Century of Black Mormons
@centblckmormons.bsky.social
Century of Black Mormons is a digital history database designed to recover what was lost--the identities of Black Mormons from 1830 to 1930. Visit the database at www.CenturyofBlackMormons.org
Annie May Ritchie died young, at age 25, just over a year after her marriage. She was the daughter of a formerly enslaved father and a white mother. Her parents were denied temple admission in 1909 because the family’s bishop
February 1, 2026 at 2:27 PM
Annie May Ritchie died young, at age 25, just over a year after her marriage. She was the daughter of a formerly enslaved father and a white mother. Her parents were denied temple admission in 1909 because the family’s bishop
Ida Belle Leggroan Dixon's mother and father migrated to Utah from Mississippi in 1870 after being emancipated at the end of the Civil War.
January 25, 2026 at 6:13 PM
Ida Belle Leggroan Dixon's mother and father migrated to Utah from Mississippi in 1870 after being emancipated at the end of the Civil War.
Thomas Coleman’s life was marked by tragedy. He arrived in Salt Lake City in 1848, enslaved to John and Nancy Crosby Bankhead, converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Mississippi.
January 18, 2026 at 2:12 PM
Thomas Coleman’s life was marked by tragedy. He arrived in Salt Lake City in 1848, enslaved to John and Nancy Crosby Bankhead, converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Mississippi.
Henry Geboyle Church was around seven years old when he and his family crossed the United States from Tennessee to Utah Territory to join with other Latter-day Saints in their Rocky Mountain home.
January 11, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Henry Geboyle Church was around seven years old when he and his family crossed the United States from Tennessee to Utah Territory to join with other Latter-day Saints in their Rocky Mountain home.
In 1896, a Black man identified only as "Mr. Knox" was described as a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who lived in Utah in his later years. That year, he attended a festival in Utah that celebrated its citizens who were over seventy years of age.
January 4, 2026 at 3:33 PM
In 1896, a Black man identified only as "Mr. Knox" was described as a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who lived in Utah in his later years. That year, he attended a festival in Utah that celebrated its citizens who were over seventy years of age.
Alberta Mae Roberts is a third-generation member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her grandparents, Ned and Susan Leggroan, were formerly enslaved in the South and moved west after the Civil War in search of a new life and better opportunities.
December 28, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Alberta Mae Roberts is a third-generation member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her grandparents, Ned and Susan Leggroan, were formerly enslaved in the South and moved west after the Civil War in search of a new life and better opportunities.
Sarah Jett was an early Black Saint baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kentucky. Sarah’s father, George Jett, converted first in 1898, & then Sarah & her sister Katie received baptism eleven years later, on the same day as their stepmother, Alwilda.
December 21, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Sarah Jett was an early Black Saint baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kentucky. Sarah’s father, George Jett, converted first in 1898, & then Sarah & her sister Katie received baptism eleven years later, on the same day as their stepmother, Alwilda.
Nina Viola Stevenson Howell was the first wife of one of the better-known Black Mormons of the twentieth century, Abner Leonard Howell. She was born and raised in Michigan and met Abner during the time he studied law and played football at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
December 14, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Nina Viola Stevenson Howell was the first wife of one of the better-known Black Mormons of the twentieth century, Abner Leonard Howell. She was born and raised in Michigan and met Abner during the time he studied law and played football at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
Martha Ann Leggroan Roberts Stevens's parents, Ned and Susan Leggroan, were both born into slavery and both previously married. Martha was their first child together. Susan gave birth to Martha in Utah Territory on 5 December 1870, after migrating from Mississippi that spring.
December 7, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Martha Ann Leggroan Roberts Stevens's parents, Ned and Susan Leggroan, were both born into slavery and both previously married. Martha was their first child together. Susan gave birth to Martha in Utah Territory on 5 December 1870, after migrating from Mississippi that spring.
Today we remember Mary Willson even though we know very little about her. The only surviving source to name her and describe her as a “colored woman” is a list of rebaptisms performed in Nashville, Lee County, Iowa. 1/7
October 19, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Today we remember Mary Willson even though we know very little about her. The only surviving source to name her and describe her as a “colored woman” is a list of rebaptisms performed in Nashville, Lee County, Iowa. 1/7
Even though Mary Bowdidge Berry Smith was a white woman, she nonetheless ran afoul of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ racial policies. LDS leaders barred Mary from receiving the crowning rituals of her faith because she had married a Black man & had children with him.
October 12, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Even though Mary Bowdidge Berry Smith was a white woman, she nonetheless ran afoul of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ racial policies. LDS leaders barred Mary from receiving the crowning rituals of her faith because she had married a Black man & had children with him.
Ethel Irene Wells Burdette and her husband William were two of three Black converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, baptized on the same day in 1914 in Chester County, Pennsylvania where William worked in the coal mines. 1/5
October 8, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Ethel Irene Wells Burdette and her husband William were two of three Black converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, baptized on the same day in 1914 in Chester County, Pennsylvania where William worked in the coal mines. 1/5
Alex James Brooks grew to adulthood in southwestern Georgia during federal Reconstruction when southern Black people enjoyed some of the rights promised in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution, including citizenship and Black male voting rights. 1/4
September 21, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Alex James Brooks grew to adulthood in southwestern Georgia during federal Reconstruction when southern Black people enjoyed some of the rights promised in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution, including citizenship and Black male voting rights. 1/4
Major Dorimus Church's mother was formerly enslaved to his father. Born in Tennessee in 1869, in the aftermath of the Civil War, he and his mother and his siblings were listed in the 1870 census as Black. 1/6
September 14, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Major Dorimus Church's mother was formerly enslaved to his father. Born in Tennessee in 1869, in the aftermath of the Civil War, he and his mother and his siblings were listed in the 1870 census as Black. 1/6
John & Laura Thorpe Fuller were both likely born into slavery in Granville County, North Carolina, before the Civil War began. After slavery was abolished, John worked on his father's farm from a young age & continued to do so well into adulthood, likely cultivating tobacco. 1/7
September 7, 2025 at 2:06 PM
John & Laura Thorpe Fuller were both likely born into slavery in Granville County, North Carolina, before the Civil War began. After slavery was abolished, John worked on his father's farm from a young age & continued to do so well into adulthood, likely cultivating tobacco. 1/7
Lorah Jane Bowdidge Berry Barton’s life history illustrates the ramifications of the one-drop racial temple & priesthood ban that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enforced on members who appeared to be white, but who actually had limited Black African ancestry. 1/5
August 31, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Lorah Jane Bowdidge Berry Barton’s life history illustrates the ramifications of the one-drop racial temple & priesthood ban that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enforced on members who appeared to be white, but who actually had limited Black African ancestry. 1/5
Sylvester James, along with his mother Jane Manning James, his half-brother Silas, and step father Isaac James, was an 1847 pioneer into the Salt Lake Valley. He labored to establish a new settlement in the valley and with his family worked in Brigham Young's household. 1/6
August 28, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Sylvester James, along with his mother Jane Manning James, his half-brother Silas, and step father Isaac James, was an 1847 pioneer into the Salt Lake Valley. He labored to establish a new settlement in the valley and with his family worked in Brigham Young's household. 1/6
A new painting at LDS Church History Library by Casey Lynn Childs depicts a singular day in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On September 3, 1875, 8 African American Latter-day Saints attended the Endowment House to perform proxy baptisms for deceased friends & family.
August 20, 2025 at 2:54 PM
A new painting at LDS Church History Library by Casey Lynn Childs depicts a singular day in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On September 3, 1875, 8 African American Latter-day Saints attended the Endowment House to perform proxy baptisms for deceased friends & family.
Albert Webb had a short-lived membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Only a couple of weeks after his baptism in 1872 in Tennessee, he returned to his previous religion, the Disciples of Christ. 1/4
August 17, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Albert Webb had a short-lived membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Only a couple of weeks after his baptism in 1872 in Tennessee, he returned to his previous religion, the Disciples of Christ. 1/4
The Salt Lake Tribune Mormon Land podcast interviewed Professors Jenny Pulsipher and Paul Reeve about the new Century of Black Mormons bio of James Brown Jr., a captain in the Mormon Battalion and founder of Ogden, Utah. A link to the Mormon Land interview follows.
August 14, 2025 at 2:32 PM
The Salt Lake Tribune Mormon Land podcast interviewed Professors Jenny Pulsipher and Paul Reeve about the new Century of Black Mormons bio of James Brown Jr., a captain in the Mormon Battalion and founder of Ogden, Utah. A link to the Mormon Land interview follows.
One public historian who wrote about Susannah Lucretia Tanner Christensen Stevens for a Las Vegas history project suggested that her long life embodied “much of western history.” 1/4
July 6, 2025 at 3:28 PM
One public historian who wrote about Susannah Lucretia Tanner Christensen Stevens for a Las Vegas history project suggested that her long life embodied “much of western history.” 1/4
John Stewart Knight was beset by opposition for most of his life. As a mixed-race man & suspected homosexual, he faced considerable challenges. 1/3
July 2, 2025 at 2:20 PM
John Stewart Knight was beset by opposition for most of his life. As a mixed-race man & suspected homosexual, he faced considerable challenges. 1/3
Without an 1853 journal entry from Texas and an 1857 entry in Latter-day Saint records in Utah, an enslaved woman named Louisa may have been lost to history. These two sources offer an intriguing glimpse into her life and her epic westward journey. 1/2
June 22, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Without an 1853 journal entry from Texas and an 1857 entry in Latter-day Saint records in Utah, an enslaved woman named Louisa may have been lost to history. These two sources offer an intriguing glimpse into her life and her epic westward journey. 1/2
47 years ago today the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reintegrated its priesthood and temples and restored the Church to its universal roots. Today we remember some of those who slipped past the walls of exclusion to receive priesthood ordination or temple rituals before June 1978. 1/12
June 8, 2025 at 4:28 PM
47 years ago today the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reintegrated its priesthood and temples and restored the Church to its universal roots. Today we remember some of those who slipped past the walls of exclusion to receive priesthood ordination or temple rituals before June 1978. 1/12
William Franklin Church was the first son born to his formerly enslaved mother following her emancipation at the end of the Civil War. Census records identified him as Black in Tennessee and white in Utah. 1/4
March 16, 2025 at 2:31 PM
William Franklin Church was the first son born to his formerly enslaved mother following her emancipation at the end of the Civil War. Census records identified him as Black in Tennessee and white in Utah. 1/4