Show HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH 7 i for the history of this day at cawns mills I 1 on shoal creek I 1 quote the following affidavit I 1 of elder joseph young first president of the seventies on the sixth day of july last I 1 started with my family from kirtland ohio for the state of missouri the county of caldwell in the upper part of the state being the place of my destination on the thirteenth day clay of october I 1 crossed the mississippi at louisiana at which place I 1 heard vague reports of the disturbances in the upper country but I 1 nothing that could be relied upon I 1 continued my course westward till I 1 crossed grand river at a place called comptons comptois Com ferry at which place I 1 heard beard for or the first time that if I 1 proceeded any farther on my journey I 1 would be in danger of being stopped by a body I 1 of armed men I 1 was not willing however while tread 1 ing my native soil and breathing republican air to abandon my object which was to locate myself and cami family y in a fine healthy country where we could enjoy the society of our friends and ions consequently I 1 prosecuted my journey till I 1 came to whitneys Whit mills situated on shoal creek in the eastern part of caldwell Oal dwell county after crossing 0 the creek and I 1 going about three miles we met a party of the mob about forty in number armed with rifles and mounted on horses who informed ormed us that we could go no f farther artber west threatening us with instant death if we proceeded any far farther thor I 1 asked them the reason of this prohibition to which they replied that we were mormons cormons Mor mons that every one who adhered to our religious faith laith would have to leave the state in ten days or renounce their reli religion ion accordingly they drove us back to the mills above mentioned i here we tarried three days and on friday the wenty twenty sixt hwe re crossed the cree kand f following up its its banks we succeeded in eluding the mob for the ti time me being and gained the residence of a friend in myers settlement on sunday twenty eighth october we arrived about twelve at hans cawns mills where we found a number of our friends collected together who were holding a council and deliberating upon the best course for them to pursue to defend themselves against the mob who were collecting in the neighborhood under the coin command mand of ool col jennings of livingston and threatening them with house burning and killing i n the decision of the council was that our ands friends there should place themselves in an attitude of self defence accordingly about 28 of our men armed themselves and were in constant readiness ess for an attack of any small body of bien men that might come down upon them the same evening for some reason best known to themselves the maib sent one of their number to enter into a treaty with ith our friends which vas accepted on the condi condition conditto tio of mutu 1 al forbearance on both sides and that each party as far as their influence extended should exert themselves to prevent any further hostilities upon either party at this time however there was an another 0 ther mob collecting on grand river at william manns who were threatening i a us consequently we remained under ar arms ma monday passed away without molestation from any quarter on tuesday the that bloody tragedy was acted the scenes of which I 1 shall never Vever forget more than three fourths of the day had passed in tranquility as smiling as the preceding one I 1 11 t hink there was no in of our company that was apprised of the sudden and awful fate that hung over our beads like an overwhelming torrent which was to change the prospects the fee feelings linis and circumstances cum stances of about thirty families the I 1 banks of shoal creek on either side aide teemed I 1 with children sporting and playing while their mothers were eng engaged eav eed in domestic employments and their fathers employed in guarding the mills and other property while others were I 1 engaged in gathering in their crops for their I 1 winter consumption the weather wag as very pleasant the sun shone shoie clear all was tranquil and no iio one expressed any apprehension of the awful cri cridis 1 sis that was near us even at our doors it wag as about 4 while sitting in ray cabin with my babe in my armar arms and my wife standing by my side the door being etoal e open en r 1 I out my eyes on the opposite bank of shoal I 1 I 1 greek creek and saw a large company of armed men aw I 1 I 1 abw I 1 on horses directing their course towards the emills mills with all pos possible speed as they advanced through the scattering trees that stood on the edge of the prairie they seemed to form themselves into a three square position forming a vanguard in front at this moment david evans seeing the superiority of their numbers there being of them accordino according to their own account swung his hat and cried for peace this not being heeded they continued to advance and their leader mr nehemiah comstock fired a gun which was followed by a solemn pause 6 of f ten or twelve seconds when all at once they discharged about rifles aiming at a blacksmiths shop into which our oar friends had fled for safety and charging up to the shop the cracks of which between the logs were sufficiently large to enable them to aim directly at the bodies of those who had there fled for ref refuge age from the fire of their murderers there were several families tented in rear of the shop whose lives were exposed and amidst a shower of bullets ballets fled to the woods in different directions after standing and gazing on this bloody scene for a few minutes and finding in w myself in the uttermost danger the bullets ballets having 0 reached the house where I 1 was living I 1 committed my family to the protection of heaven and leaving the h house 0 use on the opposite side I 1 took a path which led up the hill bill following in the trail of three of my brethren that had bad fled from the shop while ascending the hill we were discovered by the mob who immediately fired at us and continued so to do till we reached the summit in descending the hill I 1 secreted myself in a thicket of bushes where I 1 lay till eight in the evening at which time I 1 heard a female voice calling my name in an under tone telling me that the mob had gone and there was no danger I 1 immediately left the thicket and went to the house of benjamin lewis where I 1 found my f family amily who had fled there in safety and two of my friends morth mortally lly wounded one of whom died before morning here we passed the painful ul night in deep and awful reflections on the scenes of the preceding evening after daylight appeared some four or five men with myself who had escaped with our lives from the horrid massacre repaired as soon as possible to the mills to learn the condition of our friends whose fate ate we had but too truly anticipated when we arrived at the house of mr hawn we found mr merricks body lying in in rear of the house mr Mc Brides in front lite literally nilly mangled from head to f foot oot we were informed by miss hiss rebecca judd who was an eye witness that he was shot with his own gun after he had given it up and then cut to pieces with a corn cutter b by y a mr rogers of davies county who keeps a f ferry er ry 0 on grand river and who has since repeatedly peat edly boasted of this act of sav savage age barbarity ty mr yorks body we found in in thel the house lOuse and after viewing these corpses we immediately went to the blacksmiths shop where we found nine of our friends eight of whom were already dead the other mr cox of indiana struggling in the agonies of death who expired 1 we im mediately immediately prepared and carried them to the place of interment this last office of kindness due to the relies relics of departed friends was not attended with the customary ceremonies or decency fr for we were in jeopardy every moment expecting to be fired upon hy by the mob who we supposed were lying in ambush waiting ing for the first opportunity to despatch 11 th the e remaining m few who were providentially preserved from the slaughter lifer of the preceding day however we accomplished without molestation this painful al tas task k the place of burying was a vault in the ground formerly intended for a well into which we threw the bodies of our friends promiscuously among amoda those slain I 1 I 1 will mention sardius smith son of warren smith about nine years old who through f fear ear had crawled under the bellows in in tle the shop where he remained till the massacre was over when he was discovered by a mr glaze of carroll county who presented his rifle near the boys head bead and literally off the upper part of it mr stanley of carroll Oar roll told me af afterwards ter wards that glaze boasted of this 1 murder aud and heroic deed all over the country the number killed and mortally wounded in this wanton slaughter D was 18 or 19 whose names as far as I 1 re recollect collect were as follows thomas thomaa mcbride levi N nj merrick errick Nl elias benner josiah fuller benjamin lewis alexander campbell warren smith sardius smith aged 12 years george S richards Richard sp mr william napier mr augustine harmer mr simon cox I 1 mr abbott mr john 10 york rk charles charle 8 merrick errick Nl a boy eight or nine years old john lee john byers and three or four others whose names I 1 do not recollect as they were strangers to me among the wounded who recovered I 1 were isaac laney nathan K knight z mr william yokum two brothers by the name of jacob and georgel george myers tarlton lewis mr jacob hawn and several others jacob foutz jacob potts charles jimison john walker alma smith aged about 9 years miss mary while fleeing was shot through the hand and fainting fell over a log into which they shot upwards of of twenty balls to finish their work of destruction this band of murderers composed of men from davies livingston ray carroll and khariton Jha Uha riton counties led by some of the principal men of that section of tho the upper country among abom I 1 iam informed were mr r ashby of chariton member of the state legislature 11 col jennings I 1 of livingston county thomas 0 bryon clerk I 1 of livingston county mr whitney dr randall and many others proceeded to rob the houses wagons and tents of bedding and lothing dr drove ove off horses and wagons leavin leaving I 1 widows and orphans d destitute esti tate of the necess necessaries I 1 I 1 ries of life and even stripped the clothing f from roin the bodies of the slain according to i their otheir own account they fired seven rounds 1 in n I 1 this awful butchery makeig upwards of sixteen hundred shots at a little company of men about thirty in number I 1 hereby certify the above to be a true statement of facts according to the best of my kno knowledge aed e A I 1 I 1 I 1 JOSEPH YOUNG state of illinois county of adams ss 88 l hereby certify that joseph young this d day came before me and made oath in due form of law that the statements contained contain dd in the forego foregoing i sheets are true according to the best ot of othis his knowledge and belief in testimony whereof I 1 haye have hereunto set iet my hand and affixed the seal of the 0 circuit court at quinby this fourth dai day of june in the year olour of our lord ope one thousand eight beigh t hundred and thirty nine I 1 ca 0 INI WOODS clerk circuit court admans co ill I 1 A younger younger I 1 brother of the b boy oy here her I 1 e killed a ged aged eight was shot through thebie the th hip bip the little fellow himself states that setting mia his father and brother both killed he thought ib they I 1 J would shoot him again it he stirred ati and so sc feigned himself dead and lay perfectly still till he heird heard hil hi mother call him after f ter dark I 1 1 j nathan K knight saw a missourian cut down dowe mcbride with a corn cutter and also saw them stripping the dying and heard the boys crying 0 j for mercy bi rother brother knight made his escape e across the milldam milldam after receiving his wounds through Z his lungs and finger after the mas sacre w was as over he was difed led to a house by a woman and whilst lying under his wounds he be heard mr jesse maupin say that he be blew one of I 1 the boys brains out and one day whilst walking I 1 the streets of far west he was met by three who threatened to butcher him I 1 and one of them by the name of rogers drew 1 a butcher knife and said that he had not got his corn cutter with him that he cut down mcbride mei mci i witha with but by jesus I 1 have got something that will do as well but by a great chance he made his escape from the ruffian I 1 general atchison withdrew from 1 the bb e army at richmond as soon as the governors exterminating order was was received although up to this time we were ignorant ignorant at far west of the abe I 1 movements of the te mob at richmond and the t governors order of extermination on the of october a large company of armed soldiery I 1 1 were seen approaching far west they came up near to the town and then dr drew ew back about a mile and encamped forthe for the nig night ht we w were ere informed that they were militia ordered out by the governor for the purpose of stopping our eur proceedings lings it having been represented to 0 his excellency by wicked and designing men from Daviess that we we were the aggressors and had committed outrages in daviess ac I 1 they had not yet got the governors order of extermination 3 which I 1 believe did not arrive till the next day dav I 1 wednesday fist the militia of far west guarded the city the past night and threw up a temporary fortification ot of wagons timbers timber ac on the south the sisters many of them I 1 were edgag engaged ed in gathering up their most valuable I 1 effects fearing a terrible battle in the morning and that the houses might be fired and they obliged to flee the enemy being five toi to one against us about eight a nag was I 1 sent which was met by several of our people I 1 and it was hoped that matters would be patis 1 f actor rily ily arranged after the officers had bad heard a true statement of all the cl circumstances I 1 colonel hinkle went to meet the flag and secretly made an engagement 1st alst to give ivo up their i the church leaders to be tried and punished ad to make an appropriation of their property all who had taken up a aims ins to the payment of their debts and indemnify for damage done I 1 by them ad that the balance should leave the state and be protected out by the militia I 1 but to be permitted to remain under protection I 1 until i jil further orders were received from the commander in chief ath to give up the arms of every description to be receipted fo for r I 1 the nemy enemy was reiff reinforced breed by about one thousand five hundred men today to day and news of the destruction of property by the mob reached us from every quarter towards evening I 1 was I 1 waited upon by colonel hinkle who stated that the officers of the militia desired to have an interview with me and some others hoping that the difficulties might be settled without having occasion to carry into effect the exterminating orders which they had received from the governor I 1 immediately complied with the request i I 1 and in company with elders rigdon and I 1 pratt colonel wight and george W robinson went into th the e camp of the militia but judge of my surprise when instead of being treated is due one citizen to another we were taken as prisoners of war and wore were treated with the utmost con tempts tempt the officers would not converse with us and the soldiers almost to a man insulted I 1 us as much as they felt disposed breathing out threats against me and my companions I 1 can not begin to tell the scene which I 1 there witnessed nesse d the loud cries and yells of more than one thousand voices which rent the air and could |