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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 90 Collections and/or Records:

Richard Drew letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230320530]
Identifier: MSS SC 2174
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a typewritten and signed letter addressed to Philip Wilson. The item deals with questions on the successor of the Mormon Church after the death of Joseph Smith (1805-1844) from the position of the Strangites.

Dates: 1983

Dudley family correspondence

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS SC 449
Scope and Contents

21 ALS's (plus typescripts of 11) referring to family matters, exhortations to join the Mormon Church, and descriptions of Nauvoo and settlement of Utah.

Dates: 1844-1897

James G. Duffin diaries

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 1696
Scope and Contents Handwritten and bound diaries. Also included are bound photocopies of the handwritten journals. The items are for the years 1887 through 1889 when Duffin served as a missionary for the Mormon Church in the Southern States Mission. The diaries also cover the years 1901 through 1906 when Duffin was president of the Southwestern States Mission (1900-1904) and of the Central States Mission (1904-1906) also for the Mormon Church. Duffin includes handwritten copies of letters both sent and...
Dates: 1887-1906

Robert Filmore letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230348044]
Identifier: MSS 1339
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a handwritten and signed letter, dated 6 July 1844, and composed in Warren County, Illinois. Filmore writes to "dear children" and tells them about the murder of the first president of the Mormon Church, Joseph Smith, and his brother Hyrum. He also speaks about the Mormon temple in Nauvoo, Illinois.

Dates: 1844 july 6

Edward R. Ford letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230325711]
Identifier: MSS SC 2703
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a handwritten and signed letter dated 8 Sept. 1842, composed in St. Louis, Missouri, and addressed to "His Exelency," probably governor Thomas Reynolds of Missouri. Ford describes an attempt to arrest the first president of the Mormon Church, Joseph Smith, and his friend, Orrin Porter Rockwell.

Dates: 1842 September 8

Gilbert A. Fulton Papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 9544
Scope and Contents

Contains Gilbert Fulton's personal notes and extensive research over doctrinal and church history topics for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Various topics include polygamy, Joseph Smith, and John C. Bennett controversies. His collections of text from other sources is a large portion of the collection, including photocopies from newspapers, magazines, members' accounts, and prophets of the Church. Materials dated 1942 to 1986.

Dates: 1942-1986

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

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

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

I. J. Harvey letter

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230312339]
Identifier: MSS SC 1386
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of a handwritten letter addressed to Harvey's wife in Indiana. Harvey describes the experience of being a homesteader on the Missouri frontier and mentions the possibility of buying "negro" for 2 or 3 dollars. In a postscript Harvey relates a rumor that "Jo Smith and others have made their escape from the sheriff" by stealing two horses. He also states that supposedly Joseph Smith (1805-1844) had twenty thousand dollars with him.

Dates: 1839