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Kim Woodbury is a third great granddaughter of Ann Cannon Woodbury. Kim works for the Church as a public affairs area relations manager, which means that she works with public affairs employees, missionaries, and local Church members around the world on their media and government relations initiatives. Previously, she has worked in marketing and communications for the Family History and Church history departments. She has written for television, news, magazines, and newspapers. Kim has a degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Utah, and is currently in the Master of Professional Communication program at Westminster College. One thing you might never guess about Kim is that she has been a water aerobics instructor. And if you have ever seen the Church History Library's video "The Story Lives Here," come back and see it again and see if you can find Kim in the video. We're pleased to have Kim speak to us this evening. And we'll turn the remainder of the time over to her. Kim?

Thank you. I am thrilled tonight to introduce you to my great great great grandmother, Ann Cannon Woodbury. I have been fascinated with Ann for as long as I can remember. And I'm not sure exactly why she particularly stands out among all of my many faithful ancestors. But I have always felt a strong connection to her. As I have studied the life of this remarkable woman, I have learned many lessons that bless my life. But beyond that, I think that anyone can learn from Ann's example about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. By looking backward and learning from the past, I think we can better move forward. Tonight, I would like to share some stories from her life that illustrate principles like patience, obedience, sacrifice, and enthusiasm. In doing so, I hope to inspire all of us to be stronger men and women of faith. Ann Cannon Woodburry. And this is her. I hope you enjoy meeting her tonight. Like any good story, we will start at the beginning with just a little bit about Ann's childhood in what her brother George Q. called a very happy, loving family. Ann was born in Liverpool, England, on the 28th of January 1832, to George and Ann Quayle Cannon. Ann was the third child in the family. There were three siblings that died in childhood, but there were seven who lived to adulthood. And this is a picture of them that was taken in 1890. We have George Quayle, the oldest, who was born in 1827; followed by Mary Alice in 1828. Ann then followed in 1832, Angus in 1834, David in 1838, Leonora in 1840, and Elizabeth in 1845. In 1870 George Q. Cannon wrote a letter to his sister that included some of his memories from their childhood. And I think it's quite enlightening to tell us a little bit about their family life. And so I wanted to share part of it with you. He wrote, "Today is the 28th of January, and I am reminded that it is my dear sister's birthday, the loved companion of my childhood, between whom and myself never so much as an unpleasant thought or word occurred or was exchanged to my recollection. I hold up my Sister Annie's love and unvarying and whole-souled generosity and kindness to my children as an example which they cannot do better than to imitate. I have never forgotten, I trust I never shall forget, how patiently you endured the results of my pranks and mischief on your person rather than cry out, knowing that, if you did so, Mother with her strict ideas of what was due from a boy to his sisters, especially when younger than himself, would be likely to punish me; and how often when I had incurred mother's displeasure you would plead for me and even offer, as I well remember, to share my punishment with me so that I might escape as lightly as possible. These recollections are treasured up in my memory as the most precious reminiscences of my childhood. Your conduct stands out brightly in my remembrance, for I am reproached with the thought that I did not show my appreciation as I ought to have done, being older than you, but was inclined to presume upon on your affection. I did not understand it at the time, but my experience in watching other families since has taught me the truth that, with all our faults, we were a very happy, loving family." While this letter may have been colored a bit by time, it is clear that Ann was a patient and loving sister. I wish my siblings could say that never a cross or unpleasant word had passed between us. I think that's quite a remarkable tribute from a brother to his sister. And so as we talk about the lessons that I think that we can learn from Ann, the first lessons I would mention would be that of love and patience for our family members and those with whom we will spend eternity. All right. So moving on to the next section of Ann's life, which includes her family's conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-- and this time, Ann recalled later in her life that she was very happy listening to the gospel.

Ann, later on in her life, gave this account of her family's conversion story. She says, "My father did not believe in any of the sex of the day. His sister, Leonora Cannon, joined the Methodists. They had been brought up in the Church of England. My father told Leonora he could confound her religion in a short time. 'But if you enjoy it, Nora, it is all right with me,' he said. The gospel is not upon the Earth, but it is coming. And he never stopped his family from going to meetings nor Sunday school. When I was about seven years old, I went to a Church and the minister said we would all go to hell if we let bad thoughts come into our hearts. I went home feeling very bad. "I can't help my thoughts," I said. And I sat by the bedside and cried. "I will surely go to hell." I was very unhappy, but did not tell anybody about it. In the spring of 1840, when I was eight years old, John Taylor called at my father's house. He asked for Mr. George Cannon. My brother George Q., who went to the door, invited him in. Mother came to the door. He told her that he was a brother-in-law of Mr. Cannon's. He said he had married his sister, Leonora Cannon. He said he had just landed from America and had to get his things off the vessel but would come tomorrow, which was Sunday, and would spend the day with us. As he left the house and got out of hearing, my mother said, 'That is a man of God.' Next day he came and talked all day, explaining the Restoration of the gospel. And my heart rejoiced. 'Now,' I thought, 'I'll not to go to hell.'" And so as we reflect on this conversion story with-- which I think is so charming, there's a couple of things that it reminds me of. First of all, I think the joy that Ann obviously took in discovering the gospel of Jesus Christ-- this is, I think, a helpful reminder for those of us who have been in the Church for many generations. Sometimes we tend to take our faith for granted. And so it's helpful to remember what a discovery it has been for so many people throughout history to discover the redemption and the promise of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Through Ann's conversion story, we also get a glimpse of the great thirst for the gospel that she had even at the age of eight. She said, "My father read the Book of Mormon through twice before he concluded that he could not condemn it. He said a bad man could not write it, and a good man dared not unless he was inspired. So our parents were baptized February 11, 1840. They rented a hall and held meetings. At first, they did not let us children go to the sacrament meeting. But after a while, they let us go. We were very happy listening to the gospel. We had many people come to our house to talk about it. I was sent to bed with my brother David, the baby, but I would get up when he was asleep and sit on the stairs and listen to them converse on the gospel. My father found me asleep and said I must be allowed to sit up or I would fall and break my neck." I love that story because it shows, even as an eight-year-old, how excited Ann was about the gospel. And that gives me pause, as I think that I could probably do better in my life in having that thirst for the gospel and the desire to stay up late and risk breaking my neck to learn more. All right. You can probably guess where we're going next. Ann and the Cannons leave England to join the Saints in America. And during this time, Ann recalled that they suffered considerable. This is what she says: "We left England in September 17, 1842. My mother had a presentiment that she would die on the sea. Mother took sick the day we left and never sat up again. Levi Richards doctored her, but she died in six weeks and was buried in the sea and six of us were left without a mother. We got to New Orleans, November 11, 1840, where we got oranges and anything we wanted. Levi Richards engaged the heaviest draft boat on the river and at Chester it stuck on a sandbar and we had to live in the woods for two weeks. We suffered considerable before they got a boat to take us to St. Louis. The river was frozen over, and we had to stay there until spring. In the spring we took the Maid of Iowa as cabin passengers. It was a small boat belonging to Brother Joseph Smith. All of the berths were occupied, and the floor was covered with beds." This does not sound like a pleasant journey to me. Once they got to Nauvoo, this is what and recalled of her first meeting with the Prophet. She said, "Joseph Smith, the Prophet, met us at Nauvoo and shook hands with all on board. I thought he was a grand looking man." And then, of course, after the death of Joseph Smith, this is what Ann recalls about Brigham Young. She said, "After the Prophet's death, I was at the meeting where Sidney Rigdon, standing in a wagon box to make his speech, presented his claim to be guardian of the Church. When Brigham Young presented his claim, the mantle of the prophet rested on him and we knew he was to be the new leader." We just skipped over all of Nauvoo in a very short amount of time, but we have a lot of life to get to. From the Nauvoo period and Ann's journey from England to America, I think there's a couple of lessons that I take from that. First of all, the obvious sacrifice. Of course, like all the pioneers, she sacrificed her home and comfort to join with the Saints. This is a powerful lesson for those of us in a day when sometimes it's hard to even do our home or visiting teaching, and we contemplate the sacrifices of the pioneers. We also learn of Ann's commitment to sustain modern day prophets. And this, of course, is a lesson that is more important than ever in our day. So the next phase of Ann's life, of course, was to journey across the plains to Utah. Ann said later, "It was a miracle the way we got along." And indeed, she and her family saw many miracles during their journey. Ann's father died in October 1844. So she and George Q. came west with their aunt and uncle, John and Leonora Cannon Taylor.

She recalls, "When we left Sugar Creek, we had a great time and the people of the country were astonished to see such crowds of people traveling, and it was a wonder to them to see the Mormons so cheerful and happy." I love that quote because it's not a common perspective that we read about as we read about those trying days. She also said, "It was a miracle the way we got along, but the Lord prospered us and we could see his hand dealings in it all. With singing, dancing, and meetings, the time passed and we rolled along seeing new scenes every day. To us, the hills and plains were things of beauty and a joy forever." I love the positive attitude reflected in these quotes. I wanted to just highlight a couple of stories from this period of time because I think that it illustrates very well the kinds of experiences that Ann had and how it built her character and affected her future decisions. She recalls, "In the spring of 1847, we took up the journey west. Vennie Kelly and I took turns in driving in ox team. We had lots of trials, but the Lord made the back equal to the burden. When I did not have to drive, I rode with George Q. He said, 'Now, Annie, get your books, and I will teach you.' I said, 'Oh, I have not time. It takes me all the time I get to fix my clothes.' So I missed the best opportunity I ever had. I have been very sorry I missed learning, but I had to be humble. And the Lord helped me because of my humility. I had to depend on my Father in Heaven. I realized I had no schooling." Another story from the trail illustrates her faith in the power of prayer. She recalls, "Uncle Taylor was going back to Nauvoo and was on his horse ready to start. I had charge of the keys and could not find them. Aunt was put out about it, and I was scared. I went into the wagon and knelt down and asked the Lord to tell me where they were. I rolled the bed over, raised the lid of my own box, and there lay the keys where I had left them. It proved to me that the Lord heard and answered prayers. And it made an impression on me that I have never forgotten. I have had my prayers answered times without number." Ann arrived in the valley on the 29th of September, 1847, with the Edward Hunter and Joseph Smith Company.

In this phase of Ann's life, I think we can learn from her positive attitude in the face of trials. I think often when we're faced with trials, it's hard to see the positive. And I think that Ann is such a good example. During this very difficult time, she saw the beauty, and she saw the joy, and she found the happiness. And that is such an example to me. I think also humility-- the quote where she talks about how she recognized she had to be humble because she realized that she had no schooling. We all have missed opportunities and trials and weaknesses in our lives. And it's a good reminder to me to be humble and to rely on the Lord in the midst of these weaknesses. And of course, faith. We can't have a lecture series called Men and Women of Faith without telling stories of faith. And I love the story of a young girl's answered prayer. All right. The next phase of Ann's life is marriage and family. And she describes this time as when the Lord blessed her very much. She married Orin Nelson Woodbury on the 7th of February, 1853, in Salt Lake City, and they settled in the Mill Creek area. They had 10 children-- Eleanor, Orin Nelson Jr., Annie, George, John Taylor (who is my great, great grandfather), Leonora, Frank, Alice, Angus, and Clara. Amazingly, all 10 children lived to adulthood. So I think that is quite impressive. Ann had a lot of responsibility for raising these children on her own when her husband took a second wife in 1863. In her recollections later in life, Ann did not write much about Frances or about polygamy. But her grandson-- my great grandfather-- Angus Munn Woodbury, who lived with her as a little boy-- this is what he recalled. He said, "Ann was truly loyal to Orin and never to my knowledge complained about her polygamous lot. In fact, she gave her consent and went with her husband to Salt Lake with the second fiancee to see them married." I think that's an interesting insight into polygamy. As Ann is raising her children, again there are several stories that I would like to highlight that contain lessons I think we can all learn from. This is the first one. She recalls, "We moved our house over Jordan near Taylorsville where we could get to the range. We took a sheep herd and cattle with us. There came up a blizzard, and we had a fearful time. Our house was not chinked and the wind and snow blew through it. I hung a quilt across the corner around the stove and placed the two children in the cradle while I sat with the baby on my knee and my feet on the stove with a fire in it to keep from freezing to death. The chickens froze at the door. We had no chicken coop. I don't want to witness any more such scenes. We fixed the house as soon as the storm was over." I love this story and the way she describes it. I think there's so many times in our lives where we just think, I never want to endure that again. But things got better, and we moved on with our lives. Another story I'd like to share-- she said, "We had not raised any crops but wild hay, and our calves had all died, and some of our cows. We had one cow that had a calf. My husband had gone Sunday to Salt Lake City to meetings. And I had a young baby in my arms. The cow lay down, and I was afraid she would die. There was no one about but three little children. And we were half a mile from anyone. I prayed that she would not die. And then, I prayed that someone would come and help me. After a while, a man happened along, and he helped her up. So I called her Chance. And she lived a long time." I'm sure that her example on the trail finding the lost keys solidified her belief in the power of prayer. And she used that ability to talk to our Heavenly Father many times throughout her life. After two years in Taylorsville, the Woodburys were called to help settle southern Utah in October 1861. This is what Ann has to say about their call. "We had excellent crops and posts and slabs to fence the land and were hauling adobes to build us a good house. One Sunday, John S. Woodbury and my brothers, Angus M. And David H. Cannon, were called to Dixie. He, (my husband)" she's referring to, "was hauling adobes the next week. And I said to him, 'You had better be taking care of your crops. I believe we will be called to Dixie.' Sure enough, we were called the next Sunday. We had only been there two years. We got ready in a week." And this is what she remembers about the journey down. She says, "We were a month on the road and had a bit of snow. We never missed setting the tent but once when while we were traveling, and that was South of Fillmore. Such a blizzard came we could not set the tent and could hardly keep the wagon cover on. I don't know how we slept that night." I think about Ann and Orin every time I drive to St. George. As I ride down in a comfortable car with heating or air conditioning, I imagine with sympathy what that month-long journey must have been like. And then they got down there and had to establish a new home in that forbidding desert. But, like everything else she did, it seems that Ann tackled this new challenge with dedication and enthusiasm and diligence. This is one of my favorite quotes of her from this period of time: "During those early pioneer days of Utah's Dixie, many were the hardships endured. Educational facilities were very meager and expensive, but I was determined that my children should be given every advantage possible, realizing the great handicap my lack of education had been to me. I had learned to spin before leaving Salt Lake and had brought a spinning wheel with me. I went to spinning. I now procured a loom and learned to weave, and wove practically all the cloth with which the family were clothed. I also spun and wove jersey cloth out of which I made suits for men and dresses for women, which I sold to pay the tuition for the children's schooling. Even when I was rushed with work, I would never allow my girls to stay out of school to assist me. Nothing but sickness was ever an excuse for missing school." I think we see in that her missed opportunity from the trail, when she missed the opportunity to learn and was determined that her children would have the opportunity that she didn't. That passion for education has come down to my generation as well. Throughout my family, there is a great commitment to education and a passion for learning. And I think that that was established in Ann's lack of learning. And I'm so grateful for that heritage in my life. She says, "Being full of faith, I depended on the Lord to guide me in the care of my children and was successful in rearing all to maturity. I not only ministered to my own family, but assisted others. And at the time of the great diptheria epidemic in St. George, I went into many homes to assist in caring for the afflicted ones. The Lord blessed me very much. He helped me to do whatever I undertook. And I have to give him the praise, for without his help, there were many things I could not have done." So from this phase of life in Ann's history, I think endurance is certainly a lesson that we can learn. As the path of life takes us through various challenges, we, like all of the pioneers, can keep moving forward despite whatever is thrown into our path. I also, like I mentioned, am so grateful for Ann's commitment to education. I think that's an important quality that helps form our character. And finally, gratitude. I love Ann's sense of gratitude as she acknowledges the hand of the Lord in her life and the help that He had given her. And it's such an important lesson for all of us to recognize how He leads us along and helps us overcome things that would be so difficult without Him. I cannot talk about the St. George period of Ann's history without talking about her involvement in the silk industry. She describes her involvement as she was determined to make a success of it. I want to give just a little context for the silk industry. Brigham Young asked the Saints to raise silkworms and cultivate silk. This is one of his quotes. He says, "I wish to see this people manufacture their own clothing and make as good cloth as is in the coat I now have on, and as good silk as in the handkerchief around my neck, and as good linen as is in the bosom and wristbands of my shirt. I want to see the people wear hats, boots, coats, et cetera, made by ourselves, as good as ever was made in any country." So that was the challenge from the prophet. John Taylor, Ann's uncle, added this: "Import silkworms and mulberry trees and you will find that this is as good a country and climate in which to raise silk as any on the face of the earth." You might guess how Ann responded to this call from the prophet-- with enthusiasm. She recalls, "In 1875 when the people were advised to raise and manufacture silk, I entered into it with my whole soul, determined to make a success of it. I started raising silk worms in 1877 and continued raising them off and on for 25 years. Sometimes I had the house full and sometimes the barn or the granary full." Now, I don't know how much you know about the process of raising silk rooms. And we could spend a whole hour just on that. We will not. But I want to just briefly review a couple of the steps. This is not scientific, but I want to give you a little bit of an idea of how incredibly cumbersome and difficult this process was. First, of course, you had to hatch the silkworm eggs and then feed the worms on mulberry leaves. And just to give you an idea, you had to feed increasing amounts of mulberry leaves as the worms grew older. And so by the end stage of their life, the worms from one ounce of eggs eat 120 pounds of chopped leaves eight times a day. Chopped leaves. That means someone had to chop them. So it was quite a high maintenance endeavor. The next phases-- as you can see, they go through four moltings. They spin cocoons. The larva have to be steamed or baked to death inside the cocoons. Then, the cocoons have to dry for two months. And through all of this, they have to be kept at very controlled temperatures, which I can imagine was not an easy thing in St. George. Then, the cocoons have to be dropped into hot water to wash off the glue. They have to be beaten with a small broom to loosen the ends of the thread. The reeler threads of five or six strands have to go through a reeling machine. And then the thread is woven into silk. Now, that was a very fast review of Sericulture. And I don't expect any of you to be able to go out and do it. But I wanted to give you a little bit of context. This is a picture from the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers Museum in St. George of what the silk looked like as it was wrapped. And I just think, even not knowing-- certainly not being an expert in Sericulture-- I can imagine, as I hope you can, that this is not an easy process. Ann's daughter, Eleanor Woodbury Jarvis, recalls this about this time of silk making: "In the spring of 1875, Sister Caroline Jackson sent for eggs and raised some silkworms. She interested my mother, who lived neighbors to her. And we took some of the eggs and raised some worms. I well remember it, as I happened in just as they were hatching and she said, 'Don't you want a few, Loty?' I replied that I had no place to put them, as we had only one room of our house completed. But she said, 'Here, take this. It will give you a chance to practice raising them and will not require much room.' As she spoke, she handed me a small mulberry leaf about an inch in diameter with what appeared to be a few tiny worms on it. I took them home and began feeding them. And they molted or cast their skins, which they did about every 10 days. They seemed to grow by leaps and bounds. My husband advised feeding them to the chickens, but my curiosity prevailed, as I wanted to see them spin their cocoons. But by the time they were ready for that, they covered a space of more than a yard square and seemed to be insatiable as to appetite, devouring such a quantity of leaves that I could scarcely supply them, having a baby to care for, and not having leaves of my own, having to go to the neighbors to gather them." So as you can tell, this was not a low maintenance endeavor. And it makes me respect Ann all that much more for her enthusiasm in this. Ann wrote this in an article in the Deseret News in 1897. She says, "Perhaps I may be considered an enthusiast on the silk question. But when I look about me and see the thousands of young people that are growing up around me and realize that the husbands and fathers are struggling on their farms to sustain their loved ones and that there seems to be so few things that they can raise which will command a steady sale and enable them to obtain means for buying clothing and other cash articles, when I realize that four pounds of cocoons that are worth only $4 can be worked up into a pound of silk which will be worth $8, that this silk will command a ready sale for cash, and that the work can be done by the women and children, and at the same time be light and pleasant and profitable. When I realize this, may not be pardoned for being an enthusiast?" I admire that, because this work did not seem very light and pleasant to me. But she was excited about it. She said, "There is probably no industry that we could have established among us that would be more beneficial to the poorer classes of people than silk culture. The work is comparatively light, and the capital necessary to produce the cocoons and reeling the silk is trifling." Does not sound trifling to me. This is a picture of a dress that Ann made out of silk that is in the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers Museum in St. George. Ann was a member of the Utah State Silk Commission, she recalls, from 1896 to 1905. And she says, "During that time I worked with untiring zeal to make the industry a success." It sounds to me like Ann worked with untiring zeal on just about everything that she did.

The Utah silk experiment ended in 1905. And many may consider it a failure. But as I think about this, I think, like many things in our lives, this was far less about the silk itself as in the character that this project produced. I think that sometimes Heavenly Father gives us work to do and opportunities that may not appear successful at the time. But as we look back on them, we realize what we learned from that experience and the kind of people that we became because of the work that we did. And so as I look into the faces of these women-- this is Ann, right here in the middle. As I look into their faces, I'm certain that the lessons they learned through their work in the silk industry were far more valuable than the silk itself. So from the silk stage of Ann's life, obedience is an obvious lesson that we can learn-- obedience to the prophet-- and a determination to do what we have been asked, and a dedication, once we start on that path, to do it 100 percent, and her obvious enthusiasm for the work. I love this. I think that sometimes, as we undertake things, it's easy to just plod along and do what is required of us. And I love that Ann undertook everything she did with zeal and enthusiasm. I would now like to move into probably what is the most important part of Ann's character. And that is her testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and her commitment to the work. She recalls, "For 21 years, I was in the St. George stake Relief Society presidency. When my brother Angus M. Cannon came to St. George, he and my brother David wanted me to resign. I said I enjoyed it. They said, 'You will die.' The Lord had blessed me abundantly with his Spirit. I felt the power of it and said in my heart, what am I that the Lord has blessed me so abundantly? So I did not resign. I loved the work." I'm sure that most of us who have had callings in the Church have sometimes felt like we will die. But again, such a good example of her passion for the work and her enthusiasm. We do it because we love it. This is an example of some of the work that she did in the Relief Society presidency. She says, "On the 17th of August, 1899, I started to visit the settlements up the river. By the 23rd, I had traveled 100 miles and attended 14 meetings. On the 2nd of September, I went to visit the Western settlements of the St. George Stake and returned on the 13th. I had traveled 225 miles, held 23 meetings." That just makes me tired. "We were engaged to visit the Western settlements of the St. George Stake in 1984. We visited Pine Valley, Enterprise Valley of Utah, Clover, Panaca"-- I'm not sure how you say that-- "and Preston and Eagle Valley in Nevada. We traveled somewhere near 450 miles and held 14 meetings. We were away 18 days. We talked to the people on storing grain and securing lots for the Relief Societies to build on and prepare for taking care of the poor of the household of faith. We enjoyed the work very much and trust that we have done some good." And again, this makes our efforts in the Church pale by comparison. As we dedicate our time and our effort to service, I'm pretty sure I've never been away for 18 days for my calling. So I admire Ann's example Ann Cannon Woodbury lived a faithful life of service and obedience. She died on the 25th of July, 1921 in St. George at the age of 89. I love the words that were found in her obituary, which was published in the Washington County Times. It said, "Sister Woodbury was a woman of noble character, typical of the pioneer stock that settled Utah. Coming to Dixie with the pioneers, she went through the hardships incidental to its early settlement with cheerfulness and fortitude, and was ever ready to do her part in helping others bear the vicissitudes of those hard times. She was genial, cheerful, and bright up to the last, and never complained." I think that those are wonderful words. And I hope the same can be said of me in my obituary someday. I love this tribute from one of Ann's contemporaries, Zadiee Walker Miles. She said, "She visited the stake up the river and down the river, out west and up north. She traveled many hundreds of miles through dangers and difficulties to do her duty and encourage others in the great work. Her voice has ever been listed up in warning and urging mothers to look after their children. Teach them to pray and teach them to work has been sounded in their ears with a trumpet like clearness. And her voice has been raised in eloquent testimony of the goodness of God and the truth of the new and everlasting gospel. This is a sample of her life, always doing and doing nothing by halves. Her whole soul went into the work." What greater tribute could be paid to somebody than to say that your whole soul went into this great work? Again, quoting from my great grandfather about his grandmother, he said, "She was a woman of great determination and persistence. She had absolute confidence in an overruling power that would guide and protect her in doing Church work. She never missed an opportunity to impress upon us grandchildren her testimony to the divinity of the work in which she was engaged. She was an avid missionary in spirit." I love all of these tributes I think they're so reflective of the kind of person that she was. But I want to end with Ann's own words of her testimony. She recalled, "The Apostles would come and preach to us and my heart used to swell and burn with gratitude to my Heavenly Father for giving me a testimony of the great Latter-day work. I wish I could give my children and my children's children my testimony of the gospel or help them to get it for themselves. It would be the joy of my life. The Lord has been our friend. He has never forsaken us in the hour of trial. And I trust he will never forsake us, but make our children feel that they are blessed of the Lord, and give them of thy Spirit that they will serve thee while they live on the Earth is the desire of my heart." I love these words because, of course, they talk about her descendants, of which I am one. And I am very grateful for her testimony. We learn through these words of her testimony of her commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ, of her diligence in her calling and doing whatever she was asked to do, of her cheerfulness in spite of hardship, and, of course, her strong testimony in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. As we look back on all the lessons that we have talked about today, I think this is a pretty impressive list. And I know that I could certainly improve in each of these areas. These same qualities could be illustrated in the lives of millions of Latter-day Saints throughout history. The life story of Ann Cannon Woodbury is obviously very meaningful to me and my family. But I think it also shows the power of one ordinary person to do extraordinary things and leave a legacy of good for future generations. I think in the end, the grand story of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is told in the lives of individual people like Ann and like you and like me. By listening to Ann's story tonight, I hope that we each feel inspired and encouraged to be stronger men and women of faith as we face the challenges of our day. We all have the opportunity to contribute to this great work, to bless lives as we seek to follow Jesus Christ. And I'm so grateful for the legacy that I've been given of faithful ancestors who sacrificed so much so that I could have the life that I have and the knowledge of this great work. And I think that, regardless of our family history and where our ancestors come from, we can all learn from faithful people in the past and the way that they met their challenges, and that we can be inspired to better meet the challenges of our own day. I am so grateful for this good woman, for her example and for the legacy that she has left me and my family. And I share these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. Amen. Any questions that you have? Yeah. Hang on just a minute for the microphone. Here it comes.

Well, I may have missed something in my notes, but she was born a Cannon? Yes. She married a Nelson. A Woodbury. Orin Nelson Woodbury. Orin Nelson Woodbury. OK. I thought he was Orin Nelson. Thank you. That clears that up. Oh, you're welcome. That was an easy one.

Any other questions? A couple over here. Two, and then there's one back there as well, Maralee.

As you know, Sister Cannon lived a very elegant life there, but she was very tied into the Cannon family. And I was just wondering if you had any insights into her nephew Abraham H. Cannon, the Frank Cannon, and a lot of things that were coming to George Q. Cannon's family. Do you have any? I don't know as much about that branch of the family, since that's not my direct line. I know there's some descendants here of Frank. They might be able to answer additional questions as well. But yeah, I don't know quite as much about them, especially since the George Q. Cannon one is so voluminous. But I don't know. Are you a descendant of them? No. I think you have the making of several good books out of this. Good luck to you. Oh, thank you. And I know that there's some descendants of Frank here. Will you raise your hands? So if you want to maybe ask back there for more information. I don't know about that line. Sorry. I think somebody had a question.

You skipped over the Nauvoo period, and I'm just wondering what you do know or what is known generally about Ann during the Nauvoo period. Did you skip over it because there's nothing there? Or is there something interesting there that we just don't have time for? No, no. I just was trying to cram 89 years without having be here all night. I think that she was so young-- she was only eight when she was there, when she arrived in 1840. So she was quite young. So there wasn't as much in her recollections about that period of time as there was later on, so. How long was she in Nauvoo? So she got there in 1840. And I think they left in 1846. So six years. So she was still quite young when they were on the trail. Yeah, I'm sure there's a lot more. I think we could have spent probably an hour on every single phase of her life, but there aren't any particular stories from Nauvoo that come to mind. I think a lot of her recollections were about later in her life when she was older. But we'll have to do more research on that. That can be another presentation. Yes? The question is, did her and her husband and his other wives-- did he just have one other wife? Just one. And did they all go to St. George? So they were already in St. George when he took the second wife, because they went down there in 1861. And then he married the second wife in 1863. And they didn't live anywhere near each other, which is why I think Ann bore a lot of responsibility for raising the children. They lived-- I can't remember. I think it was like-- pardon? Santa Clara. Yeah, the other wife lived in Santa Clara. And so I know he traveled back and forth a lot between the two wives. Sometimes they lived right next to each other in the houses. And that wasn't the case with him. So yeah, it was later that they married.

OK. Any other questions? Oh.

Do you have any other antidotes of how she raised her children or what raised your great great grandmother or grandfather? I'm trying to think.

None that come to mind. It's hard to condense all of somebody's life in one bit. I don't know if any of my relatives who are here recall any particular things. Sorry. The other question was-- [INAUDIBLE] to mind. Did I read that she had helped take care of George Q. Cannon's wife one time? Or are they totally-- Oh, somebody knows that story. I don't know that story, but do you mind sharing that? We can give you the microphone.

It's always nice to have help from the audience. Well, I read this story a few weeks ago. And I don't remember the details of her injury. I think something happened to her foot. She injured her foot, I think. And she told Ann that if she could make her well, she would give her a new dress. And I think she got the new dress. Oh, that's a great story. I hadn't heard that. Do you know where you read that, where the source for that is? Yes, it's in the Cannon family treasury-- Oh, OK. --that was published many years ago. Awesome. And so I think it's still available. I was trying to find out if it was still being published and available for purchase. And I think it is. Oh, thank you so much for sharing that. You're welcome. Yeah. I would love to read more about that. We have a good problem with the Cannon line, is that there's so much information. Some of my ancestors-- I feel like there's hardly anything to learn about them. And I think we're the beneficiary with the Cannon line of almost too much information that you can't absorb it all or read it all. So thank you. I'll definitely have to read that. Thank you for sharing.

The book you're asking about, the Cannon history-- Oh, look. There's a second edition out. And that edition is in softback and in hardback. $15 for soft, $25 for hard. And you can get online and get an S. Hunter Cannon out of Pleasant Grove. And he can work you up as many copies as you want, he says. Oh, great. Thank you so much for sharing that. Couple of-- [INAUDIBLE] people here are part of Ann's family? Oh, that's a good question. How many people here are part of Ann's family? If you want to raise your hand. Awesome. Quite a few. And how many more than that are related to the Cannons? So a few more. I think most of the audience, and probably a good chunk of Salt Lake in general, so. Yeah. I'm constantly meeting cousins. You can make that Cannon connection with a lot of people, I think. Between the Cannons and the Woodburys, there's a lot out there. I had people call me and email me this week from literally all over the world, from Germany to Arizona, in the last couple of weeks saying, I saw about your lecture, and I too am a descendant from Ann Cannon Woodbury, and I want to learn more about your lecture. So anyway, I think there's quite a few of us. I think we could probably talk for quite a long time about their family history. Yes, Scott. Do you have an estimate of how many descendants Ann has? I was actually wondering about that as I was doing this research. I don't know. We should try to figure that out. Anybody have any idea or estimate, one of the other descendants who are here? I would love to figure that out because I'm sure it's-- [INAUDIBLE] [INAUDIBLE] the dedication of a plaque and in the Isle of Man where they used to live-- I think it was about 10 years ago they dedicated it. And it said on there that there was, I want to say, 50,000 descendants-- Of George Cannon the immigrant, probably? Yes. OK. So Ann's father. 50,000 10 years ago. Yeah.

That's probably a good estimate, because if you think about the seven children that they had and then all the children that they had, when Ann alone had 10-- and then George Q., I know, probably had 75 children or-- so yeah. I'm sure that there are quite a few. So thank you for sharing that. We'll up that at least a little bit more. Thanks, [INAUDIBLE]. Anybody else? Yeah. So do we know the quotes are from her journals? Or did she write a life history later in life? Good question, Julie. Actually, it was later in her life that she wrote down a lot of these reminiscences. And then my great grandfather Angus, in the '60s, typed them up and put them into a book. And that's what I have. And I actually don't know where the original books are. If anybody else does, I have been trying to track them down. And nobody seems to know where those original books are. So I'm super grateful for my great grandfather that he typed that and that we at least have her words, if not in the original form. So if any of the other descendants ever finds out where those original books are, I would love to see them. Does anyone know, perchance? OK. I don't know if they still exist. I've called libraries. I've posted messages on message boards and stuff and have not been able to find those original books, so. Yeah, it was later in her life that she was making a lot of those recollections, which I think is interesting because you can see in some of the stories that she chose to record-- like the missed opportunity for her learning, obviously that's something that wouldn't have been apparent, necessarily, to her for years to come, of just how much of a missed opportunity that was. And so I think it was interesting to get those recollections later on, because she could remember them in the context of her life since then. I wish she had kept a journal all the way along, but I think a lot of those pioneers-- when you're on the trail, you don't necessarily have paper and time to write it down. So I'm grateful we at least have those because I'm sure, like many of you, a lot of my ancestors I don't know very much about. They didn't leave much of a record. So I'm super grateful that I have what I do about Ann. Yeah, [INAUDIBLE]. Yeah, in the microphone.

I was interested in the story of-- was it George Q. Cannon that offered to teach her? Uh-huh. What was the age difference? So he was first-- she was born in 1832. I think he was born in 1827, so five years. So there wasn't very much difference. So her father-- Because he was the oldest and she was third, so there was just one child in between them. So her father was the one that made the death masks of Joseph and Hyrum. Yeah. OK. What vocation did her father have or skills that he was able to do that? Do you know what his vocation was? I don't. Does anybody else know? A carpenter, maybe?

The coffins. He made the coffins, too?

Anybody else have insight into that? I was just wondering where he learned his skill to make the death masks. Yeah. I'm not sure. Sorry. I should have come a lot more prepared for these hard questions. It's hard to know everything about somebody's life, so. Yeah? Hi. I'm happy to hear about her. I have never heard about your ancestor, your grandmother. And I'm wondering if you developed this list of all of her life lessons on your own from doing all your research. Or is this little chapters out of the book? Oh, no. This was just me. Yeah, these were just my personal lessons that I learned as I read her stories and learned more about her life, the things that I feel like I took away from the stories. So yeah, nothing official. And not her words, they were mine. Because this is a huge tribute to her that people really will learn from. It's really neat. Now, was she considered the matriarch of the family after her mother died? No, she was little on the ship. Yeah. Yeah. She was only eight years old. So she was really little. Who raised the kids? Mary Alice was-- she was married quite early. And so I know she was a Lambert. And so I know that she helped raise a lot of the children as well. So only Ann and George Q. came with the Taylors west. So I think a lot of them came with the Lamberts. There was one more that came with the Taylors? Three of them. [INAUDIBLE] Oh, from George's second wife. [INAUDIBLE] Oh, OK. So are you publishing? I have no plans to do so. Is she going to be in a chapter in Women of Faith? I actually did submit it to "Women of Faith," and they didn't have room for it. So it will not be in it. The first book has 50 stories, and they had to reduce. So they did initially accept it, actually. And then they decided to only publish 35 in the second edition. And so I got cut. Well, you have a nice audience here, that's for sure.

Yeah. So it actually won't be in the second edition of Women of Faith. But I tried. That's all you can do, I guess. So, so sorry about that. Somebody had to be cut. I guess it was us. OK. Oh, yeah. Hang on just a second, Walt. Let me give you a microphone. [INAUDIBLE] actually saw those notebooks [INAUDIBLE] Dad showed them to me. Oh, this is my great uncle, so Angus's son. [INAUDIBLE] My father is Angus M. And he had the notebooks. And I remember seeing them. He describes them very carefully as little teeny notebooks. Yeah. I wish we could find them. We've had this conversation before, when I've asked him if he knew where they were. And he didn't, so. We know that they existed somewhere. I'm not making all this up, but-- I testify that they did exist. Thank you. [LAUGHTER] Thank you. We have an eyewitness with us. You're all witnesses, so. Yeah, I wish we could-- I wish you could find him. I hope they're not buried in somebody's attic somewhere. But who knows? At least we have the words. And that's what matters. Thanks, Walt. Anybody else? Yes. I just say that in the Cannon-- there's a big section on Ann in the Cannon family history treasury. And it says in here that it came from Frank B. Woodbury and preserving the handwritten journals, and of a grandson, Angus M. Woodbury, in preparing them for publication. So they basically copied from those booklets. Yeah, yeah. So I think it's pretty reliable stuff.

OK. Well, thank you all so much for being here. Whether you're a descendant of Ann or not, I hope that you learned something tonight about her and about her legacy. And I'm sure many of you have similar stories to share about your ancestors and their legacy of faith and commitment. But I know that me, personally, when I hear these stories, it just deepens my resolve to be a better disciple of Jesus Christ and to personify all of these qualities that I so admire in other people. And it makes me that much more determined to apply these lessons in my own life as well. And I think that's the great benefit of learning from the past, because so many of their challenges-- as we look over the list of things that she taught me, her trials may be a little, they may look a little different than ours, but the lessons that come out of the trials are the same. And we all need to learn those same lessons, whether we were pioneers or whether we live now. But I'm so grateful that we can have the ability to look back and learn from the past. So thank you all so much for being here. [APPLAUSE] [MUSIC PLAYING]