Algernon Sidney Gilbert

Algernon Sidney Gilbert (December 28, 1789 – June 29, 1834) was a merchant best known for his involvement with Latter-day Saint history and his partnership with Newel K. Whitney in Kirtland, Ohio. He is mentioned in seven sections of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Doctrine and Covenants.[1] He was ordained as a high priest in the state of Missouri and served as a missionary in the United States.[2]

Algernon Sidney Gilbert
BornDecember 28, 1789
New Haven, Connecticut
DiedJune 29, 1834
Clay County, Missouri
OccupationMerchant
Known forPartnering with Newel K. Whitney at the N. K. Whitney & Co. store in Kirtland, Ohio
SpouseElizabeth Van Benthusen
Children1

Personal life
The N. K. Whitney & Co. store in Kirtland, Ohio.

Gilbert was born on December 28, 1789, at New Haven, Connecticut, to Eli Gilbert and Lydia Hemingway.[3] He married Elizabeth Van Benthusen, September 30, 1823, in Chagrin (later Willoughby), Ohio.[2] The two had one son.[3]

Gilbert moved to Mentor, Ohio, which was very close to Kirtland, around 1819, and took out a large loan, which he struggled to pay off until 1826. [4]: 78–87  He moved to Kirtland in 1826 and was a partner with Newel K. Whitney in the N. K. Whitney & Co. store by 1827. In 1831 he moved to Independence, Missouri, opened a store there, and was appointed bishop's agent.[2]

Latter-day Saint

Gilbert was baptized into the Church of Christ in the spring of 1831 and church founder Joseph Smith ordained him an elder on June 6, 1831. He was ordained a high priest by Smith on April 26, 1832, in Kirtland and appointed one of seven high priests in the presiding high council in Missouri. He served as a missionary in the eastern United States from June to December 1832.[2]

Gilbert was appointed to start a store in Missouri in 1831, where Whitney and Company purchased land at a central intersection. Whitney probably sent money to help support the store.[4]: 103–105  Open conflict with earlier settlers in Jackson County, Missouri, ensued after members began moving there, driven by religious and cultural differences, and the perception by pro-slavery Missourians that the "Yankee" "Mormons" were abolitionists.[5] Vigilantes in the public and private sector used force to drive individual Latter-day Saints from Jackson to nearby counties within Missouri; eventually, Latter-day Saints were given until the end of November 6, 1833, to leave the county en masse.[6] Gilbert condemned church leaders in a letter in 1832; the church leaders promised Gilbert that God would bless him with prosperity if he was faithful. A mob came to Independence, Missouri, in July 1833 and destroyed many things. Gilbert sold what he could before leaving Missouri.[4]: 103–105 

On November 4, 1833, Gilbert was arrested and imprisoned for seven days at Independence and was among the Latter-day Saints driven from Jackson into Clay County, Missouri, later that month.[2] He died of cholera in Clay County on June 29, 1834.[3]

See also

Sources
  1. See Sections 53, 57, 61, 64, 82, 90, and 101.
  2. Biography Archived 2012-01-05 at the Wayback Machine of Algernon Sidney Gilbert, The Joseph Smith Papers (accessed January 6, 2012)
  3. McCune, George M. (1991). Personalities in the Doctrine and Covenants and Joseph Smith–History. Salt Lake City, Utah: Hawkes Publishing. p. 44. ISBN 9780890365182.
  4. Staker, Mark (2003). "Thou Art the Man: Newel K. Whitney in Ohio". BYU Studies. 42 (1): 74–138. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  5. "The Manifesto of the Mob" (From History of the Church, Volume 1, pages 374-376) Black Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. BlackLDS.com. Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  6. Saints:LDS History Ch 17
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