Bertha Windross Prigmore

Bertha Windross Prigmore
A Brief History
Written by daughter, Edna P. Milligan


Date of Birth: 11 April 1883
Place of Birth: Bolton, Lancashire, England
Parents: James Lowe and Sarah Alice Booth Windross
Spouse: Charles Henry Prigmore
Date of Marriage: 28 October 1910
Children: Rose P. Flint, James W. Prigmore, Edna P. Milligan, Eugene C. Prigmore and Wallace H. Prigmore
Died: 27 February 1968


Bertha Windross Prigmore was reared in a home by parents who believed in prayer and Christian living. She was one of six children but she and her sister, Rose Windross Fletcher, were the only two children who lived to maturity, married and raised families.

As a child she attended the Wesleyan Methodist Church. From the age of 4 to 13, she attended boarding school. Her mother died when she was 11 years of age leaving her father with three daughters and an invalid grandmother. At 13 mother quit school and helped take care of the family. At age 15 she commenced work at one of the Marks and Spencer stores. At age 18 she became a manager of the store in Sheffield, England. At the same time she attended evening school taking literature, ambulance and home nursing. Later on a scholarship, she studied German and harmony, and managed other stores in England.

In October 1910 she sailed on the ship Dominion to the United States to meet her husband to be. She was married on 28 October 1910. On 14 July 1912 she and her husband were baptized into the LDS Church. They were endowed and sealed to each other on 14 November 1914.

History of Bertha Windross Prigmore
Written by herself


I was born April eleventh 1882 in Moor Lane Bolton Lancashire, England. This is a cotton factory town about 14 miles from Manchester. My father and his brother-in-law had a grocery store at that address. My father told me that at that time, a man named Lever had a store on the next corner and taught his sons how to make soap. My mother’s maiden name was Sarah Alice Booth whose family originated at Harwood near Bolton.

Until I was about five my father was the superintendent of Queen St. Ragged School, a non-sectarian mission in Deansgate. I attended Ridgway Gates Wesleyan Sunday School.

My mother lost three babies, a boy and twin girls. A sister, Ethel, died when she was seven years old. My sister Rose, who was born June 14, 1887, is still living (in England).

From the age of four until thirteen years old, I attended Gashel St. Board School. My mother died suddenly when I was eleven years old leaving father with three girls and an invalid mother to care for. When I was thirteen I had to stay home and care for the family. When I was about fifteen I commenced work at a Marks and Spencer Ltd. When I was sixteen my father secured a position as power house operator for Brightside and Carbrook Cooperative Stores at Sheffield. Then Marks and Spencer transferred me to their Sheffield branch and I lived several months with father there. Then my father married Hannah Farnsworth of Bolton and she came to Sheffield bringing my sister Rose with her.

We made our home at Attercliffe and I lived there about 10 years. When I was 18 years old I was sent to take charge of Marks and Spencer’s Branch in Rotherham about five miles from Sheffield. While holding this position I attended evening school at Carbrook taking literature, ambulance and home nursing. I won a free studentship at the Sheffield Central Higher Grade taking German and Harmony.

My sister was cashier at Brightside Carbrook store a few years. We both taught Sunday School at Attercliffe Wesleyan.

When I was 22 I was appointed manager of Marks and Spencer Ltd. In Norfolk Market Hall, and I stayed with it five years. Then my health failing, I got transferred to the seaside town of Blackpool at Abingdon St. I was in charge there about one year. My sister joined me at Blackpool after a few months; she was given charge of the Chester store.

In October 1910 I sailed on the Dominion to the United States and met my husband to be who came in the previous May to the home of his uncle, Mr. James Smith, who came here about 1860. Here we were married Oct. 30th by Henry H. Blood.

After about a year we moved to Farmington where my husband was employed and where we lived when Rose was born. We moved back to Kaysville again, and there at Uncle’s cottage our son James was born March 14, 1915.

Again we moved to Farmington and there Edna May was born in 1917. When she was about one year old we moved again to Kaysville and lived on the Simmons farm for about one year. Then we moved into the Blood home opposite Kaysville meeting house and there our son Eugene was born July 4, 1919. We lived there about one year and then we bought the Paul Thomassen home and here our son Wallace was born.

While living in Farmington when Rose was about a year old, my husband and I were baptized in the open creek. Then we were married in the Temple Nov. 1914 and had Rose sealed to us.

I have been a member of Relief Society about forty years and I have just been released as literary leader after seven years.

Our children have attended Kaysville Sunday School, District school and high school here. Rose attended also Weber College, LDS Institute. She was a receptionist at the reemployment office for six years. She worked at Hill Field and also in New York.

Our Jim has engaged in farming and has been an employee of Clearfield Arsenal for several years.

Edna was a graduate of USAC at Logan. She taught at Clearfield school, Kaysville school and Stoker and Bountiful Jr. High. She served three years in the Waves.

Eugene after two years at the University served on a mission in California then served three years in the Marine Corps on the Indianapolis.

Wallace graduated from High School then served three years in the Marine Corps. (South Pacific during World War II) He enlisted with the second Mormon Battalion. Since then he has attended Vocational School studying electricity and is now employed by General Electric.

July 14, 1952 - West Center Street - Kaysville - Davis County, Utah

Kathy’s note: Grandma’s ‘Certificate of Naturalization’ paper says that Grandma was 59 years of age, a white female, medium complexion, brown hair and brown eyes, was 5 feet 0 inches and weighed 120 pounds. The date was November 17, 1941. Grandma and Grandpa went on a trip back to England in 1956. Even though I was 17 years old when Grandma Prigmore died, I don’t feel like I really knew her well. I don’t remember doing anything with her. Because Grandma and Grandpa did not have a vehicle, they didn’t just hop in their car and drive from Kaysville to Logan to see us. To me it seems like Grandma was always old. I don’t think I ever saw her wear pants. Of course back then all the women wore dresses or housecoats all the time. She had a neat British accent that she never lost. Grandma stayed at our house only occasionally. It seems that after the first night she was ready to go home. I asked Mother why Grandma didn’t want to stay. Mother told me something about old people and their bowel habits and if they weren’t regular it was upsetting to them. I remember when Grandma was in her nightgown and ready for bed she would take her hair down. I was shocked at how long it was…it was nearly to her waist. The ends were quite dark. I never did figure out how she rolled it and pinned it up in place. One time I was doing dishes at Grandma’s house and I started washing a really gunked up cast iron fry pan. I was trying to scrape the layers of stuff off and was soaking it in the sink. Grandma let me know that cast iron skillets are not to be washed, you just wipe them out. I thought that was pretty disgusting. It was disheartening when Grandma started getting mixed up and forgetful. I didn’t realize how bad she was getting until she gave me two tiny balls of gray yarn and a couple of old pencils one Christmas. But I knew she meant well. When Grandma was in her eighties, she and Mother were in Auerbach’s Department store in Salt Lake. Grandma tripped when getting on an escalator. She went head over heels, over and over, all the way down to the bottom. Mother said she was sure when she got to the bottom that she would find Grandma either dead or horribly injured. What a relief that she was apparently okay other than a dozen bad scrapes on her shins where the edge of the escalator steps gouged her. Grandma’s biggest complaint was that her ‘hose’ had tears and runs in them. An employee at Auerbach’s got a wheelchair for Grandma, gave her some new stockings, and had Mother take Grandma around the corner to be checked by a doctor. I remember going to Grandma and Grandpa’s 50th Wedding Anniversary at Aunt Rose’s house. Towards the end of Grandma’s life, Grandpa had said that while they were eating one day, Grandma kept talking to Rose as if she were at the table with them. Rose did often drop in on Grandma and Grandpa and it wasn’t unusual for her to visit with them as they ate, but this was after Rose had passed away. On this occasion Grandpa told Grandma that Rose was not there as she had been dead for some time. Grandma said, “No, Rose is sitting right there in that chair,” pointing to a supposedly empty chair at the table.

Patriarchal Blessing of
Bertha Windross Prigmore

Patriarchal Blessing given by James H. Linford Patriarch, at Kaysville, Utah, June 23, 1914, upon the head of Bertha Windross Prigmore, Born at Bolton, Lancashire, England, April 11, 1882
Sister Bertha Prigmore I lay my hands upon your head and seal upon you a blessing. I do this by the authority of the Holy Priesthood vested in me and in the name of Jesus Christ. I desire to be directed and inspired by the spirit of our Heavenly Father, to say such things and make such promises and blessings as shall be agreeable to Him. Your course through life, although at times may not have been the most pleasant and agreeable to you, has been shaped for you and for your benefit by your Heavenly Father. Your guardian Angels have been round and about you and have shielded and protected you from evils seen and unseen. Through the tender mercies of your Heavenly Father you have been brought in touch with the principles of the everlasting gospel. By accepting those principles you have become doubly the daughter of our Father in Heaven.
By living faithful to the gospel and by prayer and supplication, you shall learn the best course for you to pursue in life. By the inspiration of our Father you shall become indeed a helpmate to your companion in life both temporal and spiritual, this blessing you can obtain by faith and prayer. In the night time your dreams shall be instructive to you and the angels of your presence shall be with you to shield you from danger in the future as in the past. Peace shall be in your heart and the desire to be useful in the Church shall be in your feelings. The gospel you have received is of great importance to you in connection with your companion in life; the blessings that shall come to you will come through and in connection with your husband, as he cannot become perfect without you and as his wife you cannot become perfect without him. You are of the tribe of Joseph that was sold into Egypt, one of the greatest of ancient posterity, the beloved one of his father, the one which his eleven brothers were caused to honor, according to the desires of our Father in Heaven. Be of good cheer, may peace dwell in your heart, let the salvation of your family be one of the uppermost thoughts in your mind and let your heart be in the gospel. I seal upon you life, health, and Eternal life and a desire to come forth in the morning of the first resurrection. All these blessings I seal upon you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.



Kathy’s note: Mother used to say it was unusual that Grandma was from the tribe of Joseph instead of Joseph’s sons, Ephraim or Manasseh. She also added that Joseph was the one who was asked to interpret dreams for Pharaoh and Grandma was blessed that her dreams would be instructive to her. Evidently she did have a few dreams of forewarning of something that was about to take place. Interesting.