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CANADIAN MISSION (The) comprises the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in Canada, and the states of Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire in the United States. It contained at the close of 1930 ten conferences, or districts, namely, Toronto, London, Hamilton and Ottawa (in Ontario), Montreal (in Quebec), New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire.

The Canadian Mission is one of the earliest missionary fields of the Church. Elders Joseph Young, Phineas H. Young, Elial Strong and Eleazer Miller were the first L. D. S. missionaries in Canada. They commenced their labors in Ernesttown in June, 1832, and there raised up the first branch of the Church in British America that year. In December, 1832, Pres. Brigham Young joined his brother Joseph and continued preaching in Canada and raised up another branch of the Church at West Longhboro. In 1833 the Prophet Joseph Smith, accompanied by Elder Sidney Rigdon, visited Canada and made a number of converts. In 1836, Parley P. Pratt, by special appointment, commenced a most successful mission in Canada. Among other early missionaries may be mentioned Orson Hyde, Wilford Woodruff, Lyman E. Johnson, John E. Page, Thomas B. Marsh, William E. McLellin and others. Among the early converts were John Taylor, Joseph Fielding and the latter's two sisters, Mary and Mercy Fielding. The former afterwards married Patriarch Hyrum Smith and became the mother of the late Pres. Joseph F. Smith.

Many of the converts in Canada being very desirous that missionaries should be sent to preach the restored gospel to their relatives and friends in England, four of their number, namely, Joseph Fielding, Isaac Russell, John Goodson and John Snider, were selected to go on a mission to Great Britain. Apostles Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde were called to take charge of the mission, accompanied by Elder Willard Richards. These seven Elders sailed from New York for Liverpool, England, July 1, 1837.

After the saints became established in the Rocky Mountains, most of the Canadian saints migrated to Utah and adjacent points. But in later years missionary work was continued in Canada with some success under the direction of Elders laboring in the United States (principally the missionaries of the Northern States and Eastern States missions).

In April, 1919, those parts of Canada which at that time were included in the Eastern States and Northern States missions were organized as a separate mission called the Canadian Mission, over which Elder Nephi Jensen was called to preside. He was set apart for that position June 17, 1919, in Salt Lake City, and arrived in Toronto, Canada, the headquarters of the Canadian Conference of the Eastern States Mission, on July 1st. On July 29, 1919, a conference was held at Toronto, on which occasion Nephi Jensen was sustained as president of the Canadian Mission and Andrew Sproul, former president of the Canadian Conference, as president of the Toronto Conference. A house was secured at 36 Ferndale Avenue, Toronto, which still serves as mission headquarters, and as, the home of the president of the mission (1930). By the end of the year 1919 four more conferences had been added to the two original conferences, namely, Montreal (Quebec), Ottawa (Ontario), New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. A chapel in which to hold meetings had previously been erected at 903 Winnipeg Avenue, Manitoba, formerly part of the Northern States Mission. In 1925, the province of Manitoba was transferred to the North Central States Mission.

In March, 1923, President Nephi Jensen was succeeded by Joseph Quinney, jun., at which time the mission was in a prosperous condition. In 1927 the state of Maine (U. S.) was added to the Canadian Mission.

In March, 1927, Charles H. Hart, one of the First Seven Presidents of Seventies, succeeded Joseph Quinney, jun., as president of the mission, and about the same time the boundaries of the mission were enlarged by the addition of the states of Vermont and New Hampshire. Elder Hart presided over the mission Dec. 31, 1930.

At this time regular meetings were being held in hired halls at Toronto, London, Chatham, Hamilton, Brantford, Guelph, St. Catherine, Kitchener and Ottawa in the province of Ontario; at Montreal in Quebec; at Saint John in New Brunswick; at Halifax, Amhurst and New Glasgow in Nova Scotia; at Burlington in Vermont; at Nashua in New Hampshire and at Portland in Maine.

At Laconia, N. H., the missionaries have secured the privilege of broadcasting programs (consisting of music and a short address) for one hour on Sundays and for three half-hour periods during the week.

The numerical strength of the Canadian Mission Dec. 31, 1930, was 1,232, including 58 Elders, 43 Priests, 16 Teachers, 39 Deacons, 832 lay members and 244 children. There were 54 missionaries from Zion laboring in the mission, including 12 lady missionaries.