Carthage Jail and Nauvoo Pageant

The first part of the day was spent traveling across the state of Illinois, but we arrived in Carthage by the afternoon. I have to admit I was pretty excited to see this stop, weird I know, because it is a place of death. However, it didn't feel like "the end" of life, of the church, of progress in general. There was a sweet spirit there and words like new beginning, hero's, sacrifice, and hope went through my mind. No, this was not a place with an ending, but of a hopeful beginning.


The pathway up to the visitors center and Carthage jail is lined with monuments with quotes and scripture on them. I loved reading them, but the next three pictures were my favorite quotes.







Brothers Joseph and Hyrum


The Standard of Truth was one of the first things I memorized when I went on my mission. I love the promises that Joseph Smith gives in it and it also gives me faith, hope, and confidence in the purposes of the church.


This is the first jail cell that Joseph and many other men with him stayed. For security purposes they moved them to another room.


The bullet hole in the bedroom door that killed Hyrum.


The bedroom were they stayed and were killed. Joseph fell out of the window pictured.


The Carthage Jail. I always thought the stars were special and maybe were significant in the deaths that took place there. The stars are for structural purposes and are also used in Nauvoo buildings.

Later that day we went to the Nauvoo Pageant. It was good and depicted a history of the city and the Saints coming together. To date my favorite pageant is still Hill Cumorah.


One of the opening scenes in the pageant. The girl on the left played Emma and was also in my singles ward. She is an amazing singer and actress who was also played Mary in Savior of the World.


The building of the Nauvoo Temple.


The temple finally finished and the Saints rejoicing.


At the end of the pageant they actually light up "The Nauvoo Temple" in the background. It makes for a really good ending.

The Life of Heber C Kimball

So it has been awhile since my last post, for good reason...I have been helping my Bonus-Mom who recently had surgery. So I have been at home and when I am not helping I am reading.

In my recent posts I have been blogging about my church history trip, which deeply impacted me. I am still not finished sharing the details of the trip so look for more in my next post. However, I was talking to an institute teacher about my trip and he recommended reading "The Life of Heber C Kimball" and "Wilford Woodruff: history of his life and labors as recorded in his daily journals" which would only make me appreciate my trip more. I am reading the first and am nearing the end, but am loving every chapter. This is a book I will buy!

I am amazed at the stories, struggles, and details in this book. At one point the Saints are just leaving Missouri after all the persecution and just starting to settle Nauvoo. You would think that they would have a season of peace, but no...almost everyone was sick and for quite awhile. Brigham Young and Heber are called on a second mission back to England and are both really sick. Let me share this excerpt with you as they are leaving...

"It was with difficulty we got into the wagon, and started down the hill about ten rods; it appeared to me as though my very inmost parts would melt within me at leaving my family in such a condition, as it were almost in the arms of death. I felt as though I could not endure it. I asked the teamster to stop, and said to Brother Brigham, 'This is pretty tough, isn't it; let's rise up and give them a cheer.' We arose, and swinging our hats three times over our heads, shouted: 'Hurrah, hurrah for Israel.' Vilate (his wife), hearing the noise, arose from her bed and came to the door. She had a smile on her face. Vilate and Mary Ann Young cried out to us, 'Goodbye, God bless you.' We returned the compliment, and then told the driver to go ahead. After this I felt a spirit of joy and gratitude, having had the satisfaction of seeing my wife stand upon her feet, instead of leaving her in bed, knowing well that I should not see them again for two or three years."

What a lesson of patience, endurance and faith we can all learn from!!!

A step back in time

About 30 minutes away from Kirtland is Hiram Ohio were the John Johnson farm is located. To think that the saints would travel back and forth by horse or wagon did not sound fun at all. We were grateful for our air conditioned car, GPS, and snacks. When we arrived at the Johnson Farm and had a tour from the sister missionaries I found myself thinking I would have loved to live back in these times when you had to work hard, but you also were closer to your family and not distracted by things of the world. The one clincher that would really stop me though is: Air Condition!


The John Johnson home. The Johnson family had quite a large home and for good reasons. They had 13 children, if I remember right, and they always accommodated guests. Elsa Johnson, who was married to John, was an artist so the rooms inside had decorative painting and more color then you would normally find in the houses at the time.


The Bowery is something like a tarp or tent in our day. The Saints would set up a Bowery in front of the Johnson home for people to sit under while the prophet and other general authorities preached.


A "School of Prophets" type room, although I am not sure if this room actually had a name. Brethren in the church would have discussions here and I believe that Joseph also translated parts of the Bible. More importantly the Father and the Son appeared here.


John Johnson's home office. He owned many businesses including a dairy and crop producing farm.


The kitchen. If you look closely you can see the decorative painting on the mantle.

Look closely at the floor...it is black, green, and red checkered (original to the house). This was the Parlor or the nicest room in the house, so John and Elsa felt the Prophet deserved to stay there. This is the bedroom were Joseph and Emma stayed caring for their sick twins when a mob came. They first pulled out Sydney Rigdon(from another area of the house) and then they tarred and feathered Joseph. This bedroom was right by the front door so you could see how the mob had easy access. The church had recently asked the Johnson Family to consecrate their house to the church (sell the property in order to have more funds for the temple). Supposedly some of the Johnson children were not happy about this and were instrumental in helping the mob gain access into the home.


After leaving the Hiram, OH area we set off to eat in a Amish Restaurant, Mary Yoders, and visit the oldest Amish working general store. The restaurant is famous for it's pies, according to the sister missionaries who were serving at the sites. I tried homemade noodles with chicken and mashed potatoes (because that is what my grandma used to make) and a slice of that famous pie too. The general store also had some penny candy, which I have always heard about, but never actually seen before.


After that we were off for a day of driving across Ohio, Indiana (which charges tolls the whole way across) and Illinois. The next day was also spent driving until the afternoon when we arrived in Carthage. More about Carthage and Nauvoo to follow.

Amazing Kirtland!

I have never been to Ohio, along with New York or Indiana, so I didn't know what kind of landscape or weather to expect. Ohio is very beautiful, especially Kirtland. You would almost think that Kirtland should have been named "beautiful city(not Nauvoo)." Out of all the towns we traveled to in which the pioneers lived I was most impressed with Kirtland. Maybe that impression came about because the Father, Son, and other Heavenly Messengers appeared here. Many different Prophets appeared to restore vital keys in our church. Can you believe that there are 4 different sites in the Kirtland area that the Father and Son appeared? What an amazing town to have the privilege to host the most important people in the world! Historic Kirtland has many buildings all within walking distance of each other. Some of the buildings are the Visitors Center, Newell K Whitney Store, John Johnson Inn, the sawmill, and the Ashery.


The 2nd, or the bigger, nicer N.K. Whitney Store.


The inside of the store. Notice the book on the counter. You can look in the book to see if any of your ancestors made purchases there and see what they bought.


Upstairs in the N.K. Whitney Store this is the living room area. This room has significance because when the brethren in the "School of the Prophets" would discuss subjects/questions/concerns Joseph would leave the room and received the revelation in this room.


The "School of the Prophets" room. The Father and the Son appeared here.


This is the testimony of Zebedee Coltrin (who was in the room at the School of the Prophets when they appeared). Sorry it is blurry and you will probably have to make it bigger to read it, but I thought it was an amazing testimony, in which you could feel the spirit just reading it.


If I remember correctly, this is a Waining Lamp. I liked it because when a father thought it was okay for his daughter to be courted he would light this in the window so suitors knew it was okay to come courting.


Sign for the Red Store, I can't remember if it was actually red.


The Outside of the 1st N.K. Whitney Store (Red Store).


This is a rocker, doll & bottle...Yes the silver thing in the rocker is a bottle.


John Johnson Inn (now houses historical artifacts). The Johnsons had a very nice farm about 30 miles from Kirtland and were asked to give it up or consecrate it to the church and then run an inn in Kirtland. Giving up their home helped pay for the Kirtland Temple.


The outside of the Sawmill. It only required 2 inches of running water to keep the saws moving.


Inside the sawmill was were the pulpits inside the Kirtland Temple were made.


The inside of the Ashery. What was ash used for? Soap, glass...actually a lot of things I just can't remember them all.


The first "Caller I.D." system for the Saints. Each lamp had a specific design punched into it so when someone was walking down the street you could identify the family.


The Chagrin River (I really thought that was a cool name) were many of the Saints were baptized in Kirtland.


The Kirtland Temple. Not a very good picture, I know...I just was not as impressed with this site because it was not owned by the church and hasn't been maintained as well as it should have (plus there is just not the same spirit there).


A painting I really liked of Christ appearing in the Kirtland temple.


Issac Morely Farm sign. In the farmhouse Joseph translated the Bible and Emma also had twins.


Morely School House sign. This is significant because the Father and Son appeared here along with numerous spiritual manifestations.


Painting of the Morley Log School house. The schoolhouse no longer stands but a portion of the farmhouse does. It is now used to house missionaries.

Goodbye Palymra

The last day we were in Palymra we just planned to see the Book of Mormon Publication site and do some shopping. The Grandin Printing Press Building was a lot bigger then I thought it would be and I also ran into a girl from my old singles ward who is now serving as a missionary there. What impressed me the most was the length of time it took to actually print 500 copies of the Book of Mormon. Normally print jobs took quite an amount of time, but the Book of Mormon only took a few months because this shop had the most updated equipment.


The original front of the E.B. Grandin Print Shop.


The New York historic marker sign


The letter's room (probably not the "real" name) were the print was set up


The ink and cutting room


This is a replica of the kitchen/dining room in the Harmony, Pennsylvania home were Joseph started translating the Book of Mormon. I was pleased that this replica was here since there is not a site to see in Harmony (at least that I know of).


Sign for the Martin Harris Farm, farm property still there, but his house is no longer there (it burned down). Joseph worked for Martin on his farm for $.50 a day.


Lake-Stone House sign, not a church history home, but I thought it was interesting because it was one of the first lake-stone houses in the area.


The actual Lake-Stone house


When we left Palmyra our next destination was Niagara Falls. We decided to take the scenic route there along the coast of Lake Ontario were we saw huge swans among other beautiful things. We also tried some great ice cream at a roadside stand.


Maid of the Mist boat ride, a must for anyone going to Niagara Falls!


The American side of Niagara Falls (can't remember if they have a specific name).


Horseshoe Falls (the Canadian falls), which is a tad more impressive then the American side. After seeing the falls it is hard to see how anyone can deny the existence of God with such an amazing creation.