We went to visit the Centerville relatives on Memorial Day, 2016.
Centerville Cemetery is extremely well kept. We just cleaned the headstones, planted some flowers, edged the overgrown grass, and remembered their early lives by telling some stories.
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| William Weiss scrubbing his grandpa David Weiss' headstone, Memorial Day, May 2016. |
Those buried in Centerville Cemetery include:
David Simon Weiss, father of David Mark Weiss.
Simon Solomon Weiss and his wife
Clarissa Dean Chase Weiss, grandparents to Mark.
Frank Leslie Chase and A
manda Croft Chase, great-grandparents to Mark.
George Ogden Chase and J
osephine Streeper Chase, great-great grandparents to Mark.
Josephine Streeper Chase's brother,
William Henry Streeper, and many of his family are also at rest in the Centerville Cemetery.
David Simon Weiss had 30 first cousins on the Chase side. "Chase Cousins" (Mark's great aunts and uncles) are also buried there.
Max Weiss, David's brother, write his memories of the aunts/uncles/cousins in his wonderful published life history. (PDF copies are available from all David and Marilyn Weiss children).
Below are some very short first person stories you can use to begin to get to know your ancestors.
David S. Weiss
(1930-2003)
I was born in Salt Lake City and was the middle child. I lived in East Salt Lake and attend East
High for three years. When I was a
senior in High School, I moved to Centerville and attended Davis High. I worked at my dad's business, "Si's
Curve Inn" (a small restaurant business) for a couple of years and also
rode my bike to Lagoon where I worked during the summer. For a short time I served as a Seaman in the
Unite States Naval Reserve during the Korean Conflict. I met
my wife, Marilyn Ballegooie, on a blind date. We married and moved to Portland, OR where I
sold Filter Queen Vacuum Cleaners.
Later I worked in the plastic and RV businesses. I helped with Boy Scouts for many years. I enjoyed sailing catamarans in regattas all over the Northwest. Later I took up flying small airplanes and
enjoyed going to air shows. I loved
cars and worked on restoring a 1941 Packard while living in Salt Lake on
Dimpledell Drive. We also had a house at
Seal Beach, Oregon for where I enjoyed taking my five dogs for walks along the
Coast. I had a great life and loved each one of my 30 grandchildren!
I was born in Yanov, Belarus. My parents would say both Poland and Russia
when asked were we were born. I came to
America when I was 6 years old, I was raised
in a Jewish home and attended the Salt Lake Montefiore Synagogue. I attended Stevens Henegar and University of
Utah getting a degree in business. I met
a vivacious Mormon girl, Clarissa Chase, when she lived in Salt Lake. We eloped and were married. That was on the same day that I enlisted in
the US Army in 1917. After the war, I
sold women's ready-to-wear and costume jewelry for many years. I loved my wife and our three children,
Betty, David, and Max. We enjoyed some
Jewish traditions, but the children were involved most with the Mormon Church.
I had some heart problems and gradually wore down, dying at the relatively
young age of 60.
Clarissa Dean Chase Weiss
(1900-1991)
I loved life! I had
so many friends! People loved to be
around me. I have shared many stories
with my family during my 91 years on earth.
I loved to sing, dance, and perform.
I eloped to marry my husband who was Jewish, because I knew my mom would
not approve of marriage outside of our Mormon
faith. My husband provided well
for us. My children were all
adorable. I was so proud of all of
them. Si died young. I was a widow for over 30 years. We moved to California for a while, but
returned to Utah when my mother, Amelia Croft Chase, became ill. We cared for her in our home where she died
in 1925. We mostly lived in East Salt Lake but were in Centerville for a while. David and Max actually slept in the old
granary that is still there. I so
enjoyed my 90th birthday party when relatives from all over the western US came
to see me. I gave my great-grandson,
David Mikael Weiss, a Jubilee cup from
the 50th Anniversary of the pioneers arriving in SL Valley to be passed down to
his oldest son. I was so proud of my
pilgrim and pioneer heritage that I made a big scrapbook.
Frank Leslie Chase (1864 - 1933)
I was born in Centerville, UT and was one of 15
children. I attended BY Agricultural
College for a year. I left home and
taught school in Enterprise, UT where I met the beautiful Amelia Croft. I was married in the Logan Temple in
1877. I worked with my father-in-law,
John Croft, to build the farmhouse in Centerville, UT. I had a farming accident that made it hard
for me to work the family farm in Centerville.
My older sisters were very demanding.
I just wasn't the farmer they expected me to be. The accidental death of
my 10 year old son, David, was very difficult for me. Times were hard and we
had to move to Salt Lake City where I
worked as a security guard for a while.
I disappeared for a time trying to find some peace. During the years while I was gone, my wife
died in our son-in-law's (Simon Weiss's) home.
My family never knew where I was.
I eventually died in Skully Town, Texas of heart disease and was buried
in Centerville, UT.
Emma Amelia Croft Chase (1869 - 1925)
I grew up in the Enterprise (near Morgan and Peterson) in
Weber County. My parents were faithful
Latter-day Saints who came from England to Zion when they were newlyweds. My future husband, Frank Leslie Chase, came
to live with us while he taught school in Enterprise. We were married in the Logan Temple. We moved to Centerville and lived in the
"Farmhouse" that my father helped my husband build. It was a beautiful home and still stands
today. It was a sad day when my
daughter, Claire, eloped and married a Jewish boy, Simon Weiss in the City
County Building. Later I grew to love
that boy and his family. Simon was
always so kind to help our family during hard times. I died in my daughter's home never knowing
that happened to my husband Frank as he disappeared after we moved to SLC.
Kate Matilda Chase
1857-1937
I was the oldest of the many children to George O. Chase and
Josephine Streeper. I was born in the
old adobe home that still stands in Liberty Park today. When I was about five years old, we moved to
Centerville. It was a wonderful life and
Christmas time at Chase Park was always magical. I remember leading the procession with my
father at the celebrations and dances.
My mother died when she was young.
She worked very hard to care for her 15 children. In the cemetery you can see the markers of
her babies that died in infancy. BH Roberts
was a friend to our family and some said we should have married. I was determined not to be a
"second" wife to anyone. I
stood with the sisters in bringing about the women's right vote to Utah. I became a midwife in the Davis County
area. I would help deliver the baby and
then stay an extra three weeks to take care of the family while the mother was
recuperating. I helped in keeping the
Chase Mill in Liberty Park from being torn down and donated many of the items
in the "Chase" display in the Daughters of the Utah Pioneer Museum.
David Harold Chase
1902-1911
I was only 9 years old when there was a rifle accident and
my short life ended in Centerville Canyon on a Sunday afternoon. My brother, Jack, (John Howland) was with me
when I died and my father ran to us shortly after the gun went off. People say my dad was never the same after I died. My next oldest sister, Clare Dean Chase, was
11 years old when the accident happen.
The funeral was one of the largest held and my friends escorted my
casket to the cemetery. My horse was
saddled but empty as the procession of pall bearers on horses rode to the
cemetery.
George Ogden Chase (1832-1896)
I was a boy when my father, Isaac Chase, left New York to
come to Nauvoo. My parents were strong
Quakers and we held meetings in our home.
When we arrived in Nauvoo, I was baptized by Joseph Smith in the
Mississippi River! We had to leave
Nauvoo in 1846 and made our way to Winter Quarters. In 1847 we continued to Salt Lake
Valley. My mother, Phebe, was a good
friend of Eliza R. Snow and Sis. Snow was in our company. Ours was the last wagon to arrive in
September 1847. We eventually settled
what later became the Liberty Park. I
helped my dad build a mill and a beautiful adobe house which still stands
today.
I married Emily Hyde and, two years later, Josephine
Streeper while in Salt Lake. In fact, it
was Brigham Young who suggested strongly that I take Josephine as my second
wife. Brigham Young bought the mill and
so we moved to Centerville, UT. We
first lived in the old Thurston cabin (still standing!) and then built a
beautiful home in that property that became known as Chase Park. The old granary with its thick walls still
stands. Emily was mother to six, and
Josephine, brought 14 children into the world. I had several business pursuits
including a beach resort, gas works, and sold some of our property to build the
Bamberger train that came up from Salt Lake.
I was the Sunday School President for many years. B.H. Roberts was one of our close family
friends. After my wife died, I only
lived another two years.
Josephine Streeper Chase
(1835-1894)
I was born in Pennsylvania and joined the Nauvoo saints in
1843. I attended a private girl's school
in St. Louis. We joined the saints in Winter Quarters in 1850 and in 1851
arrived in Salt Lake. I met George
Chase and he convince me to became his second wife. I tried to make things work with Emily Hyde,
George's first wife, but she eventually divorced George. It created a hardship on our family as Emily
had six children and alimony had to be paid.
I birthed 14 children and had one adopted daughter. We tried to have family prayer every evening
and were very involved in the Centerville North Ward. George often traveled with his various
business pursuits and the children and I had to carry on. I have written a journal that has many
stories about my difficult life in Centerville in the pioneer days. I loved to read whenever I had time. I
enjoyed teaching Sunday School for many years.
I was in attendance the day the Salt Lake City temple had the capstone
placed upon it. Winters were harsh, but
it was fun to go on sleigh rides with neighbors. I died of a brain aneurism when I was only 59
years old.
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| Mary Amelia Richards married William Henry Streeper. |
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| William Streeper, Brother of Josephine Streeper Chase |
William Henry Streeper (1837-1930)
My parents joined the church in Pennsylvania and came to
Nauvoo in 1843. We lived in St. Louis
for a while and then then came to Salt Lake in October of 1851 when I was
fourteen. (Mother and father are buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery. ) I was a
rescuer of the Willie and Martin Handcart companies in 1856. We started late in November, when snow
through the canyons was three to five feet deep. We had two riding ponies, and
drove on wagons with four yoke of oxen, taking with us provisions and six head
of beef cattle. When the Johnston's Army was coming to Salt Lake in 1857, I was
one of the young men appointed by Brigham Young to burn the city should the
army enter and attempt to occupy it. My
brother-in-law, George Ogden Chase, would have me tell the exciting stories of
my days as a Pony Express rider at the annual Centerville Sunday School
party. After I settled down and married
Amelia Richards, we farmed in Centerville, close to my sister, Josephine &
George. Some of the equipment that once
belonged to me is displayed in the Pony Express section of the Daughters of the
Utah Pioneer Museum. I survived all the other Pony Express riders, living to be
ninety-three!
President Gordon B. Hinckley has said:
It is good to look to the past to gain appreciation of the present and perspective for the future.
It is good to look upon the virtues of those who have gone before, to gain strength for
whatever lies ahead.
It is good to reflect upon the work of those who labored so hard and gained so little in this world, but out of whose dreams and early plans, so well nurtured, has come a great harvest of which
we are the beneficiaries.
Their tremendous example can become a compelling motivation for us all, for each of us is a pioneer in his own life, often in his own family, and many of us pioneer daily in trying to establish
a gospel foothold in distant parts of the world.
(Ensign, July 1984, p. 3).
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| Centerville Founder's Park. Rachel and David Weiss in front of Pioneer Monument. |
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| Weiss family Gathering at George Ogden Chase headstone in Centerville Cemetery, May 2014. |
I hope the tradition of going to visit the graves of our ancestors on Memorial Day continues.
Hopefully one day soon we can all help join in painting the fence enclosing the small Croft Family Cemetery near Peterson (once known as Enterprise) in Weber County.
