The LaGrande Peterson family photograph collection, 1920-1975

LaGrande Peterson was born July 20, 1904 in Brigham City, Utah to Silas Frank Thompson and Bolette Hansen Peterson. LaGrande attended school in box Elder County, the Business College in Long Beach, California, and completed correspondence graduate courses in high accountancy, architecture, sign painting and showcard writing with LaSalle Extension University and International Correspondence schools. LaGrande was employed in Salt Lake City as a tax clerk and later as a cashier and tax clerk in Ogden with the Utah State Tax commission for a number of years. He served as box Elder county treasurer for eight years before retiring in 1967. In Bear River City LaGrande served as clerk for his LDS (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) ward, town clerk and secretary of the Bear River Democratic Party. He was also the secretary-treasurer and director of the Acme Water Company, secretary of the box Elder County Democratic party, and was a charter member and treasurer of the box Elder chapter of the American Association of Retired Persons. He passed away on August 22, 1990 in Brigham City.

LaGrande served in the U.S. Army Signal corps during World War II. He was inducted June 23, 1942 and was trained in principles of electricity, messaging, radio and telephone schools and as a teletype operator. He was stationed in Camp Crowder, Missouri; Omaha, Nebraska; Camp Edwards, Massachusetts; and North Africa. While in Rabat, Morocco LaGrande received his release order due to being over 38 years old and was then sent to Casablanca to await his shipment home. He arrived in New York August 3, 1943, but did not return to Utah until October 1943.

Helen (Billie) V. Bean Peterson was born February 11, 1908 in Payson, Utah to Roy Verdell Bean and Clara Eva Barnett Bean. Helen graduated from Provo Junior High School in 1923 and Payson High School in 1926. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1933 from BYU.

Helen was a teacher for 37 years, mainly teaching at the elementary school level. She began in 1928 in Moroni, North Sanpete District, and then moved to box Elder County; teaching in Fielding and Bear River City. She later moved to Heber City for six years. While living in Heber, Helen married LaGrande Peterson on May 24th of 1942. Shortly after their marriage LaGrande was drafted for World War II. After the war they moved to Bear River City where she was a teacher until 1966 when she retired. After retiring she became an active member in the Bear River camp of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers. Helen was also an active member of the Brigham City branch of the American Association of University Women; she served in all offices except president. She passed away on February 21, 1990 in Brigham City, Utah and was buried in Bear River City, Utah.

Clara Eva Barnett Bean was born July 24, 1882 in Payson, Utah the daughter of Henry Westlake Barnett and Elizabeth (Eliza) Mitchell Barnett. She attended three institutions (Brigham Young University, Utah State University, and the University of Utah) on and off from 1910 until 1948. Clara was a teacher in Payson and principal of the Central School until 1921. She also taught in Overton, Nevada at the Moapa Valley high school and in the box Elder School District.

Clara married Roy Verdell Bean on April 25th of 1907 in the Salt Lake City Temple (although they later divorced) and they had only one child, Helen (Billie) Bean, with whom she remained very close all her life. Clara Bean lived with her daughter in her later years due to illness and she passed away on July 19, 1964.

Sources: Obituaries:

box Elder News Journal, Brigham City, Utah. August 26, 1990.

box Elder News Journal, Brigham City, Utah. February 28, 1990.

box Elder News Journal, Brigham City, Utah. July 21, 1964, page 10.