In 2005, Church members in Relief Society and Melchizedek Priesthood classes studied the teachings of President Wilford Woodruff. This year, his descendants are celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of their illustrious ancestor, the fourth man to serve as president of the Church.

Wilford Woodruff

Photo by David W. M. Pickup

John Benbow's farm at Herefordshire in the south of England is site where, in 1840, more than 600 members of the United Brethren joined the Church as a result of Wilford Woodruff's preaching.

"This was a fully committed man in every way," said descendant Wilford Bruce Woodruff, president of the Wilford Woodruff Family Organization. "He really lived his life the way he taught."

Citing the opinion of historian Thomas Alexander, Brother Woodruff said that President Woodruff arguably should occupy the third-most significant place in Church history after Joseph Smith and Brigham Young "because of the transition he had to go through to keep the Church alive and viable."

President Woodruff's name is preserved in the scriptural canon as the man who issued the Manifesto officially ending the practice in the Church of entering into plural marriage. (See Official Declaration — 1 in Doctrine and Covenants.)

"He had to know that he was doing the right thing in seeking the Lord's will in terminating the practice," Brother Woodruff said. "He knew he would face Joseph and Brigham and John Taylor in the spirit world, and he needed to know that this was the right thing. It wasn't just the persecution of the government, because everybody knew he suffered much persecution. He was in hiding for a considerable period of time. He had to evade federal marshals.

"All of that persecution didn't change his mind about the practice of plural marriage. But finally, the confirmation from the Spirit, knowing that it was right, that it was the Lord's will, tells us that it was revelation and not just the power of the government."

President Woodruff is also remembered as being a tireless missionary who brought hundreds of souls into the Church through his efforts in the United States and the British Isles.

And, building upon the teachings of and revelations received through Joseph Smith, he himself received revelation that clarified the doctrine of proxy temple work for the eternal sealing of families in genealogical lineages.

It thus seems appropriate that one of a series of commemorative events planned by the family organization this year will be a meeting and special session in the Salt Lake Temple for Woodruff descendants. That will transpire on April 6.

"Of course, that is the day of the temple dedication in 1893" when President Woodruff officiated, Brother Woodruff said. "So Wilford was there for the time of the dedication of the site in 1853 and the laying of the cornerstone in 1853 and the laying of the capstone in 1892, all of those on April 6. And now, finally, on April 6, his family will gather in a chapel meeting for descendants of Wilford Woodruff and a few others.

"That really is a very special event, I think, to honor him, because he was one who very strongly believed in the importance of temple work as well as missionary work."

Scheduled events commemorating President Woodruff's birthday anniversary on March 1 were to include a meeting in the Assembly Hall on Temple Square featuring an address by Church leaders and a presentation of four musical selections from a play written by Noni Sorensen, titled "I Went on My Way Rejoicing."

"That really typifies Wilford Woodruff's life through all his trials and challenges," Brother Woodruff said of the play's title. "He had many near-death experiences. He had many difficulties. But he never talked about those. At the end of the day, he said he went on his way rejoicing. That was his favorite term."

(The program took place after the Church News deadline; a report on the event will be in the March 10 issue.)

On Sept. 15, family organization members and others who choose to come along will tour historic sites in Great Britain significant in the life of President Woodruff. These will include the Benbow farm, where some 600 members of the United Brethren joined the Church as a result of Elder Woodruff's preaching.

And, under the auspices of the Mormon History Association, a group not affiliated with the Church, seminars will be held in historic sites where significant events occurred in President Woodruff's life, such as his birth and boyhood in Farmington, Conn.

Beyond the above events, the family organization has raised money for a granite monument to be erected in the Salt Lake City Cemetery to commemorate the hitherto unmarked grave of President Woodruff's father, Aphek. The monument will be near the grave site of Wilford and other family members, Brother Woodruff said.

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