SALT LAKE CITY — The entirety of early LDS Church apostle George Q. Cannon's journal — 52 volumes over half a century — are now accessible online for free.
The last installment of the church leader's journal, all 2.5 million words, were uploaded to churchhistorianpress.org Wednesday, June 27.
"It would be difficult to overstate the influence of George Q. Cannon on the LDS Church and on the territory of Utah in the second half of the 19th century," said Ben Godfrey, a senior product manager with The Church Historian's Press and the Joseph Smith Papers. "Due to his decades-long service in Washington, D.C., he is also widely regarded the father of Utah statehood.”
Church members know a lot more about the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Utah thanks to Cannon's records and personal writings. In addition to serving as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, Cannon was a counselor to LDS Church Presidents Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff and Lorenzo Snow. He was also an editor and publisher, a businessman, an educator and a territorial delegate in Congress.
Cannon's journal spans from 1849, when he was a called on a mission to the gold fields of California, up to his death in 1901. Not only did he write about his public life as a church leader and politician, Cannon also records his personal life, including thoughts, feelings and opinions. Ninety-nine percent of what is written is verbatim, with roughly 1 percent redacted for sacred, private or confidential information, Godfrey said.
"The journal of George Q. Cannon is one of the most remarkable documents in Latter-day Saint history," Matthew J. Grow, director in the publications division of the Church History Department, said in a YouTube video. "The exciting thing about publishing the journals of George Q. Cannon is that this will be his last great publication project. Just as he spent so much of his life writing and editing and publishing, this gives him again the opportunity to share his thoughts, to get his voice out there."
Cannon's journal is unique because he dictated many of his entries to a secretary, which allowed him to include greater detail, said Jed Woodworth, a historian with the Church History Department.
"Many journals in the 19th century record that something happened. Rarely do we get a journal that explains why," Woodworth said in a YouTube video. "It gives a very high-level view of decisions in the church that affect all church members. And so President Cannon's journals allows us to see the utter sincerity of a high church leader. Over and over again we sense that this is a good man."
The Cannon journal project originated with a descendant named Adrian W. Cannon in the 1940s. Adrian Cannon initially wanted to use the journal to write a biography about his ancestor's life but decided to create a typescript of the journal instead, according to Richard E. Turley Jr., managing director of the LDS Church's Public Affairs Department.
Adrian Cannon died of cancer before the project was completed. The online publication of the journals in their entirety is the fulfillment of an agreement the church made with Adrian Cannon's family, Turley said in a YouTube video.
The Cannon Family Association, run by S. Hunter Cannon, is planning a reunion for Saturday, Aug. 18, to celebrate the publication of the entire journal.
"Much has been written publicly by and about George Q. Cannon, but now with the publication of his journals, many of his posterity are excited to get to know him more personally through his private journals," Cannon said in an email to the Deseret News. "It has been fascinating to read his insights and interactions with his siblings, wives, children and friends through the triumphs and tragedies of his personal life."
Anyone interested in more information about the Cannon family reunion can send an email to gqcreunion18@gmail.com.
Correction: A photo caption with LDS Church presidency of President Lorenzo Snow and counselors Joseph F. Smith and George Q. Cannon is circa 1898-1901, not from 1892.