Madison Daniel Hambleton, part 1 - Conversion to the Gospel

One more item on Grandpa Joe Bush before I move away from the Linnebachs.  Besides teaching us the song "The Dog Named Jack,"  he also taught us "How to Catch a Polar Bear."  Here's how:  If you want to catch a polar bear the first thing you do is cut a hole in the ice.  Then you sprinkle some green peas around the hole.  Then, when the polar bear comes to "take a pea" you kick him in the "ice hole."  Grandma (Lois Fae Linnebach) just rolled over in her grave.

There is a very interesting individual on our Family Tree whose name I had seen for decades.  But it was not until recently that I learned anything about him.  His name is Madison Daniel Hambelton.  He was Grandma's great, great-grandfather.  I found his autobiography on Ancestry.com.  Here is a person who not only lived through some of the early days of Church history, but also was a key player in one of the events that led to the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith.   Here are some excerpts from his autobiography/journal:

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I, Madison Danie1 Hambleton, was born in the year 1811, November 2nd, in the town of Hamburgh, Erie County, State of New York, No. America.

 

My progenitors on my father’s side were Friend Quakers and I was taught that persuasion in my younger days, but in my riper years I abandoned all religions and was unconcerned about any.

 

I attended different orders of worship and the more I saw of them the more I was disgusted with their hypocrisy, and I quit going to any religious meetings although I observed morality and stayed by my parents.

 

In the Fall of 1834 I had a very severe attack of inflammatory rheumatism which confined me to the house for six weeks. After I was able to get about I got acquainted with Chelnecha Smith who I married on the seventh day of January A.D.

 l835 and took her to my father's house, where we remained until April. There I left my wife and went to the city of Rochester to obtain a berth on a canal boat but did not succeed so I returned to my father's home. I stayed at home for a few days and then went to the city of Buffalo and was engaged to build a house which I completed the coming Fall. I moved my wife there and rented a house of Mr. Heacock to live in. I bought a city lot at the Hydraulicks, built a house on it during the course of the winter and moved into it.

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About the first of Jan. (1839) my brother and myself went out into the country some eight miles to find a piece of land to enter but being unable to find any that suited me.  I bought a piece of 80 acres second-handed and moved onto it. The people here were very benevolent and moved of different denomination religiously; Methodists, Newtites, Baptists, Ceceded Campbellites and Bernets Creed.

 

July 16th 1840 my wife gave birth to a little daughter, named Lucy Ann. I lived here on my farm making some little improvements. The most of my time I spent at the carpenters and grainers trade for others, barely making a living in consequence of ill health.

 

In the fall of 1841 I traded my 80 acres for 160 acres unimproved in White County and moved onto it, built me a house, improved 20 acres and put it under good fence. While living in Cass County I was very frequently solicited to unite with the different denominations of religion and finally did join the Methodists on trial for six months.

 

After this I began to read the old scriptures which I had never done before and I soon became convinced in my mind their doctrine was not in accordance with the doctrine of the old and new testaments. I had not been with them very long before I commenced to teach the scriptures as I understood them. This made me rather unpopular amongst them and they sought to approach me in my belief and finally they prepared a charge against me before a council of Elders and leading men of the days to which I belonged. Not being able to maintain anything of an unchristian-like conduct hoped that I would see the error of my belief and reform and they would exercise their faith and prayers in my behalf. When they got through with me I got up and told them they could blot my name from the book of their remembrance. My wife followed my example and also one Jeremiah Dunham who had been a member of the Methodist church for 15 years. I afterwards ascertained that he had hold of the Book of Mormon from one of the Mormon Elders some years before and had never showed it to anyone but had studied it and had believed it.

 

About this time I heard of a man by the name of Gehial Savage who they said was a Mormon Elder and was teaching at Door Prairie, Laporte Co. I immediately wrote him a letter stating that I wanted him to come to my house or send me one of his Profession.  I waited nine months, heard nothing from him but heard that there was a branch of the Mormon Church there.  I wrote another letter to the branch which later got into the hands of one of the sisters and in about nine months from the date of my last letter it was taken to Nauvoo and was read from the stand at a General Conference when the Prophet Joseph sent two Elders (James Carroll and Ezra Strong) to the neighborhood.  The first sermon they preached I believed and offered myself for baptism, also my wife and Jeremiah Dunham. The date of baptism I do not know but I think it was in the month of October 1842.  Soon after I had written to Elder Savage there was a man by the name of William Williams who was a Mormon in Kirtland and had moved into the neighborhood near me who was an honest old man and still firm in the faith.  His son Charles who also was a Mormon in Kirtland had denied the faith and joined the Methodists and done all he could to persuade me against them.  I got possession of a Book of Mormon which soon converted me to the gospel of the Son of God, and glory and honor be to the Lord and his servant Joseph and all the faithful who caused it to come forth and be preached to nations.  My brother Andrew Jackson Hambleton also read the Book of Mormon and believed it but died before he had the opportunity of embracing the gospel.  I also got hold of the book of Doctrine and Covenants which continued to strengthen me.  The finger of scorn was pointed toward me because of my belief.  The neighborhood in which I lived they called Nauvoo which made me feel proud.  After the Elders came there they continued to preach but none but my wife, Jeremiah Dunham and myself obeyed for some two months when there were some ten or fifteen more came forward and were baptized.

 

The people got so incensed at us they would disturb our meetings and even throw stones at the elders.  March 24th 1842 my wife gave birth to our second son, named James Finley.

 

The following summer I worked on my new farm, built myself a frame house.  In the Spring of l843 my wife went to the State of New York on a visit to my father and her friends but they spurned her because of her religion.  She returned home the same season without making one convert.  In the fall I offered my home for sale for the purpose of moving to Nauvoo and soon sold it and trusted the man for every dollar of the price which was $400.00, less than half what it was worth at the time of sale.  The man failed and left the country and I finally got $80.00 in property.

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Soon after my wife returned from her visit my younger child died, 1843., and a short time after the death of our child I was ordained an elder in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints under the hands of Alva L. Tippit and James McGaw, October 16.  I started to move to Nauvoo and a young woman by the name of Mary Ann Greathouse went with us.  We landed in Nauvoo November 2nd, 1843; my birthday.  Soon after I took one yoke of my oxen to the Temple Committee and paid them on my tithing.  I had one yoke left and one wagon which I traded for a little log house 10 by 12 ft. on the ground and a City lot.  I had two cows, one of them I sold for provisions and the man failed to pay me and so she done me but a little good.  I had one cow left and one 3 years mare.  Them I wintered and in the spring, my mare was stolen.  I worked at my trade making cabinet wear and window sash but could not sell much to get provisions to live upon.  Plenty in the country for money and cheap corn 25 cents per bushel, but we made out to live on very short allowance, mostly corn bread. I was poor as to the necessities of life but I rejoiced in the principles of the Gospel and the spirit of the Lord. In the Spring of 1844 I was chosen one of the city Police of the City of Nauvoo.

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Nauvoo, 26th, 1844 my wife gave birth to a son. He was still born, we called his name Parley Pratt Hambleton. At this time the mob began to gather and threaten the city with destruction and extermination, which caused great excitement in the midst of the Saints. The Nauvoo Legion was called to arms as a home guard to protect the city in case the mob should attempt to come against us. A request was made to the Governor of the State of Illinois, Thomas Ford, then occupying the chair of the State, to disperse and disband the mob and restore peace. He pretended to give us assistance and came to Nauvoo with several companies of Militia and made a great display in and about the city.  They accidentally shot one of their own men while on guard in a false alarm in the night.  They marched from Nauvoo about the country pretending to disperse the mob but giving them encouragement and help.  About this time there were a few dissenters from the Church among who was Wm. Law, who was President Joseph Smith’s first counselor, and his brother, Wilson Law and several others who were in high standing.

 

The apostates bought a printing press and set it up in the heart of the city and commenced a newspaper called the Nauvoo Expositor, a most disgraceful and lying sheet.  Made one issue when the city council met and held a session of court and declared it a nuisance and ordered it removed.  In the evening I was called upon by the city Marshall (John P. Green) to go and help to abut. About sunset we met at the Temple.  The city police and many others under the charge of the city Marshall who selected fourteen of the police, myself one of the number, who with sledges or other necessary tools went into the printing office, pied the type, threw the fixtures into the street and burned them, broke the press and threw it into the street, set afire to them and burned all that would.  We obeyed the order of the city council with delight.  When done we marched to the Prophet’s house, under the command of the city Marshall, and reported to him our doings.  The Prophet said he was glad of it and he said he never felt better in his life and blessed us in the name of Jesus Christ.  The destruction of the press had a tendency to increase the rage of the mob against the Prophet and all who upheld him.  Many went out from amongst us with the huge cry of false prophet, polygamy, thieves and robbers, and sent out a writ for the Prophet.  An officer came to Nauvoo to arrest him and brought a process of soldiers with him.  The Prophet not being in the city they were about to leave for home and had mounted their horses when Reynolds Cahoon and Hyrum Kimball took the officer to one side and prevailed on him to stay and they would go and find the prophet and prevail on him to come home and give himself up to the officers and go to Carthage with them.  This they effected and the next morning the prophet, his brother Hyrum, Willard Richards, and John Taylor were all lodged in the jail.  A company of Carthage Grays (who were no more or less than a portion of the mob) were placed as guards there to keep the mob from disturbing them.

 

The Governor then pledged the faith of the State of Illinois together with his honor and the honor of the State that they should not be molested.  He then disbanded all the troops except the guard.  The Governor then went immediately to the city of Nauvoo and in a speech there he branded the Saints as being a set of military Saints and abused them shamefully.  He then gave orders to Captain Singleton who was stationed there with his company to assist the police in protecting the City against the mob, to remain there until further ordered.  He then started for Carthage about five P. M.  About thirty minutes after the Governor left, Singleton, with his company, left for Carthage also.  On their way there they met the express bearing the news of the murder of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum.  They took them prisoners back to Carthage for fear the Saints would rise in mobs and pursue them before they could get out of the country: June 27th 1844.

 

The next morning the “Express” arrived in Nauvoo bringing us the terrible news of the murder.  This raised a great excitement and great sorrow and mourning.  Teams were sent for the bodies and they were brought home, together with Brother John Taylor and one of the thieves who was wounded with five balls in the affray.  The bodies of the Prophet and Patriarch were taken to the Nauvoo Mansion and all who had a desire to take a last view of their corpse had the opportunity.  The mob dispersed and all was peace for a while they thinking that they had destroyed the Priesthood from the earth, not believing that the gospel had been restored to the earth in these days.

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That's all for now.  His early life and conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ is remarkable.  It is hard for us of this generation to comprehend to trials and difficulties our progenitors went through.  Just the time and effort it would take to clear 20 acres of land is mind boggling.  That's chopping down all the trees (without chain saws), removing the brush, and digging out all the boulders.  Wow.  And then to leave it all behind to move to Nauvoo and trade what you had left for an 8x10 cabin.  What intrigued me most was the fact that he got a job as a Nauvoo policeman and actually participated in the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor.  More to come next week.  Below is the only known photo of him.  Next week I'll let you know why his neck is crooked.




Madison Daniel Hambleton

 


Chelnecha Smith Hambleton



A Call to Repentance

While I was a student at BYU, I remember visiting Grandma Blanche (Blanche Ruby Worthen) at her condominium in Salt Lake City, Carriage Lane.  It was a nice development with plenty of flowers, especially petunias which she loved and paid the gardeners extra to plant outside her unit.  Grandpa (Charles Cash Rampton, Jr.) was also there.  I wish I could remember more of the details, but I can't.  What I do remember was her scolding Grandpa for something.  I was shocked.  Later she explained to me, "Charlie, dear" (that's what she always called me) "I will always be your dad's mother and it will always be my job to correct him when needed."  How true.  You never stop being a parent with all the attending responsibilities.

The last few weeks I have written about George Adam Linnebach, Grandpa Joe Bush's father.  He, too, believed that principle of parental responsibility.  He was always concerned, and undoubtedly saddened, that his oldest and only son was not active in the church.  We can only speculate on the number of father/son conversations that took place over the years between the two.  But despite those heart-to-hearts and plenty of prayer, Grandpa Joe Bush (Arthur Phillip Linnebach) never was an active member of the church.  He supported his wife and children going (for which we should be thankful) but church was not for him.  He always had a Word of Wisdom problem and perhaps it was guilt from this that kept him from full fellowship.  In December 1939  George Adam Linnebach tried a different approach to motivate his son.  He wrote him a letter, a copy of which is still in existence, and gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon.  This letter provides some insight into the faith and testimony that George possessed.  Here is the letter.  Remember when reading it that George's English was never perfect:

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To my dear son Arthur,

I feel very sorry to have to write this letter, but I feel as your father, it is my duty to do so and I ask and pray that the Spirit of our Heavenly Father might lead my hand and inspire me to say a few words to you which will be a blessing to you and your family and a comfort to your old parents.

As the holy Xmas is here again, a Feast of Love and Giving, then so also loveth God the world that he giveth his only begotten Son, to be born and die for us that we might be saved.  Oh what I gift.  Yes, we are Christ's people and try to make others happy, children the parents, parents the children. Yes, that brings me back sixty years far away, where my old neighborhood stands and I sure think you, my son, got the same feelings as your birth was in this beautiful city Karlsruhe. Yes, this coming spring will be 40 years ago.  A great and sorrowful life is behind us and there, but I hope and pray that the Lord will bless us and thee my son ----and a blessed life may be ours in the coming year.

My dear son, may the Spirit of our Heavenly Father touch your heart that you may see the sweetness of life and enjoy your life in a better way in the future than you have done in the past.  Yes, when I think back almost 40 years ago, you had been born to us as our oldest child. Yes, oh this joy and happiness was in our humble home.  A little later our missionaries did come to our home and brought us these glad tidings.  The true church is again on the earth, the Lord has again spoken from heaven; yes, the Lord has blessed us that we could see the light that shines out of darkness.  A few years later we left our dear old fatherland, yes our loved ones, my dear old mother, your dear old father did come out here about 7000 miles just for the gospel's sake, to a new land, another language, all everything different, with four little children, probably you can remember the hard times we went through.  But in all these struggles, it was our humble desire to serve our God and to make our children a home.  Yes, we cannot say a swell home, but we have done the best, I hope, for the conditions we have been in.  But we kept our faith and the Lord has blessed us wonderfully by hard work sorrow and struggle.  Yes, you sure can remember when I worked for Buehner and took you with me to work.  The men who we worked with in the Depression did come to me and ask me to start up my own business.  It was then you left me as I need you so bad.  Oh, these had been very sad hours for your dad, but I struggled along, always faithfully and earnestly and the times did become better and better. 

Yes, you went to California and get your experience (bad habits) where you still suffer under today.  It is of no use to bring up past stuff, but it makes us think sometimes and we may think "not anymore". 

My son Art, it is never too late to repent, yes repent.  Take a good look at your dear wife and your dear little children, look around your home. If you do not think "I will be a better husband to my wife, a better father to my dear children, a better son to my old worrying parents, a better citizen to my country, I will serve my God with all my strength and power, I want to get the holy priesthood of God, I want to be married in the holy Temple of the Lord to my dear wife.  I want my dear children sealed to me because they are mine and I love them, yes, I will seek wisdom out of the best books, I will go to my meetings and take part of the holy Sacrament, I will pay my tithing and fast offerings which the Lord requires of me that I may enjoy his blessings.  Yes, to do these I will try good and hard to quit smoking, drinking and I will try to keep my body clean and sound, that the Holy Spirit can dwell in me."

"Oh may the Lord bless me that I can do it"

My dear son what do you think of your loving father's suggestions?  They are only for you and yours welfare.  It is my humble desire and mind and your mother's wishes as an Xmas gift from their only son.  Then understand, through study and obedience, the glorious purpose why we are here on this earth, it is for a wise and glorious purpose as we are all the sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father in the spirit.  When we die our spirit goes to spirit world, there he waits until the resurrection, then our body, yes our sanctified glorified body, will take its spirit again to be united and live through all eternity.  Yes my son, I feel that you cannot understand these glorious things which our Father in Heaven has prepared for us if we are faithful.  Oh my son these things are true, just as true as I am in your father. Therefore my son I want you to enjoy these wonderful gifts and blessings. Oh, if you listen to these things, you will see how your body will change.  It is only the Devil that wants to keep us away from doing our duties and serving our Lord.  I know my son that you will have a hard battle to fight but if you want to be victorious, you have to do it and you will thank your Father in Heaven day and night. Your parents are praying for you.  May of the Lord bless you my son. I give you a little Xmas gift, it is the most glorious book besides the Bible that is on the earth, given to Joseph Smith. I pray thee read and study it and you will be blessed .

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That is quite a testimony......"a voice speaking from the dust," not only to his son in 1939 but to all future generations who have an opportunity to read it and feel its spirit.  In 1939 Grandpa Joe Bush would have been 39 years old.  Grandma (Lois Fae Linnebach) would have been 9.  I don't know that I will write any more about George Adam Linnebach.  But, through what I have written these past few weeks, I have come to have a greater esteem for the man that he was.  In some respects, he was like Father Lehi who listened to the promptings of the Lord, took his family from their homeland, into the wilderness, and finally to the promised land.  The journey was not easy.  Laman and Lemuel contributed much to that fact.  George Adam Linnebach was taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ by missionaries in his homeland of Karlsruhe, Germany.  He was moved upon by the Holy Ghost which bore witness to him of the truth.  He and his wife were baptized.  And then, perhaps most remarkable of all, sold all he had and moved his young family to Zion.  He did not speak English, had no place to stay and no job.  But, as I wrote before, he had faith.  And that faith resulted in a good life for he and his family.  Thanks be to God for George Adam Linnebach.



Arthur Phllip Linnebach and his children Glen, Diane, Lois and Carole - photo taken about the time of the Xmas Letter



Why Christmas Eve?

(It may seem odd to write about Christmas at Halloween time.  Maybe it has something to do with me spending Friday night on Hollywood Blvd waiting for Disney Soda Fountain pins of the Nightmare Before Christmas.)

When I was growing up Christmas was always a magical time.  But, the older I got the magic changed to reverence.  Or maybe I should say that reverence was added to the magic.  The magic never leaves if you believe (per The Polar Express.)  I remember our Christmas family traditions with great affection.  The week before Christmas Grandma (Lois Fae Linnebach) would make dozens of gingerbread Santas.  I remember her spreading them out on the kitchen table so she could decorate each one with icing, red hots and little silver balls.  Then she would write in icing each person's name across the belly who was to get the gingerbread Santa.......every kid in the neighborhood and their parents, all of us in the family, women she visiting taught, all the young women in the ward when she was Young Women's President,  Grandpa's (Charles Cash Rampton, Jr.) councilors in the Bishopric and their families, all the Cub Scouts when she was Den Mother, all the Scouts when Grandpa was Scoutmaster, and finally she and Grandpa if there were any leftover.  Our house was decorated to kill with Christmas decorations, most of which she made:  a jeweled Christmas tree wall hanging; a broken glass and lights Christmas tree wall hanging;  beaded Christmas trees, bells, angles and reindeer; hand-made Christmas tree skirt; and too many others to mention.  Which ones come to your mind?

Today when Christmas comes around my thoughts are not only turned to the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, but also to the lives of my grandparents.  Grandma Blanche (8 Dec 1986), Grandpa Joe Bush(24 Dec 1969), Grandma Ethel (14 Dec 1988) and Grandpa Cash (14 Dec 1991) all died within a few weeks of Christmas.  Based on some things that I will write later in this blog, Grandpa Joe Bush's death on Christmas Eve seems fitting.........a strange term to describe death.

On Christmas Eve our family did something that none of the families of my friends or other people we knew did.  We had a big family Christmas Eve party with a Christmas feast, usually prime rib and Yorkshire pudding, a family program and the opening of presents from the family. It was always tough to go to sleep that night, whether from the sugar from all the candies, cakes and pies or the anticipation that Santa Claus was coming that night.  On Christmas morning we would get up to see the presents Santa had brought us in the night.

I have two very fond memories of those Christmas Eve parties, one old and one new.  The old memory is Grandpa's reading of the Cremation of Sam MaGee.  Grandma hated it, or at least she pretended to.  Grandpa loved to read it.  Unless you listened to the words very carefully, you wondered what it had to do with Christmas.  The new memory is the Rampton Christmas Rap written by David and performed for the first time in 2008 by the Rampton Christmas Rappers,  David, Travis and Kevin.  Honorable mention memory:  Kevin and the peanut butter.  Those were good times and hopefully there will be many more good times to come.

So now the answer to the big question, where did the tradition of a Family Christmas Eve Party came from?  And as I promised last week, the answer:  those parties were a family tradition tha George Adam Linnebach and his wife Anna brought to America from Germany.  Here is an excerpt from Aunt Caroline's (sister of Grandpa Joe Bush who was also born in Germany)  history, The Linnebachs, where she describes Christmas Eve in Germany before immigrating:

"I remember Christmas was always a special time and we looked forward to it eagerly. I am sure mother and father made preparations for this event weeks in advance as they made most of the gifts.  One Christmas father made me a small

cupboard, doll buggy, table and chairs. Mother made clothes for the doll they purchased and covers for the bed.

Christmas was always celebrated on Christmas Eve and we had to wait for the " Christkindl--Christ Child" to arrive before we could open our presents. The person playing the part of Christkindl , usually a pretty young girl dressed in

white, asked our parents if we had been good children and when they answered, "Yes," she led us into the parlor. There, the candle-lit tree was so exciting to see, and there were always many gifts. Our Uncle Heinrich always brought large

boxes of special Christmas cookies."

This German tradition came with them to the United States and I'm glad it did.  I remember Grandma telling us about the parties and how she never wanted to be on the program.  Each Christmas Eve all the children and grandchildren of George and Anna would gather at their house for an evening of celebration.  Here is another excerpt from Aunt Caroline about the "Americanized" version of the tradition:

"We continued the German tradition of celebrating Christmas Eve together, starting with a buffet of juicy German sausages, roles, salads, cookies, Stollen, Lebkuchen (honey cookies), Streusel, and Zwetschgekuchen (prune cake),

doughnuts, candies, hot postum or cocoa or milk. Each family contributed an item. My contribution was always ten dozen homemade glazed yeast doughnuts. After eating, we had a program with all participating; then sang Christmas

carols.  Santa (der Weihnachtsmann ), often played by Mrs. Scott, who lived on Driggs Avenue, was a strange looking Santa. Wearing her "leopard skin" fur coat complete with spots, she went from child to child, asking if they had been good. She gave us an orange, chocolates, all-day suckers and other candies some of which she--a former candy factory employee--had made herself. Gifts were exchanged and the children always looked forward to gifts from the

grand-parents which were always special and something they particularly wanted.  One year one of the grandchildren used Christmas crayons to write all over the new living room wall paper. We never knew who did it."

(fyi: Stollen is Fruitcake and Lebkuchen is gingerbread.)

(As for the crayon writing on the wall, it was probably Grandma and Travis inherited that tendency from her.)

When Anna Linnebach died in 1942 the Christmas Eve parties were then held in the homes of each of the children with their individual families.  During her teenage years Grandma still hated to be on the program.  Grandpa Joe Bush and Grandma Ethel held one in their home every year until Grandma Ethel died in 1988 with the exception of Christmas Eve 1969.  That was the day Grandpa Joe Bush died of lung cancer in the hospital.  And even though that was a time of sadness for us,  it was a time of celebration for others.  I have no doubt that George and Anna Linnebach, as well as other ancestors rejoiced in being re-united with their oldest son.  And so for them, the Christmas Eve celebration continued one more time.

Below is a picture of the children and grandchildren of George and Anna Linnebach taken in the summer of 1940.  This is who would have attended those Christmas Eve parties.