Wilford Woodruff

Born in Connecticut in 1807, Wilford Woodruff worked as a miller and farmer before joining the Latter-day Saint movement in 1833. He became known as a devoted missionary and careful record-keeper, and his journals are now some of the most valuable firsthand accounts of early Church history.

Woodruff traveled widely in the United States and Britain as a missionary, followed the Saints west, and later served in senior church leadership for many years. In 1889 he became the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a role he held until his death in 1898.

Readers often remember him for the clarity of his writing and the sheer scale of the life he documented. His diaries preserve everyday details, spiritual experiences, and major turning points alike, making his voice especially useful for anyone interested in the people and events of the 19th-century American West.