BYU Studies

Volume 58:2 (2019) - “On a cold, blustery day in 1839 in Commerce, Illinois, a small skiff appeared on the Mississippi River. As rain poured from the sky, a woman huddled in the vessel, trying to protect a two-month-old baby in her arms. She was trying to reach Commerce from Montrose, Iowa, hoping to procure a few potatoes and some flour for her six children. The woman was Mary Ann Angell Young, wife of Brigham Young, who was serving a mission in England. Her plight illustrates the difficulties of the wives of early missionaries in the Church, who were often left to fend for themselves and their children when their husbands left to serve missions. This article details some of the challenges these women faced, as well as later policy changes that helped alleviate the suffering of those left behind when their husbands and fathers served missions for the Church.”

Volume 58:2 (2019) - The oil painting Ed’s Slot, Provo River is 34″ × 40″ on linen canvas and was completed in 1994.I had painted a few fly-fishing paintings prior to this one. I was interested in capturing the brilliant light of sunset as it shines up Provo Canyon at the height of autumn color. I asked my friend Sean, who fishes the river a lot, if he would model for the painting. He eagerly agreed and then bought the original painting. I wanted my painting to be authentic, so Sean taught me a little bit about currents and the textures they make on the river and where to cast a line.

Volume 58:2 (2019) - The Creator Praises Birds, a poem by J.S. Absher. This poem won first place in the 2018 Clinton F. Larson Poetry Contest sponsored by BYU Studies.

Volume 58:2 (2019) - “The figure of a well-known and beloved fisherman is missing from the Provo River. When I turn off of U.S. Highway 189 in Provo Canyon, Utah, and cross the bridge to enter Vivian Park, I look upstream and downstream for him, but he isn’t there.” The missing fisherman is President Thomas S. Monson, who passed away in 2018. This reminiscence by his son tells of an avid and successful fisherman who also devoted his life to being a fisher of men. This essay chronicles the adventures of Tom Monson fishing the Provo River, as well as the influence he had on this son and many others who happened to meet him while he was engaged in his favorite pastime.