Richard D. Poll

Richard Douglas Poll (April 23, 1918 – April 27, 1994) was an American historian, academic, author and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). His liberal religiosity influenced his notable metaphor about "Iron Rod" vs. "Liahona" LDS Church members.

Poll was born in Salt Lake City, where he lived until moving to Fort Worth, Texas at age 10. He published his first article at age 13 in Liahona, the Elders' Journal, a missionary magazine published by the LDS Church. From 1939-1941 he served as an LDS missionary, first in Germany until World War II began, and then in Canada. From 1942-1945, Poll served as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Force without seeing the front. He married Emogene (Gene) Hill in 1943 in the Salt Lake Temple, and they remained married until their deaths in 1994 in Provo, Utah.

Throughout his life, Poll was active in the LDS Church and served in various positions, such as stake high councilor.

In Fort Worth, Poll studied at Texas Christian University (TCU), completing a bachelor's degree in history in 1938. He also received a master's degree from TCU in 1939, writing his thesis on the U.S. campaign against Mormon polygamy. Poll later received a Ph.D. in history from the University of California, Berkeley in 1948.

From 1948-1970 Poll was a history professor at Brigham Young University (BYU). In 1955, he became chair of the department of history. He was the charter president of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) at BYU in 1959. In 1962, Poll became associate director of the BYU Honors Program, and was named Honors Professor of the Year at BYU in 1969. From 1958-65, he had also occasionally taught at the University of Maryland, College Park, European Division. At BYU, Poll clashed with BYU administration and some church leadership over his AAUP involvement, their anti-communism, and the role of organic evolution. After uncertainty over whether his BYU contract would be renewed, Poll resigned to take a position as vice president of Western Illinois University (WIU) in 1969. He remained in that role until 1975, though he continued teaching history at WIU until 1983. In his retirement, Poll taught occasional classes at BYU from 1983 until his death in 1994.

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