Brigham Horace Pierce

(1864 – 1944)

Brigham Horace Pierce, son of George Henry Pierce and Sarah Skinner, was born March 28, 1864 in Deseret, Millard County, Utah.  Brigham’s grandparents were converts to the Church and were among the early settlers of Utah, having crossed the plains and settled in Utah Valley.  They lived in the United Order for a short while when Brigham was a child.

As a young man he worked on the railroad and herded sheep to help his father maintain a large family.  Brigham’s mother was a plural wife and had thirteen children, of whom Brigham was the fourth child and second son.

Brigham married Mary Elizabeth Harris.  She bore him no children.  He then married Martha Alice Thorton.  Because of his polygamous marriage it was necessary to leave Utah.  He loaded his wives and the few things he could put into a wagon and carriage and befan the long overland trip to Mexico, arriving in Colonia Juarez late in the year of 1890.  Shortly after the arrival, his first child, Mary Alice, was born.  Two years later, his wife, Martha Alice, died in childbirth, her twin daughters dying with her.  Elizabeth raised Mary Alice.  They were poor, as were all the early settlers of the colonies, but Brigham was thrift and hardworking and provided well for his family.    He found what work he could to supplement his garden income, including work on the road from Colonia Juarez to the mountain colonies.  He also built the dugway over the hill east of Colonia Juarez leading to the road to Colonia Dublan.  The mountains were rocky and tools were scarce.  In his own small blacksmith shop he sharpened and tempered his own tools.  He hauled lumber from the mountain colonies, spending long days and bitter cold nights on the road.  He bought a few cows and Elizabeth sold butter and cheese.  She frugally and carefully saved what she could.  Having no family of her own, she went into the homes of those who needed her help, always taking some small gift of food or clothing to the less fortunate.

Between Brigham and Elizabeth, enough money was saved to buy a small piece of land which they planted to orchard.  As they prospered, more land was purchased and more orchards planted.  While waiting for the trees to bear, they planted blackberries and strawberries, which in addition to bringing them a small income also provided work for young people in the community.  Brigham paid two cents a quart for picking the fruit and Elizabeth provided the pickers with hot biscuits with butter and strawberry jam for lunch.  Brigham would load the berries on his wagon and peddle it in Colonia Juarez and Dublan.  Persons who were children at that time remembered Brig Pierce coming to their homews to bring berries to their mothers.  All can recall how they would run out to watch him pour the luscious fruit into pans held by the women and, when the mothers would go to pay him, he would catch hold of one of the children and say that he would trader her the berries for the girl.  Then he would lift the child into this wagon and pretend that he was going to take her home.  Finally, of course, he would let her down and reward her with a handful of berries, telling the mother that the child was still quite small and that he would let her stay with her mother until next year.  This was very much part of the fun of buying berries and he never forgot to do it.

When a canal was needed to convey water to the town, Brigham worked long hours on the project, taking canal stock for pay.  He served as watermaster and each morning as he walked to the head of the canal he took his shovel along and cleaned it as he went.  During the time he served as watermaster, it was never necessary to hire outside help to keep the canal clean.

In 1900, Brigham was called on a mission to the Southern States.  He wrote regularly to his wife and daughter, instructing them in money matters and the care of the property.  IN each letter he would bear his testimony of the truth of the Gospel.  In one letter he related how the Elders were miraculously saved by heeding a voice that told them to remain in the upper story of their headquarters when a great tidal wave struck Galveston, Texas, and did great damage for miles around.

After returning from his mission in 1904, he married Sarah Ellen Harris, Elizabeth’s sister.  She bore him eight children, four of whom survived him.  After the deaths of Elizabeth and Sarah, he married, in 1944, Louisa Berbmer Duthie.  She survived him and bore him no children.

Brigham Horace Pierce was a true pioneer to the Mormon Colonies in Mexico, helping to build up his town, working long hours for little pay other than the pleasure of seeing what once appeared to be a field of stones take shape and become a beautiful valley nestled in the heart of the Sierra Madre Mountains.  He lived to see dreams come true.  And his posterity reap the benefit of the labor of this kind, honest, God-fearing man. 

He was especially thoughtful of windows and orphans and helped those in need.  Although his own life was one of hardship and marked with many sorrows, he was always cheerful.  He never gave up peddling his berries until the time of his death and still offered to trade berries for little girls.  His cheery greeting and sense of humor made life pleasant for those around him and his generous nature kept many from want.  His name belongs with the builders of the colonies.  He died on September 26, 1944 in El Paso, Texas, and he was buried there.

Floriene F. Taylor, granddaughter-in-law

Stalwarts South of the Border Page 529 Nelle Spilsbury Hatch