Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources: William Law, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources (2025)
William Law, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources (2025)
William Law
(1809–92)
William Law, photograph.
William Law was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1809. He married Jane Silverthorn in 1833 in York, Upper Canada. By 1837, Law was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. During 1837 and 1838, he served as the presiding elder of the branch of the Church in Churchville, Canada. In 1839 he moved to Commerce, Illinois, which was later renamed Nauvoo. In January 1841, a revelation instructed him to buy stock for the building of the Nauvoo House (Doctrine and Covenants 124:82). From 1841 to 1844, he served as a counselor in the First Presidency in Nauvoo (see Doctrine and Covenants 124:126). During that time, he also served a mission to Philadelphia, and he served in several civic positions. In January 1844, Law was removed from the First Presidency, and he was excommunicated that April. He and other dissenters organized a new church, and Law became one of the publishers of the antagonistic newspaper Nauvoo Expositor.
References in the Doctrine and Covenants