The Mysteries of History (June 27 Edition)
Joseph Smith Killed
1844 — Joseph Smith and His Brother Murdered by a Mob
public domain image from wikimedia commons
On this date in 1844, Joseph Smith (the founder and leader of the Mormon church) and his brother Hyrum are killed in Carthage, Illinois, when a group of ill-wishers storm the jail in which they are held.
Although the Smiths were originally from Vermont, the Mormon church at this time was strongest in the Smiths’ death State of Illinois, Missouri, and Ohio.
The beef the church’s detractors had was mainly its practice of polygamy. Joseph had dozens of wives (the estimates of the exact number range from 30 to 40) while his brother Hyrum had “only” two.
Joseph had reacted violently to those who opposed him, including former members of his church, and even planned to run for President of the U.S., something that raised the ire of those who didn’t want such a person (a polygamist and self-proclaimed visionary) in that office.
When the Mormons eventually headed west to escape the persecution they faced everywhere they tried to establish themselves, they finally settled in Utah, which at the time was not part of the United States.
Questions: Has there even been a Mormon President of the U.S.? Has there even been a serious candidate for that office (one who had a good chance of winning)? Are there many Mormons where you live? Have you read Mark Twain’s Roughing It, which contains humorous sendups of Mormon polygamy, reminiscent of the “rackety times in the nursery” written of in his Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, when he and his friend Jim discuss King Solomon and his multitude of wives?
