Transcript

Transcript for Andrew Jenson, "Welsh Mission," Encyclopedic History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Publishing Co., 1941), 936-37

WELSH MISSION. The British Mission was opened in 1837 by Apostle Heber C. Kimball and six other missionaries, who commenced their labors in Preston, Lancashire, England. Other missionaries from America joined them and, as the work expanded, James Burnham crossed over into Wales, which led to the organization of the Overton Branch in Flintshire, Wales, with 32 members, in the fall of 1840 (the first branch raised up in Wales). Meantime, John Needham labored in South Wales and it is estimated that by the close of the year 1840 there were over one hundred members of the Church in Wales, besides a few among the Welsh-speaking people in Monmouthshire, England. In 1842 William Henshaw and others continued missionary work in South Wales and the Pen-y-Darran Branch in Glamorganshire was organized March 25, 1843. Other branches in the vicinity were raised up soon afterwards, namely, Beaufort, Rumney, Tredagar, Merthyr Tydvil and Aberdare, which were organized as the Merthyr Tydvil Conference at a general conference of the British Mission held in Liverpool, England, April 6, 1844. Merthyr Tydvil was the first conference organized in Wales.

On Jan. 4, 1845, Capt. Dan Jones arrived in England to fill a mission to which he had been appointed in Nauvoo, Ill., U. S. A., previous to the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and in accordance with a prediction made to him by the Prophet himself on the night before the martyrdom. The success of Dan Jones was phenomenal and he is generally termed the "Father of the Welsh Mission." During the four years of his mission a large number of branches were raised up, which were divided into eleven conferences, namely, Glamorgan (formerly Merthyr Tydvil), soon afterwards divided into the Glamorgan East and the Glamorgan West conferences, Monmouthshire ( England), Pembrokeshire, Anglesey, Cardiganshire, Brecknockshire, Merionethshire, Flintshire and Denbighshire, with a membership on Dec. 31, 1848, just prior to the return of Capt. Jones to America, of 3,603 souls. In 1846 Capt. Jones commenced the publication of a mission periodical in the Welsh language, named "Prophwyd y Jubili" (The Prophet of the Jubilee), the first publication in the interest of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints printed in a foreign language. He also published forty-five different pamphlets, containing from 8 to 100 pages each, the sale of which, at a small profit, sustained ten or twelve missionaries at a time in the field. Abel Evans succeeded Dan Jones as editor of the mission periodical, the name of which, at the suggestion of Capt. Jones, was changed to "Udgorn Seion" (Zion's Trumpet), the publication of which continued for many years.

In 1852 the Book of Mormon in the Welsh language was published at Merthyr Tydvil by John Davis; the publication of the Doctrine and Covenants, in monthly parts, had already been commenced the previous year. An enlarged hymn book, containing 575 hymns in the Welsh language, was also published in 1852. In that year the membership of the Church in Wales was considerably over 5,000 souls. Several additional conferences were also organized.

A company of 250 Welsh saints emigrated to Utah with Capt. Dan Jones in 1849, and as the migration continued, many of the branches, depleted of members, were discontinued and their remaining membership added to nearby branches. The same condition prevailed in regard to the conferences until only three of the original 13 conferences remained, namely, Glamorgan, Pembrokeshire and North Wales. In 1873 these three conferences were amalgamated as the Welsh Conference, comprising the whole of Wales. Wales as a missionary field is still (1930) designated as the Welsh District of the British Mission and contains three branches, with a total membership of 200.