A SHORT HISTORY OF UMPSTEAD RENCHER JR.
Taken from O’Ye Mountains High - The Story of Pine Valley
Written by Elizabeth Snow Beckstrom and Bessie Snow, 1980
Umpstead Rencher Jr. was born in North Carolina three months after his father died. His father left him with considerable wealth. He was educated in Wake Forest College, Wake County North Carolina. At the age of 22 he married Elizabeth Jemima Philpott. They moved to Sumpter County, Alabama where three of their children were born.
Later they moved to Liberty, Texas. It was here that they were converted to the Mormon Church. They settled in Lehi, Utah in 1855(4). Here they had two more sons. With the passing of time more children were born to them until they had 12. From this family have come many bishops, stake presidents, a patriarch, and missionaries. Many are college graduates, farmers and stockmen.
In 1857 President Brigham Young called 28 families to go to southern Utah to colonize what was known as the “Cane and Cotton Mission.” They started the town of Washington, the 4th town in southern Utah. They came down in April and May. Most of them were converts from the southern states. In this group was Umpstead Rencher’s family. They proved that cotton, cane and other semi-tropical plants could be grown here. The living conditions were so unpleasant, with extreme heat, drought, bad water, and malaria that some of them moved up to Pine Valley, that had been started in 1855, where it was extremely pleasant and beautiful.
In 1858-59 he was called to be a herdsman for the settlers of Washington. At first he cared for the cattle in the area known as Dameron Valley. Later he moved farther north where he fenced a garden spot and built a log cabin on the left (east) bank of the Santa Clara Creek. This place was later known as Chad’s Ranch. He was permitted to raise grain and potatoes as well as raise cattle and sheep for himself while he cared for the settler‘s herd. At an early date herd grounds for the different communities were allotted by the County Court. At the June term of Judge McCullough’s Court in 1860, “Umpstead Rencher was granted a 5 mile square in Grass Valley, for the use of the people of Washington, a herd ground.”
Grass Valley is located just over the Cedar Hill, which is on the north side of Pine Valley. He later became an independent farmer and stockman. He took up ground on the north side of Grass Valley by a big spring. Here he developed a farm and large dairy from which he made a fortune. There was a big spring that rose out of the ground. Umpstead walled the spring up with rocks and it furnished household water and a nice stream for gardening. The spring still stands today just as it did when he walled it up. It still gurgles forth its life giving water and is still a thing of beauty. M.E. Bracken told me, Bessie Snow, that he was sure Umpstead had made enough money from the place to have bought out all of Washington County at that time. Not only did the family farm and run a dairy but acquired herds of cattle and flocks of sheep with sufficient ranges nearby to sustain them. The nearby mountain is still called Rencher Mountain. The products from the dairy and farm were freighted by teams and wagons into Salt Lake City and to the mines of Pioche, Nevada where he received high prices for his products. Cheese sold for a dollar a pound. M.E. Bracken told me that he was sure that Umpstead had a steady stream of wagons going to and from the mines. In that day they were paid with gold and silver. Banks had not yet come into this area. One day a hired girl was working for the family. She was mopping the kitchen floor and went to move a large chest so she could mop under it. She couldn’t move it an inch. Umpstead told her she could have its contents if she could move it. He opened it and she found it was filled with gold and silver coins.
Having come from Texas, he built a small edition of a Southern Plantation. He had William P. Sargent, a southerner from Georgia who had also come west, joined the Mormon Church, settled in Lehi, and moved to Pine Valley, come and build him a beautiful mansion. Sargent had married Maria Snow, a daughter of William Snow. Later Maria’s sister, Mary Lorena Snow, married Umpstead’s son James Grandison Rencher. The house was spacious and grand for the day in which it was built, fireplace in most of the rooms and a porch running the full length of the house. He built a school house and hired a private teacher for his numerous children.
This place is now one of the few in the entire country around that has never changed hands. It is still owned by Renchers and Umpstead’s fifth generation of sons still living there after more than a century.
Grass Valley was so high and cold at first they moved to Santa Clara for the winters and back for the summers. Later they stayed in Grass Valley the year around. While living in Washington and Grass Valley more children were born making a total of 12. The Rencher family became acquainted with the settlers in Pine Valley and the two groups got along very well together. Renchers would have parties and dances and invite the Pine Valley people over. They came to the parties and dances in Pine Valley and they were very congenial. My Grandmother, Ann Rogers Snow, said the Rencher girls always stayed at her house when they came to Pine Valley.
Mary Lorena Snow first became acquainted with James “Uncle Jim” Rencher at one of the Rencher dances. Some of the young swains at the dance took Mary Lorena “Aunt Rene” and Uncle Jim and tied them to one of the porch posts with their backs together. By the time they were turned loose they had become very well acquainted with each other. I don’t know if it might have been then that they became engaged.
Lorenzo Brown’s diary lists many interesting things about the Renchers. He speaks of parties, dinners, dances and over-night visitors at their home, even of buying a 24 1/2 pound cheese there. James G. Bleak’s minutes of Grass Valley says: “After meeting, the missionaries drove from Pine Valley to Umpstead Rencher’s home in Grass Valley. They partook of dinner, then traveled to the camping place in Grass Valley which had been chosen as a camping place to celebrate the 24th of July. The place was found to be a very agreeable selection among the pines. The men from Pine Valley had already laid down a large dancing floor and made ample preparations for a large gathering from St. George and other settlements of the Mission. Friday the 24th of July at daybreak, the Parowan Band under direction of the Band Master, Thomas Durham, aroused the camp. Meeting commenced at 11:30 a.m., singing by the Parowan Choir, prayer by Elder Joseph W. Young, followed by singing by the Pinto Choir.” Surely the Rencher family lived by the side of the road, and was a friend to man.
April 15, 1871 President Young decided it was time to build a temple in St. George. Umpstead helped generously. He donated $500.00 in cash as a beginning, also wagons, teams, machinery and workmen on the building. Brigham Young criticized him and said he ought to give more. Umpstead said, “When another man puts his hand in my pocket and thinks he can tell me what to do, he’ll find that he is mistaken.” Because of this Umpstead decided to return to Texas. In the year of 1880 they started back to Texas. They went by train this time. The older children remained in Utah and kept up the old home in Grass Valley. One by one they moved away all but James Grandison “Uncle Jim,” who remained there for the rest of his life. Umpstead with his wife and children, who went with him, reached Twin Sister Ranch not far from Austin, and remained there for a short time. They were already questioning if they should have left Utah. Umpstead suddenly became very ill. His illness was fatal, believed now to have been appendicitis. His last request was for his wife Jemima and children to return to Utah and the church. After his death (11 Jul 1881) they went on to Blanco, Texas where he was laid to rest in the Blanco cemetery. Umpstead’s son said of him: “Pa was well educated, far-sighted, honest, industrious and knew how to manage a family in love and wisdom.” The family located at Blanco where they established a comfortable home. At the time of Umpstead’s death, his son Peter Preston, left the old home in Grass Valley and went to comfort and assist his bereaved mother. The family was still desirous of returning to the Church. This the brave little mother accomplished.
Umpstead’s son William David Rencher married and settled in Arizona. He was called on a mission to the southern states. After completing his two year mission he visited his mother, brothers, and sisters in Texas. He persuaded them to accompany him to his Arizona home.
Jemima still had six children left home. They arrived in Eager, Apache County, Arizona July 16, 1894. There Jemima lived with her two unmarried daughters, Virginia Caroline and Emma Idabelle until her death January 18, 1909. She was buried in the Eager cemetery. Jemima was small in stature, slim and beautiful with lines of character and accomplishments written in every line of her countenance. Always clean, well dressed and sociable in her peaceful home. Her teachings were noble, outstanding; among them were faith, honesty, industry, and virtue ; the value of a clean mind and a clean body.