Navajo Chiefs' Divine Prompting to Visit Brigham Young
Published October 5, 2026 at 2:50 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
Five chiefs of the Navajo Indian Nation traveled several hundred miles to Salt Lake City to visit President Brigham Young. When asked about their journey, they stated they could not account for the influence that prompted them to come. President Young identified this influence as the Great Spirit moving them to come to his servant. Upon meeting, the leading chief embraced Brigham Young in an affecting sight.
Fuller account of this event (the complete account as preserved in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 37, No. 43, 25 October 1875, p. 683):
Five chiefs of the Navajo nation have been to see President Young. They traveled several hundred miles to see him, and when asked what prompted them to come, they could not tell, but said they felt an influence they could not account for, which moved them to come to his servant. The leading chief, on being introduced to President Young, embraced him in a most affectionate manner, which was a very affecting sight.
In Their Own Words
“On Sunday, five chiefs of the Navajo Indian Nation came to visit President Young, having traveled several hundred miles from their homes to this city, said they could not account for the influence which prompted them to come. President Young told the leading chief, it was the Great Spirit that prompted them to come to his servant, Brigham. He immediately threw aside his blanket, and they clasped each other for some time with an affectionate embrace. It was an affecting sight. The Lord is evidently at work among those degraded remnants of the house of Israel. — Millennial Star 37:43”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 25 October 1875 (Vol. 37, No. 43). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1875-10-25_37_43 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Complete account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 37, No. 43, 25 October 1875, p. 683 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1875-10-25_37_43
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