Willard Richards (June 24, 1804 – March 11, 1854) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served as Second Counselor in the First Presidency to church president Brigham Young in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until his death.
Willard Richards was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to Joseph and Rhoda Howe Richards on June 24, 1804. At the age of four he injured his head in a fall and was left with some residual muscle tremor and paralysis. As the injury limited his physical activity, he focused his attention on education and obtained a teacher's certificate at age sixteen. He taught school in Chatham, New York, and in Lanesborn, Massachusetts. He pursued additional studies in physical mechanics, science, and studied the clarinet. At the age of thirty, after the death of his sister Susan, Richards decided to become a physician. He studied at the Thomson Infirmary in Boston focusing on medication and herbal preparations. He then settled in Holliston, Massachusetts, where he practiced medicine. From a 21st century perspective, he would probably be considered a pharmacist.
In 1836, Richards was introduced to the newly published Book of Mormon by his cousins, Joseph and Brigham Young. He read the book twice within ten days and, after making the necessary preparations, left for Kirtland, Ohio to join the Church and be with the Saints. Richards was baptized there on December 31, 1836, by Brigham Young and ordained an Elder roughly two months later, in February 1837.
Read more about Willard Richards: Church Service, Death
Famous quotes containing the words willard and/or richards:
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—Gilbert Ralston, U.S. screenwriter, and Daniel Mann. Willard (Bruce Davison)
“There are women in middle life, whose days are crowded with practical duties, physical strain, and moral responsibility ... they fail to see that some use of the mind, in solid reading or in study, would refresh them by its contrast with carking cares, and would prepare interest and pleasure for their later years. Such women often sink into depression, as their cares fall away from them, and many even become insane. They are mentally starved to death.”
—Ellen Henrietta Swallow Richards (1842–1911)