Portraits of the past: The grave of Sidney Rigdon

Sidney Rigdon made a remarkable contribution to Joseph Smith and the cause of the Restoration. He was baptized by missionaries in late 1830 while serving as a minister in a Campbellite-tradition church in Mentor, Ohio. Many of his congregants followed him and were baptized as well. Rigdon served close to the Prophet Joseph as a member of the First Presidency and was present during a number of deeply spiritual occasions. One such event was the vision of the three degrees of glory, now known as Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants. He was severely injured by a mob at the time Joseph Smith was tarred and feathered. Rigdon went to Liberty Jail in 1838 but was released before Joseph Smith and the others. Following the death of the Prophet, Rigdon became disaffected from the church. He eventually settled at Friendship, N.Y., where he died and was buried. Years later, his son, John Rigdon, was baptized into the church. John Rigdon's grave is located in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.

— Kenneth Mays