Latter Day Saint martyrs

Latter Day Saint martyrs are persons who belonged to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) or another church within the Latter Day Saint movement who were killed or otherwise persecuted to the point of premature death on account of their religious beliefs, or while performing their religious duties.

Although the term "martyr" is not frequently used in Latter Day Saint terminology, Latter Day Saints recognize a number of prophets, apostles, and other religious persons as recorded in the Bible, including both the Old Testament and New Testament, and Book of Mormon as martyrs within the same religious tradition (albeit at an earlier time) to which they subscribe.[1] For Latter Day Saints, the most notable martyr is Jesus Christ. Other scriptural examples include Abel ("the first martyr"),[2] John the Baptist, James, the brother of John, Stephen whose stoning is recorded in the Book of Acts, Abinadi,[3] women and children of Ammonihah,[4] etc.[5] Latter Day Saints also acknowledge as "Early-day Saint" martyrs those early Christians who were killed for their faith prior to or as a result of the Great Apostasy.

The most notable post-Biblical Latter Day Saint martyrs are Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum Smith.[6]

Individuals who die "in the Lord's service" are believed to be rewarded with eternal life: "And whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name's sake, shall find it again, even life eternal."[7] Joseph F. Smith, LDS Church president, declared: "I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel ... in the great world of the spirits."[8]

In 1989, following the death of two LDS Church missionaries in Bolivia, apostle L. Tom Perry noted that from 1831 until 1989, "only seventeen LDS missionaries [were] killed by assassins." Also at that time, apostle M. Russell Ballard "indicated that of the 447,969 missionaries who have served since the days of Joseph Smith, only 525—about one-tenth of 1 percent—have lost their lives through accident, illness, or other causes while serving. 'When you contemplate that number,' he said, 'it appears that the safest place to be in the whole world is on a full-time mission.'"[9]

Missionaries who died from illness or accident are not listed. However, depending on the circumstances of their death, they could be deemed "martyrs" for having died while in religious service.[10][11][12][13][14]

Many Mormon pioneers and other early church members who suffered privation and early death on account of their religious beliefs would likely qualify as "martyrs." However, they are too numerous to list here. This list also does not include early Mormon settlers who were killed in encounters with Native Americans during the Mormon settlement of the American West.

List of Latter Day Saint martyrs
Death dateLocationNameChurchCause of deathAge at death
January 7, 1832 Pomfret, Vermont Joseph B. Brackenbury (missionary) Church of Christ Poisoning 43
November 5, 1833 Battle near the Blue, Jackson, Missouri Andrew Barber Church of Christ Shot in battle [November 4] by Robert Patten - died the next day[15] 17
October 25, 1838 Battle of Crooked River, Missouri Gideon Carter Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Killed in battle
October 25, 1838 Battle of Crooked River, Missouri Patrick O'Banion Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Killed in battle by John Lockhart
October 25, 1838 Battle of Crooked River, Missouri David W. Patten (apostle)[16] Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Killed in battle 39
December 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Hiram Abbott Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; died in December 1838 from wounds[17][18][19][20][21] 25
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Elias Benner Sr. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[22][19][20][21] 43
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri John Byers Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[23][19][20]
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Alexander Campbell Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[24][19][20][21]
October 31, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Simon Cox Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; mortally wounded and lived until the next morning[17][25][19][20][21]
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Josiah Fuller Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][26][19][20][21] 35
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Austin Hammer Sr. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][27][19][20][21] 34
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri John Lee Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][28][29]
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Benjamin Franklin Lewis Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; shot by Mr. Rockholt, lived a few hours[17][30][19][20][21] 35
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Thomas White McBride (justice of the peace) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; shot in chest by Jacob Rogers with his own gun; head and body hacked with a corn knife[17][31][19][20][21][32][33][34] 62[35]
November 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Charles Merrick (from Kirtland Camp) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; died 25 November 1838 from wounds[17][36][19][20][21] 9
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Levi Newton Merrick (from Kirtland Camp) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][37][19][20][21] 30
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri William Napier Sr. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[38][20][21][39] 43
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri George Spencer Richards (from Kirtland Camp) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][24][19][20][21] 15
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Sardius Washington Smith (from Kirtland Camp) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; top of skull blown off from musket shot by William Reynolds[17][40][19][20][21][33] 10
October 30, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri Warren Smith (from Kirtland Camp) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre[17][41][19][20][21][33] 44
October 31, 1838 Haun's Mill, Missouri John York Jr. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Massacre; mortally wounded and died the next day[17][42][19][20][21] 62
May 27, 1840 Nauvoo, Illinois Edward Partridge (bishop) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Persecution[43] 46
August 20, 1840 Nauvoo, Illinois Marietta Carter Holmes Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Mob attack in her home[44][45] 20
June 27, 1844 Carthage Jail, Illinois Joseph Smith, Jr. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Mob assassination 38
June 27, 1844 Carthage Jail, Illinois Hyrum Smith Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Mob assassination 44
July 30, 1844 Nauvoo, Illinois Samuel Harrison Smith (one of Eight Witnesses) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Attributed to internal injuries sustained while fleeing a mob on horseback on the day his brothers were murdered[46][47] 36
November 15, 1845 Hancock County, Illinois Edmund Durfee LDS Church shot in the back by arsonists 57
July 9, 1856 St. James Township, Beaver Island, Michigan James Strang (president of the church) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) Shot on June 16, 1856 by Thomas Bedford, a member who Strang had had flogged for adultery; Strang died in Voree, Wisconsin 43
May 13, 1857 near Van Buren, Arkansas Parley P. Pratt (apostle) LDS Church Shot and stabbed by Hector McLean, the ex-husband of one of Pratt's plural wives 50
July 21, 1879 Varnell, Georgia Joseph Standing (missionary) LDS Church Mob murder 24
August 10, 1884 Cane Creek, Tennessee William S. Berry (missionary) LDS Church Mob assassination 46
August 10, 1884 Cane Creek, Tennessee John H. Gibbs (missionary) LDS Church Mob assassination 32
August 10, 1884 Cane Creek, Tennessee W. Martin Conder LDS Church Mob assassination 20
August 10, 1884 Cane Creek, Tennessee John Riley Hutson LDS Church Mob assassination 27
May 1898 Sanderson, Florida George P. Canova LDS Church Shot and killed
May 4, 1912 Diaz, Galeana, Chihuahua, Mexico James D. Harvey LDS Church Shot and killed 49
August 27, 1912 Colonia Pacheco, Mexico Joshua Stevens LDS Church Killed by Mexican rebels
1915 San Marcos, Hidalgo, Mexico Rafael Monroy (branch president)[48] LDS Church Execution by Liberation Army of the South
1915 San Marcos, Hidalgo, Mexico Vicente Morales[48] LDS Church Execution by Liberation Army of the South
August 20, 1972 Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico Joel LeBaron (president of the church) Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness of Times Shot and killed by Daniel Jordan on the orders of Ervil LeBaron, Joel's brother and a rival fundamentalist Mormon leader 49
October 1974 Austin, Texas Gary Darley (missionary) LDS Church Murder by an unidentified individual (Robert Elmer Kleason was convicted for the crime but his conviction was later overturned); presumably dismembered with chainsaw[49] 20
October 1974 Austin, Texas Mark Fischer (missionary) LDS Church Murder by an unidentified individual (Robert Elmer Kleason was convicted for the crime but his conviction was later overturned); presumably dismembered with chainsaw[49] 19
May 10, 1977 Murray, Utah Rulon C. Allred (head of church) Apostolic United Brethren Shot and killed by Rena Chynoweth and another woman on orders of Ervil LeBaron, a rival fundamentalist Mormon 71
December 15, 1979 North Charleston, South Carolina Elizabeth King (missionary) LDS Church Found beaten and shot to death in a car in a parking lot 66
December 15, 1979 North Charleston, South Carolina Ruth Teuscher (missionary) LDS Church Found beaten and shot to death in a car in a parking lot 65
February 1987 Lisbon, Portugal Roger Hunt (missionary) LDS Church Shot and killed by a security guard who thought he had stolen a car 19
May 24, 1989 La Paz, Bolivia Todd Ray Wilson (missionary)[9][50] LDS Church Assassination in terrorist attack by Zarate Willka Armed Forces of Liberation 20
May 24, 1989 La Paz, Bolivia Jeffrey Brent Ball (missionary)[9][50] LDS Church Assassination in terrorist attack by Zarate Willka Armed Forces of Liberation 20
May 27, 1990 Dublin, Ireland Gale Stanley Critchfield (missionary) LDS Church Stabbed to death 20
August 22, 1990 Huancayo, Peru Manuel Antonio Hidalgo (missionary) LDS Church Assassination in terrorist attack by Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement 22
August 22, 1990 Huancayo, Peru Cristian Andreani Ugarte (missionary) LDS Church Assassination in terrorist attack by Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement 21
March 6, 1991 Tarma, Peru Oscar Zapata (missionary) LDS Church Shot and killed after getting off a bus 20
October 17, 1998 Ufa, Russia José Manuel Mackintosh (missionary) LDS Church Stabbed outside the lobby of a building where he and his companion had been visiting Church members 21
April 24, 1999 Abidjan, Ivory Coast Jonathan Philip Barrett (missionary) LDS Church Stabbed while walking to a teaching appointment. 19
January 2, 2006 Chesapeake, Virginia Morgan W. Young (missionary)[51] LDS Church Fatal shooting 23
August 29, 2010 Visalia, California Clay R. Sannar (bishop)[52] LDS Church Killed by an ex-member of the church while performing his duties as bishop. 40

See also

Notes
  1. Patch, Robert C. (1992), "Martyrs", in Ludlow, Daniel H (ed.), Encyclopedia of Mormonism, New York: Macmillan Publishing, pp. 862–863, ISBN 0-02-879602-0, OCLC 24502140
  2. Doctrine and Covenants 138:40
  3. Mosiah 12:1–17
  4. Alma 14:1–11
  5. "Martyrdom", Topical Guide, LDS Church
  6. Doctrine and Covenants 135:1
  7. Doctrine and Covenants 98:13
  8. Doctrine and Covenants 138:57
  9. "News of the Church: Church Honors Missionaries Who Died in South America", Ensign, August 1989
  10. Booth, J. Wilford (September 1909), "Four Heroes Far Away", Improvement Era, 12 (11): 897–907. Concerning Adolf Haag, John Alexander Clark, Edgar D. Simmons, and Emil J. Huber.
  11. "2 Mormon missionaries die in natural gas leak in Romania", Deseret News, 31 January 2010
  12. "Mormon missionary shot, killed in Jamaica", Deseret News, 17 January 2011
  13. "LDS Missionary from Dominican Republic killed in Colombia", Deseret News, 1 September 2013
  14. Dr. B (4 October 2010). "Partial List of LDS Missionary Deaths". Prepare Ye The Way of The Lord. Archived from the original on 2020-10-01.
  15. Daniel Stanton statement, circa 1842 https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/record/3bcec479-db3b-460c-ab2b-1cf1300ce124?view=browse
  16. Wilson, Lycurgus A. (1904), Life of David W. Patten, the First Apostolic Martyr, Salt Lake City: Deseret News, OCLC 15512846
  17. David Lewis autobiography, 1854 Call Number MS 13716 https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/record/d9dd0acc-9381-47c5-8c4c-9c996ed19f33?view=browse
  18. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,320,412,486,488,491,723
  19. 1886 History of Caldwell and Livingston counties, Missouri, p. 149 http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/mocohist/id/62024/rec/74 Archived 2017-01-01 at the Wayback Machine
  20. Joyce, Burr, The Haun’s Mill Massacre, St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 27 September 1887
  21. Joseph Young affidavit of Haun's Mill massacre http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15999coll24/id/26184\
  22. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,136,268,418,488,491,723
  23. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp268,488,491
  24. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,488,491,723
  25. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp30-31,268,320,488,723
  26. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,320,451,488,491,723
  27. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp268,320,488,491,723
  28. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp268,320,488,491
  29. 1886 History of Caldwell and Livingston counties, Missouri, p. 149
  30. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,275-276,320,488,491,722-723
  31. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,90,117,260,267,275,282,320,409,417,467,474,487-88,491,539,542,722-23
  32. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
  33. Nathan Kinsman Knight autobiographical sketch https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/record/6ca5292f-e6b9-4e93-88e5-655e14166dc3?view=browse
  34. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
  35. James McBride autobiography https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/record/5e8e6f91-bbd9-4f1a-a9e9-6c9d741ac64b?view=browse
  36. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,260,268,275,320,457,488,491,505,537,539,722-23
  37. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,320,441,488,491,505,722-23
  38. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,268,296,320,488,491,506,723
  39. 1886 History of Caldwell and Livingston counties, Missouri, p. 149 http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/mocohist/id/62024/rec/74 Archived 2017-01-01 at the Wayback Machine
  40. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,90,117,260,268,275,320,408,452,487-88,491,537-38,723
  41. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,90,117,268,320,408,487-88,491,537-39,723
  42. Mormon Redress Petitions: Documents of the 1833–1838 Missouri Conflict, Edited by Clark V. Johnson, 1992, http://cdm15999.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/rsc/id/44782/pp31,267,320,488,491,558,723
  43. Smith, Joseph, Jr. (December 15, 1855) [May 1840], "History of Joseph Smith", Millennial Star, Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 17 (50), p. 789, Bishop Edward Partridge died at Nauvoo, age 46 years. He lost his life in consequence of the Missouri persecutions, and he is one of that number whose blood will be required at their hands.
  44. Stout, Meg (2014-02-17). "Six Funerals and a Blessing". The Millennial Star. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  45. "FamilySearch". www.familysearch.org. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  46. LaRene Porter Gaunt and Robert A. Smith, "Samuel H. Smith: Faithful Brother of Joseph and Hyrum," Ensign, August 2008, pp. 44–51.
  47. The sole remaining Smith brother, William, later charged that Brigham Young had arranged for Samuel to be poisoned to prevent his accession to the presidency of the church. Jon Krakauer (2003). Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith (New York: Doubleday) p. 194; D. Michael Quinn (1994). The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power (Salt Lake City, Utah: Signature Books) pp. 152–153; William Smith, "Mormonism: A Letter from William Smith, Brother of Joseph the Prophet", New York Tribune, 1857-05-19. William Smith's accusations did not lead to police investigations into the death of Samuel Smith.
  48. Grover, Mark L. (1996), "Execution in Mexico: The Deaths of Rafael Monroy and Vicente Morales" (PDF), BYU Studies, 35 (3), archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-19, retrieved 2011-06-27
  49. Driggs, Ken. (2000), Evil Among Us: The Texas Mormon Missionary Murders, Signature Books, ISBN 978-1-56085-138-7
  50. "Bolivia tragedy plays role in conversions", Church News, 9 September 1989
  51. "Mormon Missionary Shot Dead in Virginia", FoxNews.com, AP, 3 January 2006
  52. "Mormon bishop fatally shot in California chapel; gunman killed", Deseretnews.com, 3 January 2006

References
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