| Show UTAH PRESS ASSOCIATION his geology texts were still in use as late as 1950 at the Colorado School of Mines He was born August 26 1845 in Nauvoo Illinois son of William and Eliza Dana Gibbs His father was one of the chief carpenters on the LDS Temple in Nauvoo When he was two his family moved to Mt Pisgah Iowa and from there to Alden 1llinois where his education began The Gibbs family crossed the plains in 1857 When his father found employment on construction of the Salt Lake Temple Josiah benefitted from additional education made possible by Zina Young one of Brigham Youngwives who took an interest in youthful but obviously intellectual Josiah Called to settle Fillmore in 1862 the Gibbs family assisted in building an iron smelting apparatus at Adamsville two years later It added to the all-around knowledge being accumulated by Josiah who had already become bronc-buster and was destined to be known as Jack of all trades and master of many When Scipio was besieged by Indians he rode against Chief Black Hawk Yet he later became friends with the Pahvant Indians and their chief Kanosh He would recount that when he went to the Pahvant Indian camp to trade buckskins for pack saddles the chief postedguard to protect Gibbs horses He told Gibbs he had learned the tribeyoung bucks planned to steal them while the white men were sleeping He went to England onmission in 1867 and upon his return became serious about the study of geology The evolution theories of Charles Darwin were also an interest he pursued for the following twenty years Two ambitious newsmen whose journalistic pursuits included PaysonGlobe Ernest Rognon and Scott founded the Deseret Blade on June 1893 From the start contemporaries said it wascontroversial newspaper and shortly after its launching the men whobegun it left the scene They installed Jacobson one-time Brigham City resident as its manager That arrangement too was shortlived and in mid-September Josiah became its editor with 520 Digital image 2005 Marriott Library University of Utah Al rights reserved |
