author
Lycurgus A. (Lycurgus Arnold) Wilson
1856–1940
Remembered for clear, earnest writing on early Latter-day Saint history and belief, this Utah educator brought a teacher’s eye to religious biography and doctrine. His best-known books helped preserve the story of apostle David W. Patten and explain Mormon thought for general readers.
2 Audiobooks
Life of David W. Patten, the First Apostolic Martyr
by Lycurgus A. (Lycurgus Arnold) Wilson
Outlines of Mormon Philosophy Or the Answers Given by the Gospel, as Revealed Through the Prophet Joseph Smith, to the Questions of Life
by Lycurgus A. (Lycurgus Arnold) Wilson
About the author
Born in Salem, Utah, on November 7, 1856, and later dying in Manti in 1940, Lycurgus Arnold Wilson was a teacher, school supervisor, and writer with deep ties to Utah's Latter-day Saint communities. Contemporary memorial and family-history records describe him as working in the schools of Provo, Pleasant Grove, and Manti before turning much of his attention to church and historical writing.
Wilson is best known as the author of Life of David W. Patten, the First Apostolic Martyr and Outlines of Mormon Philosophy. Those books show the two sides of his work: one historical and biographical, the other explanatory and theological. His writing is especially useful to readers interested in early Mormon history, faith, and the way believers at the turn of the twentieth century explained their tradition to a wider audience.
Though not a household name today, Wilson's books have endured through projects such as Project Gutenberg, Internet Archive, and LibriVox, which have kept them available for modern readers and listeners. That afterlife suits his style well: straightforward, practical, and written to teach as much as to inspire.