History of the Church
Timeline of Selected Events in Church History
1805, 23 December
Joseph Smith Jr. is born in Sharon, Vermont.
1820, spring
Joseph Smith sees God the Father and Jesus Christ near his home in Palmyra Township, New York. (This event has since come to be known as the First Vision by Church members.)
Continued
Description
Joseph Smith, the first president of the Church, organized the new religion on 6 April 1830 in Fayette Township, New York.
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1827, 22 September
Joseph Smith obtains a set of gold plates, from which he would translate the Book of Mormon, from an angel named Moroni at a hill near Palmyra.
1829, 15 May
John the Baptist confers the Aaronic Priesthood on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, Harmony, Pennsylvania.
1829, May-June
Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery receive the Melchizedek Priesthood from the ancient apostles Peter, James and John near the Susquehanna River between Harmony, Pennsylvania, and Colesville, New York.
1829, June
Translation of the Book of Mormon is completed. Several witnesses are allowed to see the gold plates.
1830, 26 March
The first edition of the Book of Mormon is published.
1830, 6 April
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is organized, Fayette Township, New York.
1835, 14 February
The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is organized, Kirtland, Ohio.
1835, 17 August
The Doctrine and Covenants is accepted as part of the scriptural canon of the Church, Kirtland, Ohio.
1836, 27 March
The Kirtland, Ohio, temple is dedicated. This is the first Latter-day Saint temple. (The temple is now owned by the Community of Christ and is no longer used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.)
1837, 19 July
Missionaries arrive in the British Isles. This is the first Latter-day Saint mission outside of North America.
1842, 17 March
The Relief Society is organized, Nauvoo, Illinois.
1844, 27 June
Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum are murdered while imprisoned in a jail in Carthage, Illinois. Both men had been arrested under false charges.
1846, 4 February
Latter-day Saints living in Nauvoo begin crossing the Mississippi River to move west. Some Latter-day Saints sail from New York City for California on the ship Brooklyn.
1846, 30 April
The Nauvoo Temple is dedicated, becoming the second Latter-day Saint temple. (The temple was later destroyed by fire and a tornado. A temple was rebuilt on the same site in 2002.)
1847, 24 July
Brigham Young enters the Salt Lake Valley.
1847, 27 December
A Church conference sustains President Brigham Young, Elder Heber C. Kimball and Elder Willard Richards as the First Presidency.
1851
The Book of Mormon is published in Danish, the first foreign-language edition.
1869, 28 November
The Young Ladies’ Department of the Cooperative Retrenchment Association, the forerunner of the Young Women program, is organized.
1875, 10 June
The Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Association, the forerunner of the Young Men program, is organized.
1877, 6 April
The St. George, Utah, temple, the first temple built in Utah, is dedicated. (The temple is still in use today.)
1877, 29 August
President Brigham Young dies.
1878, 25 August
Aurelia Spencer Rogers holds the first meeting of the Primary — the Church’s children organization — in Farmington, Utah.
1878, 16 October
Brigham Young Academy is established, Provo, Utah. (In 1903, the name was changed to Brigham Young University.)
1880, 10 October
John Taylor becomes president of the Church. Also, the Pearl of Great Price is accepted as part of the scriptural canon.
1887, 25 July
President John Taylor dies.
1889, 7 April
Wilford Woodruff becomes president of the Church.
1890, 6 October
The “Manifesto” is sustained in general conference, ending the practice of plural marriage (found in Doctrine and Covenants, Official Declaration 1).
1893, 6 April
The Salt Lake Temple is dedicated after 40 years of construction.
1898, 2 September
President Wilford Woodruff dies.
1898, 13 September
Lorenzo Snow becomes president of the Church.
1899, May
President Lorenzo Snow receives a revelation in St. George, Utah, prompting him to emphasize tithing — the principle under which members give 10 percent of their earnings to the Church.
1900
Missionary training courses are organized to teach prospective missionaries at local stakes surrounding Salt Lake City.
1901, 10 October
President Lorenzo Snow dies.
1901, 17 October
Joseph F. Smith becomes president of the Church.
1912
The seminary program is established, with seminaries located in buildings adjacent to public high schools, Salt Lake City.
1918, 19 November
President Joseph F. Smith dies.
1918, 23 November
Heber J. Grant becomes president of the Church.
1923, 26 August
The Cardston Alberta Temple is dedicated, making it the first Latter-day Saint temple built outside of the United States.
1924, October
KSL Radio begins broadcasting general conference.
1926, fall
The first institute of religion classes are held at the University of Idaho.
1929, 15 July
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir’s first weekly broadcast of Music and the Spoken Word airs.
1936, April
The Church security program is instituted to assist poor during the Great Depression. (This later became the Church welfare program.)
1945, 14 May
President Heber J. Grant dies.
1945, 21 May
George Albert Smith becomes president of the Church.
1947
Church membership reaches one million.
1949, October
General conference is publicly televised by KSL Television.
1950
Early-morning seminary begins.
1951, 4 April
President George Albert Smith dies.
1951, 9 April
David O. McKay becomes president of the Church.
1955
The BYU Destiny Fund is launched, an organization created to raise philanthropic funds for charitable causes. (The name was later changed to LDS Philanthropies.)
1962
The first Spanish-speaking stake is organized, Mexico City.
1963
Church membership reaches two million.
1966
The first South American stake is organized.
1970, 18 January
President David O. McKay dies.
1970, 23 January
Joseph Fielding Smith becomes president of the Church.
1971
Church membership reaches three million.
1972, 2 July
President Joseph Fielding Smith dies.
1972, 7 July
Harold B. Lee becomes president of the Church.
1973, 26 December
President Harold B. Lee dies.
1973, 30 December
Spencer W. Kimball becomes president of the Church.
1977
A missionary training center is established in São Paulo, Brazil, the first such training center outside the United States.
1978
Church membership reaches four million.
1978, 30 September
A revelation authorizing the granting of the priesthood to every worthy male member without regard to race or color is sustained by the Church (found in Doctrine and Covenants, Official Declaration 2).
1978
A missionary training center is established in Provo, Utah, replacing the former training facility located in Salt Lake City.
1979
The 1,000th stake is organized. Also, a new Latter-day Saint edition of the King James Bible is published.
1980
General conference sessions are first transmitted by satellite to Church buildings outside of Utah.
1982
Church membership reaches five million.
1985, 5 November
President Spencer W. Kimball dies.
1985, 10 November
Ezra Taft Benson becomes president of the Church.
1994, 30 May
President Ezra Taft Benson dies.
1994, 5 June
Howard W. Hunter becomes president of the Church.
1995, 3 March
President Howard W. Hunter dies.
1995, 12 March
Gordon B. Hinckley becomes president of the Church.
1995, 23 September
“The Family: A Proclamation to the World” is issued by the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles.
1996
Statistics show that more than half of all Church members are living outside the United States.
1997
Church membership reaches 10 million.
2000, 1 October
The 100th Latter-day Saint temple is dedicated, Boston, Massachusetts.
2000
Church membership reaches 11 million.
2001
The Perpetual Education Fund is announced.
2003
The Church begins manufacturing Atmit, a nutritional supplement, to help those suffering during the Ethiopian famine. Atmit is still produced by the Church for use in famine-stricken parts of the world.
2005, April
The 175th annual general conference of the Church is held.
2006
Church membership reaches 12 million.
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