115 years ago today in Mormon church history. Mormon church president Wilford Woodruff oversaw the establishment of the Genealogical Society of Utah. Today, the LDS Church plays an integral part in world-wide genealogical research, hosting the largest genealogy organization in the world.

How did the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints become front and center in the world of genealogy?

In the early 1840s, Mormon prophet Joseph Smith introduced "baptisms for the dead" allowing Mormons to be baptized by proxy for their deceased relatives. After this he introduced Eternal Marriage where wives were sealed to their husband, and the Endowment, an ritual enacting the steps toward salvation.

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