---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 7
number: 3
published: 1904-01
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Public Workers—James Jack," *Improvement Era* 7, no. 3 (January 1904): 214.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0703unse
  transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers.
  identifier: improvementera0703unse
start_page: 214
end_page: 214
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1904-01)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0703unse
  publication_year: 1904
  note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1904, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# Public Workers—James Jack

<!-- page:214 -->

PUBLIC   
        WORKERS.
JAMES 
        JACK.
In 
        this 
        number 
        of 
        the 
        Era, 
        a 
        splendid 
        likeness 
        of 
        Elder 
        James.
Jack 
        is 
        presented 
        to 
        our 
        readers. 
        Brother 
        Jack 
        has 
        occupied 
        the
position 
        of 
        Cashier 
        and 
        Chief 
        Clerk 
        to 
        the 
        Trustee 
        in 
        Trust 
        of 
        the
Church 
        of 
        Jesus 
        Christ 
        of 
        Latter-day 
        Saints 
        for 
        many 
        years, 
        and 
        is-
a 
        zealous 
        and 
        trusted 
        worker.
James 
        Jack 
        was 
        born 
        on 
        the 
        twentieth 
        of 
        November, 
        1829,
in 
        Perthshire, 
        Scotland, 
        and 
        is 
        the 
        son 
        of 
        John 
        Jack 
        and 
        Margaret
Cowper. 
        His 
        early 
        life 
        was 
        spent 
        upon 
        his 
        father's 
        farm 
        in 
        Scot-
land, which 
        work 
        he 
        later 
        supplemented 
        by 
        employment 
        in 
        a 
        dry
goods 
        establishment 
        in 
        his 
        native 
        town. 
        He 
        came 
        to 
        the 
        United
States 
        and 
        to 
        Utah 
        in 
        1853. 
        His 
        first 
        public 
        labor 
        upon 
        arriving
in 
        Salt 
        Lake 
        City 
        was 
        in 
        the 
        building 
        of 
        the 
        city 
        walls, 
        under 
        the
direction 
        of 
        A. 
        P. 
        Rockwood. 
        It 
        was 
        necessary 
        in 
        those 
        early
times 
        that 
        those 
        who 
        arrived 
        here 
        take 
        any 
        employment 
        that 
        first
came 
        to 
        hand, 
        and 
        so 
        he 
        set 
        to 
        work 
        in 
        the 
        building 
        of 
        these 
        walls
with 
        heart 
        and 
        energy, 
        to 
        accomplish 
        the 
        trust 
        which 
        had 
        been
imposed 
        upon 
        him. 
        He 
        afterwards 
        obtained 
        a 
        position 
        in 
        the 
        office 
        of
the 
        tithing 
        store 
        as 
        clerk, 
        in 
        1856, 
        in 
        which 
        place 
        he 
        labored 
        for 
        five
years, 
        when 
        he 
        was 
        called 
        to 
        work 
        in 
        the 
        President's 
        oflice, 
        in 
        1861,
as 
        cashier 
        and 
        chief 
        clerk, 
        which 
        employment 
        he 
        has 
        held 
        for
over 
        forty-two 
        years, 
        a 
        remarkable 
        tribute 
        to 
        his 
        faithfulness
and 
        integrity.
He 
        was 
        married 
        February 
        11, 
        1853, 
        while 
        yet 
        in 
        Scotland, 
        to
Jemima 
        Innis, 
        a 
        native 
        of 
        Scotland, 
        having 
        been 
        baptized 
        into 
        the
Church 
        of 
        Jesus 
        Christ 
        of 
        Latter-day 
        Saints, 
        February 
        9,
        1851.
Aside 
        from 
        his 
        labors 
        as 
        chief 
        clerk 
        in 
        the 
        Church 
        business
office, 
        he 
        has 
        taken 
        part 
        in 
        many 
        of 
        the 
        financial 
        affairs 
        which 
        have,
enhanced 
        the 
        growth 
        of 
        our 
        State, 
        and 
        in 
        all 
        cases 
        he 
        has 
        admin-