Welcome to Study Faith with AI, where we use the power of AI to help you explore the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I'm Meg Jensen.

And I'm Paul Carter,

and we're Google AIs. Whether you're a lifelong member or just starting to learn about the Church, we're here to dive deep into its history, beliefs, and culture.

So, if you're ready to learn, you're in the right place.

That's right.

Let's get started. 

1838 in Missouri.

A real flash point in American religious history, wouldn't you say? Simmering tensions just exploded.

Exploded is the right word. Thousands of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints violently expelled from the state.

Yeah. This wasn't just, you know, a disagreement. It blew up into what we now call the Mormon War.

Exactly. And our aim in this deep dive isn't just to list events. We really want to get into the uh the words, the actions, the perceptions on all sides that fueled this awful conflict,

Right?

We'll be looking at firsthand accounts, historical analyses, Church writings, too, trying to see it from, well, multiple angles.

Okay, so let's dig in. Where did this all start? Yeah. I mean, the Mormon War didn't just happen overnight in 1838. We need to look at the leadup, those early tensions in Missouri.

Absolutely. The move into Missouri. Initially, things seemed okay, relatively speaking, in Clay County.

Okay. How so?

Well, between about 1833 and 1836, after they'd been driven from Jackson county. The folks in Clay County showed some compassion initially.

Ah, okay. So, a brief respite.

A brief one. Yeah. But it didn't last. Concerns cropped up pretty quickly. You had this rapid influx of Mormon immigrants. They were buying up a lot of land. And some locals felt the Mormons believed the land was, like divinely theirs. That rapid growth, different ideas about land. It caused friction early on.

It's that classic dynamic, isn't it? A fast growing group, different ways moving into an established area. Sparks are going to fly,

Right? And then you throw in the slavery issue, a huge one.

Oh, yeah. Missouri was a slave state.

Indeed. And the Mormons, mostly coming from non-slaveholding backgrounds, that created suspicion, unease, plus their interactions with Native American tribes.

How had to play into it?

Well, the Mormon belief that Native Americans were part of God's covenant people, that added another layer of anxiety for the existing settlers. It was all just different.

Different and maybe seen as threatening.

Exactly. So, by June 1836, The Clay County residents formally asked the Mormons to leave after the harvest.

Okay, so pushed out again. Where did they go then?

There were negotiations and by the end of 1836, Caldwell County was specifically set up as uh a designated place for Mormon settlement,

A Mormon county essentially.

Pretty much the idea was to give them their own space, hopefully avoid the conflicts. The few non- Mormons already there were generally expected to sell up and move.

A buffer zone maybe. Did it work?

In theory, maybe. But the underlying problems didn't vanish. The Mormon immigration kept coming, Right?

And crucially, a lot of people started arriving from Kirtland, Ohio, and things in Kirtland were well, they were a mess.

Uh Kirtland, the Kirtland Safety Society. That rings a bell. Financial trouble.

Big time. The collapse of the Kirtland Safety Society, this uh banking venture started by Joseph Smith and other Church leaders. It was devastating for many members.

Why did it collapse?

They couldn't get a proper legal charter. There was distrust and And then the panic of 1837, the wider economic crash just finished it off.

So people lost everything.

Many did. It wasn't just a financial hiccup. It caused deep riffs, feelings of betrayal. A lot of dissatisfied people headed west to Missouri in ‘38. Maybe with a bit of desperation.

And that just adds more people to Caldwell County. More pressure.

Exactly. More competition for land resources. And even before the bank fully failed, there were signs of internal issues. Maybe some, uh, intimidation tactics starting to show up within the Church leadership.

Really? Like what?

Well, there's this incident back in Kirtland, November 1836. 12 general authorities, top leaders, including the First Presidency, and about 59 other members, signed this warning.

A warning to who?

To a non- Mormon justice of the peace, basically told him to get out of Kirtland now.

Wow. Did he leave?

No, that specific attempt didn't work, but it definitely hints at tactics that would be used later, more forcefully in Missouri.

That's significant coming from the top leadership. And it wasn't just external figures. They had issues with internal stuff, too.

Oh, yeah.

Early 1838, the local Church presidency, David Whitmer, WW Phelps, John Whitmer, they came under serious scrutiny.

Over what specifically?

Land deals, primarily accusations of misusing Church funds, but crucially selling Church-owned land in Jackson County. Many felt that directly contradicted earlier revelations about that land being sacred, you know, Zion.

So, even as they're facing external threats, there are these deep internal fractures appearing at the very top locally.

And by February 1838 the high council there which was a key local governing body essentially rejected that presidency though initially the men remained members of the Church

Who took over?

Thomas B. Marsh and David W. Patton who were apostles were appointed as acting presidents for the Missouri stake

But it didn't stop there did it?

No. It didn't resolve smoothly.

In March 1838 Phelps and John Whitmer were actually excommunicated because they wouldn't reconcile over these issues.

And didn't someone get disciplined just for objecting? Yes, Marcelus Cowdery was disfellowshipped for objecting to how Phelps and Whitmer were treated.

And the leadership shakeup continues into April.

It does. April 1838 is huge. David Whitmer and Oliver Cowdery are excommunicated.

Wow, those are massive names. Witnesses to the Book of Mormon.

Absolutely. Foundational figures. Lyman Johnson also leaves around the same time. The reasons cited were complex disagreements over Church governance, the balance between spiritual and, uh, temporal authority.

And the land issues again?

And land issues. Yes. Plus, in Oliver Cowdery's case, there were specific charges like seeking to destroy the character of President Joseph Smith, relating to accusations of adultery, and rejecting Church authority in non-religious matters.

So, this is more than just a disagreement. It's a fundamental clash over direction and authority.

You could really see it as a turning point. Maybe a shift away from a more, let's say, decentralized early structure towards more centralized authority under Joseph Smith. Excommunicating men of that stature sent a powerful message. So, Joseph Smith walks into Far West in March ‘38 and it's not exactly a peaceful scene.

Not at all. He arrives amidst this internal strife plus all the external pressures. Though, you know, many were thrilled he was there hoping he could fix things.

What happened once he arrived? Any major changes?

Pretty quickly, yeah. April 1838, a series of revelations came through. Big ones. The Church name was officially changed. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Okay.

Far West was named the Holy Gathering place site for a new temple. They even set a date to start the foundation July 4th and the call went out again: gather to Missouri.

That must have really ramped up the immigration again and announcing a temple.

That's a pretty bold statement of permanence.

It absolutely sent that message. Joseph Smith even wrote an editorial talking up how great Caldwell County was encouraging people to come.

So, the place is booming.

By the end of ‘38. Yeah. Settlements popping up all over Caldwell and Daviess counties. Far West becomes the biggest frontier town in northern Missouri.

Wow.

And then July 1838, another key revelation, tithing, a more formal system for funding everything, especially the temple.

Okay. So, rapid growth, religious drive, more organized structure,

But those internal tensions you mentioned, they didn't just disappear, right? And the non- Mormon neighbors must be getting nervous.

Exactly. Right. The tensions were still simmering. And it's in that context, June 1838, that Sidney Rigdon gives his in Salt Sermon.

The Salt Sermon. What was that about?

He used that Bible metaphor, you know, salt losing its savor. He basically aimed it right at the members who'd recently been excommunicated, condemning them.

Harsh words.

Very. And right after this declaration gets signed by 83 Church members, many part of this new group, the Danites, ordering Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, W.W. Phelps, Lyman Johnson out of Caldwell County, immediately.

Ordered out by fellow Church members.

Yes. And they were forced out soon after.

The Danites. Okay, this sounds important. Who were they? What was their deal?

They popped up around June 1838. Sort of a quasi secret group. Their stated goal, according to Joseph Smith's Journal and Rigdon, was to intimidate dissenters within the Church and defend against anti- Mormon mobs.

Intimidate dissenters.

Yeah.

And defense, how official were they?

Well, leaders like John Smith, Joseph's uncle, a stake president, wrote about their meetings in his diary. And Rigdon himself publicly threatened anyone who spoke against the Danites.

So leadership knew about them, maybe even supported them.

It seems there was at least tacit approval from some leaders. Their emergence is a real turning point. You see conflict resolution turning inward, sometimes outside the law, which just ratchets up tensions with outsiders. This wasn't just random mob stuff. It was organized to some extent within the Church.

Forcibly removing former leaders. That's a big step. It changes the narrative from just being victims of external hate.

It complicates it certainly. And then comes Rigdon's 4th of July sermon that's often seen as pouring gasoline on the fire.

What did he say?

It was incredibly inflammatory. Delivered right before county elections. He basically warned that if the mobs came after the Saints again, it would be a war of extermination. That the Saints would fight back hard.

War of extermination. Those are strong words. Did Joseph Smith agree?

He publicly endorsed the sentiment. Yeah. It signaled a much more confrontational stance. And using a word like extermination, well, that probably terrified the non- Mormon population and mirrored their own fears.

Exactly. Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon led a group with the stated aim to, and this is the phrase used, “deprive the mob of their bases of operations.”

It meant actions like burning some buildings in Gallatin and Millport and for the most part driving non- Mormons out of Daviess County. Lyman Wight is noted as being heavily involved in this.

So, this is a definite shift from being primarily defensive to taking an offensive action that must have inflamed things even more.

Undoubtedly. So, summer ‘38, internal dissent crushed, Danites operating, leaders talking tough. It really feels like things are about to boil over.

Definitely sets the stage for the violence in the fall.

What was the spark that finally lit the fuse for the Mormon war?

A lot of it centered on Daviess County. Mormon settlement there, especially around Adam-ondi-Ahman, grew really fast because of the gathering call on land laws.

Okay.

To the point where Mormons started outnumbering non- Mormons. That created huge anxiety, especially with elections coming up in August ‘38.

Ah, election day, always a flash point. What happened?

In Gallatin Daviess County on election day, a fight broke out. Non- Mormons tried to stop Mormons from voting.

Seriously?

Yeah. Shouting, shoving, punches thrown. It was a clear escalation to open violence. Around the same time, some Mormon men nearby got into a brawl with locals who'd been harassing them. Shows some Mormons were ready to use force, too.

So, violence is starting to erupt. in different spots. And what about Dwit? That was another settlement, right?

Yes. De Witt in Carroll County. In September ‘38, local non-Mormons ordered the Saints there to leave.

Just like that.

Just like that. The Saints tried to negotiate, pleaded with the Governor for protection. Nothing. Governor Boggs basically said it was their problem and let them fight it out.

Wow. The governor just washed his hands of it

pretty much. So, the Saints in De Witt were besieged, threatened, no help came. They finally had to abandon the settlement in October. People got sick, some died fleeing, and the governor's refusal to step in.

That must have sent a message.

It absolutely did. It basically told the anti- Mormon groups they could act with impunity.

So things are just spiraling downwards

rapidly. After De Witt, the anti-Mormon groups felt emboldened. They turned to Daviess and Caldwell counties, burning homes, stealing livestock. Mormon families were fleeing to Adam-ondi-Ahman for safety. Weather getting worse.

Awful. Did the Mormons just take it?

Not entirely. Feeling abandoned by the state facing these attacks, some Mormon forces, mostly identified as Danites, retaliated. These seem to have been unauthorized actions, but they happened.

Retaliated how?

They raided and pillaged a couple of non- Mormon towns, Millport and Gallatin in October ‘38. Burned buildings, the post office, the county treasurer's office.

Okay, so now you have Mormons attacking non- Mormon settlements. Even if it's retaliation, that's going to be seen as aggression.

Of course, it just fuels the cycle. of violence, tit for tat. Which brings us to the Battle of Crooked River, October 25th, 1838.

What happened there?

A clash between a Mormon group and the Missouri State Militia. Accounts differ on who fired first, but people were killed on both sides. Critically, the Apostle David W. Patton was fatally wounded.

An apostle killed. That's huge.

Huge. And the rumors flying around after Crooked River on both sides were wildly exaggerated. Fear and misinformation just took over.

And Crooked River. That's what directly led to the extermination order.

It seems to be the final straw. Yes. Based on those exaggerated reports and the general panic, Governor Boggs issued his infamous extermination order on October 27th, 1838.

What did it actually say?

It declared the Mormons must be treated as enemies and must be exterminated or driven from the state if necessary for the public good.

Exterminated. He actually used that word. Legally sanctioned violence.

Chilling, isn't it? It essentially gave the militias license to kill or expel.

An official state order. It's hard to fathom.

It is. And just three days later, Haun’s Mill.

The massacre.

October 30th, a state militia unit attacked the small, mostly undefended Mormon settlement at Haun’s Mill.

What happened?

They raised a white flag, a sign of surrender. Didn't matter. The militia opened fire, especially on the blacksmith shop where men and boys were hiding. 17 killed men, boys, even young Sardius Smith. Many wounded. Just brutal. 

Unarmed people. Yeah,

Women and children involved.

Absolutely horrific. Amanda Smith's account of finding her murdered son and wounded husband is just harrowing. And there's a tragic side note. Jacob Han, the settlement founder, had apparently ignored advice from Church leaders to move to Far West for safety.

Oh man, such a devastating loss of life. A direct result of that order really.

You could certainly argue that it unleashed the violence.

And while Haun’s Mill is happening, the main settlement Far West is under siege.

That's right. From October 30th to November 6th, the state militia surrounded Far West. The Saints were trapped, outnumbered, facing that extermination order,

A desperate situation.

And then betrayal. George M. Hinkle, who was leading the Mormon militia in Far West. He surrendered Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigden, Hyrum Smith, and others to the state militia on October 31st.

Surrendered them. Why?

He apparently led them to believe they were going to negotiate peace terms, but instead they were immediately taken prisoner. It was seen as a profound betrayal.

Wow. Ow. Betrayed by one of their own commanders. What happened to Joseph and the others?

They were arrested, marched off to independence, then Richmond, eventually ending up in Liberty Jail, face charges of treason, murder, endured terrible conditions.

Treason. That's serious.

Very serious. Parley P. Pratt wrote about the guards in Richmond just bragging about the awful things they had done to the Saints and how Joseph Smith stood up and powerfully rebuked them, silencing them.

Incredible strength in that moment.

And we have to mention General Alexander Doniphan, a militia officer, but also a lawyer. He got a direct order to execute Joseph Smith and the others on the spot in Far West.

Execute them without a trial.

Yes. But Doniphan refused - called it cold-blooded murder, and said he wouldn't obey. He likely saved their lives.

A moment of conscience in all the chaos. So, with the leaders arrested, what about the rest of the Saints in Far West?

Well, on November 6th, General John B. Clark rode into Far West. He gathered the Saints, told them that wouldn't be forced out right that second into winter.

Oh, a small mercy.

Small. Yes. Because he followed it up by making it absolutely clear. They could not stay in Missouri. The extermination order stood. They had to prepare to leave the state. Period.

So, expulsion was inevitable. The war effectively was over. And the Saints had lost their homes again.

They lost everything in Missouri. Yes. Forced out by state order.

Okay. We've traced this awful path from early friction to outright war and expulsion. Let's shift a bit. How has the story been told over the years and what challenges does this history pose for Church members today?

Well, historically, the Church narrative understandably focused heavily on the saints as victims. You know, highlighting the persecution, the extermination order, Haun’s Mill, the injustice of it all.

The victim narrative makes sense given what happened.

It does. But more recently, especially with projects like the Joseph Smith Papers making more sources available, there's been, uh, a greater willingness both within the Church and among historians generally to look at the complexities.

Complexities like . . . 

Like acknowledging the internal conflicts we talked about the role of rhetoric for Mormon leaders the actions of the Danites things that show it wasn't just one-sided aggression that actions by some Mormons also contributed to the escalating violence.

So moving from a simple story of good guys versus bad guys to something messier.

Exactly more nuanced and that shift while maybe more historically accurate can be challenging for people who grew up with that simpler narrative of just pure victimization.

I can see that. How do faithful members grapple with the uncomfortable parts, the Danites, Rigdon's rhetoric, the internal expulsions?

It raises tough questions, right?

How do you interpret actions like intimidation or violence from early Church members or leaders within your faith framework? How do you reconcile belief in divine guidance with some of these historical events? And when you look at Joseph Smith's own history,

There are documented incidents of physical confrontations even before Missouri. Plus this early Mormon idea of the Church militant, it adds layers.

Church militant.

This idea that the Church might need to defend itself sometimes forcefully. It suggests a different cultural context maybe.

So it forces a move beyond just heroes and villains.

I think so. It means acknowledging that people on all sides, including within the Church, made choices, some good, some bad, that led to this tragedy.

It demands a more mature, maybe more difficult engagement with the past, recognizing the human flaws. alongside the faith.

Yeah. Grappling with a history that includes both terrible victimization and actions that, well, fan the flames. Understanding that full picture seems crucial.

It really is for learning for understanding the Church's relationship with the wider world then and now.

So wrapping up this uh really difficult period, the Mormon War, the 1838 expulsion. Yeah.

It wasn't one thing, was it?

No, definitely a combination. Rapid growth causing fear among neighbors, deep internal Church conflicts, escalating words and actions on both sides. groups like the Danites taking things into their own hands and crucially the failure of the government to protect people or uphold the law.

A perfect storm - really a tragic one.

Absolutely.

That's a heavy history to unpack and it leaves us and you listening with something to think about. How does really digging into the complexities, the contradictions of this time, the persecution and the internal strife, the violence by Mormons as well as against them, how does that shape how we see faith, community, leadership, even violence today. What does it really mean to grapple with a history that holds both victim and sometimes perpetrator within the same story? We really encourage you to explore the sources, the different perspectives on this pivotal and painful chapter yourself.

If you find value in this exploration, please like, share, follow, and consider becoming a subscriber. Your contributions help keep these conversations going and allows us to maintain the highest quality production. You can find all the details at studyfaithwithai.com. Thank you for being part of this journey.