Content preview - You need a premium account to view this content.

O

Oahu Conference

OAHU CONFERENCE, or District, of the Hawaiian Mission, consists of the Latter-day Salute residing on the island of Oahu and comprises all that part of said island not included in the Honolulu District. The first L. D. S. [p.599] Elders called to open a mission on the Hawaiian Islands, ten in number, arrived at Honolulu, Oahu, Dec. 12, 1850. Hiram Clark, president of the mission, baptized a young Hawaiian in Honolulu on Feb. 10, 1851, as the first fruits of their mission. Two white men were baptized shortly afterwards at Honolulu. On Nov. 2, 1851, a branch of the Church was organized in Hakipuu and native brethren were ordained to the Priesthood and one of them appointed to preside over the branch. Soon afterwards other branches of the Church were organized on Oahu, including the Honolulu Branch, organized April 26, 1853. After the organization of the Honolulu Branch, baptisms became very frequent and many manifestations of healing were experienced. About 1854 the branches on Oahu were organized as the Oahu Conference, which on July 24, 1855, consisted of 22 branches with a total membership of 874. In 1893 certain parts of Oahu were separated from the Oahu Conference and organized as the Laie and Honolulu conferences (later amalgamated as the Honolulu Conference).

Oak City Ward

OAK CITY WARD, Deseret Stake, Millard Co., Utah, consists of the Latter-day Saints residing in a part of Millard County lying 12 miles south of Leamington, 20 miles northwest of Holden, and 12 miles east of Delta, the headquarters of the Deseret Stake. Oak City is a small farming settlement located on high ground overlooking a considerable part of the great Pauvant Valley, and is situated near the west base of a spur of the Wasatch Mountains.

In the spring of 1865 Alva Prows located on Oak Creek, near the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon, for ranching and farming purposes. He built a house, took out water for irrigation purposes and farmed his first land that year, making also a beautiful little garden. Other settlers followed, who were bothered considerably and frequently by mountain lions and other wild animals which killed their stock. When the settlement of Deseret broke up in 1868 many of the people, who had struggled so hard at that place to redeem the land from the desert, moved up to the higher ground of Oak City, where fruit culture on the gravelly soil proved successful. A townsite was surveyed at Oak City. John Lovell, who had presided at Deseret, was chosen as presiding officer at Oak City and he also retained his presidency over the few remaining saints at Deseret until 1871. John Lovell was succeeded as presiding Elder at Oak City in 1871 by Platte D. Lyman, who presided until Oak City was organized as a ward July 22, 1877, when he was made Bishop. He held that position until 1879, when he moved to the San Juan country, after which John Lovell and George Finlinson took temporary charge of the Oak City Ward until 1880, when Peter Anderson was chosen as Bishop. He was succeeded in 1907 by Joseph T. Finlinson, who in 1911 was succeeded by John Lee Anderson, who presided until March 16, 1930, when he was succeeded by Willis E. Dutson, who acted as Bishop Dec. 31, 1930. On that date the Church membership of Oak City Ward was 369, including 87 children. The total population of the Oak City Precinct was 380 in 1930.