The author has collected nearly six thousand photographs of Utah pioneers (before 1869) and other prominent early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In a separate section are included brief biographical and genealogical sketches of these men and many more from the same era.
This large volume is divided into three sections. The first seven hundred pages are devoted to the photographs, nine to a page. Next are the sketches, filling nearly six hundred pages. The book concludes with a brief chronological history of the church.
The pioneers are those who arrived in Utah between 24 July 1647 and 30 December 1868, before the coming of the railroad. To these are added other prominent Utahans who arrived after the coming of the railroad, such as stake presidents, ward bishops and governors.
The author collected the material by travelling around the state and interviewing the pioneers themselves, or their descendants, and following up with correspondence. This volume is, therefore, much like the mugbooks and genealogies created about this time, in that it includes reliable data on recent generations which may not be easily found by modern researchers in surviving records.
