About Ezra Thayre
Lived 1791 – 1862 (aged 70). Ezra Thayre was a missionary.
Ezra Thayre (also spelled Thayer) (October 14, 1791 – September 6, 1862) was an early convert and leader in the Latter Day Saint movement.
Personal life Ezra Thayre was born in Randolph, Vermont, to Ezra and Charlotte French Thayre. Thayre was a builder of bridges, dams, and mills in the Palmyra, New York area in the 1820s.
Shortly after Thayre's baptism, Smith received a revelation that directed Thayre and Northrop Sweet to "open ye your ears and hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, whose word is quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of the joints and marrow, soul and spirit; and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart ".
Church service On June 6, 1831, Joseph Smith received a revelation instructing Thayre to depart on a mission to Missouri with Thomas B. Marsh. In preparation for this, Thayre was ordained an elder in the church by Lyman Wight. However, due to a disagreement about property that arose among Thayre and some of the Latter Day Saints living in Thompson, Ohio, Thayre was not prepared to leave when Marsh was ready. A revelation to Smith revoked the mission call to Thayre, assigned Marsh a new companion, and instructed Thayre to "repent of his pride, and of his selfishness". Later in 1832, Thayre did serve a mission to New York with Marsh.
In 1834, Thayre joined Zion's Camp, a group of Latter Day Saints that traveled from Ohio to assist some members of the church in Missouri. However, on June 21, 1834, Thayre contracted cholera, which quickly spread to many of the other Saints in Zion's Camp. However, Thayre went on to make a full recovery.
On March 1, 1835, Thayre was ordained a seventy in the church. However, on May 2, 1835, Thayre's priesthood was suspended after an unspecified complaint of misbehavior filed by Oliver Granger. A disciplinary council was held, and Thayre was eventually restored to full fellowship in the church. In 1838, Thayre became a member of the Adam-ondi-Ahman stake high council. In 1839, he moved with the majority of Latter Day Saints to Nauvoo, Illinois.
In 1844, shortly after being made a member of the Council of Fifty, Thayre departed on a mission with Jedediah M. Grant, George A. Smith and Wilford Woodruff to campaign for Joseph Smith as President of the United States.
Death of Joseph Smith After the death of Joseph Smith in June 1844, Thayre was part of the minority of Latter Day Saints who refused to follow the leadership of Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve. When the majority of Saints departed Nauvoo for the Salt Lake Valley, Thayer remained behind in Nauvoo. In 1849, Thayre moved to Michigan. Affiliated briefly with James J. Strang at Voree, Walworth Co., Wisconsin, but soon returned to New York where he was rebaptized into the LDS Church in September 1854. He became a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in at Galien, Berrien Co., Michigan on August 24, 1860. gives Thayre's death date as September 6, 1862.
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Important facts
People in Ezra Thayre's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Ezra Thayre's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Ezra Thayre?
American missionary (1791–1862)
When was Ezra Thayre born?
Ezra Thayre was born on 14 October 1791.
When did Ezra Thayre die?
Ezra Thayre died on 6 September 1862.
What was Ezra Thayre's occupation?
Ezra Thayre was a missionary.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Ezra Thayre. https://biography.guide/ezra-thayre/
MLA: "Ezra Thayre." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/ezra-thayre/.
Chicago: "Ezra Thayre." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/ezra-thayre/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
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