History of Ira Draper by Sabrina Draper Durfee

History of Ira Draper

by Sabrina Draper Durfee

In 1852 the Church sent Apostles Ricks and Lund to California to incorporate the Saints in the San Bernadino Valley Mission, including improved lands, products, and buildings, etc.; to organize and pay for such land to the Church. Many of them protested. They had not bought the land, but had settled there and lived on the land, cultivating it, and producing vegetables and fruits; and had many hundreds of acres in orange groves and grape vineyards.

The Church asked for a clear title to the land for colonization. However, many of the Saints objected, and felt they could hold the land they had settled on, since the Mormon Battalion, under President thomas Jefferson in 1809, had marched the greatest march ever on foot to free California and other Western lands from Mexico.


Many had prospered and done well, including the Van Leuvan Families.

Fredrick felt very strongly against the Church in this respect, and objected, although he still held the position of presiding in authority over the small Mission Colony. The Church did not excommunicate, but did disfellowship Fredrick and his brother Benjamin, along with many others. While many of the Saints felt in favor of the church and responded to the call to return back to Utah to live under the direction and leadership of the Church.

Ira Draper was in favor of Church policy and wanted to return to Utah. He longed to see his Mother, Mary Mosier Draper, and his family living in Draperville. Also, as he was extremely jealous of Lewis Van Leuven's persistent attentions to his wife, Mary Patience, Ira decided to leave California, and made preparations to return to Utah. It was Mary's desire to return with Ira, however, her father, Fredrick, having strong hold over his family, opposed her leaving.

After the Saints pulled out and left for Utah, Ira's burning desire to return influenced him to take his baby son, Amburs, the provisions, and few possessions he could, and leave on horseback to overtake a small company on the return to Utah. He left in the night, and traveled most all day before catching up with them. Very little is now known of that return trip to Utah, but one can imagine the hardships they must have endured; and how Amburs must have missed his mother.

Ira had strong hopes that Mary Patience would follow, if only for her son.

However, her father, Fredrick never relented. He kept a close watch over his daughter, and she was not allowed to return. And as we later learned from her children, she almost grieved herself away over the loss of her baby son. And on through the years after she had, by her father's request, married Lewis Van Leuven on March 25th 1853. There were five children born of this union. Lewis died 8th Sept. 1888 in California. Mary Patience died 29th Nov. 1913 in San Bernardino, California.

In those days, with large families such as Fredrick and Benjamin Van Leuven had, with ten and seven children, although the children were married, the father or grandfather ruled with a strong will. He layed down the law by which they were all governed, and at that time, in many cases it was necessary for survival.

The Van Leuven families did prosper, and today many are very wealthy and famous in the State of California. One son of Fredrick's named John, married Elizabeth Oliver. They accumulated great wealth; John owned a valuable section of property in downtown San Bernardino. It was his desire and plans to give this property to the city for a high school, which they needed badly, and he had committed himself orally. However, after his sudden unexpected death, his wife, a Catholic, gave the property to the Catholic Church. A beautiful Catholic Church was built there in honor of John's name. He never belonged to the Catholic Church. He always favored the Mormon Church, although he never adhered to its laws.

In Draperville, now Draper, Utah, baby Amburs spent his tender young years under the care of his grandmother, Mary Mosier Draper, and Patriarch William Draper, and the loving watchful eye of his father, Ira Draper. When Ira was old enough, his father took him to live with him on a ranch where he had built a two room cabin at what is now Kelly's Grove in Hobble Creek Canyon near Springville, Utah. Here he grew to manhood, and married Sarah Ellen Harward on May 11th, 1874.

In 1879 when Brigham Young sent the Durfee and Harward families to settle in Willow Bend, now Aurora, Utah, Ira followed his son, Amburs, and wife Sarah Ellen. Loving the mountains as he did, he bought a ranch up Salina Canyon and built a cabin at Lost Creek. Here he continued to raise his garden, sheep, cattle and bees. He lived on mountain trout he many times caught with his hands in the stream that flowed past his cabin. In those days, there was always deer around, for company as well as food. Ira was contented with his life; was always jolly, and seemed happy. He made many trips to Aurora to see his son and family, and enjoy his granddaughters. Amburs and Sarah Ellen Harward Draper had a family of eight girls, and the youngest, a boy, died at age two and half. He was buried in the Aurora cemetery.

Sabrina Draper Durfee and sisters, granddaughters of Ira Draper and Mary Patience Van Leuven, made many trips to California to visit with, and gather genealogy of the Van Leuven lines. They enjoyed doing the Temple work for those deceased.

Ira's grandmother was captured by the Indians while crossing the Plains to Utah.

She was stripped of all clothing but her L.D.S. garments. In the Van Leuven Diary, it relates how frightened the Indians became on seeing the marked garments; recognized the marks, and turned her loose, but kept the other white women they had captured. Both were recaptured by the white men and returned safely. The Van Leuven's still have the garments, and showed them to me (Sabrina) and my sisters.

The Van Leuven's that remained in California, in time drifted away from the L.D.S.

Church. They have written and published a book on the Van Leuven Pioneer History, which is in the libraries of California. The name (Mary Patience Van Leuven Draper Van Leuven) hangs in the hall of fame. She is given recognition due to the orange seeds she carried across the Plains, from Canada to Utah to California, and were the first oranges ever to be planted in California.