David Edward Tracy

David Edward Tracy, was born on April 5, 1886, to David Samuel Tracy and Rebecca Harriet Taylor, at Yost, Box Elder, County, Utah.

He was born in a one room log cabin with a bedroom added on by tacking a wagon cover to some ridge poles.

He was the second child and had one older sister, Fanny Elizabeth, October 6, 1884. Five brothers and six sisters younger than him:  Mary Lavina on April 8,1888; Andrew on April 18, 1890; Rosetta on January 17, 1892; Lydia Jane on March 5, 1894; Evelyn on May 19, 1896; Anthon Edgar on May 23, 1898; Ida Lillie on June 5, 1900; William Silas on July 25, 1902; Nellie Rebecca on April 21, 1905; Charles Weldon on November 18, 1906; and Oscar Taft on March 4, 1909.

At age five and one half he started school in Yost. It was built of logs with a dirt roof. It had a home made table with benches that they all sat around.

His father owned and operated the store in Yost and Dave helped him a lot. They freighted and hauled mail by team and wagon from the rail road in Kelton, Utah.

He took up sheep shearing when he was a young man and became quite skilled at it.

He met Mary Elizabeth Richins, daughter of Lorenzo Richins and Lissey Barber, at Yost when he was about eighteen years old. They met at church and after about two years they were married on October 3, 1906 in the Salt Lake Temple then seven days later he left for his mission on October 10, 1906, in the Southern States Mission.

When he came home he and Mary set up housekeeping in a little log house in Grouse Creek, Utah. He worked at any kind of work he could get. It was here that their first boy was born on July 28, 1911. They named him Lorenzo David. About a year later they moved to Yost where they lived with Dave’s father and mother for awhile.

It was at Yost that their second son was born on July 9, 1911.They named him Herbert Lester. Later they moved back to Grouse Creek into the same log cabin they had lived in before. Here their third child, a girl, was born on September 23, 1913 and they named her Bernice. Soon they moved back to Yost and lived on a farm adjoining his fathers place.

He was the sheriff for awhile and had quite a few interesting experiences. At one time some men were shooting out the lights at the church and he got the double barreled shotgun and put some rock salt in it and shot them. Not a deadly shot but a discouraging one. He also had to arrest a man who had pulled a knife on him.

During the flu epidemic of 1919 many of the people of Yost died of the dread disease and some of them were kept in the granary until he could make coffins for them. He also had to take care of his family who also had the flue.

In 1920 he and his family were called to go to Malta, Idaho to live and help set up the Raft River Stake Headquarters. He bought a farm which was hard work and not enough waters he dug a large well and pumped water for irrigation.

The depression years of the 30’s found him working hard to provide for his family. He worked with Joseph Lee at the sawmill, contracted to furnish gravel for the highway being built through Malta, etc. About this time he has his teeth pulled and caught cold in his gum which made him very sick. He had to have his jaw operated on which left a scar on his left cheek.

He was very active in the church, often walking two miles to his meetings. He served for many years on the Stake High Council.

He left the farm in 1932 and moved into town where he operated a shoe repair shop. Then in 1936 they moved to Burley, Idaho where he did carpentry work. He was a very good carpenter and worked at this until he developed a very bad heart and had to quit.

His heart gave out on him on May 1, 1954 and he quietly passed away. He is buried in Burley, Idaho.