This infobase is separated into seven divisions:

(1) Biographical Sketches, Stories, and Photographs

Taken together, this collection of sketches, stories, and photographs is a researcher's dream come true. There are 10,042 photographs and portraits in this section! You can easily look up a person of the past and find stories in which they were participants, find their portrait, or perhaps find the names of individuals they were named after (or who were named after them!). Here are the specific works included in this section of the infobase.

Carter, Kate B., ed. Our Pioneer Heritage. 20 vols. Salt Lake City: International Society, Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 1958-1977.

The complete set of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers classic 20-volume compilation on the pioneer period, 1847 to 1868. Each volume gives a year's coverage for the key people and events until the pioneer period ended with the coming of the railroad.

Esshom, Frank, ed. Pioneers and Prominent Men of Utah Comprising Photographs, Genealogies, Biographies. Salt Lake City: Utah Pioneers Book Publishing Company, 1913.

The classic compilation of photographs and detailed family history notes on the pioneers of 1847-1868, and the prominent men of Utah thereafter. The entire text of the 1,319 pages, including 656 pages consisting of nearly 6,000 photographs, is included.

Jakeman, Jas. T. Album "Daughters of the Utah Pioneers and Their Mothers". [Salt Lake City:] Western Album Publishing Company, n.d.

Two hundred forty-five pages of biographical sketches and 515 photographs of daughters and mothers of the Utah Pioneers.

Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. A. Jenson History Company and Deseret News, 1901-36.

The complete text and photographs of this classic guide to the biographical sketches of prominent men and women of the Church's first century is here published in electronic format for the first time. All 3206 pages and 2,506 portraits and photographs are included.

Writings of Early Latter-day Saints and Their Contemporaries, A Database Collection. 2nd ed., rev. and enlarged. Edited by Milton V. Backman, Jr., in cooperation with Keith W. Perkins, Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1996.

Transcriptions of over 200 autobiographies, diaries, and journals of leaders and members that tell the tale of LDS Church history from the individual's perspective. Includes the full text of such book-length classics as the Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, Benjamin F. Johnson's My Life's Review, the Manuscript History of Brigham Young, and The Journals of Orson Pratt, as well as over 200 other unpublished autobiographies and biographical sketches.

(2) Guides and Indexes to Diaries, Autobiographies, and Manuscripts

The four most important guides and indexes to Latter-day Saint biographical manuscripts and published materials is here available in electronic format for the first time.

Andrus, Hyrum L., and Bennett, Richard E. Mormon Manuscripts to 1846: A Guide to the Holdings of the Harold B. Lee Library [Brigham Young University]. Provo, Utah: Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, 1977.

A listing of manuscripts, including diaries and journals, on file in the Harold B. Lee Library of Brigham Young University.

Bitton, Davis. Guide to Mormon Diaries & Autobiographies. Provo: Brigham Young University Press, 1977.

The most comprehensive annotated listing of Mormon diaries and autobiographies ever assembled.

Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. Heart Throbs of the West. Salt Lake City: International Society, Daughters of Utah Pioneers.

A 12-volume collection about long-lost heroes of yesteryear.

Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. Treasures of Pioneer History. Salt Lake City: International Society, Daughters of Utah Pioneers.

Some of the best-kept secrets of our well-loved pioneer ancestors.

Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. An Enduring Legacy. Salt Lake City: International Society, Daughters of Utah Pioneers.

A 12-volume collection of information about LDS pioneers and their lives.

Stuart, David M. The Stuart Records. Salt Lake City: David M. Stuart Family,1998

Journals, biographies, and even pioneer company records from the hard work and research of the David M. Stuart family.

Utah State Historical Society. Guide to Archives and Manuscripts Collections in Selected Utah Repositories. An Electronic Database of Sources Found in Selected Manuscript Collections in the State of Utah in Folio Viewsr format. Max J. Evans, ed. Salt Lake City: Utah State Historical Society, 1991.

A survey of the major archives and manuscript holdings of the following Utah institutions: American Fork Public Library, American Fork; Brigham Young University, Provo; Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum, Salt Lake City; Southern Utah University, Cedar City; Springville Public Library, Springville; University of Utah, Salt Lake City; Utah State Archives, Salt Lake City; Utah State Historical Society, Salt Lake City, including the Classified Photo Collection; Utah State University, Logan; and, Weber State University, Ogden.

Wiggins, Marvin E. Mormons and Their Neighbors: An Index to Over 80,000 Biographical Sketches from 1820 to 1985 of Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Non Latter-day Saints Living in LDS Communities. 2nd ed., rev. and enlarged. Provo, Utah: Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, 1996.

The first place to go to find a published biographical sketch of a Latter-day Saint. Citations to over 80,000 biographical sketches of LDS and non-LDS individuals living in Mormon communities from 1820 to 1985.

(3) Histories and Chronologies

These five classic histories and chronologies of early Latter-day Saint history are indispensable to seeing how the lives of the early pioneers of Mormonism fit into the context of the Church's broader history. Andrew Jenson's Encyclopedic History of The Church and Orson F. Whitney's History of Utah appear here for the first time in electronic format.

Jenson, Andrew. Church Chronology. Excerpts, 2nd ed. Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1914.

Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake City: Deseret News Publishing Company, 1941.

A wonderful resource identifying the key people associated with the organization of wards, branches, stakes, districts, and missions of the Church up to 1941.

Roberts, B. H. Comprehensive History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 6 vols. 1930. Reprint. Orem, Utah: Sonos Publishing Inc., 1991.

Roberts's renowned centennial history of the Church.

Smith, Joseph. History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Edited by B. H. Roberts. 2nd ed., rev. 7 vols. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1980.

Commenced by the Prophet Joseph Smith as a documentary history of the formative years of LDS Church history, the 1839-1844 portion of the work was completed by Church Historians in Salt Lake in 1857. From 1902 to 1912, B.H. Roberts produced the current definitive edition with extensive introductory essays and footnotes for the Joseph Smith-period volume and the Apostolic Interregnum- period volume.

Whitney, Orson F. History of Utah. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: George Q. Cannon & Sons Co., 1892-1904.

A classic account of the history of Utah to early statehood by one of the state's most celebrated authors and leaders. Over 3,000 pages, including reproductions of its 369 steel engravings.

(4) Early LDS Newspapers and Periodicals

The full text of every church-oriented newspaper and periodical published in the United States during the Joseph Smith period.

Elders' Journal of the Church of Latter Day Saints. Edited by Joseph Smith, Jr. Kirtland, Ohio, and Far West, Missouri: October 1837 to August 1838. (4 issues)

The Evening and The Morning Star. Edited by William W. Phelps and Oliver Cowdery. 2 vols. Independence, Missouri, and Kirtland, Ohio: June 1832 to September 1834. Electronic text prepared by Department of Church History and Doctrine, Brigham Young University, 1991. (24 issues)

The Latter Day Saints' Messenger and Advocate. Edited by Oliver Cowdery, et al. 3 vols. Kirtland, Ohio: F. G. Williams & Co., et al., October 1834 to August 1837. Electronic text prepared by the Department of Church History and Doctrine, Brigham Young University, 1991. (36 issues)

Times and Seasons. Edited by Ebenezer Robinson, et al. 6 vols. Commerce, Illinois, and Nauvoo, Illinois, 1839-1846. (132 issues)

These are the four religious periodicals published during the Joseph Smith period of Church history.

(5) Family History Doctrine and Research

Two classic works on the history, doctrine, and research methods for family history and genealogy.

Bennett, Archibald F. Saviors on Mount Zion. Salt Lake City: Deseret Sunday School Union Board, 1950.

Classic instruction manual on both the basics of Family History and Genealogy Research as well as on the Doctrine of Redemption for the Dead, written by the man in the Church called "Mr. Genealogy."

Bennett, Archibald F. Saviors on Mount Zion: Teacher's Supplement. Salt Lake City: Deseret Sunday School Union Board, 1950.

Teacher supplement to the above volume.

Smith, Joseph Fielding. Elijah the Prophet and His Mission. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1924.

Classic overview of the importance of the appearance of Elijah the Prophet to Joseph Smith in the Kirtland Temple in 1836 and its implications to Mormon doctrine, temple ordinances, and family history research.

(6) LDS Emmigration Roster and Voyage History

Davis, Grant. LDS Emmigration Roster and Voyage History. Salt Lake City: Your Ship, 1997.

With over 103,000 entries, this database is likely to contain names of your ancestors and references to other details including passenger lists, ship drawings, and newspaper lists.

(7) Utah Historical Quarterly, volumes 1-18, 40-48 and 64

Utah Historical Quarterly. Orem, Utah: Timeless Software, 1998.

Bibliography of Reference Works in the Vital Records Library Infobase

Black, Harvey B. Seventy Quorum Membership, 1835–1846: An Annotated Index of Over 3,500 Seventies Organized into the First Thirty-Five Quorums of the Seventy in Kirtland, Ohio, and Nauvoo, Illinois. Provo, Utah: Infobases, Inc., 1996.

Black, Susan Easton. Early Members of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 6 vols. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Religious Studies Center, 1993.

Black, Susan Easton. Inscriptions Found on Tombstones and Monuments in Early Latter-day Saint Burial Grounds: Nauvoo, Illinois (Joseph Smith Homestead, and Pioneer Saints Cemetery on Parley Street); Mt. Pisgah, Iowa; West Bank of the Niobrara River, Nebraska; Winter Quarters, Nebraska. © 1979, Susan Easton Black. 65 pages.

Black, Susan Easton. Marriages in the Nauvoo Region, 1839–1845. Provo, Utah: © 1981, Susan Easton Black. 81 pages.

Black, Susan Easton. Members of the Ellsworth and McArthur Handcart Companies of 1856. © 1982, Susan Easton Black. 50 pages.

Black, Susan Easton. Members of the Mormon Battalion: A Sesquicentennial Remembrance. Provo, Utah: © 1980. 79 pages.

Black, Susan Easton. Members of the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies of 1856: A Sesquicentennial Remembrance. Provo, Utah: © 1980, Susan Easton Black. 109 pages.

Black, Susan Easton. Membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: 1830-1848. 50 vols. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Religious Studies Center, 1989. [Note: Popup notes are complete in this database only as far as Frances Miller]

Black, Susan Easton. Pioneers of 1847: a Sesquicentennial Remembrance. Provo, Utah: © 1980, Susan Easton Black. 242 pages.

Professional Chapter, Utah Genealogical Association. Utah Death Index, 1898 - 1905 (Excluding Salt Lake County). Judith W. Hansen, ed. [Salt Lake City:] Professional Chapter, Utah Genealogical Association, 1995.

Index to deaths, 1898–1905, in counties of Utah outside Salt Lake County.

Clemens, William Montgomery, ed. American Marriage Records Before 1699. Pompton Lakes, New Jersey: The Bilbio Company, 1926.