I was born in Mammoth, Juab County, Utah on Sept. 9 1902, the first son of Lars Larson Olson and Alice Taylor Jenkins Olson. When I was about nineteen months old, Father was called to go to Norway on a mission. During the time he was gone Mother and I went to Goshen to live with her sister, "Net", her husband, and young daughter, Lillian Wentz. When they decided to move to Provo we went with them and stayed until Father returned home in August 1906. After he came home we moved back to Mammoth, where Father was able to buy our old home back. He also bought a part interest in the store there and we lived there until I was eight years old.

On July 3, 1907 my sister, Lucille, was born and Feb. 19, 1910 my brother, David Max, was born. In the fall of that year, my folks decided to move to Provo and there on their wedding anniversary, Oct. 2, 1912 my youngest brother, Robert Leon, finished off the family.

I received the rest of my education in the schools in Provo, going to the old Maesar School until eighth grade, when I went to the old Central School where all of the eighth grade students from all four Provo elememtary schools went. After graduating from the eighth grade, I went to high school at B.Y. High, graduating in 1920, after which I went on at the B.Y.U. to complete four years of college. I majored in accounting and business and received my degree in 1924. In March of that year I was offered a job as payroll clerk for the Spring Canyon Coal Co., and since I had all my credits assured for graduation, I accepted the offer. While I was in school I earned my way as chief repairman at the "Y" and worked summers doing assessment work on mining claims Father had interest in.

I worked in Spring Canyon for a year and then went back to Provo to marry my sweetheart, Estella Jane Goddard. We were married March 25, 1925 in the Salt Lake Temple, after which we returned to Spring Canyon to make our home. We lived on Tennis Court Hill for a while and then were able to get one of the rock houses (they were the best in the camp). We had the two front rooms and another family had the two back rooms. These were connected by a bathroom which we shared. It was in this house that our first child, a daughter, was born to us on January 5, 1926. She was a darling little black-haired baby and we named her Enid.

We lived there until 1927 and then in September we moved to Eureka, Utah where I had accepted an offer to teach at Tinic High School. I taught manual training, woodwork, ornamental ironwork, and some academic subjects. During the summer of 1928 we went to Corvallis, Oregon where I took classes at Oregon A.C.. We then took a trip down the coast to California, then up through southern Utah and home again to Eureka. My brother, Bob, went with us to help Stella with Enid while I was at school.
On April 27, 1929 our first son, Roland Dean, was born. While we lived in Eureka I played in a very busy dance band, playing banjo, mandolin and mandola. I made most of my instruments while attending school in Provo. I had played in ensembles and dance bands there and also in Spring Canyon. Winters were cold in Eureka, and we used to go to the railroad water tower and chip ice from under it to take home so we could make ice cream. We also did some skiing, not like now, however. We didn't look for the highest hills because we had to walk up. Enid used to stand on my skiis behind me and hold on to my legs. She laughs now and says that's the only times she was ever on skis.

We moved from Eureka after school was over in 1931 as I had been given a contract to teach in Salt Lake District. Stell and the children stayed in Provo for the summer while I played in a band that followed the rodeo curcuit. During the day we played at the rodeos and at night for dances. By the end of the summer, traveling from place to place across Wyoming and Idaho, I was ready to put the instruments away. I never played in a band again.

Before school started we moved to Salt Lake on 9th South just east of Liberty Park. I taught metalwork and electricity at Roosevelt Jr. High and was in charge of the stage crew. In the spring we found a home in East Mill Creek, bought it and were there until December of 1940. While living there we added two more children, Eldon Lee on March 9, 1934 and Diane on August 10, 1937. In the fall of 1940 I found my "dream" farm in the little valley on Little Cottonwood Creek. The home was old and had no bathroom or furnace, but I promised to modernize it before we moved in, so Stella finally agreed. It took lots of work, but was pretty nice by the time we moved in just after Christmas. Farms are a lot of work, but we also had fun. The kids learned the value of work and also had the fun of learning to ride horses. It was while we lived there that our last two sons were born, Alan Kay on March 17, 1943 and Richard Neal on January 4, 1945. Enid and Dean also Married "Unionites" while we lived there.

In 1953 we moved to St. George. I worked for Thompson Heating and Airconditioning making ductwork for awhile, and then when they began building the Supersonic Test Track on Hurricane Mesa I applied there. I worked for them during the construction and then was hired to stay on when they started operations. I worked there for six years and by the time they closed down, I was second in command.

I have always been active in the Church having held many positions in both ward and stake. In 1955 I was set apart as an ordinance worker in the St. George Temple, and have served for seven years. I was ordained Bishop of the 7th ward when the stake and wards were divided in March 1961, which position I now hold.
(written in 1962)