Danel W. Bachman is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 historian of Mormonism

Mormonism

Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...

 and an instructor at the Institute of Religion

Institute of Religion

Institutes of Religion provide religious educational classes for young single adult and university students who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

 of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) in Logan, Utah

Logan, Utah

-Layout of the City:Logan's city grid originates from its Main and Center Street block, with Main Street running north and south, and Center east and west. Each block north, east, south, or west of the origin accumulates in additions of 100 , though some streets have non-numeric names...

.

Bachman received an M.A. in history from Purdue University

Purdue University

Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...

 in 1975. He also received his bachelors degree from Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...

. Bachman has written articles on the Morrisites and the practice of polygamy in the LDS Church prior to Joseph Smith's death.

Bachman was born in Twin Falls, Idaho

Twin Falls, Idaho

Twin Falls is the county seat and largest city of Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The population was 44,125 at the 2010 censusTwin Falls is the largest city of Idaho's Magic Valley region...

.

Bachman was one of the people who Mark Hofmann

Mark Hofmann

Mark William Hofmann is an American counterfeiter, forger and convicted murderer. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, Hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the Latter Day Saint movement...

 contacted in his presentation of his forged Anthon Transcript

Anthon Transcript

The Anthon Transcript is a small piece of paper on which Joseph Smith, Jr. wrote several lines of characters. According to Smith, these characters were from the Golden Plates and represent the Reformed Egyptian writing that was on the plates...

.

Bachman co-authored the article in the Encyclopedia of Mormonism

Encyclopedia of Mormonism

The Encyclopedia of Mormonism is a semi-official encyclopedia for topics relevant to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

on Plural Marriage with Ron Esplin

Ron Esplin

Dr. Ronald Kent Esplin is the managing editor of The Joseph Smith Papers project and the former director of the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History at Brigham Young University .- Biography :...

.

From 2002-2005 Bachman served as the president

Mission president

Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...

 of the California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 Roseville

Roseville, California

-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Roseville had a population of 118,788. The population density was 3,279.4 people per square mile...

 Mission

Mission (LDS Church)

A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...

, where he was succeeded by Lee Tom Perry

Lee Tom Perry

Lee Tom Perry is a business professor, Latter-day Saint church leader and hymnwriter. He is the son of L. Tom Perry, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....

. He currently serves as the second counselor in the presidency of the Logan Utah Temple

Logan Utah Temple

The Logan Utah Temple is the 4th constructed and 2nd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second LDS temple built in the Rocky Mountains .The LDS temple in Logan was announced on May 18, 1877, just after the dedication...

.

Prior to this Bachman had served in several callings in the LDS Church including as a bishop and as a Patriarch. He and his wife Patricia are the parents of four children.

Sources

• listing for Bachman's papers at the University of Utah library
• Maxwell Institute bio
• LDS Church News, Feb. 26, 2005; Feb 2, 2002