The past two weeks I have had the privilege of training Elder Rodolpho Piñón. He was raised in the Mormon Colonies. Three-quarters of his ancestral lines are native Mexican and one-fourth is Mormon pioneer ancestry. He served in the Mexican Mission from 1963 to 1965, just before I did in many of the same areas. He married a Swedish girl from the Northwest who was baptized at BYU and they have six sons and a daughter. He has served as president of the Torreon Mexico Mission and the Mission Training Center in Mexico City which trains missionaries from Central American and Mexico. He was serving as a sealer in the Columbia River Temple before their call to the Church and Family History Mission. He and his wife, Mary Ann, were assigned to the Church History and Collections Zone even though the International Zone was adamant that they needed his services because he speaks and writes English and Spanish perfectly because of his bicultural background.
I knew a lot about the Mormon Colonies because Pres. Jasper McClellan, my mission president, was from there. My missionary companion, LaRayne Whetten Call, and others were from there so I knew a lot about the area and the people. (I continue to correspond with LaRayne over 40 years later.) Those missionary cousins from the Colonies were very close and diligent in setting a standard for excellence in the mission! I have transcribed several oral histories of people from the Colonies and always had a special interest in them because Camilla Eyring Kimball, wife of President Spencer W. Kimball, and Henry Eyring , the scientist, were from there. I knew a lot about the exodus from the Mexican Colonies in 1912 but I didn’t know the story of those who remained. There were nine colonies originally in the state of Chihuahua but now only two remain—Colonia Juaréz and Colonia Dublán. Nuevo Casas Grandes also has many Mormons, descended from the original settlers.
When Pancho Villa came and attacked the settlements in 1812, the Anglo people were told to evacuate the colonies. The women and children were put on a train to El Paso, Texas, and many of the men soon followed. However because the colonies were so scattered and communication was extremely difficult, Franklin Spencer and his wife Hannah arrived at the gathering place after most people had left, including their daughters. They did not know the whereabouts of their son Josiah and were very concerned about leaving without paying the people who worked for them. (Many years before while living in Salina, Utah, before coming to Mexico Hannah Jane had a remarkable experience about coming to Mexico and the missionary work that could be done. They and their seed would be greatly blessed if they would establish their home in Mexico.) Franklin and Hannah had deep friendships with everyone—Mexican and Anglo-- in the valley and they didn’t want harm to come to anyone. After much consideration, they decided to stay along with their 25-year-old son Josiah and protect the Mormons’ assets. This was an arduous endeavor because the rumor being spread was that the Mormons were gone and what was left was free for the taking. An army leader with 300 men came for the purpose of burning Colonia Dublan after taking all the supplies from the stores for the army. Hannah knew this man and many of his top officers well because they had been neighbors for decades. She served dinner and eventually persuaded them not to burn the town but to take the merchandise from the store. (Much of the merchandise had already been hidden and was eventually restored to the rightful owners in the USA.) This was a terrible time. Eventually some of the men returned who had gone to the US returned to Mexico to check on their lands, but instead of being grateful that their homes and much property was saved, some were angry. Some said Franklin, Hannah Jane and Josiah Spencer were disobedient for not following the counsel of the church leader and leaving Mexico. Others were furious that their property had not been burned. Some were tired of living in Mexico and wanted the Mexican government to reimburse them for their property so they could have the money to make a fresh start in the United States. This was very hurtful to the Spencers. The Spencers home and property was lost while they were protecting the assets of others. They stayed in Mexico because the Spirit told them to stay. They truly loved Mexico and the freedom which it had provided them during the turbulent time when the Mormons were so persecuted for polygamy. Today there are beautiful farms and orchards. It was a beloved place and still is. Though they go to El Paso to shop and for medical care, they consider themselves Mexican-Americans and many have chosen Mexican citizenship over US citizenship. The smallest temple of the LDS Church is in Colonia Juarez. Josiah married a lovely Mexican girl, Aurora. Ironically, Josiah and Aurora were killed by bandits in their own store in 1963. They were mourned by the entire state of Chihuahua.
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