Willard R. Ballard was born in Logan, Utah on November 26, 1872 to Henry Ballard (a prominent LDS church official and Patriarch) and Emily Ballard, both original settlers of Logan. On June 10, 1896 Willard married Bessie Imogene Griffin of Newton, Utah. Willard died in Logan April 13, 1929.
Bessie Griffin Ballard was born March 18, 1877 to William Hyrum and Elizabeth Ann Treherne Griffin in Newton, Utah. Bessie resided in Newton until her marriage to Willard Ballard, after which they moved to Cache Junction. In 1926 Willard and Bessie moved to Logan, but tragedy struck when Willard died in 1929. Willard and Bessie had five children: Afton, Carmen, Maurine, William, and Russell. During her life, Bessie served as the Librarian at Logan High School and also served in many community positions, including President of the Relief Society. In her retirement, Bessie spent some time in Corvallis, Arizona and in southern California. Bessie died February 23, 1958 and was buried in the Logan City Cemetery.
Sources:
The Herald Journal, April 15, 1929.
The Herald Journal, February 25, 1958.
Scope and Content:
This one box collection contains the papers of Willard and Bessie Ballard. This collection primarily consist of correspondence, financial papers, personal papers, and other Ballard family papers. Fifty percent of the papers contained in this collection concern Bessie Ballard, mostly in the form of her incoming correspondence and her personal papers, such as her 1883 patriarchal blessing.
Folders 1—8 contain Bessie Ballard’s papers. Folders 8—11 contain Willard Ballard’s papers. Folder 12 contains papers concerning Emily M. Ballard. Folder 13 contains the financial papers of Henry Ballard. Folder 14 contains financial papers concerning the former LDS Apostle Melvin J. Ballard. Folders 15 and 16 contain pages from a 1894 diary (author unknown) and two unidentified photographs.
Inventory:
Box 1: Willard & Bessie Ballard papers and Ballard family papers.
Fd 1: Bessie Ballard, correspondence, 1900-1938
Fd 2: Bessie Ballard, correspondence, 1939-1957
Fd 3: Bessie Ballard, correspondence, undated.
Fd 4: Patriarchal blessing of Bessie Ballard, May 9, 1883.
Fd 5: Obituaries of Bessie Ballard and family.
Fd 6: Bessie Ballard, financial papers.
Fd 7: Bessie Ballard papers, miscellaneous items.
Fd 8: Willard and Bessie Ballard, financial papers, 1897—1925.
Fd 9: Willard R. Ballard, financial Papers; deeds, warranties, and mortgage papers, 1889—1917.
Fd 10: Willard R. Ballard, bill of sale for a Percheron Stallion, 1907.
Fd 11: Willard R. Ballard, financial and legal papers.
Fd 12: Emily M. Ballard, correspondence and financial papers, 1923—1948.
Fd 13: Henry Ballard, financial papers, 1885—1896.
Fd 14: Melvin J. Ballard, financial papers, 1921.
Fd 15: Two pages from a diary, December 24, 1894 (author unknown).
