Sarah Francis Virgin Shirley

Sarah Shirley Tells of Pioneer Life in Salem Ward Area (Newspaper article, Rexburg Standard Journal, Wednesday September 18, 1957).

Throughout the valley, especially in the area around Salem, the name of Shirley has been prominent for almost sixty years. Mrs. Sarah Virgin Shirley, who came with her husband to this area in 1898, still lives in the family home in Salem, a witness to the achievements of her eleven children, 50 grandchildren, and 21 great-grandchildren. A pioneer of Madison County, Mrs. Shirley has seen much development and change in the valley since she first settled here. (Note: Ross' military picture is shown behind Sarah on the mantle.)

She was born July 22, 1876, in St. Charles, Idaho. Still vivid in her mind are the experiences of her girlhood in that early Idaho settlement. She remembers especially the “wood hauling parties” which brought the men of the community together to go up into the timber and cut trees. When the wood was cut, it was piled in the public square in front of the school house, and a day would be set aside for sawing and splitting. That night when the work was done, the whole town would join in a public dinner and dance. The entire supply would be donated to the school house for its winter fuel.

Education Important. It was in those early days in St. Charles that Sarah Virgin first became convinced of the importance of education. Her father, Amos Moses Virgin), an English immigrant, never had the opportunity for much schooling. But eager to learn, he promoted study groups among the married couples in his community. Meeting in the Virgin home, they would read, discuss, and try to improve themselves intellectually.

Marries Jim Shirley. In October of 1896, Sarah was married to James Frederick Shirley and two years later, when their son Frederick was a year old, they left St. Charles for Rexburg. They arrived there October 27, 1898, going on to find a farm in the Salem area. “It seemed like a wilderness,” says Mrs. Shirley of that first farm, “only a few acres were plowed; most of the country was sagebrush. There were not even many willows along the river and I could see my husband coming with the horse and wagon soon after he crossed the South Teton River.”

While Mr. Shirley farmed, Mrs. Shirley settled down to housekeeping in the log house which was already on the farm. Wash day was especially troublesome to her. She had to pump the water, carry it into the house, do her washing, carry the water out again, then carry more in and out to rinse with. A pump handle and a washboard served as the only “automatic” washing equipment of those days, and pioneer women power did what electric power does today. In general, housekeeping was so consuming that “there was just no time left to fool.”

Fuel for Winter. While the forest had been close to the settlement in St. Charles, in Salem it was a real task to get wood for fuel and timber for buildings. The trees were far away and the roads bad. One year is especially clear in Mrs. Shirley’s mind. It was just before her daughter Myrtle was born, and the family needed wood to burn and to build a barn. Mr. Shirley was hesitant about leaving his wife, but finally it became necessary if they were to have fuel for the winter. Early one morning he left with a group of neighbors, traveled up over the Rexburg bench through “Calamity” and into the timber. That night as they were cutting wood, Mr.Shirley felt he should be at home with his wife. But it was dangerous to go over “Calamity” at night and the men held him until morning. He returned the next day to find that his daughter had been born at one o’clock the night before.

Years later, recalls Mrs. Shirley, the mines opened in the Southeast part of the Teton Valley and the three day wood trips were replaced by three day trips for coal.

In those days the railroad went through Market Lake (Now Roberts). For two years, Mr. Shirley worked at the siding there putting up ice for the railroad. The men would pull ice out of the river, pack it in a shed there, then the train would take it to Cokeville to a better storage place. (Note: Aunt Ada said there was an ice house on the family property where they would store the river ice in sawdust, which would make it last a long time. With the last remaining ice they would make ice cream).

When the Shirleys first arrived in Salem, there was one tiny store there. “Very tiny,” Mrs. Shirley emphasizes. It was located where the new church house is now, and sold the settlers staples such as bacon, cheese, and sugar. For most of their supplies they had to go to the Z.C.M.I. store on the corner south of the Court House in Rexburg.

The first school house in Salem was a small log building with a dirt roof. Although Mrs. Shirley’s children were too small to attend that first school, she still remembers Mrs. Luella Garner teaching there.

Later, a big square two-story school house was built in Salem. This building was important to the older residents as well as the children for it brought to the community some of its most colorful citizens. Mrs. Shirley had high regard for one of these teachers, Mr. Octave U. Ursenbach, a Salt Lake Man, who was much interested in music. During his years there, he organized the Salem Silver Band, of which Mrs. Shirley’s husband was a member.

The residents of Salem were enthusiastic drama fans who didn’t need professional actors to enjoy a play. The local people would get together in the old log meeting house and put on their own productions. One of Mrs. Shirley’s favorites was the play “East Lynn.”

In this same log building the Salem people gathered for dances. George Larsen was one of the orchestra members who came there to play.

When the new school house was built the dances were held there, for it had an excellent maple floor which attracted the attention of the whole country.

An early day musical organization that provided entertainment for the people of this area was the Salem Silver Band. This group of musicians is pictured here as they appered many years ago. The band was organized by Prof. Octave U. Ursenbach, who also taught in the Salem School. (Note: James Frederick Shirley is second from the left on the back row).

Sports, such as basketball and baseball, were important means of recreation. Mrs. Shirley also recalls with pleasure the ward Sunday School outings in “McMinn’s Pasture,” the site of old Fort Henry. When the Shirley’s settled in Salem, a Ward had already been organized and George H. B. Harris was bishop. Attending meetings in the little log building, Mrs. Shirley little thought that years later she would sit in a modern brick meeting house presided over by her grandson, Gordon, as Bishop.

Church Important. The Church has always been an important part of Sarah Shirley’s life. She has worked in every church organization except Primary. At 16 she was made a Sunday School teacher in St. Charles and she taught in Salem for many years. She was the first Gleaner teacher in the Salem Ward. In 1955 she was released after many years as a Relief Society visiting teacher.

Although she insists her life has not been exciting, together with her husband she built a home and helped to settle a valley. When her husband died July 24, 1924, she went on alone to raise her eleven children and to work for the good of her community. Today, all of her five sons, Frederick, Leo, Leslie, Ross, Rodney, live in Salem. Her daughters are Myrtle Belnap, Salt Lake City; LeVina (Bonnie) Jorgensen, Garland, Utah; Sarah Lund, Redwood City California; Hazel Hunter, Fresno, California; Jennette Hadley, Emmett; and Ada Moss, Idaho Falls. (Note: Ada is the remaining sibling as of March, 2011)