Junius F. Wells
Junius Free Wells (June 1, 1854 – April 15, 1930)
Early life and education
Born in
On 17 June 1879 Wells married Helena Middleton Fobes.[2]
Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association leadership
In 1875, church president Brigham Young organized the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association. The first implementation of the organization was in the Salt Lake 13th Ward, with Junius F. Wells as president.[3] Among his counselors was Heber J. Grant.
In 1876, Young selected Wells to lead the organization throughout the church. In 1880,
The Contributor and other works
Wells was also the founding editor and publisher of
Wells was also the author of eleven biographies, including those of John C. Frémont, Thomas L. Kane, Charles C. Rich, James A. Garfield, and Orson Pratt.[4] He also authored numerous articles and short stories, the majority of which appeared in The Contributor.
Mormon historical monuments
In 1884, Wells visited the birthplace of church founder
Other works created by Wells included the Hyrum Smith monument created in Salt Lake City in 1918.
From 1921 to 1930 Wells was Assistant Church historian. Among other works in this position he arranged for the purchase of the glass plate negatives of George Edward Anderson's work.
Junius F. Wells Award
In 2005, the
Award recipients
- 2005: Gordon B. Hinckley[8][9]
- 2006: Karl Ricks Anderson and Richard Lloyd Anderson[10]
- 2007: M. Russell Ballard[11]
- 2010: Florence S. Jacobsen[12]
Missionary service
As of 1919 Wells was serving as the chief assistant to George Albert Smith in running the British and European missions.[13] He also served another mission to Britain.
Death
Wells died in the
See also
Notes
- ^ a b State of Utah Death Certificate
- ^ Richard N. Holzapfel. "Junius F. Wells" in Arnold K. Garr, Donald Q. Cannon and Richard O. Cowan ed, Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint History, p, 1326
- ^ "20. Tying It to the Priesthood: Harold B. Lee's Restructuring of the Young Men Organization | Religious Studies Center". rsc.byu.edu. Retrieved 2017-03-06.
- ^ Mormon Literature Database: Junius Free Wells.
- ^ Susa Young Gates, "Memorial Monument Dedication", Improvement Era, Feb. 1906.
- ^ Mormon Historic Sites Registry: Joseph Smith Monument Archived 2006-11-09 at archive.today.
- ^ Junius F. Wells, "The Oliver Cowdery Monument at Richmond, Missouri," Improvement Era, Vol. 15, No. 3, Jan. 1912.
- ^ Junius F. Wells Award.
- ^ Shaun D. Stahle, "Preserving the past: President Hinckley honored with Junius F. Wells Award", Church News, 2005-05-21.
- ^ R. Scott Lloyd, "Anderson pillars: Brothers honored for pivotal work in history, research", Church News, 2006-11-18.
- ^ R. Scott Lloyd, "Elder Ballard given history award: Loss of Church's pioneer legacy would be 'irreplacable,' he says", Church News, 2007-10-20. p. 7.
- ^ R. Scott Lloyd, "Life of building: Florence S. Jacobsen honored for preserving Church sites", Church News, 2010-05-01.
- ^ Woodger, Mary Jane. Against the Odds: The Life of George Albert Smith. p. 137