When that period came to a close he was replaced with a more conservative scholar.ĭr. His tenure occurred during an interlude when the Mormon Church allowed outside academics relatively free access to its archives. He was the first professional historian to hold that office. He directed the history division of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and from 1972 to 1980 served as Church Historian. Both remain in print, as do a dozen other of his titles. Hansen, The Richest Hole on Earth: A History of the Bingham Copper Mine (1963). His works in that area included The Changing Economic Structure of the Mountain West, 1850-1950 (1963) and, with Gary B. Arrington had a notable parallel career as an economic historian of the American West, especially of the Utah Territory. The cause was heart failure, his family said. Leonard James Arrington, the dean of Mormon historians, died on Thursday at his home in Salt Lake City. Arrington, 81, Mormon Historian, by Wolfgang Saxon. Arrington was from an article in The New York Times dated February 13, 1999: Leonard J. The following information about Leonard J. He also served as president of the Western History Association and the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association. He helped to establish the Mormon History Association (serving as its first president) and the Western Historical Quarterly.

Arrington was also a leader as a professional historian. Some of his better known books include Great Basin Kingdom (1958), The Mormon Experience: A History of the Latter-Day Saints (1979), and Brigham Young: American Moses (1985). He began by publishing articles on nineteenth century Mormon economics, but he soon branched out into other L.D.S.History topics as well as Mormon biography. In 1982 Grace passed away, and in 1983 he and Harriet Horn were married.ĭr. That same year Arrington married Grace Fort (they would have three children James, Carl and Susan.) Arrington served overseas in North Africa and Italy until 1946.Īfter the war he began teaching at the Utah State Agricultural College and except for one year spent in Chapel Hill to complete his doctorate, one year teaching in Italy, and one at UCLA, Arrington would continue to teach at Utah State University until 1972.īetween 19 be began working as the L.D.S. He worked towards a doctorate degree in economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but was drafted in 1943. Arrington was raised on a farm in Idaho and attended the University of Idaho majoring in agricultural economics.

Reference: FamilySearch Family Tree - SmartCopy: Apr 17 2017, 15:46:44 UTC.

Residence: 1940 - Kimberly Election Precinct, Twin Falls, Idaho.

Residence: 1930 - Twin Falls, Twin Falls, Idaho.

Residence: 1920 - Kimberly, Twin Falls, Idaho, United States.

Brigham Young by Leonard J. Arrington