Story written by another descendant of Louisa and William
When Louisa was six years old, she moved with her parents from Big Cottonwood to Cedar City, Utah where they lived for only a few months before moving south. They eventually settled at Old Fort Harmony. Thick walls enclosed the fort which were made of adobes molded without straw and dried in the sun. The fort was destroyed a few years later by an unceasing storm which continued for many days. The adobes disintegrated and fell apart.
Several miles away a new townsite was chosen. While it was being erected, Louisa, her mother and brothers lived in a dugout for two years without even the simplest of comforts and only the barest of necessities. Her mother became ill due to the hardships and meager rations. Louisa then assumed the care of the family and herself for seven years before her mother's death.
Of necessity, Louisa learned to do all kinds of work very early in life. She carted wool for yarn which she also dyed. She learned to spin while yet so young that her father had to make a ramp in order for her to reach the spinning wheel. This was fashioned from a plank with two holes bored in one end near the edges into which wooden legs were inserted of the required height, while the other end of the plank lay on the floor. Forward and back she went, up and down the ramp, turning the wheel with a swift motion of her right hand and as she stepped backward drew out the wool thin and even, then forward again to wind the twisted thread onto the spindle.
After the death of her mother, she came to realize that her health was impaired and her father sent her to Fillmore, Utah for a rest and to recuperate. She lived with an older sister, Sarah Jane Dalton, who gave her every care and comfort possible. When she returned to Harmony after a year's absence, she met William Prince whom she later married. Her father was very much opposed to her marrying "that young, unsettled boy", whose prospects in life seemed not too bright at that particular time. Her father had chosen an older and well stablished man for her. She had no desire to be a polygamous wife and refused to accept the arrangement and for the first and only time in her life, she defied her father's wishes. He said to her, :Do you not think you owe me something? I have planned this marriage for you for years." To this she replied, "I owe you everything, Father, but the right to choose my husband and I am going to marry William Prince."
The only wedding gift she received was a pet lamb and a sack of wool from George Dodds, an old friend of the family. From this wool she wove cloth for a dress for herself and a pair of pants for William. The dress was not difficult to make but the pants were a different problem. When they did not fit, they resorted to Aunt Polly's grab bag where they found a piece of red flannel, the only thing big enough. She inserted a three-inch red stripe down each pant leg. William wore those pants until they were completely worn out, declaring he had started the fashion of striped pants. :)
Their first home was a dugout in Middleton. They later moved on to Kanarraville and then settled in Panguitch. They lived in the fort until spring then moved out with a few of the more hardy and venturesome families onto government land entries. The Princes built the first brick home in Panguitch, they also homesteaded at Panguitch Lake, about twenty miles west of Panguitch. During the summers while the homestead was being developed, their brick home in town was also in progress. With the supervision of both homes, William and Louisa were a very busy pair.
Little by little they had acquired some stock. With stock raising, dairying, cooking for the ranch hands, making hundreds of pounds of butter and cheese, harvesting hay, etc;, they had all they could possibly care for. Though their family was steadily increasing, Louisa found the time to nurse the sick, help officiate at births, wash and lay out the dead, assist in the making of the burial clothes, suits for men, dresses for women and children and many articles of temple clothing. Never was there a more industrious woman that Louisa, nor one who had a greater love for beauty, especially growing things.
She married William Prince on January 23rd, 1868 in New Harmony, Washington, Utah. He was born October 23, 1848 in Elephant Hooks, Cape Colony, Africa. He was the son of George Prince and Sarah Bowman Prince. William died on January 11, 1937 in Panguitch and was buried on January 13, 1937 in Panguitch. They left behind 13 children and many grandchildren and great grandchildren.
