Kirtland Camp

Last updated November 04, 2023

The Kirtland Camp was a migration company made up of several hundred Latter-day Saints that traveled from Kirtland, Ohio to northern Missouri starting in the fall of 1831. The group was led by the third-highest ranking priesthood quorum in the hierarchy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: the First Seven Presidents of the Seventies. Those who stayed with the main company to the end of the journey settled in Mormon communities in Daviess County, Missouri during the 1838 Mormon War and shortly afterwards were forced to evacuate the area due to conflicts with non-Mormon settlers in the region.

Background

Within a year of the establishment of the Church of Christ (later the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) by Joseph Smith, Jr. and his followers in New York, Mormon converts were commanded to gather to Kirtland, Ohio, where a sizable community of Mormons had previously been established by Mormon missionaries.^[1] By 1835, some 900 Mormon settlers lived in Kirtland with another 200 nearby, making up approximately half of the town's population.^[2] Due to internal dissentions within the church and antagonism from non-Mormons in the community, the Kirtland area became increasingly hostile to Latter-day Saints during the latter part of the 1830s.^[3] Major Church leaders and faithful Mormon members who could afford to leave evacuated the area and migrated to more promising Mormon settlements in northern Missouri. There were several hundred other Mormons who also wished to leave, but who were too poor to do so. Many of these Mormons came together under leadership of the highest ranking church leaders left in Ohio—Joseph Young, Henry Harriman, Zerah Pulsipher, Josiah Butterfield, James Foster, Elias Smith, and Benjamin Wilber—who were serving as the First Seven Presidents of the Seventy at the time. The seventies began planning the exodus in the Kirtland Temple on 6 March 1838 and extended the opportunity of joining the company to all members of the church in the area shortly afterwards.^[4] Despite poverty and ongoing opposition from other community members, the company was organized and departed with over 500 members in June 1838.^[5]

The Journey West

The Kirtland Camp traveled nearly 800 miles between Kirtland, Ohio and Adam-ondi-Ahman, Missouri over the period of 6 July 1838 to 4 October 1838. Members of the camp covenanted to live by a constitution that provided guidelines regarding the camp's organization and set a code of conduct for its members. The company was divided into four divisions to facilitate oversight of company members.^[6]

The company generally traveled along well-established routes, passing from Ohio through Indiana and Illinois into Missouri. As may be expected with a large company, there were a considerable amount of delays caused by illness, broke wagons and equipment, river crossings, poor traveling conditions, problems with animals, and food shortages. Groups of company members also occasionally stopped to find temporary work in order to obtain enough food and money to continue on the journey.^[7] Due to these conditions, company members gradually became strung out and dispersed along the path or left the company altogether. By the time it reached Springfield, Illinois, there were only 260 members left in the main company.^[8]

Despite warnings about deteriorating relations between Mormons and other Missouri inhabitants, the company pushed ahead to their intended destination, arriving at church headquarters in Far West, Missouri on 2 October. From there they made their way to Adam-ondi-Ahman—the primary Mormon settlement in Daviess County, Missouri—by 4 October. Unfortunately, the company reached Missouri during the 1838 Mormon War. As such, they were only able to settle the region for a few weeks before they were forced to relocate to Far West after Joseph Smith and other Church leaders surrendered in early November. They were forced to leave Missouri altogether on the order of Missouri Governor Lilburn W. Boggs the following February. Other members of the Kirtland Camp who made their way into Missouri behind the main company would become victims of the Haun's Mill massacre on 30 October 1838.^[9]

Legacy

The Kirtland Camp represents the earliest attempt at organizing a large company to assist in the migration of Latter-day Saints. It allowed several hundred poor Mormons to travel west to join the main body of the LDS Church and to escape from a hostile environment in Ohio. This company set precedent for later migrations of Latter-day Saints, such as the evacuation from Missouri that took place in 1839 and the more famous migrations from Illinois to Utah.^[10] B. H. Roberts—a notable historian of Mormonism and a general authority in LDS Church at the turn of the twentieth century—also noted that this company was "perhaps the greatest work achieved by the First Council of the Seventies, in their organized capacity" during the early days of the LDS Church.^[11]

Notes

↑ Bushman (2007 , pp. 122–126).
↑ Bushman (2007 , p. 144).
↑ Bushman (2007 , pp. 322–341); Backman (1983 , pp. 310–352).
↑ Allen & Leonard (1992 , p. 124)
↑ Baugh (2013 , pp. 59–60).
↑ Baugh (2013 , pp. 59–60).
↑ Baugh (2013 , pp. 59–60).
↑ Allen & Leonard (1992 , p. 125).
↑ Baugh (2013 , pp. 60–61).
↑ Allen & Leonard (1992 , p. 125); Hartley (1997).
↑ Roberts (1907 , p. 8).

Related Research Articles

Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several groups following different leaders; the majority followed Brigham Young, while smaller groups followed Joseph Smith III, Sidney Rigdon, and James Strang. Most of these smaller groups eventually merged into the Community of Christ, and the term Mormon typically refers to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as today, this branch is far larger than all the others combined. People who identify as Mormons may also be independently religious, secular, and non-practicing or belong to other denominations. Since 2018, the LDS Church has emphasized a desire for its members be referred to as "members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints", or more simply as "Latter-day Saints".

The Danites were a fraternal organization founded by Latter Day Saint members in June 1838, in the town of Far West, Caldwell County, Missouri. During their period of organization in Missouri, the Danites operated as a vigilante group and took a central role in the events of the 1838 Mormon War. They remained an important part of Mormon and non-Mormon folklore, polemics, and propaganda for the remainder of the 19th century, waning in ideological prominence after Utah gained statehood. Notwithstanding public excommunications of Danite leaders by the Church and both public and private statements from Joseph Smith referring to the band as being both evil in nature and a "secret combination", the nature and scope of the organization and the degree to which it was officially connected to the Church of Christ are not agreed between historians. Early in the group's existence, Joseph Smith appeared to endorse its actions, but later turned against it as violence increased and the actions of the Danites inspired a hysteria in Missouri that eventually led to the Extermination Order. According to an essay on the website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Historians generally concur that Joseph Smith approved of the Danites but that he probably was not briefed on all their plans and likely did not sanction the full range of their activities."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam-ondi-Ahman</span> Historic site in Daviess County, Missouri

Adam-ondi-Ahman is a historic site in Daviess County, Missouri, about five miles south of Jameson. It is located along the east bluffs above the Grand River. According to the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it is the site where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden. It teaches that the place will be a gathering spot for a meeting of the priesthood leadership, including prophets of all ages and other righteous people, prior to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

The 1838 Mormon War, also known as the Missouri Mormon War, was a conflict between Mormons and non-Mormons in Missouri from August to November 1838, the first of the three "Mormon Wars".

Thomas Baldwin Marsh was an early leader in the Latter-day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who served as the quorum's first president in the Church of the Latter Day Saints from 1835 to 1838. He withdrew from the church in 1838, was excommunicated from it in 1839, and remained disaffected for almost 19 years. Marsh was rebaptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in July 1857, but never again served in church leadership positions.

David Wyman Patten was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was killed at the Battle of Crooked River and is regarded as a martyr by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is referred to twice in the Church of Jesus Christ's Doctrine and Covenants—once in section 114 and posthumously in section 124.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyman Wight</span> Latter Day Saint movement leader

Lyman Wight was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the leader of the Latter Day Saints in Daviess County, Missouri, in 1838. In 1841, he was ordained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. After the death of Joseph Smith resulted in a succession crisis, Wight led his own break-off group of Latter Day Saints to Texas, where they created a settlement. While in Texas, Wight broke with the main body of the group led by Brigham Young. Wight was ordained president of his own church, but he later sided with the claims of William Smith, and eventually of Joseph Smith III. After his death, most of the "Wightites" joined with the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Far West, Missouri</span> Former Mormon settlement in Missouri, abandoned after the Missouri Mormon War

Far West was a settlement of the Latter Day Saint movement in Caldwell County, Missouri, United States, during the late 1830s. It is recognized as a historic site by the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, added to the register in 1970. It is owned and maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt Sermon</span> 1838 speech by Mormon leader Sidney Rigdon

The salt sermon was an oration delivered on 17 June 1838 by Sidney Rigdon, then First Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and frequent spokesman for Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, against church dissenters, including Book of Mormon witnesses Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and John Whitmer, and other leaders including W. W. Phelps. The Salt Sermon is often confused with Rigdon's July 4th oration.

Zion's Camp was an expedition of Latter Day Saints led by Joseph Smith, from Kirtland, Ohio, to Clay County, Missouri, during May and June 1834 in an unsuccessful attempt to regain land from which the Saints had been expelled by non-Mormon settlers. In Latter Day Saint belief, this land is destined to become a city of Zion, the center of the millennial kingdom; and Smith dictated a command from God ordering him to lead his church like a modern Moses to redeem Zion "by power, and with a stretched-out arm."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W. W. Phelps (Mormon)</span> American Mormon leader (1792–1872)

William Wines Phelps was an early leader of the Latter Day Saint movement. He printed the first edition of the Book of Commandments that became a standard work of the church and wrote numerous hymns, some of which are included in the current version of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' hymnal. He was at times both close to and at odds with church leadership. He testified against Joseph Smith, providing evidence that helped persuade authorities to arrest Smith. He was excommunicated three times and rejoined the church each time. He was a ghostwriter for Smith. Phelps was called by Smith to serve as assistant president of the church in Missouri and as a member of the Council of Fifty. After Smith's death, Phelps supported Brigham Young, who was the church's new president.

John Corrill was an early member and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and an elected representative in the Missouri State Legislature. He was prominently involved in the Mormon conflicts in Missouri before leaving the church in 1839 and publishing A Brief History of the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints .

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zera Pulsipher</span>

Zera Pulsipher was a First Seven Presidents of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In that capacity, he provided leadership to the early Mormon community, most notably in the exodus of a large group of Saints from Kirtland, Ohio. He was also an active missionary who baptized Wilford Woodruff into the LDS Church.

Sylvester Marshall Smith was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and one of the inaugural seven Presidents of the Seventy.

Reynolds Cahoon was an early leader in Latter Day Saint movement and later, in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was one of the inaugural members of the Council of Fifty, organized by Joseph Smith Jr in 1844.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Harriman (Mormon)</span>

Henry Harriman was one of the First Seven Presidents of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from 1838 until his death. The town of Herriman, Utah was named after him.

William Huntington was an early leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, most prominently during the time the Mormon pioneers were moving from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elias Smith (Mormon)</span> American journalist

Elias Smith was one of the early leaders in Latter Day Saint movement. Smith was president of the high priests in the church from 1870 to 1877 and president of the high priests quorum in the Salt Lake Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1877 to 1888.

The life of Joseph Smith, Jr. from 1831 to 1837, when he was 26–32 years old, covers the period of time from when Smith moved with his family to Kirtland, Ohio, in 1831, until he left Ohio for Missouri early in early January 1838. By 1831, Smith had already published the Book of Mormon, and established the Latter Day Saint movement. He had founded it as the Church of Christ, but eventually dictated a revelation to change its name to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

References

Allen, James B.; Leonard, Glen M. (1992). The Story of the Latter-day Saints (2nd ed.). Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company. ISBN 978-0-87579-565-2.
Backman, Milton V. Jr. (1983). The Heavens Resound: A History of the Latter-day Saints in Ohio 1830-1838. Salt Lake City: Deseret Books. ISBN 978-1-57345-990-7.
Baugh, Alexander L. (2013). "Kirtland Camp, 1838: Bringing the Poor to Missouri" (PDF). Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture. 22 (1): 58–61. doi:10.5406/jbookmormotheres.22.1.0058. S2CID 163562978 . Retrieved 4 August 2015.
Bushman, Richard Lyman (2007). Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling (First Vintage Books ed.). New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 978-1-4000-7753-3.
Hartley, William G. (October 1997). "How Shall I Gather?". Ensign. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
Roberts, Brigham Henry (1907). The Seventies Course in Theology, First Year (1st ed.). Salt Lake City: The Deseret News.
Young, S. Dilworth (July 1976). "The Seventies: A Historical Perspective". Ensign. Retrieved 4 August 2015.