Clara Sophia Johnson was born in Richfield,
Utah, February 24, 1881. She was the daughter of
James Nicholia and Ana Sophia Johnson. Their fam-
ily home was a rock house with a mud roof and a
board floor. It was the envy of many in Richfield as it
was surrounded by a six foot high rock wall. Sophia
was one of four children including a set of twins born
to James and Ana.

Sophia and Henry were married on February 16,
1898 in Richfield by Henry's father, Theodore.

In 1899 Henry accepted a call from the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to come to Canada.
He left a close circle of friends, a profitable job, a
comfortable home and his family only to embark
upon a new way of life in a desolate empty prairie.

Henry arrived in Stirling with other members of
his family and friends on May 5, 1899. He and Mr. P.
Christensen rode night herd to keep the cattle and
horses from straying as there were no fences. He
returned to Richfield and then the next May, 1900
returned to Stirling with his wife and three daughters.

Henry had a variety of jobs over the next few
years. He was the first to sign a mail contract, he
helped build the Stirling School and worked on the
irrigation canal. He travelled to Cardston for machin-
ery and to Magrath for coal. He often met the train in
Lethbridge and would take new settlers in the demo-
crat to look at land. Settlers filed their claims in
Lethbridge. They would travel the day before and
sleep on the ground in order to keep their place in the
line.

In 1910 Henry and Sophia moved their family to
their homestead near New Dayton in 1908. In 1911,
the hail destroyed all the crops. 1915 and 1916 were
very good years and in 1917, Henry purchased his
first Model T touring car.

The dry year of 1919 then hit and that year they
threshed only 300 bushels of grain. There was no
feed for the cattle and hay was shipped in from
northern Alberta. Many range cattle starved to death.

An epidemic of scarlet fever broke out in their
area in 1920. Sophia spent many sleepless nights
beside their children's beds and for many months
while they were quarantined, Henry would go for
groceries and would call out from the street what he
wanted to purchase and the grocer would then fill the
order and leave it out in the street for Henry to pick
up.

They had many interesting experiences as pi-
oneers-Sophia told of times when the Indians
would be around begging for food while gathering
bleached bones Iying on the prairie. They would tell
her that they were going to steal her black-eyed
child. Sophia always fed them and they
would go away happy.

The forty years they spent on the farm were very
busy ones. They were very involved in the communi-
ty where Henry served as a School Board Trustee and
Superintendent of the L.D.S. Branch Sunday
School. The children attended Stirling, Tyrnells
Lake, Independent and Wrentham Schools as they
got their education. Sophia was very involved in the
community Women's Institute, quilting bees and Re
Iief Society. There were many fun events to attend
also such as: dances, picnics, swimming in Kip
Coulee, horse shoe pitching, rodeos, horse racing
and fishing.

In 1948, they celebrated their Golden Wedding
Anniversary. In 1950, they retired to Stirling. Here
they enjoyed the remainder of their lives together and
are buried in the Stirling Cemetery.

Henry and Sophia were two very courageous,
honest and hard working pioneers. They left a fine
posterity of ten children, thirty-three grandchildren,
eighty great-grandchildren, and twenty-two great-
great-grandchildren to date. They were two very fine
people and left a cherished example for their family
to follow.

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