Joseph Smith as plundering mobber. Interesting stuff.

[_Sethbag]

The Gods of Amazon.com delivered a new book to me yesterday, from Stephen C. LeSueur, entitled "The 1838 Mormon War in Missouri". I've seen the book referred to many times people, and I wanted to read it for myself.

Well, already on page 4, where LeSueur is laying out the "bird's eye view" of the book, which he will get into in much greater detail in later chapters, we find this gem:
"The degree of Joseph Smith's complicity in the Mormon military activities has long been debated by historians. Evidence now available, however, demonstrates that he directed much of the plundering and burning committed by Mormon soldiers in Daviess County."

I ordered this book after a family member sent out a chain email to everyone in the family with an "inspirational" thought. It said that Joseph Smith had warned the settlers at Haun's Mill not to be there, and that they rejected the Prophet's counsel and were subsequently attacked and murdered. The moral of the story is to harken to the words of the Prophet, and that if you don't, you emperil yourself and your family.

I replied back with something I'd read previously, that the mob that attacked Haun's Mill was apparently made up largely of Missourians who had had their homes and farms plundered and burned in Daviess County by the Mormons. No doubt they were mightily pissed off about this, and fighting mad. I cannot, and am not trying to condone the Haun's Mill Massacre at all, however it is important to recognize it in its context, as the Mormons so often say with respect to the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

So Joseph Smith warned the settlers of Haun's Mill that they were in danger. They were in danger from people who were pissed off and fighting mad about something that Joseph Smith had done to them, and he knew it!

Anyhow, I know from reviews I've read that the book will show that the Missourians and the Mormons were both guilty of a lot of mistakes, and of actions that aggrieved the other side. This apparent neutrality, however, leaves us in a position where the Kingdom of God, and God's right-hand man on Earth, his Prophet, acted just as badly as a bunch of early 19th century American backwoods hick settlers. The justifications for it are really hard to swallow. We all know the typical Mormon obsession with persecution, and how the whole Missouri episode is pointed to by most TBMs as an egregious example of Satanic oppression of God's work on Earth. Well it just ain't so. The Mormons gave as well as they got, and it's not inaccurate to say that they brought a lot of what happened down upon their own heads.

I'm going to try to plow through this book quickly in the next week or so. I really have wanted, for some time now, to know a lot more details about what happened on both sides of the conflict. I've picked up a lot of pieces of it here and there, but this ought to tie it all together and fill in a lot of blanks.

[Guest]

it's a great book: somethings that I remember. Joseph and about a hundred armed men going to a judge's house and forcing him to sign something saying he won't do anything to Mormons - (like that is a binding contract) -IIRC later joseph will be tried for treason for that act - for taking large group of armed men over county lines. The one thing out of that incident is that you will see one of the most patriotic writings made in U.S. history as to what the judge says he will sign. He wrote it under duress (read the book) Another was the authors thoughts that Joseph directed and led the men which ended up in the ambush of missouri state militia troops at crooked river; The other was that Caldwell County was created for Mormons so there would be peace and they wouldn't stay there and started moving into other counties. The big one was when they (the Mormons) destroyed Davis County and brought all the stuff back to the bishops store house.THE BEST was a statement from Hyrum saying citzens of Davis county burned down their own houses to make Mormons look bad. Joseph Smith was in jail and escaped while being held for treason. And a bunch of other LDS leaders sneaked out at night to avoid arrest. Not adoring history.

one more thing was that these were northerners who were moving into a southern state and reportedly had scripture that said - that land was theirs and God was on their side.

[_Blixa]

Many, many thanks for the recommendation, Sethbag and styleguy. I, too, have been interested in this bit of history and look forward to checking this book out.

Here's an interesting review of it from American Historical Review (via JSTOR)


review is here

[_Runtu]

Many, many thanks for the recommendation, Sethbag and styleguy. I, too, have been interested in this bit of history and look forward to checking this book out.

Here's an interesting review of it from American Historical Review (via JSTOR)


review is here

I've read bits and pieces of this book. It seems fairly obvious that despite the 150-year-old persecution mantra, the Mormons gave about as good as they got. I remember being shocked that the Battle of Crooked River, wherein apostle David Patten was "martyred," was an attack by Mormons on a state militia unit. Who knew? And I had never heard of the armed intervention against a judge until reading this.

[_mentalgymnast]

So Joseph Smith warned the settlers of Haun's Mill that they were in danger. They were in danger from people who were pissed off and fighting mad about something that Joseph Smith had done to them, and he knew it!

So he shouldn't have warned them?

Regards,
MG

[_Blixa]

So Joseph Smith warned the settlers of Haun's Mill that they were in danger. They were in danger from people who were pissed off and fighting mad about something that Joseph Smith had done to them, and he knew it!

So he shouldn't have warned them?

Regards,
MG

The point is that the situation which caused a warning having to be issued in the first place is usually absent from the story as coventionally retold.

I think you know that, though.

[_LifeOnaPlate]

Julia Roberts said something in Pretty Woman along the lines of "The bad is so much easier to believe than the good."

Good movie.

[_mentalgymnast]

So Joseph Smith warned the settlers of Haun's Mill that they were in danger. They were in danger from people who were pissed off and fighting mad about something that Joseph Smith had done to them, and he knew it!

So he shouldn't have warned them?

Regards,
MG

The point is that the situation which caused a warning having to be issued in the first place is usually absent from the story as coventionally retold.

I think you know that, though.

Well I sure didn't learn the more complete and unadulterated version of Missouri history conventionally. But I did learn it. I'm not sure what all the fuss is about though.

Regards,
MG

[_Runtu]

Julia Roberts said something in Pretty Woman along the lines of "The bad is so much easier to believe than the good."

Good movie.

I disagree with that statement. I think for most church members it's very difficult indeed to believe anything bad about their church leaders, particularly about Joseph Smith.

Besides, that was an R-rated movie. For shame!

The bottom line is that the lines between "good guys" and "bad guys" in the Missouri conflict were not as well drawn as we were led to believe.

[_mentalgymnast]

Many, many thanks for the recommendation, Sethbag and styleguy. I, too, have been interested in this bit of history and look forward to checking this book out.

Here's an interesting review of it from American Historical Review (via JSTOR)


review is here

I've read bits and pieces of this book. It seems fairly obvious that despite the 150-year-old persecution mantra, the Mormons gave about as good as they got. I remember being shocked that the Battle of Crooked River, wherein apostle David Patten was "martyred," was an attack by Mormons on a state militia unit. Who knew? And I had never heard of the armed intervention against a judge until reading this.

Ah yes, the battle of Crooked River. A blackspot in early Mormon history. Can we have too many of them?

Regards,
MG