Autobiographical Sketch of the Life of Alice Randall Clark
I was born the daughter of Alfred and Margaret Harley Randall. My father was born in New York and my mother in Pennsylvania. I was born in Centerville, Utah, Dec. 21, 1863. I had two brothers and five sisters, the boys being the older. Mother was very partial to boys and I being the fourth girl in succession, did not seem very welcome. My younger sister coming five years later, and being more attractive and aggressive, my mother bestowed the love on her that we both should have had.
People were very neighborly in those days; we used to eat in the homes of our friends often. Although we were poor, mother was a very good manager and a good cook. One or two boys were always glad to eat at our table, if only to have potatoes, butter, bread and gravy. As people travelled by team, we had many relatives, friends and travelers stopping overnight and eating with us. Our table was a square drop leaf table seating eight comfortably, we were just that number. It often happened that one or two had to wait, even though at times we ate with nine or ten at the table. One of my sisters and I had to wait most of the time. We would sit on a little step that came from our upstairs, this step being on the side of the door in the dining room.When there was only one to wait it was naturally me, if there were two or three I was always one, but I did not mind. Sometimes some familiar visitor would say, “Bring that child to the table, she always has to wait.” Another time I heard a lady say in regards to a dress, an ugly one I guess, “She never complains” and mother said, “No, she takes whatever we give her.” Once when Emily and I had whooping cough, mother grabbed her, who was the baby, and ran outside. It was the winter, a lady that was there scolded her for making so much fuss over the baby and none over me, and so it went on.
When we had finished school I had the opportunity to go to the University of Utah to school. I asked my mother and she said she would have to ask my older brother. (His favorite among all the family was my sister just older than I.) So his reply was, “How can she expect to go when her sister hasn’t been?” There were still two older than she and they had not been, it looked so silly to me and so I just got mad and sulked and grieved instead of putting up a fight asI should have done. I could have been a school teacher, I taught the first Primary school in our town.
I don’t know how old I was when I started to school, perhaps old enough in years but not in development. I could not learn my ABCs. I remember the teacher visiting mother, I was no told enough to know what for, because I could not understand what they were talking about, but I know it was because I could not know my letters. I know nothing more about school until I was in the third reader. This teacher had told mother about N. T. Porter (you perhaps have heard of him) he was doing so and so, but in the third reader. I was in the same class, but I and not N. T. Porter had to show the reading class. Our family were all sharks in Arithmetic as we called it then. Many times I unconsciously made B. H. Roberts feel foolish in Mathematics, but later I went to his school after he had taken a year at the U. of U. He did not teach me arithmetic, but he did give us a course in Grammar, which has been with us ever since. I was always at the foot of the spelling class. We would stand in line and go from the head to the foot. I was never at the head and hence never at the foot. I studied what they called composition about three months and learned to spell some. After I left home and began to write letters I learned to spell. Mrs. Hart that boarded with me could spell anything. She would be so disgusted with when she returned from exams. She would try me out and pretended to be surprised at the near perfect grade I made, so was I when I found out how many the average missed. I was good in Grammar; they used to often ask me to give talks in Mutual. I never knew how to begin so I would not try, whatI needed was an outline. I gave more lessons in Relief Society than all the rest put together until aunt Emma came. I made more friends through teaching the senior class in the Young Ladies (married and single) than I ever had in Georgetown. They are still staunch friends. I was something of a curiosity because my real friends were so much younger than myself; none of them have forgotten me.
In my childhood I was somewhat of an athlete, I could run faster or jump the rope faster than any boy or girl on the school ground. I loved to swing and the higher the better. After meeting and Sunday School was over on Sunday we would go in a big crowd, there was a barn with a swing in and the boys would pull us with ropes. I was never satisfied until I swung out far enough to see over the top of the barn.
I tried to be president of the Young Ladies and also the Primary, but I thought I failed in both. I was asked to be president of the Relief Society, but I refused. I knew I did not have executive ability enough for that.
When I was a girl I used to climb a big hill that was behind our house in order to get to run down, I loved to do that. One time I ran down a board where B. H. Roberts was shingling his house. I knew no fear until I heard him sort of scream. I had to go on then, but I had to turn to keep from going into a fence, and ran more than half a block to get stopped.
Oh, I had a beau once, I was only a little girl because I did not grow up. I wasn’t wanting a beau, only to get to the dances and go sleigh riding, both of which we did a great deal of. I went with him two or three years. I always thought I would never marry him, but did not knowhow to get rid of him because he was nice and I liked to go out. One night I made up my mind that I would not go until I had a dress, I knew he would be after me, I walked up into the hills where we went frequently but not alone. Well I stayed there until dusk and then went to my sister-in-law’s, and I met him at the gate. He said, very confidentially of course, “What about the dance?” That was the last time he came for me. I could have had him back, but I don’t think I tried. He married and raised a large family, I think he was satisfied, his mother never ceased to grieve about it.
That was the last of my sporting days, time dragged on, it looked as if I had “cooked my goose”. Oh there was two other boys that thought they could pick me up. One was good and bright, but somehow none of the girls liked him. The other was more liked, but he would not do for me. I could have had two or three married men, but I was not going to have a married man, I thought an old maid’s life was better than that.
One evening mother and I were drying peaches and in walked your father; you could not have knocked me more senseless with a club. I had gone to school to him one year and thought he was extremely nice, he was nineteen and I was going on fourteen. We all liked him fine as a teacher. One day he had visitors from Farmington, he called on me to read as a show off. I refused because I had on a dress that I did not like, it was just new that morning but it was a mile too long. That is how he got to know me was by teaching. He did not want another wife, Aunt Wealthy, his first wife, had been told or promised or something by someone that if he would take another wife she would have children. So he picked out someone he thought would be easy, he did not want – need to bother about that she knew she could keep him alright. Her real trial came when Walter was born, but she climbed over that when Edward F. was born, by saying it was Isaac and Ishmael. Her husband loved her too much to even care a little for another, but polygamy has been an awful humiliation to him. While he has never done much for me I know his conscience hurts him. I somehow think I was to marry him; it may come out alright in the future. The children have stood faithfully by and have far more love and respect for their father than one would expect. They recognize in him a noble character and a fine man. I suppose the children, like everyone else, think it is my fault not his. I am proud of the children’s father, but sorry they have missed so much by not having a father in this life. Perhaps they will understand some day why it was all to be.
We were married in the Logan Temple, on the 4th of April 1885. Walter was born in 1887 in Farmington. When he was a month old I went to a town called Three Mile, just north ofBrigham City. That fall I went to Nephi to mother’s brother, an old man living alone. He had the three daughters living there with whom he had kept intimate, as he and his three daughters were the only relatives we ever had in Utah. When the excitement over polygamy was over I returned to Farmington which was in the fall, in the spring I went to Georgetown, Idaho. I started to keep house in the place Sister Williams lived in, the girls remember the house. In a few weeks Wilford W. Clark, Edward’s brother, was called to be Bishop in Montpelier, so I had to hold the ranch down. I had from one to three hired boys and men all the time. But it was home and I was my own boss. I do not remember when they divided up, but Walter was a mere boy, but he took hold of things in earnest. When Walter came from High School he was ready to handle the place and superintend all the men he could afford to hire. But their father took all the cattle which was the money, so we had a hard time. In fact it all belonged to their father, he took it, but Edward B. did the same. We would sell a cow or a calf, or do some way to get along until we started to selling cream and we did better. W. W. Clark complained because we allowed our breed of cattle to get scattered around. After I decided we would never be looked after, I cared not a rap what anyone said. We scrimped and I put the children through High School when it was discovered I would do as I pleased. They put themselves through college. All exceptMelvin, his eyes were so bad he could not go. With proper care he might have been able to.
I remember one little item of Pioneer life – one evening I would not go to bed, I wanted to sit up until mother finished a pair of shoes she was making for me out of a piece of old pants, so she could take me to Salt Lake with her the next day. My earliest recollection of riding to Salt Lake was on a board, with a quilt on it across a wagon. Then later we had spring seats, then a topless carriage, then a covered carriage. My mother lived to ride in automobiles; she was about ninety years old when she came to Georgetown to live with me, where she died.
My older sister always made a great deal over me. When she married and moved to Ogden she kept me there a good deal of the time. Her husband was yard master. I would go to the depot and ride the train out two miles, which was the distance the train went out to turnaround on the Y.
(Note: This sketch is in the words of Alice Randall and is typed in order to replicate an original copy that was in the possession of her granddaughter, Carol Elizabeth Clark – Call. Although parts of this sketch may seem incorrect, please understand that it is how the original appeared, with the exception of a few punctuation changes made for clarity. The original copy is now in the possession of Debra Call, and this typed copy was made by her on August 8, 2022.)
