Editor’s
Note: This is the second in a series of articles spotlighting
things to see and do in and around Nauvoo, Illinois.
NAUVOO
In our last article, we focused on the LDS visitors’ center
and many homes restored by the Church. Also located in this same
area are several other “must see” homes of special significance.
Two former homes of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the mansion house
and the homestead, are now owned by the Community of Christ (formerly
the RLDS). To tour these homes, you will need to take the one-hour
free guided tour that starts at the Joseph Smith Historic Site.
Tour hours are Monday thru Saturday 9:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. and Sunday
1:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m. (Check for winter hours.) Tours begin at 9:10
a.m. and leave every half hour with the last tour beginning at
4:10 p.m. (there is not a 12:40 p.m. tour).
· Joseph Smith Historic Site – Each tour
begins here with a 12-minute video presentation. Also located inside
are a museum and bookstore. Items to notice in the museum include:
copies of the death masks of Joseph and Hyrum (on display from
October-April only), a stone from the original Nauvoo Temple, a
cornerstone from the Nauvoo House (see section below on Nauvoo
House), fragments of Emma’s burial dress, Lucy’s bonnet, and one
of the canes of martyrdom. These canes were made from the oak coffin
that carried the body of Joseph Smith back from Carthage. Emma
gave the canes to family members and close friends. Also notice
the paintings by David Hyrum Smith, son of Joseph and Emma. David
was born five months after his father was martyred. The paintings
he did, showing Nauvoo in the 1840s, were helpful in the restoration
process.
· Mansion House – This house was started in 1842
as a home for Joseph and his family; a hotel wing was later added
for additional income. Many visitors who came to Nauvoo for Church
or other business stayed here. The Smith family moved into the
home in 1843. In June of 1844, after the Prophet was martyred,
the bodies of Hyrum and Joseph lay in state in the dining room
as thousands of the Saints came to pay their respects. The dining
room was located on the east side of the existing home where you
can still see the remains of the foundation. Lucy Mack Smith, mother
of the Prophet, passed away while living here with Emma.
· Nauvoo House – D&C 124:23 states that a
house should be built “that strangers may come from afar to lodge
therein.” Though started in 1841, the house was not completed in
Joseph’s lifetime. Originally planned to be four floors high and
able to house 300 hundred, it was eventually completed (after Emma
married Lewis C. Bidamon) with a much smaller capacity. Emma passed
away on April 30, 1879 in the SE corner bedroom on the second level.
During the early construction on the home, Joseph Smith put the
original manuscript of the Book of Mormon in the SE cornerstone
of the house on October 2, 1841. When Lewis C. Bidamon discovered
the manuscript over forty years later in 1882, it had been badly
damaged by water leaking into the cornerstone. The manuscript pages
are now owned by several groups, including the LDS Church and the
Community of Christ (formerly RLDS). The Nauvoo House is currently
used as a hostel.
· Joseph Smith Homestead – This
is one of the few buildings that existed when the Saints first
settled in Nauvoo. Joseph and Emma lived here from 1839 until they
moved into the Mansion House in 1843. Two sections were added to
the original home; Joseph added the northern section and his son
Joseph III added the western part.
· Smith Family Cemetery – When
Joseph and Hyrum were killed, there was concern that the bodies
would be desecrated. Coffins, filled with sand, were publicly buried,
but the bodies were secretly interred in an unfinished area of
the cellar inside the foundation walls of the Nauvoo House. (Located
near the area where the limestone stable now stands.) Several months
later, the bodies were again moved and buried nearly 8 feet below
ground level in the well house next to the Homestead. This was
done with great secrecy in the middle of the night. In 1928, the
bodies of Joseph and Hyrum were relocated one more time. The Smith
Family Cemetery now serves as the final resting place for Joseph,
Hyrum, Emma, Lucy Mack, Joseph Sr., and thirteen other family members.
Also buried here are Lewis C. Bidamon and a few other close friends.
· Red Brick Store – Built in 1841 as a general
store, Joseph used the second floor of the store as his office,
headquarters of the Church, and as a meeting room. It was here
on March 17, 1842 that the Female Relief Society was organized.
Here too, the first endowments were given and Joseph worked on
the translation of the Book of Abraham. The red brick store was
named not because of the red brick exterior but because of the
red color paint inside the store. This color was created by mixing
ox blood with buttermilk! Notice the lock on the front door of
the store. When the store was being rebuilt, the original key to
the store was discovered during excavation. This new lock was specially
made to fit the original key. Inside the store is a museum with
articles from the store, homestead, and mansion house. Also notice
Newel K. Whitney’s desk that was brought from Kirtland, Ohio. The
gift shop sells items typical of the 1840s including toys, lavender
powder, scented soap, and pottery. The Red Brick Store is closed
December through March.
· Times and Seasons Foundation – Just past
the red brick store is the foundation of one of the buildings that
published the Times and Seasons. The Prophet was one of
the editors of this publication but due to his many responsibilities,
he turned the assignment over to John Taylor (HC 5:193).
There are several other sites of interest that are within
close proximity of the historic restored homes.
· Pioneer Burial Ground – There
is a peaceful and reverent feeling in this wooded area, located
just a few miles from the restored homes. Many of those buried
here are children and the statue of a pioneer family mourning the
loss of a recently buried child causes you to reflect on the many
trials of our pioneer ancestors. Though only a portion of the original
markers remain, some of the inscriptions are still legible.
· William Weeks Home – Born in April 1813, William
Weeks was the architect of the Nauvoo Temple. Brigham Young had
intended that William should also be the architect for the new
temple in Salt Lake City, but William Weeks left both Utah and
the Church in 1848 (see our guidebook for more details). Tours
were once given of this home but it is currently used to house
missionaries. The home is located east of the Historic Nauvoo visitors’ center
on Young Street (between Partridge and Durphy Streets).
· Kraus Furniture Store – The Nauvoo
Expositor building once stood in the area where the furniture store
now stands. The Prophet and other council members traveled to Carthage
to face charges concerning the destruction of the printing press
of this anti-Mormon newspaper. Joseph and Hyrum were both killed
while in the Carthage Jail. The store is located at 1255 Mulholland.
· Stone Arch Bridge – South of Nauvoo and just
past Water Street is a rest area and sign marking Fischer Point.
Walk down the steps and you will see a bridge that was built after
the Saints left Nauvoo. It is here that the drainage from the irrigation
system built by the Saints flows into the Mississippi River.
· Icarian Museum – After the Saints had been driven
from Nauvoo, a group of about 500 French Icarians briefly lived
here in a communal lifestyle. View some of their artifacts and
learn more about their utopian society at the museum that is located
at Parley and Winchester. Open by appointment, 217-453-2437.
Next week: The Nauvoo Temple.