Ancestor Story Time: The Exuberant Run to the River Ribble in Preston, England

Sunday, February 11, 2018

The Exuberant Run to the River Ribble in Preston, England

Henry Clegg, Senior

The Exhuberant Run to the River Ribble in Preston, England

By Cyndy Weiss

Deborah Weiss was able to go to the Clegg family history sites in Preston, England in February 2018. Attached are some of her pictures with a bit of explanation. (Thanks, Deb!)

Henry Clegg, Senior (1788-1865) was a boot and clog maker and also a toll collector. He was the father of eight children, and two of them eventually settled in Heber City, Utah. (One of his sons is Cyndy's 2nd Great grandfather, Henry Clegg, Jr. who immigrated in 1855.)

Henry, Senior, was married in St. Lawrence Church to Ellen Cardwell in October 2, 1809. Henry's parents, Thomas Clegg and Elizabeth Smith were married in St. John's October 11, 1784.

St. Thomas-Church where Henry's parents were married.

Henry’s family lived in Walton le Dale, about 3 miles from Preston, England. Preston was also known as "Priest-town" and was a center where religion was openly discussed and different sects were mostly welcomed.

The "Mormon" missionaries arrived in Preston in 1837 on a holiday just before the Monday Parliamentary election.

Deborah standing in the Preston City Square where Heber C. Kimball and other elders first preached in Great Britain.

"People crowded the streets. Bands played, and political banners flew with an air of gaiety. Just as the missionaries’ coach arrived, a flag was unfurled over their heads reading “Truth Will Prevail” in large, gilt letters. Seeing this, the missionaries cried aloud as if in one voice, “Amen! Thanks be to God, Truth will prevail!” (See The Gathering, Scot and Maureen Proctor, p. 19)

There was a British Pageant entitled "Truth Will Prevail" that was first performed in 2013 in celebration of the 175th anniversary of the beginning of missionary work in England. It would be wonderful to be able to see that production! Donald Owen served his mission near this area of England.

Henry Clegg, Senior and his son, Jonathan, were in the Vauxhall Chapel on Sunday July 23, 1837 where Heber C. Kimball and his companions first taught the restored Gospel in Preston. Vauxhall Chapel no longer stands. Rumor has it that a stone was saved and is on the Preston Temple grounds. Ask Deborah.

Deborah standing in the water of the River Ribble where her 4th Great Grandfather ran to be baptized.

Looking down from Promenade to the River Ribble.

Heber C. Kimball baptized Henry Clegg, Sr. on July 30, 1837 with nine English saints that Sunday morning. There is some controversy about this story and the best discussion about it is found here: Who Came in Second? By Garth N. Jones, In Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Vol. 21, Num. 2, Summer 1989, pp. 149-153 (Link to this article is in Family Tree Memories of Henry Clegg, Sr.)

In The Gathering by Maurine and Scot Proctor, there is a powerful description of these first baptisms:

“The crowds of Preston taking their Sunday morning strolls in Avenham Park paused to watch the excitement that morning as George D. Watt and Henry Clegg raced to the River Ribble to see which of them would be the first to be baptized in England.

More plaques in the garden area.

“This exuberant run was a moment in history not lost on its participants.

Bridge over the River Ribble, Preston, England.

“They ran because the silence of centuries when humanity concocted their own religions had ended and God had spoken again.

Plaque doesn't mention the name of Henry Clegg Sr.
but family lore causes many to believe it was simply clerical oversight.

“They ran because the priesthood and power and pattern of the ancient church had been restored.

“They ran because even if their minister scowled, they had felt the Spirit whispering to them that God knew them intimately and loved them.

Looking down from Avenham Park to the bridge where the baptisms took place.

“Watt, who was twenty-two years younger than Clegg and had youth on his side, won the race.” (see The Gathering, Maureen and Scott Proctor, page 21.)

Estimates say there were between seven and nine thousand who witnessed the first LDS baptisms as they were walking on the nearby promenade with a clear view of the River Ribble.

Henry Clegg, Sr. was listed in the journal of Joseph Fielding as one of the earliest ordained to the Priesthood. Henry had previously been ordained a Teacher in the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained as a Priest on Christmas Day, 1837. (The transcription of the diary is found in the documents for Henry Clegg, Sr. in Family Search.)

It was in the "Cockpit" where the early ordinations took place. (This was also the location where people were being prepared to live the Word of Wisdom five years before the LDS missionaries arrived.)

The Old Cock Pit was a meeting place used by the early Preston members.

Henry Clegg, Sr. was buried with his wife in St. Lawrence Parish in Walton le Dale.

St. Leonard, Walton-Le-Dale Parish Church.

Cemetery Register at Walton-Le-Dale Parish for Henry Clegg.

The stone marker was replaced in 2000 with a new one. The scripture on the headstone was quoted in a letter Henry Sr. wrote to his son, Henry Clegg, Jr. in America: "Who relied wholly on the mercy of God in Christ Jesus."