Prime T. Coleman
Prime T. Coleman's personal and family background and his involvement in and statements about the Mountain Meadows Massacre
Prime Thornton Coleman
1831-1905
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Biographical Sketch
Early Life in England
Prime Thornton Coleman was born in September 1831 in Thorncot, Bedfordshire, in the East of England region outside London. The family heard the Mormon message in the early 1840s and Prime was baptized in either 1841 or 1842.
Immigration to America and Journey to Utah Territory
In 1850, the Coleman family immigrated to America and made their way up the Mississippi River. At the Mormon outfitting post at Kanesville (modern Council Bluffs), Iowa, they joined the David Evans Company. In the family were Sarah Thornton Coleman, 43, George, 23, Prime, 18, Elizabeth, 14, William, 13, Rebecca, 11, and Martha Jane, 6.
The company departed in mid-June. Like the previous year, there was very heavy travel on the overland trails that year because of the Gold Rush. Cholera was epidemic and some member of the company died from cholera. They passed the usual milestones on the trail: Fort Kearney, the South Fork of the Platte River, Chimney Rock, Fort Laramie, the Sweetwater River, Independence Rock, Devil's Gate, Green River, Fort Bridger, Bear River, and Weber River. After suffering the usual hardships of overland trail they arrived in the valley of the Great Salt Lake in mid-September.
Indian Interpreter in the Southern Indian Mission
In fall 1853, Prime Coleman was among the young men called as Indian interpreters to southern Utah. He was among the early settlers in the Virgin and Santa Clara valleys in 1855 and later. Prime Coleman had an adopted Indian girl named Jane while in Pinto.
In the Iron Military District: Sergeant Amos Thornton, Company H, John D. Lee's 4th Battalion
In 1857, the Iron Military District consisted of four battalions under the command of Col William H. Dame. The platoons and companies in the first battalion drew on men in and around Parowan. (It had no involvement at Mountain Meadows.) Major Isaac Haight commanded the 2nd Battalion whose personnel in its many platoons and two companies came from Cedar City and outer-lying communities to the north such as Fort Johnson. Major John Higbee headed the 3rd Battalion whose many platoons and two companies were drawn from Cedar City and outer-lying communities to the southwest such as Fort Hamilton. Major John D. Lee of Fort Harmony headed the 4th Battalion whose platoons and companies drew on its militia personnel from Fort Harmony, the Southerners at the newly-founded settlement in Washington, the Indian interpreters at Fort Clara, and the new settlers at Pinto.
In 1857, the 26-year-old Prime Coleman was a private in the first platoon of Company H. Others in the platoon included Ira Hatch, Dudley, and David Tullis. Captain Alexander Ingram commanded Company H, which was attached to Major John D. Lee's 4th Battalion. See A Basic Account for a full description of the massacre.
Whether Prime Coleman was at Mountain Meadows during the siege and massacre of the Arkansas wagon train is unclear. Coleman's alleged involvement stems from his admission to Major James Carleton in 1859 that he tracked several Arkansas emigrants who escaped from Mountain Meadows and fled westward onto the Mojave Desert. Although there is evidence that Indians killed these men, Carleton concluded that Coleman played some role in their deaths.
Family Life
In one of the Reformation-era marriages, Prime Coleman married Emma Beck Evans ( ) in November 1856. She would bear him four children. In 1865, he entered into a polygamous marriage with Elizabeth Eagles ( )
Marriage Number 2 Spouse: Eagles, Elizabeth Date: Nov 26, 1864 Children: 1. Coleman, William Henry Feb 22, 1866 Pinto, Washington, UT, 2. Coleman, Willard Elias Jun 5, 1868 Pinto, Washington, UT, 3. Coleman, Della Oct 23, 1870 Pinto, Washington, UT, 4. Coleman, Sn Luella May 22, 1873 Pinto, Washington, UT, 5. Coleman, Sarah Ida Jan 22, 1876 Pinto, Washington, UT, 6. Coleman, John Robert Jul 29, 1878 Kanab, Kane, UT, 7. Coleman: Junius Prime Jun 10, 1881 Alpine, Apache, AZ, 8. Coleman, George Neil Mar 26, 1883 Alpine, Apache, AZ, Church Ordinance Data: Coleman, Prime Thornton Baptism Date: 1841
Settling in Pinto
An Early Colonizer in Eastern Arizona
In 1876, Mormon colonization in Arizona began in earnest . . .
Final Years
Prime T. Coleman died in August 1905, in Thatcher, Graham County, Arizona. He was survived by ______ and his many children.
References
Brooks, ed., Journal of the Southern Indian Mission, ; Brooks, "Indian Relations on the Mormon Frontier," Utah Historical Quarterly, 12:1-2 (Jan.-Apr. 1944): 36;
Woodbury, “A History of Southern Utah and its National Parks," Utah Historical Quarterly, 12:3-4 (Jul.-Oct. 1944): 144, fn 36.
External Links
For further information on Prime T. Coleman, see:
- http://www.lofthouse.com/USA/Utah/washington/wpa/pinto.html
- http://mountainmeadowsmassacre.org/appendices/appendix-c-the-militiamen
Further information and confirmation needed. Please comment below or contact editor@1857ironcountymilitia.com.
