When Dr. J. LeRoy Kimball purchased the Nauvoo home of his great-grandfather, Heber C. Kimball, in 1954, he spent several years restoring it as a family vacation home. Dr. Kimball was a heart surgeon in Salt Lake City, and he thought he would like to occasionally get away from his medical practice.
He was surprised when visitors stopped by, asking to see Heber C. Kimball’s home. During the dedication of the home in 1960, a thousand guests attended-and visitors kept coming. Dr. Kimball said he never spent one night in that home. The next year he invited a couple to live in the home who gave tours to 15,000 people.
At that time, Old Nauvoo contained weeds, debris, and dilapidated buildings. Dr. Kimball hadn’t planned to reconstruct Old Nauvoo. When he learned that a motel might be built across the street from the Heber C. Kimball home, Dr. Kimball purchased the land to protect his property.
Soon he bought other lots, including the homes of Brigham Young and Wilford Woodruff. Dr. Kimball contacted Church leaders in Salt Lake City and experts from such places as Jamestown (VA), Williamsburg (VA), and the National Parks System for advice about Old Nauvoo. In 1962, Nauvoo Restoration Incorporated (NRI) was formed, with Dr. Kimball serving as its president from 1963 to 1987.
With the help of two Hancock County attorneys, NRI purchased land and began restoring homes and buildings. Preston Kimball, a Nauvoo attorney, represented NRI with legal matters until he died in 1976. Then LeRoy A. Ufkes from Carthage became NRI’s legal representative for over thirty years. Because of his relationship with NRI, Ufkes said, “People in Nauvoo called me ‘The Mormon.’ They did it to Preston Kimball, too.”
LeRoy Ufkes explained that “Preston Kimball was born and raised in Nauvoo, and he practiced law there. Dr. Kimball needed a lawyer. Both men had the last name of Kimball and were distantly related.” Preston Kimball’s family had settled in Nauvoo and acquired property before the Saints arrived in 1839. Dr. Kimball learned that Preston Kimball was an honest man who knew the city well.
Parley Holliday, NRI Project Manager from 1971 to 1983, said that NRI purchased most of its properties between 1964 and 1971 after consulting with Ed Kendrew of the Colonial Williamsburg restoration project. Kendrew recommended buying property quickly but taking time to restore the homes and buildings. Preston Kimball handled the legal work during these busy years. “He did all of his attorney work without a secretary,” said former banker Leonard Hogan. “Modern machinery was not his forte. If Preston needed copies, he used six or seven carbons instead of a photocopier.”
According to LeRoy Ufkes, “Preston was one of the Mormon’s best people. He did a lot for the Church. I wouldn’t have become acquainted with the Mormons without Preston Kimball. I began helping when they were cleaning up the flat. They bought the properties in the name of NRI and paid the going price. Most of the properties were vacated and run down.” Ufkes noted that “the Mormon Church was awfully nice to people who wanted to sell their properties on the flat.” When two sisters sold their homes to NRI, the Church granted them lifetime occupancy. “The Mormon Church has improved Nauvoo,” said Ufkes. “Building changes came from the Mormons. The non-Mormons haven’t changed them much.”
“Preston and I were good friends,” said Ufkes. “He was Catholic, and I’m Lutheran.” Preston never married. He lived on the flat with his mother, and he cared for her until she died.
Parley Holliday remembered that “Preston Kimball had no family, no one to hang onto” after his mother died. LeRoy Ufkes told Parley Holliday about helping terminally ill Preston Kimball buy a tombstone for his grave. That was a sad day for Ufkes. He understood then why a man needed a family, and he was grateful for his wife and daughter. Preston Kimball passed away at the age of 63. Ufkes settled his estate and became legal attorney for NRI. He kept his main office in Carthage, but added an office in Nauvoo, which belonged to Preston Kimball.
LeRoy Ufkes said, “If I did help the Mormons, I understood being the underdog.” Ufkes was born at Basco, Illinois-a little German farming community near Carthage. His parents were education-minded, and they decided to join a Carthage College church. “Some of the people looked down on us Germans,” said Ufkes. “Carthage was basically Methodist and Presbyterian. Being an underdog helped me rally for the Mormons.”
“I’ve never found a finer people than the Mormons,” said Ufkes. “Church leaders sort of took me under their wing.” Dr. LeRoy Kimball “tried to mix with the people, and he was a loyal man around town.” Ufkes “really knew President Hinckley. He and his wife were fine people. They liked Preston and they liked me. They must have had good taste.”
When Ufkes handled the transaction to purchase land around Carthage Jail, he was concerned about the Church paying too much for it. Dr. Kimball told him that the property was valuable. It needed to be cleaned off, fixed up, and landscaped properly-and an unsightly restaurant torn down. President Gordon B. Hinckley met with Ufkes in his Carthage office during the transaction process. “Hinckley was the power behind it,” said Ufkes. “Hinckley had a divine love for Nauvoo. He was a fine man. He was my kind of person.”
After the Carthage Jail renovation, a re-dedication ceremony took place on June 27, 1989. President Hinckley invited LeRoy Ufkes to sit on the stand with LDS Church President Ezra Taft Benson and other Church leaders and special guests. Ufkes had helped Church leaders select some of the special guests.
“Five thousand people attended the re-dedication,” said Ufkes. “Then they all went home. The stores were set to do business and sell hot dogs and other food. But the people just left.” Not supporting local businesses during this event disappointed the community. “Carthage Jail hasn’t really helped the economy in Carthage,” Ufkes observed.
LeRoy Ufkes remembered when President Hinckley announced the rebuilding of the Nauvoo Temple.
He returned home from a football game in Macomb, Illinois, and received a phone call from Salt Lake City. “They told me the temple was going to be built. I thought it couldn’t hurt the town. Church leaders were fair. They asked people what they thought about it. If it wasn’t for President Hinckley, the temple wouldn’t have been built.”
“When President Hinckley announced the temple, it was open season for real estate,” Ufkes said. “People thought it was time to get rich.
I cautioned President Hinckley about this. Finally, it cooled off.” According to Parley Holliday, “LeRoy tried to protect the Church and be fair. Even before taxes were paid, LeRoy looked them over and said they were too much or fair enough.”
Carol Hill, administrative assistant for NRI for over 20 years, added, “LeRoy was a friend of the Church. He went out of his way to keep NRI informed of Nauvoo, Carthage, and other areas. President Hinckley called LeRoy his friend. He gave LeRoy a set of signed scriptures, which he always kept on his desk in his office. LeRoy reminded me where his scriptures came from whenever I took him documents to sign. If there were General Authorities in town, LeRoy wanted to meet them. LeRoy came to almost all of the activities.”
President Hinckley invited LeRoy Ufkes to attend the temple ground breaking, cornerstone laying, and open house. President Hinckley always acknowledged his attorney’s presence. “I went through the temple open house with [Elder Donald] Staheli and lawyers from Macomb and other communities,” Ufkes remembered.
LeRoy Ufkes received his law degree from the University of Iowa. He was “a small-town lawyer who settled estates, made deeds, and tried some cases-mostly at the Hancock County Courthouse” in Carthage. Ufkes worked in politics, served as a state judge, and handled cases in the penitentiary. “Working with Mormons didn’t hurt my business at all. The Church called me lots for my opinions, and I feel part of them.”
In addition to his professional work, Ufkes and his wife Joan took part in civic affairs, such as serving on the hospital board in Carthage. LeRoy Ufkes concluded his thoughts by saying, “What do I want to be remembered by? I was a credit to my community. I’ve had associations with people in higher politics. Mormon Church leaders kept me informed. I’ve done all right.”
LeRoy Ufkes and Preston Kimball both did “all right” with their service to Nauvoo Restoration, Inc., for almost 50 years in Hancock County, Illinois.
Joel Record CrockettApril 3, 2018
Also the 2 rose colored vases above the fireplace were donated by my grandparents
Joel Record CrockettApril 3, 2018
My grandfather and grandmother Hubert E and Bertha Record stayed in the Heber C Kimball home in Nauvoo abt 1963-1964. They were good friends of Dr LeRoy Kimball.