Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) served as the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, the sixth Church president, and the grandson of Hyrum Smith, brother of the Prophet Joseph Smith. By age ten, he had read the Book of Mormon twice.
Smith served as an apostle for over 60 years, longer than almost anyone in Church history. He held positions as Church Historian, president of the Genealogical Society, and president of the Salt Lake Temple. As one of the Church’s most prolific writers, his works include Doctrines of Salvation, Essentials in Church History, and Answers to Gospel Questions.
When he became Church President at age 93, he was the oldest person to assume that role. Though his presidency was brief, he led important administrative reforms that improved correlation of Church publications and brought the Quorum of the Twelve into more decisionmaking. He died peacefully on July 2, 1972, after attending church services that day.