My great-great-great-Grandfather and Grandmother, Jacob and Sarah Warnock Scott, lived in Ireland. No explanation of why they left Ireland was documented, but we do know that life was not easy there. The winters were wet and cold and their summers were cool too. If the temperature reached into the 70’s they thought it was a “heat wave.” They were members of the Presbyterian Church, whose members were being persecuted. It is also believed that they were among the original Celtic families that were stripped of their land by the English Crown. These families were then made to work for the new owners. Many Irish people migrated to Canada and the United States during this time. It is interesting to know that in 1819, when the Scott’s left that there were 8 million people living in Ireland. There are currently 5 million people residing in Ireland. The devastating potato blight that killed 2 million of them by starvation happened in 1845, twenty-six years after their migration.
They moved their family of seven children to Canada, (two children were born there) where they lived for 18 years. This is where they were taught by LDS missionaries and joined the church. They moved from Canada to Far West , and eventually to Nauvoo. Jacob and Sarah are buried in the Nauvoo cemetery. Their son, John, who is my great-great Grandfather, became very close to Joseph Smith and was an his assistant and body guard. John and his family ended up in Salt Lake City, migrating there with the Saints.
I am so grateful for my ancestors, for the sacrifices they made and for their faithfulness in the church.
John Scott and his wife Elizabeth Meneary (who was also born in Ireland)
