David John (Mormon)
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| Vice President of the BYU board of trustees | |
| 1891 – 1908 | |
| Called by | Joseph F. Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 29, 1833 Pembrokeshire, Wales, United Kingdom |
| Died |
Provo Utah County Utah, USA 1908Provo, Utah, United States |
| Resting place | Provo City Cemetery 40°13′30″N 111°38′40″W / 40.2250°N 111.6444°W |
| Alma mater | Baptist College, Haverfordwest, South Wales |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Wride Jane Cree |
| Children | 20 |
Provo Utah County
David John (29 January 1833 – 1908) was a leading figure in Utah at the dawn of the 20th century. He served as a stake president in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and a member of the Brigham Young University (BYU) board of trustees.
John was born in Pembrokeshire, Wales. He was raised in a Baptist family and studied for the ministry. He joined the LDS Church in 1847. His parents were so opposed to the Church at that time that, on the advice of Orson Pratt, John ended his association with it for a time and continued to study for the Baptist ministry.
In 1856 he returned to association with the LDS Church. He was rebaptized on Feb. 6, 1856. John was ordained an elder on March 29, 1856 and in June began to serve as an LDS missionary in various parts of Wales. By December he was the president of the Flintshire Conference in which position he served a year. He also served as a counselor in the Presidency of the Welsh Mission from December 1857-December 1858. In January 1859 he was reassigned to the Nottingham Conference in the British Mission. He also served as president here from that time until March 1860. He then served about a year as pastor of the "pastorate" which consisted of Nottingham and two other conferences, for a total of about 100 Branches. This is a position that has only really existed in mid-19th Century Britain in the history of the LDS Church. In modern usage if pastor is applied to any specific LDS position it would be to the bishops who preside over individual Wards.
John emigrated to Utah in 1861. In 1860 he had married Mary Wride in Cardiff. In 1862 John was called as a counselor in the bishopric of the Provo 3rd Ward. He served in the bishopric for 15 years. John was called as superintendent of the Utah Stake Sunday School in 1865 in which position he served until 1893. From 1877-1901 John was a counselor in the Utah Stake to first Abraham O. Smoot and then Edward Partridge, Jr.. At this time the Utah stake covered all of Utah County. In 1883 he was ordained a bishop and appointed the regional presiding bishop of Utah Stake, overseeing the activities of the various bishops in Utah County in temporal matters. John was simultaneously regional presiding bishop and a counselor in the stake presidency and Stake Sunday School Superintendent. However his position of regional presiding bishop was a paid full-time position, somewhat like various full-time positions in the Presiding Bishops office today. He also served another mission to Great Britain in the early 1870s.
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