Arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah: Fall of 1849

History:

Amanda Melvina France was born in Allegany County, Town of Burns, New York on June 30, 1839. She was the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth France. Her father was born in Pennsylvania. He was the third son of William France. Her mother, Betsy Card France, had three children. A boy was born first, then Amanda, and then another boy. The younger boy died 28 days before his mother died. Betsy was just 26 years of age and died of consumption. Amanda was only three years old when her mother died. This left Amanda and her older brother in the care of relatives and friends until about one year later when her father married again. He married a second time to Diana Lucina Smith in 1843. She was not a kind stepmother to Amanda.

They lived in New York until Amanda was six years old. In 1842, her father was converted and baptized into the Latter-Day Saints Church by the Mormon missionaries. They held meetings and conferences in their home. The family then moved west to Dansville where they took a canal boat to Buffalo. Then they went by a steamboat to Chicago where her father bought a wagon and yoke of oxen. They then traveled to Garden Grove, Iowa. The family stayed there all winter and in the spring they went to Winter Quarters where the saints were located. They were there when the first company of saints started west. Amanda's father left his family a few days while he helped the pioneers cross the Elkhorn River by ferry and helped to guard their possessions until they got started on their journey westward.

Amanda was baptized in the Missouri River while they lived at Winter Quarters when she was eight years old. While they lived in Winter Quarters, Martin Harris lived across the street from them and Amanda would carry milk to him every morning. They moved to Council Point, Iowa, and her father went to Missouri to work to get enough money to buy the necessary items to come west. When they got ready to come west, they had three yoke of oxen, two cows, and two wagons. The cows furnished them with plenty of milk and butter. In the morning they would strain the milk into the churn and when they camped for dinner, they would have butter churned by the jolting of the old wagon.

Amanda helped her brother milk the cows and gather wood and buffalo chips to make fires. She helped drive the oxen, walking nearly all the entire distance without shoes. When they got to the ferry to cross the Missouri River, they were organized into companies of tens and fifties with a captain over each. William Hyde was captain over all the company. He died on the plains of cholera, which was very bad, especially among the Indians. Many died and when they arrived at Fort Laramie, the company was stopped by the Indians. The Indians demanded a white scalp for every Indian which had died with cholera because the Indians thought the white people had brought the illness to them. Amanda was terrified of the Indians. The dead and the sick were a terrible sight. The Indians would stand a little ways from the wagons and hold a bitter weed to their faces. The Indians would not take any food the pioneers had touched, although they were starving. The United States soldiers called the Indians into a treaty and the company gave them sugar, flour, and ammunition to kill their meat. There were merchants in the company who gave them hats, shirts, and shoes. After two days the saints were allowed to continue on their way, very thankful to see the Indians satisfied and peaceful.

They arrived in Salt Lake in the fall of 1849 where they lived a few months. Then they moved north about 12 miles and made a home in a small town called Centerville. Here Amanda helped her brother and her father on the farm.

Amanda was ten years old when the family arrived in Utah and she went to school until she was fifteen. Then she married Steuben Rollins on February 10, 1855. She was the mother of twelve children, eight sons and four daughters. The children were all born in Centerville, Utah. Amanda and Steuben buried three children as infants, and raised five sons and four daughters. The family lived in the Joseph France two-room adobe house north of Rosedale Lane until daughter Alice was about five years old. Then Steuben built a five room home on his own farm on 400 East just south of Chase Lane in Centerville.

Amanda's aunts remember her as well dressed, always clean and neat, never leaving her bedroom in the morning until her hair was combed and she had on a fresh apron. Amanda liked to appear well-dressed and many times deprived herself the pleasure of the association with her friends in meetings and parties because with so many children to dress, she was usually the last to consider her own needs. She was happy to see her children take their place with other children in primary and Sunday school. She walked to primary in the Elkhorn Hall to help a shy little daughter give a recitation. Her children were taught to do right and taught correct principles. She had them blessed and named in Fast Meeting and when eight years old, Amanda saw that they were baptized and that it was recorded correctly.

She was a member of the Relief Society and always welcomed her visiting teachers and helped her neighbors when in need. Amanda was especially chosen to do the washing, anointing, and laying out of the dead. We don't know what the pioneers went through. The dead bodies never left the home until taken to the church or to the cemetery.

All of her life Amanda was a hard worker. She was mentally brilliant, and enjoyed good health. She suffered a great disappointment at her father's death. Besides the sorrow that was felt at her father's death, Amanda was cut out of her father's will with only one dollar, although her father was a very wealthy man. Every other child except her brother Dewilton and herself were made heirs. She never recovered from this. It had a great effect on her, as she had always been a faithful and loving daughter. As she grew older the injustice of it tended to make her bitter. Her father, Joseph David France died on June 6th, 1886 and Dewilton contested the will, as recorded in the courthouse in Farmington, July 26, 1886. Dewilton went to California soon after, and no one heard from him again.

Amanda and her husband lived a long life together. They celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary with their children and friends. Her husband died at Centerville on March 5, 1911 and Amanda lived seven more years with her daughter. Amanda passed away at the age of 76 at Centerville on February 18, 1916. Emulating her mother, Amanda was found dead in her bed. Amanda is buried in the Centerville cemetery beside her husband Steuben Rollins.