Lydia Lathrop biography

Lydia Lathrop Draper

Birth: Nov. 5, 1775 Norwich New London County Connecticut, USA

Death: Feb. 18, 1846, Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois, USA

She died; West Bank of the Mississippi River.

West bank of the Mississippi River was in Montrose, Lee, Iowa. Below is an interesting account of Lydia's death and burial:

"Zemira Terry's grandmother, Lydia Lathrop Draper, died on the banks of the Mississippi River after the Mormons were driven from the city of Nauvoo in February 1846. Her age and the conditions contributed to her death. The group could not hold a regular funeral for her, so she was buried in a brown dress and a calico apron in the wet bank of the river at Montrose, Iowa. Her husband William Draper was the first patriarch of the Church other than the Smiths. He was told to stay in the Pottawattamie lands to give blessings to the weary travelers as they passed by on their way to Utah. He remained there until 1852, when Brigham Young gave him permission to join his family in Utah. His son Zemira Sr. had settled in Salt Lake first and then had been sent to Willow Creek in the southern part of Salt Lake County. The Drapers became very prominent in this settlement and before long the name was changed to Draperville, later shortened to Draper."

"An Enduring Legacy", Vol 8, pg. 346