Back In Nauvoo, Carthage and Zarahemla

What a treat. The many times Barbara, our family and myself visited Nauvoo while at chiropractic school and on vacation, we always asked the question, as we stood around the foundation where the Temple once stood, "will the Nauvoo Temple ever be rebuilt?" Seeing the Temple for the first time since its resurrection, was a special treat. It stands so prominent and proud on its hill, even in the rain. It is magnificently beautiful.

Barbara and I had the privilege to attend a morning endowment session with many on the tour. It had to be the highlight of the day and probably the high point of the Church history part of the trip. The rest of the day was spent visiting all of our favorite homes and sites in old Nauvoo, ending the day with dinner at the Hotel Nauvoo, and watching the missionary couples staring in that favourite musical, "Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo."

Today we drove over to Montrose where the Saints gathered after being driven out of Nauvoo. Joseph Smith was told to build two cities: Nauvoo and a second city directly across the Mississippi to be named, Zarahemla. Zarahemla never was never as large as Nauvoo, never the less, Joseph was obediant to the Lord's command. It was, however, large enough to be a stake at the time. The Montrose area could be the right sight for the Zarahemla of the Book of Mormon according to our guides.

From Montrose the bus drove us to Carthage, Illinois. Not much has changed much since we visited there last. It is always heart rendering and very thought provoking. If you are planning to visit Carthage in the future, I would suggest visiting the museum directly across the street from the Carthage Jail front door. They have some very interesting Hopewell artifacts and fun Church history reprint material along with other interesting stuff.

Mixed Up Mess

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This Photoalbum is 'buggen' me. Har, har!

Zelph Exposed........Zelph Who?

There it is, right there. In the picture I am pointing to the Burrows Mound, better known to the LDS as Zelph Mound. Here is the short story. After crossing the Quincy River in Illinois, a group of men with Joseph Smith climbed a small hill East side of the river. This was Zion's Camp. Two hundred plus men coming from as far as New York were in the process of marching to Jackson, Missouri to defend the Saints and reclaim their land. This little climb took them to one of dozens of Indian mounds in the area. Joseph gave permission for the men to dig. Close to the surface, a skeleton of a large man was unearthed. Comparing the thigh bone to Joseph's (he was 6'+ tall) they determined the remains to be of a person 6 feet 8" tall. The bones, having been exposed to the air, quickly disintegrated. What was left was a arrow head lodged between his ribs. Soon after this experience, Joseph was given a vision. It was revealed to him that they were in the land of the Book of Mormon. Zelph, a righteous Lamanite, lived during the last great battles that annihilated the Nephities. (Remember, the Nephites are the bad guys now.) He served under a righteous King named Onega known from the Rockey Mountains to the East sea. There are several accounts by the brethren who recorded their stories in journals. Joseph wrote about this in a letter to Emma. Now for the rest of the story: Zions Camp made it to the Missouri border bearing the flag that said PEACE. They were met by a large group of men led by the governor, who told them if they crossed the state line, they would all be killed. They returned to their homes without firing a shot. Several things came out of this experience. One was that most of the future Church leaders came from this group. Another, Joseph told them after having traveled 1500 miles, they had just crossed the Land of the Book of Mormon. (Go to the comments on this post and read what is going on here with the mound and the LDS members in this area.)

HERE IS A TIP! Stop buying stock. Try this instead.

Click on the posted pictures. You can see a lot more detail. Also, we welcome comments you can make on any of the postings.

Fort Ancient and Miamisburg Mound

Today was another beautiful day with lots to see and do. Because it is Columbus Day, many of the guided sites were closed. This was true with Fort Ancient. But just as we drove up, the site curator pulled up in his truck. Wayne May spoke with him for a minute and next thing we knew, we were inside the site and in the museum. The curator gave a rousing lecture on the history of the Fort along with a site archaeologist. Remember, this was their day off. The picture on the left is the Miamisburg Mound. Barb and I are standing with Rod Meldrum, the DNA guy. One person was buried here. No one has fully excavated the mound. It is not the tallest at 68 feet. Wayne suggests it is an Adena (Jaredite) mound because of it's size.

The rendering on the right shows Fort Ancient. The guide suggests it was built by four families and never contained more than a few thousand people. He also described it as religious site. According to the on site experts, these are all sacred sites of idol worship. Wayne says this fort follows a pattern of being a defensive city. The bottom part of the map is the older Jaradite fort. There is a narrow connection to the top all built by the Nephities. There are 67 tower breaks in the burmed wall which had a wooden 15 foot fence around the parameter. The 67 breaks in the wall the guide described as gates. This fort is built on a flat hill with very steep sides. You decide who is right.

The picture in the middle is a famous Indian chief. There were more than 20 of these pictures in the museum at Fort Ancient. Each one is wearing a turban and European style clothes. Not one of these guys had ever been to nor had they ever met anyone from Europe. They just knew how to dress.

NOTICE: The Problem Is Fixed!

I fixed the Photobucket problem. Just click on the picture on the post. It will take you to a secure site that will ask you for a password. Type in 'mormon'.
Vohla!

Mounds, Forts and Fun

We arrived at the Seip Mounds at 8:30 a.m. The high today was around 82 degrees. This is the largest concentration of mounds in Ohio. The site was excavated in the late 1800s and again around 1932. Subsequently, many of the mounds were leveled to build barracks for soldiers in the First World War. Many remains were found here buried with artifacts made of copper from Michigan or Tennessee, mica from North Carolina and sharks teeth from the Gulf coast. Today, these sites are beautifully maintained by the U.S. Forest Service. The many of the artifacts are currently on display in a museum in the visitors center. The ranger explained that some items are not exhibited. They found very finely woven linen. Their belief as that the Indians could not have produced them so they put them along with other items, that didn't seem to belong', in storage. They displayed buckskin clothes instead. The latest science discoveries show that the Hopewell(300 B.C.-400 A.D.) and Adena (1400 B.C.-500 A.D.) civilizations did produce these and other modern implements and tools along with advanced agriculture. Time to rewrite the history books. (Go to comments)

Earthworks and Flint Works Well, Too

Today we visited the town of Newark, Ohio. Ohio is the swing state for the Presidential elections. Barack and John are campaigning here somewhere in earnest. Newark sits on one of the largest earthworks from the Hopewell Indians. It takes up most of the city. Click on pic to see more.

We also visited the earthworks at the Moundbuilders Golf County Club. And we found flint at the 20 mile Flint Ridge Quarries (click on pic for more info) We walked miles today. It was great exercise and unbelievably exciting!

Friday, October 10 Album

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Picture Album of Kirkland, Ohio Oct. 9th

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Land of the Book of Mormon?

Tomorrow we begin the DNA and archaeology portion of our tour. This evening, Wayne May brought us up to date on the cutting edge of the research on the pre-columbian indians. Here is what researchers, leading archaeologists, and private groups, including the Smithsonian, are saying. Due to current DNA investigations along with field work in central and north-eastern United States the new belief is that North America was first inhabited by industrialized, highly educated people who were mostly agrarian and came here from eastern Europe and the middle east by boat. Wow! Ever heard of that before? More to come.
This is a copper speare head owned by Wayne May.

The Saints and the Hansens in Kirkland

Kirkland, Ohio was by far the deep well where the Saints drank from the waters of revelation. The restored town of Kirkland, including the Newel K. Whitney Store, the Temple, the sandstone quarry are all wonderful spiritual treats. However, when you come here, don't forget the John Johnson home in Hiram. While overlooked by many, a real cornerstone to the restoration.

Hill Cumorah - Beginning of the End

Wayne May, archaeologist to Precolumbian indians lectures on the dispostion of the sacred records and the final Nephite/Laminite battle. Read in http://scriptures.lds.org/en/morm/6 how the Hill Cumorah was a stratigic area for the Nephities leading to their final destruction but also becomes the final resting place of the golden plates.

This Is An Photo Album

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Smith Family Farm Fence

Here I am at the original Smith farm rock fence located just East of the Palmyra Temple East parking lot. Joseph and his brothers built it under the direction of Joseph Smith, Sr., if he employed the 'delegation principle'. This tour is both a look at Book of Mormon North American geograhics as well as a visit of Church Historical and Sacred sights.

The Beginning-the Grove

Our journey begins where the boy prophet's calling began. We were blessed with a wonderful sermon by Elder Hartman Rector, Jr. in the Sacred Grove, Palmyra, New York. In his narrative of the story, it is his opinion as well as other general authorities, Joseph was given the high priesthood as were all prophets when they were called, in order that he have the power to translate the golden plates from the beginning. This is in line with the calling of all other prophets, even at Joseph's young age. Peter, James and John came later to set him and Oliver Cowdery apart as apostles.

My Myrtle......Commercial Break

Off to Palmyra and the Sights of Upper New York

Tomorrow we fly into Rochester, New York. We will be in Palmyra for two days to visit Church and local sites. The Church Historical sites and visitor centers are he best! They hold such a special spirit. The missionary couples are wonderful and represent the Church so well. We cannot wait to see them again and visit the Palmyra Temple for the first time.