Caleb Parry's prophetic perception of his death
Published October 5, 2026 at 1:58 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
On September 10, 1871, while suffering from smallpox, Caleb Parry felt impressed that he was on his deathbed. He requested to be raised up to dictate a final message to his associates and family while he still had the strength and clarity of speech to do so.
Fuller account of this event (the complete account as preserved in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 33, No. 39, 26 September 1871, p. 623):
Brother Caleb Parry, of Birmingham, died of small-pox on the 19th inst. He was a faithful man, and died in the hope of a glorious resurrection. He had a presentiment that he would not recover, and requested to be raised up, that he might bear his testimony to his brethren and family, which he did with great power and clearness, and then laid down and died.
In Their Own Words
“On Sunday night, Sept. 10, 1871, President Caleb Parry felt impressed that he was on his death bed, and when we were all in the room he asked to be raised up that he might say a few words while his speech yet remained, for they might be the last words he would be able to utter in this probation so as to be distinctly understood. — Millennial Star 33:39”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 26 September 1871 (Vol. 33, No. 39). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1871-09-26_33_39 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Complete account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 33, No. 39, 26 September 1871, p. 623 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1871-09-26_33_39
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