JOHN AND RACHEL MURRAY

Written by Larry C. Murray

Roosevelt, Utah

September, 1995

Ever since “The Murray Family Book” came out I have heard comments from people that have had an interest in the John Murray and Rachel Allred family tree. 

John Murray was my great grandfather Jerimiah Hatch Murray’s brother.

I have talked to John and Rachel’s descendants and been able to get some information from them on their family. 

Raymond Murray’s wife JoAnn Allred Murray sent me in a direct ancestral line from Raymond back to John and Rachel his Great Grandfather and Great Grandmother.  I have since talked to Raymond and he has tried to fill in some of the family tree.  He has no dates but this is as close as we can come.

Jimmy Reed another descendent told me the following story.  It has been said that the Allred family that raised Rachel had gotten her from the Utes and they had picked her up from an Indian raid on another Indian tribe in Southern Utah. 

The family of Rachel said this story isn’t correct.  That it was a cover up for the Mormon Militia.  Their story is that the Mormon Militia wiped out a band of Shoshoni Indians at Bear River in Northern Utah. 

There were two survivors one Rachel and the other her sister Margaret.  An old Indian lady from Wyoming took these baby’s from harms way.  Her name was Sacajawea, the same that guided The Lewis and Clark expedition in earlier years.  It is not known how Sacajawea ended up with the baby’s.  She turned them over to Bringham Young.  He took Margaret to raise and the Allred family raised and educated Rachel who’s Indian name was Rachel Wanzitz Allred. Her birth date is estimated at 1847 and her death in 1894 in Spring City, Utah.  There is reportedly three children born to John and Rachel.  Tecumseh (Cump), John Jr. and Margaret named after her sister.

John Murray Jr. married Annie (last name unknown at this time) and they made their home I think in the Whiterocks area.   Annie  was a white woman and taught in the Indian school in Whiterocks. 

John Jr. was a good black smith and worked hard and had a good business in Whiterocks.  He and Annie were well respected in the area

Not much is known about Margaret other than she moved to New York and is thought to own a music store.

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The family line that I have followed comes down from Tecumseh Horatio (Cump) who was married to Annie Laurel Reed.  Cump was born Sept. 4, between 1878 - 1883 in Thistle Valley, Utah and died July 15, 1964 in Rock Creek Canyon.  His wife Annie Laurel Reed was born June 22, 1877 in Lander Wyoming and died 1-31-1936 place unknown at this time. Cump and Annie had four children.  Margaret, Harris, Charles (Chuck) and Julius.

(1) Margaret married  a McAdam’s but they later divorced and she remained single.  Unknown if they had any children. 

(2) Harris had two families his first family was wife unknown and the children Brian, Hatty, and Dave. 

His second family wife unknown and the children Benjamin and a daughter unknown. She was raised by some family friends Chalmers and Lilly Wash. 

Harris had been convicted of Murder with 3 other people.  They had killed an old man by the name of Rhodes. A descendent of Caleb Rhodes of the Lost Rhodes Mine. 

Mr. Rhodes had bought a new Overland car and Harris and friends Ernie Trujillo and his sister and a Van girl,  thought that Rhodes had gotten the money from the Lost Rhodes Mine.  They tortured him trying to find the mine’s location and finally killed him by burying him alive.  They then  stole his new car and headed for Salt Lake but were picked up as they hit the City.  I don’t know how much time they spent in Prison. But the Van girl died in prison and the Trujillo's served their time and moved back here to the Reservation.

Cump and Annie’s  next son Charles (Chuck ) was married to Irene last name unknown.  They had three children Charles, Ibora and Larry.  All the children from this marriage live in Wyoming and belong to the Shoshoni Tribe.

Cumps next son Julius Oran was Born July 17, 1909 in Ft. Duchesne, Utah and married Mary Mae LaRose on May 9, 1934 and is currently living in California.  He was baptized and confirmed in the L.D.S. Church, June 29, 1947, by Ray Dillman.  Mary Mae LaRose was born May 9, 1914 in Whiterocks, Utah and died Feb. 3, 1984 in Roosevelt, Utah.

Julius and Mary’s children are Franklin and his wife was Sandra Myore.  They are now divorced.  Franklin has worked for the Ute Indian Tribe as a Fish and Game officer.

Next is Barbara and she lived in California for many years as a Registered Nurse.  She is divorced and retired now living back here on the reservation.

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Next is Raymond and he is married to JoAnn Allred a descendent of the Allred family that raised Rachel.  Raymond owns a cattle operation at the foot of Mosby Mountain.  He specializes in Beefalo cattle.  He control’s over a thousand acres between Grouse Creek and Little Mountain.  He has been involved with the tribe for years.  He has worked as their Water and Sanitary Engineer for new tribal sub divisions.  He successfully managed Bottle Hollow Resort for a short time and is current serving on the tribal council representing the Uintah Band one of six members.  Two from each band. 

Next is Bonnie.  She is divorced and works as legal advocate at the Ute Tribe Court.

Next is Julius Jr. (Chunky) and he is also married to a white girl names Lois (not sure of maiden name).  Chunky has worked as legal advocate and judge with the tribal court and is currently working as a Fish and Game officer for the tribe.

Next is Jimmy and he is divorced and retired.

Next is Larry and his wife Gardina McKowen.  Larry has worked in the oil field since it came to the reservation.  Before then he worked with the Fish and Game.

Next is Rose Mary and she is married to Mac Murdock Jr.  Not much know of them

Last is Connie.  She is divorced and not much is known about her.

It is hard to get information from tribal members.  They still don’t trust the white man and don’t want anybody prying  around about their families.  The progressive Indians are looked down upon, and those who associate with whites are called apples.  Red on the outside and white on the inside.  The peer pressure is great.  Those who leave the reservation seem to do good, but when they return they either return to the old ways or they are ridiculed. 

My father, Clyde R. Murray, has given me a lot of information as he use to trade with them all the time and they considered him a good friend.  I have established the same friendship with some.  Their culture is different from ours and you need to understand it in order to understand the people.

I have been told the following stories from tribal members and friends from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

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While the Civil War was going on the Indians were creating problems in the Northwest.  Ute’s were living in Colorado and on the Wasatch Front.  The band of Whiteriver Utes lived in Meeker and Ignacio, Colorado .  The Uncompahgra’s lived in Montrose, Colorado their Chief was Ouray.  The band of Uintah’s lived along the Wasatch Front and in Spanish Fork Canyon.  The Chief of the Uintah’s was Black Hawk.

The White settlers started a City in Denver, Colorado and this angered the Indians as they didn’t want white settlers in their county and Colorado was considered their land.  The Colorado rocky’s were known to them as the Shining Mountains.

The Governmental leaders approached Chief Ouray and made a deal to buy the land and the figure that I have heard is $1,000.00 for the City of Denver.  This angered the Whiterivers.  They felt that Ouray had sold them out.  Others consider Ouray a very wise Chief as he could see the White migration coming his way and felt that if he went to war that the Utes would be annihilated.  It was better to talk peace and trade with the Whites that to go to war with them.

Gold and Silver were soon found around Idaho Springs outside of Denver, and Black Hawk, Silverton, and many other area’s in the Colorado Rockies.  Again more deals were struck with Chief Ouray.  Again the Whiterivers were angered and said they would not respect the peace that Chief Ouray had made.

President Lincoln was having trouble with the Civil War and couldn’t afford to pull troops from that war and send them to fight Indians.  He sent a few Jr. Officers and black soldiers to the west try and keep the peace.  The Indians called the black soldiers “Buffalo Soldiers” because their hair was kinky like a buffalo’s hair.

The closest fort to Colorado was in Fort Bridger, Wyoming.  The Whiterivers were hunters of the Rockies and the Uncompahgra had started to till the land and became farmers in Montrose area.  The Whiterivers were rounded up by the soldiers and sent to Meeker, Colorado.  It was a small government agency with Meeker as Indian agent and 4 or 5 families that acted as his aids.  He brought in farming equipment and told the Indians that they could not hunt the mountains anymore but that they would have to learn to till the soil and become farmers.  Some of the Indians tried to farm the soil but weren’t doing to good as they were hunters and felt this was beneath them.

One Indian brave, name not known, had a large herd of horses.  This was considered great wealth among the Indians.  He had many braves and members of his family working for him.  He could trade horses to other Indians and to the Spanish.

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He ran his herd of horses in the lush meadows surrounding Meeker.  Mr. Meeker called him in and told him he would have to get rid of his horses, that they were interfering with the farming operation.  A argument arouse between them and the aids came with guns and put the Indian out.  The next morning he came back with his braves and massacred the men of the Meeker agency.  He took the women and children as hostages.  The word soon scattered of the massacre at Meeker and the soldiers of Ft. Bridger were sent for. 

The Whiterivers had gone back to their old ways and was concerned that they would be attack.  Scouts spotted the soldiers coming into the Meeker area.  A small band of Whiterivers got on a ridge overlooking a pass and opened fire on the soldiers as they entered.  They kept the soldiers pinned down for 7 or 8 days, killing many of their horses and soldiers.

While the soldiers were pinned down the Whiterivers  took the hostages and the rest of the band and headed for Southern Colorado.  After the warriors felt the band was safe they took off and followed the band to their safe hiding place.

The soldiers made it to Denver and refitted and were going to pursue the Whiterivers.  They went to their ally Chief Ouray and asked him to go with them and see if he could negotiate the release of the hostages.  He agreed and they went into Southern Colorado and counseled with the hostages.  The Whiterivers said they would not release the hostages.  Chief Ouray told them that if they would not release the hostages that he would get his tribe which was the largest and team up with the soldiers and wipe them from the face of the earth.  The Whiterivers finally agreed.

The hostages were release unharmed and said they had been treated well.  But when they arrived in Denver the pressure was placed on them to say they were abused and molested by the Indians.  This way they could encourage the government to lean on the Indians and that would open the western side of Colorado up.   The women agreed and their new story was soon published all over the east. 

The Civil War had ended and pressure was on the new President and Congress to do something about the Indian problems.  Although the soldiers had now built forts along the  Platte River they couldn’t seem to get the Indians of the west under control.  They were good gorilla fighters.  They could hit and run and knew the country and ally’s of other tribes to help them.  Oklahoma had been considered Indian country with many of the Indian tribes moved there but they couldn’t hold them and they would break out and go back to their home lands.

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General Phil Sheraton was sent to lead the soldiers of the west and deal with the Indians.  This is one of the reason’s buffalo was hunted to distinction.  The main food source of the Indian’s was the buffalo.  They not only ate the meat they used the skins to make their tee pee’s and clothing.  General Sheraton felt that if he removed the food source of the Indian that he could conquer the Indians.  The buffalo were killed off and during the winter when the Indians were starving was when the victory battles of the soldiers took place.

Congress looked at the Utes as they were making reservations and decided to move the Utes into the Uintah Basin.  They were rounded up from Colorado and the Wasatch front and moved to an area just east of Rock Creek.  An Indian agency was set up here and there was troops to keep them on the reservation.

There was a lot of tension between these three bands of Utes.  Each felt they had received a raw deal and each felt they should be the leaders.  Chief Ouray was the only chief recognized by the government.

In the early 1900’s the Ute reservation went under review.  It was felt that the only way the Utes would progress and prosper was to open part of the reservation for homesteading.  This way white settlers would come in and build roads, canals, and bring industry and agriculture to the reservation.  The Indians were having a hard time farming and becoming more dependent on the government.  The once proud nation was losing ground.

Congress passed the act to reduce the Ute reservation and the Indians were given Part of the Uintah Mountains so that they would have timber.  They were given the ground right beneath the Uintah’s and the Hill Creek extension for grazing.  They were each given a parcel of ground that would be scattered among the whites.  These parcel’s were called Indian allotments.  The agency was moved to Ft. Duchesne and a black Calvary troop was stationed there to keep the peace between the whites and Indians.  Other ground was allotted as units for the tribe as a whole and then 80 acre parcel’s were marked off for homesteading.  Each man, woman, and child over the age of 18 could draw for these parcel’s, but the parcel’s had to be proved up on by a certain date.  Thus the reservation was opened to homestead in the spring of 1905.

There has been a lot of political problems with the Utes concerning who had the authority of the communities on the reservation.  For 20 years Roosevelt, Utah  has defended its community in court as being independent from the reservation and having jurisdiction of all people and crimes committed here.  This past year the Supreme Court handed down the final ruling that Congress had indeed deanexed this from the reservation and that Congress was the only entity that had the right to do this.  Roosevelt and the other small communities in this area were not part of the “New Reservation.”