Wilford Woodruff — The Miraculous Gathering at Benbow Farm
Published September 2, 2026 at 5:53 AM
In early 1840, Wilford Woodruff felt a strong spiritual prompting to leave his current missionary labors and travel south to Herefordshire. Upon arriving at the farm of John Benbow, he found a group of over 600 people known as the United Brethren who were praying for the restoration of the primitive gospel. In a matter of months, Woodruff baptized nearly the entire group, including 45 preachers. Richards cites this as a primary example of the 'gathering' in action, where the Spirit prepared a people to be 'gathered' into the fold of the Church.
In Their Own Words
“I felt impressed by the Spirit of the Lord to go to the south of England. I preached, and the Lord blessed my labors. I traveled to Herefordshire, and I found a people there who had been praying for the ancient gospel. I went to the house of John Benbow, a wealthy farmer, who had a large house and a large farm. He was a preacher among the United Brethren. I went to his house, and he received me kindly. I preached the gospel to him and his family, and they were baptized. I then preached to the United Brethren, and they were baptized by the hundreds. I baptized six hundred in a few months, including forty-five preachers. The Lord was with me, and the power of God was made manifest in the healing of the sick and in the conversion of the people. I felt that the Lord had prepared this people for the gospel, and I was merely an instrument in His hands to bring it to them.”
— Wilford Woodruff, Leaves from My Journal
Sources & References
LeGrand Richards, A Marvelous Work and a Wonder, Deseret Book; Leaves from My Journal by Wilford Woodruff (research confidence: high; source section: The gathering of Israel and restoration to the House of Israel) Full first-person account: Leaves from My Journal: Third Book of the Faith-Promoting Series, Chapter 15 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46028
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