Tales From Wales (and England): Benbow Pond, Castle Frome, and Bishop's Frome (photos)

Sam and I had the incredible opportunity to go with my parents to see Benbow Pond. Ever since my mom told me about visiting Benbow Pond (probably about 10 years ago), I have wanted to go there. It did not disappoint. For those of you who have not heard about Benbow Pond and the church history there, I will give you a quick rundown. I actually got to teach a lesson about Wilford Woodruff's experience there when I taught Relief Society in Monta Vista Ward. Wilford Woodruff was an apostle and prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. At Benbow Pond, he baptized about 600 members of a Protestant group called the United Brethren.

Two of my ancestors on my mother's side were actually baptized here by Wilford Woodruff. He stayed in that area for about 8 months and brought about 2,000 people into the gospel. To read more about this story, refer to the Teachings of The Presidents of The Church: Wilford Woodruff manual. The lesson is HERE, and it is a really wonderful read.

I felt such an amazing spirit at Benbow Pond, and I am so grateful that I had the experience to go there. I feel so blessed to have such incredible ancestors who paved the way for me.

HERE is a link to Sam's earlier blog post that includes videos for these places, too.

The above pictures were taken at Benbow Pond. The LDS Church owns this little path leading up to the pond and has gated an area around the pond. There is a little placard there talking about the story of the Benbow family. With farms all around the area, it is a peaceful place to be.

These photos are of Bishops Frome church. It was a church where some of my ancestors were christened, married, and buried.

So many of the grave sites there were completely covered in bramble, as was the one pictured here.

 

I loved this statue we found on the church grounds. It is so sweet!

 

We found this cute horse outside the church as well! He was quite sweet and appreciated my mom feeding him.

This is the Castle Frome church. Many of my ancestors also attended this church. One of them was Jane Alton, who was christened here and later baptized by Wilford Woodruff at Benbow Pond.

This was the Romanesque font from around 1100 AD, where Jane Alton was christened.

So many of the headstone faces have worn down and fallen off, so no one knows who was buried there. If I remember correctly, one of my ancestors is buried here, but we can't find it, as they are so worn down.

I am so grateful for these experiences to see the world and to see where Sam and I came from.