Titus Billings
Encyclopedia
Titus Billings was an early convert to the Latter Day Saint movement
. He served in several positions in the church and was a contemporary of Joseph Smith, and Brigham Young
. Billings was a councilor in the first Bishopric of the Church to Edward Partridge
. He participated in the Battle of Crooked River
, and was a Colonel in the Nauvoo Legion
. He participated in the Mormon migration as a Captain of Fifty in the second company, and was a notable settler of Manti, Utah
.
, Franklin County
, Massachusetts
on March 24, 1793. He was the son of Ebeneezer Billings and Ester Joyce. One notable ancestor is Sir Thomas Billing
, Chief Justice of the Kings Bench in England.
were members of Sidney Rigdon's
congregation of Campbellites. This utopian group practiced communal principles, holding goods in common for the benefit of all of the members. They also held the belief, called Restorationism, that a purer form of Christianity
should be restored using the early Christian church as a model. These beliefs would serve as a backdrop for Billings's membership in the "Church of Christ", as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was first called, including his future participation in the United Order
.
When Sidney Rigdon joined the fledgling Church of Christ he held a two-hour sermon explaining to his congregation why he was making the commitment. The next morning, November 15, 1830 he was baptized. Upon calling for more converts, Titus Billings stepped forward and was the second person baptized in Kirtland, Ohio
.
While in Missouri, Billings participated in the United Order covenant which was made with Edward Partridge, the first Bishop of the Church. The United Order was short lived though, and anti-Mormon pressure at the time caused Billings to lose much of his property. While storing hay on a rented farm owned by then Governor Boggs, a mob burned 24 tons of the hay and later forced Billings out of Clay County.
In February 1835 Titus and Diantha were called to return to Kirtland to help finish the Kirtland temple. Titus was a stonemason, carpenter, and musician, while Diantha designed the original temple garments. In March, upon the temple’s completion, Diantha sang at the dedication services and Titus became a member of the School of the Prophets. The Billings family moved back to Missouri in 1837 and Titus was sustained as 2nd Councilor to Bishop Edward Partridge at the General Conference of the church in Far West. He served in this calling until the death of Bishop Partridge in 1840.
signed the infamous Extermination order. Titus signed a petition documenting the losses of property during this time which were never recovered. Escaping the mobs, he and his family moved to what became known as Morleytown or Yelrome which is near modern day Lima, Illinois
and is a short distance from Nauvoo, Illinois
.
In February 1841 the Nauvoo Legion was organized and Titus was made a Captain. By September, Billings was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the legion.
August 22, 1842 Billings was called on a mission to the New England states. Luman Andros Shurtliff was his companion. They returned in June 1843 after suffering much and having only small successes.
In September 1846, Isaac Morley's cooper shop was burned and the Billings family and all of the residents of Morleytown moved to Nauvoo. During this time Billings worked daily on the Nauvoo temple until its completion. However due to mob pressure, their stay was short lived and after the death of Joseph Smith the Billings family and the saints moved out of Nauvoo.
In 1848 Titus was appointed as a Captain of Fifty in Heber C Kimball’s company of pioneers. The company arrived in Salt Lake Valley in the winter of 1848. In February 1849 Titus is called to the Greater Salt Lake City Stake High Council.
Initially the native tribes of the area were friendly towards the settlers while still at war with one another. When one tribe had a victory over another, often the women and children of the opposing tribe were taken as slaves. Upon seeing the cruel treatment of the newly enslaved children, the pioneers would sometimes purchase the children from their captors to liberate them. Titus Billings purchased a young Indian girl and gave her to Diantha to raise as a daughter. Diantha named the girl Rose Billings. After a few years the pioneers were able to convince the tribes that the Great Spirit was displeased with them for their cruelty to prisoners and the practice gradually died out.
and remarried. However near the end of her life she was resealed to Titus and changed her name again to Billings as can be seen on her grave marker.
Children from Mary Ann Tuttle:
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is a group of independent churches tracing their origin to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 14 million members...
. He served in several positions in the church and was a contemporary of Joseph Smith, and Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
. Billings was a councilor in the first Bishopric of the Church to Edward Partridge
Edward Partridge
Edward Partridge was the grandson of Massachusetts Congressman Oliver Partridge, Esq., and a member of a family noted for commercial, social, political, and military leadership in Western Massachusetts. One of the first converts to the Latter Day Saint movement, he was baptized in or near Seneca...
. He participated in the Battle of Crooked River
Battle of Crooked River
The Battle of Crooked River was a skirmish between Latter Day Saint forces and Missouri state militia unit from southeast of Elmira, Missouri in Ray County under the command of Samuel Bogart...
, and was a Colonel in the Nauvoo Legion
Nauvoo Legion
The Nauvoo Legion was a militia originally organized by the Latter Day Saints to defend the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, . To curry political favor with the ambiguously-political Saints, the Illinois state legislature granted Nauvoo a liberal city charter that gave the Nauvoo Legion extraordinary...
. He participated in the Mormon migration as a Captain of Fifty in the second company, and was a notable settler of Manti, Utah
Manti, Utah
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 3,040 people, 930 households, and 742 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,560.2 people per square mile . There were 1,010 housing units at an average density of 518.3 per square mile...
.
Early life
Titus was born in GreenfieldGreenfield, Massachusetts
Greenfield is a city in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,456 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Franklin County. Greenfield is home to Greenfield Community College, the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra, and the Franklin County Fair...
, Franklin County
Franklin County, Massachusetts
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 71,535 people, 29,466 households, and 18,416 families residing in the county. The population density was 102 people per square mile . There were 31,939 housing units at an average density of 46 per square mile...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
on March 24, 1793. He was the son of Ebeneezer Billings and Ester Joyce. One notable ancestor is Sir Thomas Billing
Thomas Billing
Sir Thomas Billing was an English judge and Chief Justice of the King’s Bench.-Early life and career:Billing is said by Fuller to have been a native of Northamptonshire, where two villages near Northampton bear his name, and to have afterwards lived in state at Ashwell in that county. Lord...
, Chief Justice of the Kings Bench in England.
Cambellite commune
On February 16, 1817 he married Diantha Morley. Diantha and her older brother Isaac MorleyIsaac Morley
Isaac Morley was an early member of the Latter Day Saint movement and a contemporary of both Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. He was one of the first converts to Smith's Church of Christ...
were members of Sidney Rigdon's
Sidney Rigdon
Sidney Rigdon was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Baptist background:...
congregation of Campbellites. This utopian group practiced communal principles, holding goods in common for the benefit of all of the members. They also held the belief, called Restorationism, that a purer form of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
should be restored using the early Christian church as a model. These beliefs would serve as a backdrop for Billings's membership in the "Church of Christ", as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was first called, including his future participation in the United Order
United Order
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the United Order was one of several 19th century church collectivist programs. Early versions of the Order beginning in 1831 attempted to implement the Law of Consecration, a form of Christian communism, modeled after the New Testament church which had "all things...
.
When Sidney Rigdon joined the fledgling Church of Christ he held a two-hour sermon explaining to his congregation why he was making the commitment. The next morning, November 15, 1830 he was baptized. Upon calling for more converts, Titus Billings stepped forward and was the second person baptized in Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
.
Early church membership
In March 1831 Joseph Smith said he had received a revelation directing the Saints to impart of their land and money to the church. In August 1831 Billings was commanded to sell the Morley Family farm and holdings in preparation to move to Independence Missouri. On March 10, 1832 he was ordained an Elder by Thomas B Marsh. While en route to Jackson County Missouri he met with Joseph Smith on "The Charleston" a steam packet in Louisville Kentucky. The Billings family arrived in Clay County Missouri in May.While in Missouri, Billings participated in the United Order covenant which was made with Edward Partridge, the first Bishop of the Church. The United Order was short lived though, and anti-Mormon pressure at the time caused Billings to lose much of his property. While storing hay on a rented farm owned by then Governor Boggs, a mob burned 24 tons of the hay and later forced Billings out of Clay County.
In February 1835 Titus and Diantha were called to return to Kirtland to help finish the Kirtland temple. Titus was a stonemason, carpenter, and musician, while Diantha designed the original temple garments. In March, upon the temple’s completion, Diantha sang at the dedication services and Titus became a member of the School of the Prophets. The Billings family moved back to Missouri in 1837 and Titus was sustained as 2nd Councilor to Bishop Edward Partridge at the General Conference of the church in Far West. He served in this calling until the death of Bishop Partridge in 1840.
Mob persecution
On October 25, 1838 Titus participated in the Battle of Crooked River, and as part of the aftermath was forced to flee from his home to Des Moines river. While fleeing the mob he suffered from lack of food for several days and frostbite on his feet . As a result of the battle, Governor BoggsLilburn Boggs
Lilburn Williams Boggs was the sixth Governor of Missouri from 1836 to 1840. He is now most widely remembered for his interactions with Joseph Smith and Porter Rockwell, and Missouri Executive Order 44, known by Mormons as the "Extermination Order", issued in response to the ongoing conflict...
signed the infamous Extermination order. Titus signed a petition documenting the losses of property during this time which were never recovered. Escaping the mobs, he and his family moved to what became known as Morleytown or Yelrome which is near modern day Lima, Illinois
Lima, Illinois
Lima is a village in Adams County, Illinois, United States. The population was 159 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Quincy, IL–MO Micropolitan Statistical Area...
and is a short distance from Nauvoo, Illinois
Nauvoo, Illinois
Nauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the population was just 1,063 at the 2000 census, and despite being difficult to reach due to its location in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its...
.
In February 1841 the Nauvoo Legion was organized and Titus was made a Captain. By September, Billings was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the legion.
August 22, 1842 Billings was called on a mission to the New England states. Luman Andros Shurtliff was his companion. They returned in June 1843 after suffering much and having only small successes.
In September 1846, Isaac Morley's cooper shop was burned and the Billings family and all of the residents of Morleytown moved to Nauvoo. During this time Billings worked daily on the Nauvoo temple until its completion. However due to mob pressure, their stay was short lived and after the death of Joseph Smith the Billings family and the saints moved out of Nauvoo.
In 1848 Titus was appointed as a Captain of Fifty in Heber C Kimball’s company of pioneers. The company arrived in Salt Lake Valley in the winter of 1848. In February 1849 Titus is called to the Greater Salt Lake City Stake High Council.
Utah settlement
After Ute Indian leader Walkara invited Church president Brigham Young to send colonists to the Sanpitch (now Sanpete) Valley in central Utah, Young dispatched Isaac Morley and other settlers including the Titus Billings family to what is now the present location of Manti, Utah. Manti was incorporated by the Legislature in Salt Lake City, and the area was surveyed in 1851. Upon completion of the survey, the settlers left their temporary shelters at Temple Hill and moved to their city lots. Titus Billings and Jezreel Shomaker built the first houses, and were followed by others before the next winter. The Billings home still stands at present. Titus lived in Manti and was a member of the Stake presidency there in 1851.Initially the native tribes of the area were friendly towards the settlers while still at war with one another. When one tribe had a victory over another, often the women and children of the opposing tribe were taken as slaves. Upon seeing the cruel treatment of the newly enslaved children, the pioneers would sometimes purchase the children from their captors to liberate them. Titus Billings purchased a young Indian girl and gave her to Diantha to raise as a daughter. Diantha named the girl Rose Billings. After a few years the pioneers were able to convince the tribes that the Great Spirit was displeased with them for their cruelty to prisoners and the practice gradually died out.
Polygamy
On January 20, 1854 Titus married Mary Ann Tuttle as his second wife under the practice of polygamy. Mary Ann was the divorced ex-plural wife of Howard Egan. She bore four children with Titus before they too divorced. Mary Ann moved to Bicknell, UtahBicknell, Utah
Bicknell is a town along State Route 24 in Wayne County, Utah, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 353, a slight increase over the 1990 figure of 327.-History:...
and remarried. However near the end of her life she was resealed to Titus and changed her name again to Billings as can be seen on her grave marker.
Death
In his later years, Titus moved to Provo Utah and died there at the age of 72. He is buried in the Provo Cemetery with his first wife Diantha.Progeny
Children from Diantha Morley Billings:- Samuel Dwight Billings
- Thomas Billings
- Ebenezer Billings
- Emily Billings
- Martha Billings
- Alfred Nelson Billings
- George Pierce Billings
- Eunice Billings
- Titus Billings (Jr.)
Children from Mary Ann Tuttle:
- Emily Billings
- Titus Billings (Jr.)
- Teresa Billings
- Alonzo Billings
Notable descendants
- George Victor Billings, former Mayor of Duchesne, UtahDuchesne, UtahDuchesne is a city in and the county seat of Duchesne County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,690 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Duchesne city is located at . just west of the junction of the Strawberry and Duchesne rivers in the Uintah Basin of northeastern Utah...
and two term Utah State representative. - Roger Billings, entrepreneur, inventor, and scientist.
- Lewis BillingsLewis Billings- Biography :Billings studied engineering, technology and business at Brigham Young University . Later he became an executive and General Manager at CalDisk, a company founded by his brother, Roger E. Billings, which developed rotating memory storage products for computers...
, former Mayor of Provo, UtahProvo, UtahProvo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
.