Media Coverage about James Glade

Toward the end of James Glade's life, he was in extremely poor health. Beverly Wessman thought he had diabetes, but the recorded symptoms are not exact enough to say for sure.

In the 1870s and 1880s there was not anything the doctors could do to help him, besides a little bit of ineffective pain relief mostly based on opiates, so in an attempt to control the excruciating pain he resorted first to alcohol, and then to morphine. None of it worked; in February 1881 he overdosed on morphine. His business partner said it was on purpose; he claimed it was accidental.

Almost two years later he was returning from his job in Ogden to visit his family in Salt Lake City and collapsed in the street. The police assumed he was inebriated, which would confirm a forensic diagnosis of diabetes, since diabetic ketoacidosis can resemble intoxication. An inquest was held, and the officials said his collapse and death were not due to any type of inebriation, but to his health difficulties and "intemperance" (attempts at pain management).

It must have been hard on James's wives Eliza and Isabella to deal with his illness and support the family and maintain a place in society, but they did so. Their children married into other stable families and their descendants have continued to be an important part of intelligent, friendly Utah society.

Here are the articles covering James's unfortunately public state of health.

First, a few background notes from the papers.

Deseret News, December 11, 1878, 1.

Ogden Standard, September 15, 1880, 2.

The newspapers prematurely report James's death.

Ogden Standard, February 12, 1881, 2.

And then they quickly retract the story when he lives and disputes the reported story.

Salt Lake Herald, February 9, 1881, 3.

Ogden Standard, February 12, 1881, 2.

His health only got worse, and at age 51 he collapsed and died.

Ogden Standard, December 5, 1882, 3.

Deseret News, December 6, 1882, 12.

The family held his funeral at home. This was a common arrangement at the time.

Salt Lake Herald, December 6, 1882, 8.

It took years to settle his estate. 

Salt Lake Tribune, April 14, 1892, 8.

The entire file is available in the Utah Probate Records (Series 1621),  Salt Lake County, but the collection is unindexed, and the case files are not organized in a way that makes them easily searchable by date. The James Glade file is Case Number 1547, if anyone would like to locate it. (Click on the first link in this paragraph and select Salt Lake County. The files are marginally sorted by date.)

The Story of James Glade, Part 5: Dreams, Aspirations, and Fortitude

They had a good social life. They went to the Salt Lake Theater, entertained and visited friends, attended lectures and music at the Tabernacle, dances at the church, church on Sunday, and picnics. Black Rock on the shore of Great Salt Lake was their favorite resort. They loved to attend the 24th of July parades where James played the flute in the Nauvoo Legion band. 

Ogden Standard, September 15, 1880, 2.

James was an excellent and knowledgeable musician. He affiliated with the Nauvoo Legion Third Regiment Marshall Band, as it was called, playing the flute and/or fife. He also played the concertina.. James was a slender man, about 5’ 8” and 130 pounds. Later he played the flute in the Salt Lake City Municipal band. He loved to sit on the veranda and play the concertina and sing old Welsh songs. He would practice with other musicians on a summer’s eve. The family loved to listen to the band practice.

James Glade's instrument

The 1880 Census listed 10,768 people in Salt Lake City. The white walls of the temple were nearing completion. Taxes paid for the Glade property and home at 331 C Street on 14 Nov 1881 were $9.60. After long hours of work in the Walker House, James would come home and work in the garden but his health began to fail. James was a quiet soft-spoken man and rarely talked about himself.

Cohabitation was a problem for these polygamist families for fear of prison and fines. James had eight living children and two wives. He promised Isabell her own home but lost so much money by the May partnership that he never could build her a home of her own.

In 1881 James took his oldest son James Richard (Jimmy) to help him as a baker at the Beardsley Union Hotel in Ogden. James was not well. He had a sore on his leg that never healed. They thought it was a spider bite but he probably was a diabetic (unknown then). He worked at his baker’s bench but had to rest his afflicted leg on a stool as he worked.

In March 1882, the Edmunds-Tucker Act was passed by Congress making cohabitation illegal and punishable by heavy fines and imprisonment.

On Saturday December 2, 1882 with his health failing, James told his son Jimmy that he had to go home to see his family. He took the train to Salt Lake. He bought two packages of meat in town and was walking up State Street when he passed out and never regained consciousness. He was taken home and died Sunday, December 3, 1882. 

[Editor's Note: James was in very bad health. Diabetes is a good guess, but the recorded symptoms are not exact enough to say for sure. There was not anything the doctors could do to help him, so in an attempt to control the excruciating pain he resorted first to alcohol, and then to morphine. None of it worked; in February 1881 he either accidentally or purposefully overdosed on morphine. Almost two years later he collapsed in the street, as told here. The police assumed he was inebriated, which would confirm a forensic diagnosis of diabetes. An autopsy found his collapse and death were due to his health problems rather than another morphine overdose.]

He was 51 years old. The funeral service was held in their Victorian Parlor. James was buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.

The two young widows continued on in the same home. They sold some of the property to pay bills but kept one quarter block on C Street and 7th Avenue. They took in washing and ironing. Later Isabell did nursing care. They were frugal and managed well together even though they were of different temperaments.

Eliza died of a stroke 7 January 1920. Bell died of cancer on 5 March 1921. Eliza and Isabell are buried in the Glade plot at the Salt Lake City Cemetery. Mary’s unmarked grave is in Nebraska somewhere. They are not forgotten. A part of them is alive in each of us.

It may seem that their dreams and aspirations were not fully realized but these people suffered, worked unceasingly, had fortitude to carry on in face of sorrow and trouble and they persevered. Through faith and endurance they enjoyed the good times and had hope for better. They adhered to gospel principals. Of the 15 children, two of Mary Dyer’s, eight of Eliza Mary’s, and five of Isabell’s, only nine grew to maturity. Seven married and had fine families. We honor them and respect them for the great heritage that is ours. There were over 2,500 descendants in 1990.

Index to History

The Story of James Glade, Part 4: Life in Salt Lake City

He had a good job as a pastry cook at the leading hotel, the Salt Lake House on East Temple, now Main street, where the Tribune Building is now located. They lived in a small adobe home in back of the Salt Lake House. James was ambitious. He went into a business partnership with Dan Towler at the Globe Bakery-Restaurant next to the State House, the largest building on the west side of East Temple (Main St.) and south of South Temple. This was an unprofitable business and he lost money. 

Then he worked at the Townsend House as a pastry cook. He tried another Bakery-Restaurant on the east side of Main between 1st and 2nd South near the Salt Lake House. John Lollin was his partner. This was another unprofitable business. James furnished work and money and his partners furnished poor management. 

Then he worked at the Walker House, the hotel across the street. He was a good baker and always found work. 

James and Eliza Mary lived in the 13th Ward at 6th South and 2nd East. During this time, three children were born; James Richard, Francis Ann Elizabeth, and William John. Baby Francis Ann died during September 1867 at age 14 months.

That same year on December 14, 1867 in the Endowment House, Eliza was endowed and sealed to James by Wilford Woodruff. Mary Dyer was sealed to James. Eliza Mary’s mother and father, the Litsons were endowed and sealed. This has a great day for the Glade family. 

In 1868–69 they lived in the 8th Ward on 5th south between East Temple and 1st east. Beyond the 4th Avenue mud wall and the canal was the property he wanted. James and Eliza saved money and bought the property, which was G of a block on the northwest corner of Pine Street and Mountain Avenue, which is 7th Avenue and C Street today. He finished the two-story house in 1869. It was in 1869 that Great Salt Lake City became Salt Lake City. 

The house faces east. You enter the front and on your left is the Victorian Parlor. The large room you are standing in had a staircase up to the two bedrooms on the north and the dormitory on the south for the children. On the main floor to the right was the large kitchen with a coal stove for heating and cooking on the west well. The north wall had a sink with a cistern outside to catch the rainwater and you could pump fresh water inside to the sink. They were very careful with the water. They carried water from the canal on 4th Avenue to 7th Avenue. He dug two different wells but the wells caved in because of the soil and the slope of the hill. Any excess watered the primroses on the path or the lilacs and woodbine that shaded the porch on the east and south sides of the house. James had four terraces on the side of the steep hill. He had fruit trees and a grape vineyard. They had a barn with a cow, chickens, rabbits, and a goat until the goat made a mistake one day and ate someone’s clothes off the line. He didn’t stay long.

They were busy. It took much work. James had met a young Scottish housekeeper when he worked at the Salt Lake House. He and Eliza had her to their home on many occasions. With the consent of Eliza, James married Isabella Love on June 28, 1869. He bought his new wife a green parasol. He also bought Eliza a blue parasol. He always tried to treat his wives equally.

Isabella Love Glade

It is said they were an ideal polygamous family. The children called Eliza Mary Auntie Liz and Isabell was called Auntie Bell. Auntie Liz (Lies) was soft spoken and quiet. She used praise and soft pats on the head. She liked working outdoors, gardening and animals. Auntie Bell was outspoken and more talkative. She showed love by darning your socks or sewing on truant buttons. She did the indoor work, sewing and cooking. They worked well together and had a great capacity for love. The children loved them both.

In 1870, the post brought them good news, James’s Uncle Will in England left them an inheritance. They bought some furnishings for 331 C Street. Then James furnished the money for a new partnership, the May and Glade Butchers in 1871. He suffered heavy financial loss because of his partner’s bills. This was his last business venture. His partners took advantage of his trusting nature and money. Three times he had suffered financially. He knew disappointment, but he was a hard worker. He spent long hours at his baker’s bench, often 12 hours a day. He always had good work. He and his wives were industrious. They had a good home life.

For special occasions like Christmas, James baked fancy cakes and candies when sugar was $1.00 a pound. The nuts had to be shelled and raisins and fruit cleaned. The family sat at the table working and whistling to keep the children from eating the nuts and fruit. At meal times James sat at the head of the table. On each side of him sat one wife. Next to her sat her youngest child, with the other children arranged according to age on her side of the table. The wives never spoke unkindly to each other. 

The children went to school as often as finances allowed them to go. They went to the 20th Ward school until 1875.

ln 1876 they went to the 18th Ward and went there to school. Sometimes they attended Brigham Young’s school or two private schools for 25 cents a week for each child. 

Eliza Mary had five more children: Eliza Mary, Jennetta Georgeina, Joseph Robert, Grace Katchlaina, and George Litson for a total of eight. On November 18, 1878, a diphtheria epidemic took the life of Joseph Robert at age 3-1/2. Six days later six year old Jennetta died in the morning then baby Grace, 11 months old, died a few hours later. She was buried in the arms of her sister. (Francis Ann had died 11 years earlier.) 

Isabella had five children: Annie Isabell, James David, Margaret Elizabeth, Alice Addelina, who was almost three when she died, and Orson Henry. 

To be continued...

Index to History

Eliza Mary Litson Glade

This is an entry for the Daughters of Utah Pioneers publication Pioneer Women of Faith and Fortitude (Salt Lake City, Utah, 1998). It is one of the many documents from my grandmother's files.

Pioneer Women of Faith and Fortitude

Eliza Mary Litson Glade

Born 7 Mar 1846 St. Andrews, Glamorganshire, Wales

Died 7 Jan 1920 Salt Lake City, Utah

Pioneer Arrived Great Salt Lake City 3 Oct 1863

Down and Back Wagon train — Capt. John H. Woolley Co.

Submitted by Beverly Glade Wessman and Florence Glade Wells

Section II ELIZA MARY LITSON GLADE

Born 7 Mar 1846 St. Andrews, Glamorganshire, Wales
Died 7 Jan 1920 Salt Lake City, Utah
Parents Richard Litson and Frances Ann Matthews
Pioneer Arrived 3 Oct 1863 by Wagon Train in John H. Woolley Company
Spouse James Glade
Married ? Oct 1863 Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory
His Death 3 Dec 1882 Salt Lake City, Utah Territory

[James Glade's] First Wife: Mary Dyer born 30 Apr 1836 Burrington, Somerset, England
Married: 25 Dec 1855 Bethany CHapel, Cardiff, Glamorganshire, Wales
Died: ? July 1861 near Florence, Douglas, Nebraska
Children:
1. William Franklin Glade b. 16 Mar 1857 Cardiff, Gla., Wales; d. 4 April 1858 Cardiff
2. Mary Jane Glade b. 29 Dec 1859 Cardiff, Gla., Wales; d. 20 Dec 1916 So. Cottonwood, Utah

Second Wife: Eliza Mary Litson
Md. James Glade ___ Oct 1863 Great Salt Lake City, Ter. Utah
Children:
1. James Richard Glade 20 Oct. 1864 Salt Lake City, Utah
2. Frances Ann Elizabeth Glade 24 July 1866 Salt Lake City, Utah
3. William John Glade 15 May 1868 Salt Lake City, Utah
4. Eliza Mary Glade 30 April 1870 Salt Lake City, Utah
5. Jennetta Georgeina Glade 5 Dec 1872 Salt Lake City, Utah
6. Joseph Robert Glade 30 May 1875 Salt Lake City, Utah
7. Grace Katchlaina Glade 3 Jan 1878 Salt Lake City, Utah
8. George Litson GLade 9 Dec 1879 Salt Lake City, Utah

Third Wife: Isabell Love Glade born 13 Nov 1845 Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland
Married: 28 June 1869 Salt Lake City, Utah Died 5 Mar 1921 Salt Lake City
Children:
1. Annie Isabell Glade 11 Mar 1870 Salt Lake City, Utah
2. James David Glade 3 Mar 1871 Salt Lake City, Utah
3. Margaret Elizabeth Glade 23 May 1876 Salt Lake City, Utah
4. Alice Addelinda Glade 11 Oct 1879 Salt Lake City, Utah
5. Orson Henry Glade 21 Oct 1881 Salt Lake City, Utah

ELIZA MARY LITSON GLADE

Biography

Two young sisters, Eliza Mary Litson age seventeen and Joan Jennetta Litson age fifteen bid goodbye to their parents and two brothers, friends, and the land of their nativity near Cardiff, Wales. The spirit of Gathering to Zion was uppermost in the minds of the saints, it having been preached continuously to them by the Elders. Their parents, Richard and Frances Ann, were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in October, 1852. Eliza Mary, being the eldest child, was baptized at age eight on 8 May, 1854. The next two children were baptized when they turned eight years old. The parents of Eliza Mary and Joan Jennetta were very anxious to emigrate. Saving enough money was a challenge, so by 1863 they deemed it wise to send their two daughters to Zion lest they be deprived of certain blessings if they waited for the entire (four children) to emigrate. One hundred and eleven saints from Wales went to London where 882 saints boarded the ship Amazon and left for America on 4 June, 1863. After landing in New York and processing through the Castle Gardens Immigration Depot, the Amazon Saints went by rail on 18 Jul, 1863 and river steamer to Florence, Nebraska.

The church had sent teams and wagons from Utah to Florence to help the saints migrate. Brigham Young had sent a driver named James Glade with one of the wagons. He made the acquaintance of the Litson sisters and invited them to use his wagon for their luggage. The two young girls walked most of the long distance across the plains, which was considered a great honor. In a letter home to their parents they wrote, "When you come bring with you some light shoes for crossing the Plains. They are much better for travelling in fine weather than having heavy ones. We have the boots that Brother Peard made for us. They are nearly as good as they were when we left home. Bring with you everything that you have that is worth bringing, especially clothing. You will find thread very useful here. All are very dear in this country, but above all, bring yourselves as quick as you can." They were very happy to reach their destination on 3 October, 1863. From London to the valley of the Great Salt Lake had taken four months.

James' first wife, Mary Dyer, had died two years earlier a half day's journey from Florence. He and his nineteen month old daughter Mary Jane finished their journey after burying Mary in an unmarked grave. This with the sisters was James' third trip across the plains. He fell in love with Eliza Mary, and shortly after they arrived in Salt Lake City she consented to be his wife and a mother to Mary Jane. The exact day of their marriage is not known, but James wrote on 30 Oct., 1863 to Eliza's parents, explaining the distance in corresponding was so great that he and Eliza were married, with the consent of his Bishop. James had a good job as a pastry cook at the town's leading hotel, The Salt Lake House. In one of her early letters to her parents she wrote, "I'm progressing in the ways of Zion. I make my own soap and candles, I can spin and knit, and I am becoming independent." Their next home was at 6th South and 2nd East in the 13th Ward. In 1868 and 1869 they lived on 5th South between East Temple and 1st East, which was in the Eighth Ward. During all of these years they saved enough money to buy one-fourth of a block on the northwest corner of Pine Street (now C Street) and Mountain Avenue (now 7th Avenue). This property was known as the dry north bench above the canal and the mud wall along Fourth Avenue. The fine two-story home at 331 C Street was finished in 1869. At first they had to carry water from the canal to their home, and this continued for many years. They used a barrel to catch rain water. A well was dug, but the steep slope of the hill caved it in. They tried again successfully, and they were happy the day they could pump water into their kitchen. Water was very precious.

James Glade and Eliza Litson Glade wedding photo

Eliza Mary liked gardening. They grew vegetables, fruit trees and grape vines, after they had enough water. Woodbine covered their east and south porch. Lilac bushes lined both sides of their path from the house to the front path. They had primroses, and the east kitchen window had a fuschia plant. Eliza fed chickens, rabbits at one time, and a cow was fed and milked. They had a goat until he ate the laundry off the clothesline. She enjoyed the work outdoors. She was a good cook and always wore a long calico apron. Her granddaughters remember getting a start of yeast from their grandmother to make their bread. She was a good seamstress, which she learned from her mother as a young girl. She was quiet, uncomplaining and hard working.

Eliza and James had eight children, four boys and four girls. On Nov. 18, 1878 a diptheria [sic] epidemic took the life of Joseph Robert, age 3-1/2. Six days later six year-old Jennetta died in the morning. A few hours later baby Grace, 11 months old, died; she was laid to rest in the arms of her sister and was buried that afternoon. Baby Francis Ann had died eleven years earlier. They are all buried in the Glade plot in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.

With the consent of Eliza Mary, James married Isabell Love on 28 June, 1869. They had five children; one died in infancy. The two wives lived in the same home. The Glade family was considered an ideal polygamous family. James sat at the head of the table; each wife sat on a side of the table and her youngest child sat next to her; the other children sat on their mother's side of the table. James treated each wife the same; the day he married Isabell, he bought them each an umbrella, one green and the other blue. He promised Isabell a home of her own, but it never materialized; he attempted three business ventures and lost money in each one. People whom he trusted used his money and his work for their own benefit, before he found they were unscrupulous.

Auntie Liz and Auntie Bell in front of Glade home at 331 C Street.

Eliza was called "Auntie Liz" and Isabell was called "Auntie Bell" by each other's children. Eliza was quiet, and Isabell was outspoken. They were different but worked well together. They planned quilts and cut the pieces of material, sewed them together and made wonderful quilts. James belonged to the Nauvoo Legion Band. They loved to hear the band practice in the summer on their porch.

As a baker-confectioner, James worked long hours, and due to the persecutions to polygamous families, he had to be gone from his family often. One time he was working in Ogden for a hotel; upon returning to Salt Lake City he died in his home at age fifty-one on the 3rd of December, 1882. His funeral was held in their Victorian Parlor.

Front row, left to right: James Richard Glade, Eliza Mary Litson Glade, Eliza Mary Glade Johnson. Back row, left to right: William John Glade, George Litson Glade.

Eliza Mary loved her home and family. She never wavered in the faith of the gospel of her God. She remained a firm believer in the religion she had embraced in far-off Wales. She experienced the hardships and privations of pioneer life, but she chose the best of all careers—that of a true woman, wife and mother. She gave her all for her family; they in turn loved and cared for her. She lived thirty-seven years after James died, and died 7 Jan. 1920 at the age of 73.

The James Glade Video

Happy Pioneer Day! For the occasion, here is Grandmother Beverly's loving tribute to one of her pioneer ancestors, her great grandfather James Glade, and his family. What a treat it is to hear her voice narrating the film!

James Glade was born in 1831 in Devonshire, England, and died in 1882 in Salt Lake City, Utah. His first wife, Mary Dyer, died while crossing the plains and he later married Welsh immigrant Eliza Mary Litson and Scottish immigrant Isabella Love.

We’ll build on the rock they planted
A palace to the King.
Into its shining corridors,
Our songs of praise we’ll bring,
For the heritage they left us,
Not of gold or of worldly wealth,
But a blessing everlasting
Of love and joy and health.

("Carry On," Ruth May Fox)

Many thanks to Jared for putting the video on YouTube.