Ricks, Joel, 1858-1944
Dates
- Existence: 1858 - 1944
Biographical History
Joel Ricks was born in Farmington, Utah, on July 21, 1858, to Joel Ricks, Sr. and Sarah Beriah Fiske Allen Ricks. The Ricks family moved to Cache Valley, in 1859, to settle in Logan. In 1881, Joel, Jr. married Susette Cardon with whom he had eight children. He spent his working life as a telegrapher for the Utah Northern Denver, Rio Grande Western, and Union Pacific Railroads. He also served as the station agent at many of his posts. While living at Castle Dale, Utah, in 1895, he was elected to represent the people of Sevier County as one of the 105 delegates to the first Constitutional Convention of the new State of Utah. Mr. Ricks made a lifelong study of the Book of Mormon. He traveled through Arizona to Mexico, in 1893, to explore the possible geographical sights of the Book of Mormon lands. In addition, he made the first of four trips to Columbia, South America, in 1903, for the purpose of conducting personal research. He was the author of four books and several pamphlets on Book of Mormon subjects and had published several maps on what he believed to be significant material relating to them. He was a historian of great ability. Later in his life, Joel, Jr. worked as a genealogist for his family for the Utah Genealogical Society, extracting thousands of marriage bonds in Virginia. He collected and wrote stories of the living pioneers in Cache Valley in 1923-1924. These stories were printed in the local newspaper. Joel Ricks, Jr. died in River Heights, Utah, on November 23, 1944, and is buried in the Logan City Cemetery.
Found in 20 Collections and/or Records:
Early recollections of Logan
Joel Ricks certificates, ribbons, cards, and other miscellaneous material, undated
Awards won by Joel Ricks.
Joel Ricks correspondence, undated
Letters between Joel Ricks and others.
Joel Ricks family history materials, undated
Genealogy materials of Ricks' family.
Joel Ricks fictional writings, undated
Ficitonal works by Joel Ricks.
Joel Ricks fools' gold, undated
Fools gold that Ricks collected.
Joel Ricks journals, bulk 1874-1909
Journals kept by Joel Ricks.
Joel Ricks minute book of young people's testimonial meeting, 1875-1881
Contains a photocopy of the minute book Joel Ricks helped keep in his youth group.
Joel Ricks notes and miscellaneous writings, undated
Contains three notebooks of reearch notes written by Ricks about Book of Mormon geography and other research on the Book of Mormon. One notebook includes hand-drawn maps by Ricks of potential Book of Mormon sites in North and South America.
Joel Ricks photographs, undated
Photographs belonging to Ricks.
Additional filters:
- Type
- Archival Object 15
- Collection 5
- Subject
- Material Types 18
- Logan (Utah) -- History 17
- Photographs 4
- Articles 3
- Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.) 2
- Diaries 2
- Letters 2
- Minutes (Records) 2
- Arizona 1
- Awards 1
- Book of Mormon -- Antiquities 1
- Book of Mormon -- Geography 1
- Book of Mormon stories 1
- Books 1
- Cache County (Utah) -- History 1
- Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho) -- History 1
- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints 1
- Colombia -- Photographs 1
- Columbia -- Antiquities 1
- Columbia -- Description and travel 1
- Excavations (Archaeology) -- Central America -- Photographs 1
- Excavations (Archaeology) -- South America -- Photographs 1
- Fiction 1
- Genealogies 1
- Images 1
- Immigration and American Expansion 1
- Latter Day Saint churches -- Missions -- Missouri -- History 1
- Latter Day Saints -- Biography 1
- Literature 1
- Logan (Utah) 1
- Manuscripts, American 1
- Missions and Missionaries 1
- Notes 1
- Pamphlets -- North Carolina -- Rocky Mount 1
- Pioneers 1
- Pioneers -- Utah -- Biography -- Logan 1
- Pioneers -- Utah -- Cache Valley -- Biography 1
- Postcards -- Utah 1
- Pyrites 1
- Rocky Mount (N.C.) 1
- Saint Louis (Mo.) 1
- Scrapbooks 1
- South America 1
- South America -- Antiquities 1
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Photographs 1
- Virginia 1 + ∧ less