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On the roll

John Parson (1829–1892)

President of the Morrisite apostles, who gave the order to raise the white flag at Kington Fort in 1862, later a Morrisite leader in Nevada, and joined the RLDS Church.

On the roll
Parson, John, in the 1861–62 roll of membership printed in 1886
Born
January 1829, England (Family Tree)
Died
1892, Montana (Family Tree)
June 1862
Taken at Kington Fort: printed as “John Parsons” in the Deseret News list of June 25, 1862, held to $1,500 bail for the March 1863 term
Later path
Stayed Morrisite, later joined the RLDS Church. In the Morrisite presidency with Richard Cook and John Livingstone that worked and baptized in Nevada; at the 1864 meeting of apostles there (Anderson, pp. 178, 180); listed among the contenders for Morrisite leadership (Anderson, p. 181). Later baptized into the RLDS Church at Oakland by Joseph Smith III (Joseph Smith III and the Restoration, 1952, p. 432).
Family Tree
FamilySearch L7YM-D5Y, John Parson (1829–1892). Wife Elizabeth (roll: Elizabeth Parson); died at Deer Lodge, Montana, the later Morrisite center. Identified by editor (FamilySearch search).
Connected names on the roll
Farley, Robert E.; Cook, Richard; Brown, Alonzo; Parson, Elizabeth

What the sources say

Living up Weber Canyon when Morris began his mission (Gems, p. 16); called by revelation to move to South Weber, February 1861, with Robert Farley (Spirit Prevails, pp. 60–61); president of the apostles (Anderson, p. 65; Spirit Prevails, p. 77). Gave the order to raise the white flag at the surrender (Spirit Prevails, p. 7; Anderson, p. 137); named in the writ and contempt citation (Anderson, p. 108; Gems, p. 20). Carried Governor Harding's pardon to the penitentiary and demanded the seven prisoners' release (Gems, p. 31). Later a leader in Nevada (Anderson, pp. 178–81). A member of the First Council; summoned before the Farmington court-martial in 1861 (Forscutt, Sketch, MS pp. 28, 51). In November 1857 he served as a private in the same Weber District militia company and platoon as Robert Farley, mustered at Ogden in the Utah War call-up (Utah Territorial Militia Records, series 2210, Utah State Archives); in July 1860 the two were next-door neighbors near Ogden, both tanners (1860 U.S. census, Weber County, p. 155, as "Jno Parsons"). He later joined the RLDS Church: Joseph Smith III baptized him at Oakland, California, over the protests of some of his brethren, and on July 29, 1889, Parson showed Smith and Brother Anthony the site of the camp at Weber (Joseph Smith III and the Restoration, 1952, pp. 432–33). On February 11, 1861, he was among the South Weber followers of Morris cut off from the LDS Church on the motion of the apostle John Taylor, seconded by Wilford Woodruff (Woodruff, journal, February 11, 1861, as “John Parsons”).

Sources

  1. Anderson, C. LeRoy. Joseph Morris and the Saga of the Morrisites (Revisited). Logan: Utah State University Press, 2010. Pages cited: 3, 65, 67, 107–108, 114, 137, 157, 169, 171–172, 178, 180–181, 189, 204.
  2. Morris, Joseph. The Spirit Prevails. San Francisco: George S. Dove and Company, 1886. Internet Archive. Pages cited: 4, 6–7, 37, 60–61, 66, 76–77, 79, 89, 93–94, 104, 128–129, 431–435, 485, 489, 537.
  3. Eardley, John R. Gems of Inspiration. San Francisco: Joseph A. Dove, printer, 1899. Internet Archive. Pages cited: 16, 20, 31, 61, 66.
  4. Forscutt, Mark H. “Sketch of Joseph Morris.” Manuscript. Church History Library, MS 702. Cited by manuscript page. Pages cited: 28, 51.
  5. Watson, Kirk, ed. The Morrisites: Writings and Revelations. Independently published, 2026. Pages cited: 56.
  6. Smith, Joseph, III. Joseph Smith III and the Restoration. Edited by Mary Audentia Smith Anderson; condensed by Bertha Audentia Anderson Hulmes. Independence, MO: Herald House, 1952.
  7. Utah Territorial Militia Records, series 2210. Utah State Archives. See Documents.
  8. 1860 U.S. census, Weber County, Utah Territory.
  9. Woodruff, Wilford. Journal. Wilford Woodruff Papers
  10. Deseret News, June 25, 1862, p. 412.
  11. FamilySearch Family Tree, L7YM-D5Y. Consulted November 3, 2026.

Cite this page

Rogers, Eric Paul, ed. “John Parson (1829–1892).” Morrisite.org. https://morrisite.org/person/john-parson.html. Updated November 3, 2026.

Last updated November 3, 2026. Corrections and additions: contact@morrisite.org. Back to the roll of membership

Other pages on people of the roll: Niels Anderson; John Banks; John Cook; Richard Cook; William W. Davies; Erik Eliasson; Karin Caroline Eliasson; Robert E. Farley; Mark Hill Forscutt; Lars Christian Geertsen; William J. Jones; Peter C. Klemgard