Other Witnesses
Other people beside these eleven witnesses also claimed to have seen Joseph Smith's golden plates.
Josiah Stowell
Josiah Stowell
December 19, 1843
According to himself, Josiah Stowell was the very first person to ever see the plates. In a letter from Martha Campbell to Joseph Smith, written on December 19, 1843 she wrote:
“..if I under stood him wright he was the first person that took the Plates out of your hands the mornig morning you brough[t] them in & he observed blessed is he that seeth & believeeth & more blessed is he that believeeth without seeing & says he has seen & believeed..”
Josiah Stowell
November 7, 1832
In the New England Christian Herald on November 7, 1832 one of Joseph Smith’s court trials was published (sumer 1830) and in it we learn more about Josiah Stowell’s observation of the plates. It read:
“Smith, the prisoner, went in the night, and brought the Bible, (as Smith said;) witness saw a corner of it; it resembled a stone of a greenish caste; should judge it to have been about one foot square and six inches thick; he would not let it be seen by any one; the Lord had commanded him not; it was unknown to Smith, that witness saw a corner of the Bible, so called by Smith; told the witness the leaves were of gold; there were written characters on the leaves;”
There are some problems with this testimony:
- Joseph had said that if anyone were to look upon the plates they would instantly die, yet Stowell did not.
- Stowell described the plates as being “greenish,” yet no one else describes them this way.
- Joseph was unaware that Stowell saw the plates
- Stowell had to be told that the leaves were gold and that there were characters written on them.
In March 1829 Joseph Smith received the following revelation from the Lord (which is modern day D&C 5):
“Behold I say unto you that my servant hath desired A witness that my Servant Joseph hath got the things which he hath testified that he hath got and now Behold thus shall ye say unto him I the Lord am God I have given these things unto him & I have commanded him that he should stand as A witness of these things nevertheless I have caused him that he should enter into A covenant with me that he should not show them except I Command him…”
In the History of the Church, Joseph Smith recorded that:
“Again he [the Lord] told me that when I got those plates of which he had spoken (for the time that they should be obtained was not yet fulfilled) I should not show <them> to any person, neither the breastplate with the Urim and Thummin only to those to whom I should be commanded to show them, If I did I should be destroyed.”
[History, 1838-1856, volume A-1 (23 December 1805-30 August 1834), pg. 6] Also found in [History of the Church volume 1, pg, 13]
Lucy Mack Smith
Lucy Mack Smith
1842
Reverend Henry Caswall published a book in 1842 in which he interviewed Lucy Mack Smith. He had gone to her house to see the mummies. Lucy stated:
“I have myself seen and handled the golden plates; they are about eight inches long, and six wide; some of them are sealed together and are not to be opened, and some of them are loose. They are all connected by a ring which passes through a hole at the end of each plate, and are covered with letters beautifully engraved. I have seen and felt also the Urim and Thummim. They resemble two large bright diamonds set in a bow like a pair of spectacles. My son puts these over his eyes when he reads unknown languages, and they enable him to interpret them in English. I have likewise carried in my hands the sacred breastplate. It is composed of pure gold, and is made to fit the breast very exactly."
The following paragraph from Caswall is noteworthy.
“While the old woman was thus delivering herself, I fixed my eyes steadily upon her. She faltered, and seemed unwilling to meet my glance; but gradually recovered her self-possession. The melancholy thought entered my mind, that this poor old creature was not simply a dupe of her son’s knavery; but that she had taken an active part in the deception.”
[Reverend Henry Caswall, The City of the Mormons, or, Three days at Nauvoo, pg. 27]
Lucy Mack Smith
On the church's own website they do not claim that Lucy Mack Smith ever saw the golden plates. They say only that "
In her autobiography Joseph Smith the Prophet, and his Progenitors published in 1853, Lucy says nothing about having seen the golden plates, though she does describe the various place where Joseph hid them.
Lucy Mack Smith
1831; 1845 (1853)
In her autobiography Joseph Smith the Prophet, and his Progenitors written in 1845 and published in 1853, Lucy says nothing about having seen the golden plates.
[Lucy Mack Smith, History 1845]
Even in a letter written to her brother Solomon Mack on January 6, 1831, she does not mention handling the plates (nor does she mention the first vision).
Lucy Mack Smith
Letter from Sally Parker
August 26, 1838
In a letter written by a woman named Sally Parker on August 26th, 1838 she says, “I asked her [Lucy Smith] if she saw the plates. She said no, it was not for her to see them, but she hefted and handled them and I believed all she said for I lived by her eight months and she was one of the best women.”
Katharine Smith
Although at least two of her testimonies were published during her lifetime, we have no record from Katharine herself telling the story of hefting the plates. The story does not come about until 1945. Her grandson even says that the first time he heard the story he was in his "45th year."
Keep in mind that Joseph Smith obtained the plates on September 22, 1827. The first that we hear of Katharine hefting the plates doesn’t happen until 1945, 45 years after her death (she passed away in February 1900) and 118 years after the event of Joseph obtaining the plates.
The Saints' Herald
1 May 1888
One testimony from Katharine was published in The Saints’ Herald on May 1, 1886. Here she does not mention holding the plates, but shares the story of Joseph obtaining the plates and reiterates her testimony of the gospel. [The Saints Herald 33, no. 17, 1 May 1886, pg. 4.]
If she truly saw the plates and had this experience, why did she not tell her story?
The Kansas City Star
10 April, 1895
The second testimony from Katharine was published in the The Kansas City Star on April 10, 1895. She is quoted as telling the story of Joseph Smith and the golden plates, but nowhere does she mention hefting them. [The Kansas City Star Vol XV, No. 205. April 10, 1895]
Herbert Salisbury
30 June 1945
In 1945, Katharine’s grandson, Herbert Salisbury, remembered his grandmother relating:
“Catherine Smith Salisbury, told me she was present at home when her brother, Joseph Smith, came in nearly exhausted, carrying the package of gold plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated. He was carrying the package clasped to his side with his left hand and arm, and his right hand was badly bruised from knocking down at least three men who had leaped at him from behind bushes or fences as he ran until out of breath. She said he entered the house running and threw himself on a couch panting from his extraordinary exertion. She told me Joseph allowed her to “heft” the package but not to see the gold plates, as the angel had forbidden him to show them at that period. She said they were very heavy.”
[Herbert S. Salisbury, “Things the Prophet’s Sister Told Me,” 2 July 1945 (San Rafael, California), LDS Church Archives, Salt Lake City, Utah; cited in Dan Vogle’s Early Mormon Documents 1:524]
Herbert Salisbury
The Messenger, October 1954
Years later in 1954, Katharine’s grandson again shared the experience of his grandmother in an interview:
QUESTION: “Mr. Salisbury, at one time I had a conversation with you in which you were kind enough to mention a testimony which your grandmother, Catherine Salisbury gave to you in regard to the fact that the Prophet did possess the plates on which the Book of Mormon was translated. I wonder if you would be kind enough to tell us now on what occasion it was that she told you this story? Where were you living at that time and why did she relate this to you?”
MR. SALISBURY: “Mr. Ball, I was then in my 45th year, as I remember it, and County Surveyor of Hancock County, Illinois, and I was visiting my grandmother at her home in Hancock County, near Fountain Green, when I asked her for some recollections of her brother, the Prophet Joseph Smith. Catherine Smith Salisbury then told me that while dusting up the room where the Prophet had his study she saw a package on the table containing the gold plates on which was engraved the story of the Book of Mormon. She said she hefted those plates and found them very heavy like gold and also rippled her fingers up the edge of the plates and felt that they were separate metal plates and heard the tinkle of sound that they made.”
The Saints' Herald
January 11, 1954
In 1954, Mary Salisbury Hancock published a story titled “The Three Sisters of the Prophet Joseph Smith” in which she relayed this story:
“When Joseph was bringing the plates home from their hiding place to work on the translation he was followed to his father’s very door at one time by some men who were determined to get ‘Joe Smith’s Gold Plates’ as they were called. Ever watchful for her brother’s safety and hearing an unusual commotion outside Catherine flew to the door and threw it open just as Joseph came rushing up, panting for breath. He thrust a bundle into her arms, and in a gasping voice whispered hoarsely, “These these quickly and hide them,” then he disappeared quickly into the darkness. Closing the door Catherine ran hurriedly to the bedroom where she and Sophronia slept. Sophronia threw back the bedding and Catherine put the bundle on the bed, quickly replacing the bedding. Both of them lay down on the bed and pretended sleep. The mob, failing to find Joseph outside, returned to the house to search, but they did not disturb the girls since they appeared to be sleeping.”
Herbert S. Salisbury
Herbert Spencer Salisbury was born on October 20, 1870. He is the son of Don Carlos Salisbury, who was Katharine’s fifth child, who was born in 1841.
So if you do the math, Herbert didn’t turn 45 until 1915, which was 15 years after his grandmother had died. He was only 30 when she died. And Herbert was 75 years old when he first told the story of his grandmother seeing the plates.
So even if we assume that Herbert just got his age wrong when his grandmother first told him of hefting the plates, it’s still a very late source. Why did she wait so long to tell her grandchildren such an important witness? And why did Herbert wait until he was 75 years old to retell the story?
The image comes from FamilySearch.org, with the date of "c. 1893" typed at the bottom. Herbert would have been about 23 years old when this picture was taken.
Mary Dean Hancock
The other grandchild that tells this story comes from Mary Dean Hancock, the daughter of Don Carlos Salisbury and the younger sister of Herbert Salisbury. Mary was born in 1872. So when she retold the story in 1954, of her grandmother seeing the plates, she was 82 years old. Again, why would she wait so long to recall this story?
In her 1954 story Mary says that: "As Grandmother told the story we would sit at rapt attention until mention of the unbelieving preacher and the great uproar that followed. Then we would straighten our backs and clench our fists. Grandmother would say, "Now remember, children, it is not for us to judge these people. It was a strange thing your uncle was telling them" [page 11]
Mary Dean Hancock's story is unique from her brother's and therefore she probably was not using his story as a basis for her own. As a reminder, in this story of Joseph Smith getting the plates, Joseph rushes home and thrusts the plates into Katharine's hands, telling her to hide them. Katharine hides them in her bed and both she and Sophronia lay down on top of them and pretend to be asleep. The mob then comes into their house and searches, but does not disturb them as they appeared to be asleep. The problem with this story is, to the best of my knowledge, no story from any of the Smith’s support this account.
In fact Lucy’s history that was written in 1845 (over a hundred years earlier) says the opposite.
“After resting a few moments, he [Joseph] desired me to send Carlos for my husband, Mr. Knight, and his friend Stoal, and have them go immediately and see if they could find the men who had been pursuing him.”
She goes on to say that, "When the chest came, Joseph locked up the Record, then threw himself upon the bed, and after resting a little, so that he could converse freely, he arose and went into the kitchen, where he related his recent adventure to his father, Mr. Knight, and Mr. Stoal, besides many others, who had by this time collected, with the view of hearing something in re¬ gard to the strange circumstance which had taken place. He showed them his thumb, saying, “I must stop talking, father, and get you to put my thumb in place, for it is very painful. I will here mention that my husband, Mr. Knight, and Mr. Stoal, went in pursuit of those villains who had attempted Joseph’s life, but were not able to find them" [Early Mormon Documents 1:336-337]
Additionally, William Smith in his own history says nothing about a mob entering the home.
"[H]e [Joseph] was pursued while on his way home with the plates, by two persons who desired to obtain the possession of the plates to convert them into money. However, he escaped to the house and brought the plates with him, wrapped up in a tow frock. He could not permit us to see them, because he said the angel told him not to do so, and he was determined to obey strictly this time..." [William Smith on Mormonism, pg 11]. William using the words "escaped to the house" reads as though Joseph Smith lost those who had been pursuing him and that they did not follow him into the house.
In another place in her history Lucy Mack Smith tells the story of how the plates had been hidden in a copper shop. She says the mob ransacked the place, they rummaged around the house and all over the premises but they did not come into the house.
"In a short time Joseph received another intimation of the approach of a mob; also, of the necessity of removing the record and breastplate from the place in which they were secreted. So he took them out of the box in which they were deposited, and wrapping them in clothes, carried them across the road to a cooper shop, and laid them in a quantity of flax which was stowed in the shop loft; after which he nailed up <the> box again, then tore up the floor of the shop and put it under the same.
"As soon as night came the mob came also, and commenced ransacking the place: they rummaged round the house and all over the premises, but did not come into the house; and after making satisfactory search they went away. The next morning we found the floor of the cooper shop torn up, and the box which was laid under it shivered in pieces."
William Smith
William Smith
1883
In his own book called William Smith on Mormonism, published in 1883, William Smith relates that:
“The story being noised abroad, he was pursued while on his way home with the plates, by two persons who desired to obtain the possession of the plates to convert them into money. However, he escaped to the house and brought the plates with him, wrapped up in a tow frock. He could not permit us to see them, because he said the angel told him not to do so, and he was determined to obey strictly this time; for he had disobeyed before and was compelled to wait four years before he could come into possession of the plates.
In consequence of his vision, and his having the golden plates and refusing to show them, a great persecution arose against the whole family, and he was compelled to remove into Pennsylvania with the plates, where he translated them…I was permitted to lift them as they laid in a pillow-case; but not to see them, as it was contrary to the commands he had received. They weighed about sixty pounds according to the best of my judgment.”
The Saints' Herald
1884
In 1884, in The Saints Herald, William gave another testimony of handling the plates.
“When the plates were brought in they were wrapped up in a tow frock. My father then put them into a pillow case. Father said, “What, Joseph, can we not see them?” “No, I was disobedient the first time, but I intend to be faithful this time; for I was forbidden to show them until they were translated, but you can feel them.” We handled them [the plates] and could tell what they were. They were not quite as large as this Bible. Could tell whether they were round or square. Could raise the leaves this way (raising a few leaves of the Bible before him). One could easily tell that they were not stone, hewn out to deceive, or even a block of wood. Being a mixture of gold and copper, they were much heavier than stone, and very much heavier than wood.”
[William Smith, ”The Old Soldier’s Testimony,” The Saint’s Herald volume 31 (1884):643-44.]
William Smith
May 1, 1921
In an interview J. W. Peterson had with William Smith, it was recorded:
“He [William] said he had hefted the plates as they lay on the table wrapped in an old frock or jacket in which Joseph <h>ad brought them home. That he had thum[b]ed them through the cloth and ascertained that they were thin sheets of some kind of metal. When asked why he had not uncovered them he said they were told not to do so unless the Lord would give permission, that they were the property of an angel and had received strict commandments] with regard to that matter. Bro. Pender remarked that most people would ha[v]e examined them any way. The old man suddenly straightened [straightened] up and leek looked intently at him and said. The Lord knew he could trust Joseph and as for the rest of the family we had no desire to transgress the commandment of the Lord but on the other hand was exceeding anxious to do al<l> we we were commanded to do.” [“Statement of J. W. Peterson Concerning William Smith,” 1 May 1921, Miscellaneous Letters and Papers, RLDS Church Library-Archives, Independence, Missouri]
Mary Whitmer
Mary Whitmer
Deseret News, November 27, 1878
In the "Report of Elders Orson Pratt and Joseph F. Smith" we find an interview they had with David Whitmer, part of which says the following:
"Sometime after this, my mother was going to milk the cows, when she was met out near the yard by the same old man (judging by her description of him) who said to her, 'You have been very faithful and diligent in your labors, but you are tried because of the increase of your toil, it is proper therefore that you should receive a witness that your faith may be strengthened?' Thereupon he showed her the plates. My father and mother had a large family of their own, the addition to it therefore of Joseph, his wife Emma and Oliver very greatly increased the toil and anxiety of my mother. And although she had never complained she had sometimes felt that her labor was too much, or at least she was perhaps beginning to feel so. This circumstance, however, completely removed all such feelings, and nerved her up for her increased responsibilities."
The "old man" David references comes earlier in the interview, when he and Oliver and Joseph passed a man on the way to the Whitmer home. The man said he was heading to Cumorah (which David did not understand at the time). David described the man as being "about 5 feet 8 or 9 inches tall and heavy set, about such a man as James Vancleave there, but heavier, his face was as large, he was dressed in a suit of brown woolen clothes, his hair and bear were white like Brother Pratt's, but his beard was not so heavy." David feels certain that the old man was Moroni, despite Mary Whitmer always calling him "Brother Nephi." If it was indeed Moroni, why did Joseph Smith never describe him that way?
Mary Whitmer
The Historical Record, 1888
Still another witness.
If the statements of persons who have always been considered reliable and truthful can be taken as authority, there is, besides the eleven witnesses of the Book of Mormon, still another one, who testifies to having seen the plates. This person is a woman, and if her statement is reliable, she is the only woman on earth who has ever enjoyed the privilege of seeing the holy treasure. Her name is Mary Musselman Whitmer, familiarly known as Mother Whitmer, she being the wife of Peter Whitmer, sen., and mother of five of the witnesses. Her son, David Whitmer, before his death, testified on several occasions that his mother had seen the plates, and when the writer visited Richmond, Missouri, a few weeks ago, John C. Whitmer, a grandson of the lady in question testified in the following language:
“I have heard my grandmother (Mary M. Whitmer) say on several occasion that she was shown the plates of the Book of Mormon by an holy angel, whom she always called Brother Nephi. (She undoubtedly refers to Moroni, the angel who had the plates in charge.) It was at the time, she said, when the translation was going on at the house of the elder Peter Whitmer, her husband, Joseph Smith and his wife and Oliver Cowdery, whom David Whitmer a short time previous had brought up from Harmony, Pennsylvania, were all boarding with the Whitmers, and my grandmother in having so many extra persons to care for, besides her own large household, was often overloaded with work to such an extent that she felt it to be quite a burden. One evening, when (after having done her usual day’s work in the house) she went to the barn to milk the cows, she met a stranger carrying something on his back that looked like a knapsack. At first she was a little afraid of him, but when he spoke to her in a kind, friendly tone, and began to explain to her the nature of the work which was going on in her house, she was filled with unexpressible joy and satisfaction. He then untied his knapsack and showed her a bundle of plates, which in size and appearance corresponded with the description subsequently given by the witnesses of the Book of Mormon. This strange person turned the leaves of the book of plates over, leaf after leaf, and also showed her the engravings upon them; after which we hold her to be patient and faithful in bearing her burden a little longer, promising that if she would do so, she should be blessed; and her reward would be sure, if she proved faithful to the end. The personage then suddenly vanished with the plates, and where he went, she could not tell. From that moment my grandmother was enabled to perform her household duties with comparative ease, and she felt no more inclination to murmur because her lot was hard. I knew my grandmother to be a good, noble and truthful woman, and I have not the least doubt of her statement in regard to seeing the plates being strictly true. She was a strong believer in the Book of Mormon until the day of her death.”
[The Historical Record, vol. 7:621, Edited by Andrew Jensen]
Mary Whitmer
Latter-Day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1901
WHITMER, Mary Musselman, the only woman who saw the plates of the Book of Mormon… Her son, David Whitmer. before his death, testified on several occasions that his mother had seen the plates, and when Elders Edward Stevenson and Andrew Jenson visited Richmond, Missouri, in ISSS, John C. Whitmer, a grandson of the lady in question, testified in the following language:
"I have heard my grandmother (Mary Musselman Whitmer) say on several occasions that she was shown the plates of the Book of Mormon by a holy angel, whom she always called Brother Nephi. (She undoubtedly refers to Moroni, the angel who had the plates in charge.) It was at the time, she said, when the translation was going on at the house of the elder Peter Whitmer, her husband. Joseph Smith with his wife and Oliver Cowdery. whom David Whitmer a short time previous had brought up from Harmony, Pennsylvania, were all boarding with the Whitmers, and my grandmother in having so many extra persons to care for, besides her own large household, was often overloaded with work to such an extent that she felt it to be quite a burden.
One evening when (after having done her usual day's work in the house) she went to the barn to milk the cows, she met a stranger carrying something on his back that looked like a knapsack. At first she was a little afraid of him, but when he spoke to her in a kind, friendly tone and began to explain to her the nature of the work which was going on in her house, she was filled with unexpressible joy and satisfaction. He then untied his knapsack and showed her a bundle of plates, which in size and appearance corresponded with the description subsequently given by the witnesses to the Book of Mormon. This strange person turned the leaves of the book of plates over, leaf after leaf, and also showed her the engravings upon them; after which he told her to be patient and faithful in bearing her burden a little longer, promising that if she would do so, she should be blessed; and her reward would be sure, if she proved faithful to the end. The personage then suddenly vanished with the plates, and where be went, she could not tell. From that moment my grandmother was enabled to perform her household duties with comparative ease, and she felt no more inclination to murmur because her lot was hard. I knew my grandmother to be a good, noble and truthful woman, and I have not the least doubt of her statement in regard to seeing the plates being strictly true. She was a strong believer in the Book of Mormon until the day of her death." Mother Whitmer died in Richmond, Ray county, Missouri, in January, 1856. (See also sketch of David Whitmer and Peter Whitmer; "Historical Record," Vol. 7, p. 621; "Juvenile Instructor," Vol 24 p. 22.)
Whitmer Family History
Retold by Mary's granddaughter in 1958
The experience of Mother Whitmer would have been known by family members, and Elvira was an interested teenager at that time. This is the way the story appears in our family history:
“Elvira Pamela Mills”, Cox Bulletin II (1958), written by Orville Cox Day (O C Day): Grandma stopped telling a story of Mother Whitmer till 1900 when B. H. Roberts printed it in his “New Witness for God.” Then she said, “I’m so glad I can tell it again.”
David Whitmer had invited Joseph and Oliver to live in his father’s home while translating the Book of Mormon. When Oliver’s hand and Joseph’s eye grew tired they went to the woods for a rest. There they often skated rocks on the pond.
Mary Whitmer, with five grown sons and a husband to care for, besides visitors, often grew tired. She thought they might just as well carry her bucket of water or chop a bit of wood as to skate rocks on a pond.
She was about to order them out of her home.
One morning, just at daybreak, she came out of her cow stable with two full buckets of milk in her hands, when a short, heavy-set, gray haired man carrying a package met her and said, “My name is Moroni. You have become pretty tired with all the extra work you have to do. The Lord has given me permission to show you this record:” turning the golden leaves one by one!
[Another Account of Mary Whitmer’s Viewing of the Golden Plates]
Church History Video
On Mar 19, 2018, the Church posted a video describing Mary Whitmer's witness of the golden plates:
Mary Whitmer hosted many early Saints during the translation of the Book of Mormon and when the Church was formally organized at a meeting in her home. Elisabeth Westwood introduces Mary's story and explains how it's spoken to her as a Latter-day Saint dealing with depression.
Mary Whitmer
Mary Whitmer’s story of seeing the golden plates while working in the barn (see the film clip below), has been recorded multiple times and is shared often by the Church to promote the literal existence of the plates.
1958 - Mary’s granddaughter retold the story and it was recorded in their family’s records
1901 - The Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia
1886 - Historical Record
1878 - Deseret News
The Deseret News story was the earliest accounting of this story, 49 years after the event would have taken place. [Note: Mary Whitmer always called the angel “Nephi.”
E. L. Kelley & Clark Braden
1884
On page 509 Moroni prophecies that the one who finds these plates shall show them to three persons. Joe showed them to eleven. David Whitmer, says Moroni, showed them to his mother, and Emma Smith says she saw them for days on the table and handled them only covered with a thin cloth, and, strange daughter of Eve that she was, she never "peeked" under that cloth. With all our respect for the "Elect Lady" we can not swallow such a miracle as that.
Lucy Harris
Lucy Harris
1853
In Lucy Mack Smith’s autobiography she tells of an experience that Martin Harris’ wife, Lucy Harris, had concerning the golden plates.
“The next morning, soon after she arose, she related a very remarkable dream which she said she had had during the night. It ran about as follows. She said that a personage appeared to her, who told her, that as she had disputed the servant of the Lord, and said his word was not to be believed, and had also asked him many improper questions, she had done that which was not right in the sight of God. After which he said to her, “Behold, here are the plates, look upon them, and believe.”
After giving us an account of her dream, she described the Record very minutely, then told us that she had made up her mind in relation to the course which she intended to pursue, namely that she had in her possession twenty-eight dollars which she received from her mother just before she died, while she was on her death bed, and that Joseph should accept of it. If he would he might give his note, but he should certainly take it upon some terms.
[Lucy Mack Smith, Joseph Smith the Prophet, and his Progenitors” 1852, p. 112]
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