by CherylA. Bills

When I think of the early pioneering effort, I often associate it with move¬ ments of people through rime and space* This effort usually came as a result of mile¬ stone: changes in the lives of individuals and fami¬ lies* Such was the case with one of my ancestral families, who upon listening to missionaries, be¬ came members ofthe Mormon faith—The Church

ofJesus Christ ofLatter-day Saints.

Jonathan O. Duke, my pioneer ancestor, recorded the following in his journal: "In the spring of 1839, my wife went to Brooklyn to visit her fa¬ ther who had a little time previous become a mem¬ ber of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had been ordained an Elder. Here she

was taught and instructed in the principles of the doctrines ofJesus Christ and during her visit there was baptized and confirmed a member of the same church and on the night she was baptized the Lord showed me the same in a dream* Her father Elder

Robert Stone and Elder Theodore Curtis came to

Albany and preached three successive evenings in my house* On the last night after [the] meeting, 1 and my sister Ann, were baptized by Elder Stone, June 10, 1839* On the 4 ofJuly 1839 my sisterJane and several others were baptized* Our numbers in¬ creased and onJuly 29, 1839 we were organized into a branch of the Church by Elders Joseph Ball and Charles W, Wendell* I was by them ordained an Elder and appointed to preside over the branch of the

church which I continued

to do for nearly a year* At this time 1 performed a short term mission to

Massachusetts in company with ElderJames Burnam.”

& FF/iod. BYU Library

Shortly thereafter Jonathan and his family moved to Nauvoo in 1840. There he was appointed to go on a stateside mission to Delaware*

The Kirtland period saw the beginningfounda¬ tions ofthe restored Church. Missionary work was one ofthe major activities and ofparamount impor¬ tance to help build up the membership ofthe fledg¬ ling Mormon church* The earliest of missionaries left from Kirtland, Ohio, to serve missions in east¬ ern United States, the southern states, and Canada*

This period of time was also the beginning of the great westward expansion period in America, The Erie Canal, completed in 1825, brought many Saints to the Kirtland and Great Lakes area and eventually to Missouri and Nauvoo. Ohio was known as the "Gateway to the West,” The Cumberland Road or National Road from

Cumberland, Maryland, to Vandalia, Illinois, and eventually to St, Louis, was also a major thorough¬ fare to the frontier.

The predominate modes oftransportation were by foot, by horseback, and by boat. Many missionar¬ ies and new converts suffered from lack offood and

clean water, slow methods oftransportation, persecu¬ tion from relatives and friends, sickness, and death.

But the message was great! Itwas one ofrestora¬ tion of all things spiritually, and of the Book of Mormon as a second witness that Jesus Christ was

real and that he lives. An initial gathering place was established and the Saints were encouraged to “Come to Zion/*

How grateful I am for my ancestorJonathan O, Duke, who had the courage and personal integrity to listen to the missionaries. Thank you, Jonathan, for your faith in God, your devotion to family, church and country, your hard work and service to others, your courage in adversity, your personal integrity and unyielding determination, Q —Roger C Flick