Brigham Young Biography

Brigham Young led the great Mormon migration of 1846-48 and oversaw the church’s establishment and growth in Utah.

An early convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (also known as the Mormons), Brigham Young was named president of the church after the 1844 murder of its founder, Joseph Smith. Young led the Mormons west and personally chose the site of the church’s new colony, which became Salt Lake City. From 1851-57 he also served as governor of the Utah Territory. As a result, he is remembered as one of the church’s founding fathers and leading lights.

The early Mormon church practiced polygamy, and official church histories say Brigham Young had 20 wives and 57 children; other sources claim he had a total of two dozen wives or more.