William George Hartley is an American historian and author. He had written many books primarily on family history research, histories of specific families and 19th-century Latter-day Saint history

History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is typically divided into three broad time periods: the early history during the lifetime of Joseph Smith, Jr...

.

Biography

Hartley graduated from Arroyo High School in San Lorenzo, California

San Lorenzo, California

San Lorenzo , also known as San Lorenzo Village is a census-designated place in Alameda County, California, United States. The population was 23,452 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...

 in 1960. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) in the Eastern States

Eastern United States

The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...

 Mission

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...

 and the Cumorah

Cumorah

Cumorah is a drumlin in Manchester, New York, where Joseph Smith, Jr...

 Mission from 1962 to 1964.

Hartley received both his bachelor's and master's degrees from 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...

 (BYU). He did course work towards a Ph.D. at Washington State University

Washington State University

Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...

.

Hartley is a member of the LDS Church, for which he has served as a member of a stake high council, a Sunday school

Sunday School (LDS Church)

Sunday School is an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . All members of the church and any interested nonmembers, age 12 and older, are encouraged to participate in Sunday School.-Purpose:...

 teacher and a counselor in an elders quorum presidency. He also served for a time as bishop of the Sandy

Sandy, Utah

Sandy is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is a suburb of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,461 at the 2010 census, making it the sixth-largest city in Utah....

 37th Ward.

Hartley and his wife, the former Linda Perry, are the parents of six children.

Historical work

During the 1970s Hartley worked at the Church History Department, including time as a director of the James H. Moyle oral history project.

Hartley has served as an associate professor of history at BYU. He was also connected with the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History. In the past Hartley has also served as director of the Family History and Genealogy Research Center at BYU. Besides having taught courses at both BYU and its Salt Lake Center, Hartley has also taught at the LDS Institute of Religion

Institute of Religion

Institutes of Religion provide religious educational classes for young single adult and university students who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

 located adjacent to the University of Utah.

Hartley has been active in the Mormon History Association

Mormon History Association

The Mormon History Association is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects of Mormon history to promote understanding, scholarly research, and publication in the field...

 and served as its president in 2000–2001.

Hartley is currently working on the Joseph Smith Papers Project, and is the editor of the first volume with Grant Underwood

Grant Underwood

Grant Revon Underwood is a historian of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a professor at Brigham Young University...

 and Robert Woodford.

Published work

Hartley's book My Best For the Kingdom: John Lowe Butler, Mormon Frontiersman won an award from the Association for Mormon Letters

Association for Mormon Letters

The Association for Mormon Letters is a nonprofit founded in 1976 to promote quality writing "by, for, and about Mormons." The broadness of this definition of Mormon literature has led the AML to focus on a wide variety of work that has sometimes been neglected in the Mormon community...

in 1994. Hartley's Anson Bowen Call: Bishop of Colonia Dublan which he coauthored with Lorna Call Alder and H. Lane Johnson won the 2008 Mormon History Award for best international Mormon history.

Sources

• Association for Mormon Letters awards
• Ensign, June 1997, p. 31, author note
• Ensign, January 1989, p. 43, author note
• Ensign, April 1986, p. 52, author note
• Ensign January 1977, p. 33, author note.
• Hartley statement endorsing a book
• Hartley's vita

External links