James Richey was born in 1821 in Pickens, Alabama, the son of William Richey and Margaret Ann Adair. In 1843 or 1844, James first heard the Mormon doctrine preached and was convinced of its truth after doing some research on his own. He was baptized into the church in 1844 and was later ordained a member of the Seventy and made a Patriarch. By trade James was a farmer and a mechanic; in his service to the church he preached in Alabama and Mississippi and helped settle Sanpete Valley, Utah, and Saint Johns, Arizona. James married Lucinda Mangum in 1846 and later practiced the doctrine of plural marriage by taking a second and third wife. His second wife, his niece Frances Mangum, left him after three months; and his third wife, Nancy Leemaster, left when their first child was still a baby. The father of 12 children, James passed away in 1890.
From the description of Autobiography of James Richey, ca. 1949. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 122386540
