- Ezra Thayre
Ezra Thayre (also spelled Thayer) (
October 14 ,1791 –?) was an early convert and leader in theLatter Day Saint movement .Conversion to Mormonism
Born in Randolph,
Vermont , Thayre was a builder of bridges, dams, and mills in the Palmyra,New York area in the 1820s. Thayre was an early convert toJoseph Smith, Jr. 's Church of Christ, being baptized byParley P. Pratt onOctober 10 ,1830 after he heard Joseph andHyrum Smith speak about the "Book of Mormon ". Shortly after his baptism, Smith received a revelation that was directed to Thayre and Northrop Sweet. [ [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/33 Doctrine and Covenants 33] .]Church service
On
June 6 ,1831 , Joseph Smith received a revelation instructing Thayre to depart on a mission toMissouri withThomas B. Marsh . [ [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/52/22#22 Doctrine and Covenants 52:22] .] In preparation for this, Thayre by was ordained an elder in the church byLyman Wight . However, due to a disagreement about property that arose among Thayre and some of theLatter Day Saint s living in Thompson,Ohio , Thayre was not prepared to leave when Marsh was ready. A revelation to Smith revoked the mission call to Thayre, assigned Marsh a new companion, and instructed Thayre to "repent of his pride, and of his selfishness". [ [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/56/5,8#5 Doctrine and Covenants 56:5, 8] .] Later in 1832, Thayre did serve a mission to New York with Marsh.In 1834, Thayre joined
Zion's Camp , a group of Latter Day Saints that traveled from Ohio to assist some members of the church in Missouri. However, onJune 21 ,1834 , Thayre contractedcholera , which quickly spread to the many of the other Saints in Zion's Camp. However, Thayre went on to make a full recovery.On
March 1 ,1835 , Thayre was ordained a seventy in the church. However, the very next day, Thayre's priesthood was suspended after an unspecified complaint of misbehavior filed byOliver Granger . Adisciplinary council was held, and Thayre was eventually restored to full fellowship in the church, though the time of his readmission is unknown.In 1838, Thayre became a member of the
Adam-ondi-Ahman stake high council and aDanite . In 1839, he moved with the majority of Latter Day Saints toNauvoo ,Illinois .In 1844, shortly after being made a member of the
Council of Fifty , Thayre departed on a mission withJedediah M. Grant ,George A. Smith andWilford Woodruff to campaign for Joseph Smith asPresident of the United States .Death of Joseph Smith
After the
death of Joseph Smith, Jr. in June 1844, Thayre was part of the minority of Latter Day Saints who refused to follow the leadership ofBrigham Young and theQuorum of the Twelve . When the majority of Saints departed Nauvoo for theSalt Lake Valley , Thayer remained behind in Nauvoo. In 1849, Thayre moved toMichigan , and he became a member of theReorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints there onAugust 24 ,1860 .Family
Thayre married Polly Wells in 1810; Wells died in 1822. Later that same year, Thayre married Relief Wales. Thayre was the father of one child by Wells and five by Wales. Unlike many of the early Latter Day Saints, Thayre did not practice
plural marriage .Death and confusion
The date of Thayre's death is unknown. Some sources report that he died in 1856 in
Massachusetts , but these reports conflict with RLDS Church records that report him being baptized in 1860. Genealogical confusion has also resulted because Thayre's father was also named Ezra, but unlike the junior Thayre, he usually spelled his name "Thayer". Other sources report Thayre's birthplace as beingRandolph, Massachusetts instead ofRandolph, Vermont .Notes
References
*Joseph Smith (
B.H. Roberts ed.) 1902. "History of the Church ".
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