His mother died when he was five, his father killed at Carthage, Illinois when he was twelve, he made the trek west with the family of Apostle Heber C. Kimball.
He was also for a time in charge of helping the Mormon emigration to Utah, as well as serving a mission to Scandanavia. After this time he was fully engaged in traveling to Mormon settlements as Patriarch.
He was also able to attend the Centenial of the Prophet Joseph Smith's birth in Vermont with his half-brother President Joseph F. Smith.
