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Hill CumorahSteve Mortensen, 2003
"On the west side of
this hill, not far from the top, under a stone of
considerable size, lay the plates, deposited in a stone box"
(Joseph Smith—History 1:51).
Hill CumorahJohn Telford, 2004
In A.D. 421,
Moroni, the last survivor of a great civilization that had
inhabited the Americas since 600 B.C., buried in this hill a
set of golden plates on which was engraved a sacred
account of his people. In 1827 Moroni returned to this
hill as an angel and delivered the plates to Joseph
Smith for their eventual translation and publication as the
Book of Mormon.
Hill CumorahCraig Dimond, 1988
In describing his
interaction with the angel Moroni, Joseph Smith said,
"At the end of each year [1823–1827] . . . I found
the same messenger there, and received instruction and
intelligence from him . . . respecting what the Lord
was going to do, and how and in what manner his
kingdom was to be conducted in the last days" (Joseph
Smith—History, 1:54).
Hill CumorahCraig Dimond, 1988
Joseph Smith
received the plates at the Hill Cumorah from which he
translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God.
He said of the event: "What do we hear? Glad tidings
from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring
the fulfilment of the prophets—the book to
be revealed" (D&C 128:20).
Atop the Hill CumorahVirtual Historian, 2004
The Hill Cumorah has an
elevation of 117 feet above ground level, making it one of
the tallest points in the region.
Hill CumorahGeorge Edward Anderson, 1907 In describing the Hill Cumorah, Oliver Cowdery said: "The north end rose suddenly from the plain, forming a promontory without timber, but covered with grass. . . . To the south you soon came to scattering timber . . . enough to cause a shade in summer" (Oliver Cowdery, "Letter 8," Latter-day Saint Messenger and Advocate, Oct. 1835, 195–96). Hill CumorahWelden Andersen, 1993
Joseph Smith
received the plates on this hill and explained, "After
having received many visits from the angels of God, . . . on
the morning of the 22nd of September, A.D. 1827, the
angel of the Lord [Moroni] delivered the records into
my hands" (History of the Church, 4:537).
Palmyra/Manchester Area, 1820–1831Church History Maps.
1. Joseph Smith
Sr. Log Home: The angel Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith
in an upper room of this home on 21-22 September 1823 (see
JS-H 1:29-47).
2. Joseph Smith
Sr. Farm: This 100-acre farm was developed by the Smith
family from 1820 to 1829.
3. Sacred Grove:
Joseph Smith Jr.'s First Vision occurred in this
woodland in the early spring of 1820 (see JS-H 1:11-20).
4. Joseph Smith
Sr. Frame Home: This home was begun in 1822 by Alvin
Smith and occupied by the Smith family from 1825 to 1829.
5. Hill Cumorah:
Here the angel Moroni gave the Prophet Joseph Smith the
gold plates on 22 September 1827 (see JS-H 1:50-54, 59).
6. Martin Harris
Farm: This farm was mortgaged and part of its acreage
sold to pay for the printing of the Book of Mormon.
7. E. B. Grandin
Print Shop: 5,000 copies of the Book of Mormon were
printed here 1829-30.
8. Hathaway
Brook: In this brook some early Church baptisms were
performed
Finger Lakes Area, New York State.Church History in the Fulness of Times, page 29.
In 1816 when the Smiths
moved to Palmyra, it was a village of about six hundred
people. In 1818 or 1819 they began to clear a
one-hundred-acre farm nearby in Farmington township (later
Manchester township).
