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Typescript copy of Benjamin F. Johnson letter to George Snow Gibbs

 Collection — Folder: 1
Identifier: MSS 8915

Content Description

Contains a typescript of a 1903 letter from Benjamin F. Johnson, who was in Mesa, Arizona, to George Snow Gibbs in Salt Lake City, Utah, written in response to a request from Gibbs to have Johnson relate some of his early experiences in the Church, particularly with reference to his associations with Joseph Smith. Topics covered by Johnson include plural marriage and its effect on the members of the Church; Joseph Smith's charge to the Twelve Apostles before his death, causes for persecution of the Saints; changes to the Church since its inception; impressions and testimony of Brigham Young; and the purpose and object of the Mormon Battalion. Includes an introduction and summary by Charles S. Sellers, who owned the original and made the typescript. The typescript is dated 1911.

Dates

  • 1911

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Open for public research.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from the Benjamin F. Johnson letter to George Snow Gibbs must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Coordinating Committee.

Biographical History

Benjamin F. Johnson (1818-1905) was an early Mormon pioneer and active in early Utah government.

Benjamin F. (Benjamin Franklin) Johnson was born on July 28, 2017 in Pomfret, New York. He was the tenth of Ezekiel Johnson and Julia Hills' sixteen children. He was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at age thirteen and migrated to Kirtland, Ohio soon after in 1833. There he began a close friendship with Joseph Smith, Jr. that lasted until Joseph's death. He went on to serve his first mission for the Church in 1840 to the Eastern States and Canada.

Johnson traveled with the early members of the Church to Nauvoo, Illinois, and then to Salt Lake City, Utah in 1848, where he lived for four years before being called to found a settlement in Santaquin, Utah, and then to serve a mission in Hawaii. During his time in Utah he served fourteen terms on the Utah State legislature and was one of the framers of the Utah constitution.

Johnson moved with his family to Mesa, Arizona in 1892, where he died on November 18, 1905.

Biographical History

George Snow Gibbs (1879-1942) was an educator and a director of the psychological clinic of the Salt Lake City Board of Education.

Gibbs was born on March 14, 1879 to George F. Gibbs and Ida Snow Gibbs in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the grandson of Lorenzo Snow, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While attending Stanford University, he was awarded the Rhodes scholarship to Oxford, England. He later worked as an educator in California and Utah before becoming director of psychological clinic for the Salt Lake City Board of Education.

George Snow Gibbs married LaVerne McBride in 1907, and the couple had three children. He died on October 29, 1942.

Extent

1 folder (0.1 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Custodial History

Found in Chad J. Flake's files, passed down to Scott Duvall, in 2016.

Appraisal

Utah and the American West and LDS cultural, family, social, intellectual, and religious history (19th Century Mormon and Western Manuscripts collection development policy IV.a.i.1 and 4, November 2013).

Processing Information

Processed; Elizabeth Kane, student manuscript processor, and Ryan K. Lee, curator; 2017.

Title
Register of Benjamin F. Johnson letter to George Snow Gibbs
Status
Completed
Author
Elizabeth Kane
Date
2017 February 17
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States