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Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1805 - 1844

Biography

Joseph Smith, Jr. (1805-1844) was a prophet and founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Joseph Smith, Jr. was born on December 23, 1805, to parents Joseph Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith. He was the fifth of eleven children. He worked on the family farm in Vermont and later in western New York. A series of remarkable spiritual experiences prepared him for his prophetic calling. Beginning in 1820 at Palmyra, New York, Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ in vision. Through revelation, he translated and published the Book of Mormon, organized The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on April 6, 1830, and received revelations to guide the Church. By inspiration, he called Apostles and other Church leaders, defined doctrines, and taught the principles and ordinances that would lead to exaltation. Under his leadership, Latter-day Saints founded communities in Ohio, Missouri, and Illinois. He was sustained as First Elder of the Church on April 6, 1830. On June 27, 1844, at Carthage, Illinois, Joseph Smith died a martyr to his faith.

Citation:
Book of Mormon. Japanese. Morumon-kyō, 1909 (1950 printing): t.p. (Josefu Sumisu [in Japanese])

Book of Moemon. Armenian. Girkʻ Mōrmōni, 1937: t.p. (Kart. Chōzēf Smitʻh)

Britannica.com, Oct. 13, 2010 (Joseph Smith, originally Joseph Smith, Jr. (b. Dec. 23, 1805, Sharon, Vt., U.S.; d. June 27, 1844, Carthage, Ill.), prophet and founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

The Book of Mormon, 1830: title page (Joseph Smith, Junior)

Doctrine and covenants of the Church of the Latter Day Saints, 1835: title page (Joseph Smith, Junior)

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, page 1331 (Joseph Smith, Jr. (1805-1844), the Prophet Joseph Smith, founding prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; born December 23, 1805 in Sharon, Vermont; moved to Palmyra, N.Y. in 1816; founded the Church in Fayette, N.Y. April 6, 1830; migrated with the Church to Kirtland, Ohio in 1831; then to Far West, Missouri in 1838; finally to Nauvoo, Ill. (which he founded) in 1839; killed by a mob in Carthage, Ill. June 27, 1844)

Found in 268 Collections and/or Records:

George Cannon biography

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230314855]
Identifier: MSS SC 1753
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a typed biography of George Cannon, English convert to the Mormon Church, who emigrated to the United States and settled in Nauvoo. He made coffins for the Mormon prophet, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), and his brother, Hyrum, and plaster casts of their heads.

Dates: approximately 1955

The globe

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230237817]
Identifier: MSS SC 735
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a handwritten and signed statement dated 15 April 1844. Smith outlines his views on many political issues in the United States.

Dates: 1844

God, Man, and the Universe

 File — Box 1: [Barcode: 31197232501319]
Identifier: MSS 717
Scope and Contents

Typed manuscript of a book published by the Bookcraft Company in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1968. Andrus writes on how Mormons view the universe and man's purpose in it.

Dates: 1968

God's beginning

 Collection — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197233646477]
Identifier: MSS 8344
Scope and Contents

Materials include one sheet of a handwritten transcription of a few paragraphs from The King Follett Discourse and two verses from the Doctrine and Covenants. The transcriber is unknown. Dated approximately 1955.

Dates: approximately 1955

Ebeneezer Emory Gore autobiography

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230324037]
Identifier: MSS SC 2473
Scope and Contents Typewritten carbon copy of an autobiography with pencilled corrections composed in Lawrence, Kansas in 1904. Gore participated in an overland journey to Jacksonville, Oregon in 1852 and presents many insights into frontier and pioneer life. Gore was familiar with the Mormons in Kirtland, Ohio and in Nauvoo, Illinois. After the Mormons arrived in Kirtland, "the chicken-roosts suffered ... and the herds of stock frequently became reduced." When confronted the Mormons "would acknowledge the...
Dates: 1904

Zenos H. Gurley letter to Joseph Smith, Jr.

 Collection — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197233294674]
Identifier: Vault MSS 782
Scope and Contents

Handwritten and signed letter dated 4 May 1842 and addressed to Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the first president of the Mormon Church. Gurley writes that he was unable to attend a meeting with the Nauvoo Legion militia organization and describes the founding of a branch of the Mormon Church in Wisconsin.

Dates: 1842 May 4

David and Ira P. Hale papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 7614
Scope and Contents

Collection includes the originals, photocopies, and digital scans of a ledger used by David Hale and two notebooks used by Ira P. Hale. Also includes a photocopy and a typescript of a letter from Lorenzo D. Wasson, Emma Smith, and a third author to David Hale. The handwriting may be from Joseph Smith, but it is unsigned. Original documents date from 1827 to 1888.

Dates: 1827-1888

Jesse Hale letter

 Collection — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197231044899]
Identifier: MSS 1009
Scope and Contents

Typescript of a signed letter dated March 30, 1845 and addressed to Emma Hale Smith, wife of Joseph Smith (1805-1844). Hale comments on Joseph Smith's generosity to him.

Dates: 1845

Hancock County (Ill.) Circuit Court legal documents

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 1443
Scope and Contents

Collection contains about 750 documents relating to some 250 actions arising in justice of the peace or circuit courts in Hancock County, Illinois. Also includes a letter from David Martin concerning part of the collection and indexes to court cases involving Joseph Smith Jr. and the autographs of those who martyred Smith.

Dates: 1839-1860

Hancock County, Illinois summonses

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230305077]
Identifier: MSS SC 759
Scope and Contents

Handwritten and printed summonses for Joseph Smith, first president of the Mormon Church, and John C. Bennett, and apostle in the Mormon Church. Also included is a receipt from Emma Hale Smith, first wife of Joseph Smith, made out to Thomas Sharp.

Dates: 1841-1847