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Duane E. Jeffery collection

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 8432

Scope and Contents

Materials consist of items collected by Duane E. Jeffery. Includes original and photocopied correspondence between A.W. Babbit and the high council of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints about Babbitt's church membership and conduct (1851), a photocopy of an excerpt of a manuscript titled Book of Sundays by J.P. Greene (1837), and a legal divorce document for Leah Frances Clawson (1848). There are also postcards that depict scenes from The Book of Mormon and other Church history sites (1910-1968). Dated 1837-1968.

Dates

  • 1837-1968

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 Duane E. Jeffery collection must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical History

Duane E. Jeffery (1937-) is a zoologist, geneticist, and a retired professor of Brigham Young University.

Duane Eldro Jeffery was born on September 28, 1937 in Delta, Utah. He graduated from Utah State University with a bachelors in Wildlife Management. Jeffery attended graduate school at University of California in Berkeley where he studied fruit flies. In 1966 and 1969 he earned an MA and PhD in Zoology-Genetics. After graduation, Jeffery joined the Brigham Young University (BYU) faculty (1969) and became a full professor in 1988. His research at BYU focused on evolutionary genetics. He has authored books and articles about evolution and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His most well-known book is Mormonism and Evolution: The Authoritative LDS Statements, which he co-authored with William Evenson. Jeffrey is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the National Center for Science Education--a position he has held since 1994. He retired from BYU in 2009. He and his wife, Kaye, have three children together.

As of 2009, he lives with his wife, Kaye, in American Fork, Utah.

Biographical History

Almon W. Babbitt (1813-1856) was a member of high councils in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, politician, and postmaster.

Almon Whiting Babbitt was born on October 9, 1813, in Cheshire, Massachussetts, to parents Ira Babbitt and Nancy Crosier. In 1830, he was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; soon after, in 1831 and 1833 respectively, he served two missions to New York. On November 23, 1833, he married Julia Ann Johnson in Kirtland, Ohio. Soon after his marriage, Babbitt joined Zion's Camp and went to Missouri in 1834. He was appointed as a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy in 1835 and served another mission to Canada in 1837. He was also appointed as president of Kirtland stake in 1840.

After being disfellowshipped in 1841, Babbitt's fellowship was restored in 1843 and he was appointed to high profile callings and leadership positions in Illinois, such as being commander of the Ramus militia or being a member of the Council of the Fifty. In 1846 he became the postmaster of Nauvoo, Illinois. Babbitt and his family migrated to the Salt Lake Valley in 1849 where Babbitt was succesful in local politics. He was elected as a delegate to U.S. Congress for the state of Deseret in 1849 and was also appointed as secretary of Utah Territory in 1852. However, Babbitt's relations with the Church soon soured and he was disfellowshipped in 1849 and 1851. He was excommunicated from the Church in May 1854.

Babbitt was killed in September 1856 at Ash Hollow, Nebraska Territory.

Biographical History

John P. Greene (1793-1844) was a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the city marshall for Nauvoo, Illinois.

John Portineus Greene was born on September 3, 1793, in Herkimer, New York, to parents John Coddington Greene and Anna Chapman. He married Rhoda Young in 1813 and they had six children together. He was raised as a Methodist and eventually founded the Methodist Protestant Church. However, in April 1832, while living in Mendon, New York, he chose to be baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After his baptism, he organized a branch of the Church in Warsaw, New York. During his time he served missions throughout the eastern United States from 1835 to 1836 and one in Canada in 1837.

In 1838, he moved to Missouri, joined the Caldwell Co. militia, and fought in the Battle of Crooked River. After this he moved to Nauvoo, Illinois, and he served another mission to Ohio, Pennsylvannia, and New York. In 1841, he married Mary Eliza Nelson in Nauvoo, Illinois, and they had one child. Greene was a member of the Nauvoo Masonic Lodge and the Nauvoo Legion. In December 1843, he was elected as Nauvoo's city marshall; it was under this capacity that he carried out Joseph Smith's orders to suppress the Nauvoo Expositor press on June 10, 1844.

Greene died in Nauvoo on September 10, 1844.

Extent

5 folders (0.25 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Custodial History

Duane E. Jeffery, a science professor at Brigham Young University, collected the items and donated them to L. Tom Perry Special Collections. Date of donation is unknown.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated; Duane E. Jeffery; date unknown.

Appraisal

LDS cultural, social, and religious history (19th Century Mormon and Western Manuscripts collection development policy 1.V, November 2013).

Processing Information

Processed; Zoë Brimhall, student manuscript processor, and Ryan K. Lee, curator; 2014.

Title
Register of Duane E. Jeffery collection
Status
In Progress
Author
Zoë Brimhall
Date
2014 April 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