The story of the Mississippi Saints begins with the restoration of the Lord’s church upon the earth. This event officially took place on April 6, 1830 in Fayette, New York, the day that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was established. Much has been written on this topic and I do not choose to rehash this event, nor those surrounding it. If you would like to know more about this, then please go to the Church History page of the official website of the LDS, or Mormon, Church.
Within 6 months of the Church’s organization, Elders were called and set apart to serve as proselyting missionaries. These missionaries left their homes in the spirit of the Lord’s counsel to His Apostles that they “…teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20). They served missions to the native american tribes, throughout the eastern United States and Canada, and to England.
The first of these missionaries to arrive in northeast Mississippi were John D. Hunter and Benjamin L. Clapp. Arriving in 1839, they taught and baptized several families. They were followed by others, including Norvel M. Head, Daniel Tyler, R.D. Sheldon, and John Brown. Elder Brown, a schoolteacher from Tennessee who joined the Church in 1841, would figure prominently in the story of the Mississippi Saints.
In 1842, a group of about 90 Mormons from Mississippi fled to Nauvoo, Illinois to escape religious persecution. In April 1843, Elder Brown received his mission call and traveled through Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama, eventually arriving in Monroe County, Mississippi in late 1843 or early 1844. This area proved especially prepared for and receptive to the message of the restored Gospel. Many of the residents were first generation Mississipians, whose families emigrated to the fertile soil of the “black belt” of Alabama and Mississippi from other southern states. These families intermarried to the point that most of the county’s residents were related. As Elder Brown taught these families, the Gospel message rang true to them and many joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Within a year, there were 150-200 Latter-Day Saints living in Monroe County. At least two branches of the church were formed, the Tombigbee branch and the Buttahatchie branch, both named for prominent waterways in the area. Among these new converts, William Crosby, was an influential landowner that would play a prominent role in the future of the Mississippi Saints.
Next…Mormon Springs
-MS Saint
Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_in_Mississippi
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