Joseph Coulson Rich (January 16, 1841 – October 17, 1908) was an American, politician, judge, and early settler of the

Idaho Territory The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as Idaho. History 1860s The territory ...

Early life

Rich was born in

Nauvoo, Illinois Nauvoo ( ; from the ) is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States, on the Mississippi River near Fort Madison, Iowa. The population of Nauvoo was 950 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Nauvoo attracts visitors for its h ...

, as the oldest son of the Latter Day Saint converts Charles C. Rich and Sarah DeArmon Pea. In 1847, the family traveled with

Mormon pioneers The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter-day Saints, who Human migration, migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the ...

from Nauvoo to the

Salt Lake Valley Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City, Utah, Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Utah, Murray, Sandy, Uta ...

. In 1849, Charles Rich became an

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church).

Career

In 1860, Rich traveled to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, where he was a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

for the LDS Church until 1863. During that time, his father was the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the LDS Church's European

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

, which was based in England. Returning to

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

, Charles and Joseph Rich were recruited by

Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...

to participate in the settlement of the Bear River Valley in Idaho Territory. Under the leadership of Charles Rich, the settlers founded

Paris, Idaho Paris is a city and county seat of Bear Lake County, Idaho, United States. Located on the western side of the Bear Lake Valley, the city's population was 541 at the 2020 census. Paris was settled on September 26, 1863, by pioneer settlers of ...

. On January 25, 1867, Joseph Rich became a member of the

Council of Fifty "The Council of Fifty" (also known as "the Living Constitution", "the Kingdom of God", or its name by revelation, "The Kingdom of God and His Laws with the Keys and Power thereof, and Judgment in the Hands of His Servants, Ahman Christ") was a Lat ...

. In 1868, Rich wrote an article in the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

'' in which he claimed that a group of settlers had seen "monsters" swimming in the waters of Bear Lake. This was the beginning of the popular legend that the

Bear Lake Monster The Bear Lake Monster is a lake monster urban legend which appears in folklore near Bear Lake, on the Utah–Idaho border. The myth originally grew from articles written in the 19th century by Joseph C. Rich, a Latter-day Saint settler i ...

inhabits the lake. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, Rich was twice elected to represent Bear Lake County in the Idaho Territorial Legislature. He also served as prosecuting attorney of the county. He presided over the Democratic Party's Idaho state convention in 1894 and was elected to the

Idaho Senate The Idaho State Senate is the upper chamber of the Idaho Legislature. It consists of 35 senators elected to two-year terms, each representing a district of the state. The Senate meets at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise, Idaho. Composition of th ...

in 1896. In 1898, he was elected as the judge of Idaho's fifth judicial district.

Personal life

In 1886, Rich married Ann Eliza Hunter, a daughter of Edward Hunter, a prominent leader in the LDS Church. Rich died in

Centerville, Utah Centerville is a city in southeastern Davis County, Utah, United States. Centerville is part of the Ogden-Clearfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 15,335 at the 2010 census. It is located adjacent to the easternmost part o ...

, and was buried in the Paris Cemetery in

Notes

References

*''An Illustrated History of the State of Idaho'' (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1899) pp. 693–695.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rich, Joseph C. 1841 births 1908 deaths 19th-century Mormon missionaries American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints American Mormon missionaries in England American Mormon missionaries in the United Kingdom Democratic Party Idaho state senators Mormon missionaries in Wales Mormon pioneers People from Paris, Idaho Idaho state court judges Members of the Idaho Territorial Legislature Mormon missionaries in Europe Latter Day Saints from Illinois Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saints from Idaho