James Allred Sr.: Early Convert and Close Friend of the Prophet Joseph Smith (1784–1876)

James Allred Sr. was born January 22, 1784, in Randolph County, North Carolina. In 1830 he and his wife Elizabeth, together with all their children and at least three of his siblings (Sarah, Isaac, and John) and their families, moved to Missouri. About two years after the Church was organized—that is, around 1832—James and Elizabeth Allred were baptized and joined the Church. James became a close associate and personal friend of the Prophet Joseph Smith and of the other early leaders of the Church, serving valiantly in several Church positions. He endured the Missouri persecutions, followed the Saints to Nauvoo, and then went west. He was one of the founders of Spring City in Sanpete County, Utah, and held many leadership positions in the communities and in the Church wherever he lived. He died January 10, 1876, in Spring City, Sanpete County, Utah. His life is a witness of the faithfulness of the earliest converts who stood with the Prophet Joseph.