Thomas Edwin Ricks

Biography

Thomas Edwin Ricks was born in 1828 and became an early convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, migrating west with fellow pioneers and helping found what would become Rexburg, Idaho, by building sawmills and guiding families through the rigors of frontier settlement.

He served as a local religious and civic leader, nurturing schools and charities whose legacy endures at Idaho's Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho), and he is buried in Rexburg Cemetery where visitors can reflect on the town he helped shape.