Ep 23 Jesse Perse Harmon Pt 7: Assassination🩸Arson🔥Death🪦& Divine Providence

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Joseph and Hyrum Smith are assassinated by those who were assigned to protect them. No one is held accountable. Turmoil continues to increase. Hundreds of home are burned by mobs. The evacuation planned is expedited by rumors of a federal army marching to Nauvoo. Hundreds will die along the way as most are unprepared for the winter elements. Ann Harmon dies at Winter Quarters. Jesse arrives in the Valley of the Great Salt Lake in the autumn of 1848. Work to do in the new land, as Jesse is busy helping to build new communities and put down roots, retirement and death in Holden, Utah. Hindsight reveals why such treachery was allowed to come upon the Mormonites. 

Transcript

Thanks for returning, it’s Jesse Harmon again. 

This is our final episode together. 

Are you ready for this? 

Let me remind you where we are in my story. 

It’s the final weeks of June 1844. I am a police sergeant in Nauvoo, Illinois. Myself and several others just posted bail in Carthage on hyped up riot charges for destroying a public nuisance known as the Nauvoo Expositor. 

Our mayor Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were NOT released. A highly suspicious legal maneuver.

Most a the rest of us rode into the night and got home just after midnight. 

Let’s pick it up there. 

Porter Rockwell: "Francis-Marion-Higbee! You God FORSAKEN snake!!! Have you come to gloat over Joseph's imprisonment?

Francis Higbee: "…Why, Porter, such hostility! I thought you Saints were all about turning the other cheek. Or is that reserved for sermons and not scuffles?"

Frederick Moesser: "Alright gentlemen…and Francis. I run a proper grocery here. And the floor has just been swept of all the Nauvoo dust. No blood on my clean floor please. 

Porter Rockwell: "We got testimony you’re wishin' to make Joseph dead. Care to deny it, or are you too cowardly to admit it to my face?"

Francis Higbee: "What if I am a wishin? What’s it to you? Your prophet’s days are numbered, Rockwell, and you know it."

Porter Rockwell: "I’ll not let you or anyone else lay a finger on him while I draw breath. I outta slit your cowardly throat…”

Francis Higbee: "…You're a thug! Nothing more than Joseph’s trained hound!"

Porter Rockwell: "What’ve we got here Francis?"

Francis Higbee: Thats personal. Give that to me!

Porter Rockwell: read it to us Jesse

Jesse Harmon: "lets see….Seventy men, armed and ready in Iowa, set to march on Nauvoo tonight."

Porter Rockwell: "You yella belly turncoat….Let 'em come. I'll usher 'em to the gates of hell."

Jesse Harmon: "No, Porter. We’ll post guards and send word to the men. But you—Joseph’s sent instructions. You’re to stay here in Nauvoo. He doesn’t want you taken by his enemies."

Porter Rockwell: "He’s in their hands already, Jesse! How can I sit here while they plan his murder?"

Jesse Harmon: "Because he told you to. And because if you go charging into Carthage, you’ll give those devils exactly what they want. Stay. Protect Nauvoo. That’s your charge now."

Francis Higbee: "You’ll regret this, Rockwell. You can’t protect him forever."

Porter: it’s not “his” protection you need be worried about, “Francis””

Jesse Harmon: "You’ve said your piece, Higbee. Now get out of Nauvoo before we find another reason to detain you."

Francis: The only thing more dangerous than your pistol is your loyalty. You’re nothing but Joseph’s lapdog, Porter. Fetching sticks and biting on command You only believe in fists and bullets. 

Porter: How’d you like your “come to Jesus” moment right now Francis?

Jesse Harmon: "Save your strength for what’s coming, Porter. I’ve got a feeling we’ll need every ounce of it before this is over."

Porter: I wish I didnt believe that Jesse. 

I got rage and to spare for scoundrels like Francis. 

Jesse Harmon: Naw…you? Who woulda guessed. To everything there is a season Orrin. 

It’s June 27, 1844. The region awoke to a light rain this morning. The overcast day reflects the circumstances honestly. We do expect Joseph to return to Nauvoo today with the Governor…as Ford promised. Though we ain’t holding our breath on any words outta his mouth…the hopeful days just don’t seem to be panning out lately. 

Jesse: Gentlemen…Thank you for meeting on such short notice. Let’s start with you Sheriff Greene. You’ve just returned from Carthage…Do you have any updates?

Sheriff, John Portineus Greene : I dont have anything encouraging to share. Quite the contrary. I spoke with Governor Ford directly. I warned him. I told him there was a conspiracy to murder Joseph and Hyrum the moment he left Carthage. And do you know what he said to me? “Marshal Greene, you are too enthusiastic.” Enthusiastic? That man is either blind or complicit.

Dan Jones: Blind? Complicit? Nay, I call it cowardice!

Jesse: Hold on…What do you mean the moment “he” left Carthage? Joseph is coming with him. Isnt he? He promised that.

Greene: He has NO intentions of keeping that promise. He told Joseph what he wanted him to hear. Yunno…keep things calm until it’s too late. 

Jesse: For the good of the Kingdom, I hope you are wrong Sheriff….Dan, what information have you gathered?

Dan Jones: It gets worse Jesse. I made my way to the governors quarters to relay a message and a request from Joseph, I overheard men plotting openly. They spoke of disbanding the troops for show and returning to kill Joseph and Hyrum once Ford was out of sight. Their leader called it a “sham” and was met with cheers. Three cheers! And when I reported this to the Governor, what did he do? Nothing. He told me, “the people are not that cruel.”

Porter Rockwell: Not that cruel?!? Does he know nothing of Missouri? Or does he just not care? Those dogs shouldn’t be allowed to speak such treachery without flint or steel rebuttal. Especially that Carthage Grey’s scoundrel Frank Worrell!….I don’t believe there’s been a man more deserving of death than him.

Jesse Harmon: Frank is certainly near the top of the list of those complicit in all this. You got anything else for us Dan?

Dan Jones: I demanded better guards for Joseph and Hyrum—men who weren’t assassins in disguise. I reminded Ford of his promise, his honor, his duty as a Mason to protect them. He paled at my words but did nothing. When I returned to the jail, the guard wouldn’t let me in. And in the streets, Chauncey Higbee himself had warned me to leave town if I valued my life. No one cared that I knew of their plans to kill Joseph, they were brash & blatant. They mean to do it, Jesse. They mean to kill them.

Jesse Harmon: The brashness is astounding. Do we all have stupid tattooed on our foreheads? Cyrus? I know you wanted to relay a message directly from President Smith. Please go ahead….

Cyrus Wheelock :I met with Joseph…He gave me a clear message for the Legion: no displays, no movements that could provoke the Governor. Joseph believes that calmness is our only defense right now. He pleaded with us to bear every indignity, for his sake, and Hyrum’s.

Porter Rockwell: Calmness? That mob should be pushing up daisies…and Ford should be dragged by a short piece of rope to a very tall tree. I see this as MUCH worse than cowardice. Calmness won’t stop a bullet. You all know what needs to be done!

Jesse Harmon: Take it easy Orrin. Joseph’s orders are clear. We stay calm. We stay watchful. Any rash action will only bring more bloodshed—and not just theirs, ours too. What Joseph and Hyrum need right now is time and witnesses to their innocence.

John P. Greene: Time? They don’t have time. And Ford? He won’t act. We’ve warned him enough to damn his soul for eternity if he does nothing. This is a layered and intentional incompetence…and that is intent.

Dan Jones: Then we hold the line here in Nauvoo. We strengthen the guard, prepare for what may come, and pray we’re not too late.

Cyrus Wheelock: Pray, yes, but also obey Joseph’s counsel. The Prophet’s wisdom has seen us through before, even in the darkest times.

Porter Rockwell: Fine. But if that mob sets foot in Nauvoo, I won’t be waiting with prayers.

Jesse: Fair enough Porter. Well said gentlemen. The Governor should be arriving soon. 

Jesse Narration: Governor Ford arrived in Nauvoo later that day…WITHOUT Joseph. A little before 5pm that evening he addressed our community in one of the most lambasting and insulting speeches that ever fell from the vile lips of an Executive. He blamed us for the crisis. And then threatened to hold us responsible for its aftermath.

Gov Ford: “a great crime had been done by destroying the Expositer press…a severe atonement must be made, so prepare your minds for the emergency….I know there is great prejudice against you on account of your peculiar religion, but you ought to be praying saints, not military saints. Depend upon it…a little more misbahavior from the citizens, and the torch which is now already lighted, will be applied. The city may be reduced to ashes…. if anything of a serious character should befal the lives or property of the persons who are prosecuting your leaders you will be held responsible!”

Jesse Narration: Needless to say his speech offended everyone, which seemed the intent. Since Joseph had asked us to preserve the peace, we kept quiet and pledged to heed the governor’s warning and sustain the laws of the state.

I observed the Governor’s behavior in Carthage. Porter, Dan Jones, and sheriff Greene also witnessed a very strange aloofness from him. His lambasting speech in Nauvoo seemed strangely calculated and somehow connected to his behaviors in Carthage. Near the end of his tirade, something very curious happened. It was sometime after 5pm…as the gubernatorial insults were wrapping up, we could clearly hear the report of a cannon from the direction of Golden’s Point (which is about 6 miles east). 

Now this might be some of the wilder frontier in the United States, and it is 1844, yet random citizens don’t have cannons. This was a military signal. The curiousness became suspicion when the Governors aide turned pale, and then whispered to the governor, who also turned pale, as though the cannon report was a prearranged signal of an expected event. The Governor hastily closed his speech.

In Nauvoo’s typical fashion of hospitality, the governor was solicited to stay until morning. No matter the coaxing, he seemed eerily anxious and eager to be on his way. He and his band of scallywags left Nauvoo for Carthage at about 6½ pm.

Jesse: Anna…what time did Porter ride out of town? I wish he wouldn’t have gone. I know we need answers, but we also need his fearless nature….here. This night feels like it’s never gonna end. 

Anna : Jesse, you’ve paced our porch so much tonight. You’re making me more anxious. Would you please sit here next to me?

Jesse: Sit? I can’t sit, Anna. Not tonight. Not with Joseph and Hyrum in that cursed jail, not after the Governor’s vile words. Ford knows what he’s done. He practically handed them over. I should be out there, doing something.

Anna: You’re here with me, Jesse. That’s doing something. You’ve got your own family to think of. And this town needs its sergeant to be steady while our world seems to be crumbling around us.

Jesse: Steady... Steady won’t bring Joseph home. Or Hyrum. It’s been days, Anna. Days without word. Porter’s out there somewhere too, and knowing him, he’s liable to end up in trouble himself.

Anna: Porter finds trouble like a hound on a scent. But he’s loyal, Jesse. He’ll do whatever it takes to bring word back.

Jesse: I don’t know what I hate more—this waiting or the inkling that we already know the answer. It feels like all of Nauvoo is holding its breath, waiting for the worst. And that governor…sitting up on his horse like Pontius Pilate, washing his hands of it all... I could barely keep from—

Anna: Jesse. You’re angry, and rightly so. But don’t let it eat you alive. This town’s seen too much blood already.

Jesse: Who’s riding like a bat outta Carthage at this hour?

Porter: THEY”RE DEAD!!! They’ve killed Joseph & Hyrum! May God Almighty damn them.

Jesse: Porter no!—what are you saying? What’s happened?

Porter: It’s done, Jesse. Carthage. The mob—they stormed the jail. Joseph and Hyrum are gone. They’ve been murdered. Assasinated.

Jesse: No... No, it can’t be.

Porter: It’s true, Jesse. I heard it from George Grant not an hour ago. I had to come back—had to tell the people.

Jesse: How is this possible Porter? What do we even do without them? Without Joseph? What’s next?

Porter: REVENGE!!! The governor did this! Or at least allowed it. Them Carthage Grays need to be bled out while they sleep. I will be the boogey man under their beds until proper justice is inflicted. Mark my words Jesse, Frank Worrell’s “come to Jesus moment”, will be sooner than he thinks….I never killed ANY man who didn’t deserve it. ….Frank is deserving. The top of the naughty list. 

Jesse: you need to keep riding Porter. Make sure the town is alerted. Who knows what their next move is. I will alert the police….and the Nauvoo legion. 

Porter: They’ve killed them! They’ve killed them! They’ve killed Joseph & Hyrum!

That has been one of the longest nights of my life. We worried about the safety of our families, and our community. The aftershocks were tremendous. A husband, father, neighbor, mayor, leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and a Presidential Candidate had been assassinated by a collective effort of dozens, if not hundreds of accomplices. From newspaper editors and bitter political candidates, to local Militia Leaders…the list was vast and the actions were premeditated. 

Local activists were involved…and likely representatives from each state had kindled this atmosphere of deadly intolerance. The dastardly deed was orchestrated by many, and carried out by a few, including the Governor of gaslighting himself, Thomas Ford.

This community mob justice killed many in the early days of the country…and nearly extincted us Mormonites. From New York into Pennsylvania, from Ohio into Missouri and now here in Illinois. We can trust no one. The country that promises religious freedoms has seemingly none of that for us.

Why had Joseph sent Cyrus Wheelock with a message of submission? Unbeknownst to us, a substantial militia force, including the bloodthirsty Carthage Greys, had been staged at a place called Golden’s Point, which was a 30 minute trot east of Nauvoo. The Governor’s speech was calculated to start a fight, so the troops at Goldens could pounce on us. Per Joseph’s instructions we kept our cool, left our guns at home, held our horses, bit our tongues, and were docile when the Governor arrived. Because of that, an instigated massacre, was miraculously thwarted. 

The Nauvoo Legion and our city charter were designed as juggernauts that would protect Nauvoo, her residents, and our way of life. We had learned from very tragic experiences that no one else would protect us. It was unpopular to protect a fledgling religion from established cultures made up of biased traditions. Different felt dangerous to many. Our ability to organize and self defend felt threatening to some influential residents of Jackson County, who were already butt hurt from losing an election or two. That includes Whig candidate, Thomas C. Sharp from Warsaw…who in 1842, lost an election to the Illinois House of Representatives...and was defeated by Democrat, William Smith, Joseph’s younger brother.

It turns out that one of the conspirators, Frank Worrell, had been put in charge of protecting the prisoners at the Carthage Jail. He sent word to Golden’s Point, “now is the time to do the deed.” At that summons approximately 200 of the troops marched back to Carthage, acted out the preplanned theatrical production of the jail siege, and assured the deaths of Joseph & Hyrum. Those who remained at Golden, relayed the cannon report, signaling the killings, then themselves made a B-line south to Warsaw in preparations for the retaliatory attack expected by our Legion. 

With the cannon signal from the direction of Golden’s Point, the governor knew one of two things, if not both, that his back-up militia was retreating, and/or that Joseph was dead. Both of which left him extremely vulnerable. Thats why the whispering, the pale faces, and the speedy departure. With ya’lls instantaneous modern day electronamarvels Ford wouldn’t have lived to finish his speech. 

As Governor Ford and entourage rode southeast out of Nauvoo that fateful evening, he came across Captain James Washington Singleton, of Brown County, about 3 miles out of town. Singleton and his company had spent time in Nauvoo in recent weeks, and had gained a profound respect while being treated as gentlemen, instead of soldiers. Capt Singleton was riding from Carthage to inform the Nauvoo residents of the killings of our Mayor and his brother. Instead of delivering this timely notification, the Governor gave them new orders to travel with him back to Carthage, where county records and public documents were removed, in the assumption that Carthage would soon be reduced to ashes by the angered Mormons. Around midnight, Captain Singleton and company, were allowed to again depart towards Nauvoo. Many citizens of Carthage and Warsaw fled in fear of retaliation…. The governor? Well he fled an additional 18 miles farther southeast to Augusta. Where they would be seemingly out of reach from a pursuing army seeking retaliation. That retaliation was justifiable and expected. 

Our Legion could assemble 2,000 armed men on short notice. We had the capacity to inflict major damage on the state of Illinois. And history would have been written much differently if we had. 

Joseph and Hyrum’s bodies were returned to Nauvoo on Friday and prepared for burial. The weather was sweltering that weekend. The emotional mourning was tremendous, as was the summer heat, which in turn caused rapid decomposition as their deceased bodies returned to the dust from whence they came. Bodies do not keep well in the late June temperatures of Illinois. To offset the odor, large pots of boiling pitch were placed on the stove of the Nauvoo Mansion House during the brief public viewing on Saturday June 29, 1844. Decoy coffins were then filled with sandbags and buried in the Nauvoo Cemetery to mislead anyone who might seek to desecrate their graves. Later that night, a trusted few buried the bodies in the basement of the Nauvoo House. Joseph’s widow Emma, played a key role in keeping this location a secret. Later, they were moved to an unmarked site near the Mississippi River on the Smith family homestead.

John Taylor and Willard Richards were the only two survivors of that late afternoon barrage of bullets into Carthage jail. Both are presumed to have collaborated in recording their first hand accounts of the martyrdom. 

John Taylor : We announce the martyrdom of Joseph Smith the Prophet, and Hyrum Smith the Patriarch. They were shot in Carthage jail, on the 27th of June, 1844, about five o’clock p.m., by an armed mob—painted black—of from 150 to 200 persons. 

Willard Richards : Hyrum was shot first and fell calmly, exclaiming: “I am a dead man!” Joseph leaped from the window, and was shot dead in the attempt, exclaiming: “O Lord my God!” They were both shot after they were dead, in a brutal manner, and both received four balls.

John Taylor: Hyrum was 44. Joseph was 38. They were confined in jail by the conspiracy of traitors and wicked men.

Willard: The testators are now dead, and their testament is in force. In life they were not divided, and in death they were not separated! 

John Taylor: Their names will be classed among the martyrs of religion. Their works cost the best blood of the nineteenth century.

"A good Christian is bound to relinquish not only goods and children, but life itself, for the glory of his Redeemer; therefore, I am resolved to sacrifice everything in this transitory world, for the sake of salvation in a world that will last to eternity." "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." John Foxe, Foxe’s Book of the Martyrs.

"Many have marveled because of his death, but it was needful that he should seal his testimony with his blood, that he might be honored and the wicked might be condemned." Brigham Young

The assassins and accomplices had no fear of the law, and openly boasted about killing Joseph and Hyrum. Thomas Sharp, editor of the Warsaw Signal, even claimed to have fired the fatal shot, justifying the murder as a necessary "execution" backed by "respectable citizens." The trial for the assassination of Joseph Smith Jr. was held in May 1845 at the Hancock County Courthouse in Carthage, Illinois. Mormons were banned from serving as jurors. Ultimately the jury was chosen exclusively of non-Mormons,  Anti-Mormons and sympathizers of the defendants. Despite overwhelming evidence…the jury exclusion, and the lack of serious effort from the prosecution ensured that Thomas Sharp, Jacob C. Davis, Mark Aldrich, William N. Grover, and John Wills were all acquitted. No trial was ever held for the murder of Hyrum. 

A somewhat renowned descendent of my Harmon lineage, by the name of Dallin Harris Oaks, a 7th cousin 3 times removed to be exact, who will serve as a Supreme Court justice, and who, as a University of Chicago law professor in the 20th century, will be the first to unseal and review the testimony from the 1845 trial pertaining to the death of Joseph Smith Jr.…he will come to the same conclusion as we have, “Joseph Smith’s death was a political assassination.” And the first ever of a presidential candidate. 

In February of 1845 I was elected Pound Master for the city. Which is a modern day version of animal control/towing services/shelter for strays/impound yard/public auction/and a livestock officer. In 1845 animals are prevalent in society. Shoveling the horse biscuits from downtown is the street sweeping of my day. We even have speed limits for horses or any other animal that might be ridden around the streets at a high rate of speed. 

Without a city charter, it was obvious that our days in The City of Joseph were quickly coming to an end. While alive, Joseph had been uneasy about the lack of concern and protection that the county, state and federal governments were offering. In the months before his assassination, President Smith had formed a relocation group, titled the Council of Fifty. After Joseph’s death Brigham Young was sustained into this leadership role over the council. 

Mormon beliefs about the destiny of America’s Indians also sparked an abiding interest in the Rocky Mountains and the American West. We had contemplated taking our message to the “Rocky Mountains,” if necessary, in order to “be with the Indians.”

On the morning of March 1, 1845, thirty-eight-year-old Lewis Dana, a member of the Oneida Nation, became the first American Indian to join the Council of Fifty. Lewis had been baptized with his family in 1840. He had served several missions, including one to the Indian territory west of the United States, and had ventured as far away as the Rocky Mountains. Knowing Lewis had friends and relatives among Indian nations to the west, Brigham Young invited him to join the council and share what he knew about the people and lands there. 

BRIGHAM YOUNG :The time has come, brethren. Without the city charter, there is no protection…our days here in the City of Joseph are numbered. We must find a new place for our people, a place beyond the reach of our enemies…Brother Dana, you know the lands and the people to the west. Will you help us?

LEWIS DANA :"Yaw-wuh-NUH-kwee-seh-rah-dayʔ neh Shoo-kway-yah-TUHʔ-koo, yuh-THOHS-lot-kah-NEE-yooʔ." In the name of the Lord, I am willing to do all I can.

BRIGHAM YOUNG :We will send an expedition. Brother Dana will lead it, with Phineas and Solomon Tindall at his side. They will meet with the Indian nations, speak our purpose, and find a land where we can build—a place where we can govern ourselves and worship in peace.

LEWIS DANA :I have traveled those lands before. I have friends among the nations. I will go and speak with them. Solomon Tindall is a proud Mohegan…raised by the Delaware. He will be invaluable to this journey. Isnt that right Solomon?

Solomon: Matàch awèn kshàkënima hòkaya. A person should not brag about himself. Yet, I am what you say.

BRIGHAM YOUNG: Then it is settled. Our Lenni-Lenape…Men of Men, will hunt out a good location for us. We will move west, away from the murderous oppression of the United States, to where Joseph said “we can build a city in a day, and have a government of our own, get up into the mountains, where the devil cannot dig us out, and live in a healthy climate, where we can live as old as we have a mind to.” How would you say that in lënape brother Tindall?

Solomon Tindall: kètahtëne yuhëli mahtan'tu (where there are big mountains, to get away from the devil)

Brigham: Impressive Solomon. We are fortunate that God has led you here amongst us. Thank you gentlemen. God speed your journey. 

Lewis Dana : Shoo-kwai-ya-DUH-go nee-TWAHS-ka-ha-gay (Shukwaya’t@kó nitwáhskahake/Our Creator be with you)

The expedition left the City of Joseph on 24 April, 1845. The assignment? …travel southwest through Missouri to the lands beyond to attend a council of chiefs in Indian Territory. 

The council was also called upon to help govern the city in its waining days and plan its evacuation. 

We needed a place where our communities could expand into new settlements where we could govern ourselves and live in peace. The Council of Fifty sought to erect a new standard of liberty in order to establish the freedoms America had failed to safeguard.

JESSE HARMON: Things sure have changed since the Prophet was taken from us. Ain’t just Nauvoo anymore. Feels like folks only call it the City of Joseph now. Even the Woolleys changed their mercantile name to Joseph City Store.

HOSEA STOUT: it’s not just the name of a store, Jesse. It’s a statement. Ain't much neutrality left in Hancock County these days. Folks either love us or you hate us.

DANIEL CARN: More hate than love these days. Work’s gettin’ scarce for some folks. You can't even step outside Nauvoo without riskin’ your neck.

HOWARD EGAN: That’s if you even make it home at all. Irvine Hodges didn’t.

JESSE HARMON: I saw that. He was trying to get to Brigham Young, hoping for a blessing, but he fell dead right there in the street. Looked like he’d bled out just a few rods from Brighams door. 

HOSEA STOUT: We’ll for the love of Pete! Irvine was stabbed four times…with his own knife. Left there to die like an animal. And the killers? Some folks know…they just ain’t sayin. 

DANIEL CARN: Just another name on the list of Saints cut down while the law turns a blind eye.

HOWARD EGAN: What law? We ain't got a city charter no more.

JESSE HARMON: That charter was our greatest protection. Our own police, our own courts, the Nauvoo Legion—gone, just like that. Now we’re sittin’ ducks for the mobs.

HOSEA STOUT: And that’s exactly how they wanted it. I dont like feeling like fish in a barrel. Gives me nightmares and makes my trigger finger itchy.

DANIEL CARN: They been wantin’ us outta here for years. Reckon they think without the charter, we’ll just up and leave.

HOWARD EGAN: Thats looking more and more like the option we want. Anything outside of the United States. I am deeply resentful of our nation’s leaders for refusing to protect us…and I am not alone in that sentiment.

One of our only allies in power was with Hancock County Sheriff Jacob Benjamin Backenstos. He and his Mrs are with the Lutheran Reformed Church, and he’s been classified as a Jack Mormons by the mobs and haters. “Jack” being a label of disloyalty given by those who don’t see us favorably. We see the Jacks as sympathizers & defenders, and by golly there were a fair amount in and around the Carthage area. Just not enough in positions of power & influence where they could have prevented more injustices. 

Sheriff Backenstos was run down by anti-Mormon factions and had his life threatened frequently because he wouldn’t bend the law, look the other way, or side with the haters & anti’s. As County Sheriff he stuck to the letter of the law, and that wasn’t their modus operandi.

On September 1, 1845 part of the scouting group returned from their western mission and brought with them much needed excitement. It had been a few months since the council of fifty had met, so a meeting was scheduled for September 9th to discuss the findings.

Daniel Spencer reported on the favorable meeting Lewis Dana of the Oneida Nation had as he met with one of the chiefs of the Cherokee nation. This open door was more timely than we could have imagined.

Jacob: Frank, are you sure this is necessary?

Frank: Jacob, you turnin yella on us?

Jacob: No Mr Worrell.

Mark: Jacob, dag blast it. dont use our real names. 

Jacob: Sorry Mark. 

Frank: what in the Sam Hill has gotten into you two! Shut them pie holes of yours! Put your torch into the woodpile against the house Jacob….and Mark, you get the barn. No structures left standing. If these Mormonites wont leave on their own, we’ll burn em out!

Mark: Hurry up. There’s other Mormons here in Lima who need a visit from us afore the night is over. 

Man: Liza…get the children and get clear of the house. This ain’t no accident.

On September 9th & 10th, after months of threats and rising tensions, the mobs began systematically burning out the saints who lived in isolated areas. Referred to as the “Burners”, what had begun as the torching of a few homes in the Lima area, quickly turned into dozens of structures. For the time being we were instructed to let the mob burn the houses of the Saints, and not make war on them. 

On Friday September 12 it commenced raining very hard. We learned that the mob were still burning houses and that teams had gone down to move the Saints to the city who had their houses burnt up.

The burnings continued unabated throughout the month. To stem the tide of destruction, Backenstos sought help from all possible sources. Those outside of The City of Joseph were either afraid to, or unwilling to help. 

On Monday, Sept. 15, 1844, Brigham Young wrote in his journal, "Sheriff Backenstos tried his best to summon a posse to stop the burning, but could not raise one. Forty-four buildings have thus far been burned by the mob.”

The families who had their houses burned, fled into the City of Joseph for shelter. Our house was filled. 

Sheriff Backenstos tried harder than anyone to make things right. His fairness with the Mormons continued to bring violent reactions from the anti-Mormon faction. On Sept. 16, Backenstos arrived in Nauvoo "in great haste and somewhat excited," declaring that the mob had driven him from his house in Carthage the day before. (HC 7:446.)

By the end of September an estimated one hundred and seventy five houses had been burned to the ground. Backenstos issued a proclamation calling for two thousand effective men as a posse comitatus (com· i· ta· tus ˌkäməˈtätəs) to disperse the house burners. 400 workmen from the Nauvoo house were released to compose part of this posse. And it worked…for a time.

A strange and suspicious set of circumstances followed:

The house burners, to avoid being arrested, left the county. Then Governor Thomas Ford sent General John J. Harding at the head of four hundred militia to Nauvoo; he dismissed the sheriff’s posse, but made no attempt to arrest the house burners. The General informed all those of the Mormon sect in Hancock County that the State could not protect them. The mob was determined to drive us from the state and therefore we must go.

There must’ve been an entire haystack of final straws piled onto our camels back before it finally broke. A capable army, removing local protections, and then themselves refusing to uphold the law and protect the citizens. From the Missouri expulsions in the decade previous, the Latter-day Saints were left deeply convinced of the inability and unwillingness of governments to protect the rights of unpopular religious minorities. At this time, the Bill of Rights protected against abuses by only the federal government, not state and local governments, meaning that federal officials generally refused to intervene to protect rights at local levels. 

We were not alone in our reservations about the power of the majority in the United States.

“The repression of unpopular minorities is the main evil of the present democratic institutions of the United States.” [The nation is “rent from center to circumference, with party strife, political intrigue, and sectional interest.”] Alexis de Tocqueville, French political theorist, 1830

We could not trust our personal safety, our religion, or our way of life to the United States any longer. The reason Joseph ran for president was because none of the sitting presidents or candidates would agree to force justice for our grievances or compensation of our losses in Missouri.

The state military leaders had their marching orders straight from the Governor, yet to their credit they did try to enforce the laws fairly and, as the Mormons hurriedly prepared to leave the state, they kept the anti-Mormons at bay, repeatedly threatening to withdraw their troops from the county and leave them back in the hands of Backenstos. . . . (HC 7:531.) It was a fate none of the mob wanted.

My sister Lucina died in the Iowa Territory, on 5 Oct 1845, leaving her children orphans, as their father had passed 5 years earlier. 

Jesse: We’ll brother Lytle, what’s do you spect our odds’ll be at the court hearing?

John Lytle: hmmm. Joseph did say that not a hair of our heads will be harmed. I dont have as many hairs as i used to, but i spect that even my combover wont disqualify me from that prophetic promise. I’m guilty of a little cranium vanity is all. Otherwise i say the verdict will be “Not Guilty”.

Jesse: John, you got the craziest sense of humor. 

John: if we’re choosing between fretting or laughing, i guess I’d prefer the latter. Even with a smidge of self deprecation. 

Bailiff: ALL RISE…the honorable Judge William Jefferson Purple is presiding. The date is October 22, 1845, State of Illinois VS Jesse P. Harmon & John Lytle. 

Judge: Please be seated…Clerk are you ready? The court will now hear testimony regarding the charges against John Lytle and Jesse P. Harmon for the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor press. Proceed, Counselor.

Prosecutor: Witness, you claim to have seen the accused on the night in question. Can you confirm for the court whether it was Jesse Harmon or his son Appleton whom you saw?

Witness: I—I'm not certain, sir. I saw a man, but I cannot say if it was the father or the son.

Prosecutor: Very well. And can you at least confirm whether the man you saw was John Lytle, the accused here before us, or Andrew Lytle?

Witness: I was told the men in question were policemen. But then I was told the Lytles are both blacksmiths… so I—I cannot say for certain which one I saw.

Prosecutor: So you cannot definitively identify either of the accused as participating in the destruction of the press? Is that correct?

Witness: No, sir. I cannot.

Judge: Given the witness’s inability to positively identify the accused, this court finds there is insufficient evidence to proceed. The charges against John Lytle and Jesse P. Harmon are hereby dismissed. Case closed.

Within a month, my relief turned to sadness when on the 10th of November my father Martin Harmon passed away, at 86 years of age. Quite an achievement for a man in the 1800’s. 

To Martin Harmon, A Patriot’s Rest

Born beneath a foreign crown,
A child of woods and rebel ground,
He grew where freedom's seed was sown,
A land yet young, not yet its own.

Through childhood’s trials, strong he stood,
Eleven kin, a brotherhood,
With fate unkind to those so small,
Yet he endured—he conquered all.

The call to arms, the cry of war,
He answered brave, like those before.
With Ethan Allen’s fearless kin,
He fought where liberty begins.

In ‘seventy-eight, with musket tight,
He stood against the empire’s might.
Through fire and frost, through blood and pain,
He helped to break the tyrant’s chain.

And when the war was fought and won,
He turned his heart to hearth and home.
Tryphena dear, his steadfast bride,
Together strong, they lived with pride.

Nine children blessed their loving hands,
Yet sorrow walked where joy once danced.
Two babes were lost, then mother too,
And grief lay heavy, deep and true.

Through trials fierce and winters long,
His faith endured, his soul was strong.
A father, mentor, battle-worn,
Yet kind of heart—a life well sworn.

At eighty-six, his journey ends,
A soldier’s rest, a hero’s send.
Father Martin is a man of men. 

God be with you, till we meet again.

Brigham Young informed the governor that the Saints would leave Illinois by the spring of 1846. Just after the ice thawed on the Mississippi River. We thought that’s what they wanted to hear. And still things got worse, and more peculiar. 

Sheriff Backenstos : Brigham, gentlemen, thank goodness you’re all here. 

Brigham: What is it sheriff? The mob chasing you again?

Sheriff Backenstos : An army…an army is coming….President Polk is sending an army to the City of Joseph.

Brigham Young : A federal army? But why? We already gave our intentions to leave by next summer. Some say our leaving the country is treasonous. Are they coming to stop us….or drive us out?

Sheriff Backenstos : I have no idea what their intentions are Brigham. But it cant be good. This rumor came from the Governor’s office.

Porter Rockwell : Sheriff…You trust Ford? He’s never been our friend. That man would sell his own kin to rid Illinois of us.

Jesse Harmon : We’ve seen plenty of his tricks. This could be another ploy. What proof do we have that an army’s truly on its way?

Sheriff Backenstos : You know me Porter. I dont like Ol Tom Ford any more than a planters wart. And Jesse, I have no proof? Nothing except the urgent implications of such a message. I cant imagine why anyone would fabricate a moment of urgency like this. Why…it would create a panic that would force folks into haphazard actions.

Brigham Young: Exactly! He has played his hand well. Whether it is true or not, the people will panic. We cannot hold them here much longer. Some have already left. We cannot let the city scatter into the winter winds. We MUST leave as orderly and as quickly as possible. 

Porter Rockwell: So that’s it? We just up and leave. We’ll walk into the wilderness like lambs to slaughter?

Brigham Young: We don’t have the numbers to win this fight, Porter. The mobs have burned our homes, and the militia stands idle. There is no law here for us. If we stay, we die by their hands or by starvation.

Jesse Harmon : I fought to keep this city safe. I rode out, stood with the posse, ran those devils from our lands. And now we have to leave it all behind?

Brigham Young : We do. But we leave on our own terms. We will not be slaughtered like before. We will prepare as rapidly as possible, gather supplies, and lead our people west where no man can drive us out.

Sheriff Backenstos : As the county sheriff I am sorry. You have truly become my brethren. I tried to hold them back, but my authority is gone. The militia now rules the county, and Ford has seen to it that no one will stand in your defense. If you do not leave, worse will come.

Porter Rockwell : For what it’s worth, you have done well by us Jacob. If Ford lied… if there’s no army coming…

Brigham Young : Then he still wins, because we will go. And he knows it.

Jesse Harmon : Then we go. But not as beggars— we go as a people, united. Let’s make sure every family has what they need…according to our supply. It’s not going to be as much as we’d like. Yet, no one should be left behind. 

Brigham Young: We’ll need every willing man to help prepare. There’s no time to waste. Sheriff, thank you for bringing this warning. Whatever Ford’s intent, you have remained our friend…Now, let’s begin our exodus.

Whether its the steady crumble of wagon wheels rolling the gravelly streets of The City of Joseph, or the noises of the markets, the hammering of blacksmiths, the voices of neighbors bidding farewell—these sounds once filled the air here. Now, they are all but gone. Brigham Young and the first company left in February, braving the frozen Mississippi. I stayed behind, helping those who couldn’t yet leave, watching as our city, built with faith and sacrifice, slipped into the hands of those who despised us.

Spring came, and with it, more urgency. Hostility grew stronger with each passing week. Those of us still in this City of Joseph worked day and night—building wagons, gathering supplies, caring for the sick and the poor who had nowhere else to turn. By June, we could wait no longer. It was our turn to leave.

John Lamereaux: Looks like you and the family are ready to leave Jesse. We hope to catch up with you some time this fall. 

Jesse: Yes John. Ready or not we must be on our way. Please dont stay too long yourself. This place has become a tinder box of hostilities. I know you are recovering your strength. But I worry for your safety brother Lamereaux. 

John Lamereaux: Thank you Jesse. My boys David & Andrew are staying with me until I am strong enough to leave. God speed Jesse. Hurrah for Israel. 

Jesse: yes…Hurrah for Israel, wherever that might be.

Anne: Jesse, can you stop here for a second dear? Just one last look. There she is…Nauvoo. The city and the temple we helped to build. Do you think we will ever see it again?

Jesse: I dont know dear. How many times can a people be run from pillar to post before they snap? Sadly, I think this is a final goodbye for us.

Anne: Ok Mr Harmon. My heart cant take any more of this. Let’s go. Take us to the Rocky Mountains. 

Jesse: Yes ma’am. Come on Mick & Molly. Giddy up!

In the past 3 years Nauvoo had been bursting at the seams. I dont know if a town could grow any faster than Nauvoo had. It was part of the downfall. It was certainly viewed as a threatening buildup to the regulars who were used to having charge of everything. 

From 1839 to 1840 there was a 2,400% growth increase from a population of 100 to 2,500 by the end of 1840. Each year following that it grew, 20%, 33%, 100%, and 50% in 1844 where it peaked somewhere around 12-15,000 people. Amazing huh? What happened next was even more astonishing. In 1845 the population pretty much plateaued, and began to decline around 8%. In 1846 there was a 55% decrease. By 1847, Nauvoo was largely depopulated, marking the end of this significant chapter in the city's history. The city of Joseph saw an 80% decrease in population settling somewhere near 1,000 residents. In nearly 180 years since that day, that number hasn’t changed. 

In the late winter, summer & fall of 1846, possibly the greatest exodus in United States History began to unfold as somewhere bouts fifteen hundred wagons began crossing the mighty Mississippi River. 

Our family left Nauvoo in June, as we crossed the river to the Sugar Creek area. At Sugar Creek a good spirit soon settled over the camp. Safely out of Nauvoo, the Saints worried less about mobs or government threats to stop the exodus. The first groups who left had organized way stations of sorts along the way. Sugar Creek was the first of these. In the evenings, a brass band played lively music while the men and women danced. Here we remained for some time, making preparations for the long and mostly unknown journey ahead. 

The trail is not kind. At some points the sun is scorching hot and so punishing. At others the rain turns the ground to thick mud, slowing our wagons to a crawl. The oxen and teams groan under the strain, and I wonder how long they will last. We pass through way stations left by those ahead—Sugar Creek, Garden Grove, Mount Pisgah. In these places, the Saints before us planted crops, built shelter, left what little they could for those who followed. Their sacrifice is the only reason we are still moving forward. 

Jesse: Anna, are you ok?

Anna: I’m sure it’s nothing Jesse. 

Jesse: that doesnt sound like nothing.

Anna: Don’t fret over me Jesse. Let’s just keep moving.

Jesse: As you wish dear. Stay under the covers please. I sure wish Dr Meeks was here.

We pushed on in the early months of autumn. My wife Anna has been ill with chills and fever. We arrived at a Mormon settlement named Winter Quarters in the late fall of 1846. 

It so good to see my sister Sarah and her family again. They had left in the first company with Brigham. I was afraid we wouldnt see them again, because between Nauvoo and Winter Quarters hundreds had died. The sad stories to tell seem unbearable and innumerable. Some had died as they crossed the frozen Mississippi River, just outside of Nauvoo, even before they reached the Iowa side. 

Because of the panicked rush brought on by the army advancing upon us, so many were ill prepared for the bitter weather, and without sufficient food and supplies they succumbed to exposure, disease, and starvation. Many of these tragic moments were captured in personal journals.

“I am the widow of Hyrum Smith, who was assassinated along with his brother Joseph. I crossed the frozen Mississippi River with my children. We walked into the brutal cold of early February. I saw many frostbitten feet, with resulting amputations. And there was illness. So much illness.” Mary Fielding Smith

“I had to deliver babies in freezing conditions. Several newborns and mothers perished. As the snow blew through the wagon cover... the mothers had nothing to keep their babies warm. By morning, so many little ones had died." Patty Sessions, midwife

“I returned from a desperate search for food to find my children huddled around the lifeless body of their mother, who had succumbed to exposure.” Brother Farnsworth

“I reached the wagon after being gone some time looking for food. There I found my young daughter Ellen lying dead in our wagon, her frozen hands clutching her deceased mother.” Brother Pratt

“Malnutrition led to outbreaks of scurvy, which turned the skin black, as their bodies wasted away. Whole families perished in their wagons, with no one to bury them but the wolves." Wilford Woodruff

“I buried my wife and child at Mount Pisgah. I turned away from their graves with tears freezing upon my face, knowing I must move forward." Joseph Holbrook

More than 150 people died at Mount Pisgah alone. Graves were often unmarked due to the haste of their journey.

The sorrow here in Winter Quarters is palpable. Graves dotted the land along our way…and here, marking those who could go no further. Disease and hunger have taken so so many, but still, we stay the course. 

The sting in this sadness is discovering that Governor Ford had intentionally lied to us about President Polk sending an army. Ol Tom had requested one, but when Polk refused him, he leaked a false rumor that he knew would send us into a hasty, unprepared, and panicked exodus. 

We’ve built a temporary house and a saw mill and will settle here for the winter. There are some log cabins, many dugout homes, a flour mill, and because of the speed of our flight and the exposure to the elements, there is also a much needed cemetery.  There are trees and water and resources here….and sickness. Anna’s condition is worsening. 

Anna: Jesse….

Jesse: Yes dear…I am here.

Anna: I will always be with you, always.

On January 16, 1847 my sweetheart Anna Barnes Harmon died at Winter Quarters. Our 22 year old daughter Sophronia had also contracted the same chills & fever…she succumbed just 10 days later on the 26th of January.

All of the family was sick and Ansil was the only one able to see his mother buried.  

The frost was so severe that the ground was frozen 3 feet deep. And it was incredibly difficult to bury their remains. Because of that, and the sheer number of deaths, several had to be buried in mass graves, sometimes six at a time, covered only by thin blankets of earth. Many referred to Winter Quarters as “the valley of death”.

The death toll in Winter Quarters is estimated near one thousand souls. Most of these tragedies could have been prevented. Governor Ford’s hands will forever be stained by their innocent blood. No one should wonder why we hold Ol Tom Ford in such hellish contempt. He is to blame for the deaths of my wife and daughter. He is an accomplice to the assassinations of Joseph & Hyrum Smith. 

Dr. Priddy Meeks : Excuse me Brother Harmon, names Priddy Meeks, I heard you might have a wagon for trade. My family and I need something strong enough to make the journey west.

Jesse Perse Harmon : I remember you Doctor Meeks…I reckon I do have a good wagon. Built this one in Nauvoo, fit for the long haul. But I was told to wait till next season. The Lord only knows why… maybe because I’ve buried too many loved ones already.

Dr. Meeks : I’m sorry, Jesse. I know you’ve suffered much. No man should have to bury his wife and child so soon.

Jesse : Aye. The chills and fever near took me too. But I’ve got my breath back, and I’ve still got my faith. If the Lord wants me to wait, I’ll wait. But you—you’ve got family needing shelter on the plains.

Dr. Meeks : I sure do Jesse. And I need a wagon that’ll see us through the mountains.

Jesse : Then take this one. She’s strong, got high bows to keep out the worst of the weather. Built to cross rivers and climb hills.

Dr. Meeks : Oh Jesse, you don’t know what this means to me. I got a mare I can trade ya. She’s young and tall. I also got a wagon, but it’s smaller—

Jesse : I dont have much use for the young mare. Yet I will take you up on the smaller wagon. And if you’ve got something else to even the trade, so be it.

Dr. Meeks : I have forty gallons of wine.

Jesse: Wine? 40 gallons?

Dr Meeks: Mhm. Elderberry wine. Made it myself over the winter. Added pert near 150 pounds of sugar. It’s extra splendid. Possibly the only good thing to come outta Missouri. It’s good for sickness and hard nights.

Jesse: That’ll do. Some of these folks could use it more than I can.

Dr. Meeks: You’re a good man, Jesse Harmon. The Lord sees your kindness. I will get a team together and come by to make the trade as soon as I can. God speed Jesse. And Thank you again. 

On October 5, 1848, I arrived with Heber C. Kimball & company into the Valley of the Great Salt Lake.

I was soon thereafter elected as the first alderman in Salt Lake City. 

In 1861 I was called on a mission to help settle southern Utah. 

When that was completed in 1866 i moved to Holden in Willard County, Utah Territory. 

While there I commenced to receive a pension in 1871 for my services in the War of 1812. Better late than never i guess. 

My son, Appleton died Feb 26, 1877.

I started feeling ill on the 23rd of December 1877, and passed on to the other side Christmas Eve, 1877. Waiting in line to the pearly gates for only 24 hours wasn’t bad. And heck, I lived it up for 82 yrs, 4 months 13 days.

At the time of my departure in 1877, over 350 settlements were established as part of the organized effort to put down so many roots that we couldn’t never be yanked out again. And believe me it was tried.

Amongst the dozens of communities in the Utah Territory, there were a few towns elsewhere that were settled by these estranged mormonites before the close of 1877. You might recognize a few of em.

Franklin, Idaho

Lehi, Snowflake & St John’s AZ

San Bernardino, CA

Cardston, Canada

Logandale, Overton, and Panaca NV

And a small community known today as Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Mhm…yeppers. We came outta that cannon blast of persecution like a triple load of buckshot.

This Mormonite church I joined at Kirtland, Ohio in 1838, more properly known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints now owns millions of acres internationally that are used for Farming, Ranching, Timber, Citrus, and Conservation efforts that sustain its worldwide humanitarian programs, amongst other things. So now, when natural disasters strike, when minority groups are uprooted, those damned Mormonites are right there to help folks of all faiths, to get back on their feet again with food, supplies, and long term support in relocation, employment & business training.

There are now more members of the once nascent Church of Jesus Christ who live outside of Utah, and outside of the United States, than within it. Ain’t it interesting that our once persecuted group, in that little bustling Illinois town along the mighty Mississippi River, is now an impressive global force to be reckoned with, and a helping hand to all who need it. 

“…as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”

What others meant for harm, God turned into good. That’s His Providence