John Van Cott and Lucy Lavinia Sackett (TAYLOR FAMILY)

John Van Cott and Lucy Lavinia Sackett
(My third great, Grandpa Taylor's great-grandparents)

John Van Cott was born September 7, 1814 in Canaan, NY. He was a descendant of the first settlers in Long Island from Holland in 1640.  10 generations back they belonged to the Holland nobility. His parents were Losee and Lavinia- aunt and uncle to Parley and Orson Pratt. John was only 10 years old when his father died. His cousin, Parley Pratt came to stay with his aunt Lavinia, who he loved like a mother, and he brought with him a Book of Mormon.  John and his mother read the book and believed, but John wasn't baptized until 12 years later in Nauvoo in 1845.  By that time he had married Lucy Sackett, who was from a fine family.

While in Nauvoo John and Lucy temporarily lived with Parley Pratt, and John contributed a significant amount of $400 in gold to the temple, plus some lots he had purchased. He and Lucy received their endowments in the Nauvoo temple. In 1846 they are forced out of their homes with the rest of the Saints and lived in a log house in Winter Quarters. They left for the Salt Lake valley in the summer of 1847, in company with Parley Pratt.  Their son Losee was born near Independence Rock in Wyoming. They arrived in the valley September 25, 1847.  John built one of the most substantial houses near Temple Square.  They developed a great friendship with the Prophet Brigham Young, who later married one of their daughters. John was ordained as a Seventy by Joseph Young.

In 1852 John was called on a mission to England, and later transferred to Denmark, where he became president of the Scandinavian mission. He was sent back to Denmark again in 1859 to be the mission president and had such a love for the Scandinavian Saints that he had a special call later to help the emigrants settling in Sanpete County. The Scandinavian Saints loved him deeply in return for his service among them.  By the end of his missions he spoke near-perfect Dutch.

Later when Johnson's Army was marching, John was deputized to stay in the city and set Fire to the property in case the soldiers were hostile, which luckily never happened. He ended up with 5 wives and 28 children. He was a member of the Utah House of Representatives, on the Salt Lake City council, street supervisor, and city marshal. John was a great businessman and missionary, an intelligent and eloquent speaker, full of integrity and courage.  John and Lucy lost four of their seven children in childhood, and passed through many hardships and sacrifices for their faith. I wish I had more personal stories or Lucy, but I will keep looking.

When John died on February 18,1883 at home, he was mourned by the entire church, especially the Scandinavian saints. The Deseret News reported on February 20, 1883: "It would be difficult to find a more exemplary and conscientious man than Brother Van Cott. He was a good man in the broad sense, not negatively so, but as a producer of the goods of a well spent life.  He was one of those whose character and motives seemed so far above reproach, that we doubt if they have ever been the subject of even suspicion. At home or abroad, wherever Brother Van Cott sojourned, he was regarded with esteem, his very presence and appearance inspiring sentiments of that nature."

I visited the Salt Lake Cemetery to find John and Lucy's graves.  It was a beautiful fall day and how glad I was to find them and pay tribute to their memory.