September 28-30, 2018 - Bath

During the final week of the London Temple shut-down, we worked cleaning up the Temple Grounds and for the weekend, we drove to Bath which was aptly named because of its mineral hot springs where the Romans built spas or medicinal baths which were believed to cure a variety of physical ailments.  In 1987, Bath was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) which means it is important to the "collective interests of humanity" and the UN provides funding to preserve the site.  The Bath economy relies primarily on tourism but also has software and publishing industries as well as two universities.  Jane Austen also lived in Bath during the early 19th Century and many of her novels describe the sites and lifestyle of the city.  More importantly to our family, Bath is the hometown of Abraham Marchant and his father Abraham Marchant who are Sister Burkinshaw's 3rd and 4th Great Grandfathers respectively.

Roman Baths and Abbey

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Cross Bath.  The Cross Bath on Bath Street, Bath, Somerset, England is a historic pool for bathing.  The water which bubbles up from the ground at Bath, fell as rain on the nearby Mendip Hills. It percolates through limestone aquifers to a depth of 14,100 ft where geothermal energy raises the water temperature to between 150-250 °F. Under pressure, the heated water rises to the surface along fissures in the limestone.

Kings and Queens Bath.  From ancient times, the baths were believed to have special curative powers and were sought to relieve a sundry  of physical ailments.  Thus the Royals established a residence here in Bath to take advantage of this unique resource.

Royal Mineral Water Hospital was founded in 1738 to provide care for the impoverished sick who were attracted to Bath because of the supposed healing properties of the mineral water from the spa.  Today it is an NHS (National Health System) facility specializing in Rheumatic Disease and Rehabilitation for adults, adolescents and children

Bath Abbey which was founded in the 7th century and the current building was constructed in the 16th century.  The Abbey as well as most of the buildings in Bath are constructed from "bathstone" which is a unique golden honey-colored limestone which can be squared (sawed or cut) in any direction.  Unfortunately it is quite porous and both weathers and eventually crumbles as well as having a propensity to mildew and therefore requires regular cleaning (as can be seen in the Royal Mineral Water Hospital) 

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the entrance to the Bath Abbey.

The Bath Abbey from the back, as seen from the Avon River.

We took a boat ride along the Avon River.  Avon is a Celtic word for River so Avon River is redundant! ;-)  The Empire hotel is in the center and was designed to represent the three classes of people.  The corner was designed to look like a castle representing royalty, the center was designed to look like an estate home representing the aristocracy and the far corner looked like a cottage (or cottages) representing the common folks.  To the right is the Pulteney Bridge constructed in 1774.  It was a beautiful, sunny day.

Sister and Elder Burkinshaw from the boat with the River Avon in the background.  By the way, this is a different River Avon than runs through Stratford where Shakespeare lived.

Jane Austen

The Prince of Wales monument in the Queens Square, near the Jane Austen Centre.

The Jane Austen Centre features a permanent exhibition that tells the story of Bath's most famous resident, the author Jane Austen. It explores the effect that living in the Georgian city had on her life and writing.

Sister Burkinshaw with a life-sized model of one of her favorite authors, Jane Austen.

Since Bath was very crowded on the Saturday we were there, we arranged to spend the night at the Tracy Park Country Club in the adjacent village of Wick.  Tracy Park was an estate documented from Roman times and was privately owned until 1973 when it become a golf and country club and hotel.

  
Tracy Park Country Club

This is the Tracy Park Restaurant and was built as part of a private estate in the 18th century.  You will note it was built with bath stone (limestone quarried near Bath) as much of it has become dark with mildew.  It is a very impressive building.

An inside view of the Tracy Park Golf and Country Club restaurant.  The windows on the left look out on to the golf course.

Elder Burkinshaw having his buffet breakfast at the Tracy Park Golf and Country Club restaurant.  It was excellent and included hot chocolate as it was a very cool, crisp morning.

"Cleanliness is next to Godliness" is a phrase first recorded in a sermon by John Wesley in 1778, but the idea is ancient, found in Babylonian and Hebrew religious writings.

Our hotel cottage just adjacent to the restaurant at Tracy Park Golf and Country Club.

Sculptures with driftwood are very popular here in the UK.  At Tracy Park Golf and Country Club, they had this elephant and two giraffes near our hotel cottage.

We attended Sunday meetings at the Bath Ward where we saw many people who are regular patrons of the London Temple and several former temple workers and their families.

Abraham Marchant

Bath is the hometown of Abraham Marchant and his son Abraham Marchant who are Sister Burkinshaw's 4th and 3rd Great Grandfathers respectively.

Family pedigree chart showing the Marchant Line in yellow.

Sister Burkinshaw pointing at the New Marchant Passageway which was named after Abraham Marchant, the firefighter who died saving a young servant girl.  

Sister Burkinshaw standing in the New Marchant Passageway.

While we were in Bath, we looked for the grave of Abraham Marchant who died in 1815.  FamilySearch has listed that he was buried at Smallcombe Vale Cemetery.  We were unable to find Smallcombe Vale Cemetery but we did find Smallcombe Garden Cemetery.

Layout of the Smallcombe Garden Cemetery where Abraham Marchant might have been buried. Since the cemetery was not officially opened until 1856 and Abraham Marchant was buried in 1815, it's unlikely he was buried here.  We spent the afternoon looking at the headstones but did not find any before the 1850's.  However, it's not possible to verify that he wasn't buried here because many of the headstones are unreadable.

Picture of the chapel in the Smallcombe Garden cemetery.

Headstones in the Smallcombe Garden cemetery Bath, UK.

As we were assigned the spiritual thought for Preparation Meeting following our trip to Bath I shared a little about the Marchant line from Bath, UK and the sacrifices they made.

One More Day

Spiritual Thought by Sister Stacey Burkinshaw

Wednesday, October 3 2018 - London Temple Preparation Meeting

Elder Godoy says, “If we were told we had a short time to live, we too might plead for more days of life in the name of things we should have done or done differently.
“Regardless of the time the Lord, in His wisdom, determines to grant each of us, of one thing we can be sure: we all have a “today” to live, and the key to making our day successful is to be willing to sacrifice. In other words, if we will offer to the Lord the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit (or as Elder Christoffersen has taught a repentant heart and an obedient spirit), immediately the blessings of the great plan of happiness are manifest in our lives.” (Taylor G. Godoy, “One More Day,” GC April 2018)

“In what ways will sacrifice make our days meaningful and blessed?” Elder Godoy speaks of three: personal sacrifice, sacrifices made for others and the sacrifice of the Son of God.

First, personal sacrifice Elder Godoy tells us, “strengthens us and gives value to the things we sacrifice for.” I know you feel the truth of these words in your sacrifice to serve here in the London temple. Elder Robert D. Hales speaking to Senior Missionaries in the April 2005 General Conference said, “His work….needs what you are uniquely prepared to give. Every missionary experience requires faith, sacrifice and service, and these are always followed by an outpouring of blessings.” (Robert D. Hales, "Couple Missionaries:Blessings from Sacrifice and Service," GC April 2005)

Second, Elder Godoy teaches, “sacrifices we make for others, and that others make for us, result in blessings for all.” Jeff and I felt this many times the past month as we visited family sites here in Europe and read again the histories of our own ancestors. Last week we visited Bath where 6 generations (we have records for) of my Marchant line, maternal grandmother’s line, lived and worked. There is a small covered street, the “new Marchant passageway” in the downtown mall area which was named after my 4th great grandfather who was a firefighter in Bath and gave his life saving a young servant girl from a burning building. With this sacrifice he left a wife and seven children without a provider. The 8th child, Abraham Marchant, was born 7 months later and named after a father he would never know. This 3rd great grandfather lived, married, worked and joined the Church in Bath and then immigrated to Utah in response to the call of a prophet. The church was blessed by the sacrifice and service of this good family both in Bath and in Utah and Wyoming, but most especially their posterity has been blessed.

Third, Elder Godoy reminds and then teaches us, “….any sacrifice we make is small compared to the sacrifice of the Son of God. He then teaches, “What is the value of even a beloved gold bracelet compared to the sacrifice of the very Son of God? How can we honor that infinite sacrifice? Each day we can remember that we have one more day to live and be faithful.”

“In other words we will be more willing every ‘one more day’ to follow the invitation that President Howard W. Hunter extended to us when he said: “Mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. … Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. … Speak your love and then speak it again” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Howard W. Hunter [2015], 32).  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. (End of spiritual thought)

We are so grateful for the continued opportunity to serve here in the London Temple, although it doesn't seem like much of a sacrifice to us, we are mindful of the blessings we have received personally and that we see manifest in the lives of our family. 

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw