| Name |
Year |
Founder |
Members |
Comments |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
1830 |
Joseph Smith Jr. |
16,118,169 |
Founded at Fayette in
New York state.
It remains the largest LDS denomination, with headquarters at Salt Lake City
in Utah. It originally
was called the "Church of Christ"; renamed in 1838. Nicknamed "Mormon" by
detractors. Brigham Young
seized control shortly after Joseph's murder in June 1844 and moved members west to Utah.
Heber Grant reorganized as a Corporation Sole in 1916; president of the corporation owns all
assets. Bylaws stipulate that the next senior apostle automatically becomes president upon
demise of the prior president. Also called Brighamites. |
| Pure Church of Christ |
1831 |
Wycam Clark |
6 |
Founded at Kirtland in
Ohio state.
First schismatic church; disbanded after a few meetings. |
| Independent Christ |
1832 |
Hoton |
? |
Founded at Kirtland in
Ohio state.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. Little is known about this group. |
| Church of Christ |
1836 |
Ezra Booth |
? |
Founded at Kirtland in
Ohio state.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. |
| Church of Christ |
1837 |
Warren Parrish |
? |
Founded at Kirtland in
Ohio state.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. |
| Alston Church |
1839 |
Isaac Russell |
? |
Founded in western Missouri.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded and members rejoined the LDS church in
Nauvoo. |
| Church of Christ |
1838 |
William Chubby |
? |
Established to minister specifically to black Americans.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. |
| Church of Jesus Christ, the Bride, the Lamb's Wife |
1840 |
George Hinkle |
? |
Founded at Moscow in Iowa state.
Schismatic church that disbanded after 1843. He advocated eternal marriage. |
| Church of Christ |
1842 |
Hiram Page |
? |
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. He was one of
eight witnesses to the Book of Mormon gold plates. |
| Church of Christ |
1844 |
Lyman Wight |
? |
Led many LDS members to central Texas.
Most later joined the RLDS church. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of the Children of Zion |
1844 |
Sidney Rigdon |
? |
Founded at Pittsburgh in
Pennsylvania state.
Originally called the Church of Christ; defunct in 1847. |
| True Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
1844 |
William Law |
? |
Founded at Nauvoo in
Illinois state.
Schismatic church that quickly disbanded. He and other former LDS high officers
opposed plural marriage and printed the Nauvoo Expositor. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
1844 |
James Strang |
300 |
Founded at Voree in
Wisconsin state.
Current headquarters at Shreveport
in Louisiana. Also called Strangites. |
| Church of Christ |
1844 |
Aaron Smith |
? |
Founded at Voree in
Wisconsin state.
Schism from the Strangites; quickly became defunct. |
| Church of Christ |
1847 |
William McLellin |
? |
Founded at Kirtland in
Ohio state. He encouraged
David Whitmer to head the
church; also called the Whitmerites. Most members joined the
Temple Lot church in 1925. |
| The Bride, the Lamb's Wife |
1848 |
Jacob Syfritt |
? |
LDS schism that quickly became defunct. |
| Church of Christ |
1848 |
James Brewster |
? |
LDS schism that quickly became defunct. It published
The Olive Branch. |
| Congregation of Jehovah's Presbytery of Zion |
1848 |
Charles Thompson |
? |
LDS schism that quickly became defunct. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
1851 |
Gladden Bishop |
? |
Defunct after Bishops' death in 1865. Most members helped form the
Temple Lot church. |
| Church of Christ (Temple Lot) |
1852 |
Granville Hedrick |
7,310 |
Hedrick and John E. Page founded the church and maintains the
Temple Lot at
Independence
in Missouri. Also called
the Hedrickites. |
| Church of Jesus Christ |
1853 |
Alpheus Cutler |
12 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Also called Cutlerites. |
| Church of the Potter Christ |
1857 |
Arnold Potter |
? |
Founded in California;
they eventually settled at Council Bluffs
in Iowa. Disbanded after his death in 1872. |
| Community of Christ |
1860 |
Joseph Smith III |
250,301 |
Founded at Amboy in
Illinois state.
It is the second largest LDS denomination, with headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. It originally
was called the "Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints"; renamed in 2001. |
| Church of the Firstborn |
1861 |
Joseph Morris |
300 |
Founded at Kingston Fort in Utah.
LDS leaders at Salt Lake City initiated the "Morrisite War" that resulted in several deaths,
including Morris in 1862. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
1861 |
Walter Gibson |
? |
Founded a Mormon colony on Lanai in
Hawaii. Excommunicated for stealing LDS
funds to purchase Lanai. He later became Hawaiian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Interior.
Also called Gibsonites; defunct in the 1870s. |
| Church of the Messiah |
1861 |
George Adams |
70 |
Members moved from Maine
to Palestine.
Their mission failed. |
| Church of Jesus Christ |
1862 |
William Bickerton |
23,600 |
Headquarters at Monongahela in
Pennsylvania state.
It recognized Sidney Rigdon
as a true successor to Joseph Smith Jr.
Nicknamed the Bickertonites or Rigdonites. |
| Kingdom of Heaven |
1866 |
William Davies |
43 |
Founded a colony near Walla Walla in
Washington. Schism of the Morrisites;
defunct in 1880. |
| Church of Zion |
1868 |
William Godbe |
? |
Founded in Utah.
Schismatic church that became defunct in 1880s. It was the core of Utah territory's
Liberal Party. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Most High |
1882 |
John Eardley |
? |
Followers of Joseph Morris; the
largest group was in Montana. Disbanded in 1969. |
| Order of Enoch |
1884 |
James Brighouse |
few |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Defunct by 1892. |
| Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ |
1907 |
Allen Wright |
? |
Branch at Erie in
Pennsylvania state.
Schism of the Bickertonites; now defunct. |
| Primitive Church of Jesus Christ |
1914 |
James Caldwell |
? |
Rejoined with a branch at Erie in
Pennsylvania state.
Schism of the Bickertonites; now defunct. |
| Church of the Christian Brotherhood |
1918 |
Richard Evans |
? |
Organized at Toronto in
Canada.
Schism of the RLDS church; now defunct. |
| Council of Friends |
1929 |
Lorin C. Woolley |
2,500 |
Founded in Salt Lake City.
Schismatic church that refused to abandon polygamy. They settled in
Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah.
Most Mormon fundamentalists devolved from this group. |
| Apostolic United Brethren |
1929 |
Lorin C. Woolley |
10,000 |
Founded by polygamists; headquarters at Bluffdale
in Utah. Members are in other western
states and own a temple in Mexico. They
use the term "The Work", "The Priesthood" or "The Group". Recent leader was
Rulon C. Allred. |
| Church of Christ |
1929 |
Otto Fetting |
2,450 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Also called Fettingites. |
| Church of Christ at Halley's Bluff |
1932 |
Thomas B. Nerren |
100 |
Headquarters at Schell City in
Missouri.
Schism of the Hedrickites. |
| Latter Day Church of Christ |
1935 |
J. Ortell Kingston |
2,000 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at
Salt Lake City
but members are in Davis County, Utah. Renamed
in 1941 as the Davis County Cooperative Society Inc. by
C. Elden Kingston. |
| Third Convention |
1936 |
Abel Páez |
several thousand |
Dissident LDS group in Mexico.
They returned to the LDS Church in 1946. |
| Church of the Saints of the Fullness of Times |
1936 |
? |
300 |
Located in San Gabriel Ometotztla, Mexico.
Schism of the Third Convention; active as of 1997. |
| Kingdom of God in its Fulness |
1936 |
? |
700 |
Polygamist group located in Colonia Industrial, Mexico.
Affiliated with Apostolic United Brethren and Third Convention; active as of 1997. |
| Church of Christ (Restored) |
1937 |
A.C. DeWolf |
450 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Schism of the Fettingites. |
| Church of Christ with the Elijah Message |
1943 |
William Draves |
12,500 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Schism of the Fettingites. |
| House of Aaron |
1943 |
Maurice Glendenning |
1,000 |
Headquarters at Eskdale
in Utah. Current leader is John M. Conrad. |
| Church of Christ (Hancock) |
1946 |
Pauline Hancock |
? |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Schism of the Fettingites
and the first founded by a woman; defunct in 1984. |
| Third Conventionist |
1947 |
Margarito Bautista |
700 |
Located in Ozumba, Mexico.
Active as of 1997. |
| Zion's Order |
1951 |
Marl Kilgore |
100 |
Headquarters at Mansfield,
Missouri.
Schism of the Aaronic Order. |
| True Church of Jesus Christ |
1953 |
Clyde Fletcher |
10 |
Headquarters at Clitherall in
in Minnesota. Members
rejoined the Cutlerites in 1969. |
| Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints |
1954 |
Leroy S. Johnson |
8,000-10,000 |
Largest LDS polygamist group; headquarters at Colorado City
in Arizona. There are 700 members at the
YFZ Ranch near Eldorado, Texas. |
| Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness of Times |
1955 |
Joel F. LeBaron |
1,000 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Colonia Lebaron in Chihuahua,
Mexico. Members also are in the
Salt Lake City area. |
| Church of the Firstborn |
1955 |
Ross W. LeBaron |
100 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Salt Lake City
in Utah. He broke away from brothers at
Colonia Lebaron in Mexico. |
| Perfected Church of Jesus Christ of Immaculate Latter-day Saints |
1955 |
William Conway |
? |
Mystical sect; Zapotec tribe in the
Yucatán declared Conway to be a prophet. |
| Church of Christ |
1965 |
Howard Floyd |
35 |
Centered at Holden in Missouri state.
Schism of the Fettingites. |
| Church of Jesus Christ |
1965 |
Theron Drew |
few |
Founded in Wisconsin state.
Schism of the Strangites. |
| Holy Church of Jesus Christ |
1966 |
Alexandre Caffiaux |
? |
Members in France
in New Mexico; now defunct.
Schism of the Strangites. |
| United Order Family of Christ |
1966 |
David Desmond |
? |
Gay young men's group started at Denver
in Colorado. Defunct in 1973 or 1974. |
| Church of Jesus Christ Restored |
1968 |
Stanley King |
40 |
Headquarters at Chatsworth
of Ontario in
Canada.
Polygamist schism of the RLDS church. |
| Church of Israel |
1972 |
Dan Gayman |
? |
Headquarters at Schell City in
Missouri.
Racist schism of the Hedrickites. |
| Church of the First Born Lamb of God |
1972 |
Ervil LeBaron |
? |
Polygamist group at Los Molinos in Baja California,
Mexico. He broke away from brothers at
Colonia Lebaron in Mexico and died in prison after ordering the murders of Joel LeBaron and Rulon Allred. |
| Church of Jesus Christ in Solemn Assembly |
1974 |
Alex Joseph |
400 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Big Water
in Utah. Alex also formed the
Confederate Nations of Israel in 1977. |
| True Church of Jesus Christ Restored |
1974 |
David Roberts |
? |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Roberts claimed
to be a successor of James Strang. |
| Church of the New Covenanet in Christ |
1975 |
John W. Bryant |
? |
Polygamist group headquartered at Salem
in Oregon. Wives claimed he converted temple
ordinances into free love sexual rites. |
| Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints |
1978 |
Gerald Petertson |
100-200 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Modena
in Utah. He claimed to be the
successor to Rulon Allred and Spencer Kimball. |
| Restored Church of Jesus Christ |
1980 |
Eugene O. Walton |
25 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Schism of the Cutlerites. |
| Independent RLDS / Restoration Branches |
1980s |
various |
10,000 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Sons Ahman Israel |
1981 |
David Israel |
? |
Fundamentalist group with headquarters at Cane Beds
in Arizona.
David's real name is Gilbert Clark. |
| School of the Prophets |
1982 |
Robert Crossfield |
? |
Fundamentilist group with headquarters at Salem
in Utah. He published the
Book of Onias, which condemned LDS leaders. |
| Church of Jesus Christ |
1983 |
Art Bulla |
? |
Cult with headquarters at Salt Lake City
in Utah. He requres followers to pray in his name; active as of 2013. |
| Centennial Park |
1984 |
J. Marion Hammon |
1,500 |
Fundamentalist group with headquarters at Centennial Park
in Arizona. Schism that
broke with Leroy Johnson. |
| Church of Christ |
1985 |
David B. Clark |
? |
Headquarters at Oak Grove,
Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Restoration Church of Jesus Christ |
1985 |
Antonio Feliz |
500 |
Headquarters at Salt Lake City
in Utah. Also known as the Gay
Mormon Church; defunct in 2010. |
| Church of Jesus Christ (Zion's Branch) |
1986 |
Robert Cato |
200 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Lundgren Group |
1988 |
Jeffrey Lundgren |
20 |
Headquarters at Kirtland,
Ohio.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Kingdom of God |
1990 |
Frank Naylor |
200-300 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Bluffdale
in Utah. Schism of Centennial Park. |
| Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
1991 |
various |
? |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Pentecostal Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-4ay Saints |
1994 |
Mike Bethel |
? |
Schism of LDS church; extant as of 1998. |
| True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days |
1994 |
James Harmston |
300-500 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Manti
in Utah. Schism of Centennial Park. |
| Church of Jesus Christ Restored 1830 |
2000 |
Nolan Glauner |
? |
Headquarters at Tarkio,
Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
2000 |
Frederick Larsen |
1,000-2,000 |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri.
Schism of RLDS church. |
| Church of the Firstborn and the General Assembly of Heaven |
2001 |
Terrll Dalton |
? |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Fromberg,
Montana. |
| Church of Jesus Christ Inc. |
2002 |
Winston Blackmore |
700 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Bountiful,
British Columbia. |
| Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, The Assured Way of the Lord, Inc. |
2004 |
Leonard Draves |
? |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. Schism of the Hecrickites. |
| Church of Jesus Christ in Zion |
2004 |
Roger Billings |
1,000 |
Polygamist group with headquarters at Bountiful,
British Columbia. |
| Latter Day Church of Jesus Christ |
2007 |
Matthew Gill |
? |
Headquarters at Independence
in Missouri. |
| Fellowships of the Remnants |
2013 |
Denver C. Snuffer Jr. |
5,000 |
Founded by followers of Denver Snuffer; located in Utah
and other western states. Composed of restorationist Christians. |
| Sword of YHVH Ministries |
2013 |
Jake Hilton |
9,000 |
Located in northern Idaho and
conducted via the internet. |
| Cause of Zion |
2016 |
Joseph F. Smith |
450 |
Headquarters at Holden
in Missouri. AKA
Joseph Smith Ministries at Blue Springs, Missouri. |
