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| Christopher Lister Riding |
Biography of Christopher Lister Riding.
Type of Pioneer: Early Pioneer
Pioneer's Name: Riding, Christopher Lister
Birth Place: Burnley, Lancaster, England
Date of Birth: Sat, 10 Feb, 1816
Date of Death: Tue, 29 Nov, 1887
Father: Thomas Riding abt 1781
Mother: Eleanor or Ellen Lister abt 1784
Spouse: Mary Ann Hale
Other Spouses: Eliza Adelaide Dolbell
Arrived in Utah: 1847
Education: Apprenticed to tinsmith
Profession: Tinsmith Master Mechanic
Authentic Mormon Pioneer: Yes
Excerpt from Pioneer Story
Christopher's skills were needed in St. George because the temple was under construction there and he was the only sheet metal worker in the Dixie mission at that time. However, there was not enough business in St. George to provide him work, so he secured a little four-wheeled cart and an ox. He loaded the cart with tin ware and tools and visited all the towns in southern Utah, exchanging his ware for flour, potatoes, butter, cheese, etc. He made most of his wares from waste cans as it was difficult to ship in sheet tin. People saved empty cans and metal ware of all kinds for him. His store of wares consisted of buckets, milk pans, tin cups and plates, lamps, canteens, coffee pots, wash boards, etc. The ball on the St. George temple and the one on the St. George tabernacle are Christopher Riding's work, as is the metal work on all the public buildings erected before his death. The tin-covered sphere on the temple remained until October 25, 1994, when it was replaced with a fiberglass model as part of a renovation project.
Christopher was a loyal member of the church although he was never active in public affairs due to the fact that his work kept him away a great deal of the time. He was a great reader, spending every evening in this way.
Full Pioneer Story
CHRISTOPHER LISTER RIDING, TINSMITH
Submitted By: Sydnee Halladay
Christopher Lister Riding was born February 10, 1816, in Burnley, Lancaster, England. At an early age Christopher was apprenticed to a tinsmith to learn the trade. He was very apt at this work and became a master mechanic before he was 21. He married Mary Ann Hale 1839. The young couple had heard of the gospel of Jesus Christ from the missionaries and were both baptized February 14, 1840.
Christopher had had previous training in the teachings of the Bible and was a great asset to the church. When a branch was organized he was set apart as presiding elder.
In 1847 the family had collected enough money and goods to come to the United States, a dream they had had ever since they joined the church. At that time they had two living children and had buried their first baby. Christopher brought quite a stock of sheet tin, sheet iron, copper, brass, wire solder and other things which he knew he could use. All of this was taken as ballast for the ship and did not cost anything for transporting it across the Atlantic Ocean to New Orleans.
From New Orleans, the family traveled up the Mississippi as far as St. Louis, where lack of finances compelled them to stop for five years. Christopher plied his trade as a tinsmith, opened a shop, and found a ready market for his wares.
When they first arrived in Salt Lake City, they were housed temporarily in the little one¬room log house which now sits beside the Family History Library. Christopher soon found plenty of work and was able to build an adobe house for his family, which now numbered five children.
Eliza Adelaide Dolbell, a French girl, became Christopher's second wife. When a call came from the church to go to Dixie to settle, Christopher sold all his interests in Salt Lake for a couple of yoke of cattle and a wagon. He took both families, including Eliza's mother, and made the move South. He left his first wife in Cedar City and brought his second wife to Santa Clara where he proceeded to make a little home and farm.
Torrential rains washed everything away so he moved Eliza to St. George and brought his first wife down from Cedar City. He built a dugout with a thatched roof. This, with one tent and willow shed, sheltered his two families, which now included ten children. He soon was able to build an adobe house and a shop.
Christopher's skills were needed in St. George because the temple was under construction there and he was the only sheet metal worker in the Dixie mission at that time. However, there was not enough business in St. George to provide him work, so he secured a little four-wheeled cart and an ox. He loaded the cart with tin ware and tools and visited all the towns in southern Utah, exchanging his ware for flour, potatoes, butter, cheese, etc. He made most of his wares from waste cans as it was difficult to ship in sheet tin. People saved empty cans and metal ware of all kinds for him. His store of wares consisted of buckets, milk pans, tin cups and plates, lamps, canteens, coffee pots, wash boards, etc. The ball on the St. George temple and the one on the St. George tabernacle are Christopher Riding's work, as is the metal work on all the public buildings erected before his death. The tin-covered sphere on the temple remained until October 25, 1994, when it was replaced with a fiberglass model as part of a renovation project.
Christopher was a loyal member of the church although he was never active in public affairs due to the fact that his work kept him away a great deal of the time. He was a great reader, spending every evening in this way.
He died November 29, 1887, after an illness of only six days. He left eight children by his first wife and fourteen by his second.
Note: Posting on nFS says: "St. George cemetery records indicate he died of Pnenmonia. No birth or burriel date is listed. His grave is located at St. George cemetery,... Posted by TimBooth1"
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Sources:
Personal records
Virtues: Faith
Source: Sons of Utah Pioneers http://suplibrary.org/stories/detail.asp?id=220
Pioneer's Name: Riding, Christopher Lister
Birth Place: Burnley, Lancaster, England
Date of Birth: Sat, 10 Feb, 1816
Date of Death: Tue, 29 Nov, 1887
Father: Thomas Riding abt 1781
Mother: Eleanor or Ellen Lister abt 1784
Spouse: Mary Ann Hale
Other Spouses: Eliza Adelaide Dolbell
Arrived in Utah: 1847
Education: Apprenticed to tinsmith
Profession: Tinsmith Master Mechanic
Authentic Mormon Pioneer: Yes
Excerpt from Pioneer Story
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| St George Temple July 1976 |
Christopher was a loyal member of the church although he was never active in public affairs due to the fact that his work kept him away a great deal of the time. He was a great reader, spending every evening in this way.
Full Pioneer Story
CHRISTOPHER LISTER RIDING, TINSMITH
Submitted By: Sydnee Halladay
Christopher Lister Riding was born February 10, 1816, in Burnley, Lancaster, England. At an early age Christopher was apprenticed to a tinsmith to learn the trade. He was very apt at this work and became a master mechanic before he was 21. He married Mary Ann Hale 1839. The young couple had heard of the gospel of Jesus Christ from the missionaries and were both baptized February 14, 1840.
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| Mary Ann Hale |
In 1847 the family had collected enough money and goods to come to the United States, a dream they had had ever since they joined the church. At that time they had two living children and had buried their first baby. Christopher brought quite a stock of sheet tin, sheet iron, copper, brass, wire solder and other things which he knew he could use. All of this was taken as ballast for the ship and did not cost anything for transporting it across the Atlantic Ocean to New Orleans.
From New Orleans, the family traveled up the Mississippi as far as St. Louis, where lack of finances compelled them to stop for five years. Christopher plied his trade as a tinsmith, opened a shop, and found a ready market for his wares.
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| Deuell Log House |
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| Eliza Adelaide Dolbell |
Torrential rains washed everything away so he moved Eliza to St. George and brought his first wife down from Cedar City. He built a dugout with a thatched roof. This, with one tent and willow shed, sheltered his two families, which now included ten children. He soon was able to build an adobe house and a shop.
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| St George Tabernacle |
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| St George Court House |
Christopher was a loyal member of the church although he was never active in public affairs due to the fact that his work kept him away a great deal of the time. He was a great reader, spending every evening in this way.
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| Monument in St George Cemetery |
Note: Posting on nFS says: "St. George cemetery records indicate he died of Pnenmonia. No birth or burriel date is listed. His grave is located at St. George cemetery,... Posted by TimBooth1"
_____________________________________________
Sources:
Personal records
Virtues: Faith
Source: Sons of Utah Pioneers http://suplibrary.org/stories/detail.asp?id=220
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