79. My great grandfather, Samuel Miles, Mormon Battalion, pioneer!
. My great grandfather, Samuel Miles Jr., (father of William Gustavus Miles, see Blog #58,) was only 7 years old when his parents joined the Church in Freedom, New York. His father Samuel Sr.'s first wife, Sarah Simonds, had died in 1824, and in 1825, Samuel married Prudence Marks, who helped raise his 5 young children, and also had 4 more of her own children, (including Samuel). His first wife Sarah was a sister to Patience Simonds, who was the wife of Warren Cowdery, the brother of Oliver Cowdery. Thus, early on, the Samuel Miles Sr.'s family heard about the Church and was baptized on April 29, 1833. I will tell several stories of Samuel Miles Jr.'s life story later. This photo below of Samuel Miles is the only picture we have of him --- obviously he was older. In 1847 on this day, (January 27, 1846) the first men of the Mormon Battalion arrived in California, and the war had e...