[Lucy Mack Smith] Lucy dictates a letter to her grandson Joseph III, giving Orson Pratt permission to publish her manuscript in the United States. (1)
-- Mar 11, 1854 - 7 April 1854
[1st Presidency Changes] Brigham Young Heber C. Kimball Death of Willard Richards (2)
-- Mar 11, 1854
President Willard Richards, second counselor in the First Presidency, passes away in Salt Lake City, Utah. (3)
[Quorum of the Twelve] Willard Richards dies. (4)
-- Apr 7, 1854 - 1 December 1856
[1st Presidency Changes] Brigham Young Heber C. Kimball Jedediah M. Grant Jedediah M. Grant called as Second Counselor (2)
-- During 1854 April
Jedediah M. Grant is called an apostle and into the First Presidency as second counselor. (3)
-- May 23, 1854
Patriarch John Smith died. (5)
-- Jun 28, 1854
John Smith, son of Hyrum Smith, was appointed Patriarch over the Church. (5)
-- During Summer 1854
[Lucy Mack Smith] Orson Pratt returns to Utah. (1)
-- Aug 31, 1854
[Utah War] Colonel Edward. J. Steptoe, head of a military and civilian party arrived in SLC on assignment to study the feasibility of road through the territory and to capture the Indians who murdered Captain John W. Gunnison and 7 others in 1853. (6)
-- During Nov. 1854
[Lucy Mack Smith] The first shipment of Biographical Sketches reaches Utah from Great Britain. The Deseret News publishes a short commendatory notice on 16 November. (1)
-- Dec 30, 1854
[Utah War] Colonel Steptoe, who had been offered the governorship of Utah by Pres. Pierce but declined, along with leading officials and business men of SLC signed a petition and sent it to Washington recommending Pres. Pierce reappoint Brigham Young as Governor of Utah Territory. (6)
-- 1854
Church Membership at end of year: 68,429
New Converts : 4,275
Percent Change from previous year: 6.66% (7)
[Deseret] Grasshoppers plague endanger crops. (8)
The Board of Regents of the University of Deseret along with Brigham Young adopt a new alphabet consisting of 38 characters called the "Deseret Alphabet." (8)
[John Taylor] Elected as a legislator for the Territory of Utah. (9)
Footnotes:
1 - Anderson, Lavina Fielding, Editor, Lucy's Book: A Critical Edition of Lucy Mack Smith's Family Memoir, 2001, Signature Books
2 - Wikipedia, First Presidency (LDS Church), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Presidency_(LDS_Church)#Chronology_of_the_First_Presidency
3 - Wikipedia, 19th Century (Mormonism), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19th_century_(Mormonism)
4 - Wikipedia, Chronology of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronology_of_the_Quorum_of_the_Twelve_Apostles_(LDS_Church)
5 - Richards, Franklin Dewey and Little, James A., Compendium of the Doctrines of the Gospel, Church Chronology, Ch.66, p.306
6 - Hale, Van, Mormon Miscellaneous, Utah War Chronology, http://www.mormonmiscellaneous.com/utahwar/id2.html
7 - Wikipedia, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Membership History, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_membership_history
8 - History to Go, Pioneers and Cowboys, http://historytogo.utah.gov/timeline/pioneersandcowboys.html
9 - Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor, Salt Lake City, Utah
Mormon History Timeline /Chronology
http://lds-church-history.blogspot.com/
