Johannes’s father: Heinrich (Henry) Zollinger
Johanne’s mother: Barbara Braem
His wife:  Elizabeth Usteri
Their children:  Ferdinand (Ferdie), Anna Elizabeth, Anna Barbara, Jacob, Elisabeth, Dorothea (Dora), Johannes (in another publication it said there were only six children), Anna Elizabeth Zollinger (mother of Charles Henry Haderlie).

Elizabeth’s father: Hans Jakob Usteri
Elizabeth’s mother: Katharina Irminger
Her husband:  Johannes (John) Zollinger

The story goes that the Zollingers operated a ferry across the Rhine River near Lake Constance during the 19th century and charged a toll. From this trade or occupation came the name Zoll, meaning toll collectors. Farmers by trade, the Zollingers called their settlements Zollinc-hovun. meaning the farms of the Zolling clan.

In our history we have an example of a locality name. The name Usteri was taken from the town of Uster. Elizabeth Usteri’s oldest ancestor of that same surname was Hans Von Usteri, born in Uster about 1460. After he had moved to Zurich the people called him Hans of Uster. He took the name of Usteri from the town of Uster where the family originally came from.

Johannes (John) Zollinger was born 4 June 1795 in Urdorf, Zurich, Switzerland. He was the son of Heinrich Zollinger and Barbara Braem.  He married Elisabetha Usteri on 25 (17) May 1829 in Urdorf, Zurich, Switzerland. He died 18 (16) Feb. 1875 in Providence, Cache, Utah.

Elisabetha Usteri was born 4 July 1809 in Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. She was the daughter of Hans Jakob Usteri and Katharina Irminger. She died 18 November 1881, in Providence, Cache, Utah.

We (Johannes and Elisabetha) were a very religious people.  Elisabetha came through a line of very prominent people who lived in the town of Zurich for 400 years. Three of her ancestors were ministers of the gospel, four were professors of theology, and five were university professors. Other relatives were merchants, members of the city council, millers, doctors, captains, and a poet. Her mother was a very prayerful woman. Every time she came to see her children she always told them to always attend to their prayers.

We taught our children to work and to be obedient. They had to go to school five and one half days a week and also had to take some lessons from the minister. They had little time to play and always had to help at home and on the farm. There were cows to milk, cattle to feed, and other farm work to do. I kept cows because they were the most profitable animals. With them we did all the work on the farm as well as selling the milk, which they produced.

Upon the death of my father, Heinrich (Henry) Zollinger, I inherited part of his farm and I purchased two thirds of the Zollinger home which was at this time more than one hundred years old. My daughter Annie Elizabeth and her husband John Ulrich Haderlie lived in part of the house with us. The other one third was occupied by a niece and her family. The church and the cemetery were just over the wall from the house.

I bought more land and from the farm sold cattle, grain, potatoes, peas, prunes, and pies. From a grape vineyard located on a sunny slope, which produced excellent quality grapes, we made and sold wine. The produce from the farm, at first, had to be transported to market, a distance of six miles, by me and my older daughters on our heads.

Elisabeth, my wife, thinking there wasn’t enough money coming in, began weaving silk for a large firm in Zurich. Our daughters were also taught to weave. There were also some men who kept the looms in good repair. As a rule no one outside of the city was allowed to do this kind of work, but as no one objected, the business became a profitable one. The woven silk material was sold in 35-yard lengths.

Most everyone could afford a wedding with all the old-fashioned customs. When our last daughter, Anna, was married to Hans Ulrich Haederli (Haderlie), we put in our order to the cabinet maker to make them a wardrobe, bedstead, chairs and table and we engaged the miller, who had four fine horses, to go after the furniture. On the way back the wardrobe fell off and was broken. The cabinet maker, who was along, went back and took his wife’s wardrobe to replace the one broken. Our daughter Anna Barbara, next to the oldest of the girls, rode in the wagon with the newlyweds south to the city limits. The groom threw money to the children who followed. The young couple then paraded to the hotel. A succession of parties was given in their honor which began at the hotel and then moved from house to house for a period three days.

Our daughter Anna Barbara was married to Konrad Meyer 12 October 1857. She died seven weeks later, 5 December 1857 at the age of twenty-two. Our son Johannes was one month old when he died.

We heard of the gospel of Jesus Christ through a young lady named Mary Horlacher through her daily visits to our home for a supply of milk for a family she worked for.  She made use of every opportunity to share the knowledge of her new-found religion with us. We became interested and began attending the meetings with Mormon Elders in Zurich.

Our baptismal date was set for November 20, 1861. We were baptized in the Limmat River.  Our son Ferdie was prejudiced against this new religion and threatened to stop our baptism. The Lord blocked his way, for he met with an accident. While helping a neighbor stack grain in his barn for thrashing, he slipped coming down a ladder, and injured his leg. As a result he was confined to his bed for five or six weeks. Never did an opportunity to study and reflect on the teachings of Mormonism present itself in a better light than it did then. Ferdie was soon convinced of the truth and desired to be baptized.

[Johannes was the standard bearer of the Zollinger family in Mormonism, being the first one in the family to join the LDS Church in his native Switzerland. He was so enthused about his new-found religion that notwithstanding the severe opposition that arose against him on every side when he announced his intention of joining the church, he still carried out his determination.]

I was a pretty well-to-do farmer. The decision to sell all my property, which represented almost a lifetime of accomplishment and hard work, and go to a strange land was a most difficult one to make. Elizabeth was very assertive and assured me that it was the right thing to do. We chose to dispose of the property by means of two public auctions, one before Christmas and the other in January of 1862. Notice of these had been posted according to law prior to the date of sale. Anna’s husband, John Haderlie, wasn’t a member of the church yet and did not want us to leave. He persuaded the people not to bid, but the Lord knew the desires of our heart and took a hand in the matter. The people changed their attitude. Everything was sold at a good price.

Looking ahead to the time we would make the long journey across the plains from Florence, Nebraska (Winter Quarters) to the Great Salt Lake Valley, we ordered four yoke of oxen and a wagon through the church office in Bern. Having made all the preparations, including new suits made for us by a tailor, we were ready to leave.

On the 30 April 1862 we left with our children: Ferdie; and his fiancée, Louisa Meyer; Jacob; Elizabeth; and Dorothea. We bid farewell to our fatherland and our loved ones including our daughter Anna Haederli and family. It was sad, but we left for the gospel’s sake. They could not come with us, the trip was sponsored by the church and her husband John Haederli (Haderlie) had not joined the church yet.

From Urdorf we traveled by train to Zurich. There we had our picture taken. On the second of May we were in Basel, Switzerland and the next day in Paris, France. Here we spent the day sightseeing. None of us had ever been away from home before. Our dress was old fashioned and behind the times of people in Paris. People stared and laughed at us. We arrived at the seaport town of La Havre, France, on the 4th day of May. The ship we had booked passage on had left the day before so we had to wait for two weeks for another. Here the marriage of our son Ferdie, to Louisa Meyer, took place on the 12th of May 1862.

We left La Havre on the 15th of May, on the freighter Windermere, manned by a very rough group of Irish sailors. Some remodeling was done to accommodate the 109 people seeking passage. Two kitchens were improvised where the passengers could cook their meals, which consisted mostly of potatoes.  Berths, three high, were provided for sleeping quarters.

Brother Serge Ballif, an early convert to the church, was in charge of our group. Our ship took a southern route along the coast of France, then west along the coast of Spain, then south along the coast of Portugal where we came into view of the city of Lisbon, on the fifth of June 1862. The second day out to sea we were caught in a terrible storm, which lasted three days. It was impossible for anyone to walk on deck. The children had to be tied in their berths. Both kitchens were broken to pieces and caught fire. Repairs were made but they again caught fire and were burned beyond repair. Two children died and were buried at sea.

Our long journey to America took 54 days at sea. We arrived at New York Harbor 8, 1862. After passing through quarantine and customs, we left by train the next for Albany, New York, then to Niagara Falls, over the St. Lawrence River, and down through Canada to Chicago. By July 13th we were in Quincy, Illinois, and crossed Mississippi River on the 14th, arriving in St. Joseph, Missouri, on the 16th of July.  Here we stopped overnight in a hotel. We left for Florence, Nebraska (Winter Quarters) on the 18th, going up the Missouri River by boat, arriving on the 20th of July. We spent eighteen days at Winter Quarters making preparations for our trek across the plains.  The four yoke of oxen and Schettler wagon, previously ordered through the church, were delivered to us and paid for. I also bought two cows, a sheet iron stove, a tent, plow, tools, dried fruit, rice, bacon, and flour to take with us on our journey.

August 8, 1862 -- Our company consisted of sixty teams and wagons. We were among the six outfits independently owned; we traveled together. We were the last company to go west [that year]. At first all went well, then the roads became dusty with eight to inches of dust in some places. Progress became slow, feed was scarce, and the cattle began to lose flesh. Some of the people became sick and had to remain in the wagons. A wagon, following our wagon, was driven by an Englishman and his wife. She fell asleep and fell under the wheels of the heavy wagon, killing her instantly. We stopped and buried her and then went on. Several others died.

While passing through a grove of cottonwood trees along the Platte River, Ferdie and a chum noticed something tied in a buffalo robe hanging in a tree. Out of curiosity he climbed up to investigate. To his astonishment he found a dead Indian. The site made him sick. Following this incident my wife, Elisabeth, Ferdie, his wife Louisa, and our daughters Elizabeth and Dorothea all got mountain fever. Ferdie was so sick he never walked another step until we arrived in the Salt Lake Valley.  I, being sixty-three years of age, drove the two cows and gathered wood for the fires each morning and evening as I walked along. A German woman cooked for us and took care of the sick. Jacob had most of the work to do with the oxen and wagon. Each evening the circle was made with the wagons, the oxen unyoked and kept confined to the inside perimeter, giving better protection against the Indians. There was much to do each day and night: put up the tent, set up the stove, make the fire, milk the cows, go after the water (which was usually some distance away), and move the sick in and out of the wagons.

As we went through South Pass we moved through snow and very cold temperatures.  Many froze their feet. This was on the 5th of October. Our travels took us across the Sweet River several times. We had to carry some of the people across the river on our backs. There were five inches of snow on the ground. The water was very cold. When we reached the Green River the snow was gone. We came down Echo Canyon and camped a few miles south of what is now Coalville.  On October 27th we forgot to unyoke one pair of oxen. The next morning they were gone. Someone had stolen them, but we managed to keep going. On the 30th of October we arrived at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. Many people came to see if any of their relations were in our company. On the 31st we drove into the city. We camped in Emigration Square. The cattle were turned out to graze in the church pasture but being so late in the year the feed was about gone. Thirty-five people had lost their lives in our company. [Johannes had walked all of the way across the plains, while most of the members of his family were severely ill with mountain fever.]

We were strangers in a strange land. We didn’t know a soul. Ferdie, his wife Louisa, and Dora were able to get out of the wagon for the first time. How glad they were. My wife and daughter Elisabeth were not so fortunate. Elisabeth’s legs had been cramped for such a long time in the crowded wagon box that it took four months of constant massaging with bear grease before she could again gain the use of her legs. My wife, Elizabeth had been so sick and helpless, but in time was able to walk. Because of her great faith the power of the priesthood was made manifest many times in her life. This was generally through the administrations of Brother Ballif with whom we had become acquainted as a missionary in Switzerland. In her patriarchal blessing, given a few years later, she was promised that sixteen years would be added to her life.

We were in the Salt Lake Valley from 31st October to 7th November 1862. While there we received an invitation from Brother Ballif to come to Cache Valley. We accepted the invitation that was delivered by Jacob I. Naef, who had come here on business and also to take immigrants back to Cache Valley. It took seven days to make the trip. Traveling was slow with only two yoke of oxen.

Providence -- the six and one half month journey ended 15 November 1862. We arrived late at night and camped on the south end of town, which was at that time a fort. How glad we were that our journey was ended and we could stop and rest. Nobody knew how tired we were. We were thankful to the Lord for sparing our lives during this long journey.

The next morning, among the people who came to see us was a man by the name of Ulrich Traber who offered us his one room house, a log cabin, for a yoke of oxen. I accepted his proposition. We moved right in. Here we all spent the winter of 1862-63. The people were very poor and had no money to purchase the things they needed so they desired to trade us out of some of the articles we had brought from Switzerland. Judging from the amount of goods we had, they considered us rich.

In 1863 we bought a piece of land north of town, giving a tent and a pair of boots as part payment. That season, because of the drought, we only raised 150 bushels of wheat and oats. We did have a fine garden, however.  I liked to fish and kept us supplied with fish which I caught in my traps.

I loaned Apostle Rich some money and in exchange he gave us a number of sheep. The wool, which we sheared from our flock of sheep, was spun and woven into cloth.

Everyone had clothes made of the same material.

We loaned Ulrich Traber a yoke of oxen and a wagon in 1863 so he could take a load of his wheat to Salt Lake, for which he got thirty-five cents per bushel. It took a week to make the trip. With the money he bought a little sugar, some matches, and enough calico at seventy-five cents a yard to make his wife a dress. A man could easily carry under his arm the little bundle it made.

In 1864 the town site was changed and laid out into blocks as it now is. The lots and farming land were divided by the Bishopric and in the same year the people moved and began to build their homes on their own lots.

By 1864 the mines in Montana were operating. Freighters and miners came through. It gave us an outlet for our farm products. Flour and salt sold for $1.00 per pound at the mines. Eggs were $2.00 per dozen and wheat $6.00 per bushel. From the sale of our produce we bought a wagon and a span of mules.

We rented some more land and planted wheat. We had problems with drought, freezing, grasshoppers, and crickets (1868). That year we had only thirty-five bushels of grain which we sold for $5.00 a bushel. Those ravenous insects infested our fields for a number of years. We tried in every way possible to destroy them but with no success.

The communities were built up by a system of cooperation through which all learned to live and share with one another. Each week in church, things were discussed and assignments made pertaining to the welfare of the community. Work on irrigation ditches, building of roads, bridges, meeting and school houses, and visits to the members of the ward were assigned. Tools were scarce. Fred Theurer, a blacksmith, made a pick out of the steel rim of a wagon wheel. This pick was in constant use. When anyone laid it down, another would pick it up and go to work.

The first school house, a two-story rock building, was built in 1877. A large group worked on it all summer and finished just in time for school to start. The Tabernacle and the Logan Temple were built. Wheeling rock up to the second story in a wheelbarrow was hard work. The stone used in building the temple was hauled from Green Canyon, northeast of Logan in Franklin, Idaho. Bishop Fred Theurer and our son Jacob were among those who hauled the rock with a span of mules. When the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads came into Utah it provided work for many of the Saints, an estimated 5000.

Our son Jacob, at age 21 in the year 1866. was called as a teamster to go back to Omaha to bring emigrants west. He took a wagon and two teams of mules. They took loads of oats for the mail stations along the way. One day as they approached a bluff, he was in the lead. His mules balked and refused to go on. Upon investigation they found a great many dead Indians on the top of this bluff as evidence that a battle had occurred. They made a detour around this hill and continued on their journey. They reached Omaha in June and camped on the banks of the Missouri River and waited for three weeks for the emigrants to arrive. He was overjoyed to find among the passengers his sister Anna and her husband, John Ulrich Haderlie, and their four children. It had been four years since we left Switzerland. Anna and her family had been living in our old home and had written to us a year previous about losing their property, of her husband becoming a member of the church, and of their great desire to come to Zion.

To help them emigrate to America, Jacob was able to turn into the Salt Lake Tithing Office one load of oats and two four hundred pound hogs in exchange for their emigration fees. All the arrangements for this transaction were made in Salt Lake City.

With permission from the captain of the company, Jacob was able to bring Anna and her family in his wagon. She was the happiest woman to be able to come to Zion and be united with the family again. Anna

always thought a great deal of Jacob and was glad he was there to meet them. He encouraged them in the gospel and told them how things were in our new home. Before departing she made him bathe in the river while she boiled his clothes to rid them of lice.

They averaged 20 to 30 miles a day on their trek across the plains. Of the two-mule train, they were the first to leave, thus having the advantage of good feed and a choice of camping sites. The others were ox teams, four or eight animals to each wagon. There were also three men in a white top bug traveling with them. One of them was a son of the Prophet Joseph Smith. It was a long hard journey. After crossing the Big and Little Sandy Rivers, Anna’s little girl died. They placed her in a food supply box and buried her along the trail. This was a very trying experience for them. Later after they had just crossed the Bear River and were approaching Echo Canyon, another of Anna’s girls, Emily, died. They didn’t have a box to put her in so they wrapped her in a blanket and buried her by the trail. It was very hard for them to leave their dear Emily, but they had to go on with the company. Down through Emigration Canyon and to the great Salt Lake Valley they traveled. At last they came to rest in the tithing office corral, located where the Hotel Utah now stands. People from a wide area came to welcome their loved ones. The teamsters  were released to return to their homes. They arrived in Cache Valley on a Sunday, 15 September 1866. You may guess how they were received. It was a joyous occasion. John U. and Anna lived in Providence. He farmed and was also a very good carpenter.

Johannes Zollinger lived in Providence for 13 years, passing away in 1875. His wife died 18 November 1881. Both are buried in the Providence City Cemetery.

This information was obtained from The Zollinger Ancestry - Its History and People.  The final compilation of this history is largely accredited to the perseverance of Jesse J. Zollinger of River Heights, Utah, and to members of the family who assisted. Most of this was written from the memory of the son, Jacob Zollinger, who lived in Providence, Utah to the grand age of 97. He died in July 1942.  In between 1934 and 1940 he relived the many rich experiences of his long and eventful life as he told them to his granddaughter, Bethea Zollinger Dale, who wrote it down in long hand.

[The mother’s and daughter’s names are spelled differently in different places. Elisabetha- Elizabeth (mother);  Elizabeth - Ellsabeth (daughter) ]

RETURN TO OUR FAMILY TREE HOMEPAGE