| Francis M. Lyman | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles | |
| October 6, 1903 (1903-10-06) – November 18, 1916 (1916-11-18) | |
| Predecessor | Brigham Young Jr. |
| Successor | Heber J. Grant |
| Quorum of the Twelve Apostles | |
| October 27, 1880 (1880-10-27) – November 18, 1916 (1916-11-18) | |
| Called by | John Taylor |
| LDS ChurchApostle | |
| October 27, 1880 (1880-10-27) – November 18, 1916 (1916-11-18) | |
| Called by | John Taylor |
| Reason | Reorganization ofFirst Presidency[1] |
| Reorganization at end of term | Stephen L Richards ordained |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Francis Marion Lyman (1840-01-12)January 12, 1840 Good Hope,Illinois, United States |
| Died | November 18, 1916(1916-11-18) (aged 76) Salt Lake City,Utah, United States |
| Children |
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| Signature | |
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Francis Marion Lyman (January 12, 1840 – November 18, 1916) was a member of theQuorum of the Twelve Apostles ofthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).[3] He was thePresident of the Quorum of the Twelve from 1903 until his death.[4]
Lyman's father and son were alsoapostles in the church: his father wasAmasa M. Lyman and his son wasRichard R. Lyman. Both his father and son were excommunicated from the church while serving as apostles (although they were later re-baptized).
Francis M. Lyman was born as the first son ofAmasa M. Lyman and Louisa Maria Tanner inGood Hope, Illinois.[3] That spring, the family moved toIowa. About one year later, they moved toNauvoo, Illinois, to be with the main gathering of Latter Day Saints. In 1843, they moved again toAlquina, Indiana. In 1844, after thedeath of Joseph Smith, they moved back to Nauvoo.
Lyman's father left with the first group to travel on theMormon Exodus to the West. His family moved toWinter Quarters in June 1846 under the care of his maternal grandfather. His family set out to theSalt Lake Valley in 1848. Though only 8 years old, Lyman helped drive a yoke of cattle and the wagon. He was baptized by his father in theElkhorn River on July 1, 1848, and arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on October 19, 1848.
By 1851, when Lyman was 11 years old, his father andCharles C. Rich purchased land inSan Bernardino, California. Lyman helped drive the animals from Salt Lake to southernCalifornia. Lyman was present at the laying of the cornerstone of theSalt Lake Temple on April 6, 1853.
In 1856, at about 16 years of age, Lyman received theMelchizedek priesthood and was ordained anelder by his father. In 1857, he was called on a mission toGreat Britain. He was stopped atSalt Lake City and told to turn back to bring the settlers in California to Utah. The outbreak of theUtah War had prevented his mission.
Lyman married Rhoda Ann Taylor on November 18, 1857.
In 1859, Lyman and his family settled inFarmington, Utah. He was ordained as aseventy on January 7, 1860,[5] by John S. Gleason. He built a cabin inBeaver, Utah, for his wife and son, and he left on his delayed mission in the spring of 1860.
En route to New York City, Lyman stopped inKirtland, Ohio, and was shown through theKirtland Temple byMartin Harris. Lyman left the United States through the port of New York and arrived by steamer inLiverpool, England, on July 27, 1860.
Lyman served as a missionary for roughly two years. Upon release from his mission, he accompanied about 800 immigrants back to the United States; they arrived in New York on June 25, 1862, where he was appointed the president of the group. By early July, they had arrived inFlorence, Nebraska. Lyman was reunited with his wife in Beaver, Utah, in the middle of October.
In March 1863, LDS ChurchpresidentBrigham Young asked Lyman to settle inFillmore, Utah. The next fourteen years of his life were spent there, where he engaged himself in leadership in church, politics, business, and manufacturing. Among his positions and honors were:
When a stake was formed in Fillmore, Lyman was ordained to the office ofhigh priest. Later he was called to be a member of the stakehigh council.
On October 4, 1869, Lyman married his firstplural wife, Clara Caroline Callister. Her grandfather wasJohn Smith,Joseph Smith's uncle. Lyman and Callister's sonRichard R. Lyman would serve as an apostle from 1918 to 1943.
Lyman was called on a second mission to England and left Salt Lake City on October 20, 1873, arriving in Liverpool on November 12. During this mission, he also visited and proselytized inWales,Scotland,Denmark,Germany,Switzerland, andFrance. He returned to Utah with 300 immigrating Latter-day Saints in October 1875.
In April 1877, Lyman was called to preside over the Tooele Stake, which was organized June 24, 1877, inTooele County, Utah. He involved himself in the politics of that county as well. By August 1878, Lyman was elected county recorder and representative to the territorial legislature.
Since 1874, Tooele County had been led by politicians of theLiberal Party and was nicknamed theTooele Republic. In 1878, the legislature passed a resolution providing for the registration of voters. After allegations of corruption and excessive spending by the Liberal Party, which left the county in debt, thePeople's Party won the election of 1878. However, Liberal Party officials refused to count the votes and declared themselves the winners of the election. Lyman was key in challenging the election results. After the case was heard by the courts, the People's Party was declared the winner on March 29, 1879. As a result of his victory in this instance, Lyman had earned a reputation for fighting government corruption.
At the October General Conference held on October 10, 1880, Lyman andJohn Henry Smith weresustained as members of theQuorum of the Twelve Apostles. Because he was absent from the conference on a mission to survey parts of southern Utah,Nevada, andArizona, Lyman was ordained anapostle on October 27 by church presidentJohn Taylor.
Lyman visited nearly every town in the West with members of the church during his apostleship.[citation needed] He also maintained a detailed daily record of his business as an apostle.
In early 1883, Lyman served a mission to the Native American people of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation in Utah. With his company of men, Lyman set out and preached vigorously. The government agents were receptive and allowed them to preach freely. Members of theUtes had joined them, and they were most effective in preaching to their fellow natives. Many Native Americans received theBook of Mormon and their preaching and were baptized. Lyman returned toProvo, Utah, on May 28, 1883.
Lyman was called to minister over the EuropeanMission in 1901. He set about several key reforms and expanded the number of mission homes throughout Europe. In 1903, Lyman andJoseph J. Cannon visited and preached inFinland andRussia.
In spring 1902, Lyman visitedPalestine and offered up a solemn prayer on theMount of Olives. In 1903,Brigham Young, Jr. died, making Lyman thePresident of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He returned to Utah in 1904. Soon after returning home, he went toWashington, D.C., to testify in theReed Smoot hearings before the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections.
Lyman died in his home ofpneumonia on November 18, 1916.[6]Stephen L Richards was called to replace him in the Quorum of the Twelve after his death.Heber J. Grant replaced him as President of the Quorum of the Twelve.
| Religious titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles April 11, 1903 – November 18, 1916 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Quorum of the Twelve Apostles October 27, 1880 – November 18, 1916 | Succeeded by |
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| Other | |
