Alice Kemp Anderson and Thomas Henry Cottle

Alice Kemp Anderson Cottle

Alice’s dreaming of her past life comes to an abrupt end as the white topped buggy driven by Thomas Henry Cottle hits a deep rut. She looks about and asks herself, “Am I doing the right thing?” Only a month ago she had resigned herself to raising her daughter, the love of her life, as a young widowed mother, keeping house for her Father and siblings; when, “a cousin working on a dam, the Stone Reservoir, tells about meeting Thomas Cottle, a recent widower, with 4 small children. He mentions Thomas is looking for someone to care for the children and keep house. So, I make inquires, Thomas agrees to an interview, he comes to Malad in a white top buggy, likes what he sees and here we are, on the bumpy road to Stone.” – And on the bumpy road to a new adventure for Alice and 5 year old Clara.
Clara recalls that first trip by saying, “When mother tells me we are going to Stone, the only stone I have ever heard of is a peach stone, and I wonder if Stone is just one big Peach Orchard!” When Alice and Clara arrive at the house the children (Leland 9, Loretta 7, Dewey 5 and little baby Ella) are all “neat and clean, the house in good order with supper ready on the table.” But Clara is most upset that baby Ella is not there, but is in Snowville with an Aunt Ettie. Clara does not see her for three days and as Clara remembers, “She is so sweet, and I love her dearly and with all the kids around Ella never wants for a baby-sitter.”
So, Alice settles in as housekeeper and nanny for Thomas Henry Cottle in late June of 1910. By November she is, “married in the Logan temple to Thomas Henry Cottle.” From this union came three more children: Charles, Charlotte and Sterling. So now there are eight children, a growing farming operation and life seems good. Alice once again thinks, “This is my life and life is good, I have a large family, a loving husband and good provider with whom I can enjoy a long and wonderful companionship.”

Thomas Henry Cottle, born in Plain City in 1877, married at 21 and widowed at age 33, is feeling pretty good about how things have turned out. Alice, his second wife, is a good housekeeper and a loving spouse, and while he loves all his children, little Clara is the apple of his eye. He continues to build up his cattle herd, adds some more barns and corrals, even adds onto the house; much needed now there are 8 growing children to house and feed.
Clara has fond memories of her step-father. “He is a very kind and loving man and I remember there being a lot of happiness in our home.” Sometimes he would take Loretta and Clara with him to Malad on church business, an all day ride in that beautiful white buggy, and Clara remembers all the fun. As they walk down the main street of Malad, “Loretta would tell me, ‘now Clara I’ll hold on to Papa’s coat and you hold my hand’ and then Papa would start walking faster and faster - then stop right quick - and if we weren’t holding on tight we would just keep right on going. I know he was just doing it for fun, but Loretta just kept getting a tighter grip on that poor coat and by the time we returned to Stone that coat was in a sorry condition. I don’t know how Mother got out the wrinkles.”
But Thomas demands respect from his family and they know when he means business. Clara recalls, “I can remember times when Loretta and I would be helping Mother or supposed to be helping and we would start bickering. One time I remember Loretta gets very angry. She is lying on the floor, crying, kicking her feet in the air. We hear the outside screen door open and shut and know that Papa is coming in. Loretta stops crying, jumps to her feet, and believe you me (one of Clara’s favorite expressions) by the time he gets in the house the table is set and ready for the food. Not an angry word is spoken. He just looks at us with a knowing grin – we get the message.”
“Another time we are all setting at the table and Mother is very emphatically telling us all what we are to do, AND SHE MEANS IT! Her fist comes down on the table with a loud bang, we all sorta jump. Silence for a couple of minutes then Papa gets up and crawls under table, everyone looks on. ‘Oh, I just wondered if that bang broke the table’ he says with that slight grin. Everyone starts smiling, even Mother, and we finish dinner with good feelings.”
So life is good! What can possibly go wrong? Tune in four weeks from today and find out. (I’m taking a little break to visit a warmer clime)