Canute Peterson

Canute Peterson (also Knud Peterson) (1824-05-13 – 1902-10-14) was a Mormon pioneer settler of Utah Territory and was a leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

Peterson was born in Bergen, Norway. In Norway, he became a member of the Religious Society of Friends and emigrated to the United States in 1837. In 1842, while living in La Salle County, Illinois, he became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. After joining the church, he became a missionary to Norwegians living in Wisconsin.

Peterson led a company of Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley in 1849. He was one of the founders of Lehi in Utah Territory.

From 1853 to 1855, Peterson was a missionary in the LDS Church's Scandanavian Mission, where he preached in Norway and became the president of the Christiana Conference of the church. Later, from 1871 to 1873, Peterson returned to the Scandinavian Mission as the president of the mission, where he guided the missionary work in Norway, Denmark, and Sweden.

In 1867, Peterson was asked to move to Ephraim, Sanpete County, Utah to act as a bishop of the church there. Peterson was instrumental in assisting the Latter Day Saints make peace with the Native Americans in Sanpete County. The Canute Peterson House, a house he built in Ephraim, is listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

On 1882-10-14, Peterson became a member of the LDS Church's Council of Fifty. When Peterson died in Ephraim, Utah, he was serving as the president of the Sanpete Stake of the LDS Church, a position he had held since 1877. Peterson was also ordained to the office of patriarch in the church. Peterson is considered to be one of the founders of Snow Academy, know today as Snow College.

References

*Kate B. Carter (1939–1951). "Heart Throbs of the West" (Salt Lake City, Utah: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers), 2:303–330
*Andrew Jenson. "LDS Biographical Encyclopedia" (Salt Lake City, Utah: Andrew Jenson History Co.), 1:362–363
*"The Story of Canute Peterson," "Instructor", Apr. 1946, pp. 174–177