The first missionary of the Church came to Jamaica in 1841, but his stay was brief. In 1853, missionaries were again sent to Jamaica. They found a great deal of antagonism and stayed only six weeks.
Latter-day Saint families of John L. Whitefields and Jay P. Bills came to Jamaica in the late 1960s and began holding meetings in Mandeville. The Mandeville Branch (a small congregation) was created on March 22, 1970. The first Jamaican branch president of the Mandeville Branch was Victor Nugent. Nugent and his family were among the first converts in the country. Full-time missionaries began teaching again in Jamaica in November 1978.
Joseph Hamilton was the first Jamaican President of the Kingston Branch in 1982.
By 1983, membership had increased to 300. Jamaica became part of the new West Indies Mission created in 1983. In November of that year, land was bought to build a new chapel. The Constant Spring Chapel in Kingston was built in 1985.
In 1985, membership had increased to 520, and the first full-time Jamaican missionary left to serve in the United States.
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