Spent the morning in Nauvoo, home of the first fully functional Mormon Temple, learning more about the history of the LDS Church there. Karen’s great great grandfather joined the church in the 1840s and lived among them in Nauvoo and made his living as a cooper during the seven years the members lived in this Illinois community on the banks of the Mississippi River. After the death of the founder Joseph Smith, when many of the members of the church followed Brigham Young west, he  moved back to Kentucky, married again and had another family from which Karen is descended. We found records of him and his family in Nauvoo. Apparently he did not own a house but rather was a tenant on the Munson Lands, now farmland. Those that lived there lived mostly in tents. Knowing this part of family history tells us not all Mormons went west from here, but today we also found out that others of the religion formed a new denomination of the Mormon Church and remained in Illinois. For us not only was this a peek into family history but offered more insight into an episode of American History. From Nauvoo we headed west across the Mississippi River and on to more adventure!
0 Comments