22 Facts About William Bickerton

William Bickerton was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement after the 1844 succession crisis.

In 1862, Bickerton became the founding president of the church now known as The Church of Jesus Christ, which is one of many churches that claim to be a continuation of the Church of Christ founded by Joseph Smith Jr in 1830.

William Bickerton immigrated to the United States on June 20,1831 and became a coal miner in, first, Virginia and then Pennsylvania.

William Bickerton was not a Latter Day Saint during Smith's lifetime.

William Bickerton was baptized a member of Rigdon's church in Pittsburgh in June 1845.

Later that same year, William Bickerton was ordained an elder and shortly after an evangelist in the church.

Many of Rigdon's followers, including William Bickerton, opposed moving the headquarters of the church.

However, some followers of Rigdon, including William Bickerton, refused to join the dissenters.

William Bickerton remained in Monongahela, Pennsylvania, and never moved to Greencastle with Rigdon.

William Bickerton described his situation upon the collapse of the Rigdonite church:.

William Bickerton maintained his faith in the Restoration and led a small congregation of 9 in West Elizabeth, Pennsylvania.

In early 1852 William Bickerton attended a church leadership conference where he was made aware of the church's beliefs about plural marriage.

William Bickerton engaged in public preaching and met with his growing congregation in houses and, by the end of 1854, his church had around 60 members.

On 5 July 1859, William Bickerton was ordained as head of the church by his followers and called a Prophet and Seer.

William Bickerton presided over the conference and reorganized the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve.

At a conference in 1872 in West Elizabeth, William Bickerton was chosen to spend the remainder of his days on missionary work.

William Bickerton maintained his innocence but Cadman believed the accusations leading to the two of them holding rival church conferences in St John in July 1880.

In 1902, he reconciled with Cadman and was reinstated in the church with Cadman now the undisputed leader and William Bickerton remained a faithful church member until he died on February 17,1905, a week after suffering injuries in a fire.

William Bickerton married Dorothy Breminger in 1843 in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; the couple had one son, James, and five daughters: Eliza Ann, Clara Virginia, Angeline Ann, Josephine, and Florence.

William Bickerton sued for divorce from her in 1880 and this was granted on 27 August 1880.

William Bickerton died at St John, Stafford County, Kansas, at the age of 90 as a member and leader of the church he organized in 1862.

William Bickerton is buried in the Fairview Cemetery in St John.