Jane Richmond (Mormon Pioneer)

Jane Richmond Staker was born August 25, 1810 in Pickering, Ontario, Canada. She was the daughter of David Richmond, a Loyalist and Merca Ray also of Loyalist parentage. She was a beautiful, black-haired French girl. She married Nathan Staker in 1827. Nathan and Jane were taught the gospel by the Pratts and Brigham Young and were baptized June 11 1835. They were Methodists before being baptized member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

They wanted to gather with the saints in Zion so they moved to Kirtland, Ohio, here her fourth child Alma was born June 15, 1836. They joined Zion's Camp for the move from Kirtland to Jackson County, Missouri.

On the move from Kirtland, Jane did not get along with the overseer of their group and on one occasion when a slough about 15 feet wide was being forded, all the teamsters would start their teams into the slough then grab on the back end of the wagon and wade through. When Nathan's turn came, he got the team and wagon in the slough, then taking a little run jumped over dry shod. Mr. Lamereaux the overseer, was vexed and ordered him to take water, threatening him with his riding whip and when Nathan made it dry shod Lamereaux spurred his horse across the slough and striking Nathan with the whip ordered him to wade back into the water. At this time Jane took over, wrenched the whip out of the Wagon-boss' hand and hit him in the face with hit.

In Church History Vol 3 page 128 it reads: “Friday 17 July 1838, Nathan Staker was requested to leave the Camp in consequence of the determination of his wife, to all appearance, not to observe the rules and regulations of camp. There had been contentions in the tent between herself and Andrew Lamereaux, overseer of the tent, and also contentions with his family several times on the road, and after the camp stopped in this place, the council had become weary of trying to settle these contentions between them. Andrew Lamereaux having gone to Dayton to labor, taking his family with him, was not present at the Council, neither was there any new complaint made, but the impossibility of Brother Staker to keep his family in order was apparent to all and it was thought to be the best thing for him to take his family and leave the camp.

The Staker family stayed in Springfield, Illinois and then moved to a farm between Nauvoo and Carthage. They lived here at the time of the Martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum. They were near enough to Carthage to hear the firing of the guns on that fateful day of June 27, 1844.

The Nathan Stakers returned to Springfield, Illinois in the fall of 1844. The following year, 1845, they again went to Nauvoo, Illinois. In 1846 the family started west with a company of Saints. On account of poverty and adverse circumstances they were forced to remain at Pigeon Grove, Iowa for five years. Before leaving there the whole family came down with Smallpox. Jane was so ill, her face was swollen and a solid scab caused by the dreaded disease that they could not distinguish the location of her eyes. Her baby was brought in to see her. The baby was afraid and turned away. She said “I must be a terrible sight, even my poor baby doesn't know me.”

Jane Richmond died of Smallpox February 4, 1852, and was buried at Pigeon Grove, Pottawattamie, Iowa, leaving her husband and seven children. Jane had received a blessing from Brigham Young in which he said she would make he journey to the valley with the Saints. Her death was a lamentation on their minds, they couldn't understand.

When they finally reached the valley, they went to see President Young, telling him their feelings. He told them, “Your dear wife and mother did reach the valley of death, with six hundred or more who died on the way.” He told them that she was called by our Heavenly Father for a purpose we cannot understand at this time. “Your mother has gone to the Highest Degree of Glory, to a much happier place than this.”

Jane's children were: John, William Henry, Sarah Jane, Alma, Nathaniel (died as an infant), Nathan Richmond (died at Pigeon Grove of smallpox), Aaron, Lydia Margarete, Mary Ann, and Joseph Smith.

*We have her patriarchal blessing.