by Richard M. Andrus, son
My father, Moses Willard Andrus, was born at St. George, Utah, April 7, 1869, eight years after the town was settled. Although he was the fifth of eleven children born to James Andrus and Manomas Lavina Gibson, he was the first one to live beyond the age of two years and therefore assumed the responsibilities of the eldest or first-born.
He was taught the gospel of hard work at an early age, and because of the need for his services, his schooling was extremely limited. He did have the opportunity of attending Brigham Young Academy for several months and even with scant formal education he acquired a good working knowledge of mathematics. As soon as he was able to ride a horse, he was given considerable responsibility helping with, and later managing his father's large cattle interests.
One incident in his early teens is an example of that trust which his father placed in him. They had trailed a large herd of cattle to the nearest railroad point, (perhaps Modena) and then shipped them to Denver. Father accompanied grandfather to Denver to collect on the sale of the cattle which was $6500. Quite a sum in those days. Possibly to avoid robbery, grandfather gave the money to father who travelled alone by train to Salt Lake City and delivered the cash to a banker there.
Upon first seeing mother, father made the decision to marry her before he even began courting. Most of their courting had to be done by letter because Grandfather James Andrus was a rather demanding taskmaster, who kept his son out on the range for months at a time, and it was only on rare occasions that the young people got to see each other.
Father married Orpha Elizabeth Morris, in St. George, November 5, 1891, and he built a new home which they moved into in May, 1893. There were nine children born to this family, three who died at birth. All the children were born in their home.
After mother's death, several letters were found which father had written before and after their marriage and these bring to light their deep feeling for one another and some of the hardships endured by early western cowpokes. Parts of letters follow:
"It is now 9 p.m. I have been up since 12 last night but inasmuch as one of the men are leaving for town I will write a few lines. The cook left without notice so I had to cook supper for 27 men after working all day."
"Wet through and lonesome ---- been raining all day."
When cattle were sold they were trailed well over 100 miles to the nearest railroad point and many weary hours were spent in the saddle. In 1905, father furnished pack animals and other livestock for a government survey party on the breaks of the Colorado Ricer. He was engaged there about a year. Being far from civilizatrion, the party encountered many difficulties and had it not been for Indians in the vicinity who supplied them with food from time to time, they would have perished from hunger.
Father worked as a butcher for a number of years, slaughtering and cutting beef and pork for others and also did some retailing.
For many years he was a member of the County Fair Committee, and helped with livestock displays and other matters. He always took pride in his saddle horses and his team of work horses were among the best in town. For this reason he was always called upon to convey deceased persons to the cemetery. At first he used a Bain wagon with white sheets draped across the bed. Later, a white-top buggy with the rear seat removed served as hearse. Still later the city fathers purchased the glass-enclosed wagon which was used until the advent of the motor driven car.
Grandfather Andrus was a delegate from Utah to the Democratic National Convention in the fore part of the 20th century, and when Woodrow Wilson was elected in 1912, he furnished three beef which father barbecued for the town celebration. Dad followed in his father's footsteps in politics and was always a staunch Democrat.
Very few were better judges of livestock then father, and as a result he spent several years as a cattle buyer for others and was very successful.
For many years he was Street Superintendent for the city of St. George, and took a great deal of pride in keeping the streets in the best condition possible.
Several years prior to his death, his vision failed and he became totally blind. He suffered a severe stroke in December 1941, and passed away at his home December 12, 1941. He is buried in the St. George cemetery.