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Dan Jones had been with the prophet Joseph Smith in Carthage Jail (Illinois) on the night prior to the martyrdom of the prophet. At that time the prophet told him, "You will yet see Wales, and fulfill the mission appointed you before you die." He had been a captain of a steamboat on the Mississippi River (Maid of Iowa) at the time of his conversion to the church. He was a very eloquent speaker and writer, and a tireless servant for the cause of missionary work. Through his work and publications in the Welsh language, thousands joined the church in Wales, where they later gave him the title, Father of the Welsh Mission. Dan Jones arrived in Liverpool in January 1845 and began working in Wrexham, North Wales, where he published a booklet similar to Voice of Warning in the Welsh language. In April 1845 the Overton Branch in Northern Wales was still part of the Liverpool conference (678 members) and the Merthyr Tydvil Conference was listed with 12 branches and 316 members of the church. The Garway Conference at that time included 136 members. Although sick, Dan Jones gave a rousing speech at the conference. In December of that year, Dan Jones was given a special calling from Wilford Woodruff that he preside over the church in Wales with considerable liberties to do as he felt right and that Charles Phelps preside over Northern Wales. Dan Jones moved to Merthyr Tydvil and in a conference there in March 1846 represented 24 branches of the church in Wales, including 600 members. Dan Jones published some six pamphlets about the church and on 31 May 1846 he suggested the split of the Merthyr Tydvil Conference to include 10 branches on the southeast as the Monmouthshire Conference. By the beginning of January 1847 there were 38 branches of the church in Southern Wales represented in two conferences making up 979 members. In July 1847 Dan Jones told of some persecution endured in Wales, places of worship being closed to the missionaries. However open air meetings were so largely attended that more hearers were contacted than if buildings had been used. In Aug 1847 he wrote, "These regions are like a boiling pot; the priests mad with rage and their flocks leaving them and embracing the gospel continually." In September he wrote of excitement in the town of Dowlais where they had recently baptized over 150, "The last two Sundays our hall (in Merthyr Tydvil) was surrounded by hundreds of such (unruly) characters, even in broad daylight, gnashing their teeth and threatening everything, besides throwing stones through the windows. Even yesterday, being a kind of holiday, many thousands of such people congregated and incited the people against us all they could. It is dangerous for me to go among them now, for some declare that they consider it God's service to rid themselves of me... We baptized five here last week and through all the wars, we have baptized about sixty, mostly from the very ranks of our persecutors, besides very many in other places through Wales." By the end of 1847 the membership of the church in Southern Wales was represented to be 1933 including 64 elders, 132 priests, 71 teachers, and 25 deacons, an increase of 954 over the previous year (nearly double). In January 1848 the average baptisms per month were reported at about 150. The missionaries had faithfully preached and the pamphlets, books, and monthly publications had been taken and distributed, not only among the churches, but also among strangers. Fifteen hundred copies of this paper were published monthly. During the year Dan Jones had published 830,000 pages in Welsh literature in addition to the monthly Millennial Star. In March 1848, Dan Jones wrote that he had recently published 3 pamphlets of 52 pages each and some smaller ones besides the Millennial Star. H reported about ten baptisms a month in Merthyr Tydvil and that the branch there now numbered 700. At a conference of the British Mission in Manchester 14 Aug 1848, Dan Jones reported 50 branches and 2,745 members in the Welsh Mission. There were 150 missionaries now working in Wales. He had printed 45 pamphlets in the Welsh language from 8-100 pages each, more than 1,600,000 pages. The part of Herefordshire Conference which included the Welsh people near Garway were transferred to the charge of Dan Jones of Wales. At a conference of the Welsh mission, then end of 1848, the mission was recorded as having 50 branches with 3,603 members. One thousand and one had been baptized since the previous conference. At this time the Welsh mission was made up of five conferences: Glamorganshire, Monmouthshire, Merthyr Tydvil, Pembrokeshire, and Anglesea. At a general conference of the Welsh Mission on 1 Jan 1849, Dan Jones bid farewell to the members as he was preparing to return to the West. His health was very poor owing to his continued exertions in the missionary field. At this conference 17 new branches were organized and six new conferences making 10 conferences. He appointed William Phillips as his successor with counselors Abel Evans and John Davies. The latter man was to also take over the publication of the Welsh publications. A tremendous outpouring of love and tears were shown at this occasion. Many special honors were given to Dan Jones for his tireless service. The new conferences organized at this time were: the East and West Glamorgan Conferences (split from the Glamorganshire Conference), the Cardiganshire Conference, Brecknockshire Conference, Merionethshire Conference, Flintshire Conference, and Denbighshire Conference. The Welsh mission at this time included both South and North Wales. On 25 Feb 1849, Dan Jones left with 249 Welsh members on the ship Bueno Vista from Liverpool for America. Some of these Welsh members settled in the "Welsh Settlement" on the west bank of the Jordan River in the area later known as the North Jordan Ward. Some of these members were among the first settlers of the 16th Ward of Salt Lake City. |
Wales 
