Rock Creek Cemetery; Sconce graestones in foreground and Chapel in background
Pedigree of 
Ralph Sconce II
Ralph Sconce IIold Sconce farm Home on Kaufman Road
An Experience in Family History
A message and Experience
For
My Children and Grandchildren
Fishing River
Our local Wards have been involved in community service projects for several years helping the community as neighbors. It is called "Neighbor to Neighbor" and it usually is a project in which community buildings, parks, or other facilities are made better or improved. The entire community is invited to participate in completing the goals of the project. For this particular year, 2010, the Rock Creek Cemetery, a rural cemetery in Clackamas County, was selected with the goals of: (1) restoring parts of the old Methodist church building (new siding was needed on parts of the building, along with the repair of the flooring in the chapel), (2) cleaning up of the grounds (removal of weeds and moss from around the graves and cleaning the head stones, (3) Gathering genealogy and family histories on some of the old prominent families that have been laid to rest from the early beginnings of the cemetery. Those in the Wards unable to contribute physically to the project ere asked to contribute to the family history aspects of the project. I felt like I fit into this category so with the list of all those who have been buried there we were asked to select family or families that we would like to gather histories for. It was suggested that I look at one or two groups of grave stones and begin. For reasons unexplainable, I was drawn to a group of headstones marked by the name "Sconce". As I began this research into the Sconce family, I began to see how easily it seemed to fit together and how elated I became in learning about this pioneer family that arrived in Oregon in 1853.
Robert H. Sconce arrived in Clackamas County to file on a Donation Land Claim for 320 acres. He arrived with one daughter and his wife Darthulia Noblitt. The daughter, Margaret, was four years old. This small family came with other family members from Missouri in Ray County. I learned that Robert volunteered as a teamster for duty in the Mexican American War of 1848, the same war where the Mormon Battalion was recruited as they traveled to the Salt Lake Valley. Robert married Darthulia in Missouri after the war and they may have been living in the Fishing River Township of Ray County, the county seat of which is Richmond. A phenomenal event occurred fifteen years earlier in the adjacent Clay County, when the Fishing River , a tributary to the Missouri, became a barrier to mobster that were trying to drive the Saints from Missouri. Zion’s Camp was formed in Ohio to assist the Saints in Missouri. As they traveled to Missouri and were camped near Fishing River, a severe storm caused the shallow river to rapidly rise to a depth of more than 30 feet, which protected Zion's Camp from an attack by mobbers.
Zion's Camp consisted of about 200 volunteers asked to assist Church members in Jackson County, who had been driven from their homes by mobs. They walked about 1,000 miles from the east to Missouri.
Due to the disobedience of some camp members, Joseph prophesied a scourge would occur. Cholera broke out near the end of the journey. 70 people were stricken, and 14 died.
Zion's Camp was disbanded several days after arriving here in late June 1834. They were unable to provide the assistance they anticipated. Some complained, but Joseph received a revelation explaining God's perspective. Whether the Sconce family realized it or not, Fishing River would be an important event and it would have an impact upon them from descendants unknown.
As I dug into the records for Robert Sconce, I decided to see if he was connected to the new.familysearch. Much to my surprise, I found that all the temple ordinance work had been done for both he and his wife in 1989. However, only one child was connected to the family, Margaret, their first born but whose temple ordinance work had been done also in 1989. As my research continued, I found that 6 other children were born into the family after Robert and his wife arrived in Oregon. Here in the records of the Saints was an incomplete family, children who were unknown to the contributor of the Robert Sconce family in new.familysearch. Was this a reason why I was drawn to this family? In retrospect, five generations of descendants were put together for Robert, perhaps not all complete, but for the most part they were.
It is difficult for many of us to understand the situation of the spirits of men, women and children in the spirit world after they leave this life. I suspect that we do not realize the predicament that these spirits of men find themselves in without the ordinances of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The scriptures indicate that they are in prison, which to me, indicates that they are restricted in what they can do and in the advances that they could make. Those that do not partake of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus
The Rock Creek Cemetery; Sconce gravestones in foreground and Chapel in background
Christ while living must wait in the spirit world until some kindly relative who has received these ordinances while living and who has turned his heart to them and saved them by performing, vicariously, sacred ordinances which free them from prison. Strangers to the family cannot perform these ordinances. They must be a descendant relative. How anxious do these spirits become because they had no chance to receive these ordinances in life and must wait for subsequent generations to save them? All of course due to the priesthood restored to the earth through the love and mercy of our Savior. Communication between the spirit world and this mortal world is far greater than we may realize. I believe this illustrates how very important it is to receive these saving ordinances while living so that not only blessing come to us in mortality but also continue as we pass into the next life. Thus, missionary work must go forward with the same vigor as family history work for the dead.
I had the opportunity to meet the 5th generation descendants from Robert H. Sconce and presented them with a history of a second great grandfather that they knew little of. I had invited them to the picnic lunch which was prepared for those doing the physical labor at the cemetery, youth and adult. It was a cold blustery day, but without rain. After the guests arrived we went into the old non functioning Methodist chapel to discus their family and to see where they fit into the descendant picture. There was a wonderful spirit there and they were most appreciative. I presented each with a prepared and bound history of their grandfathers and a large decendency chart. We visited the graves and viewed the extent of the number of their family that were buried there.
In conclusion, I feel so very grateful for the blessing and privilege I had of having researched this family and to have met descendants. I have a great testimony of this holy and sacred work and I know it is part of His plan to save his children. I hope all of you will take advantage of the time you have left in this world; to prioritize your lives and become worthy to receive the blessings that are available to you.
Your loving father
Our local Wards have been involved in community service projects for several years helping the community as neighbors. It is called "Neighbor to Neighbor" and it usually is a project in which community buildings, parks, or other facilities are made better or improved. The entire community is invited to participate in completing the goals of the project. For this particular year, 2010, the Rock Creek Cemetery, a rural cemetery in Clackamas County, was selected with the goals of: (1) restoring parts of the old Methodist church building (new siding was needed on parts of the building, along with the repair of the flooring in the chapel), (2) cleaning up of the grounds (removal of weeds and moss from around the graves and cleaning the head stones, (3) Gathering genealogy and family histories on some of the old prominent families that have been laid to rest from the early beginnings of the cemetery. Those in the Wards unable to contribute physically to the project ere asked to contribute to the family history aspects of the project. I felt like I fit into this category so with the list of all those who have been buried there we were asked to select family or families that we would like to gather histories for. It was suggested that I look at one or two groups of grave stones and begin. For reasons unexplainable, I was drawn to a group of headstones marked by the name "Sconce". As I began this research into the Sconce family, I began to see how easily it seemed to fit together and how elated I became in learning about this pioneer family that arrived in Oregon in 1853.
Robert H. Sconce arrived in Clackamas County to file on a Donation Land Claim for 320 acres. He arrived with one daughter and his wife Darthulia Noblitt. The daughter, Margaret, was four years old. This small family came with other family members from Missouri in Ray County. I learned that Robert volunteered as a teamster for duty in the Mexican American War of 1848, the same war where the Mormon Battalion was recruited as they traveled to the Salt Lake Valley. Robert married Darthulia in Missouri after the war and they may have been living in the Fishing River Township of Ray County, the county seat of which is Richmond. A phenomenal event occurred fifteen years earlier in the adjacent Clay County, when the Fishing River , a tributary to the Missouri, became a barrier to mobster that were trying to drive the Saints from Missouri. Zion’s Camp was formed in Ohio to assist the Saints in Missouri. As they traveled to Missouri and were camped near Fishing River, a severe storm caused the shallow river to rapidly rise to a depth of more than 30 feet, which protected Zion's Camp from an attack by mobbers.
Zion's Camp consisted of about 200 volunteers asked to assist Church members in Jackson County, who had been driven from their homes by mobs. They walked about 1,000 miles from the east to Missouri.
Due to the disobedience of some camp members, Joseph prophesied a scourge would occur. Cholera broke out near the end of the journey. 70 people were stricken, and 14 died.
Zion's Camp was disbanded several days after arriving here in late June 1834. They were unable to provide the assistance they anticipated. Some complained, but Joseph received a revelation explaining God's perspective. Whether the Sconce family realized it or not, Fishing River would be an important event and it would have an impact upon them from descendants unknown.
As I dug into the records for Robert Sconce, I decided to see if he was connected to the new.familysearch. Much to my surprise, I found that all the temple ordinance work had been done for both he and his wife in 1989. However, only one child was connected to the family, Margaret, their first born but whose temple ordinance work had been done also in 1989. As my research continued, I found that 6 other children were born into the family after Robert and his wife arrived in Oregon. Here in the records of the Saints was an incomplete family, children who were unknown to the contributor of the Robert Sconce family in new.familysearch. Was this a reason why I was drawn to this family? In retrospect, five generations of descendants were put together for Robert, perhaps not all complete, but for the most part they were.
It is difficult for many of us to understand the situation of the spirits of men, women and children in the spirit world after they leave this life. I suspect that we do not realize the predicament that these spirits of men find themselves in without the ordinances of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The scriptures indicate that they are in prison, which to me, indicates that they are restricted in what they can do and in the advances that they could make. Those that do not partake of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus
The Rock Creek Cemetery; Sconce gravestones in foreground and Chapel in background
Christ while living must wait in the spirit world until some kindly relative who has received these ordinances while living and who has turned his heart to them and saved them by performing, vicariously, sacred ordinances which free them from prison. Strangers to the family cannot perform these ordinances. They must be a descendant relative. How anxious do these spirits become because they had no chance to receive these ordinances in life and must wait for subsequent generations to save them? All of course due to the priesthood restored to the earth through the love and mercy of our Savior. Communication between the spirit world and this mortal world is far greater than we may realize. I believe this illustrates how very important it is to receive these saving ordinances while living so that not only blessing come to us in mortality but also continue as we pass into the next life. Thus, missionary work must go forward with the same vigor as family history work for the dead.
I had the opportunity to meet the 5th generation descendants from Robert H. Sconce and presented them with a history of a second great grandfather that they knew little of. I had invited them to the picnic lunch which was prepared for those doing the physical labor at the cemetery, youth and adult. It was a cold blustery day, but without rain. After the guests arrived we went into the old non functioning Methodist chapel to discus their family and to see where they fit into the descendant picture. There was a wonderful spirit there and they were most appreciative. I presented each with a prepared and bound history of their grandfathers and a large decendency chart. We visited the graves and viewed the extent of the number of their family that were buried there.
In conclusion, I feel so very grateful for the blessing and privilege I had of having researched this family and to have met descendants. I have a great testimony of this holy and sacred work and I know it is part of His plan to save his children. I hope all of you will take advantage of the time you have left in this world; to prioritize your lives and become worthy to receive the blessings that are available to you.
Your loving father
