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Upstairs Room in the Smith Log HomeVirtual Historian, 2004
Joseph Smith said of
September 21, 1823: "After I had retired to my bed for the
night, I betook myself to prayer and supplication to
Almighty God. . . . While I was thus in the act of calling
upon God, I discovered a light appearing in my room, which
continued to increase until the room was lighter than at
noonday, when immediately a personage appeared at my
bedside, standing in the air." This angel, named Moroni,
instructed Joseph relative to pertinent matters of the last
dispensation, including the coming forth of the Book of
Mormon (Joseph Smith—History, 1:29–30).
Smith Log HomeSteve Mortensen, 2003
During the first year
on the farm, the Smith family cleared 30 acres of heavy
timber, prepared the ground for cultivation, and planted
wheat. Clearing the land included not only felling trees but
also removing the stumps and roots through extreme physical
exertion by both man and beast.
Fence Near Smith Family FarmB. H. Roberts Collection, circa 1885
Joseph Smith was
permitted to show the gold plates to eight witnesses in
the woods near his home. They "retired to a place where the
family were in the habit of offering up their sacred
devotions to God" and there saw and handled the
ancient record (History of Joseph Smith, ed.
Preston Nibley [1958], 154).
Palmyra/Manchester Area, 1820–1831Church History Maps.
1. Joseph Smith
Sr. Log Home: The angel Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith
in an upper room of this home on 21-22 September 1823 (see
JS-H 1:29-47).
2. Joseph Smith
Sr. Farm: This 100-acre farm was developed by the Smith
family from 1820 to 1829.
3. Sacred Grove:
Joseph Smith Jr.'s First Vision occurred in this
woodland in the early spring of 1820 (see JS-H 1:11-20).
4. Joseph Smith
Sr. Frame Home: This home was begun in 1822 by Alvin
Smith and occupied by the Smith family from 1825 to 1829.
5. Hill Cumorah:
Here the angel Moroni gave the Prophet Joseph Smith the
gold plates on 22 September 1827 (see JS-H 1:50-54, 59).
6. Martin Harris
Farm: This farm was mortgaged and part of its acreage
sold to pay for the printing of the Book of Mormon.
7. E. B. Grandin
Print Shop: 5,000 copies of the Book of Mormon were
printed here 1829-30.
8. Hathaway
Brook: In this brook some early Church baptisms were
performed
Smith Log Home (rear)Boyd Jensen, 2001
After the Smith
family moved into the frame home, Hyrum Smith and his new
bride, Jerusha Barden, took up residence in the log home.
Family Room in the Smith Family HomeVirtual Historian, 2004
Lucy Mack Smith said
concerning the evening family conversations: "Joseph would
occasionally give us some of the most amusing recitals that
could be imagined. He would describe the ancient inhabitants
of this continent, their dress, mode of traveling, and the
animals upon which they rode; their cities, their buildings,
with every particular; their mode of warfare; and also their
religious worship. This he would do with as much ease,
seemingly, as if he had spent his whole life among them"
(The History of Joseph Smith, 83).
Road to the Sacred GroveGeorge Edward Anderson, circa 1907
This road leads
from the Smith home to the edge of the trees now known as
the Sacred Grove. During his youth, Joseph would have
traveled this road often.
Smith Family FarmChurch History in the Fulness of Times, page 38.
By
1818–1819 the Smith family negotiated to purchase
about one hundred acres in Farmington (now Manchester)
township. This layout of the Smith farm is an
approximation based on careful research.
Smith Log HomeJohn Telford, 2004
"My father,
Joseph Smith, Senior, left the state of Vermont, and
moved to Palmyra, Ontario (now Wayne) county, in the state
of New York, when I was in my tenth year, or
thereabouts" After living in town about four years,
the Smiths then moved into the log home (History of the
Church, 1:2).
