From this thesis we gain new insights into nineteenth and early twentieth century Mormonism. The life of Lewis Warren Shurtliff was typical of other Latter-day Saints in the formative period of the Church and Shurtliff contributed in many ways to Mormonism's growth and development. The New England background of the Shurtliff family is informative in determining the influences of Calvinist New England theology on early Mormons.Shurtliff's vocations of pioneer, colonizer and freighter contributed to the building of a mountain empire in the Great Basin. His courtship, marriages and families and his attitudes and beliefs concerning plural and eternal marriage influenced many members of the Church. His more than fifty years of service as a regional Church leader sheds new light on the role of wards and stakes in the Latter-day Saints Church. President Shurtliff's life and personality contributed to the acceptance and assimilation of Mormonism into the mainstream of American life.