Nephi Charles Virgin Sr., the second son of George Thompston Virgin and Mary Ann Barker, was born at Wooton, Bedfordshire, England on October 6, 1856. His parents were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been baptized September 22, 1854.

His young life was full of hardships and trying circum­stances. He was left without a father at the age of five years. In May 1862, he, his mother, older brother Amos, and baby sister Mercy Ann, sailed for America on the ship William Tappscott.

He came to Bear Lake with his mother and brother in 1864. Nephi said many times when they were looking after their traps at the mouth of the creek that emptied into Bear Lake, their feet were so cold they seemed frozen and they would unwrap their feet, take off the socks their mother had knitted for them, and would wade in the icy water. Then they would put their socks back on and again wrap their feet in the material they used for that purpose and their feet would get warm. After caring for their traps, Nephi often lay on the ice beside a hole cut through the ice on the lake for fishing, with his clothes wet and frozen until the sun came up and thawed and dried them on his body. The glare of the sun on the ice and water often made him snowblind.

Once Nephi was sitting on the chopping block outside the fence in front of their home in St. Charles reading, and his mother called him to bring her some wood. He put the open book upside down on the block thinking he would be right back, but his mother had an errand for him to run and when he returned, the dogs had torn his book to pieces. This grieved him very much as he had no book now to read and he really felt keenly its loss.

Nephi was ordained a deacon in October 1877 and became president of the first quorum of deacons organized in the St. Charles Ward, Bear Lake Stake, and held this position until 1881. He also acted as janitor. His duties were to see that the kerosene lamps were filled and kept clean, and that the wicks were trimmed and ready for use at anytime. He took care of the brooms, kept wood on hand for fires, etc.

He married Mary Ann Pride Clissold on February 26, 1877. One son, Nephi Charles Virgin Jr. was born to them on January 5, 1878. They received their endowments in October 1879. Later they were separated.

Land in the Bear Lake Valley that was of any worth was all taken before Nephi was old enough to take up a homestead, but he homesteaded a piece that was greasewood and saleratus. However, cultivation failed to improve it as he had hoped it would do.

On October 15, 1884 he married Cecily Hibbert, daughter of Thomas Hibbert and Ann Rowland Hibbert. To this union eight children were born, Jehu George Thompston Virgin, Lehi Sidney Virgin, Cecily Lorinda Virgin, Olive Vivian Virgin, Eva Honora Virgin and Iva Eudora Virgin (twins), Enow Owen Virgin, and Glenn Lamoni Virgin.

Nephi would buy and sell produce, eggs, butter, cheese, vegetables in season, and live poultry in the summer, and beef, pork and sometimes fish in the winter. He would haul the produce by team and wagon or sleigh to Wyoming to the markets in Evanston or Kemmerer and Diamondville. It is little wonder after the extreme exposure of his youth that he developed cataracts on his eyes in his later life.

In April he and his wife went to Salt Lake City where Dr. Ira Lyons, an Eye, Ear and Throat Specialist, removed the cataract from one eye. Nephi suffered from asthma and after the operation he sneezed and caused the sight to be impaired and his eye went blind three years later when the other eye was operated on in 1901. The people in St. Charles did a great deal to aid the family.

During the winter of 1906 and 1907, Nephi sold the home and property in St. Charles, Idaho. In April 1907 they left the place where they had spent so many happy years and had so many, many friends, and went to Sugar City, Idaho where he had purchased a house and forty acres of land. The family had typhoid fever and one daughter, Eva, died August 6, 1909 at the age of fifteen.

Nephi loved to read and often read aloud. He had the ability to pronounce words and names. His schooling was meager, but God seemed to have blessed him, making up to him to a very great extent what he lacked in education. Having heard him read so much, I feel that God helped me, too, for I remember the pronunciation of many of the words and they are correct even today. It truly was a gift from God.

During the winter of 1916 and 1917 Nephi was ill and Cecily's health had long been failing, leaving her bedfast. Nephi also became bedfast before the winter was over. On the morning of March 18, 1917, Sister Martha Cluff was with us when Nephi began to jerk and shake so hard that the bed would shake too. Lorinda, his daughter prayed and he finally calmed down.

In a very short time he asked for Cecily and the family. After we helped her to his bedside, he bore testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel and of the eternity of the marriage covenant, and with his arm around Cecily, testified that he knew they would be husband and wife in the life after they passed from this existence. He encouraged each of their children to adhere faithfully to the gospel teachings and promised that if we would, we would be a very happy family in the life to come.

Nephi passed quietly and peacefully away on March 20, 1917. Such deep and lasting love as their love was is dear to remember and their separation was short, although Cecily suffered great pain at times. She died on July 24, 1917, just eighteen weeks from the day Nephi died.

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