Aunt
Laura Anderson was Grandmother Emma Helena Anderson’s sister. They were raised on their father Peter
Anderson’s farm near Anderson’s Junction, Utah.
Grandfather Anderson was from Denmark.
He came to the United States as a young man, joined the church in its
early days, made the pioneer trek to Utah and settled in Southern Utah to to farm.
Later
in life, Aunt Laura married a man named John Pulsipher, known in the family as
“Uncle Johnny.” They never had any
children, but Aunt Laura was loved by many nieces and nephews. After Uncle Johnny died, Aunt Laura came to
live with my Grandmother, their sister-in-law, Christine Anderson, who was also
a widow, and her niece, my Aunt Mary, in Toquerville.
Aunt
Laura was a very slim, tiny little lady who always wore her beautiful long
white hair piled on top of her head, secured with a variety of combs, in a
style favored by ladies of her day.
One
story I remember hearing about Laura: When
Uncle Johnny died he left debts which Aunt Laura was determined to repay, even
though she could have had them “forgiven,” due to her advanced age. Aunt Laura would hear nothing of this
arrangement, however. She went to work
at camps cooking for the workers until she had repaid the debts. This took several years but she accomplished
it, in spite of the hardship. Aunt Laura
was quiet and unassuming, truly a woman of integrity, who loved the Gospel, and
our Savior, Jesus Christ.
The
old cedar chest and all of its contents was passed on down to me through my
mother, Ruth Naegle. It now occupies an
honored spot in my home. It still has
the combs she wore in her hair and her many handmade items, and whenever I look
at it, I think of my dear, sweet Aunt Laura and the examples she left for me.
Reminiscences
of Aunt Laura,
By
her great-niece, Lynda EdwardsJanuary 2013
A note from
Lori Woodbury, Lynda’s Daughter-In-Law:
Imagine
my delight when I received an item from Aunt’s Laura’s cedar chest for
Christmas 2012! As you can see from the
pictures below, not only is the item itself beautiful, but I was deeply touched
by the simple act of Lynda giving it to me.
To have a mother-in-law who is willing to share such a special treasure
with you is its own special gift.