“Church History Time Line,” Liahona, Oct. 2006, N2–N3
Church History Time Line
Spring 1820: God the Father and Jesus Christ appear to Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove, beginning the Restoration of the gospel.
September 21–22, 1823: The angel Moroni appears to Joseph Smith, informing him of an ancient record on golden plates buried in a nearby hill.
May 15, 1829: Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery receive the Aaronic Priesthood from John the Baptist.
May–June 1829: Peter, James, and John restore the Melchizedek Priesthood by conferring it on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery.
March 1830: The first copies of the Book of Mormon are printed in English, in Palmyra, New York.
April 6, 1830: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is formally organized, in Fayette, New York.
February 1835: The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and then the Quorum of the Seventy are organized.
April 3, 1836: Jesus Christ appears to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple to accept the temple. Then Moses, Elias, and Elijah appear to restore priesthood keys.
March 17, 1842: Joseph Smith organizes the Relief Society in Nauvoo.
June 27, 1844: Joseph and Hyrum Smith are martyred by a mob in Carthage, Illinois.
May 1, 1846: The completed Nauvoo Temple is dedicated.
July 21–24, 1847: The first Latter-day Saints arrive in the Salt Lake Valley.
August 25, 1878: The first meeting of the Primary is held.
April 27, 1915: The First Presidency asks members to hold family nights, later called family home evenings.
1936: The Church welfare program officially begins.
1947: Church membership reaches one million.
1950s and 60s: Missionary work expands worldwide.
September 23, 1995: The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles issue “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.”
1997: Church membership passes 10 million, with more members living outside the United States than in it.
1998: The first small temples are dedicated.
October 8, 2000: President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicates the Conference Center in Salt Lake City.
March 31, 2001: President Hinckley announces the Perpetual Education Fund.
2004: Church membership exceeds 12 million.