The First and Final General Conference talks by the
Presidents of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Some presidents made final remarks to conclude the conferences so technically those would be their "final" talks but most final remarks were brief testimonies or thank yous. For this page I selected their last full addresses. Some of the final remarks had some good content, though, so in those cases I included them also. The first talks listed came from general assembly sessions, unless specified. The pictures in the articles don't necesarily reflect the age of the president at the time the talk was given. I included some younger pics just for fun.

Thomas S. Monson
Born August 21, 1927
Served as Church President from January 2008 - Present
Sustained as President April 2008

President Thomas Monson’s first talk

Gordon B. Hinckley
Born June 23, 1910
Died January 27, 2008
Served as Church President from March 1995 – January 2008
Sustained as President April 1995

President Gordon Hinckley's first talk
President Gordon Hinckley's final address, 3 months before his death.

Howard W. Hunter
Born November 14, 1907
Died March 3, 1995
Served as Church President from May 1994 - March 1995
Sustained as President October 1994
*Unfortunately, President Hunter only presided over one General Conference before he was diagnosed and quickly succomed to cancer. I used his Priesthood Session talk as his first and his concluding talk as his final address.

President Howard Hunter's Priesthood Session talk
President Howard Hunter's final talk, given 5 months before his death.

Ezra Taft Benson
Born August 4, 1899
Died May 30, 1994
Served as Church President from November 1985 – May 1994
Sustained as President April 1986
*President Benson actively spoke at conferences until his health began declining in 1989. He presided over two more conferences, speaking personally at one then having someone read his prepared remarks at the other. Unfortunately his health deteriorated to the point where he was unable to attend another conference. I've posted the last talk he was personally able to give as his "last talk", and his last prepared talk read by proxy as his "final talk".

President Ezra Benson's first talk
President Ezra Benson's last talk he was able to give before his health failed.
President Ezra Benson's final prepared talk, read by his 2nd Counsellor, President Thomas S. Monson. He died 5 years later.

Spencer W. Kimball
Born March 28, 1895
Died November 5, 1985
Served as Church President from December 1973 - November 1985
Sustained as President April 1974
*Toward the end of his life, President Kimball's health declined to where he couldn't personally address the congregation so on occasion he prepared talks for others to read. Fortunately, despite being unable to speak, he was able to attend conferences until his death. Like President Benson, I included President Kimball's last talk he gave and the last talk someone gave for him.

President Spencer Kimball's first talk
President Spencer Kimball's last address he personally gave before his health declined.
President Spencer Kimball's final prepared talk, read by his personal secretary D. Arthur Haycock. He died 3 years later.

Harold B. Lee
Born March 28, 1899
Died December 26, 1973
Served as Church President from July 1972 - December 1973
Sustained as President October 1972

President Harold Lee's first talk.
President Harold Lee's final conference talk before his death 2 months later.

Joseph Fielding Smith
Born July 19, 1876
Died July 2, 1972
Served as Church President from January 1970 - July 1972
Sustained as President April 1970

President Joseph Fielding Smith's First Talk
President Joseph Fielding Smith's final full address
President Joseph Fielding Smith's closing remarks, given 3 months before his death.

David O. McKay
Born September 8, 1873
Died January 18, 1970
Served as Church President from April 1951 - January 1970
Sustained as President April 1951

President David McKay's First Talk, President George Albert Smith had just died two days before this conference.
President David McKay's Last Conference Talk he had personally given
President David McKay's Final Prepared Talk, read by his son, Robert McKay. He passed away 3 months later.

George Albert Smith
Born April 4, 1870
Died April 4, 1951
Served as Church President from May 1945 - April 1951
Sustained as President October 1945

President George Smith's First Talk
President George Smith's Final Talk given 6 months prior to his death. He died 2 days before the next General Conference was to begin.

Heber J. Grant
Born November 22, 1856
Died May 14, 1945
Served as Church President from November 1918 - May 1945
Sustained as President April 1919

President Heber Grant's First Talk
President Heber Grant's Final Talk, given 37 days before his death.

Joseph F. Smith
Born November 13, 1838
Died November 19, 1918
Served as Church President from October 1901 - November 1918
Sustained as President November 1901
*President Lorenzo Snow instructed President Smith to immediately reorganize The First Presidency after his death, rather than delaying a few years as was the previous practice. A special solemn assembly conference was held in November to sustain President Smith, a month after the regular Semiannual conference. Subsequent Presidents would continue the practice of promptly reorganizing the First Presidency following the deceased president's funeral, and would be sustained by the body of the church during the next scheduled conference.

President Joseph F. Smith's First Talk, given during a special solemn assembly conference held in November 1901 in response to President Snow's death 4 days after the October 1901 conference.
President Joseph F. Smith's Last Talk
President Joseph F. Smith's Final Conference Remarks, given 44 days before his death.

Lorenzo Snow
Born April 3, 1814
Died October 10, 1901
Served as Church President from September 1898 - October 1901
Sustained as President October 1898
*As instructed by The Savior, Lorenzo Snow was the first president to reorganize the First Presidency immediately following the death of the previous prophet. Prior to this when a president died, the Quorum of Twelve Apostles would govern the church for several years until they felt impressed to reorganize the First Presidency.

President Lorenzo Snow's Opening Comments of his first conference as President.
President Lorenzo Snow's first talk as President.
President Lorenzo Snow's Final Conference Talk, given 4 days before his death.

Wilford Woodruff
Born March 1, 1807
Died September 2, 1898
Served as Church President from July 1887 - September 1898
Sustained as President April 1889

President Wilford Woodruff's First Talk after officially becoming LDS Church President
President Wilford Woodruff's Final Talk, given 5 months before his passing.

John Taylor
Born November 1, 1808
Died July 25, 1887
Served as Church President from August 1877 - July 1887
Sustained as President October 1880
*The church didn't start publishing Conference Reports on a regular basis until 1897. Before that, conference minutes and announcements were published and a few talks were transcribed from stenographer's notes. For Presidents Taylor and Young I searched through their collections of published discourses and found full conference addresses that had been transcribed and published at the approximate times conferences would have been held when their presidencies began and concluded. John Taylor had been operating the church while in exile, while avoiding prosecution by the U.S. Government for polygamy, during the last three years of his presidency (and life). So for his I used a talk from the last conference I could find that he attended.

President John Taylor's First Talk after officially becoming LDS Church President.
President John Taylor's Final Talk (I could find), given 3 years before his death.

Brigham Young

Born June 1, 1801
Died August 29, 1877
Served as Church President from August 1844 - August 1877
Sustained as President December 1847
*President Young was formally sustained as LDS Church President during a conference held in Council Bluffs. I could only find minutes and events recorded during that conference, so I wasn't able to use his actual firs talk, so I chose his earliest recorded full discourse I could find after his sustaining. For his last talk I chose a published discourse he gave at a conference shortly before his death, but I can't guarantee it was his absolute final talk.

President Brigham Young's Earliest Recorded Conference Talk, after being sustain as LDS Church President.
President Brigham Young's Last Recorded Conference Talk, given 4 months before his death.

Joseph Smith
Born December 23, 1805
Died June 27, 1844
Served as Church President from April 1830 - June 1844
Sustained as President April 1830
*Most of Joseph's talks and sermons came from member's journals and diaries. Detailed transcripts of his addresses weren't kept until the 1840's and were published in portions in church newspapers. Rather than piece a talk together from various topics Joseph spoke about, I used a full recorded address of is given in 1840. His last recorded conference talk I found was his famous "King Follett Sermon", given at the funeral of King Follett during Joseph's last conference. Just for fun I also included the last public sermon Joseph gave before his murder at Carthage.

Joseph Smith's 1840 General conference talk
"The King Follett Sermon" President Joseph Smith's Last General Conference talk, given 2 months before his martyrdom.
"The Christian Godhead - Plurality of Gods" President Joseph Smith's Final Public Address as LDS Church President, given 11 days before his martyrdom.

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