Members of the United Brethren Baptized by Wilford Woodruff

Historical Background
Do you have an ancestor that was among those who were baptized by Wilford Woodruff during his mission to England in 1840? While on his mission, Wilford is known to have baptized 600 people into the Church. This article will guide you to sources that will help you determine if your ancestor was among those who were baptized when Wilford Woodruff, Brigham Young, Willard Richards and others were in England. Their mission was later referred to as the Apostolic Mission because so many of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles were in England on missions at the same time.

Several publications are available at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints website about Wilford Woodruff's 1840 mission to England, the United Brethren, Benbow Farm, Gadfield Elm and Froome's Hill Conferences in England.


 * “Chapter 9: Proclaiming the Gospel,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff, 89
 * David J. Whittaker, “Harvest in Herefordshire,” Ensign, Jan 1987, 46
 * Douglas F. Tobler, “Truth Prevailing: The Significance of the Nineteenth-Century LDS Experience in Britain,” Ensign, Jul 1987, 33


 * “Gadfield Elm: The Oldest LDS Chapel in Europe,” Ensign, Oct. 1986, 76–77
 * Gordon B. Hinckley, “This Work Is Concerned with People,” Ensign, May 1995, 51
 * James R. and LaVelle R. Moss, “Names and Places: Locales of British LDS Interest,” Ensign, Jul 1987, 17
 * Janet Thomas, “Uncovering Gospel Roots in Britain,” Liahona, Feb 2001, 8
 * There are more articles on the Church website about the United Brethren, Benbow Farm, John Benbow, and other historical sites related to the early days of the Church in England. Use the search option available in the Gospel Library portion of the site and search for terms such as "benbow farm," or "united brethren" to find the articles of interest to you.

Available Sources
The one source that lists the 600 converts baptized by Wilford is a small notebook kept inside his 1840 journal. It has been digitized and is available online through the Church History Catalog. The men and women who joined the Church are listed, and entries often include the date and place of their baptism. The original fifteen volumes in this journal manuscript are located at the Church History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

A nine-volume typescript edition of Wilford's journals were published in 1983. A copy of this nine-volume set can be found at both the Church History Library (M270.1 W893wiL) and the Family History Library (921.73 W86ww). The volumes are not available online, nor on microfilm or microfiche. An index of the names of those who were baptized is not available at this time. Pages 377 to 395 of volume 1 of the typescript list the names of the United Brethren, plus the women and children who were baptized during Wilford Woodruff's 1840 mission experiences in Herefordshire, England.

Websites
The following Internet sites provide information and pictures about the Benbow Farm, the United Brethren, and Wilford Woodruff's mission to England in 1840:


 * BYU Religious Education Image Archive