A Polygamist Family

Hey All,

It's been awhile since I've posted. I decided to write outside of celebrity or my own tree today. 

I recently worked on a someone's tree for them- a friend from high school. What I discovered...was...a lot! First, I discovered that we share a common ancestor- we are 11th cousins, which is just insane.

Second, I discovered my first Polygamist family to research! I have done many family trees for friends and acquaintances, but this is the first time I've come across this  type of family- it was interesting for sure! 

This post is about one of his ancestors- just the shear amount of information is insane.

Benjamin Franklin Barney

Born: 12 Mar 1832 in Springfield, Sangamon, Illinois

 ~Son of Charles Barney (1783-1865) & 

                            Deborah Riffle (1808-1888)

Benjamin was the 14th child out of 18! He was a Farmer, Fruit-grower and a stock raiser. He fought as a private in the Utah Militia during the Indian Wars.

Benjamin was also a polygamist, like his father (2 wives), except that Benjamin had 3 wives and a total of 33 children!

Wife #1: Caroline Beard, married 27 Apr 1849

    ~she was 23, he was 17.

Born: 15 Jan 1826 in Virginia

Died: 26 Sep 1905 in Lakeshore, Utah

   ~Daughter of Christian W. Beard (1790-1846) & 

                                             Margaret Almendroad (1800-1852)

Wife #2: Priscilla Ann Shepherd, married 08 Apr 1857

     ~she was 15, he was 25.

Born: 04 May 18423 in Mount Pleasant, Indiana

Died: 20 Sep 1916 in Elsinore, Utah

    ~Daughter of Moses Trader Shepherd (1820-1866) &

                                          Eliza Jane Adamson (1822-1897)

Wife #3: Karen Caroline Nielsen, married 07 Dec 1865

    ~she was 21, he was 33.

Born: 28 May 1844 in Denmark

Died: 28 Oct 1933 in Elsinore, Utah

Benjamin's 33 children with his 3 wives: 

One very sad thing about this family is that Mormons outlawed polygamy on 24 Sep 1890. Benjamin was required to choose only one wife to "keep" and he chose Karen, his third wife. The other two wives and their children were left to fend for themselves! Caroline remained in Lakeshore, Utah. Priscilla and her 10 children moved into a two bedroom house with a dirt roof in Monroe, Utah. Benjamin and Karen moved to Annabella, Utah where they started a dairy farm.

Benjamin died on 07 Dec 1904 in Elsinore, Sevier, Utah at the age of 72 of gangrene of a limb (doesn't mention what limb). He was buried in Monroe City Cemetery in Monroe, Utah.