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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 113 Collections and/or Records:

Sally Randall letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197231044956]
Identifier: MSS 1015
Scope and Contents

Typed copy of a letter written in Nauvoo, Illinois, on July 1, 1844 and addressed to "Dear Friends." Randall writes about the murder of the first president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Joseph Smith, and his brother, Hyrum.

Dates: 1844 July 1

Arnold Auer Reiser diary entry

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230335827]
Identifier: MSS 1254
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of one page of a handwritten diary dated 4 Oct. 1899. Reiser writes that he gave instructions from Oliver B. Huntington concerning the location of the altar of the biblical character, Adam. Reiser also relates how the first president of the Mormon Church, Joseph Smith, received a seer stone.

Dates: 1899 October 4

Jennetta Richards letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230325695]
Identifier: MSS SC 2701
Scope and Contents Photocopy of a handwritten and signed letter dated 4 July 1843, written in Nauvoo, Illinois, and addressed to Wealthy Richards, then living in Richmond, Massachusetts. Also included are some comments by Willard Richards. Jennetta writes about her recent illness saying she was baptized seven times to recover her health. She also tells about life in Nauvoo and some of Willard's activities. Jennetta also talks about a recent arrest of the first president of the Mormon Church, Joseph...
Dates: 1843 July 4

Samuel W. Richards sworn oath

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230308436]
Identifier: MSS SC 1056
Scope and Contents Oath sworn before Martin S. Lindsay, Notary Public, in Salt Lake City on 11 Dec. 1903. The document affirms that Richards was among 25 young men who were called during the winter of 1843-4 by the Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), to explore the mountains in the West for a place where the Mormons could go to avoid persecution. Richards states that the men had weekly meetings to prepare for the trip and the decision to explore the West was made by Joseph Smith and not by his successor...
Dates: 1903

Biography of Sidney Ridgdon

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197231046027]
Identifier: MSS 1274
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a handwritten biography of Sidney Rigdon. John Rigdon writes about the activities of his father before, during, and after Sidney was a member of the Mormon Church. The date of the composition of the item is uncertain. Also included are correspondence, draft of an essay, and a published article edited by Karl Keller for the journal, "Dialogue+ a Journal of Mormon Thought." Keller edited Rigdon's account for publication.

Dates: approximately 1900-1968

David R. Roberts scripts

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230307107]
Identifier: MSS SC 938
Scope and Contents

Script of pageant calls for a narrator and four characters: Father Adam, Moses, Daniel, and Joseph Smith, each of whom gives a brief synopsis of his life. Each of these prophets tells his own story as found in Mormon scriptures. Roberts wrote this pageant for his Mormon High Priest's Quorum in refutation of the Darwinian theory of evolution.

Dates: 1931

John J. Roberts prophecy

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230326214]
Identifier: MSS SC 2752
Scope and Contents

Typewritten "Prophecy" supposedly copied from a "journal of Elder John J. Roberts of Paradise, Utah." The information was "related to Edwin Rushton and Theadore Turley, May 6th, 1843 by the Prophet Joseph Smith." The item contains the "White Horse Prophecy" also called the "Horse Shoe Prophecy." The dating of the item is uncertain.

Dates: approximately 1900

J. Rossle anti-Mormon negatives

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 4143
Abstract

11 rolls of anti-Mormon negatives on microfilm, beginning with J. Rossle's publication in German, circa 1915-1920.

Dates: circa 1915-1920

Fred W. Schwendiman statement

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197231046332]
Identifier: MSS 1305
Scope and Contents

Typewritten statement. Schwindiman writes concerning an observation made by Preston Nibley in the Mormon Church Archives relating aid given by Newell Knight to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery while they were translating the Book of Mormon.

Dates: 1958

Alvin Fielding Smith letters

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230321538]
Identifier: MSS SC 2300
Scope and Contents

Typewritten and signed letters written to Frank S. Hawkins. Smith responds to Hawkins' requests for information largely relating to the Doctrine and Covenants. Also included is a list of wives of the Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), compiled by Alvin Smith. These were women sealed to the prophet during his lifetime.

Dates: 1944-1947