''Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints'' (abbreviated ''LDS Biographical Encyclopedia'') is a four-volume
biographical dictionary
A biographical dictionary is a type of encyclopedic dictionary limited to biographical information. Many attempt to cover the major personalities of a country (with limitations, such as living persons only, in ''Who's Who'', or deceased people onl ...
by
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 ...
that includes a church chronology and biographical information about leaders and other prominent members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
(LDS Church) from its founding in 1830 until 1930.
The ''Encyclopedia'' was not an official publication of the LDS Church, but Jenson completed the work during his time as an Assistant Church Historian and it is largely
hagiographic
A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...
. The work was printed by the church-owned
Deseret News
The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...
Press and every
stake and
ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
of the church was provided with free copies for use in meetinghouse libraries.
Volume 1 was published in 1901. It was Jenson's original intention that the project would consist of only one volume and that it would contain information on the church and its people from 1830 to the end of the 19th century. However, he later decided to complete the work for the first 100 years of church history, which resulted in the publication of volume 2 in 1914, volume 3 in 1920, and volume 4 in 1936. In total, the four volumes contain over 5000 biographical articles and 2000 photographs.
In 1941, the four volumes were updated and re-published in a second edition. In 2003, Greg Kofford Books began reprinting the volumes.
See also
*''
'', a history of the LDS Church from 1830 to 1930
External links
Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia PDF and text format, byu.edu
1901 non-fiction books
1914 non-fiction books
1920 non-fiction books
1936 non-fiction books
Religious biographical dictionaries
History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
History books about the Latter Day Saint movement
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints texts
Deseret News
Christian hagiography
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