Stephen L Richards
| Stephen L Richards | |
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Richards, ca. 1956
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| First Counselor in the First Presidency | |
| April 9, 1951 – May 19, 1959 | |
| Predecessor | J. Reuben Clark |
| Successor | J. Reuben Clark |
| Quorum of the Twelve Apostles | |
| January 18, 1917 – April 9, 1951 | |
| End reason | Called as First Counselor in the First Presidency |
| LDS Church Apostle | |
| January 18, 1917 – May 19, 1959 | |
| Reason | Death of Francis M. Lyman |
| Reorganization at end of term |
Henry D. Moyle added to First Presidency; Howard W. Hunter ordained |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
June 18, 1879 Mendon, Utah Territory, United States |
| Died | May 19, 1959 (aged 79) Salt Lake City, Utah, United States |
| Resting place | Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park 40°41′52.08″N 111°50′30.12″W / 40.6978000°N 111.8417000°W |
| Spouse(s) | Irene Smith Merrill |
| Children | 9 |
| Parents | Stephen L. Richards Emma Louise Stayner |
| Relatives |
Willard Richards (grandfather) Stayner Richards (brother) |
Stephen L Richards (June 18, 1879 – May 19, 1959) was a prominent leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church and the First Counselor in the First Presidency.
Richards was born in Mendon, Utah Territory. He was the oldest of ten children born to Stephen Longstroth Richards and Emma Louise Stayner. He was raised in the Cache Valley. Richards was the grandson of Willard Richards, an early apostle of the church and colleague of Joseph Smith.
Richards married Irene Smith Merrill (a maternal granddaughter of George A. Smith) in 1900. The couple had nine children. One of their sons was Lynn S. Richards, a Utah politician and leader in the church.
Richards did undergraduate studies at the University of Utah. He received his law degree from the University of Chicago in 1904. Richards had begun his law school career at the University of Michigan before transferring to Chicago.
After graduating from the University of Chicago, Richards practiced law in Salt Lake City and was a professor of law at the University of Utah. Richards had been considering running for governor of Utah in the 1918 election, but he decided not to do this after being selected as an apostle in 1917.
Joseph F. Smith called Richards to be an apostle at the age of 37. As an apostle, Richards became a member of the superintendency of the Deseret Sunday School Union under David O. McKay in 1918. In April 1919, McKay was appointed Church Commissioner of Education and chose Richards as his first counselor. Richards would remain a counselor in the Deseret Sunday School Union Superintendency until 1934 when apostles were released from these positions, which freed up the apostles to focus on other aspects of church governance.
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