William Bishop Budge
By Seth Budge from the History of Bear Lake Pioneers and Treasured Tidbits of Time by Jen Patrick Wilde
William Bishop Budge was born 1 May 1828 in Lanark, Scotland, the son of William Budge and Mary Nelson Scott. He joined the LDS Church before his 20th birthday in 1848. He was so fervent in his membership that he was soon called on a mission in Scotland, England, France, Switzerland and Germany. He served continuous missions for nine and a half years. While in Germany he taught Dr. Karl G Maeser who joined the Church and later immigrated to Utah and was founder of Brigham Young University. William led a group of Saints to America on the ship William Tapscot in 1860.
William was sent out as a local missionary in February, 1851, in which capacity he labored for nearly ten years, filling many important positions in the Church. He emigrated to Utah in 1860, and later became an early settler in Bear Lake valley, Idaho, where he acted for several years as a Bishop. In August, 1877, when the settlements of the Saints in that valley were organized as a Stake of Zion, he was chosen and set apart as president of the Stake.
Budge arrived in Utah in 1860 where he first settled in the Farmington area. Later he became Bishop of the Providence Ward and was living there in 1870 when he was called by Brigham Young to be Presiding Bishop of Bear Lake and in August 1877 was made President of Bear Lake Stake, a position he held for 30 years. He was called to be president of the European Mission from 27 May 1878 to 1881 and served as a legislator in Boise Idaho beginning in 1870. He obtained the right of way for the Oregon Short Line Railroad though Bear Lake. He served as a legislator and went to Washington DC in defense of the Mormons in respect to States Rights. He was the editor of the Southern Idaho Independent, a weekly paper published at Paris during the 1880s.
Over the Stake Budge reigned supreme. His charge was both temporal and spiritual and he was responsible for the welfare of the people and the holdings of the church. He was quick to come to the defense of his people but equally quick to bring punishment of the severest nature to the members if they did not adhere to the standards set. It was during the period of railroad development that Budge had his most difficult problems. Construction brought hundreds of non Mormons into the valley and he fought hard to keep his own fold true to their faith.
In spite of his many efforts including no shopping or associating with the gentile population, non Mormon merchants gained footholds, saloons did come, dance halls and alcoholic beverages came.
William was called on a special mission to Europe to take charge of the European mission. He labored in that capacity for two years and four months. During his presidency he visited the missions on continental Europe a number of times
He spent his last thirteen years as president of the Logan Temple. William Budge died 11 Mar 1919 in Logan and was buried in the Logan City Cemetery. The William Budge Hospital in Logan, Utah is named after him as a memorial.
**************************************************
He married Julia Stratford Nov 24, 1856 while in England and to this union twelve children were born.
1. William Budge
2. William Scott Budge
3. Emily Budge
4. Julia Budge b-11 Nov 1861 in Farmington; d-5 Dec 1938 in Salt Lake City; br-Logan
City Cemetery; m-Charles Wilson Nibley
5. Zilpha Budge
6. Annie Budge b-6 Nov 1865 in Providence Utah; d-27 Feb 1949 in Logan; br-Logan
City Cemetery
7. Marion Budge
8. Andrew Scott Budge
9. Louis Scott Budge b-15 Jan 1869 in Farmington; d-18 Feb 1871 in Paris
10. Charles Penrose Budge
11. Mary Scott Budge b-27 Jan 1874 in Paris; d-Sep 1968 in Idaho Falls; m-Hyrum
H Woolley
12. Jesse Robert Stratford Budge b-14 Sep 1878 in Paris; d-Sep 1967 in Salt Lake
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
William Budge immigrated to Utah in 1860 and settled in Farmington but in 1864 was called to be Bishop of Providence Ward in Cache Valley. He married Eliza Prichard in Salt Lake Sep 9, 1861. They had nine children.
Children of William Budge and Eliza Prichard
1. Arthur Budge b-30 July 1862 in Farmington;
d-24 Mar 1937 in Paris
2. Nina Budge
3. Helen Budge
4. Rose Budge b-22 June 1866 in Farmington Utah; d-18 Aug 1948 in Logan;
m-Joseph
Russell Shepherd in 1885 in Paris Idaho
5. Alford Budge b-24 Feb 1868 in Farmington; d-15 Jan 1951 in Boise Idaho
6. Lizzie Budge b-26 Feb 1870 in Farmington; d-17 Apr 1945 in Paris; m-Pendrey
7. Catherine Budge b-29 Aug 1872 in Paris; d-4 May 1880 in Boise; br-Paris
Cemetery
8. Franklin Budge b-3 July 1874 in Paris; d-16 Jan 1933 in Paris
9. Frances Jane Budge b-1876 in Paris
*********************************************
He married Ann Hyer in Salt Lake April 5, 1868. They had fifteen children.
Children of William Budge and Ann Hyer
1. Isabelle Budge b-27 Feb 1869 in Providence
Utah; d-23 Feb 1959 in Logan Utah
2. Ezra Taft Budge b-23 Aug 1870 in Providence; d-20 Apr 1928 in Logan
3. David Clair Budge b-27 Sep 1873 in Paris; d-22 June 1947 in Logan
4. Edwin Stratford Budge b-4 Apr 1876 in Paris; d-22 July 1954 in Los Angeles
California
5. Thomas Budge b-23 Jan 1878 in Paris; d-22 Nov 1945 in Logan
6. Clara Budge b-21 Aug 1881 in Paris; d-21 June 1973 in Logan
7. Lillian Budge b-3 Mar 1883 in Paris; d-6 Jan 1943 in Logan
8. Effie Budge b-26 May 1884 in Paris; d-8 Apr 1952 in Logan
9. Luella Budge b-2 Mar 1886 in Paris; d-9 Mar 1952 in Logan
10. Seth Budge b-16 Sep 1887 in Richmond Utah; d-5 Jan 1978 in Orem Utah
11. Hugh Wallace Budge b-25 June 1889 in Garden City Utah; d-18 Aug 1960 in
Ogden Utah
12. Alta May Budge b-30 Apr 1892 in Paris; d-19 Apr 1963 in Salt Lake City
13. Scott Merrill Budge b-24 May 1895 in Paris; d-2 July 1972 in Logan
14. Jean Elsie Budge b-14 Oct 1898 in Paris; d-19 Apr 1948 in Logan
15. Oliver Hyer Budge m-Margaret Ann Sutton 14 July 1899; became a dentist; d-10
July 1965 in Logan
William Bishop Budge biography from Illustrated History of the State of Idaho