Mary Susannah Sumner Fackrell Fowler and William Fowler diaries [photocopies and typescripts]
Collection
Identifier: MS 0318
Scope and Contents
The Mary Susannah Sumner Fackrell Fowler and William Fowler diaries [photocopies and typescripts] (1854-1900) consist of a total of three diaries. William Fowler's diary was written in 1854 and 1855 and records his mission to Glouchestershire, England, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The original diary was written in Pittman shorthand, but a typescript is available. In it, Fowler jots down daily details: what he ate for breakfast, how many people he baptized, and how many miles he walked in a day, for example. The connection between William Fowler and Mary Susannah Fackrell Fowler is unknown. Her diaries for the years 1899 and 1900 are useful for the descriptions of daily life in central Utah. Although the exact town where Mary Fowler lived is never made clear, it may have been Helper, as she mentions visiting the nearby towns of Castledale, Centerville, Huntington, Orangeville, Price and Nine Mile Canyon, St. George, Scofield, Sunnyside, and Wellington. The diary provides information on home remedies for various illnesses, ranging from headaches to smallpox. She also discusses attitudes toward health and disease and the community-wide resistance to vaccination and medical treatment. In between illnesses and their cures, her time was spent on household chores: carding and spinning, making clothes, shoes, and rugs, cleaning and cooking, making soap, and baking bread.
Dates
- 1854-1900
Creator
- Fowler, William, 1830-1865 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Biographical Sketch
Mary Susannah Fackrell Fowler was born in 1862 and lived in Orderville, Utah, until her marriage to Henry Ammon Fowler in 1880. They moved to Huntington in 1888. She has been described as a "Mormon healer" and "folk poet" by Margaret Brady, who wrote a book on her. Mary Fowler died in 1920. Further biographical information on William Fowler could not be found.
Extent
0.25 Linear Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Mary Susannah Sumner Fackrell Fowler and William Fowler diaries [photocopies and typescripts] (1854-1900) consist of a total of three diaries. William Fowler's diary was written in 1854 and 1855 and records his mission to Glouchestershire, England, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mary Susannah Fackrell Fowler's diaries, written in 1899-1900, record her daily life in central Utah. She provides information on home remedies for various illnesses, tells of local attitudes about various subjects, and describes her daily chores and activities.
Processing Information
Processed by Manuscripts Division staff.
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- Carbon County (Utah) -- Social life and customs -- Sources
- Diaries
- England -- Emigration and immigration -- Religious aspects -- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- 19th century
- Fowler, Mary Susannah, 1862-1920 -- Diaries
- Fowler, William, 1830-1865 -- Diaires
- Latter Day Saint missionaries -- England -- 19th century -- Diaries
- Latter Day Saint women -- Utah -- Social life and customs -- 19th century -- Sources
- Missionaries
- Mormonism (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
- Photocopies
- Traditional medicine -- Utah -- 19th century
- Typescripts
- Women healers -- Utah -- 19th century -- Diaries
- Women poets -- 19th century -- Diaries
Creator
- Fowler, William, 1830-1865 (Person)
- Title
- Inventory of the Mary Susannah Sumner Fackrell Fowler and William Fowler diaries [photocopies and typescripts]
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Lisa DeMille.
- Date
- 2007 (last modified: 2018 and 2024)
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu