Abraham Marchant
| Abraham Marchant | |
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| Born | March 17, 1816 Bath, England |
| Died | October 6, 1881 Peoa, Utah |
| Spouse(s) | Lydia Johnson Mary Ann Johnson |
Abraham Marchant (March 17, 1816 – October 6, 1881) was an early Mormon leader and one of the founders of Peoa, Utah.
Marchant was born on March 17, 1816, in Bath, England, where he was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1844 and became the leader of the Saints in Bath and Birmingham.
Marchant's father was a firefighter in Bath who died trying to rescue a servant girl from a fire. He died months before his son's birth.
After an apprenticeship he became a successful merchant tailor in Bath. He grew into a tall man with a full build. He fell in love with a young milliner, Lydia Johnson and they secretly married February 17, 1837, before his apprenticeship was up.
Mormon missionaries began preaching in Bath in 1843, and in early 1844 Lydia became interested in the religion. Abraham discouraged her participation, and when he found out she was to be baptized, he set out to stop her. However, on the way he was delayed by a mad bull, and by the time he made it to the place where baptisms were being performed, he was too late. However, he later changed his mind about this new religion and within a month he was also baptized.
Some of the Marchant acquaintances accepted their decision to join the Mormons, while others belittled them. One group of influential people were able to assign a young man with mental impairment as Abraham's apprentice, whom they encouraged to be as belligerent as possible. The young man reportedly hit Lydia several times and once threatened her with a butcher knife.
Abraham invested four pounds five shillings (about 250 pounds as of 2005) in a joint stock company set up to move Mormon emigrants to the United States. However, the individuals put in charge of the company mismanaged the funds, and investors lost most of their capital. Those in charge were disfellowshipped from the church and church leaders faced the task of consoling members who had lost their savings. John Taylor came to Bath for this purpose. After dispelling whatever bitterness the Marchants may have felt, Taylor returned to their home often and became a lifelong friend.
The Marchants longed to immigrate to the United States, but waited until they had the money. In need of accumulating eight pounds per family member (about GBP 550 in modern money) for passage to the United States, in late 1851 the Marchants moved to Birmingham, a bustling industrial city where tailor services were in demand and customers were less likely to bother about Abraham's religion. His reputation in the church preceded him and he was immediately appointed to the Birmingham Conference presidency.
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