In the years since his death, "Uncle Golden" has become a near legendary character among church members, possibly comparable to what Will Rogers or Mark Twain are to the general American public.

His mother kept boarders as well as sewing for Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution or ZCMI, one of the first department stores in the United States.

In 1876, he and his brother, Elias, established a horse and cattle ranch in Meadowville, Rich County, and moved there with their immediate family.

He cut timber during the winter for use in the construction of the church's Logan Utah Temple and also worked as superintendent of a lumber mill.

After hearing an 1881 speech by educator Karl G. Maeser, the Kimball brothers decided to leave their ranch and return to school.

After completing his education, Kimball was called as a missionary to the southern United States on April 6, 1883, by LDS Church president John Taylor.

Although he developed a case of malaria, which troubled him for many years, Kimball remained active in the mission until his release in the spring of 1885.

[3] Shortly later, Kimball was made the head of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association for the Bear Lake Stake (which included the far South-east corner of Idaho, as well as some of Rich County, Utah).

During the time, it was customary for church leaders to frequently travel to Mormon communities in the western territories and states.

[6] This "folksy" style was backed by intelligence and deep spirituality, and Latter-day Saints would travel long distances to hear him speak at conferences.

One of the best known has LDS Church president Grant writing a "clean" radio speech for Kimball and ordering him to read it.

However, once on the air, Kimball struggled with Grant's handwriting and finally exclaimed, Hell, Heber, I can't read this damn thing.

He still held this position when he was killed in 1938, at the age of eighty-five, in a single-vehicle automobile accident in the Nevada desert 50 miles (80 km) east of Reno.