"And let my servant Sidney Gilbert stand in the office to which I have appointed him, to receive moneys, to be an agent unto the church, to buy land in all the regions round about, inasmuch as can be done in righteousness, and as wisdom shall direct." — Doctrine and Covenants 57:6¹

Sidney Gilbert, born on December 28, 1789, in New Haven, Connecticut. He moved to Kirtland, Ohio, in 1826, and became a partner with Newel K. Whitney in the N. K. Whitney & Co. store by 1827. He was baptized into the Church of Christ in the spring of 1831 and was ordained an elder by Joseph Smith in June 1831. He moved to Independence, Missouri, opened a store, was appointed an agent for the church, and joined the United Firm.² He was reluctant to preach the gospel, and not confident that he could do so, but eventually served a mission to the eastern states in 1832.³ Along with other church members, Gilbert offered himself up as a ransom to the Missouri mobs to protect the Saints.³ He was eventually arrested and forced out of Jackson County. Gilbert was later a host to some of the members of Zion’s Camp in 1834, but died during the cholera outbreak that year.²

1. Doctrine and Covenants 57:6

2. "Gilbert, Algernon Sidney," josephsmithpapers.org; Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 12, 134-135; “Sidney Gilbert,” Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources, churchofjesuschrist.org

3. “A Call to Sidney Gilbert to Forsake the World,” Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual, churchofjesuschrist.org; "Gilbert, Algernon Sidney," josephsmithpapers.org