George D. Watt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
George Darling Watt
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| Born | May 12, 1812 Manchester, England
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| Died | October 24, 1881 (aged 69) |
| Resting place | Kaysville City Cemetery |
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Notable work
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Primary editor of the Journal of Discourses and the primary inventor of the Deseret Alphabet. |
| Spouse(s) | Molly Gregson, Jane Brown, Alice Whittaker, Elizabeth Golightly, Sarah Ann Harter, and Martha Bench |
| Children | At least 11. |
| Parent(s) | James Watt and Ann Wood |
George Darling Watt (born May 12, 1812 – died October 24, 1881) was a very important early member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was the first person to join the church by baptism in the British Isles. George Watt was also a secretary for Brigham Young, a main editor of a book series called the Journal of Discourses, and helped create the Deseret alphabet.
Contents
Early Life and Joining the Church
George Watt was born in Manchester, England. As a young man, he lived in Preston and attended a church led by Reverend James Fielding. James's brother, Joseph Fielding, had joined the Latter-day Saint church in Canada. Joseph wrote to James about this new church.
In 1837, missionaries from the Latter-day Saint church, including Heber C. Kimball and Joseph Fielding, came to Preston. Reverend Fielding allowed them to preach in his church. George Watt was very interested in their message.
First British Convert
On July 30, 1837, George Watt was baptized by Heber C. Kimball in the River Ribble. He became the first official British person to join the Latter-day Saint church. There's a fun story that he won the chance to be first by winning a footrace against eight other people who also wanted to be baptized that day!
Missionary Work and Moving to America
From 1840 to 1841, George Watt served as a missionary for the church in Scotland. In 1842, he left England to join other Latter-day Saints in Nauvoo, Illinois, in America.
In 1846, Brigham Young asked George Watt and his wife to go back to England as missionaries again. George was very good at Pitman shorthand, which is a fast way of writing. He used this skill to work as a clerk for the mission president, George Q. Cannon. In late 1850, the Watts returned to America. They joined the main group of Latter-day Saints in the Salt Lake Valley in Utah Territory.
Important Work in Utah
In Utah, George Watt worked as a reporter for the Deseret News newspaper. He also worked as a personal secretary for Brigham Young. Because he was so skilled at shorthand, George started writing down the speeches given by Brigham Young and other church leaders.
Editor of the Journal of Discourses
Starting in 1853, George Watt published these speeches in a series of books called the Journal of Discourses. He was the main editor of this important collection until 1868.
Creating the Deseret Alphabet
In 1852, Brigham Young asked George Watt to be part of a group. Their job was to create a new alphabet based on sounds, called a phonetic alphabet. The goal was to help immigrants who didn't speak English learn the language more easily.
The new alphabet they created was called the Deseret alphabet. Even though it wasn't widely used, George Watt strongly believed in it and promoted it.
Later Life and Challenges
In 1869, George Watt faced difficulties with the church. He started following the ideas of another person named William S. Godbe. Because of this, George was temporarily removed from full membership in the church. He was seen as one of the leaders of this group, sometimes called the "Godbeites."
At first, George Watt wanted to return to full membership. However, by 1874, he was still following these different ideas. On May 3, 1874, he was officially removed from the church.
Later, George Watt tried several times to rejoin the church. But he was not allowed back because his beliefs were different from the church's teachings. During his last visit to church president John Taylor, George said, "President Taylor, I want you to know that if anything happens to me before I am reinstated in the Church, it is your responsibility."
Personal Life and Death
Like many early Latter-day Saints, George Watt had multiple wives. He had six wives during his lifetime.
George Watt died in Kaysville, Utah Territory, when he was 65 years old. He was not a member of the church at the time of his death. His obituary, which is a notice about someone's death, described him as "honest, truthful and sincere." It also said he was a strong person who had a big influence on others. After his death, President John Taylor made a special visit to George's home. He said that George should be buried in his special temple clothing.
