Franklin Ward Bishop

After my arrival home from my mission in March of 1929, I went to work in my father's store. We stayed with my parents until we could get us a house fixed to live in. This we soon did, and moved in. It was directly across the street from the store and my parents' home.

Things went along smoothly until December 28, 1929, when I was interviewed by President Harry L. Payne the morning of that fateful day. They wanted to make me Bishop of the Franklin Ward. That was after Priesthood Meeting, which followed Sunday School. I was to have my counselors picked out by two o'clock Sacrament Meeting so the Ward could be reorganized that afternoon. It was a day I shall never forget! How I got through it, I don't know, but when the meeting was over I was Bishop McGrath, with Early Stowell and Ralph Elledge for counselors.

My first official act was to conduct a funeral for the oldest child of Ralph Elledge. Vessa and I had sat up at their place with the body all night Saturday night. We certainly felt like we we had been run over by a steam-roller when Monday night came. We lived through it and, in looking back over my experiences as Bishop, I can certainly say that the Lord blessed me with many varied experiences.

In December of 1931 we bought Mr. Charles Speizia's half-interest, which he had with my father, in a ranch three miles north of Duncan. In June 1932 Vessa's mother passed away and we took her youngest brother, Garth, to live with us at the ranch.

During all this time I was still Bishop. While I would go to Bishop's Meeting once a week in the evening in Franklin, Vessa would go along and do her washing and ironing at my mother's, because we didn't have electricity. We used coal-oil lamps, ironed with sad irons, and pumped all our water by hand.

On Sunday morning, we would go to Franklin in time for Priesthood Meeting in the morning and stay until everything was through for Sunday. This was during the depression, when money was really scarce. My father, Earl Stowell and I bought coal ourselves for heat in the church as the members were simply too poor to donate.

On February 20, 1938, I attended Stake Conference in Thatcher while Vessa and the children were in the hospital in Lordsburg because they had been sick for so much of the winter. Apostle Melvin J. Ballard was the Conference visitor. To my surprise and amazement, I was interviewed to become second counselor to Spencer W. Kimball in the new Mt. Graham Stake, which was organized that day, it being taken from the old St. Joseph Stake.

I still remained Bishop of the Franklin Ward until March 27, 1938, when the Franklin Ward was divided into the Franklin and Duncan Wards.