John Corrill

(September 17, 1794 – September 26, 1842) was an early member and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and an elected representative in the Missouri State Legislature. He was prominently involved in the Mormon conflicts in Missouri before leaving the church in 1839 and publishing A Brief History of the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints.

In 1831 Corrill served two short missions in nearby areas. Later that year he was ordained to the High Priesthood and made an assistant to the Latter Day Saint movement’s first Bishop of the Church, Edward Partridge, a position he would hold until 1837. In 1833, Corrill was chosen as the third bishop in Zion (Independence, Missouri) where he would later preside over a branch of the church. When Missourians expelled Mormons from the area, Corrill joined in petitioning the governor for militia assistance and settled in Clay County for the winter.

In 1834 he was called back to Kirtland where he helped build the temple and was involved with approving a new book of revelations called the Doctrine and Covenants. After the temple’s dedication in 1836 he returned to Missouri and was one of the founders and leaders of the Mormon settlement of Far West. During this time the residents of Clay County were pushing for the Mormons to move out of their area and settle elsewhere. In late 1836 Corrill represented the Mormons in negotiating with state leaders for the formation of Caldwell County for primarily Mormon settlement. Historian Stephen C. LeSueur wrote that Corrill «was one of the Mormons’ most prominent leaders in Missouri and had been intimately involved in nearly every phase of Mormon history there. In 1837 he was released as a counselor to Bishop Partridge and was called to a committee for organizing more stakes in Missouri and was «Keeper of the Lord’s Storehouse» in Far West. In April 1838 he and Elias Higbee became the official Church Historians.