The McCarthy Family

At some point in John's early life, he moved to Australia. In 1852, John listened to the missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was baptized by Charles W. Wandell. Soon after his conversion, John began traveling around Australia preaching the gospel.

On Sep 7, 1855, John boarded the Julia Ann to travel to Utah. They arrived in San Francisco, California on April 14, 1856. John joined the John C. Naegle Company of only nine members. They left San Francisco on Aug 25, 1856 and arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on Oct 15. At some point after his arrival, John moved to Bountiful, Utah. While there, he became acquainted with Eliza Victoria Telford. John married Eliza on March 13, 1857 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The couple lived in Bountiful until 1862 when they moved to Richmond