The following written by Jolene Spendlove Allphin.

    Mary was from Wales.  She was baptized at the age of 16, against her parents' wishes.  In her own words, she told about meeting the missionaries.  "I read some of their pamphlets that they gave out and I attended some of the meetings and heard them preach.  It was so different and they had the answer to many of the things that had been on my mind during the time I was a girl."  When Mary's parents found out that she was interested in this new faith and the Mormon Elders, they were much concerned and displeased with her.  They wanted her to have nothing to do with this religion.

    Just as her husband's grandmother had done, Mary read from the Bible.  She said, "I knew it must be the true church for everything was just according the way the Bible taught that it should be."  There were very few Bibles in those days, but Mary said she did "as believed, [and] read from the one her grandmother had."

    After Mary was baptized she said, "I seemed to have more peace and pleasant times with the people who were members of the church."  Mary left Wales and went to England to be with more young people of her faith and to seek work to earn money to emigrate.  She returned to Wales after awhile to try to resolve some of the bad feelings with her family and some of her friends in Wales, but to no avail.  She was returning to her job in England on the train when she met her future husband, John Spendlove (son of John Spendlove and Elizabeth Harrison).  John worked for the railroad.  He saw her crying and tried to tease her to cheer her up.  She returned with him to his father's home, where she was invited to stay.  She became good friends with John's sisters, and she and John eventually fell in love and were married.  After she emigrated to Utah, she tried again to reconcile with her parents, but she said they never answered her letters.  She said, "It was many years after I had found the truth and come to America that my mother relented and finally wrote to us but so far as I know none of my folks ever accepted the gospel."

    John and Mary were fairly well-to-do, as working on the railroad paid a good wage.  However, they lost much of their wealth as they traveled to Utah.  On the train through Missouri, John realized that the train was traveling much faster than it should.  He called to the conductor and cautioned him about the speed of the train and what he knew about it.  However, John said that the conductor was very unkind to the people and wished them a bad journey.  Because of the conductor's actions, the baggage car caught on fire and many of the Saints' belongings were destroyed before the fire could be contained.

    They arrived in Salt Lake City on the third of October, 1863, and stayed with friends and family until October conference was over.  The following was written by Mary's brother-in-law about the conference: "On the 8th and 9th of October we all attended the great conference.  There we heard President Young speak for the first time and others of the Twelve.  They were all that a man might expect them to be.  President Young spoke like a kind father would to his children.  I could have listened to him for hours.  He spoke with that power and authority that could come only from God."

    The Spendlove's were called to settle in Southern Utah, and eventually ended up in Hurricane.  It is recorded that John and Mary both bore their testimonies in meetings.  Mary told the following story relating to her testimony: "One time I had a few doubts about Joseph Smith, and then I had a dream that I saw him and knew that it was Joseph Smith even through I had never seen him in life.  He came from behind a curtain and he said, ‘You do not know me,' and I said, ‘Yes, I do,' and then he left me.  A few weeks later, President Brigham Young and one or two of the Apostles came down to conference and I was there and they told the story of Joseph Smith as eye witnesses and it was so complete in words I could understand and they said things about him I had never heard before.  I knew now that he was a prophet and never doubted anymore."

    When the St. George Temple was completed in 1877, John and Mary finally realized their dream of going to the house of the Lord and being sealed for time and eternity.  Mary said, "It was like going on a second honeymoon.  We drove down to St. George from Virgin and stayed all night and had a wonderful time at the temple."  They also talked often of completing the work for their ancestors and said, "We must do it."  After they had researched and done much of the work, Mary said, "This is a great thing in our lives.  We have wanted to do this for a long time and now I can rest better at night."