In October 1827, Smith and his now-pregnant

• Remini (2002) , p. 55.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

wife moved from Palmyra to Harmony (now Oakland),Pennsylvania,

• Newell (Tippetts) , p. 2.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

a move made possible with money from their well-to-do neighbor Martin Harris.

• Walker (1986) , p. 35; Remini (2002) , p. 55 (Harris' money allowed Smith to pay his debts and thus allowed him to move without being arrested for evading his creditors); Smith (1853) , p. 113; Howe (1834) .

Living near his disapproving in-laws,

• Remini (2002) , p. 56.

Smith transcribed some of the strange "reformed Egyptian" characters he said were engraved on the plates and dictated their translations to his wife.

• Remini (2002) , p. 56; Roberts (1902) , p. 19;Howe (1834) , pp. 270–71 (Smith sat behind a curtain and passed transcriptions to his wife or her brother).

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

Smith said that he used the "Urim and Thummim" for this early translation,

• Smith (1838) , p. 9; Remini (2002) , p. 57 (noting that Emma Smith said that Smith started translating with the Urim and Thummim and then eventually used his dark seer stone exclusively); Bushman (2005) , p. 66.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  
• Bushman states,

For two months, form about April 12 to June 14, 1828, Joseph and Harris were hard at work. Joseph translated using the interpreters (also called the Urim and Thummim, crystals mounted on a breast plate), and Harris wrote down the text as it was dictated. A curtain divided the men to prevent Harris from seeing the plates.

a term he used to refer to the silver spectacles found with the golden plates,

• Smith (1838) , p. 4.

but no witnesses said they saw Smith using such spectacles.

• Smith may have initiated the Mormon practice of using the term Urim and Thummim to refer to one of several seer stones he used had previously used for treasure digging, "to mainstream an instrument and practice of folk magic" Quinn (1998) , pp. 175.

Many witnesses did observe Smith translating using the same or similar method that he had previously used to find buried treasure: he would gaze at a seer stone in the bottom of his hat, excluding all light so that he could reportedly see the translation reflecting off the stone.

• Bushman (2005) , pp. 71–72; Marquardt (Walters) , pp. 103–04; Van Wagoner (Walker) , p. 52–53 (citing numerous witnesses of the translation process).

•  Correct, per cited sources
  
• Bushman notes: "[A]s work on the Book of Mormon proceeded, a seerstone took the place of the Urim and Thummin as an aid in the work, blending magic with inspired translation." (Bushman, p. 131) "There is evidence that the translation stone was given him after he lost the Urim and Thummim when the 116 pages disappeared. (Bushman, p. 590, note 24 citing Van Wagoner and Walker, "'The Gift of Seeing,'" 54)
• For a detailed response, see: Joseph Smith/Seer stones and Book of Mormon/Translation/Method

The plates themselves were not directly consulted.

• Van Wagoner (Walker) , p. 52; Howe (1834) , p. 264 (The box containing the plates was kept in the nearby woods when Smith translated); Remini (2002) , p. 56 (box was first hidden in the nearby woods, then moved under the bed in the Smith house; Emma also said she saw the plates under a cloth on the table).

Smith usually translated in full view of witnesses, but occasionally he concealed the process by raising a curtain or dictating from another room.

• Howe (1834) , p. 14.

By February 1828, Smith had become discouraged with translating.

• Roberts (1902) , p. 19; Howe (1834) , p. 266; Booth (1831a) .

Martin Harris arrived to spur him on

• Booth (1831) .

by taking the characters and their translations to a few prominent scholars.

• Remini (2002) , p. 57–58 (noting that the plan arose from a vision of Martin Harris). These scholars included at least Luther Bradish in Albany, New York Lapham (1870) , Samuel L. Mitchill of New York City (Hadley (1829) ; Jessee (1976) , p. 3), and Charles Anthon of New York City Howe (1834) , pp. 269–272.

Though none of the scholars would lend support, Harris claimed that one of them, Charles Anthon, initially authenticated the characters and their translation, then recanted upon hearing that Smith had received the plates from an angel.

• Bushman (2005) , p. 64–65; Remini (2002) , p. 58–59.

Although Anthon denied this,

• Howe (1834) , pp. 269–72 (Anthon's description of his meeting with Harris, claiming he tried to convince Harris that he was a victim of a fraud). But see Vogel (2004) , p. 115 (arguing that Anthon's initial assessment was likely more positive than he would later admit).

•  Correct, per cited sources
  
• Anthon's two letters actually contradicted one another. According to the cited source (Bushman, p. 65),

In the first letter Anthon said he refused to give Harris a written opinion; according to the second, the opinion was written "without any hesitation," in an attempt to expose the fraud.

• Bushman, p. 577 note 16 states that the 1834 Anthon letter first appeared in MoU, 269-72, and the 1841 letter in Clark, Gleanings by the Way, 233-38. Both are reprinted in Early Mormon Documents, 4:377-86.

Harris returned to Harmony in April 1828 motivated to act as Smith's scribe.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

=

Translation continued until mid-June 1828, until Harris began having doubts about the existence of the golden plates.

• These doubts were induced by his wife's deep skepticism. Bushman , p. 66.

Harris importuned Smith to let him take the existing 116 pages of manuscript to Palmyra to show a few family members.

• Smith (1853) , p. 117–18; Roberts (1902) , p. 20.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

Harris then lost the manuscript—of which there was no copy—at about the same time as Smith's wife Emma gave birth to a stillborn son.

• He had had great hopes for his first-born child, reportedly telling people that the child would see the plates Howe (1834) , p. 264 and assist in the translation Howe (1834) , p. 267. During this period Smith may have briefly attended a Methodist church pastored by his wife's uncle. See McKune (1879) ; Lewis (Lewis) ; Porter (1969) , p. 332. Joseph Lewis, a cousin of Emma "objected to the inclusion of a 'practicing necromancer' on the Methodist roll," and Smith voluntarily withdrew rather than face a disciplinary hearing Lewis (Lewis) in EMD 4:305; Bushman (2005) , pp. 69–70.

•  Violates Wikipedia: Synthesis off-site: Do not put together information from multiple sources to reach a conclusion that is not stated explicitly by any of the sources.
  Violated by John "Foxe" —Diff: off-site
  The sources say nothing about Joseph having "great hopes" for his child—this is that addition of the wiki editor. The wiki editor has also used two dubious, hostile third-hand sources to synthesize the conclusion that Joseph's first-born child would see and translate the plates. These are the only two sources that make such a claim.
• According to the source, Hale said,

I inquired of Joseph Smith Jr., who was to be the first who would be allowed to see the Book of Plates? He said it was a young child. After this, I became dissatisfied, and informed him that if there was any thing in my house of that description, which I could not be allowed to see, he must take it away; if he did not, I was determined to see it. After that, the Plates were said to be hid in the woods. (Howe, 1834, p. 264)

• According the the source, McKune said,

"Joseph Smith, Jr. told him that (Smith's) first-born child was to translate the characters, and hieroglyphics, upon the Plates into our language at the age of three years; but this child was not permitted to live to verify the prediction." (Howe, 1834, p. 267-8)

• For a detailed response, see: The Hurlbut affidavits

Smith said the angel had taken away the plates and he had lost his ability to translate

• Phelps (1833) (revelation dictated by Smith stating that his gift to translate was temporarily revoked); Smith (1832) , p. 5 (stating that the angel had taken away the plates and the Urim and Thummim).

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

until September 22, 1828, when they were restored.

• Smith (1853) , p. 126.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

Smith did not begin translating again in earnest until April 1829, when Smith met Oliver Cowdery, who now became Smith's scribe.

• Cowdery was a school teacher whose family, like Smith's, had engaged in treasure seeking and other magical practices. Bushman (2005) , p. 73.

•  Violates Wikipedia: Citing sources off-site— There is either no citation to support the statement or the citation given is incorrect.
  Violated by John "Foxe" —Diff: off-site
  Bushman said that Oliver's "family may have engaged in treasure-seeking." (emphasis added). The wiki author has converted Bushman's speculation to fact by stating that Oliver's family had engaged in treasure seeking. This imprecision in the use of sources comes from BJU history professor John "Foxe."
• Oliver himself may have used a divining rod, although there is no evidence that it was used for treasure-seeking. According to the cited source, "Most likely, Cowdery used a rod to discover water and minerals." (Bushman, p. 73).
• For a detailed response, see: Doctrine and Covenants/Oliver Cowdery and the "rod of nature"

The two of them translated full time between April and early June 1829

• Bushman (2005) , p. 70-74.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

and then moved to Fayette, New York where they continued to work at the home of Cowdery's friend Peter Whitmer. Intending to use the translation as the basis for a new church,

• Template:HarvtxtBushman (writing that people believed in the book, "they did not just subscribe to the book; they were baptized.").

Smith and Cowdery had baptized each other, both of them later claiming that John the Baptist had appeared and given them the necessary authority. Knowing that potential converts might find Smith's story of the plates incredible,

• Bushman (2005) , p. 77 (Smith "began to seek converts the question of credibility had to be addressed again. Joseph knew his story was unbelievable.").

•  Correct, per cited sources
  
• From the cited source,

As he began to seek converts, the question of credibility had to be addressed again. Joseph knew his story was unbelievable. Outside of his immediate family and close associates, he faced a wall of skepticism. Martin Harris...had doubts about the plates from the start...The March revelation, while stalling Harris, hinted at the possibility that others might see the plates. (Bushman, p. 77)

in early 1829 Smith asked a group of eleven witnesses, including Martin Harris and male members of the Whitmer and Smith families, to sign a statement testifying that they had seen the golden plates.

• Bushman (2005) , pp. 77–78. There were two statements, one by a set of Three Witnesses and another by a set of Eight Witnesses. The two testimonies are undated, and the exact dates on which the Witnesses are said to have seen the plates is unknown.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

Some of these witnesses later said they saw the plates only in a vision, while others said they physically handled the plates. According to Smith, when the translation was complete by about the end of June 1829, the angel Moroni took back the plates.

• For a detailed response, see: Book of Mormon/Witnesses/Spiritual or literal

The translation, known as the Book of Mormon, was published in Palmyra on March 26, 1830 by printer E. B. Grandin. Martin Harris financed the publication by mortgaging his farm.

• Bushman (2005) , p. 80. Because he could not pay the debt, Harris lost both his farm and his wife, who had refused to become a party to the mortgage.

•  Correct, per cited sources
  

Soon thereafter on April 6, 1830, Smith and his followers formally organized the Church of Christ,

• A majority of witnesses report that the organization took place in the log home of Joseph Smith, Sr. in the Manchester area (Smith (1844) Template:Citation broken; Smith (1883) , p. 14; Jessee (1976) ; Tucker (1867) , p. 58), followed by a meeting the next Sunday in Fayette, New York Tucker (1867) , p. 58; but one of Smith's histories Roberts (1902) , p. 78 and a later statement by David Whitmer assert that the organization took place in Fayette Whitmer (1887) , p. 33.

•  References not included in the Wikipedia article
  Several Fayette references are missing.
• The recently revealed Book of Commandments and Revelations, which had been kept in the First Presidency's vault until its publication in the Joseph Smith Papers series, supports the Fayette location. According to R. Scott Lloyd,:

"The manuscript may have the effect, [Steven C. Harper] said, of resolving a controversy that has arisen over whether the Church was organized at Fayette, N.Y., as has traditionally been understood, or at Manchester, N.Y. It does so by affirming that a revelation given on April 6, 1830, was given at Fayette, not at Manchester. 'The 1833 Book of Commandments, heretofore the earliest source available, located this revelation in Manchester,' he explained. Some authors thus argued that the traditional story of the Church's founding in Fayette lacked foundation in the historical record, 'but we can now see that in this case, tradition and the historical record match up,' he said."
(R. Scott Lloyd, "'Major Discovery' Discussed at Mormon History Association Conference," Church News, 22 May 2009.)

• Orson Pratt: "I well recollect when I was but a boy of nineteen visiting the place where this Church was organized, and visiting the Prophet Joseph, who resided at that time in Fayette, Seneca County, New York, at the house where the Church was organized." (Orson Pratt, Journal of Discourses 13:356.)
• French’s New York Gazetteer, published by R. Pearsall Smith, at Syracuse, New York, [since] 1800, also contained some data concerning Mormonism, and states that the first Mormon society was formed in the town of Fayette, Seneca County, in 1830” (Letter, Diedrich Villers, Jr. to Ellen E. Dickinson; published in Ellen E. Dickinson, New Light on Mormonism)
• For a detailed response, see: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints/Location of the organization

and small branches were established in Palmyra, Fayette, and Colesville, New York (near where Smith had been tried in 1826 as a treasure seeker). The Book of Mormon brought Smith regional notoriety in the press even before it was published, and the church faced strong opposition, particularly in Colesville. Soon after Smith reportedly performed an exorcism in Colesville, he was again tried as a disorderly person but was acquitted.

• Bushman (2005) , pp. 116–17.

•  Violates Wikipedia: Neutral Point-of-View off-site— All Wikipedia articles and other encyclopedic content must be written from a neutral point of view, representing fairly, and as far as possible without bias, all significant views that have been published by reliable sources.
  
  It is utterly tangential to add "near where Smith had been tried in 1826 as a treasure seeker." A real encyclopedia would not do this.

Even so, Smith and Cowdery had to flee Colesville to escape a gathering mob. Probably referring to this period of flight, Smith later recalled that he and Cowdery heard the voices of Peter, James, and John, who gave them "the keys of the [heavenly] kingdom."

• Bushman (2005) , p. 118.

After founding the church, Smith dictated and compiled revelations defining his role within the church. Smith was to to be supported by church funds,

• Phelps (1833) , pp. 55–57, XXV:5, 10, 28.

and his wife Emma was to be similarly supported.

• Phelps (1833) , p. 58, XXVI:8.

After one of the Eight Witnesses began producing his own well-received revelations about the location of the American New Jerusalem prophesied in the Book of Mormon, Smith dictated a revelation indicating that he alone could receive binding revelations for the church.

• Booth (1831) .

He also dictated a revelation about the "New Jerusalem": although its precise location was not yet known, it was to be somewhere in the Indian Territory, near Missouri.

• Booth (1831)

In anticipation, Smith dispatched missionaries, led by Oliver Cowdery, to the area. On their way, they converted a group of Disciples of Christ adherents in Kirtland, Ohio led by Sidney Rigdon. Then, to avoid growing opposition in New York, Smith moved the headquarters of the church to Kirtland.

• Doctrine and Covenants 37.