You may have heard of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers (DUP), but did you know they have a museum that also serves as a research facility? http://www.dupinternational.org/index.php
Located in Salt Lake City close to the Capitol building on 300 N Main St., it houses a tremendous collection of memorabilia dating from the time Mormon pioneers entered the Valley of the Great Salt Lake to the date when Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads were joined at Promontory Point in Utah (24 Jul 1847 to 10 May 1869.) Remember hearing about the Golden Spike? With the joining of these two railroads, transcontinental travel became possible by rail, and the “pioneer” era officially ended in Utah. (That just means migration by covered wagon no longer was necessary.)
To join the DUP, you need to prove direct descendancy from someone who passed through, settled in, or was born in the area which encompassed Utah Territory between the above-mentioned dates. That includes Mormon pioneers, but also trappers, freighters, wagon trains bound for the west coast, members of Johnston’s army, railroad workers, or anyone else passing through. And remember, Utah Territory encompassed all of Nevada and part of Colorado at one time.
The DUP has a History Department containing over 100,000 biographies, with an online index http://www.dupinternational.org/pioneer_index.php . They will make copies for $.25 per page.
Here’s what a search for ” Pomeroy” yielded:
| Last Name | Given Name | Maiden Name | Birth Date | Death Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairchild | Tryphena | Pomeroy | 28 Jun 1815 | 24 Nov 1901 |
| Kimball | Mary Urusalia (Zula) | Pomeroy | 27 Jul 1860 | 10 Jan 1892 |
| Pomeroy | C.E. | 26 Feb 1843 | ||
| Pomeroy | Cassandra | Johnson | 7 Mar 1868 | 2 Oct 1957 |
| Pomeroy | Christiana | Monroe Stuart | 4 Jun 1851 | 16 Nov 1923 |
| Pomeroy | Elijah | 26 Jun 1850 | 8 Nov 1919 | |
| Pomeroy | Emma Adelia | 16 Jun 1858 | ||
| Pomeroy | Francis Martin | 20 Feb 1820 | 20 Oct 1882 | |
| Pomeroy | Heber Chase Kimball | 6 Jun 1868 | 20 Feb 1948 | |
| Pomeroy | Irene Ursula | Haskell | 1 Nov 1825 | |
| Pomeroy | Jessamine Elizabetg | Routledge | 29 Jan 1837 | 19 May 1900 |
| Pomeroy | Mary Ann | Rich | 15 May 1850 | 3 Nov 1835 |
| Pomeroy | Mary Annetta | Coleman | 20 Nov 1862 | 13 Mar 1946 |
| Pomeroy | Sarah Matilda | Colborn | 4 Nov 1839 | |
| Rich | Ella A. | Pomeroy | 1858 |
Files for 3 of my direct Pomeroy ancestors and several collateral lines. Not bad! And notice the birth and death dates in the index. Nice!
They also have an online index for their photo collection at http://www.dupinternational.org/photoIndex.php
I typed “Matheson” in the index and found they have photos of Lydia Evans Matheson, my great-great grandmother, and my great-great-great grandmother Catherine Treasurer Matheson.
| Last Name | Given Name | Maiden Name | Birth Date | Death Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matheson | Catherine | Treasurer | 24 Sep 1804 | 4 Jan 1896 |
| Matheson | Elec | |||
| Matheson | Lydia | Evans | 14 Feb 1844 | 30 May 1912 |
| Matheson | Scott | 8 Jan 1929 | 7 Oct 1990 |
There are no digital images online, but they can be ordered. I am excited to visit the museum to see the photos.
Other helpful features of the website are advice on preserving heirlooms and digitizing photos, and a FAQ section to handle those oft-asked questions like, “What is the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers theme song?”
As I remember, the museum has an index of their artifact collection onsite, so you can identify items your ancestor used to own. This museum is certainly worth a trip, but the website makes it possible to do actual research from afar.
Happy Trails!
On Granny's Trail 
The name Kimball rang a bell, and, sure enough, I found the 12th President of the Church, Spencer Kimball. Do you know if and/or how the two Kimballs among your Pomeroys were related to him? Looks like Mary Pomeroy Kimball is too old to have been his mother. Fascinating to see all this come together.
Peace, Margaret
It’s interesting you should notice that, Margaret. I have never checked into that Kimball family connection. However, the connection I do have with Spencer W. Kimball is that he owned an insurance agency next door to my grandmother’s (Kathleen Matheson Gooch) beauty shop in Safford, Arizona in the first half of the 20th century. He sold her some life insurance which she outlived, and she received a check in the mail when she was 90-something. It was pretty funny. Also, he was the ecclesiastical leader in the area before he became an Apostle and later the president of the LDS church, and in that capacity he spoke at the funeral for my grandfather Allen Lee Millard Gooch.