The Church Moves West

Following a midwinter departure from Nauvoo and a grueling passage across Iowa, the Saints began a new chapter in the history of the Church. Their exodus farther west brought new living conditions and time for the Saints to establish themselves in their new home in the Salt Lake Valley. “Here they were, almost a thousand miles from the nearest settlement to the east and almost eight hundred miles from the Pacific coast. They were in an untried climate. They had never raised a crop here. They had not built a structure of any kind.

“They were exiles, driven from their fair city on the Mississippi into this desert region of the West. But they were possessed of a vision drawn from the scriptures and words of revelation: ‘And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth’ (Isaiah 11:12)” (from a videotaped presentation, “Faith in Every Footstep: The Epic Pioneer Journey,” narrated by the First Presidency, in Conference Report, Apr. 1997, 86; or Ensign, May 1997, 64).

During the next 50 years this “ensign for the nations,” led by the prophets Brigham Young, John Taylor, and Wilford Woodruff, would include periods of peace and growth, as well as great opposition and trial. Missionary work was expanded to locations in Mexico, the American West, Polynesia, and Europe. Four temples—St. George, Logan, Manti, and Salt Lake—were completed and dedicated, providing a place for eternal ordinances for the living and the dead. The Primary was organized. The completion of a transcontinental railroad brought economic improvement to the Saints in Utah. Meanwhile, persecution of the Church and some of its members resurfaced. Many missionaries were attacked and some were killed during this period (see Our Heritage, p. 98). The Saints also saw the passing of laws that not only removed many rights of those who practiced plural marriage but also restricted the ownership of Church property, including temples. In 1890 the Lord revealed to President Wilford Woodruff that it was time to end the practice of plural marriage.

Note: In the Doctrine and Covenants and Church History Student Study Guide, the last seven weeks focus on Church history events from 1845 to the present and the teachings of the prophets from Brigham Young to Gordon B. Hinckley. Your reading assignments (along with Doctrine and Covenants 136; 138; and Official Declarations 1 and 2) will be readings in Church history from the book Our Heritage: A Brief History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and selected statements by each of the prophets. You will find these readings in your study guide, following each introduction. The “Understanding the Scriptures” section is replaced with an “Understanding the Reading” section. It contains word helps and other insights for the readings from Our Heritage. Also, a “Studying the Reading” section replaces what was formerly “Studying the Scriptures” and provides the activities you will do for your assignments.

Succession in the Presidency
Choosing the Next President of the Church

When the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred, many members wondered about the destiny of the Church. Who would succeed the Prophet and lead the Church? President Spencer W. Kimball explained: “When the first succession took place, the restored church was an infant only 14 years old. There had been no prophet nor ‘open vision’ for numerous centuries. Little wonder, then, that the people should be full of questions when the bullets at Carthage terminated the life of the one in whom all these priceless blessings—the church, revelation, prophets—seemed to be centered. When the apostles returned from their missions, had buried their dead prophet, and considered the future, all doubt was dissipated when the senior apostle, already holding all the keys, stood forth like Moses and led the way” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1970, 119).

Succession in the Presidency

1. “When the Prophet Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered in Carthage Jail, many of the Quorum of the Twelve and other Church leaders were serving missions and were absent from Nauvoo. Several days passed before these men learned of the deaths. When Brigham Young heard the news, he knew that the keys of priesthood leadership were still with the Church, for these keys had been given to the Quorum of the Twelve. However, not all Church members understood who would replace Joseph Smith as the Lord’s prophet, seer, and revelator.

2. “Sidney Rigdon, First Counselor in the First Presidency, arrived from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on 3 August 1844. In the year before this time, he had begun taking a course contrary to the counsel of the Prophet Joseph Smith and had become estranged from the Church. He refused to meet with the three members of the Twelve already in Nauvoo and instead spoke to a large group of the Saints assembled for their Sunday worship service. He told them of a vision he had received in which he had learned that no one could replace Joseph Smith. He said that a guardian to the Church should be appointed and that guardian should be Sidney Rigdon. Few Saints supported him.

3. “Brigham Young, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, did not return to Nauvoo until 6 August 1844. He declared that he wanted only to know ‘what God says’ about who should lead the Church [in History of the Church, 7:230]. The Twelve called a meeting for Thursday, 8 August 1844. Sidney Rigdon spoke in the morning session for more than one hour. He won few if any adherents to his position.

4. “Brigham Young then spoke briefly, comforting the hearts of the Saints. As Brigham spoke, George Q. Cannon remembered, ‘it was the voice of Joseph himself,’ and ‘it seemed in the eyes of the people as if it were the very person of Joseph which stood before them.’ William C. Staines testified that Brigham Young spoke like the voice of the Prophet Joseph. ‘I thought it was he,’ Staines said, ‘and so did thousands who heard it.’ Wilford Woodruff also recalled that wonderful moment and wrote, ‘If I had not seen him with my own eyes, there is no one that could have convinced me that it was not Joseph Smith, and anyone can testify to this who was acquainted with these two men.’ [Quotations in History of the Church 7:236.] This miraculous manifestation, seen by many, made clear to the Saints that the Lord had chosen Brigham Young to succeed Joseph Smith as leader of the Church.

5. “In the afternoon session, Brigham Young again spoke, testifying that the Prophet Joseph had ordained the Apostles to hold the keys of the kingdom of God in all the world. He prophesied that those who did not follow the Twelve would not prosper and that only the Apostles would be victorious in building up the kingdom of God.

6. “Following his talk, President Young asked Sidney Rigdon to talk, but he chose not to. Following remarks by William W. Phelps and Parley P. Pratt, Brigham Young spoke again. He talked of completing the Nauvoo Temple, obtaining the endowment before going into the wilderness, and the importance of the scriptures. He spoke of his love for Joseph Smith and his affection for the Prophet’s family. The Saints then voted unanimously in favor of the Twelve Apostles as leaders of the Church.

7. “While a few others would claim a right to the Presidency of the Church, for most Latter-day Saints the succession crisis was over. Brigham Young, the senior Apostle and President of the Quorum of the Twelve, was the man God had chosen to lead his people, and the people had united to sustain him” (Our Heritage, 66–67).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do activity A as you study “Succession in the Presidency.”

Then and Now

1. Review the account of Brigham Young being chosen to lead the Church. In your notebook, write a brief journal entry as if you were there, seated on the front row.

2. Explain what it means to you to know that this church really is the Church of Jesus Christ and that He is the one who chooses the prophet to guide His Church.

The Trek West (1845–47)
What Can We Learn from the Early Pioneers?

President Gordon B. Hinckley taught: “It is good to look to the past to gain appreciation for the present and perspective for the future. It is good to look upon the virtues of those who have gone before, to gain strength for whatever lies ahead. It is good to reflect upon the work of those who labored so hard and gained so little in this world, but out of whose dreams and early plans, so well nurtured, has come a great harvest of which we are the beneficiaries” (“The Faith of the Pioneers,” Ensign, July 1984, 3).

The story of the Saints’ move from Illinois to the Great Salt Lake is one of the impressive stories of all religious history. President Brigham Young’s directing of over 15,000 Saints from Nauvoo to the Salt Lake Valley is the greatest mass exodus in the history of the United States. It is a story of persecution, hardship, and suffering. But it is also a story of inspiration, miracles, deliverance, and the love of God, country, and fellowmen. As you study what happened during 1845–47, ask yourself what you might have done in these situations.

Preparing to Leave Nauvoo

1. “Leaders of the Church had talked since at least 1834 about moving the Saints west to the Rocky Mountains, where they could live in peace. As the years went by, leaders discussed actual sites with explorers and studied maps to find the right place to settle. By the end of 1845, Church leaders possessed the most up-to-date information available about the West.

2. “As persecutions in Nauvoo intensified, it became apparent that the Saints would have to leave. By November 1845, Nauvoo was bustling with the activities of preparation. Captains of hundreds, fifties, and tens were called to lead the Saints on their exodus. Each group of 100 established one or more wagon shops. Wheelwrights, carpenters, and cabinetmakers worked far into the night preparing timber and constructing wagons. Members were sent east to purchase iron, and blacksmiths constructed materials needed for the journey and farm equipment necessary to colonize a new Zion. Families collected food and housekeeping items and filled storage containers with dried fruits, flour, rice, and medicines. Working together for the common good, the Saints accomplished more than seemed possible in so short a time” (Our Heritage, 69).

Understanding the Reading

The Trials of a Winter Trek

3. “The evacuation of Nauvoo was originally planned to take place in April 1846. But as a result of threats that the state militia intended to prevent the Saints from going west, the Twelve Apostles and other leading citizens hurriedly met in council on 2 February 1846. They agreed that it was imperative to start west immediately, and the exodus began on 4 February. Under the direction of Brigham Young, the first group of Saints eagerly began their journey. However, that eagerness faced a great test, for there were many miles to be covered before permanent camps gave them respite from late winter weather and an exceptionally rainy spring.

4. “To seek safety from their persecutors, thousands of Saints first had to cross the wide Mississippi River to Iowa territory. The perils of their journey began early when an ox kicked a hole in a boat carrying a number of Saints and the boat sank. One observer saw the unfortunate passengers hanging on to feather beds, sticks of wood, ‘lumber or any thing they could get hold of and were tossed and sported on the water at the mercy of the cold and unrelenting waves. . . . Some climbed on the top of the wagon which did not go quite under and were more comfortable while the cows and oxen on board were seen swimming to the shore from whence they came’ [Juanita Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier: The Diary of Hosea Stout, 2 vols. (1964) 1:114; spelling and punctuation modernized; see also 1:117]. Finally all the people were pulled onto boats and brought to the other side.

© 1996 Glen S. Hopkinson

5. “Two weeks after the first crossing, the river froze over for a time. Though the ice was slippery, it supported wagons and teams and made the crossing easier. But the cold weather caused much suffering as the Saints plodded through the snow. In the encampment at Sugar Creek on the other side of the river, a steady wind blew snow that fell to a depth of almost eight inches. Then a thaw caused the ground to become muddy. Around, above, and below, the elements combined to produce a miserable environment for the 2,000 Saints huddled in tents, wagons, and hastily erected shelters while they waited for the command to continue on.

6. “The most difficult part of the journey was this early stage through Iowa. Hosea Stout recorded that he ‘prepared for the night by erecting a temporary tent out of bed clothes. At this time my wife was hardly able to sit up and my little son was sick with a very high fever and would not even notice any thing that was going on’ [Juanita Brooks, On the Mormon Frontier, 1:117; spelling and punctuation modernized]. Many other Saints also suffered greatly” (Our Heritage, 69–70).

Understanding the Reading

All Is Well

7. “The faith, courage, and determination of these Saints carried them through cold, hunger, and the deaths of loved ones. William Clayton was called to be in one of the first groups to leave Nauvoo and left his wife, Diantha, with her parents, only a month away from delivering her first child. Slogging through muddy roads and camping in cold tents wore his nerves thin as he worried about Diantha’s well-being. Two months later, he still did not know if she had delivered safely but finally received the joyful word that a ‘fine fat boy’ had been born. Almost as soon as he heard the news, William sat down and wrote a song that not only had special meaning to him but would become an anthem of inspiration and gratitude to Church members for generations. The song was ‘Come, Come, Ye Saints,’ and the famous lines expressed his faith and the faith of the thousands of Saints who sang in the midst of adversity: ‘All is well! All is well!’ [See James B. Allen, Trials of Discipleship: The Story of William Clayton, a Mormon (1987), 202.] They, like the members who have followed them, found the joy and peace that are the rewards of sacrifice and obedience in the kingdom of God” (Our Heritage, 71).

William Clayton wrote the words to the hymn “Come, Come, Ye Saints.”

Understanding the Reading

Winter Quarters

8. “It took the Saints 131 days to travel the 310 miles from Nauvoo to the settlements in western Iowa where they would pass the winter of 1846–47 and prepare for their trek to the Rocky Mountains. This experience taught them many things about travel that would help them more quickly cross the 1,000 miles of the great American plains, which was done the following year in about 111 days.

9. “A number of settlements of Saints stretched along both sides of the Missouri River. The largest settlement, Winter Quarters, was on the west side, in Nebraska. It quickly became home to approximately 3,500 Church members, who lived in houses of logs and in dugouts of willows and dirt. As many as 2,500 Saints also lived in and around what was called Kanesville on the Iowa side of the Missouri River. Life in these settlements was almost as challenging as it had been on the trail. In the summer they suffered from malarial fever. When winter came and fresh food was no longer available, they suffered from cholera epidemics, scurvy, toothaches, night blindness, and severe diarrhea. Hundreds of people died.

10. “Yet life went on. The women spent their days cleaning, ironing, washing, quilting, writing letters, preparing their few provisions for meals, and caring for their families, according to Mary Richards, whose husband, Samuel, was on a mission in Scotland. She cheerfully recorded the comings and goings of the Saints at Winter Quarters, including such activities as theological discussions, dances, Church meetings, parties, and frontier revivals.

11. “The men worked together and met often to discuss travel plans and the future site for the settlement of the Saints. They regularly cooperated in rounding up the herds that foraged on the prairie at the outskirts of the camp. They worked in the fields, guarded the perimeters of the settlement, constructed and operated a flour mill, and readied wagons for travel, often suffering from exhaustion and illness. Some of their work was an unselfish labor of love as they prepared fields and planted crops to be harvested by the Saints who would follow them.

12. “[Lorenzo] Young’s son John called Winter Quarters ‘the Valley Forge of Mormondom.’ He lived near the burial grounds there and witnessed the ‘small mournful-looking trains that so often passed our door.’ He recalled ‘how poor and same-like’ his family’s diet of corn bread, salt bacon, and a little milk seemed. He said mush and bacon became so nauseating that eating was like taking medicine and he had difficulty swallowing. [See Russell R. Rich, Ensign to the Nations (1972), 92.] Only the faith and dedication of the Saints carried them through this trying time” (Our Heritage, 71–72).

Understanding the Reading

Mormon Battalion

13. “While the Saints were in Iowa, United States army recruiters asked Church leaders to provide a contingent of men to serve in the Mexican War, which had begun in May 1846. The men, who came to be called the Mormon Battalion, were to march across the southern part of the nation to California and would receive pay, clothing, and rations. Brigham Young encouraged men to participate as a way to raise money to gather the poor from Nauvoo and to aid individual soldiers’ families. Cooperating with the government in this endeavor would also show the loyalty of Church members to their country and give them a justifiable reason to camp temporarily on public and Indian lands. Eventually, 541 men accepted their leaders’ counsel and joined the battalion. They were accompanied by 33 women and 42 children.

14. “The ordeal of going to war was compounded for battalion members by the sorrow of leaving their wives and children alone at a difficult time. William Hyde reflected:

15. “‘The thoughts of leaving my family at this critical time are indescribable. They were far from the land of their nativity, situated upon a lonely prairie with no dwelling but a wagon, the scorching sun beating upon them, with the prospect of the cold winds of December finding them in the same bleak, dreary place.

16. “‘My family consisted of a wife and two small children, who were left in company with an aged father and mother and a brother. The most of the Battalion left families. . . . When we were to meet with them again, God only knew. Nevertheless, we did not feel to murmur’ [in Readings in LDS Church History: From Original Manuscripts, ed. William E. Berrett and Alma P. Burton, 3 vols. (1965), 2:221].

17. “The battalion marched 2,030 miles southwest to California, suffering from lack of food and water, insufficient rest and medical care, and the rapid pace of the march. They served as occupation troops in San Diego, San Luis Rey, and Los Angeles. At the end of their year’s enlistment, they were discharged and allowed to rejoin their families. Their efforts and loyalty to the United States government gained the respect of those who led them.

18. “After their discharge, many of the battalion members remained in California to work for a season. A number of them found their way north to the American River and were employed at John Sutter’s sawmill when gold was discovered there in 1848, precipitating the famous California Gold Rush. But the Latter-day Saint brethren did not stay in California to capitalize on this opportunity for fortune. Their hearts were with their brothers and sisters struggling westward across the American plains to the Rocky Mountains. One of their number, James S. Brown, explained:

19. “‘I have never seen that rich spot of earth since; nor do I regret it, for there always has been a higher object before me than gold. . . . Some may think we were blind to our own interests; but after more than forty years we look back without regrets, although we did see fortunes in the land, and had many inducements to stay. People said, “Here is gold on the bedrock, gold on the hills, gold in the rills, gold everywhere, . . . and soon you can make an independent fortune.” We could realize all that. Still duty called, our honor was at stake, we had covenanted with each other, there was a principle involved; for with us it was God and His kingdom first. We had friends and relatives in the wilderness, yea, in an untried, desert land, and who knew their condition? We did not. So it was duty before pleasure, before wealth, and with this prompting we rolled out’ [James S. Brown, Giant of the Lord: Life of a Pioneer (1960), 120]. These brethren knew clearly that the kingdom of God was of far greater worth than any material things of this world and chose their course accordingly” (Our Heritage, 72–74).

Understanding the Reading

The Brooklyn Saints

20. “While most Saints moved to the Rocky Mountains by traveling overland from Nauvoo, a group of Saints from the eastern United States traveled a sea route. On 4 February 1846, 70 men, 68 women, and 100 children boarded the ship Brooklyn and sailed from New York harbor on a 17,000-mile journey to the coast of California. During their voyage two children were born, named Atlantic and Pacific, and 12 people died.

21. “The six-month trip was very difficult. The passengers were closely crowded in the heat of the tropics, and they had only bad food and water. After rounding Cape Horn, they stopped on the island of Juan Fernandez to rest for five days. Caroline Augusta Perkins recalled that ‘the sight of and tread upon terra firma once more was such a relief from the ship life, that we gratefully realized and enjoyed it.’ They bathed and washed their clothing in the fresh water, gathered fruit and potatoes, caught fish and eels, and rambled about the island exploring a ‘Robinson Crusoe cave’ [Caroline Augusta Perkins, quoted in “The Ship Brooklyn Saints,” Our Pioneer Heritage (1960), 506].

22. “On 31 July 1846, after a voyage marked by severe storms, dwindling food, and long days of sailing, they arrived at San Francisco. Some stayed and established a colony called New Hope, while others traveled east over the mountains to join with the Saints in the Great Basin” (Our Heritage, 74–75).

Understanding the Reading

The Gathering Continues

23. “From all parts of America and from many nations, by many kinds of conveyances, on horseback or on foot, faithful converts left their homes and birthplaces to join with the Saints and begin the long journey to the Rocky Mountains.

24. “In January 1847, President Brigham Young issued the inspired ‘Word and Will of the Lord concerning the Camp of Israel’ (D&C 136:1), which became the constitution governing the pioneers’ westward movement. Companies were organized and charged to care for the widows and fatherless in their midst. Relations with other people were to be free from evil, covetousness, and contention. The people were to be happy and show their gratitude in music, prayer, and dance. Through President Young, the Lord told the Saints, ‘Go thy way and do as I have told you, and fear not thine enemies’ (D&C 136:17).

25. “As the first pioneer company prepared to leave Winter Quarters, Parley P. Pratt returned from his mission to England and reported that John Taylor was following with a gift from the English Saints. The next day Brother Taylor arrived with tithing money sent by these members to aid the travelers, an evidence of their love and faith. He also brought scientific instruments that proved invaluable in charting the pioneers’ journey and helping them learn about their surroundings. On 15 April 1847 the first company, led by Brigham Young, moved out. Over the next two decades, approximately 62,000 Saints would follow them across the prairies in wagons and handcarts to gather to Zion.

26. “Wonderful sights as well as hardships awaited these travelers on their journey. Joseph Moenor recalled having ‘a hard time’ in getting to the Salt Lake Valley. But he saw things he had never before seen—great herds of buffalo and big cedar trees on the hills. [See Utah Semi-Centennial Commission, The Book of the Pioneers (1897), 2 vols., 2:54; in LDS Church Archives.] Others remembered seeing vast expanses of sunflowers in bloom.

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27. “The Saints also had faith-promoting experiences that lightened the physical demands on their bodies. After a long day of travel and a meal cooked over open fires, men and women gathered in groups to discuss the day’s activities. They talked about gospel principles, sang songs, danced, and prayed together.

28. “Death frequently visited the Saints as they slowly made their way west. On 23 June 1850 the Crandall family numbered fifteen. By the week’s end seven had died of the dreaded plague of cholera. In the next few days five more family members died. Then on 30 June Sister Crandall died in childbirth along with her newborn baby.

29. “Although the Saints suffered much on their journey to the Salt Lake Valley, a spirit of unity, cooperation, and optimism prevailed. Bound together by their faith and commitment to the Lord, they found joy in the midst of their trials” (Our Heritage, 75–76).

Understanding the Reading

This Is the Right Place

30. “On 21 July 1847, Orson Pratt and Erastus Snow of the first pioneer company preceded the emigrants into the Salt Lake Valley. They saw grass so deep that a person could wade through it, promising land for farming, and several creeks that wandered through the valley. Three days later, President Brigham Young, who was ill with mountain fever, was driven in his carriage to the mouth of a canyon that opened onto the valley. As President Young looked over the scene, he gave his prophetic benediction to their travels: ‘It is enough. This is the right place.’

31. “As the Saints who followed emerged from the mountains, they, too, gazed at their promised land! This valley with its salty lake gleaming in the western sun was the object of vision and prophecy, the land of which they and thousands after them dreamed. This was their land of refuge, where they would become a mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains.

32. “Several years later, a convert from England, Jean Rio Griffiths Baker, recorded her feelings as she viewed Salt Lake City for the first time. ‘The city . . . is laid out in squares or blocks as they call them here; each containing ten acres and divided into eight lots, each lot having one house. I stood and looked, I can hardly analyze my feelings, but I think my prevailing ones were joy and gratitude for the protecting care had over me and mine during our long and perilous journey’ [“Jean Rio Griffiths Baker Diary,” 29 Sept. 1851; in LDS Church Archives]” (Our Heritage, 76–77).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do two of the following activities (A–C) as you study “The Trek West (1845–47).”

Write Yourself into the Story

Using the information and stories you have read, write a short story of your life as if you had been among the pioneers who traveled from Nauvoo to the Salt Lake Valley. An outline for your story might include leaving Nauvoo, crossing Iowa, life at Winter Quarters, crossing the Plains, and arriving at the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. Write about experiences that you and your family had, people you met, and places you saw as you journeyed.

Easier Now Than Then?

1. List the dates mentioned in the reading material for “The Trek West (1845–47)” chronologically. Next to each date, list what happened then.

2. Do you think it is easier to live the gospel today than it was in the 1840s? Write a short paragraph explaining why or why not.

Compare the Paths

1. In your notebook, draw a simple map of North and South America. Using the information in your reading and using the maps in the appendix of your scriptures, draw on your map the approximate routes taken by the main body of the Saints, the Mormon Battalion, and the Brooklyn Saints.

2. Which of those three groups of Saints would you like to have traveled with if you had lived back then? Explain why.

Doctrine and Covenants 136
“Let All the People . . . Be Organized into Companies”

On January 11, 1847, nearly a year after leaving Nauvoo, President Brigham Young wrote: “I told the brethren I dreamed of seeing Joseph, the Prophet, last night and conversing with him. . . . Conversed freely about the best manner of organizing companies for emigration, etc.” (Manuscript History of Brigham Young, 1846–1847, comp. Elden J. Watson [1971], 501–2). Three days later, President Young gathered with seven members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at Elder Heber C. Kimball’s home in Winter Quarters, Nebraska. They discussed preparing for their journey into the wilderness. That evening, President Brigham Young received the “Word and Will of the Lord” by revelation and it was announced to the Saints.

Understanding the Scriptures

Studying the Scriptures

Do activity A and activity B or C as you study Doctrine and Covenants 136.

Make a List of Family Rules

Imagine that your family was traveling with the pioneers. From the instructions in Doctrine and Covenants 136:1–32, list 10 family rules you would recommend to your family for the journey. Next to each rule, write the verse where it can be found.

Draw a Chart

Read Doctrine and Covenants 136:3, 12–15 and draw a chart showing how the Saints were to organize themselves for the journey west.

“The Nation That Has Driven You Out”

Find and list at least five teachings from Doctrine and Covenants 136:33–42 that explain why the Prophet Joseph Smith was killed and what would happen in the United States of America because of his death and the persecution of the Saints.

President Brigham Young
Building a Refuge for the Kingdom of God

When the pioneers first arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, it was largely uninhabited and very remote and isolated. Compared with the well-watered farms they left in the east, it was practically a desert. Settling there would require faith and effort, but the Saints believed that with God’s help they could succeed. By the end of 1847, over 2,000 Saints had arrived in the Salt Lake Valley and nearly 12,000 waited to join them from Winter Quarters, Nebraska, and other settlements in Iowa. Under President Brigham Young’s inspired leadership, the Latter-day Saints continued to gather in the Rocky Mountains, conquered the desert, established safe settlements, and courageously took the gospel of Jesus Christ to many nations of the earth.

Establishing the Saints in Utah

1. “Having successfully brought the first company of Saints across the plains to Utah, President Brigham Young now turned his attention to establishing God’s kingdom in the desert. Through his vision and leadership, what was once an empty desert became a thriving civilization and a haven for the Saints. His plainspoken direction helped the Saints imagine the possibilities of their new home and led them forward in their quest to build God’s kingdom.

2. “Two days after the first company’s arrival, Brigham Young and several of the Twelve climbed a round bluff on the mountainside that President Young had seen in vision before leaving Nauvoo. They looked out over the valley’s vast expanse and prophesied that all nations of the world would be welcome in this place and that here the Saints would enjoy prosperity and peace. They named the hill Ensign Peak after the scripture in Isaiah that promised, ‘He shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel’ (Isaiah 11:12). [See Journal of Discourses, 13:85–86.]

3. “President Young’s first public act, on 28 July 1847, was to select a central site for a temple and put men to work planning its design and construction. Placing his cane on the chosen spot he said, ‘Here we shall build a temple to our God.’ This declaration must have comforted the Saints, who only a short time before had been forced to discontinue temple worship when they left Nauvoo.

4. “In August, Church leaders and most of the first pioneer company returned to Winter Quarters to prepare their families to come to the valley the next year. Shortly after they arrived, Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve felt impressed that the time had come to reorganize the First Presidency. As President of the Quorum of the Twelve, Brigham Young was sustained as the President of the Church. He chose Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards as his Counselors, and the Saints unanimously sustained their leaders” (Our Heritage, 81–82).

Understanding the Reading

The First Year in the Valley

5. “Two more companies of Saints arrived in the Salt Lake Valley before the summer of 1847 was over, and the almost 2,000 members were organized into the Salt Lake Stake. Late crops were planted but the harvest was marginal, and by spring many were suffering from lack of food. John R. Young, who was a boy at the time, wrote:

6. “‘By the time the grass began to grow the famine had waxed sore. For several months we had no bread. Beef, milk, pig-weeds, segoes [lily roots], and thistles formed our diet. I was the herd-boy, and while out watching the stock, I used to eat thistle stalks until my stomach would be as full as a cow’s. At last the hunger was so sharp that father took down the old bird-pecked ox-hide from the limb; and it was converted into most delicious soup’ [John R. Young, Memoirs of John R. Young (1920), 64]. The settlers freely cooperated and shared with each other and so were able to survive this difficult time.

7. “By June 1848, the settlers had planted between five and six thousand acres of land, and the valley began to look green and productive. But to the Saints’ dismay, huge hordes of black crickets descended upon the crops. The settlers did everything they could. They dug trenches and turned streams of water on the crickets. They clubbed the insects with sticks and brooms and tried to burn them, but their efforts were useless. The crickets continued to come in seemingly endless numbers. Patriarch John Smith, president of the Salt Lake Stake, called for a day of fasting and prayer. Soon large flocks of seagulls appeared in the sky and descended on the crickets. Susan Noble Grant said of the experience: ‘To our astonishment, the gulls seemed almost ravenous while gobbling down the scrambling, hopping crickets’ [in Carter E. Grant, The Kingdom of God Restored (1955), 446]. The Saints watched in joy and wonderment. Their lives had been saved.

8. “The Saints worked with energy and faith despite their difficult circumstances, and soon they had made great progress. A traveler on his way to California passed through Salt Lake City in September 1849 and paid tribute to them in this way: ‘A more orderly, earnest, industrious and civil people, I have never been among than these, and it is incredible how much they have done here in the wilderness in so short a time. In this city which contains about from four to five thousand inhabitants, I have not met in a citizen a single idler, or any person who looks like a loafer. Their prospects for crops are fair, and there is a spirit and energy in all that you see that cannot be equaled in any city of any size that I have ever been in’ [in B. H. Roberts, Life of John Taylor (1963), 202]” (Our Heritage, 82–83).

Understanding the Reading

Explorations

9. “In the late summer of 1848, President Brigham Young again made the journey from Winter Quarters to the Salt Lake Valley. When he arrived, he realized that the Saints needed to learn what resources were available in their new environment. Much was gained from Indians who lived in the area, but President Young also sent Church members on explorations to discover the medicinal properties of plants and the natural resources available.

10. “He sent other exploring parties to find settlement sites. In their travels these members discovered mineral deposits, abundant timber, water sources, and grasslands, as well as suitable areas for settlement. To guard against land speculation, the prophet warned the Saints against cutting up their assigned property to sell to others. The land was their stewardship and was to be managed wisely and industriously, not for financial gain.

11. “In the fall of 1849, the Perpetual Emigrating Fund was established under the direction of President Young. Its purpose was to assist the poor who did not have the means to travel to join the body of the Church. At great sacrifice, many Saints contributed to the fund, and as a result, thousands of members were able to travel to the Salt Lake Valley. As soon as they were able, those who received help were expected to repay the amount of assistance they had received. These funds were used to help still others. Through this cooperative effort, the Saints blessed the lives of those in need” (Our Heritage, 83–84).

Understanding the Reading

Handcart Pioneers

12. “In the 1850s Church leaders decided to form handcart companies as a way to reduce expenses so that financial aid could be extended to the greatest number of emigrants. Saints who traveled this way put only 100 pounds of flour and a limited quantity of provisions and belongings into a cart and then pulled the cart across the plains. Between 1856 and 1860, ten handcart companies traveled to Utah. Eight of the companies reached the Salt Lake Valley successfully, but two of them, the Martin and Willie handcart companies, were caught in an early winter and many Saints among them perished.

13. “Nellie Pucell, a pioneer in one of these ill-fated companies, turned ten years old on the plains. Both her parents died during the journey. As the group neared the mountains, the weather was bitter cold, the rations were depleted, and the Saints were too weak from hunger to continue on. Nellie and her sister collapsed. When they had almost given up hope, the leader of the company came to them in a wagon. He placed Nellie in the wagon and told Maggie to walk along beside it, holding on to steady herself. Maggie was fortunate because the forced movement saved her from frostbite.

14. “When they reached Salt Lake City and Nellie’s shoes and stockings, which she had worn across the plains, were removed, the skin came off with them as a result of frostbite. This brave girl’s feet were painfully amputated and she walked on her knees the rest of her life. She later married and gave birth to six children, keeping up her own house and raising a fine posterity. [See “Story of Nellie Pucell Unthank,” Heart Throbs of the West, comp. Kate B. Carter, 12 vols. (1939–51), 9:418–20.] Her determination in spite of her situation and the kindness of those who cared for her exemplify the faith and willingness to sacrifice of these early Church members. Their example is a legacy of faith to all Saints who follow them.

15. “A man who crossed the plains in the Martin handcart company lived in Utah for many years. One day he was in a group of people who began sharply criticizing the Church leaders for ever allowing the Saints to cross the plains with no more supplies or protection than a handcart company provided. The old man listened until he could stand no more; then he arose and said with great emotion:

16. “‘I was in that company and my wife was in it. . . . We suffered beyond anything you can imagine and many died of exposure and starvation, but did you ever hear a survivor of that company utter a word of criticism? . . . [We] came through with the absolute knowledge that God lives for we became acquainted with him in our extremities.

17. “‘I have pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from illness and lack of food that I could hardly put one foot ahead of the other. I have looked ahead and seen a patch of sand or a hill slope and I have said, I can go only that far and there I must give up, for I cannot pull the load through it. . . . I have gone on to that sand and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me. I have looked back many times to see who was pushing my cart, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the angels of God were there.

18. “‘Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart? No. Neither then nor any minute of my life since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay, and I am thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcart Company’ [William Palmer, quoted in David O. McKay, “Pioneer Women,” Relief Society Magazine, Jan. 1948, 8].

19. “Our hymnbook contains a song about the early Church members who courageously accepted the gospel and traveled far to live on the outposts of civilization:

20. “They, the builders of the nation,
       Blazing trails along the way;
       Stepping-stones for generations
       Were their deeds of ev’ry day.
       Building new and firm foundations,
       Pushing on the wild frontier,
       Forging onward, ever onward,
       Blessed, honored Pioneer!

21. “Their example teaches us how to live with more faith and courage in our own countries:

22. “Service ever was their watchcry;
       Love became their guiding star;
       Courage, their unfailing beacon,
       Radiating near and far.
       Ev’ry day some burden lifted,
       Ev’ry day some heart to cheer,
       Ev’ry day some hope the brighter,
       Blessed, honored Pioneer! [“They, the Builders of the Nation,” Hymns, no. 36]” (Our Heritage, 77–78, 80).

Understanding the Reading

Missionaries Answer the Call

23. “With the hum of labor and domestic life filling the air, President Brigham Young turned to the concerns of the Church. At the general conference held on 6 October 1849, he assigned several members of the Twelve, along with newly called missionaries, to serve foreign missions. They accepted these calls even though they would leave behind their families, their new homes, and many unfinished tasks. Erastus Snow and several elders opened missionary work in Scandinavia, while Lorenzo Snow and Joseph Toronto traveled to Italy. Addison and Louisa Barnes Pratt returned to Addison’s former field of labor in the Society Islands. John Taylor was called to France and Germany. As the missionaries traveled east, they passed Saints headed to the new Zion in the Rocky Mountains.

24. “In their fields of labor, the missionaries witnessed miracles and baptized many people into the Church. When Lorenzo Snow, who later became President of the Church, was preaching in Italy, he saw a three-year-old boy on the verge of death. He recognized an opportunity to heal the child and open the hearts of the people in the area. That night he prayed long and earnestly for God’s direction, and the following day he and his companion fasted and prayed for the boy. That afternoon they administered to him and offered a silent prayer for help in their labors. The boy slept peacefully all night and was miraculously healed. Word of this healing spread across the valleys of the Piedmont in Italy. The doors were opened to the missionaries, and the first baptisms in the area took place. [See Francis M. Gibbons, Lorenzo Snow: Spiritual Giant, Prophet of God (1982), 64.]

25. “In August 1852, at a special conference held in Salt Lake City, 106 elders were called to go on missions to countries throughout the world. These missionaries, as well as those who were called later, preached the gospel in South America, China, India, Spain, Australia, Hawaii, and the South Pacific. In most of these areas, the missionaries had little initial success. However, they sowed seeds that resulted in many coming into the Church in later missionary efforts.

26. “Elder Edward Stevenson was called to the Gibraltar Mission in Spain. This call meant a return to the place of his birth, where he boldly proclaimed the restored gospel to his countrymen. He was arrested for preaching and spent some time in jail until authorities found he was teaching the guards, almost converting one of them. After his release he baptized two people into the Church and by January 1854 a branch of ten members had been organized. In July, even though six members had left to serve with the British army in Asia, the branch had eighteen members, including one seventy, one elder, one priest, and one teacher, giving the branch the leadership it needed to continue to grow. [See “The Church in Spain and Gibraltar,” Friend, May 1975, 33.]

27. “Local governments in French Polynesia drove the missionaries out in 1852. But the converted Saints kept the Church alive until further proselyting efforts in 1892. Elders Tihoni and Maihea were especially valiant as they endured imprisonment and other ordeals rather than deny their faith. Each of them tried to keep the Saints active and faithful to the gospel. [See R. Lanier Britsch, Unto the Islands of the Sea: A History of the Latter-day Saints in the Pacific (1986), 21–22.]

28. “For those who joined the Church outside the United States, this was a time for gathering to Zion, which meant traveling by boat to America. Elizabeth and Charles Wood sailed in 1860 from South Africa, where they had labored several years to acquire money for their travel. Elizabeth kept house for a wealthy man, and her husband made bricks until they obtained the needed funds. Elizabeth was carried aboard the ship on a bed 24 hours after delivering a son and was given the captain’s berth so she could be more comfortable. She was very ill during the journey, almost dying twice, but lived to settle in Fillmore, Utah.

29. “Missionaries became very dear to the Saints in the countries where they served. Joseph F. Smith, near the end of his mission to Hawaii in 1857, became ill with a high fever that prevented him from working for three months. He was blessed to come under the care of Ma Mahuhii, a faithful Hawaiian Saint. She nursed Joseph as if he were her own son, and a strong bond of love developed between the two. Years later, when he was President of the Church, Joseph F. Smith visited Honolulu and just after his arrival saw an old blind woman being led in with a few choice bananas in her hand as an offering. He heard her call, ‘Iosepa, Iosepa’ (Joseph, Joseph). Immediately he ran to her and hugged and kissed her many times, patting her on the head and saying, ‘Mama, Mama, my dear old Mama.’ [See Charles W. Nibley, “Reminiscences of President Joseph F. Smith,” Improvement Era, Jan. 1919, 193–94.]” (Our Heritage, 84–86).

Understanding the Reading

Callings to Colonize

30. “Many communities in Utah and southern Idaho and later in parts of Arizona, Wyoming, Nevada, and California were founded by individuals and families called at general conferences. President Brigham Young directed the establishment of these communities, where thousands of new settlers could live and farm.

A Few of the 350 Colonies Established During Brigham Young’s Presidency

[click for scalable version]

31. “During his lifetime, all of the Salt Lake Valley and many surrounding areas were colonized. By 1877, when Brigham Young died, more than 350 colonies had been established, and by 1900 there were almost 500. Early Church authority Brigham Henry Roberts noted that the success of Mormon colonization stemmed from ‘the loyalty of the people to their leaders and [their] unselfish and devoted personal sacrifice’ in carrying out their calls from President Young [quoted in Russell R. Rich, Ensign to the Nations (1972), 349]. The colonists sacrificed material comforts, the associations of friends, and sometimes their lives to follow a prophet of the Lord.

32. “At general conference meetings, President Young read the names of those brethren and their families who were being called to move to outlying areas. These colonizers considered that they were being called on missions and knew that they would remain in their assigned locales until they were released. They traveled to their new areas at their own expense and with their own supplies. Their success depended on how well they used the resources at hand. They surveyed and cleared fields, built gristmills, dug irrigation ditches to bring water to the land, fenced pastures for their stock, and built roads. They planted crops and gardens, built churches and schools, and tried to maintain friendly relations with the Indians. They helped each other in sickness, as well as in births, deaths, and weddings.

33. “In 1862 Charles Lowell Walker received a call to settle in southern Utah. He attended a meeting for those who had been called and recorded: ‘Here I learned a principle that I shall not forget in awhile. It showed to me that obedience was a great principle in heaven and on earth. Well, here I have worked for the last seven years through heat and cold, hunger and adverse circumstances, and at last have got me a home, a lot with fruit trees just beginning to bear and look pretty. Well, I must leave it and go and do the will of my Father in Heaven, who overrules all for the good of them that love and fear him. I pray God to give me strength to accomplish that which is required of me in an acceptable manner before him’ [Diary of Charles Lowell Walker, ed. A. Karl Larson and Katharine Miles Larson, 2 vols. (1980), 1:239; spelling and punctuation modernized].

34. “Charles C. Rich, a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, also received a call to colonize. Brigham Young called him and a few other brethren to take their families and settle in the Bear Lake Valley, about 150 miles north of Salt Lake City. The valley was at a high altitude and was very cold with deep snows in the winter. Brother Rich had recently returned from a mission in Europe and was not anxious to move his family and start over again in difficult circumstances. But he accepted the call and in June 1864 arrived in the Bear Lake Valley. The next winter was unusually severe and by spring, some of the other brethren had decided to leave. Brother Rich realized that life would not be easy in this cold climate but said:

35. “‘There have been many hardships. That I admit . . . and these we have shared together. But if you want to go somewhere else, that is your right, and I do not want to deprive you of it. . . . But I must stay here, even if I stay alone. President Young called me here, and here I will remain till he releases me and gives me leave to go.’ Brother Rich and his family did stay, and he became the leader of a thriving community for the next several decades. [See Leonard J. Arrington, Charles C. Rich (1974), 264.] Like thousands of others, he willingly obeyed his leaders in order to help build the kingdom of the Lord” (Our Heritage, 86, 88–89).

Understanding the Reading

Relations with the Indians

36. “As colonists moved further into the frontier, they often had dealings with the Indians. Unlike some settlers of the West, President Brigham Young taught the Saints to feed their native brothers and sisters and try to bring them into the Church. Proselyting efforts among the Indians were tried at Fort Lemhi in the Salmon River region of Idaho Territory and in the Elk Mountain settlement on the upper Colorado in the Utah Territory. President Young also instituted Relief Societies whose members sewed clothing for their Indian brothers and sisters and raised money to help feed them.

37. “When Elizabeth Kane, who was the wife of Thomas L. Kane, a great nonmember friend of the Saints, traveled through Utah, she stayed at the home of a weary Mormon woman. Elizabeth did not think much of the woman until she saw how she treated the Indians. When the woman called her guests to supper, she also spoke a few words to the Indians who were waiting. Elizabeth asked what the woman had said to the Indians and a son in the family told her, ‘These strangers came first, and I have only cooked enough for them; but your meal is on the fire cooking now, and I will call you as soon as it is ready.’ Elizabeth was unbelieving and asked if she really would feed the Indians. The son told her, ‘Mother will serve them just as she does you, and give them a place at her table.’ She did serve them, waiting on them while they ate. [See Elizabeth Wood Kane, Twelve Mormon Homes Visited in Succession on a Journey through Utah to Arizona (1974), 65–66.]” (Our Heritage, 89–90).

Understanding the Reading

Organization of Priesthood and Auxiliary Functions

38. “In his later years, President Young clarified and established some important priesthood responsibilities. He directed the Twelve to hold conferences in every stake. As a result, seven new stakes and 140 new wards were created throughout Utah. The duties of stake presidencies, high councils, bishoprics, and quorum presidencies were clearly defined, and hundreds of men were called to fill these positions. He counseled Church members to put their lives in order and pay their tithing, fast offerings, and other donations.

39. “In 1867 the prophet appointed George Q. Cannon as general superintendent of the Sunday School, and within a few years, the Sunday School was a permanent part of the Church organization. In 1869 President Young began giving formal instruction in modest living to his daughters. He expanded this counsel to all young women in 1870 with the formation of the Retrenchment Association (retrench means to cut back excesses). This was the beginning of the Young Women organization. In July 1877 he traveled to Ogden, Utah, to organize the first stake Relief Society” (Our Heritage, 90).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do three of the following activities (A–D) as you study “President Brigham Young.”

A New Homeland

1. Imagine leading a group of people to establish a new homeland. In your notebook, under the title “My Order,” list the following events in the order in which you would do them:

1. Divide the land among the people

2. Fast and pray to overcome special problems

3. Plant crops

4. Work hard to make progress

5. Identify a place for a temple

6. Organize the Church

7. Establish an inspired plan for the future

2. Review paragraphs 1–11. Then, under the title “The Pioneers’ Order,” list those same events in the order in which President Brigham Young and the Saints did them during their first several months in the Salt Lake Valley.

3. What impressed you about the order in which they were done?

4. How can you apply this example to the priorities you set in your life?

Find Stories that Relate to the Hymn

1. Carefully read the words of the hymn “They, the Builders of the Nation” in paragraphs 20 and 22.

2. Write the following words and phrases in your notebook. Then find a story from the readings in “President Brigham Young” that is an example of each word or phrase and write a one-sentence summary of the story next to the entry on your list.

1. Blazing trails

2. Pushing on the wild frontier

3. Forging onward

4. Service

5. Love

6. Courage

7. Blessed

Draw a Map

1. In your notebook, draw or trace the world map from map 7 in the “Church History Chronology, Maps, and Photographs” section of your scriptures. On your map, mark all of the countries where President Brigham Young sent missionaries (see paragraphs 23–29).

2. Answer the following questions:

1. In which of these countries would you most like to serve a mission? Why?

2. How do you think life changed for the children of those called to serve missions to distant countries?

3. What has been the hardest work the Lord has called you to do? How did your experience help you to grow?

Write a Story

President Brigham Young called many Church members to colonize areas in what is now Utah and its surrounding states. Read paragraphs 30–35 and do the following:

1. List the name of each person who was called to colonize a new community. List a character trait next to the name that you feel best exemplifies that person’s ability to endure a challenging assignment.

2. Look at the picture on page 169 of the family in front of the log home. Imagine you were a member of that family and write a short story describing your feelings when President Brigham Young called you to colonize that area.

The Legacy of President Brigham Young
A Latter-day Moses

Speaking of President Brigham Young, President George Q. Cannon, who was a counselor in the First Presidency, declared: “You go and read the sermons of President Young, and if you do not believe now that he was a Prophet, I think after you have read them you will be sure he was, because he talked as a Prophet to this people concerning their future, and his words were full of godlike wisdom, and he poured them out in a constant stream during his lifetime” (Gospel Truth, 1:328).

President Brigham Young’s Death and Legacy

1. “As a leader, President Brigham Young was practical and energetic. He traveled to the settlements of the Church to instruct and encourage the Saints. By direction and example, he taught members to fulfill their callings in the Church.

2. “In evaluating his life, President Young wrote the following in response to an editor of a New York newspaper:

3. “‘The result of my labors for the past 26 years, briefly summed up, are: The peopling of this Territory by the Latter-day Saints of about 100,000 souls; the founding of over 200 cities, towns and villages inhabited by our people, . . . and the establishment of schools, factories, mills and other institutions calculated to improve and benefit our communities. . . .

4. “‘My whole life is devoted to the Almighty’s service’ [in Hinckley, Truth Restored, 127–28].

5. “In September 1876, President Young bore powerful witness of the Savior: ‘I testify that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world; I have obeyed his sayings, and realized his promise, and the knowledge I have of him, the wisdom of this world cannot give, neither can it take away’ [in Journal of Discourses, 18:233].

6. “In August 1877, President Young fell very ill, and in spite of physicians’ care, died within a week. He was 76 years old and had led the Church for 33 years. Today we remember him as the dynamic prophet who led modern-day Israel to their promised land. His sermons touched on all aspects of daily life, making clear that religion is part of everyday experience. His understanding of the frontier and his sensible guidance inspired his people to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks as with the blessings of heaven they created a kingdom in the desert” (Our Heritage, 90–91).

Understanding the Reading

The Teachings and Testimony of Brigham Young

7. Referring to Matthew 5:48, President Young said: “We can alter the phraseology of the sentence, and say, ‘Be ye as perfect as ye can,’ for that is all we can do, though it is written, be ye perfect as your Father who is in heaven is perfect. . . . When we are doing as well as we know how . . . we are . . . as justified as the angels who are before the throne of God” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 89).

8. Almost three years after the Prophet Joseph Smith died, Brigham Young saw him in a dream or a vision. President Young asked the Prophet if he had a message for the members of the Church. “Joseph stepped toward me, and looking very earnestly, yet pleasantly said, ‘Tell the people to be humble and faithful, and be sure to keep the spirit of the Lord and it will lead them right. Be careful and not turn away the small still voice; it will teach you what to do and where to go. . . . They can tell the Spirit of the Lord from all other spirits; it will whisper peace and joy to their souls; it will take malice, hatred, strife and all evil from their hearts; and their whole desire will be to do good, bring forth righteousness and build up the kingdom of God’ ” (Manuscript History of Brigham Young, 1846–1847, comp. Elden J. Watson [1971], 529).

9. “The worst fear I have about this people is that they will get rich in this country, forget God and His people, wax fat, and kick themselves out of the Church and go to hell. This people will stand mobbing, robbing, poverty, and all manner of persecution and be true. But my greatest fear is that they cannot stand wealth” (quoted in Kimball, Miracle of Forgiveness, 48).

10. “It matters not whether you or I feel like praying, when the time comes to pray, pray. If we do not feel like it, we should pray till we do. . . . You will find that those who wait till the Spirit bids them pray, will never pray much on this earth” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 44).

11. “Do you read the scriptures, my brethren and sisters, as though you were writing them a thousand, two thousand, or five thousand years ago? Do you read them as though you stood in the place of the men who wrote them? If you do not feel thus, it is your privilege to do so, that you may be as familiar with the spirit and meaning of the written word of God as you are with your daily walk and conversation” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 128).

12. “I am more afraid that this people have so much confidence in their leaders that they will not inquire for themselves of God whether they are led by him. I am fearful they settle down in a state of blind self-security, trusting their eternal destiny in the hands of their leaders with a reckless confidence that in itself would thwart the purposes of God in their salvation, and weaken that influence they could give to their leaders, did they know for themselves, by the revelations of Jesus, that they are led in the right way” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 135).

13. “Why do people apostatize? You know we are on the ‘Old Ship Zion.’ We are in the midst of the ocean. A storm comes on, and, as sailors say, she labors very hard. ‘I am not going to stay here,’ says one; ‘I don’t believe this is the “Ship Zion.”’ ‘But we are in the midst of the ocean.’ ‘I don’t care, I am not going to stay here.’ Off goes the coat, and he jumps overboard. Will he not be drowned? Yes. So with those who leave this Church. It is the ‘Old Ship Zion,’ let us stay in it” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 85).

14. “I feel like shouting Hallelujah, all the time, when I think that I ever knew Joseph Smith, the Prophet whom the Lord raised up and ordained, and to whom he gave keys and power to build up the Kingdom of God on earth and sustain it. . . .

15. “Who can justly say aught against Joseph Smith? I was as well acquainted with him, as any man. I do not believe that his father and mother knew him any better than I did. I do not think that a man lives on the earth that knew him any better than I did; and I am bold to say that, Jesus Christ excepted, no better man ever lived or does live upon this earth. I am his witness” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 458–59).

16. “Let the Presidents and Apostles and Elders do the work the Lord has set them to do, and obey the counsel which is given them, and the Kingdom will continue to roll, to increase in strength, in importance, in magnitude and in power, in wisdom, intelligence and glory; and no one need be concerned, for it is the Kingdom which the Lord our God has established, and has sustained by his matchless wisdom and power from the beginning to this day” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 149).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do two of the following activities (A–C) as you study “The Legacy of Brigham Young.”

Questions about Brigham Young

Answer the following questions using the information found in paragraphs 1–6 and the chart on Brigham Young’s life and presidency (p. 165).

1. How old was Brigham Young and how long had he been a member of the Church when he was ordained an Apostle?

2. What did he do while the Prophet Joseph Smith was in Liberty Jail? (see D&C 121 heading).

3. List five blessings you or your family have received because of what was begun in the Church during Brigham Young’s presidency.

In Your Own Words

1. Choose three paragraphs from paragraphs 7, 9, 13–16 and write them in your own words.

2. After each paragraph you write, give an example of a question or problem a person might have that could be answered by that teaching. For example, the teaching in paragraph 10 could help a person who does not feel like praying.

Compare the Statements

1. Read the following scripture passages, and then list the references in a column in your notebook: Daniel 2:44–45; Matthew 5:48; 2 Nephi 32:8–9; Alma 24:30; Doctrine and Covenants 11:12–14.

2. Review paragraphs 7–8, 10, 13, and 16. Write the number of the paragraph that best matches each scripture passage after the reference in your notebook.

President John Taylor
Champion of Liberty

The Saints faced much difficulty in the decades immediately following the death of President Brigham Young. The United States government, with the encouragement and support of many political and religious reform groups, passed laws against the practice of plural marriage. These laws began to be enforced in 1875 as reform groups launched harsh media campaigns against the Church. In spite of intense persecution by government authorities, the Church, under the capable leadership of President John Taylor, continued to grow and expand.

About President John Taylor

1. “After President Brigham Young died, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, presided over by John Taylor, led the Latter-day Saints for three years. On 10 October 1880, John Taylor was sustained as President of the Church. President Taylor was a gifted writer and journalist who published a book on the Atonement and edited some of the Church’s most important periodicals, including the Times and Seasons and the Mormon. On many occasions he displayed his courage and his deep devotion to the restored gospel, including voluntarily joining his brethren in Carthage Jail, where he was shot four times. His personal motto, ‘The kingdom of God or nothing,’ signified his loyalty to God and the Church” (Our Heritage, 93).

Understanding the Reading

Missionary Work

2. “President Taylor was committed to doing all he could to see that the gospel was proclaimed to the ends of the earth. In the October 1879 general conference, he called Moses Thatcher, the Church’s newest Apostle, to begin proselyting in Mexico City, Mexico. Elder Thatcher and two other missionaries organized the first branch of the Church in Mexico City on 13 November 1879, with Dr. Plotino C. Rhodacanaty as the branch president. Dr. Rhodacanaty had been converted after reading a Spanish Book of Mormon pamphlet and writing to President Taylor for additional information about the Church.

3. “With a nucleus of twelve members and three missionaries, the restored gospel began to spread slowly among the Mexican people. On 6 April 1881, Elder Thatcher, Feramorz Young, and a Brother [Páez] hiked to a height of 15,500 feet on Mount Popocatepetl and held a brief dedication service. Kneeling before the Lord, Elder Thatcher dedicated the land of Mexico and its people that they might hear the voice of the Lord, their true shepherd.

4. “Elder Thatcher returned to Salt Lake City and recommended that additional missionaries be called to serve in Mexico. Soon several young men, including Anthony W. Ivins, a future member of the First Presidency, were laboring in Mexico City. As part of the Church’s effort in the Mexican Mission, a Spanish language edition of the Book of Mormon was published in 1886. The story of Meliton Trejo, who helped to translate the Book of Mormon and other Church literature into Spanish, demonstrates how the Lord directs his work.

5. “Meliton Trejo was born in Spain and grew up without settling on any religion. He was serving in the military in the Philippines when he heard a remark about the Mormons in the Rocky Mountains and felt a strong desire to visit them. Later he became very ill and was told in a dream that he must visit Utah. When he recovered, he journeyed to Salt Lake City. He met Brigham Young and investigated the gospel. He became convinced that he had found the truth and became a member of the Church. He served a mission in Mexico and was then prepared, spiritually and intellectually, to play a major role in seeing that Spanish-speaking people could read the Book of Mormon in their own language.

6. “President Taylor also called missionaries to carry the gospel to the Indians living in the American West. Amos Wright’s labors were particularly fruitful among the Shoshone tribe residing on Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation. After having served for only a few months, Wright had baptized more than 300 Indians, including Chief Washakie. Latter-day Saint missionaries also carried the gospel to the Navajos, the Pueblos, and the Zunis living in Arizona and New Mexico. Wilford Woodruff spent a year proselyting among the Indians, including the Hopis, Apaches, and Zunis. Ammon M. Tenney assisted in baptizing more than 100 Zuni Indians.

7. “Missionaries also continued to teach the gospel in England and Europe. In 1883, German-born Thomas Biesinger, who was living in Lehi, Utah, received a call to serve in the European mission. He and Paul Hammer were sent to Prague, Czechoslovakia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. The missionaries were forbidden by law to proselyte and so initiated casual conversations with people they met. These conversations often turned to the subject of religion. After working in this way for only a month, Elder Biesinger was arrested and held in prison for two months. When he gained his freedom, he had the blessing of baptizing Antonín Just, whose accusation had led to his arrest. Brother Just became the first Latter-day Saint residing in Czechoslovakia. [See Kahlile Mehr, “Enduring Believers: Czechoslovakia and the LDS Church, 1884–1990,” Journal of Mormon History (Fall 1992), 112–13.]

8. “The gospel was also preached in Polynesia. Two Hawaiians, Elders Kimo Pelio and Samuela Manoa, were sent to Samoa in 1862. They baptized about 50 people, and Elder Manoa continued to live in Samoa with his converts for the next 25 years. In 1887 Joseph H. Dean of Salt Lake City, Utah, received a call to serve a mission in Samoa. Elder Manoa and his faithful wife opened their home to Elder Dean and his wife, Florence, the first Latter-day Saints from outside Samoa they had seen in more than two decades. Elder Dean soon baptized 14 people into the Church and about a month later delivered his first sermon in the Samoan language. [See R. Lanier Britsch, Unto the Islands of the Sea: A History of the Latter-day Saints in the Pacific (1986), 352–54.] Thus missionary work began anew on the island.

9. “Beginning in 1866, to prevent the spread of leprosy, Hawaiian officials took people suffering from the disease to the Kalaupapa Peninsula on the island of Molokai. In 1873 Jonathan and Kitty Napela, who were Latter-day Saints, were banished there. Only Kitty had the disease, but Jonathan, who had been sealed to her in the Salt Lake Endowment House, would not leave her there alone. Jonathan later contracted the disease, and when he was visited nine years later by a good friend, was hardly recognizable. For some time he presided over the Saints on the peninsula, who by the year 1900 numbered more than 200. Church leaders did not forget the faithful members who suffered from this debilitating disease and frequently visited the branch to care for their spiritual needs. [See Lee G. Cantwell, “The Separating Sickness,” This People (Summer 1995), 58.]” (Our Heritage, 93–96).

Understanding the Reading

The Jubilee Conference

10. “On 6 April 1880, Church members celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the organization of the Church. They called it a Jubilee Year, as the ancient Israelites had named every fiftieth year. President Taylor forgave many of the debts owed to the Church by its needy members. The Church also contributed 300 cows and 2,000 sheep to be distributed among its ‘deserving poor.’ [See Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 5:592.] The Church’s Relief Society sisters donated almost 35,000 bushels of wheat to those in need. President Taylor also urged Church members to forgive individual debt, especially among the distressed. ‘It is the time of Jubilee!’ he declared [Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 5:593]. A spirit of forgiveness and joy was strongly felt among the Latter-day Saints.

11. “The last day of the April 1880 Jubilee general conference was very moving. Eleven of the Twelve Apostles bore their testimonies in the concluding session. Orson Pratt, one of the original members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, spoke about the time when the entire Church had met in the Peter Whitmer Sr. home in Fayette, New York. He recalled the trials, the gatherings, the persecutions, and the afflictions of the Latter-day Saints and felt thankful that he was still ‘numbered with this people.’ Then he bore testimony ‘concerning the great work which the Lord our God has been doing during the last fifty years’ [Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 5:590-91]. Elder Pratt had only a few months left to live and felt joyful that he had endured to the end as a faithful Latter-day Saint.

12. “Two years before the Jubilee celebration, President John Taylor had authorized the establishment of an organization to provide religious instruction to children. The first Primary was begun in Farmington, Utah, about 15 miles north of Salt Lake City, and by the mid-1880s, a Primary had been organized in almost all Latter-day Saint settlements. The Primary has grown to include millions of children throughout the world, who are blessed by the gospel instruction, music, and associations they enjoy each week” (Our Heritage, 96).

Understanding the Reading

Persecution Continues

13. “While working on the translation of the Bible in the early 1830s, the Prophet Joseph Smith became troubled by the fact that Abraham, Jacob, David, and other Old Testament leaders had more than one wife. The Prophet prayed for understanding and learned that at certain times, for specific purposes, following divinely given laws, plural marriage was approved and directed by God. Joseph Smith also learned that with divine approval, some Latter-day Saints would soon be chosen by priesthood authority to marry more than one wife. A number of Latter-day Saints practiced plural marriage in Nauvoo, but a public announcement of this doctrine and practice was not made until the August 1852 general conference in Salt Lake City. At that conference, Elder Orson Pratt, as directed by President Brigham Young, announced that the practice of a man having more than one wife was part of the Lord’s restitution of all things (see Acts 3:19–21).

14. “Many of America’s religious and political leaders became very angry when they learned that Latter-day Saints living in Utah were encouraging a marriage system that they considered immoral and unchristian. A great political crusade was launched against the Church and its members. The United States Congress passed legislation that curbed the freedom of the Latter-day Saints and hurt the Church economically. This legislation ultimately caused officers to arrest and imprison men who had more than one wife and to deny them the right to vote, the right to privacy in their homes, and the enjoyment of other civil liberties. Hundreds of faithful Latter-day Saint men and a few women served time in prisons located in Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Nebraska, Michigan, and South Dakota.

15. “Persecution also became intense for many who accepted callings to preach the gospel, especially in the southern United States. For example, in July 1878 Elder Joseph Standing was brutally murdered while laboring near Rome, Georgia. His companion, the future Apostle Rudger Clawson, only narrowly escaped death. The Saints in Salt Lake City were very affected by the news of Elder Standing’s murder, and thousands of people attended his funeral in the Salt Lake Tabernacle.

16. “Elders John Gibbs, William Berry, William Jones, and Henry Thompson traveled throughout much of Tennessee attempting to change the public’s perception of the Church. They rested one Sabbath morning in August 1884 at the James Condor home near Cane Creek in Tennessee. As Elder Gibbs studied the scriptures looking for a text for his sermon, a mob burst through the forest and began shooting. Elders Gibbs and Berry were killed. Elder Gibbs, a schoolteacher, left a wife and three children mourning his death. Sister Gibbs remained a widow for 43 years and became a midwife to support her children. She died faithful in the gospel, anticipating a joyful reunion with her husband. Brigham Henry Roberts, the acting mission president at the time of the murders, risked his life by going in disguise to exhume the bodies of Gibbs and Berry. He returned the bodies to Utah, where many wards held memorial services in honor of the two elders.

17. “Missionaries in other areas were beaten until blood ran down their backs, and many carried the scars of these whippings to their graves. It was not an easy time to be a member of the Church.

18. “Many Church leaders went into hiding to avoid arrest by federal officers searching for men with more than one wife. Families feared late-night intrusions by these officers. President George Q. Cannon, Lorenzo Snow, Rudger Clawson, Brigham Henry Roberts, George Reynolds, and many others were sent to prison, where they passed the time by writing books, teaching school, and composing letters to their families. President John Taylor was forced to live in exile in Kaysville, Utah, about 20 miles north of Salt Lake City, where he died on 25 July 1887. He was a man of faith and courage who devoted his life to his testimony of Jesus Christ and to the establishment of God’s kingdom on the earth” (Our Heritage, 97–98).

Understanding the Reading

The Teachings and Testimony of John Taylor

19. “Do you have prayers in your family? . . . And when you do, do you go through the operation like the guiding of a piece of machinery, or do you bow in meekness and with a sincere desire to seek the blessing of God upon you and your household? That is the way that we ought to do, and cultivate a spirit of devotion and trust in God, dedicating ourselves to him, and seeking his blessings” (in Journal of Discourses, 21:118).

20. “If you do not magnify your callings, God will hold you responsible for those whom you might have saved had you done your duty” (in Journal of Discourses, 20:23).

21. “There are events in the future, and not very far ahead, that will require all our faith, all our energy, all our confidence, all our trust in God, to enable us to withstand the influences that will be brought to bear against us. . . . We cannot trust in our intelligence; we cannot trust in our wealth; . . . we must trust alone in the living God to guide us, to direct us, to lead us, to teach us and to instruct us” (quoted in Joseph Fielding Smith, Essentials in Church History, 23rd ed. [1969], 479).

22. “There is nothing that makes things go so well among the saints of God as living their religion and keeping the commandments of God, and when they don’t do that, then things go awkward and cross and every other way; but the right way; but when they live their religion and keep the commandments, ‘their peace flows as a river, and their righteousness as the waves of the seas’” (in Journal of Discourses, 26:71).

23. “If any man wishes to introduce peace into his family or among his friends, let him cultivate it in his own bosom; for sterling peace can only be had according to the legitimate rule and authority of heaven, and obedience to its laws” (The Gospel Kingdom: Selections from the Writings and Discourses of John Taylor, sel. G. Homer Durham [1943], 319).

24. “A man cannot speak aright unless he speaks under the inspiration of the Almighty; and then the people cannot hear aright, nor understand aright unless they have a portion of the same Spirit” (Gospel Kingdom, 337–38).

25. In an April 1885 letter read in general conference, the First Presidency stated: “We solemnly testify to the Latter-day Saints and to the world, as we have done so often in the past, that God has established His Zion, and His work will roll forth, and that all those who fight against it will perish” (in James R. Clark, comp., Messages of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 6 vols. [1965–75], 3:12).

26. “I feel an anxious desire to deliver this testimony. I feel the word of the Lord like fire in my bones and am desirous to have an opportunity of proclaiming to you those blessings that you are looking for, that you may rejoice with us in those glorious things which God has revealed for the salvation of the world in the last days” (in B. H. Roberts, The Life of John Taylor (1963), 78).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do activity A or B and activity C or D as you study “President John Taylor.”

Write a News Report

From 1860 to 1900, political and religious groups in the United States persecuted the Saints and tried to destroy the Church. Despite these trials, missionary and temple work continued to progress. Based on your reading of “President John Taylor,” write a newspaper article describing the growth of the Church that occurred during his presidency. In your article, address the following questions:

1. In which countries of the world did the missionaries find new success?

2. What work was being done on temples at this time?

3. How many Church members do you predict there will be 40 years from now?

4. Why do you think people try to stop the work of the Lord from progressing?

Reasons for Rejoicing

From what you learn in paragraphs 10–11, complete the following assignments:

1. Explain why President John Taylor called the year 1880 the “Jubilee Year.”

2. List the ways the Church had changed from 1830 to 1880.

3. List what the Church and the members did to show their happiness.

4. List at least two ways the Church has grown in your lifetime and explain why you feel to rejoice in the gospel.

The Life and Presidency of John Taylor

1. Study Doctrine and Covenants 118:1, 6; 124:127–29; 135 heading, 1–2; 138:53–56. List what you learn about President Taylor from each of those passages.

2. From the information in the chart on President Taylor’s life and presidency (pp. 173–74) and paragraphs 1, 12, and 18, answer the following questions:

1. How old was John Taylor when he was baptized? When he was wounded at Carthage Jail? When President Brigham Young died? When he died?

2. What was his position in the Church when the Primary was organized?

3. What two important events happened at the October 1880 general conference?

Follow His Example

For each of paragraphs 19–26, write something that a member of the Church might do today to apply the teachings and counsel of President John Taylor.

President Wilford Woodruff
The Manifesto

When President Wilford Woodruff announced an end to plural marriage, much of the governmental crusade against the Church ceased. Utah became a state with full representation in the United States government, and the Salt Lake Temple was finally completed and dedicated. However, the negative media campaign in the local and national newspapers continued to seek to discredit the Church and its members.

About President Wilford Woodruff

1. “Wilford Woodruff was one of the Church’s most successful missionaries and was also known for his prophetic insights and loyalty to the Church. He kept meticulous journals, which provide much information about the early history of the Church. He was serving as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles when John Taylor died, and almost two years later he was sustained as the President of the Church.

2. “During his administration, the political crusade against the Latter-day Saints intensified, but the Church moved forward. Temples were operating in three Utah towns—St. George, Logan, and Manti—and the Salt Lake Temple was nearing completion. These houses of the Lord enabled thousands of Saints to obtain their endowments and do ordinance work for their kindred dead. President Woodruff had a lifelong interest in temple and family history work. He admonished the Saints on many occasions to perform ordinances in the temple for their ancestors.

3. “The following incident emphasizes the importance of the work the Saints were performing for the dead. In May 1884, Bishop Henry Ballard of the Logan Second Ward was signing temple recommends at his home. Henry’s nine-year-old daughter, who was talking with friends on the sidewalk near her home, saw two elderly men approaching. They called to her, handed her a newspaper, and told her to take it to her father.

4. “The girl did as she was asked. Bishop Ballard saw that the paper, the Newbury Weekly News, published in England, contained the names of more than 60 of his and his father’s acquaintances, along with genealogical information. This newspaper, dated 15 May 1884, had been given to him only three days after it was printed. In a time long before air transportation, when mail took several weeks to get from England to western America, this was a miracle.

5. “The next day, Bishop Ballard took the newspaper to the temple and told the story of its arrival to Marriner W. Merrill, the temple president. President Merrill declared, ‘Brother Ballard, someone on the other side is anxious for their work to be done and they knew that you would do it if this paper got into your hands.’ [See Melvin J. Ballard: Crusader for Righteousness (1966), 16–17.] This newspaper is preserved in the Church Historical Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

6. “In spite of persecution, Church leaders still encouraged the colonization of unsettled areas in America’s west. Beginning in 1885, many Latter-day Saint families settled in Sonora and Chihuahua, Mexico, establishing such towns as Colonia Juárez and Colonia Díaz. Other areas in northern Mexico also received immigrant Church members.

7. “Church members also looked north to Canada for a place to colonize. Charles O. Card, who served as president of the Cache Valley Stake, founded a Latter-day Saint community in southern Alberta in 1886. By the winter of 1888, more than 100 Latter-day Saints lived in western Canada, and more came during the 1890s, providing the labor to construct an irrigation system and a railroad. Many Church leaders matured in Alberta” (Our Heritage, 98–100).

Understanding the Reading

The Manifesto

8. “As the 1880s drew to a close, the United States government passed additional laws that deprived those who practiced plural marriage of the right to vote and serve on juries and severely restricted the amount of property the Church could own. Latter-day Saint families suffered as even more fathers went into hiding. President Woodruff pleaded with the Lord for guidance. On the evening of 23 September 1890, the prophet, acting under inspiration, wrote the Manifesto, a document that ended plural marriage for Church members. The Lord showed President Woodruff in vision that unless the practice of plural marriage was ended, the United States government would take over the temples, thus ending work for the living and the dead.

9. “On 24 September 1890, the First Presidency and the Quorum of Twelve Apostles sustained the Manifesto. The Saints approved it in the October 1890 general conference. Today this document is included in the Doctrine and Covenants as Official Declaration 1.

10. “Following the Church’s action, federal officials issued pardons to Latter-day Saint men convicted of violating the antipolygamy laws and much of the persecution stopped. But, as President Woodruff explained: ‘I should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I should have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do; and when the hour came that I was commanded to do that, it was all clear to me. I went before the Lord, and I wrote what the Lord told me to write’ (“Excerpts from Three Addresses by President Wilford Woodruff Regarding the Manifesto,” included after Official Declaration 1). God, not the United States Congress, brought about the official discontinuance of plural marriage” (Our Heritage, 100–101).

Understanding the Reading

The Genealogical Society

11. “Long before the Latter-day Saints founded a genealogical society, Church members gathered records documenting the lives of their dead ancestors. Wilford Woodruff, Orson Pratt, and Heber J. Grant are among those who obtained the names of thousands of ancestors for whom they performed temple ordinances. In 1894, the First Presidency directed that a genealogical society be organized with Elder Franklin D. Richards as its first leader. A library was established, and representatives of the society went throughout the world in search of names of people for whom temple ordinances could be performed. This society led to the creation of the Family History Department of the Church.

12. “During the April 1894 general conference, President Woodruff announced that he had received a revelation about genealogical work. He declared that God wanted the Latter-day Saints ‘to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have the children sealed to their parents and run this chain through as far as you can get it. . . . This is the will of the Lord to his people,’ he said, ‘and I think when you come to reflect upon it you will find it to be true’ [in Clark, comp., Messages of the First Presidency, 3:256–57]. Latter-day Saints are still encouraged to seek out the records of their deceased ancestors and perform temple ordinances in their behalf.

13. “From 1885 to 1900, many Church members served genealogical missions. They were invited to Salt Lake City to receive a blessing for their mission from a General Authority. They were also provided with a missionary card and a letter of appointment. They visited relatives, recorded names from gravestones, and studied parish records and family Bibles, returning to their homes with valuable information that allowed temple work to be performed. Many missionaries reported spiritual experiences that gave them the firm assurance that the Lord was with them and often directed them to a needed source or relative. [See James B. Allen, Jessie L. Embry, Kahlile B. Mehr, Hearts Turned to the Fathers: A History of the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1894–1994 (1995), 39–41.]” (Our Heritage, 101–2).

Understanding the Reading

Dedication of the Salt Lake Temple

14. “President Wilford Woodruff devoted much of his life to temple work. He was the first president of the St. George Temple, and he dedicated the Manti Temple. Now, 40 years after the cornerstone of the Salt Lake Temple was laid, President Woodruff awaited with great anticipation the dedication of this landmark temple. Dedicatory services were held from 6 April to 18 May 1893, and approximately 75,000 people attended. [See Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 6:236.]

15. “Following the initial dedicatory service on 6 April, President Woodruff wrote in his journal: ‘The spirit and power of God rested upon us. The spirit of prophecy and revelation was upon us and the hearts of the people were melted and many things were unfolded to us’ [“Wilford Woodruff Journals” (1833–98), Apr. 6, 1893; in LDS Church Archives; spelling and punctuation modernized]. Some Latter-day Saints saw angels, while others saw past Presidents of the Church and other deceased Church leaders [see Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Every Stone a Sermon (1992), 71, 75, 80].

16. “When President Woodruff celebrated his ninetieth birthday, thousands of Sunday School children filled the Tabernacle on Temple Square to honor him. He was deeply moved and, speaking with great emotion, told his young audience that when he was ten years of age he attended a Protestant Sunday School and read about apostles and prophets. When he returned home, he prayed that he might live long enough to see apostles and prophets once more on the earth. Now he stood in the presence of men who were both apostles and prophets; his prayer had been answered many times over. [See Matthias F. Cowley, Wilford Woodruff (1909), 602.]

17. “A year later on 2 September 1898, President Woodruff died while visiting in San Francisco” (Our Heritage, 102).

Understanding the Reading

The Teachings and Testimony of Wilford Woodruff

18. “We want the Latter-day Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it” (The Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, ed. G. Homer Durham [1990], 157).

19. “I feel to exhort and counsel you, my young friends, to listen to the voice of God and obey it while young, as Samuel did, that you may be great, good, and useful, and the beloved of the Lord and your parents and by all good men. Obey your parents and honor them, for by doing this you will obtain those great blessings which God has promised you. . . .

20. “. . . You are now laying a foundation in the bloom and beauty of youth and in the morning of your days to step forth upon the stage of life to act a conspicuous part in the midst of the most important dispensation and generation in which man has ever lived. And I can say in truth and safety that the result of your future lives, the influence which you will exert among man, and finally your eternal destiny for time and eternity, will in a great measure depend upon the foundation which you lay in the days of your youth” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, 265–66).

21. “There are two powers on the earth and in the midst of the inhabitants of the earth—the power of God and the power of the devil. In our history we have had some very peculiar experiences. When God has had a people on the earth, it matters not in what age, Lucifer, the son of the morning, and the millions of fallen spirits that were cast out of heaven, have warred against God, against Christ, against the work of God, and against the people of God. And they are not backward in doing it in our day and generation. Whenever the Lord set his hand to perform any work, those powers labored to overthrow it” (“Remarks Made at the General Conference on the Afternoon of Monday, October 5, 1896, in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City,” Deseret Evening News, Oct. 17, 1896, 9).

22. “We are living in one of the most important generations that man ever lived on Earth and we should write an account of those important transactions which are taking place before our Eyes in fulfillment of the prophecies and the revelation of God” (Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 1833–1898 Typescript, ed. Scott G. Kenney, 9 vols. [1983–85], 4:444; spelling modernized).

23. “Put your trust in God and rely on his promises, living up to the light and knowledge you possess; and all will be well with you whether living or dying” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, 260).

24. “I have always looked upon the life of our Savior—who descended beneath all things that He might rise above all things—as an example for His followers. . . . There is something about all this that appears sorrowful; but it seemed necessary for the Savior to descend below all things that he might ascend above all things” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, 4).

25. “I have been blessed at times with certain gifts and graces, certain revelations and ministrations; but with them all I have never found anything that I could place more dependency upon than the still small voice of the Holy Ghost” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, 45).

Understanding the Reading

Studying the Reading

Do two of the following activities (A–C) as you study “President Wilford Woodruff.”

Explain It to a Friend

The Church discontinued the practice of plural marriage more than 100 years ago. However, some people still misunderstand that doctrine and ask questions about it today. Study paragraphs 8–10 and write what you would say to a friend who asked you to explain plural marriage. Include some details about the history of the Church and your feelings about having modern prophets.

Study President Woodruff’s Life

1. Study Doctrine and Covenants 118:1, 6; 124:127–29; 136:13; 138:53; and Official Declaration 1. List what you learn about Wilford Woodruff from each of those scriptures.

2. Study paragraphs 1–7, 11–17 and the information in the chart about his life and presidency (p. 178). List what you think he should be remembered for and briefly explain why you think we should remember each of them.

Teachings of President Woodruff

President Wilford Woodruff taught: “If you do your duty, and I do my duty, we’ll have protection, and shall pass through the afflictions in peace and in safety” (in “A Remarkable Statement,” Improvement Era, Oct. 1914, 1165). Study paragraphs 18–25 and do the following:

1. List what President Woodruff said Church members have a duty to do.

2. Choose three duties from your list and briefly write how you could do each one better.

Official Declaration 1 and “Excerpts from Three Addresses . . .”
The Lord Ends the Practice of Plural Marriage

The Church began the practice of plural marriage after the Lord revealed it to the Prophet Joseph Smith (see D&C 132:1–6). Because of the intense persecution and the laws that were passed by the United States government against plural marriage, President Wilford Woodruff asked the Lord what the Church should do. He later said:

“The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. . . .

“. . . I [would] have let all the temples go out of our hands; I [would] have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do. . . . I went before the Lord, and I wrote what the Lord told me to write” (“Excerpts from Three Addresses by President Wilford Woodruff Regarding the Manifesto” [included after Official Declaration 1], paragraphs 6–7). The revelation he received was presented to and sustained by the members of the Church. It was called the “Manifesto” and now has the title “Official Declaration 1.” It follows Doctrine and Covenants 138.

Understanding the Scriptures

Studying the Scriptures

Do activity A or B as you study Official Declaration 1.

Teach a Lesson

Imagine you are to give a lesson about Official Declaration 1 and the excerpts from addresses printed with it in the scriptures. Write what you would teach about President Wilford Woodruff’s announcement and include answers to the following questions:

1. What did the Lord reveal to President Woodruff about plural marriage?

2. How could the message of President Lorenzo Snow, then a counselor in the First Presidency, help the Saints to accept this revelation?

3. Why is it important that Church members follow the living prophet?

4. How do you feel about the promise President Woodruff gave in the first paragraph of “Excerpts from Three Addresses . . .”?

Give an Explanation

Study Doctrine and Covenants 124:49–50 and briefly explain how this scripture can apply to the practice of plural marriage at the time of President Wilford Woodruff.