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Emily Amanda Rockwell
Compiled by, Lillian Idella Lee Wilcox Photo courtesy of, Arlene Hepworth
Emily Amanda Rockwell was born in 1833 in the state of New York to Orrin Porter Rockwell and Luana Beebe Rockwell. They moved to Manchester, New York where Joseph Smith lived. Porter Rockwell loved the prophet and stayed closely in contact with him for many years.
At the age of sixteen Emily was kidnapped and later eloped with Hiram Gates en-route to the gold fields in California. Hiram died in 1850 and Emily was left with his two sons by another wife. Thomas, 16 and Solomon 14 were killed by Indians. Not long afterwards Emily met and married Henry Willard Brizzee, a Mormon Battalion veteran, who had made the trek across the plains to San Bernardino, California. They had two sons, Henry Willard Brizzee Jr. and Charles Brizzee. Emily and Henry were divorced and she later married David Tyrell. She made her home in Etna, Utah.
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Grandma Tyrell, as she was known by her family and friends, was a wealthy land owner and livestock rancher. From her life in California she had in her possession many gold bricks and gold nugget necklaces as well as other golden jewels.
One time she left for Salt Lake City to see her father, Orrin Porter Rockwell and to make some purchases. She boarded up her log home. While she was gone someone broke into her house and stole some things, among them was a necklace of gold nuggets, but they didn’t find the gold bricks that were hidden under the fireplace floor. So the invader built a fire in the middle of the floor of Emily’s home and left. The fire fizzled out. When Emily came home she saw what had happened and offered a reward for the person responsible for the act. She never found out who did it.
Emily could shoot a gun very well. She had been taught by her father, Orrin Porter Rockwell. Her son, Henry Willard Brizzee, Jr. and wife and family would drive from Mesa, Arizona to run the ranch in Utah during the summer months and go back in the winter. “Emily passed away on 28 March 1908 and was buried in the Salt Lake Cemetery.” http://www.lofthouse.com/boxelder/cemetery/etna.htm
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Photo courtesy of, Gaylon Arlo Lee |