In 1839, while the Saints were still suffering from severe persecution in Far West, the Lord called the Twelve Apostles on missions to England. It was the next year before they were able to leave and when they did, Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball were so sick they started their missions laying down in the back of a wagon. They traveled without purse or script and trusted in the promise of the Lord that their families, many of whom were sick and without adequate shelter, would be cared for. (Lund, p.242)
John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff were the first apostles to reach Liverpool, England. They arrived on January 11, 1840 and traveled by train to Preston, England where they were met by Willard Richards. On January 17, 1840, a council was held and assignments given. Wilford Woodruff was assigned to the Staffordshire Potteries area about 30 miles south of Manchester. There he found a rich harvest. Forty people were baptized into the church during the first few weeks. Among the new converts were William and Ann Benbow. (Lund, pp.305-308)
Then, with the missionary work going well and a promise of future success, Apostle Woodruff suddenly surprised everyone when he announced that the Spirit had whispered to him to leave and go farther south to Herefordshire. William Benbow had a brother living in Herefordshire so he offered to go with Elder Woodruff and introduce him to his brother, John Benbow. (Kenison, p.1; Lund p.309-310)
John Benbow and his wife Jane were members of a religious group who had broken off from the Wesleyan Methodists and called themselves The United Brethren. “This group was earnestly seeking for a restoration of the gospel as it was taught and practiced anciently.” (Lund, p.314) They wanted to teach and live the gospel as the Savior had taught it and they prayed for guidance from the Lord as to how they should proceed. (Richins, p.5)
Within a few days, the conversions began. Elder Woodruff cleared a pool of water on the John Benbow property to facilitate the baptisms. In a short time, he baptized all of the 600 members of the United Brethren (except one). (Kenison, p.1; Lund, pp.309-310)
From the journal of Apostle Wilford Woodruff we read:
“The power of God rested upon us and upon the mission...The Lord had a people there prepared for the gospel. They were praying for light and truth, and the Lord sent me to them. I declared the gospel of life and salvation unto them.” (Kenison, p.2)
John Deveraux and Ester Ann Cockshut were both born and christened in Dymock, Gloucestershire, England. John was born April 6, 1800 and christened May 4, 1800. His parents were Joseph Deveraux and Elizabeth Hayward. Ester, who was four years older than her husband, was born January 24, 1796 and christened February 7, 1796. Her parents were William Cockshut and Ann Wood. (Ancestral File and Family Group Sheet)
When John and Ester were married February 26, 1827 in Ledbury, Gloucestershire, England Ester had a six-year-old son named Paul Cockshut. Paul had been christened January 28, 1821 in Dymock, Gloucestershire, England. It is unknown who his father was or when he passed away. The Deveraux’s 1st child, a daughter named Ann, was born March 18,1828 and christened April 6, 1828, also in Dymock. She grew to adulthood but died sometime after 1851. Apparently John and Ester lived in Dymock, Gloucestershire, for a short time after their marriage and then moved to Eastnor, Herefordshire, England because the rest of their six children were all born in Eastnor. (Ancestral File and Family Group Sheet)
Their 2nd child, Joseph, was born September 19, 1829 and christened October 11, 1829. He later married Jane Lewis, joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and emigrated to Pleasant Grove, Utah, USA where he now has a large posterity. Many of his descendants still live in and around Pleasant Grove. Child #3, John, was christened March 18, 1832 and lived only a short time. He was buried May 9, 1833. Harriet, my 2nd great-grandmother, was child #4. She was born December 29, 1833 and christened January 26, 1834. She married Thomas Richins, joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and also emigrated to Pleasant Grove, Utah. Their story is recorded separately. In 1835 child #5, another son, Emanuel, was born and passed away while still in infancy. Child #6, Ester, was born October 21, 1838. She stayed in England and married James Baldwin on September 24, 1856, shortly after her family emigrated to Utah. Ester passed away sometime after 1881. (Ancestral File and Family Group Sheet)
“In the spring of 1840 Herefordshire, England looked much like Pennsylvania and upstate New York, USA. The soil, recently plowed for spring planting, was rich and black. Fields were divided into a patchwork of squares and rectangles by rock or rail fences, or thick hedgerows. On the east, the land rose gracefully to form a small range of gentle peaks covered here and there with trees. There were many large and well-constructed houses, clearly testifying to the prosperity of their owners. There were also the residences of the tenant farmers, which were little more than one room cottages, but they were clean and well-kept.” (Lund pp.310-11)
John and Ester Deveraux were tenant farmers. They were both very spiritual and deeply religious. They had belonged to the Wesleyan Methodist religion until, becoming dissatisfied with it, they joined with a group called the The United Brethren.
“This group was searching for light and truth, but had gone as far as they could, and were calling upon the Lord continually to open the way before them and send them light and knowledge, that they might know the true way to be saved." (Kenison, p.1) In 1840, John and Ester Deveraux were among the 600 members of the United Brethren who converted and were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Apostle Wilford Woodruff on the John Benbow farm in Herefordshire. (Richins, p.5; Fischio)
Some of the wealthier converts emigrated to Nauvoo, Illionois, USA (where the Church was headquartered) soon after they joined the Church (Kenison, p.2), but the Deveraux family did not have enough money and had to wait fifteen years until the Perpetual Immigration Fund was established to aide the poor Saints who wanted to go to "Zion." At that time Zion was in Utah and their daughter, Harriet, was married to Thomas Richins and had a 1-year-old son named Albert Franklin. (Fischio)
In March 1856 John, who was then 56 years old, Ester 60, Thomas 29, Harriet 22, and Albert Franklin 14 months, embarked on the sailing ship Enoch Train. They set sail at Liverpool, England, bound for Boston, Massachusetts, USA and were in the first group of Saints to travel to Zion with the aide of the Perpetual Immigration Fund. They were also be in the first experimental group to cross the plains with handcarts. (Fischio; Hilton) “By this means of travel, the emigrants could journey from Liverpool, England to Salt Lake City, Utah, USA for about forty-five dollars.” (Berrett, p.280)
Ester was in poor health when she left England and had been advised not to start such a long journey, but her faith was so strong that she said she would rather die on the way than not make the attempt. When the ship was about ten days out, she passed away from "consumption" and was buried in the sea. (Mormon Immigration Index; Fischio)
From the journal of Archer Walters, a Saint who was on the same ship we read these entries:
"April 1st: A sister died during the night named Ester Deveraux from Herefordshire Conference, age sixty years...A rough day. Ship rolled and boxes rattled. Bottles upset. Bedsteads broke down and cooking did not please all for the saucepans upset in the jelly. Some were scalded and some fell and hurt themselves. A thing to try the patience of some. Went to bed, ship rocked and rolled about; did not sleep well but all night the President and Captains of the different wards did their best for all and all Saints feel well...
April 2nd: The dead sister’s body committed to the deep. It was the first I have ever seen buried in the sea and I never want to see another. A rough day all day."
I imagine it was devastating for John to lose Ester after they had waited for so many years to go to Zion. It also would have been a very traumatic experience to see a beloved companion of many years buried in the sea. John Deveraux did not lose his faith and continued on. A record of the voyage is found in the paper Thomas Richins and Harriet Deveraux by Laural Bushman, 2002. The experiences John encountered during the handcart trek across the American plains are told in the story They Crossed the Plains with a Handcart written by Laural Bushman, 2002. The long trip must have been especially hard for a 56-year-old man.
When they reached Salt Lake City, Utah Thomas and Harriet stayed there for five years until they were called by President Brigham Young to move south to help settle Goshen, Utah County.
On July 10, 1857, John Deveraux married in Salt Lake City, Utah a widow named Ann Perkins Price. The same day, he was endowed and sealed to Ester for eternity in the Endowment House. (Ancestral File)
In the 1870 Federal Census, John was listed as age 65, living in Newton, Utah County, Utah with a wife named Anne, age 60. His occupation, farmer; he owned a personal estate worth $200 and property valued at $275. He could read and write and his birthplace was listed as England. At first, it appeared that record of John did not occur in the 1880 census. Since the 1890 census was destroyed by fire, there seemed no additional sources of information available about John or his wife Ann. However, by searching alternate spellings, one researcher found John and Ann listed in the 1880 census as John Devarax living in Goshen, Utah! Following is an extract of the census information as found on www.familysearch.com.
John DEVARAX is listed as married, white, aged 78 and a farmer. His birthplace is listed as England. The birthplace of his parents also is listed as England.
Ann DEVERAX is listed as married (the wife of John DEVARAX), white, aged 70 with "keeping house" as her occupation. Her birthplace is listed as England. The birthplace of her parents also is listed as England.
Source: Census place, Goshen, Utah, Utah; Family History Library film, 1255338, NA Film number, T9-1338; Page number, 224B.
The following paragraph is found in a biography written about his daughter, Harriet Richins, by Gladys Richins Hilton:
“Harriet’s aged father, who had become blind, came to live with her. She cared for him for six years and most of the time he was bedridden. She did everything she could to make him comfortable until he died. He was always very appreciative of everything anyone did for him and prayed his Heavenly Father’s blessings on those who were caring for him, using the expression, “God bless and save you.” (Hilton)
John lived to be ninety five years old before his mission on this earth was finished and he never lost his faith in the gospel that he and Ester had sacrificed so much for. The faith and courage it took for them to leave their home in England and start on a trip of the magnitude that they did, at the age they were, and with Ester being as sick as she was, is phenomenal. Ester Deveraux gave her life for the true gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. What a great legacy they left for their descendants and how proud we should be to be counted among them.
John passed away in his daughter’s home in Pleasant Grove, Utah on February 9, 1895 and was buried in the Pleasant Grove Cemetery. The engraving on his gravestone reads JOHN DEVERAUX 1805-1895 “HANDCART PIONEER.”
Note: There is a discrepancy between English records and American records as to John Deveraux’s birth date. English records list him born in 1800 and American records list his birth date as 1805.
Berrett, William Edwin. The Restored Church. Thirteenth edition, Deseret Book Company, 1965. Salt Lake City, Utah.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints. Ancestral File. Copyright 1987, August 1993.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints. Mormon Immigration Index. CD-Rom published by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. Copyright 2000.
Fischio, Afton Gene Richins. "A Short History of Thomas Richins and his wife Harriet Deveraux." Unpublished, 1982.
Hilton, Gladys Richins. "Biography of Harriet Deveraux," written for Daughters of Utah Pioneers. Unpublished, no date.
"Genealogy Family Group sheet" Author unknown. Unpublished, no date. Information sources listed as temple archives, research in England and census records.
Hilton, Gladys Richins. "Biography of Thomas Richins," written for Daughters of Utah Pioneers. Unpublished, no date.
Kenison, David and LDS-Gems (website), "Wilford Woodruff’s Preaching in England," Copyright 1998.
Lund, Gerald N. The Work and the Glory. Vol 5;Bookcraft, 1994. Salt Lake City, Utah.
Proctor, Eva Mirentha Warburton. "Life story of Alice Mirentha Richins Warburton." Unpublished, no date.
Richins, Hazel. "Richard Richins and Charlotte Priscilla Wager." 2000 edition, Richins Surname Association. Family Heritage Series website: www.familyheritageseries.org.
Walker, Newell R. "They Walked 1,300 Miles," Ensign, July 2000 , pp 44-49. Salt Lake Distribution Center. Salt Lake City, Utah.