George F. Richards
Encyclopedia
George Franklin Richards (February 23, 1861 – August 8, 1950) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from April 9, 1906 until his death. He also served as Acting Presiding Patriarch of the LDS Church from 1937 to 1942 and President of the Quorum of the Twelve
from May 25, 1945 until his death.
, Utah Territory
, the son of Franklin D. Richards and Nanny Longstroth. Richards' father was an Apostle of the LDS Church and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Franklin D. Richards also served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve from 1898 to 1899.
After George Richards' death, one of his sons, LeGrand
, became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church, thus making the Richards family only the third Latter-day Saint family in history with three consecutive generations with members in the Quorum (the others being the three-generation combination of George A. Smith
, John Henry Smith
, and George Albert Smith
and the three generation combination of Amasa M. Lyman, Francis M. Lyman
, and Richard R. Lyman
).
Richards was baptized by Oliver L. Robinson, who would later become his father-in-law. In 1882, Richards married Alice A. Robinson. George and Alice had fifteen children. One of the halls in Heritage Halls at Brigham Young University
is named for Alice.
. He also studied mathematics there. Since at that point the University of Deseret was really a high school, degree is probably a misleading term.
. In 1888, he moved to Tooele, Utah
, where he served on the school board and on the irrigation
board as well as directing the Tooele City Water Company. Richards engaged in farming and the lumber business in Tooele.
shortly after this. Among various early callings he held were those of home missionary and president of the ward Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA). In 1890, Richards became a second counselor in the Tooele Stake Presidency.
In 1893, Richards was ordained a patriarch by Francis M. Lyman
. At age 32, Richards was one of the youngest men to have ever held this office in the church.
from Tooele County
.
disagreed with the 1890 Manifesto
forbidding plural marriage
; Matthias F. Cowley
felt that it should apply only to the territory of the United States. In February of the next year, Apostle Marriner W. Merrill
died; this left three vacancies in the Quorum.
On April 8, 1906, at a general conference
of the LDS Church, Richards was called to be an Apostle by Church President Joseph F. Smith
. He was ordained and set apart
the following day, ahead of Orson F. Whitney
and David O. McKay
.
During his early days in the Twelve, Richards went on several tours of missions
in the United States as well as visiting many stake conferences.
, who was president of the Netherlands Mission.
Richards succeeded Hyrum M. Smith
as president of the European mission.
of the Salt Lake Temple
. In this capacity, he assisted in the changing of the temple
ordinances to conform with the church's "Good Neighbor" policy
.
to assume the duties that would normally be carried out by the church's Presiding Patriarch. Richards accepted, and served in this capacity until 1942, when Grant called Joseph Fielding Smith to be the church's Presiding Patriarch. Richards was called, sustained, and set apart as only the Acting Presiding Patriarch to the LDS Church because he was not a direct descendant of the first Latter Day Saint patriarch, Joseph Smith, Sr.
During his tenure as Acting Presiding Patriarch, Richards remained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and retained his seniority within that body.
, Richards became the second-most senior apostle in the church and thus the President of the Quorum of the Twelve on May 21, 1945, a position which he held until his death. He is the only person in the history of the LDS Church to have been both the Presiding Patriarch of the church and the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Richards died in Salt Lake City of coronary thrombosis
. He was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery
. After Richards' death, Delbert L. Stapley
was called in the October general conference of that year to fill the vacancy, and David O. McKay
became President of the Quorum.
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
from May 25, 1945 until his death.
Family
Richards was born in FarmingtonFarmington, Utah
Farmington is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,255 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Davis County...
, Utah Territory
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
, the son of Franklin D. Richards and Nanny Longstroth. Richards' father was an Apostle of the LDS Church and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Franklin D. Richards also served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve from 1898 to 1899.
After George Richards' death, one of his sons, LeGrand
LeGrand Richards
LeGrand Richards was a prominent missionary and leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served as the seventh presiding bishop of the LDS Church from 1938 to 1952, and was then called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by Church President David O. McKay...
, became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church, thus making the Richards family only the third Latter-day Saint family in history with three consecutive generations with members in the Quorum (the others being the three-generation combination of George A. Smith
George A. Smith
George Albert Smith was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and as a member of the church's First Presidency.-Childhood:Smith was born in Potsdam, St...
, John Henry Smith
John Henry Smith
John Henry Smith was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, and George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith, Sr. was the eighth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-Early life:...
and the three generation combination of Amasa M. Lyman, Francis M. Lyman
Francis M. Lyman
Francis Marion Lyman was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was the President of the Quorum from 1903 until his death....
, and Richard R. Lyman
Richard R. Lyman
Richard Roswell Lyman was an apostle in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1918 to 1943. He was excommunicated in 1943 for unlawful cohabitation, a result of a polygamous relationship. In 1954 Lyman was rebaptized. His full priesthood blessings were restored posthumously in 1970...
).
Richards was baptized by Oliver L. Robinson, who would later become his father-in-law. In 1882, Richards married Alice A. Robinson. George and Alice had fifteen children. One of the halls in Heritage Halls at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
is named for Alice.
Education
Richards received a degree in English from the University of Deseret, which later became the University of UtahUniversity of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
. He also studied mathematics there. Since at that point the University of Deseret was really a high school, degree is probably a misleading term.
Employment
Richards worked for the Utah Central Railway as a clerk from 1881 to 1882. From 1885 to 1888, Richards lived on a farm in Box Elder County, UtahBox Elder County, Utah
Box Elder County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. It lies on the north end of the Great Salt Lake, covering a large area north to the Idaho border and west to the Nevada border. Included in this area are large tracts of barren desert, contrasted by high, forested mountains. The...
. In 1888, he moved to Tooele, Utah
Tooele, Utah
Tooele is a city in Tooele County in the U.S. state of Utah. It is part of the Salt Lake City, Utah, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 22,502 at the 2000 census, and 30,708 as of the 2009 estimates. It is the county seat of Tooele County...
, where he served on the school board and on the irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
board as well as directing the Tooele City Water Company. Richards engaged in farming and the lumber business in Tooele.
Early church callings
Richards was ordained an elder in the LDS Church at age fifteen, which was quite young, though not unheard of. He received the EndowmentEndowment (Latter Day Saints)
In the theology of the Latter Day Saint movement, an endowment refers to a gift of "power from on high", typically associated with Latter Day Saint temples. The purpose and meaning of the endowment varied during the life of movement founder Joseph Smith, Jr...
shortly after this. Among various early callings he held were those of home missionary and president of the ward Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA). In 1890, Richards became a second counselor in the Tooele Stake Presidency.
In 1893, Richards was ordained a patriarch by Francis M. Lyman
Francis M. Lyman
Francis Marion Lyman was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was the President of the Quorum from 1903 until his death....
. At age 32, Richards was one of the youngest men to have ever held this office in the church.
Politics
From 1899 to 1900, Richards served as a member of the Utah House of RepresentativesUtah House of Representatives
The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district contains an average population of 35,000 people...
from Tooele County
Tooele County, Utah
Tooele County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of 2000, the population was 40,735 and by 2005 was estimated at 51,311. Its county seat and largest city is Tooele....
.
Calling as an apostle
In 1905, two members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles resigned after an argument over LDS Church doctrine and policy. John W. TaylorJohn Whittaker Taylor
John Whittaker Taylor was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was the son of John Taylor, the third president of the church...
disagreed with the 1890 Manifesto
1890 Manifesto
The "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially disavowed the continuing practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
forbidding plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
; Matthias F. Cowley
Matthias F. Cowley
Matthias Foss Cowley , born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1897 until 1905. The town of Cowley in Wyoming is named after him. He was the father of Apostle Matthew Cowley by Abbie Hyde. ...
felt that it should apply only to the territory of the United States. In February of the next year, Apostle Marriner W. Merrill
Marriner W. Merrill
Marriner Wood Merrill born in Sackville, New Brunswick, was a pioneering settler of Cache Valley and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....
died; this left three vacancies in the Quorum.
On April 8, 1906, at a general conference
General conference (Mormonism)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, a general conference is a meeting for all members of the church for conducting general church business and instruction....
of the LDS Church, Richards was called to be an Apostle by Church President Joseph F. Smith
Joseph F. Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
. He was ordained and set apart
Setting apart
Setting apart is an ordinance or ritual in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints whereby a person is formally chosen and blessed to carry out a specific calling or responsibility in the church....
the following day, ahead of Orson F. Whitney
Orson F. Whitney
Orson Ferguson Whitney born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from April 9, 1906 until his death.-Early life:...
and David O. McKay
David O. McKay
David Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
.
Early assignments in the Twelve
Richards was appointed to the General Boards of the YMMIA and the Religion Classes shortly after his call to the Twelve. He also served as an advisor to the Primary General Board.During his early days in the Twelve, Richards went on several tours of missions
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
in the United States as well as visiting many stake conferences.
Mission president
In 1916, Richards was made the president of the church's European Mission. In this position he was directly over missionary work in Great Britain as well as having a supervisory role over the mission presidents on the European continent. Among the mission presidents in mainland Europe was Richards' son LeGrandLeGrand Richards
LeGrand Richards was a prominent missionary and leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served as the seventh presiding bishop of the LDS Church from 1938 to 1952, and was then called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by Church President David O. McKay...
, who was president of the Netherlands Mission.
Richards succeeded Hyrum M. Smith
Hyrum M. Smith
Hyrum Mack Smith was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....
as president of the European mission.
Temple president
From 1921 to 1938, Richards was the presidentTemple President
Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....
of the Salt Lake Temple
Salt Lake Temple
The Salt Lake Temple is the largest and best-known of more than 130 temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the sixth temple built by the church, requiring 40 years to complete, and the fourth operating temple built since the Mormon exodus from Nauvoo,...
. In this capacity, he assisted in the changing of the temple
Temple (LDS Church)
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...
ordinances to conform with the church's "Good Neighbor" policy
Good Neighbor policy (LDS Church)
The "Good Neighbor" policy is a collective term used to describe a variety of reforms adopted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1927...
.
Acting Presiding Patriarch
In 1937, Richards was asked by Church President Heber J. GrantHeber J. Grant
Heber Jeddy Grant was the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle on October 16, 1882, on the same day as George Teasdale...
to assume the duties that would normally be carried out by the church's Presiding Patriarch. Richards accepted, and served in this capacity until 1942, when Grant called Joseph Fielding Smith to be the church's Presiding Patriarch. Richards was called, sustained, and set apart as only the Acting Presiding Patriarch to the LDS Church because he was not a direct descendant of the first Latter Day Saint patriarch, Joseph Smith, Sr.
Joseph Smith, Sr.
Joseph Smith, Sr. was the father of Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Joseph Sr. was also one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, which Mormons believe was translated by Joseph Jr. from the Golden Plates. In 1833 Joseph Sr...
During his tenure as Acting Presiding Patriarch, Richards remained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and retained his seniority within that body.
President of the Twelve
With the death of LDS Church President Heber J. GrantHeber J. Grant
Heber Jeddy Grant was the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle on October 16, 1882, on the same day as George Teasdale...
, Richards became the second-most senior apostle in the church and thus the President of the Quorum of the Twelve on May 21, 1945, a position which he held until his death. He is the only person in the history of the LDS Church to have been both the Presiding Patriarch of the church and the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Death
Coronary thrombosis
Coronary thrombosis is a form of thrombosis affecting the coronary circulation. It is associated with stenosis subsequent to clotting. The condition is considered as a type of ischaemic heart disease.It can lead to a myocardial infarction...
. He was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery
Salt Lake City Cemetery
thumb|The northern section of the cemetery at night, looking towards Salt Lake CityThe Salt Lake City Cemetery is in The Avenues neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah. Approximately 120,000 persons are buried in the cemetery. Many religious leaders and politicians, particularly many leaders of The...
. After Richards' death, Delbert L. Stapley
Delbert L. Stapley
Delbert Leon Stapley was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1950 to 1978.-Early life:Stapley was born in Mesa, Arizona Territory...
was called in the October general conference of that year to fill the vacancy, and David O. McKay
David O. McKay
David Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
became President of the Quorum.