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History of the Missions of Buenos Aires

For more than sixty years, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ has been within the reach of the people of Argentina. It all started on October 8, 1925 when Melvin J. Ballard of the Council of the Twelve was commissioned to travel to South America and dedicate it for the preaching of the gospel. Rulon S. Wells and Rey L. Pratt of the presidency of the Seventy were chosen and authorized to accompany Elder Ballard.

Once assigned, these men did not delay. On December 6, 1925, they were in Buenos Aires. Only one week passed until on December 12, Elder Ballard baptized 5 people in el Rio de La Plata - the first ordinances performed in South America since Book of Mormon times.

December 25, 1925 is a very special day and is recognized among the members of the church in South America. On that day, the apostle Melvin J. Ballard, in el parque 3 de Febrero, dedicated the land for the preaching of the gospel saying, "The work of the Lord will grow slowly for a time..but thousands will join the church here. It will be divided into more than one mission and will be one of the strongest areas of the church."

The first president of the South American Mission was Elder Reinholt Stoof, who began to direct the mission in 1926. President and Sister Stoof were recently married and lived in Buenos aires while they directed the work of the Lord in Argentina and Brazil. The missionaries were few, as were the converts in the early years. When President Stoof and his family finished the mission, almost 10 years later, they left 7 missionaries, 4 branches, and a total of 150 converts to the church.

In August 1935, President W. Ernest Young followed as president of the mission in Argentina (officially named the Argentine Mission and now did not include Brazil). Some of the area where the missionaries worked when President Young started were Villa Devoto, Liniers, and Haedo. In the period of three years he was there, the work grew considerably. In place of 7 Elders, the quantity grew to 60. the number of branches was elevated to 20 in all of Argentina. Upon finishing his mission in August of 1938, President Young saw a total of 400 members in Argentina, a growth of more than 150 percent!

On April 9, 1939, while Frederick S. Williams presided over the mission, the first chapel was dedicated in Liniers, Buenos Aires. It was a great day for the members of the church in Argentina and was only the beginning of a program of chapel construction that continues until the present.

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