"He being held in the highest respect by that people, they entered into the work with pleasure, and seemed to vie with each other in their labor of love, believing it a duty to make their beloved pastor and his family comfortable." — Joseph Smith1
Before joining the Latter-day Saints, Sidney Rigdon was a preacher for the Campbellites, and his congregation in Mentor, Ohio (near Kirtland) was known for its fervent religious zeal and commitment to scriptural study.2 Rigdon and several members of his congregation were baptized on November 8, 1830, after being introduced to the Book of Mormon by Parley P. Pratt a little over a week earlier.2 After the congregation heard Oliver Cowdery and Parley P. Pratt preach, 17 members joined the Church, and many believed the words of the sermon given that day.3 Their conversions significantly bolstered the early Church, bringing a wave of new members that helped establish Kirtland as a central gathering place for the Saints.4
