Sophronia Prentiss was born 29 March 1817 in Warrensville, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States to Robert Prentiss (1791-1847) and Presillia Warren (1792-1847) and died 10 October 1846 Leando, Van Buren County, Iowa, United States of unspecified causes. She married John Hendeson Reid (1815-1862) 24 December 1837 in Far West, Caldwell County, Missouri, United States.
LDS Pioneer - Nauvoo Era
Vital Statistics
- Daughter of Robert Prentiss (1791-1847) and Presillia Warren (1792-1847)
- 1817: 29 March - Birth in Virginia
- 1837: 24 December - Marriage to John Henderson Reid (1815-1862) at Far West, Caldwell, Missouri, USA
- 1846: 10 October - Death in Portland, Van Buren, Iowa, USA (Note - the only current "Portland" in Iowa mentioned in Wikipedia is in Cerro Gordo County, but User:Thurstan found the original Portland in Van Buren County, now called Leando.)
Biography
Some time after 1830, but before 1840, Robert and Priscilla and at least six of their children moved west from Ohio to Village Township, Van Buren County, where they located north of the Des Moines River in the neighborhood of what now is Douds/Leando. Leando, on the south bank of the Des Moines, was at that time known as Portland and with Iowaville, upstream on the river's north bank, was one of northwest Van Buren county's major villages.
Their daughter, Sophronia, however, became in Ohio a member of Joseph Smith’s emerging Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) and after her baptism at Kirtland at his behest followed thousands of others, to northwest Missouri where, the prophet taught, New Zion would arise. It was reportedly at Far West in Caldwell County, where the Mormons were headquartered at that time and the foundation stones of a great temple were placed, that Sophronia married another convert, John Henderson Reid, on 24 December 1837.
As the Mormons were driven from Missouri during the next two years, John Henderson and Sophronia Reid and their first child, Joseph Sidney Reid, fled east across the Mississippi to Quincy, Ill., where the infant died, and then traveled upriver to Nauvoo, where the Saints regrouped, rebuilt and briefly thrived. Sophronia’s sister, Almira Prentiss, joined them once they were settled in Nauvoo.
After a very few years, life in Nauvoo became intolerable as Illinois natives organized to drive the Saints out, murdered Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, and Brigham Young, with little other choice, decided to lead the Saints west to the Great Salt Lake valley in Utah, as far from their enemies as possible. John Henderson, Sophronia and Almira received their endowments at the new temple in Nauvoo on Feb. 6, 1846, then fled across the river to find refuge in Van Buren County with Robert and Priscilla.
The Reid family suffered a succession of tragedies in Van Buren County. Both Sophronia and her infant daughter, Elizabeth Louisa, born 30 June 1845 in Nauvoo, died on the 17th of October, 1846, and were buried in the Leando Cemetery, located in a clearing alongside a creek just south of town. In December of that year, John Henderson Reid married Sophronia’s sister, Almira. On 8 August 1847 Priscilla Prentiss died and less than a month later, Amelia also died --- on 1 September, perhaps in childbirth, although that is not clear. Amelia was buried near Sophronia at Leando and Robert Prentiss apparently marked his daughters’ graves, as he did his wife’s, since the inscriptions on the identical Reid stones, now eroded to illegibility, clearly identify them as daughters of Robert and Priscilla. Sophronia's parents both died that same year in Iowa also.
Children
Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
Joseph Sidney Reid (1838-1839) | 10 October 1838 Clinton, Phelps County, Missouri | 10 October 1839 Quincy, Adams County, Illinois | |
Almira Jane Reid (1840-1912) | 22 May 1840 Woodsville, Adams County, Illinois, United States | 23 July 1912 Lago, Bannock County, Idaho, United States | Enos McMurray Huddleston (c1832-) William Wood Hall (1832-1891) |
Sophronia Priscilla Reid (1842-1870) | 7 June 1842 Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois | 23 March 1870 Ogden, Weber County, Utah | Truman Root Barlow (1818-1860) Unknown Myers (c1840-) |
Elisabeth Lovisa Reid (1845-1846) | 29 June 1845 Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois | 17 October 1846 Portland, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa |
Siblings
Children of John Reid and Sophronia Prentiss
- Joseph Sidney Reid (1838-1839) - Died young in Nauvoo, IL.
- Almira Jane Reid (1840-1912) - m. William Wood Hall in Iowa, migrated to Utah with LDS pioneers and later settled in Idaho.
- Sophronia Priscilla Reid (1842-1870) - lived much of the time with her sister Almira and her husband.
- Elisabeth Lovisa Reid (1845-1846) - Died young in Iowa
Ancestry
- Hall Prentiss Ancestry -
- Warenne Family Ancestry - ( SPrentiss, PWarren, MWarrenII, MWarrenI, DWarren, JWarren, DWarren, John Warren 1585) - Early English Immigrant to America. Descendant of early English/French Royalty and the Earls of Warenne. Priscilla Warren (1792-1847) - Maternal Grandmother to Almira Jane Reid and direct descendant of the Warenne Family (Moses Warren II) lineage that goes back to early English royalty and Viking Norsemen.
- Rebecca Towne Nurse (1621-1692) - ( SPrentiss, PWarren, PNurse, DNurse, WNurse, BNurse, RTNurse) - She was executed for witchcraft in the Salem witch trials. Ancestor of Priscilla Warren.
- Abraham Morrison - Great Grandfather and family fought in civil wars in Northern Ireland over religion.
References:
- http://lucascountyan.blogspot.com/2007/11/moses-and-nancy-sophronia-and-almira.html - Story of John and Sophronia and children
Footnotes (including sources)
MainTour, Shargrover, 174.126.84.0, Thurstan, Robin Patterson