Hazen Aldrich

Hazen Aldrich (January 10, 1797–1873?, 1886?) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. After the death of Joseph Smith, Jr., Aldrich went on to lead a small denomination of Latter Day Saints known as the "Brewsterites".

Aldrich was born in in Lebanon, New Hampshire to Andrew H. Aldrich and Annis Sweetland. In April or May 1832, Aldrich was taught about the Latter Day Saint movement by missionaries Orson Pratt and Lyman E. Johnson and was baptized in Bath, New Hampshire. Aldrich was baptized at the same time as future Apostle and member of the First Presidency Amasa M. Lyman.

On July 4, 1832 Aldrich was given the Melchizedek priesthood and ordained to the office of elder by Pratt. On June 8, 1833, Pratt ordained him a high priest. In 1834 Aldrich participated in the Zion's Camp expedition to Missouri.

On February 28, 1835, Joseph Smith, Jr. ordained Aldrich to the office of seventy and chose him as the presiding president of the newly organized First Quorum of Seventy. However, when it was discovered by Smith that Aldrich had previously been ordained a high priest, he asked Aldrich to stand down from his position and join the quorum of high priests. Aldrich did so on April 6, 1837, which left Joseph Young as the presiding president of the Seventy.

In 1836, Aldrich was the first Mormon missionary to preach in Lower Canada, in what today is the province of Québec.

Aldrich apostatized from the church in 1837 in Kirtland, Ohio.

After the succession crisis, Aldrich joined the church led by James Strang. On December 16, 1846, Strang excommunicated Aldrich from the church for incest. In November 1847, Aldrich became a member of the Church of Christ (Whitmerite). After this denomination died, Aldrich and James C. Brewster created the Church of Christ (Brewsterite) in 1848. On September 29, 1849, Aldrich became the president of this Latter Day Saint denomination, a position which he held until January 1853, when he resigned his position and emigrated to California. As president of this sect, Aldrich edited a periodical entitled the "Olive Branch". Aldrich died in California in either 1873 or 1886.

References

*D. Michael Quinn (1994). "Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power" (Salt Lake City: Signature Books).

External links

* [http://gapages.com/aldrih1.htm Grampa Bill's G.A. Pages: Hazen Aldrich]
* [http://www.saintswithouthalos.com/b/aldrich_h.phtml Saint without Halos: Hazen Aldrich]