John Fabyan Dennett was born Oct 10 1853 in Salt Lake City Utah. He was the son of Daniel Quimby and Lucy Ann Very Dennett. John had 4 brothers and sisters. The first children born were twins David and Daniel, they were born Oct 22 1851. Charles was born about 1856 and Lucy Jane in 1857. John also had an older half brother named Thomas Flanigan, he was born in 1843. When John was about 4 years old, he got his first pair of shoes. He was so proud of them that rather than wear them because he didnt want them to wear out, he kept them under his arms and would wade through snow up to his knees.
John's family were sent by Pres. Brigham Young to southern Utah's Dixie to help settle the area. John worked on the farm clearing land and digging ditches. When John was about 14 or 15, he fought in the Black Hawk War. At age 18, John married Rebecca Alvira Stout, (she was 15) on April 18 1872. After they were married they took a three-week trip to Sanpete County in a covered wagon to trade molasses and dried fruit for grain and potatoes.
School was held only a few months each year and was alot of fun as well as learning. The people were self educated.
After John moved his family to Rockville, their chief entertainment was dancing. The boys would spend the day picking mushrooms to pay a man from Tennessee to play the violin while they danced. In the winter the boys and men would chop wood to pay the man with.
The only church meetings held in those days was sunday school and church. They were as faithful in their attending as they were in their pleasures.
John had a daring disposition so he was chosen to go on many dangerous expeditions. He carried the mail to the Grand canyon and Kanab. Many the time he would see the dust of the cattle that the Indians were stealing as they went past him.
John had an accident in which he got his leg crushed in a homemade baler. He was on crutches for about 14 years of his early life. A Doctor from Cedar City did some studies of John's case while he was in the East and when he came home he was able to cure John's leg. John was able to walk and work the rest of his life.
In about 1897-98, the family homesteaded a ranch called "Crystal Springs" at the head-waters of the North fork of the Rio Virgin River, located Northeast of Zion Park. They spent the next 18 months raising cattle, grain, potatoes, vegetables, and many kinds of berries. They ran a dairy and made cheese and butter.
When John and Rebecca advanced in years they decided that going to the homestead in the summer was to hard on them so they sold it and moved back to their home in Rockville. There they built a small cafe and built some tourist cabins. At that time the route from Zion and the Grand Canyon went through Rockville went over the mountain south of Rockville. Shortly before the deaths of John and Rebecca, the Zion/Mount Carmel tunnels were finished. This made the tourist trade stop in Springdale. John was a great friend to the Indians. They respected him and when the Indians would come through town, John and Rebecca would serve a big meal to them and the Indians would stay at their home.
When the Zion Park was discovered by the outside world, John and Rebecca's home was opened to the traveling public and many prominent Church people were among the ones to stay in their home. Several movie stars also stayed in the home and there was entertainment. Several Federal Government people stayed in their home also.
John died Feb. 5, 1933 in Rockville, Utah.
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