LaJean Purcell Carruth

How One Woman’s Scholarship Helps Us Better Understand Church History

By LaJean Purcell Carruth and Ashlyn Pells

When she was eleven years old, LaJean Purcell Carruth found an old Improvement Era in her parents’ basement open to an article on the Deseret Alphabet. She was instantly, completely fascinated. She taught herself to read and write the Deseret Alphabet and decided that she would be a Deseret transcriber when she grew up. Little did she know where that early passion would lead.

As a graduate student at BYU in 1974, LaJean was hired to transcribe Deseret Alphabet entries in Wilford Woodruff’s journals, which fulfilled, in part, her childhood ambition. She also taught herself to read 19th-century Pitman shorthand, then began to translate the shorthand records in Wilford’s journals. As she transcribed these records, she discovered that Wilford Woodruff actually wrote in two types of shorthand: Pitman shorthand, published by Isaac Pitman in 1837, and Taylor shorthand, published by Samuel Taylor in 1786.

By Lyndie Jackson

While it is relatively easy to stay in contact and communicate with people across the globe, creating and maintaining deep personal relationships takes time and effort. Similarly, the Savior is always close to us, waiting for us with open arms, but it takes more than checking in now and then to develop a deep personal relationship with Him.

By Rob Swanson

On Christmas Day, 1865, Wilford Woodruff noted the following in his journal: “25 Christmass I spent the day at home & took supper then went to the Theater in the Evening.”



This small and plain entry is very similar to other Christmas day entries throughout the 1860s. When first reading entries such as the one above, I was confused by how a man who loved and served Christ with all his heart could write so little on one of the holiest of days in the Christian calendar. Yet, as I read and reread the simple entries throughout the 1860s, a thought struck me. This simple entry, as well as its fellows scattered throughout Wilford Woodruff’s journals, contains a simple sermon . . .

Volunteer Spotlight: Brad Sawyer

By Maddie Christensen

“As I’ve studied and read some of the things that the Project is involved in, I’ve come to realize that Wilford Woodruff is not only a great American historian, but also has kept wonderful journals about Church history, temple endowment development, and his relationship with the prophet Joseph,” shares Brad Sawyer, Development Committee Chair on the Board of Directors of the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation. 

Brad first became interested in the Project because of his love for and interest in Church history. He has found joy in learning about Wilford Woodruff, reading many of Wilford’s documents, and discovering more about his wife’s family through their . . .

Thank you to everyone who made GivingTuesday a phenomenal success! Donors contributed $115,740 to support the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project in November. That total was TRIPLED by our generous matching donors, bringing us to a total of $462,961 in donations. Those donations will help us complete the Project by 2027.

If you did not get a chance to donate in November, you can still do so using the link below.

Your donation helps:

• Bring history to life
• Increase faith in Jesus Christ
• Deliver AI & data science experiences
• Support the rising generation
• Uncover new Church history
• Find ancestors

On February 8, 1898, Wilford Woodruff and his counselors distributed a letter to stake presidents sharing that requests for more missionaries were “increasing so rapidly and growing so pressing” that it became necessary to ask the “various Stakes of Zion” to send “with as little delay as possible the names of as many brethren as they consistently can.” Mission fields were booming and the First Presidency could not keep up with demand.

Every December, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints runs a Christmas campaign called Light the World. The purpose of the campaign is inspire individuals to "love the people around you, share joy, and follow the example of Jesus Christ."

Follow the Wilford Woodruff Papers on social media to get daily reminders of different ways you can serve others.

Steven C. Wheelwright, Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation Advisor, was interviewed recently on the Leading Saints podcast. On the podcast, Dr. Wheelwright discussed how Wilford Woodruff developed as a leader during his experience in Zion's Camp, as a missionary, as a temple president, and as President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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