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Show Death Closes Career of Final Member Of LDS Indian "Purchase" Program Ann Hamilton, near 90 years of age, a former Cedar City resident, died in a Salt Lake City nursing home on ; Monday. Her death brought to a final close an era of unusual un-usual Pioneer history of southern Utah involving Indian children and pioneer settlers of the area. Her experience, with those of a number of other Indian children, was the result of an unusual approacch to a serious problem as set up by church president Brigham Young. j This woman, who had lived a long and useful life and has made many, many close friends in Cedar City andj Salt Lake City, as the result of the training she received' in a olonecr southern Utah home I I She was the last of a number of Indian children who were taken Into pioneer homes to live with equal privileges with the children chil-dren of the family. The Old Spanish Trail passed through Cedar City and practice of the traveler to buy or steal Indian children, and take thein Into then Mexican territory of Santa Fe and southern California, Califor-nia, to be sold into slavery, ro-i suited in Brigham Young's advk-e to the pioneers of this area. Thwarted Practice Author William R. Palmer noted historian of early pioneer and Indian life in this area, recalls that Brigham Young in a speech delivered in Cedar City told the members of the church that the best way to combat this practice of the travelers, and to hasten the education of the la- j dians. would be for the pioneers; to buy these Indian children and then take them into their own homes. This practice was welcomed wel-comed hy the Indians since their children would remain close at home where parents and family members would be able to keep in touch with the children whom they were forced to part with. As a result of Brigham Youngs idea 16 children were bought and taken into home in Cedar City, end Ann Hamilton was the last. Traded for Horse Ann, a daughter of Jeannie and Mannara. well known southern south-ern Utah Indians, was traded to John Hamilton for a horse, andl became a member of the Hamilton Ham-ilton family. Under regulations established by the state as u result of the situation, Ann andi the 15 other children Involved, took the family name and en-Joyed en-Joyed all the privileges of the regular children of tlte family, except that they were not entitled en-titled to inherit property. Regulations provide that Indian In-dian girls when they reached IC years of age and wanted to marry, mar-ry, could leave the family, but were entitled to two new dresses, two suits of new underwear, two new pairs of shoes, a Bible, a Book of Mormon and $5 In cash. If she did not marry she could leave at the age of 18 years. However, she could choose to stay with the family and most of them did. Rules Regulations for the Indian boys was that at the age of 21 years he could leave and was entitled to a new dress suit, a I new work suit, a pair of new dress shoes and a pair of new work shoes, a E'j!e, a Book of itiuilVlilii ttiau j ill Caan. umr living with the families the Indian In-dian children were entitled to food, clothing, shelter and education. edu-cation. They did not live apart,, but strlcUy as a member of the family. Ann Hamilton's accomplishments accomplish-ments were typical of th? Indian children so involved. She was well known In Cedar City and was an outstanding house keeper. keep-er. Later she moved to Salt Lake City where she continued In this capacity and for one period of i ten years served as head house-: keeper In a wealthy home, and, I was In charge of seven or eight' I other servants and of all household house-hold expenditure. Her employer, ,told Brother Palmei that Ann; had been the most capable house keeper he had ever employed. In addition she labored In the Salt Lake Temple for many years. Her death truly brings to a; close a most unusual practice, I one that proved the wisdom of the Church President, and over-1 came the practice of travelers taking the Indian children Into slavery. It was a nearly forgotten program, and little known to peo- pie of the present day, but will go down In history as one of the most unusual and most humanl-Itarlan humanl-Itarlan practices ever undertaken toward a minority and severely handicapped population. |