Tenth child of John Thomas and Annie Andersen Moore

Ralph Moore and his wife Florence Johnson Moore.

Life Sketch for Ralph Moore

Written July, 1981 by his wife, Florence

Ralph Moore was born August 1, 1896 at Spanish Fork, Utah. He had six brothers and one sister that welcomed him to the family of John Thomas and Annie Andersen Moore. (One brother, Leon, died as a baby in 1893 and a female child was stillborn in 1889.) The family later had two more children who were born in Idaho Falls after the family moved to Shelton, Idaho. Ralph was about one year old when they came.

Their first home was a two room log cabin which was located about one quarter of a mile east of the place where Edris Moore now lives. It had a dirt roof and the walls were covered inside with a fabric called 'factory.' This held the mud plaster from falling down. Ralph's family lived in one room and another family by the name of Jim Angus lived in the other room. They had six children and both families got along very well together. Grandma and Grandpa Moore made beds on the dirt floor at night, then they had to take up the beds in the morning before they could prepare their breakfast. They lived at this location about two years before they bought a farm a mile east of their home.

During the move from Utah one of the horses on the wagon which was bringing them here, took sick and died. They had to find someone who would sell them a horse to replace that one before they could proceed. Ralph's mother said she was very discouraged and felt she could never had endured the hardships if the Lord hadn't blessed them in many other ways. She loved her family and was grateful for what all that they had.

As Ralph grew up he was taught to work and shared the chores with his brothers. They made their own entertainment usually by playing baseball which later became one of his favorite games. As a young man he played pitcher on the ball team in the community. His catcher on the team was Elmer Webster and his brother Ernest, was the team manager. He also played left fielder on the team and spent many hour practicing. The Moore brothers also enjoyed playing "shinney" on the ice in the winter.

When Ralph was a small child, he became ill with scarlet fever and while he was trying to recover from this he contracted small pox - a terrible disease. He nearly died with this. Within a few weeks he got diphtheria and again nearly lost his life. As a result of these illnesses, he lost his hearing in one ear.

He started school in a frame building in Shelton and his first grade teacher was John Johnson who later became his father-in-law. They used benches instead of desks and wrote on slates instead of paper. Several of the students had to share the same book so their progress in learning was slow. But the subjects of reading, writing, and arithmetic were stressed which made Ralph one of the best writers and figurers in his time. He was very accurate with figures (Years later he was hired as the secretary of the Fall Creek Basin Cattlemen's Association for 23 years. He also was secretary of the Enterprise Canal Co. from 1960 until his death in 1974.) Ralph had a difficult time learning to spell in those first grades. He often told how the teacher would keep him in during the recess time to help him spell. Then when he learned the word, the recess time would be over and he complained that he never had time to play. He graduated in 1913 with the class which was taught by W.F. Heyrend.

He was baptized on September 4, 1904 into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by his father. He was confirmed by David Ririe. He was advanced as time went on to all the offices of the priesthood. He held the office of Elder for many years and was later advanced in the priesthood to a High Priest.

Ralph loved animals and as he grew older he had several teams of horses which were groomed and well taken care of. He took great pride in having well matched teams of horses. He also grew a large herd of Hereford cattle, which he cared for for many years.

In the fall of 1917, he was called to serve in the Army Infantry of World War I. He spent three months in training at Camp Fremont, California and was then shipped overseas to Brest, France. He served in France for six months before returning home. The war was ended a few weeks after Ralph's arrival in France, but he was kept there on duty for six months.

Ralph loved Drama and like his father, he played in many staged plays in the community. He had real talent in this and usually played the villain in these shows.

On January 4, 1928 he married Florence Johnson. They made their home in a small house close by his parents' home. As Ralph farmed the farm he had to live close by. Here they worked hard and later after his parents had both passed away, he bought the farm and homestead.

Ralph held several church positions throughout his life. He served in the M.I.A. presidency and as a teacher in the Sunday School. He served as Superintendent of the Sunday School for a few years. He studied the scriptures and could quote many passages from the Bible and other scriptures. His faith was strong and he could discuss religion and prove his statements by referring to the scriptures. He brought up his family to be prayerful and religious. On December 10, 1941 (just 3 days after Pearl Harbor) he took his family to Logan, Utah to the temple and he and Florence were joined with their family for time and all eternity.

In 1951 Ralph had a serious heart attack and could not work his farm anymore. He built a small home close by and hired a couple to live there and run the farm. He found more time to fish and camp with his family. They adored their father and looked forward to their outings with their parents. He felt very bad to have to retire but as his health worsened he sold most of his farm in 1969.

Ralph was about 5'8" and weighed approximately 170 pounds. He was a good natured man and had dry humor that attracted many friends. He loved fishing and hunting and he spent many hours on the banks at Palisade Reservoir each fall. He loved nature and often remarked that if the fish didn't bite it was well worth the time spent, just to see the beautiful country.

He was the father of two children-a son, Howard Ralph and a daughter, Dorothy Anne. He realized the importance of an education and encouraged both of them to go to college. He was very proud when they each earned their degree.

Ralph died March 10, 1974 at the home he loved. He is buried at the Ririe-Shelton Cemetery.