D.W. Thorup: Chapter 1

My name is Donald Wallace Thorup, but I have never used the name Donald until I got old enough that my Church and the Federal Government insisted on it. I have just used my initial, ie. D. Wallace Thorup. I prefer being called Wally, but use Wallace more as I have gotten older, or when occasion calls for it. I believe only my mother called me Wallace (mostly when I was being scolded.) I was born July 12, 1926 in Salt Lake City, Utah. I lived in Salt Lake most of my life. In 2001, I moved with my wife, Jeanné, to Sandy, Utah. I was the last of three children born to Alvin Theobald Thorup and Mary Leona Smith, and their first child born in a hospital: LDS Hospital. I am told that my father named me “Wallace” after the Scotsman, Sir William Wallace, for whom the movie, Braveheart, was based on.

My father, Alvin Theobald Thorup, was born 8 Jan 1888, in Salt Lake City. My father went by Alvin, or more often, Al. (I noticed he once signed his name, A. Theo. Thorup.) His father was John Theobald Thorup (correctly, Johannes Theobald Charles Thorup), born 25 May 1856, in Copenhagen,

Denmark

, and his mother was Hansine Engeline Andrea Berg. Andrea, as she was known, was born 18 Jan 1868, in Gjerreld, Denmark. Both of my paternal grandparents immigrated to Utah with their parents where they later met. Andrea was John’s second (polygamous) wife and a cousin to his first wife, Johanne Caroline Ostermann, who was known as “Carrie,” but my father's family all called her, "Auntie." Both Grandpa and Grandma Thorup passed away before I was born. As you will see, I only had one living great grandparent.

My mother, Mary Leona Smith was born 11 Dec 1892. She went by her middle name, Leona. Dad called her, "Onie." Mother's father was Hyrum Joseph Smith. He was born 27 Apr 1868, in Leicester (pronounced "Lester"),

England

. His illustrious name was probably happen-stance as his family did not join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints until my grandfather was sixteen. Grandpa Smith's name is spelled Hirum on his birth certificate (a common spelling in

England

) but he always used the spelling Hyrum. He was known by his family and associates as H.J., and was the name recorded on the steamship’s manifest when he immigrated with his family to the States. Grandpa Smith's legal surname was Dilks (there are variant spellings of that name) and is recorded as such on his birth certificate. The reason for this is that his grandfather, Charles Smith, and his grandmother, Ann Dilks, lived a common‑law marriage until they were legally married in 1856 just prior to the birth of their third child. Grandpa's father, Charles William Edward Dilks (Smith) was their first child. English law mandates a child carry the mother's maiden name if the parents are not married. There was one other son born prior to this marriage, but he died at the age of two so he had no posterity. Thus both Grandpa’s father, including all of Grandpa's brothers and sisters (born in England), carry the surname Dilks (or Dilkes) on their birth certificates.

In 1977 I found these wedding certificates for (above) Charles Smith & Ann Dilks and

(below) for my great grandfather showing the surname Dilkes.

All have used the Smith surname throughout their lives in both England and in America. My mother's mother was Sarah Alice Howarth, born 29 Oct 1870, in Millville, Utah. She went by Alice. Grandma Smith's parents, William Howarth and Alice Nuttall Howarth Taggart, were among the last to be called "pioneers," having made the trek to Utah via wagon train from the end of the railroad in Benton, Wyoming to Salt Lake. The arrival of the railroad in Utah, in May 1869, marked the end of the "pioneer" era, so they are the only true Mormon Pioneers in my ancestry. Grandma Smith's father, William Howarth, became very ill during the trip from England to Utah. He never fully recovered, and died from the effects of his illness when my grandma was 2 years old. Great grandmother Howarth later married Charles Taggart, a blind piano tuner from Ireland, so I always knew her as Grandma Taggart. She was also my only great grandparent living during my lifetime. I was nine years old when Grandma Taggart died. My grandpa, Hyrum J. Smith, died in 1949 the year our first child, Ann, was born. Grandma Smith died in 1955. She lived to see all three of my children born.

I have one sister, Vera Luana Thorup Heiner. Vera was born, 18 Jun 1915, making her 11 years older than she me. Vera married Daniel Purnell Heiner, 25 Nov 1936. They were blessed with three children: Judith (Judi), Joan, and Daniel (Dan) ‑‑ all with the middle name, Thorup. Vera died 24 March 2010, just prior to her 95^th birthday. I have one brother, Robert Smith Thorup, born, 24 May 1919, making him 7 years older than me. Bob married Evelyn Jean Olson, 10 Sep 1951, four years after Jeanne' and I were married. His oldest son, Bob, was born the same year as our youngest son, John. Their three children are Alvin Robert (Bob), Gary Richard (Gary), and Rebecca (Becky). My brother died, July 18, 1993, six days after my 67^th birthday. Evelyn died 19 March 1999. (My brother was named after another famous Scotsman, Robert the Bruce. Dad must have been a fan of Scottish heroes.)

My father holding me as a baby.

With my brother and sister being older, I was raised much as an only child. After mother died, in 1981. we three siblings became much closer, than we had ever been prior to that time. My mother celebrated her 89^th birthday 19 days before her death. I was 55 years old. My father was a shoe merchant. He died 16 July 1956, at the age of 68, four days after my 30^th birthday. We moved into our home on 2545 Evening Star Drive in September later that same year. Dad died of uremic poisoning caused from congestive heart failure. I have been diagnosed with CHF that took my father. Diuretics available today (like I now take) could have prolonged my father’s life by many years. Dad was 38 years old when I was born so I only remember him in his mature years. It is a Thorup family trait to have white hair, (which I did not inherit) and this served to enhance Dad's older appearance. I have outlived both my parents and my siblings.

While I took many enjoyable trips together with my parents, I was really never close to my father as a boy, as his work kept him away from home most of the time so he was not home much. The realization of this to seemed to me a real tragedy in my life because of his early death.