John Gould (December 21, 1784 – June 25, 1855) was an early leader in the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

Biography

Born in

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

, Gould was a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

minister in New York and Pennsylvania from 1817 to 1832. He was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on December 16, 1832. The following day, he was ordained as an

elder An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority. Elder or elders may refer to: Positions Administrative * Elder (administrative title), a position of authority Cultural * North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and tr ...

in the church by

David W. Patten David Wyman Patten (November 14, 1799 – October 25, 1838) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was killed at the Battle of Crooked River and is regarded as a martyr ...

. In August 1833, he traveled with

Orson Hyde Orson Hyde (January 8, 1805 – November 28, 1878) was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement and a member of the first Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus ...

from church headquarters in

Kirtland, Ohio Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and is the site of the movement's first t ...

to assist the

Latter Day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

s in

Jackson County, Missouri Jackson County is located in the western portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 717,204. making it the second-most populous county in the state (after St. Louis County). Although Independence retains ...

. In 1834, Gould helped Joseph Smith organize

Zion's Camp Zion's Camp was an expedition of Latter Day Saints led by Joseph Smith, from Kirtland, Ohio, to Clay County, Missouri, during May and June 1834 in an unsuccessful attempt to regain land from which the Saints had been expelled by non-Mormon settle ...

, a larger group of men that traveled to Missouri to render assistance; however, Gould did not participate in Zion's Camp. Gould was a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

for the church in 1834 and 1835; he preached primarily in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

with Evan M. Greene. Gould was ordained to the priesthood office of

Seventy 70 (seventy) is the natural number following 69 and preceding 71. In mathematics 70 is: * a sphenic number because it factors as 3 distinct primes. * a Pell number. * the seventh pentagonal number. * the fourth tridecagonal number. * the fif ...

in 1836 and on 6 April 1837 became one of the seven presidents of the Seventy, a position with church-wide authority. However, on September 3 of that year, Gould was removed from his position when it was discovered that there were eight, not seven, men who had been chosen to be presidents of the Seventy.

Joseph Young __NOTOC__Joseph Young (April 7, 1797 – July 16, 1881) was an early convert to the Latter Day Saint movement and was a missionary and longtime general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was an elder br ...

, one of the other presidents of the Seventy, asked Gould if he would be willing to join the high priests

quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

; Gould agreed, and was ordained a high priest. Gould moved with the majority of Latter Day Saints to

Nauvoo, Illinois Nauvoo ( ; from the ) is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States, on the Mississippi River near Fort Madison, Iowa. The population of Nauvoo was 950 at the 2020 census. Nauvoo attracts visitors for its historic importance and its ...

in 1839. When the Latter Day Saints left Hancock County, due to ill health, Gould chose to relocate to Pottawattamie County, Iowa rather than travel west with the Mormon pioneers. In 1846, he relocated to Knoxville, Illinois, and affiliated with the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints—usually distinguished with a parenthetical (Strangite)—is one of the several organizations that claim to be the legitimate continuation of the church founded by Joseph Smith on April 6, 1830. I ...

. Gould died at his home in Truro Township, Knox County, Illinois. Gould was married to Olivia Swanson and was the father of at least two children. Harrington died in 1847; in 1848, Gould married Delia Metcalf.

Doctrine and Covenants

Gould is mentioned in the

Doctrine and Covenants The Doctrine and Covenants (sometimes abbreviated and cited as D&C or D. and C.) is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Originally published in 1835 as Doctrine and Covenants of the Chur ...

, a Latter Day Saint book of scripture. In a revelation given to

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

and

Sidney Rigdon Sidney Rigdon (February 19, 1793 – July 14, 1876) was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Biography Early life Rigdon was born in St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, on February 19, 1793. He was ...

on October 12, 1833, Smith and Rigdon were told that Gould and

were safe and would be saved if they kept the commandments of God.Doctrine and Covenants 100:14

Identity confusion

For many years, Latter Day Saint sources confused Gould with another person of the same name who was born in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

in 1808 and died in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, in 1851. Research performed by the

Joseph Smith Papers ''The Joseph Smith Papers'' (or Joseph Smith Papers Project) is a project researching, collecting, and publishing all manuscripts and documents created by, or under the direction of, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the founder of the Latter Day Saint ...

project revealed the correct dates and places of birth and death of Gould.

Notes

References

(

B. H. Roberts Brigham Henry Roberts (March 13, 1857 – September 27, 1933) was a historian, politician, and leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He edited the seven-volume ''History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

ed.) 1902. '' History of the Church''. *

Andrew Jenson Andrew Jenson, born Anders Jensen, (December 11, 1850 – November 18, 1941) was a Danish immigrant to the United States who acted as an Assistant Church Historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for much of the ea ...

. '' Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia'' 1''
191

External links

"John Gould"

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gould, John 1784 births 1855 deaths American Latter Day Saint missionaries American general authorities (LDS Church) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) members Converts to Mormonism from Baptist denominations Doctrine and Covenants people Latter Day Saint missionaries in the United States Latter Day Saints from Illinois Latter Day Saints from Ohio Leaders in the Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints) Presidents of the Seventy (LDS Church) Religious leaders from Ohio