Archives West Finding Aid

Isaac Blair Evans was born on 22 May, 1885 in Ogden Utah. Evans was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Subsequent to graduating from Ogden High School, Isaac was accepted as a student at Harvard University where he earned a B. A. degree in 1908. His scholarly achievements were recognized with his admission to Phi Beta Kappa. A year later he married Grace Grant, whose father was Heber J. Grant, a L.D.S. apostle and future church president. After teaching history at the Utah Agricultural College (1908-1909), Evans enrolled in Harvard's Law School finishing his L.L.B. degree in 1913. While a law student, Isaac spent his summer of 1910 reading numerous books and articles relating to the history of the LDS faith. A 1911 manuscript entitled " A Brief Critical Analysis of the Book of Mormon" represented a by-product of his research investigations. Following graduation, he returned to Utah, passed the state bar exam, and formed a Salt Lake City law firm with L. R. Martineau Jr. In 1917 Evans became the Assistant District Attorney for the third judicial district of Utah. Within a year Isaac was promoted to the position of Assistant U.S. Attorney for Utah. President Wilson appointed him to the office of U.S. Attorney in 1920, a job which he held for less than a year due to Warren Harding's 1920 presidential election victory. Evans decided to move to Pasadena, California where he joined a firm which was known as Cruickshank, Brooke, and Evans. A 33 degree Mason, Isaac authored a 1922 book entitled "The Thomson Masonic Fraud: A Study in Clandestine Masonry". He died on 7 May, 1941 at the age of 55.