Ezra Taft Benson (February 22, 1811 – September 3, 1869) (commonly referred to as Ezra T. Benson to distinguish him from his great-grandson of the same name) was an

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles 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 nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

(LDS Church).

Early life

Benson was born in

Mendon, Massachusetts Mendon is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,228 at the 2020 census. Mendon is part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, an early center of the industrial revolution in the United ...

on February 22, 1811, the son of John Benson and Chloe Taft. His father moved to a farm in

Uxbridge, Massachusetts Uxbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts first colonized in 1662 and incorporated in 1727. It was originally part of the town of Mendon, and named for the Earl of Uxbridge. The town is located southwest of Boston and south-southe ...

, in 1817 where he lived for at least 16 of the next 18 years. Benson married Pamelia Andrus of Northbridge on January 1, 1832, at Uxbridge. They lived at Uxbridge for the next three years, between 1832 and 1835. Benson also had lived in Northbridge, on his sister's farm in 1830 and 1831. He and Pamelia had children, one of whom died at Uxbridge in 1833. Benson managed a hotel in the center of Uxbridge and made a considerable sum of money which he invested in a cotton mill at Holland, Massachusetts, He moved to Holland in 1835 and became postmaster, before moving West.

Conversion to Mormonism and church leadership

After hearing

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, ...

speak in a debate against a Dr. Nelson, Benson and his wife were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on July 19, 1840, in Quincy, Illinois. He was then ordained an elder and high priest in 1840. He had moved to Quincy previously, and first met members of the church when they came there at the time they were driven out of

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

. In 1841, Benson moved to Nauvoo. While in Nauvoo, Benson served as a night guard for the Nauvoo Temple during its construction. Benson was ordained to the office of apostle on July 16, 1846. He replaced

John E. Page John Edward Page (February 25, 1799 – October 14, 1867) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. Born in Trenton, New York, Page was the son of Ebenezer and Rachel Page. He was baptized into the Church of Christ on August 18, 1833 ...

in the

Quorum of the Twelve In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the Council of the Twelve, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Council of the Twelve Apostles, or the Twelve) is one of the governing bodies or ( quorums) of the church hie ...

. Benson arrived in the Salt Lake Valley as one of the first 148 Mormon settlers with the vanguard company of 1847, also known as the Brigham Young Pioneer Company. The company left Winter Quarters, Nebraska, on April 16, 1847, and arrived in the Salt Lake Valley between July 21 and July 24, 1847.

Missionary service

Benson served as a church

missionary A missionary is a member of a 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.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

in the United States, Europe, and the

Sandwich Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Ku ...

. His first mission in the 1840s took him to his birthplace of Mendon, Massachusetts. On this journey he also preached in Chambersburg, Illinois. During his second mission, Benson was in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, serving with

John Pack John Pack (May 20, 1809 – April 4, 1885) was a member of the Council of Fifty and a missionary in the early days of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Biography Pack was born in Saint John, New Brunswick. He marri ...

, when they received news of Joseph Smith's murder. From December 1844 to May 1845, Benson served a mission to New England, during which he served as president of the Boston Conference. He was in then charge of the church's missionary efforts in England until the fall of 1857. He went to the Sandwich Islands in 1864; the boat he was traveling on

capsized Capsizing or keeling over occurs when a boat or ship is rolled on its side or further by wave action, instability or wind force beyond the angle of positive static stability or it is upside down in the water. The act of recovering a vessel fro ...

, but Benson and the other missionaries lived.

Political career

Benson served in the Utah Territorial Legislature as a Territorial Councilor for ten years.

Family

Like many early Latter Day Saints, Benson practiced plural marriage. On April 27, 1844, Benson married his first plural wife, Adeline Brooks Andrus, the sister of Pamelia. Dew, Sheri. ''Ezra Taft Benson: A Biography''. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1987) p. 4–5. After moving to Utah, Benson married Adeline Brooks Andrus, Desdemona Fullmer (a widow of

), Eliza Ann Perry, Lucinda West, Elizabeth Gollaher, Olive Mary Knight, and Mary Larsen. Benson had eight wives and 35 children. He also owned a few

Paiute Paiute (; also Piute) refers to three non-contiguous groups of indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. Although their languages are related within the Numic group of Uto-Aztecan languages, these three groups do not form a single set. The term "Paiu ...

slaves. In February, 1873, one of Benson's sons, Charles Augustus "Charlie" Benson, was lynched in Logan, Utah, after an altercation in which he likely shot and killed a man, then tried to escape. Benson's great-grandson, also named

Ezra Taft Benson Ezra Taft Benson (August 4, 1899 – May 30, 1994) was an American farmer, government official, and religious leader who served as the 15th United States Secretary of Agriculture during both presidential terms of Dwight D. Eisenhower and ...

, also became an

of the LDS Church; the younger Benson served as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture in the 1950s and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the LDS Church from 1985 to 1994.

Death and burial

Benson died suddenly from a heart attack on September 3, 1869, while in Ogden, Utah Territory. He was 58 years old. He is buried in the Logan City Cemetery in Logan, Utah.

References

External links

*
Ezra T. Benson Family Web SiteEzra Taft Benson receipt
L. Tom Perry Special Collections,

Harold B. Lee Library The Harold B. Lee Library (HBLL) is the main academic library of Brigham Young University (BYU) located in Provo, Utah. The library started as a small collection of books in the president's office in 1876 before moving in 1891. The Heber J. Gr ...

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

Ezra T. Benson letter to Parley P. Pratt, 1845 March 10
L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Ezra T. 1811 births 1869 deaths 19th-century American politicians 19th-century Mormon missionaries American Mormon missionaries in the United States American expatriates in the Hawaiian Kingdom American general authorities (LDS Church) American slave owners Apostles (LDS Church) Benson family Converts to Mormonism Doctrine and Covenants people Latter Day Saints from Illinois Latter Day Saints from Utah Members of the Utah Territorial Legislature Mormon missionaries in Hawaii Mormon pioneers People from Holland, Massachusetts People from Mendon, Massachusetts People from Northbridge, Massachusetts People from Quincy, Illinois People from Uxbridge, Massachusetts Religious leaders from Massachusetts Harold B. Lee Library-related 19th century articles Taft family