Death of Joseph Smith - Timeline Event
Time Period
06-27-1844
Description
Joseph Smith’s death was the culmination of perpetual persecution and conflict over the years. In 1832, Smith was tarred and feathered in Hiram, Ohio. Critics in Nauvoo, Illinois despised him for the practice of plural marriage, and his choice to run for the president of United States in 1844. When Smith destroyed the printing press for the Nauvoo Expositor for publishing a scathing article about the church, it was the last straw. Local authorities jailed Smith, his brother, and others for the act and held them in Carthage, Illinois. A mob broke into the jail and killed Smith as well as his brother. This occurred on June 27, 1844, making Smith a martyr at the age of 38.
Interactive Timeline(s)
Browse Related Timeline Entries
Religious Groups
Timeline Entries for the same religious group: Latter-day Saints Family (Mormonism)Latter-day Saints Family (Mormonism): Other ARDA Links
Latter-day Saints Family (Mormonism): Religious Family Tree
Biographies
Smith, JosephRelated Dictionary Terms
Latter-day Saints Family (Mormonism), Prophet, Smith, Joseph (1805-1844)Photographs
Death of Joseph Smith- Internet Archive- from The Mormons, or Latter-Day Saints by Henry Mayhew
Joseph Smith portrait- National Portrait Gallery Smithsonian Insitution- gift of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Independence, Missouri
Hyrum Smith portrait- Internet Archive- from A Young Folks' History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by Nephi Anderson
Death of Joseph Smith- Internet Archive- The Rocky Mountain Saints by T. B. H. Stenhouse
Carthage jail- Internet Archive- from The Latter-Day Prophet by George Q. Cannon
Book/Journal Source(s)
Queen, Edward, Stephen Prothero and Gardiner Shattuck, 1996. The Encyclopedia of American Religious History New York: Facts on File.Web Page Contributor
Benjamin T. GurrentzAffliated with: Pennsylvania State University, Ph.D. in Sociology
