritis. He used crutches to walk with when he was young, and later walked with a wooden leg.

They arrived at Sunset (Arizona) in March and stayed a short time. The United Order was broken up by the time they got there. They then went on to Snowflake and then to Show Low (Lone Pine) where they made a little house about ten by twelve feet, made of logs. Annise would help Nathan on moonlight nights to chink the house in order to keep the cold out.

Nathan’s sister, Mary Jane Robinson West, lived in Snowflake with her husband and children, and Nathan’s home was about 4 miles from there.

Nathan worked hard to settle the land for his family and spent many hours working out in their field. One day when he was out planting in the field, a large drunk Indian man came staggering into the Robinson home and frightened Annise and the children. Annise was pregnant with her 4th child at the time. He threw himself down on the nice white bed and laughed and laughed. Annise was frightened and could see Nathan down in the field. She called out the window, “Ohoo, Ohoo, Nathan” every once in a while. Nathan could hear her calling but thought the Indian man would go away. Little David picked up his crutch and kept poking the Indian with it. All at once the Indian grabbed David and pulled out his knife. Annise grabbed her broom and feeling she had the strength of 10 men said to the Indian, “Let the boy go or I will kill you”. Then she went after him with the broom just as Nathan opened the door and came in the house. He later said he felt something was going on in the house. When the Indian saw Nathan, he jumped up and ran out of the house and jumped onto his horse and away he went.

Nathan and Peter Niels Skousen had a contract with John A. West to work on the railroad in the San Francisco Mountains with the Santa Fe Railroad building a grade about seventy miles away. Annise went along and cooked for fifty men for six months, doing all the work except washing dishes. She suddenly became ill and was in danger of losing her baby, so Nathan took her home to his sister, Mary Jane West, in Snowflake. Then he went back to work.
A few weeks later while he was working there, Nathan was so worried about his sick wife and family that he left the Railroad job to return to them. It was about two weeks before their 5th baby was due to be born. Nathan got on his horse and rode the seventy miles back home. He told Annise that the horse just “flew through the air”.

The day after he returned from working on the railroad was Thursday, the first day of the month, and also the day of fasting and prayer for church members. Nathan told Annise that he needed to ride out to Show Low Creek and check on their cattle. He found some of their cattle missing and came back to tell Annise, “I’ll be back around eleven and we will pack the children in the wagon and drive to town for Fast Meeting, so don’t have dinner, only for the small ones.”

Annise and the children waited and watched the road until dark for Nathan to come. She sent her son 8 year old son, Nathan, out on horse back to tell Bishop Hunt. Soon after young Nathan left a young man came riding fast, across country, to notify all the neighbors that Geronimo and his men had broken out of the Indian reservation, and was on a war path. Annise took all of her children and their provisions and drove the wagon into Snowflake to the stockade where everyone was gathering.

Annise knew the Indians had killed her husband and was beside herself with grief. A story was told by Nathan’s sister, Mary Jane West, about that night; “It was midnight of May 16, 1882. John and I were awakened by a knock at the door. The voice of a man was saying, ‘We have sad news. Nathan has been killed by Indians. His wife is calling for Sister West.’ John answered, “One moment, I will be with you.” With trembling hands Mary Jane dressed herself. She and her husband rode with a guard over to Nathan’s house to be with her grieving sister-in-law. Mary Jane said later that “Annise was in tears and tearing at her long black braids and crying, “Oh, Mary Jane, they have taken my Nathan away, he won’t be back.” Mary Jane held her close, “Dear, dear sister. Try to be brave for the children’s sake”. “Yes”, moaned Annise, “I understand he didn’t take the children—he went alone”. “Yes sister, dear, he went alone.” “Oh, my Nathan, I would have gone with you.”

Nathan’s old missionary companion, Brother Joseph Cardon, was one of the men that went looking for Nathan in the morning. He decided that something must have happened to Nathan because it wasn’t like Nathan to leave his family alone.

The men had searched and searched and could not find Nathan’s body. They knelt down to pray for inspiration on where to search and after the third time of kneeling in prayer, they started searching the river again. Brother Cardon noticed something in the water that was moving up and down. It was Nathan’s foot. His body had been weighed down with rocks in the Show Low Creek. Only one leg and foot was visible. Brother Cardon fired a shot into the air as a signal and the men all came at once.

Years later the story of what happened to Nathan was revealed when one of the murderers told someone what had happened. Nathan was riding along Show Low Creek looking for his cattle, when he came upon seven Indians in a bunch of willows. The Indians were skinning a beef. Nathan did a foolish thing-- he got off his horse and turned over the hide to see whose brand was on it. The Indians, who didn’t want to get caught, shot Nathan seven times. The Indians took his clothes, hat, watch, boots, socks, and took his horse, saddle, and bridle. They laid his temple garments on some bushes nearby where his body was disposed of.

One family story says that when Geronimo was caught and went to trial, it was proven that it was he and his tribe of men who killed Nathan Benjamin Robinson. Geronimo was convicted of the crime.

Annise suffered terribly at the loss of her husband. She was confined to bed and was living with the West Family when she gave birth to her infant son. He was born on June 15, 1882, two weeks after Nathan’s death. Annise now had five children to look after and no husband to support her. She was in such agony that she would look in the mirror and pull at her beautiful, long, black hair and cry, “Why, oh why did he leave me in this condition?” Shortly after giving birth, she cried herself to sleep. Suddenly, she heard Nathan whistling as he would when he came in from the stables. The door was open to the room where she was resting. Nathan came across the room to Annise. She started to cry and asked, “Why, oh why did you leave me in this condition?” Nathan said, “Now, Annise, I was permitted to come and comfort you and give you a blessing that will help you carry on your responsibilities. I am really busy over there preparing the way for us. You will be given a companion to help raise the children. I would like to see my son, now that I am here.” Annise turned down the covers and Nathan said, “You have a lovely baby.” “I want you to name him Phileon, which means ‘Paternal Love’. He will be kind and reliable.” Annise saw Nathan leave the room through the open door and he didn’t make any footsteps. His sister (Mary Jane West) was with Annise. She said, “What is the matter, Annise?” Annise said, “Nathan has been here.” Mary Jane replied “I know he has. I didn’t see him but I felt his influence.”

Annise and her children lived with Mary Jane West and her family for 16 months after the baby was born. The Indians had burned their home so they couldn’t return there after Nathan was killed.

About a year and a half after Nathan’s death, Annise married a 2nd time. She married Peter Niels Skousen on Feb. 17, 1883, in the St. George Temple for Time only. She had already been sealed to Nathan and had Peter marry Mary Malinda Rogers first so he could have an eternal companion. Peter and Annise had 9 children together. Peter’s brother, Willard Richard Skousen, married Nathan and Annise’s daughter, Laura Annice on Dec. 23, 1896. So mother and daughter were also sisters-in-law!

Nathan’s remains are buried in the Snowflake, Navajo, Arizona cemetery. His memory remains strong with his descendants who tell their children of their beloved grandfather and honor him with the way they live their lives.


Sources:
Pioneer Men of Arizona
Life History of Laura Annice Robinson Skousen written by Melissa May Oates
Life History of Annise (Annice) Adelia Bybee
Journal of Joseph Lee Robinson
Nathan Benjamin Robinson Story by Melissa Oates Jolley
Snowflake, Arizona City Cemetery
Most photos supplied by Carol Davis Dangerfield
Ancestral File ®