Early Mormon Documents (Volume 4) [Hardcover]

Dan Vogel (Author, Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2002 | Series: Early Mormon Documents (Book 4)

In Volume Four:
FOR COLESVILLE AND SOUTH BAINBRIDGE, NEW YORK
Bainbridge court record (People v. Joseph Smith), 1826
Sidney Rigdon interview, 1831
Jared Carter reminiscence, 1832
Joseph Knight reminiscence, ca. 1835
Justice Joel K. Noble letter, 1842
Josiah Stowell Jr. letter, 1843
Attorney John S. Reed reminiscence, 1844
Emily Colburn Austin autobiography, 1882
And thirty-seven other documents

FOR HARMONY, PENNSYLVANIA
Articles of Agreement, 1825
Anthon transcript, 1827
Tax assessment records, 1828-31
Joseph Smith mortgage, 1830
Headmistress HupmanÂ’s ledger, 1830
Isaac Hale statement, 1834
Charles Anthon letter, 1834
Emily Blackman history, 1873
And twenty-nine other documents

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Part of a five volume series. Volume five will be available, fall 2003.

From the Inside Flap

Today when we think of Joseph Smith as a young man, we tend to picture him at work in a Palmyra, New York, setting. But he also spent three years in Harmony, Pennsylvania. When he first arrived there, he boarded with Isaac Hale and worked for Josiah Stowell. Later, after he had married Hale’s daughter Emma, he became a permanent resident and property owner in Harmony. He also spent about six months across the border in South Bainbridge, New York, where Stowell lived and in neighboring Colesville where he was employed by Joseph Knight. During this period, he made brief visits back to Palmyra and Fayette to monitor the typesetting and printing of the Book of Mormon and to organize the Church of Christ. In September 1830 he and Emma left Harmony for good, moving first to Fayette, then to Ohio.

The documentary record relating to the Smiths’ experiences in Harmony, Colesville, and South Bainbridge is extensive. From tax assessments we learn that the young couple owned thirteen acres of land, a cow worth ten dollars, and a house also worth ten dollars. The small house, an outbuilding provided by Emma’s father, was where her brother Jesse lived when it was not being used to dress deer skins. Joseph and Emma tried to make it habitable. Neighbors commented on the "beautiful hardwood" floors and the "nice fireplace." The bulk of the Book of Mormon was dictated there.

In addition, editor Dan Vogel has assembled court documents relating to Joseph’s money-digging adventures and statements by Joseph’s acquaintances, letters, diary entries, reminiscences, and news articles that shed considerable light on the family’s circumstances and activities, including the dictation of the Book of Mormon and the first sermons and baptisms of the new church.

Perspectives contained within these documents are varied. For instance, when Joseph was brought to trial in South Bainbridge, his supporters considered it a nuisance suit and agreed with attorney John S. Reed who later expressed how much he hoped the "Boy Joseph," whose "cheeks blossomed with the beauty of youth, and ... eyes sparkled with innocence," would be "diliver[ed] from them wicked sons of bitc[h]es" who were prosecuting him. The community, for their part, agreed with Josiah Stowell’s sons who thought their father was being tricked and cheated. Reed was seen as an opportunist--an "old pettyfogger," as they phrased it.

Also interesting is that Joseph’s famous hat, used for stone gazing, was a white stovepipe. Neighbors knew him as "the peeker," and some of them spoke with respect about his gift of "second sight" and the seer stone, which they called the "All-Seeing Eye."

Finally is the enthusiasm with which people embraced the Restoration gospel. Newell Knight described the first church conference: "Much good instruction was given, and the Holy Ghost was poured out upon us in a marvelous manner. Many prophesied, while others had the heavens opened to their view. It was a scene long to be remembered. I felt my heart filled with love, with glory, and with pleasure unspeakable."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 482 pages
• Publisher: Signature Books; First Edition edition (October 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560851597
• ISBN-13: 978-1560851592
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,555,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Collection of Primary Sources Rarely Used by LDS Church., May 29, 2011

By 

Kay Burningham (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Early Mormon Documents (Volume 4) (Hardcover)

This is the fourth in a five-volume set compiled by Dan Vogel. These primary source documents can be located elsewhere. However, it is quite convenient to have them all in a multi-volume collection. These sources are those which are rarely, if ever used by the LDS Church since many, if not most of these documents raise issues regarding early LDS history. The only criticism I have is that the organization of the documents is initially a bit confusing, but works fine once the compiler's system is understood.

Kay Burningham, Attorney

Author of "An American Fraud: One Lawyer's Case against Mormonism."

4.0 out of 5 stars More excerpts from personal accounts, February 21, 2007

By 

Matthew Bryde (Australia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Early Mormon Documents (Volume 4) (Hardcover)

Volume 4 focuses on Mormon origins in Colesville and South Bainbridge, New York.

As per Volume 3, this book is primarily excerpts from personal diaries containing first hand accounts, half of which are contemporary and the other half recorded years afterwards (reminiscences).

Dan Vogel is a well known, non-Mormon historian. This collection is his attempt at publishing authentic historical accounts that are not common knowledge to the average inquirer, as well as containing excerpts from well known, published accounts.

From the Introduction:

"The following collection documents Joseph Smith's experiences as a treasure seer and laborer in Chenango and Broome Counties as well as his later activities as founder of the Church of Christ. The testimonies of the Knight and Stowell families--faithful converts--are of particular importance, as are the unfavorable statements of other residents. Non-resident sources, such as from Sidney Rigdon, bring additional information to Mormon studies. Miscellaneous civil documents pertaining to Joseph Smith's legal difficulties in 1826 and 1830 are also indispensable to understanding the hostilities engendered by Smith's activities as a treasure seer and later as a religious leader."