Mary Jane Sharp

Jane Sharp was born March 22, 1794, in Kentucky, daughter of Robert Sharp and his wife Elizabeth. She has no birth record, but her birthdate appears to be listed in early temple records. See attached under Memories. Her modern-looking headstone actually has a birthdate of 22 November 1794. Regardless, she was probably born about 1794. Jane was an early member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She performed her own temple work for herself while she was alive. She also appears to have done temple work for her parents and sister in 1843, which is, I believe, how we know who her parents were. As near as I can tell from tax records, Jane's father Robert Sharp was in Bourbon County, Kentucky in 1795. Sometime between 1787 and 1795 he moved to Kentucky from Washington County, Pennsylvania. Robert was in Clark County, Kentucky in 1796 and Green County in 1797. Although it appears that Jane thought she was born in Barren County, Kentucky, actually Barren County was founded on December 20, 1798 from parts of Warren and Green Counties, so she definitely wasn't born in Barren County. She was probably born in Bourbon County. Bourbon County is right outside present-day Lexington. About 1811 her family moved to southwestern Indiana not far from Illinois. It was here in Harrison County, Indiana that Jane married James Rawlins in 1816. While in Indiana, at least two daughters, Sarah and Lucinda, were born. About 1826, the young family moved to Greene County, Illinois (see the book, Early records of Greene and Jersey Counties, Illinois, attached under Sources, which places the move at 1826). Here in Whitehall or Apple Creek (or before) five children were born. The family lived in Apple Creek for about 10 -12 years, then moved north to Quincy, Adams County. It appears that by the time the 1840 census was taken, James and Jane had: Sarah Lucinda Elizabeth Joseph Harvey Leah Millie Elva *Melvina There is evidence of a child named Nelson. But he appears to have been a fostered child, and not mentioned in James Rawlins' will. In the 1848 list of people crossing the plains in the group led by Andrew Cunningham, Lucinda's husband, Nelson is listed as "Nelson Matice," ten years old. Which would imply a birth year of 1838. See Nelson's life sketch in his file, KWZM-8SD. I don't think he was officially adopted, as he is not mentioned in James Rawlins' will; if he were officially adopted, I think he would have been in the will. This is the family in the 1840 census: Name: James Rawlins Home in 1840 (City, County, State): Quincy, Adams, Illinois Free White Persons - Males - 10 thru 14: 2 (Harvey? Should be 15, and who is the other male?) Free White Persons - Males - 20 thru 29: 1 (Joseph? Should be 17) Free White Persons - Males - 40 thru 49: 1 (James) Free White Persons - Females - Under 5: 1 (Melvina) Free White Persons - Females - 5 thru 9: 2 (Elva and Millie) Free White Persons - Females - 10 thru 14: 1 (Leah) Free White Persons - Females - 15 thru 19: 1 (Elizabeth) Free White Persons - Females - 20 thru 29: 2 (Lucinda and Sarah) Free White Persons - Females - 40 thru 49: 1 (Jane) They were there in Quincy when the Mormon exiles from Missouri arrived. They must have been impressed because they were baptized in April 1840. In 1842, they moved to a farm on Bair Creek, Hancock County. Jane and James received their endowment in the Nauvoo Temple on Christmas Eve 1845.They enjoyed it here until the persecution of the Saints became very harsh. In 1846, they with many others crossed the Mississippi River in the dead of winter and traveled across Iowa. They traveled through Council Bluffs to a place sixty miles downriver, Nishnabotna, to be with their friends, the Frost family. They found work here splitting rails for a man named Jones. In May 1848, they started their trek across the plains. They traveled in the Andrew Cunningham company arriving in the Salt Lake Valley in October 1848. After one night in Salt Lake City, the Rawlins families drove to Little Cottonwood, where they camped for a time, then moved to Big Cottonwood. There with help of others James built a house moving in on New Years Day. Both James and Jane were 54 years old. The family in the 1850 census: James Rollins 57 Kentucky Jane Rollins 57 Kentucky Elizabeth Rollins 30 Illinois Leah Rollins 23 Illinois Jane Rollins 19 Illinois Elva Ann Rollins 17 Illinois Charlotte Rollins 14Illinois Nelson Rollins 12 Illinois James he served as a counselor in the bishopric until they moved to Draper, Utah in 1852. Also in 1852 Jane and James were sealed as a couple in the Endowment House. James practiced plural marriage. In 1856, he was sealed to his second wife, Harriet Hunt Wheat. Jane passed away two years later, James beloved wife of forty-two years. In 1866, he married Rachel Hammitt. He didn't have children with any of his plural wives. They were both in the 50s or 60s when they married. James was also sealed to Jane's sister, Elizabeth, 14 April 1856, after Elizabeth's death.