Landon Rich and Carrie Wilhelmsen Brewer Pugmire (Parents of Landon Burdette Pugmire)

LANDON RICH PUGMIRE

AND CARRIE WILHILMSEN BREWER

(Parents of Landon Burdette Pugmire)

Landon Pugmire

Landon Rich Pugmire was born February 26, 1886 in St. Charles Idaho to Vincent McKay Pugmire and Nancy Emeline Rich Pugmire. He was the fifth boy to join the Pugmire Family.

When Landon was only two years old, his father was called to serve a mission to the Southern states. He died in Alabama while on his mission from malaria fever. This left his dear Mother with six boys to raise, the youngest boy being born after his father left for his mission. The boys needed to help out as much as possible with no father and much was expected from an early age. This they all did. Landon was a good boy and helped his mother in any way possible. When his older brothers were on their missions and going to college he was at her side, taking care of the family ranch.

Alice and Carrie Brewer

Carrie Wilhelmsen Brewer was also born in St. Charles, Idaho. She was the baby in a family of seven children born to Charles Hereford Brewer and Eliza Wilhelmina Wilhelmsen Brewer. July 11, 1888 was the day this beautiful baby girl arrived. She brought much love and joy to her family through her keen sense of humor and her beautiful singing voice. She always had a song in her heart. Carrie was taught at a young age to keep an orderly home. Her mother was a wonderful cook and took much time in showing her daughters the fine art of good cooking. Carrie was known by many to be a fantastic cook as a result of the good teaching of a patient Mother.

Carrie and Landon Pugmire

Landon fell in love with a beautiful young lady, Carrie Wilhelmsen Brewer. He began courting her and soon they were married in the Salt Lake Temple on November 12, 1907.

Nancy, Landon's Mother, had a home built for them when wedding plans were announced. The home was very well built and the newlyweds were able to move in right after the marriage.

Landon and Carrie had a wonderful life together. He was a Rancher and had a very good business head on his shoulders. He was very wise in his decisions and many would ask for his advice. He would never dictate but would state - his opinion which was arrived at after much thought. He worked very hard to provide for the needs of his family. Carrie and Landon were both thrifty and worked together to establish a house of love and order.

Burdette, Laurel, Carrie, Landon

This home of love was blessed with two very special sons. The first, Landon Burdette, born November 3, 1909 and Laurel Thomas, born June 29, 1916. Carrie and Landon were so happy with their sons and their family was now complete.

The Pugmire House was not just a house but a home. Carrie was so proud of her home. She always told how thankful she was that their home had been dedicated that it might be a home of safety and love which it was. When Landon and his boys would work on the ranch, Carrie would be busy cooking for them. She would feed 10-12 men when they would work in their fields. These dinners would not be "only a sandwich".  Carrie always had a good nourishing meal prepared for the men.

She kept an immaculate home. There was a place for everything and everything always went in it's place. Dishes were always cleared and washed immediately after each meal. Dishes were never left in the sink or on the cupboard.

St. Charles Ward Choir

Carrie had a beautiful voice and she shared this talent that she had been blessed with, with others. She sang for many funerals in and out of the valley and really enjoyed participating with the ward and stake choirs. She served in the ward choir from the time she was 13 years old and loved every minute of it. She would play the piano and practice for hours at home. She loved to have her grandchildren sit by her on the piano bench and sing with her while she played.

Carrie and Landon

Carrie served in the YWMIA and as a Relief Society Teacher. She attended her church meetings faithfully. She loved people and people loved her. She was a very outgoing person, always speaking to people first and making them feel comfortable.

Landon was an honest man. He taught his sons to always give a days work for a days pay. He always paid cash for the things that they needed and he never went into debt, thus his family was greatly blessed and his sons learned from this example that he set. Landon was Chairman of the Village Board and was instrumental in getting water piped into the town. He was President of the Bear Lake Cattlemens' Association, served as a trustee of St. Charles School District for 22 years, on the Fielding High School Board for 4 years, served two terms as a County Commissioner and was Mayor of St. Charles for 19 years. Landon served as a Ward Teacher and on various committees for raising money for the ward and community.

 

Landon, Carrie, Laurel

Landon and Carrie were one of the first couples in St. Charles to purchase a car, a blue Ford. It was a very exciting experience for the whole family. Carrie loved their home just as it was built. She loved her pantry and Landon really had to do some fast and hard talking to convince her to turn her precious pantry into a bathroom when the water was piped in. New cupboards were then put into the kitchen and the next modern convenience to come was a refrigerator. These things may seem like every day things to us but to them, who had gone without such conveniences, these new additions were major events.

The family worked together. After the crops were in then it was time to get wood for the winter. The Pugmire's were always well prepared with much fire wood and food from their garden to see them through the long cold winters. Carrie was proud of her garden, always having a bumper crop of raspberries and "Golden Bantum" corn. (She would not plant any other kind). The Pugmire's were very frugal people. They bought the things they needed but were never extravagant in purchasing things they did not need.

Laurel, Burdette, Carrie, Landon

Landon loved to fish, and even when he was not successful, he would still go the next day with the same enthusiasm. He was also a good hunter and loved to go on hunting and fishing trips. The grub box was always loaded with great things to eat and he always came back with his limit of fish or his deer. Landon loved his wife, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was always interested in what they did and their grades in school. He specially loved babies and would feel so bad if they cried when he talked to them. Sometimes they would cry as he had quite a loud deep voice. When ever Landon would sneeze once you could always count on five more sneezes following. You could always hear him at least two houses away. He was a jolly man and enjoyed a good laugh. He always treated his wife like the "Lady" she was.

Laurel, Burdette
Landon and Carrie

Thanksgiving and Christmas were special times at the Pugmire home. Many times rainbow trout, Landon had caught in Bear Lake were baked and basted in sour cream for the Thanksgiving dinner. Sometimes it was baked chicken or baked goose with all the trimmings. Dinner was always served in the middle of the afternoon. At Christmas, there was always a Christmas tree. They worked to decorate it with strings of popcorn and homemade decorations. The boys would get up at 4:00 a.m. and try to get their parents to get up to. The gifts would be practical. Something that would always be useful and then something fun. Christmas was not extravagant but full of love. A Christmas dinner was always enjoyed. Squash and lemon pie that would absolutely melt in your mouth were the favorites. No one could make a pie quite like Carrie.

Landon's mother, Nancy, was very close to Carrie, especially since she had no daughters of her own. Nancy loved Carrie's cooking and would always ask her to please bake a cake and fix a chicken when J. Golden Kimball of the Quorum of the Seventies came from Salt Lake. Landon and Carrie sent both sons on missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Carrie hated to write letters but she made sure that Landon wrote to them. They were always a great support to their boys in whatever they did. They were good parents who taught their sons the gospel and how to live good clean honest lives.

Landon and Carrie

Landon was able to work right up until the day he died. He and his son were hauling grain all day and he was driving in from the field when he died August 21, 1962. Carrie had a very hard time when Landon passed away. They were very close and it was hard for her to be alone. She had one of her grandchildren stay with her at night for quite a while. She never slept in their bed again after he died but slept on the couch. During the day when she was tired she always said she never slept but merely "Threw herself down for a few minutes" and rested her eyes, then she would get up feeling all refreshed and ready to go.

Carrie

Carrie never cut her hair---just the ends were trimmed. She was very particular about her hair. She curled it with a curling iron which she would heat by putting it in the top of a kerosene lamp. In later years she did purchase an electric curling iron. She would curl it and then comb it out and make a neat oblong bob in the back. She always colored her hair in later years as she did not like gray or white hair. It was fine on someone else but not her. She made one of her granddaughters promise she would make sure her hair was colored, especially around the hairline when she died. She didn't want people viewing her in her casket with her hair not done properly. Her granddaughter kept her promise, even curling her hair with the old curling iron and coloring her hair.

Grandmother Pugmire

Carrie loved her husband, her children, grandchildren and great grand children. She always insisted they call her Grandmother and not Grandma. She taught them to respect their elders. She loved her grandchildren and great grandchildren to come and visit her. She would always take the time to play a hand of cards or a game of dominoes. She would bake bread and fix bread and butter with sugar sprinkled on it. She was very loving and patient. She loved to "josh" with her grandchildren and with others. Carrie was blessed with good health all of her life. When she turned 88 she said she knew that she was that old but she certainly didn't feel that old.

On February 18, 1976, Carrie passed away at the Bear Lake Memorial Hospital, being in there only one night. She passed away peacefully and joined her beloved Landon to be together for all eternity.  She was buried next to her beloved husband, Landon in the St. Charles Cemetery.