Brigham Young

Brigham Young himself is, of course, our step-great-great-grandfather, by virtue of his marriage to our great-great-grandmother Lucy Ann Decker Seely , the eldest daughter of Isaac Decker and Harriet Page Wheeler Decker. He’s also our great-great-great-uncle, by his subsequent marriage to Lucy’s little sister, our great-great-aunt Clarissa (Clara) Decker. Here’s his write-up in our Book of Uncles. His kid brother Dow’s marriage to our great-great-great-grandmother Harriet (Lucy’s and Clarissa’s mother) also makes him our step-great-great-great-uncle. Or something… And then his firstborn daughter Vilate became our great-great-great-aunt by marrying our heroic Uncle Charlie Decker…

Did you know that Brigham Young was the next-to-youngest of his parents’ 13 children? Only Dow looked up to him in point of age. In light of his lifelong embodiment of achievement orientation, wouldn’t you have picked Brigham out as a first-born?…