Search, Ponder, and Pray: Missouri Guide for Travel and Study

By Casey Griffiths and Mary Jane Woodger

Walk in the footsteps of the first Latter-day Saints with this spiritual guide to Church historical sites.

This immersive guide draws from first-hand accounts and the expertise of leading Church historians to guide you through the rich history of significant locations of the Restoration. For these sacred sites, authors Casey Griffiths and Mary Jane Woodger provide the background knowledge behind each site, the importance each property has in Church history, and a short devotional that prompts reflection and invites the Spirit.

With this guide you can
understand the early Saints' vision for the city of Zion and the persecutions that forced the Saints to leave their beloved city.
explore the past, present, and future of the Savior's Church in the chosen land of Missouri.
see Far West, once the Church's headquarters and one of largest and fastest growing cities in all of Missouri, and examine the remnants of the lost temple there.
explore the massacre at Hawn's Mill and the trials faced by Joseph Smith and other Church leaders in Liberty Jail.
Immerse yourself in the spiritual history of the Restoration. You've never traveled like this before!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cedar Fort Publishing & Media
• Release date: Mar 25, 2023
• ISBN: 9781462144389

Book preview

© 2023 Casey Paul Griffiths & Mary Jane Woodger

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, whether by graphic, visual, electronic, film, microfilm, tape recording, or any other means, without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief passages embodied in critical reviews and articles.

This is not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The opinions and views expressed herein belong solely to the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or views of Cedar Fort, Inc. Permission for the use of sources, graphics, and photos is also solely the responsibility of the author.

ISBN 13: 978-1-4621-4437-2

Published by CFI, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc.

2373 W. 700 S., Suite 100, Springville, UT 84663

Distributed by Cedar Fort, Inc., www.cedarfort.com

Cover design by Courtney Proby

Cover design © 2023 Cedar Fort, Inc.

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed on acid-free paper

Explore more Church History Sites in

the Search, Ponder, Pray Series:

New England Guide for Travel and Study

Historic Kirtland Guide for Travel and Study

Illinois Guide for Travel and Study

For Craig Manscil, a great mentor and friend.

—Casey

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

The Temple Lot in Independence

Downtown Independence, Missouri

The March of Zion’s Camp: Fishing River, Clay County

Liberty Jail, Missouri

Richmond, Missouri

Hawn’s Mill

The Far West Temple Site

Adam-ondi-Ahman

McIlwaine’s Bend

Epilogue

Appendix: The Independence, Missouri Mormon Walking Tour

Letter to the Church and Edward Partridge, 20 March 1839

About the Authors

Acknowledgments

This series is the result of years of visits and study at the sacred sites of the Restoration. Over the years, dozens of missionaries assisted us in gaining access to the sites, sharing their insight, and their expertise they have gained from their service. First and foremost, we offer our gratitude to all of the missionaries of all ages and stages of life who have so graciously hosted us at the Church History Sites and allowed us to produce these guides. We offer our sincere thanks to Gary L. Boatright, who has acted as a liaison between us and the Church History Sites as we were doing our research.

A number of colleagues at Brigham Young University have also played a key role in helping us gain insights into the Church History Sites as well. Craig Manscil and Craig Ostler directed the BYU Travel Study program for several years, and the insights gained from extensive time at the sites with them and the wonderful students of the programs was invaluable in producing this book. Richard Bennett, Alex Baugh, and JB Haws also played a key role in funding site visits and contributing their expertise. Brent L. Top, Daniel K. Judd, and Scott C. Esplin all encouraged our research during their respective terms as the Deans of the College of Religious Education, and we appreciate their contributions and encouragement. We also wish to acknowledge the fund of the Religious Studies Center at BYU whose support made this volume possible. Finally, the wonderful editors at the BYU Faculty Publishing Service were a great help in preparing the final manuscripts.

We also appreciate the support and help of the wonderful contributors to Doctrine and Covenants Central, who generously allowed us to share materials written for their site in this volume. Scott Woodward played a key role in developing the site, and we appreciate John Welch and Kirk Magleby for reaching out to us to create such a wonderful resource to study Church History. Several staff members from Scripture Central, the parent site to Doctrine and Covenants Central accompanied us on trips to the sites and greatly assisted our work. These include Zander and Angel Sturgill, Benjamin Griffin, Taylor and Alexis Riley, Avery Kirk, and Daniel Smith.

We are especially grateful for several student assistants who have been involved in varying degrees in the large task of selecting, transcribing, writing, and editing the material included in this manuscript. Isabel Tueller, London Brimhall, and Derek Charlton are surely some of the most cheerful, capable, dependable, and intelligent of assistants.

  We also want to express our deep gratitude to Valerie Loveless of Cedar Fort Publishing & Media for her conception, vision, encouragement, expertise, and editing of our manuscript; she was indispensable in the creation of this series. 

Finally, we express our gratitude to our families for all of their patience with the travel and research involved in producing this book. One of the great joys of our lives is taking our loved ones to these sacred places, and they are among our most cherished traveling companions. We hope that our work allows our readers to have special experiences at all of the sites, just as we have had!

Introduction

The Land of Zion

The Kansas City Missouri temple was dedicated in 2012 by President Thomas S. Monson.

Photo by Casey Paul Griffiths.

Missouri is both a place of sorrow and a place of hope for Latter-day Saints. In the state of Missouri, the most horrific atrocities in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints took place. But it is also in Missouri where we as Saints look forward to some of the most important events in the latter-days. It is a place where the past, present, and future of the Savior’s work in the latter-days are all on display. An 1831 revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith identified Independence, Missouri as the land of promise, and the place for the city of Zion (Doctrine and Covenants 57:2). Hundreds of Church members obeyed the command to gather and build the great millennial city, only to see their hopes dashed when they were driven out of the Zion in the Fall of 1833.

Subsequently Saints regrouped, and a number of new settlements sprang up in Northwest Missouri. The city of Far West became Church headquarters and one of largest and fastest growing cities in all of Missouri. However, a new sequence of persecutions rose again in the Fall of 1838, climaxing in the massacre at Hawn’s Mill and resulting in the jailing of Joseph Smith and other Church leaders in Liberty Jail. The city of Far West is now mostly empty fields, with a lot at its center that still awaits its promised temple. A constellation of other settlements were abandoned, and the Saints fled the state under threat from a literal extermination order.

Yet despite the terrible trials of the Saints in Missouri, there is an alluring promise to all Latter-day Saints in this land of promise. Saints who tour the Missouri sites can reflect on the fact that they are not just learning the past of the Church but also its future. The promise remains that in Adam-ondi-Ahman Adam shall come to visit his people (Doctrine and Covenants 116:1). The lonely site at Far West will yet be home to a majestic temple. Zion shall not be moved out of her place, the Lord assured, notwithstanding her children are scattered (Doctrine and Covenants 101:17). The city of Zion will be built in the last days, and somehow, someway, in the place the Lord appointed to the early Saints.

Why We Wrote This Book

This book is part of a series of guides designed to enhance your visit to Church History sites. This book focuses on the sacred sites in Missouri, where the Saints struggled to built the city of Zion and survived terrible prejudice from other settlers from 1831 to 1838. Many of these sites hold not only historical value for the events that took place there, but are also significant points of beauty and grandeur of future events that will yet take place there. It has been our privilege to visit these sites on many occasions and feel the sense of the sacred in these locations.

However, any site become just another stop on the road without a knowledge of the history that took place there. Many of the sites have visitor centers staffed by helpful missionaries who can assist you in knowing the story that makes the place sacred. Many pilgrims enlist the help of a guide during the travels through the lands of the early Restoration. On occasion, during our visits to the sites we have often seen families pull up to site, wander a few moments, and then return to car without fully knowing what makes the place they visited so special.

In the past many site books were concerned with just helping you find the site. With the advent of new technology, finding most of the Church history sites is relatively simple. This has rapidly increased the number of people who seek out the sites on their own. Because of this, directions to the sites have been placed in this book only when they are absolutely necessary. Instead, these books are designed to provide you with the stories behind the sites. Whenever possible we have drawn from first-hand sources produced by the people who lived on these properties and played their vital roles in the work of the Restoration. The intent behind these books is to enhance your visits to the sites by putting primary sources into your grasp, arranged site by site.

Another notable departure in these books is the scope we have chosen. Many authors have chosen to list every site possible within a given area. This can be very useful, but this usually limits the book to just a few paragraphs because of the need to cover every site. Where other authors have chosen breadth over depth, we have chosen instead to focus on the primary sites in each region and provide a thorough account of the events there from primary sources. That means that there might be many places worth visiting not in the book. For instance, just outside of Excelsior Springs, Missouri, is the grave of Hiram Page, one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon. This site is difficult to find but well worth visiting and you might want to consult with the local missionaries if you are interested in more out of the way sites like this one. For our purposes, we have chosen to focus on the primary sites in each region.

How to Use This Book

This book is arranged to give you the stories that took place at each site, with special emphasis on the relationship of each location to the scriptures, particularly the Doctrine and Covenants. The chapters are arranged roughly chronologically, beginning with Independence, Missouri, where the Saints planned to build the city of Zion, and continuing through the settlements developed in Northwest Missouri, such as Far West, Adam-ondi-Ahman, and Hawn’s Mill. Other books in the series will cover the Church history sites and their stories in New England, Missouri, Illinois, and other locations.

At the first of each chapter a few bullet points will overview the most significant events at each site, and the revelations received at these locations. The story of each of the sites is organized around these events in each chapter, with emphasis given to the times and places where revelations were received that became part of the scriptural canon. Many of the sites in Missouri, such as the Independence Temple Lot and Liberty Jail, are staffed by missionaries who can help guide you through the sites. These books are not intended to take the place of the missionaries, whose testimonies and teachings are an important part of each site visit. The missionaries at the sites will help you find the key locations and share the basics of the stories with you. These books are designed to enhance your experience with the missionaries by providing you with primary sources and scholarship for each of the locations.

Other sites, such as Far West, Hawn’s Mill, or Adam-ondi-Ahman, do not have missionaries and can be more difficult to find. Information at these sites can be more difficult to find, so we have included photographs and more specific directions to find these sites. At these locations the information in this book will help you act as your own tour guide, or a guide to others. Sites without visitor centers or missionaries are often overlooked but can provide an array of edifying experiences if visitors are provided with the right information.

Casey Paul Griffiths

Mary Jane Woodger

Significant events at this location:

In July 1831, the Lord revealed that Independence, Missouri, was to be the site for the city of Zion (see Doctrine and Covenants 57).

A site for a future temple was dedicated in Independence, Missouri, and Jackson County became an important gathering place for the early Saints.

Doctrine and Covenants 57–60, 82, and 83 were received at or near the temple lot.

Doctrine and Covenants 84, 101, and 124 provide information concerning the future of the temple lot.

The Temple Lot in Independence

Aerial view of the Temple Lot in Independence. Photo by Benjamin Griffin.

The Book of Mormon contains prophecies of a New Jerusalem [that] should be built up upon this land (Ether 13:6). During his visit to the Nephites, the Savior himself foretold that as many of the house of Israel as shall come would build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem (3 Nephi 21:23). The prophecies of the New Jerusalem captured the imagination of the early Saints and led them to cross the continent in search of this new Zion. In the spring of 1831, the Lord instructed Joseph Smith to travel to Missouri to identify the location of the city of Zion (see Doctrine and Covenants 52:2). From that time forward, Independence, Missouri, became the primary gathering place for the Saints. Unfortunately, the dream of Zion collided with reality when serious persecutions broke out against the Saints during the summer of 1833. In the bleak winter of the same year, the Saints’ enemies forcibly evicted them from their homes. But the hope of Zion endured.

Today Independence is a sleepy suburb in the Kansas City, Missouri, metroplex. The Church was able to repurchase a significant portion of the original temple lot and has since built a stately visitors’ center on it, commemorating the commitment of the Saints from the time of Joseph Smith down to the present to build the city of Zion. The temple lot is also a potent reminder of the diversity of the Restoration movement, which includes dozens of churches from diverse branches of the restored Church. Just across the street from the Latter-day Saint visitors’ center is the temple built by the Community of Christ, and not far away is a building owned by the Church of Christ (Hedrickite), informally known as the Church of the Temple Lot. All of these movements still believe in their own ways of building a New Jerusalem. While the history of the Church in Independence is a fascinating blend of hope and despair, the future prophecies of the city of Zion remain powerful to the Saints, even in the present day.

The Latter-day Saint visitor’s center on the Temple Lot in Independence, Missouri.

Photo by Casey Paul Griffiths.

The best place to begin a tour of Independence is at the Latter-day Saint visitors’ center. It is open year-round, and the missionaries can provide information about the Church’s history in the area. There are also guides for walking tours available at the Independence Courthouse in the center of the city. The Missouri Mormon Walking Trail put together by the city is only a few miles long and leads to all the major points of interest. The Restoration churches in the area are friendly and welcome visitors. A walk around Independence is a good introduction to the complexity of the past, present, and future of the Restoration.

Finding the Location for the City of Zion

The first Latter-day Saints to arrive in Independence consisted of Oliver Cowdery, Parley P. Pratt, and the other missionaries called to travel to the frontier (see Doctrine and Covenants 28:8–10). A few months after Oliver and his companions arrived in Missouri, the Lord commanded Joseph Smith to travel to Missouri with fourteen pairs of missionaries. The Lord promised that He would make known unto them the land of their inheritance (see Doctrine and Covenants 52:5). Joseph and the other elders who had been called in the revelation left Kirtland on June 19, 1831. They arrived in Independence, Jackson County, Missouri, several weeks later on July 14. Upon their arrival, Joseph was greeted by Oliver Cowdery, other members of the Lamanite mission, and a small handful of converts from the area. The Prophet later reflected, The meeting of our brethren, who had long waited our arrival, was a glorious one and moistened with many tears. It seemed good and pleasant for brethren to meet together in unity. Joseph’s thoughts were not only with the members in his presence, however. He reflected while standing now upon the confines, or western limits of the united States, and looking into the vast wilderness on the plight of the American Indians.¹

Of his visit to Missouri, Joseph Smith wrote: After viewing the country, seeking diligently at the hand of God, he manifested himself unto me, and designated to me and others, the very spot upon which he designed to commence the work of the gathering, and the upbuilding of an holy city, which should be called Zion:—Zion because it is to be a place of righteousness, and all who build thereon, are to worship the true and living God—and all believe in one doctrine even the doctrine of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.² The day after Joseph arrived in Independence, he received a revelation based on three questions: When will the wilderness blossom as the rose; when will Zion be built up in her glory, and where will thy Temple stand unto which all nations shall come in the last days?³

The Lord promised to consecrate the land there to the remnant of Jacob (Doctrine and Covenants 52:2), a term that typically refers to the twelve tribes of Israel. The descendants of Lehi were among the ancestors of the American Indians (introduction to the Book of Mormon) and therefore heirs to the covenants made to Abraham. The covenants made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Old Testament were familiar to Joseph Smith and his contemporaries. A few years after this revelation, Joseph translated the Book of Abraham, which reiterated the blessings of the covenant. The Lord told Abraham, I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal (Abraham 2:11).

Contention over the Land of Zion

Marker for the Temple Lot in Independence. Photo by Casey Paul Griffiths.

While Joseph Smith was enraptured with visions of the future city, the elders who had traveled from Kirtland had mixed reactions upon learning of the city’s location. The missionaries led by Oliver Cowdery worked among the local settlers for several months, but they had managed to convert fewer than a handful of the locals to the teachings of the gospel. According to one source, Edward Partridge and the Prophet argued over the quality of the land, creating contention between the two.⁴ Sidney Rigdon charged Edward with ‘having insulted the Lord’s prophet in particular & assumed authority over him in open violation of the Laws of God.’⁵ It took several months for the rift between Joseph and Edward to heal. In a Church conference held several months later, Edward signaled his contrition by announcing that if Br. Joseph has not forgiven him he hopes he will, as he is & has always been sorry.⁶

At the same time, the disagreement between Joseph Smith and Edward Partridge was a small glitch in the grander vision of Zion. Joseph saw the city as a key to healing the racial, political, and religious divisions of his day. Reflecting on these events years later, Joseph recalled the promise of the moment and the diversity of the population living in the frontier settlement. He wrote, "The first Sabbath after our arrival in Jackson county, brother W[illiam] W