Apostle John W. Taylor’s Spiritual Witness of Erastus Snow’s Death
Published October 6, 2026 at 5:45 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
On the night that Apostle Erastus Snow died, Apostle John W. Taylor, who was staying in Gunnison with John Henry Smith, received a manifestation of the Spirit of the Lord that communicated that Brother Erastus was dead. He informed Brother Smith of this revelation immediately afterward.
Fuller account of this event (the complete account as preserved in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 50, No. 27, 2 July 1888, p. 427):
Elder John W. Taylor, who was in Gunnison with Elder John Henry Smith, says that at the time of the death of Elder Erastus Snow, he received a manifestation of the Spirit of the Lord, which communicated to him that Brother Erastus was dead, and he informed Brother Smith of the fact immediately afterward.
In Their Own Words
“Apostle John W. Taylor said: The night Brother Snow died, Brother John Henry Smith and I were in Gunnison. We had been to the telegraph office, and failed to get any information of his condition. We returned, and I was reading a book, when the Spirit of the Lord said to me—Brother Erastus is dead. I turned to Brother Smith and told him. — Millennial Star 50:27”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 2 July 1888 (Vol. 50, No. 27). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1888-07-02_50_27 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Complete account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 50, No. 27, 2 July 1888, p. 427 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1888-07-02_50_27
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