In June of 1834 during Zions Camp march to Missouri, human bones were discovered in a mound by a few of the members of the march about a foot underneath the surface. Joseph Smith stated that these were the bones of Zelph, a white Lamanite. Seven members of the camp recorded the experience that day, each one differing from the rest. Dr. Lund quotes from Kenneth Godfrey that all the accounts agree on the following points:
“(1)…members of Zion’s camp, traveling through Illinois, unearthed skeletal remains of a man, 2 June 1834 near the top of a large burial mound; (2) Joseph Smith learned what he knew about the skeletal remains by way of a vision after the discovery; (3) the man was a white Lamanite named Zelph, a man of God, and a great warrior who served under known leader named Onandagus; (4) Zelph was killed by the arrow found with his remains in a battle with the Lamanites” 1
Some have argued the original version of Zelph which was recorded was actually corrected by Joseph Smith, and it was the flawed account that made it into the History of the Church, thereby casting doubt of it’s accuracy. While there were changes in the Zelph story2, they do not change the basis of the claims of the incident that there were Lamanites and Prophets in North America.
John A. Widstoe believed Zelph to have no bearing on Book of Mormon geography. He stated:
“This is not of much value in Book of Mormon geographical studies, since Zelph probably dated from a later time when Nephites and Lamanites had been somewhat dispersed and wandered over the country.” 3
I find it interesting that Joseph Smith never specifically mentioned the Zelph incident to anyone. He may have been referencing the incident when he wrote Emma the following day about wandering the “plains of the Nephites” 4 and picking up skulls as an authenticity of The Book of Mormon, but never mentions an ancient warrior named Zelph and a previously unknown prophet Onandagus. This private letter from Joseph Smith is the closest we have of Joseph Smith recording the event.
“The longest and most detailed near-contemporaneous account of Zelph’s discovery was written by Levi Hancock” 5 In his version, he makes mention that Joseph Smith stated, while under inspiration, that “This land was called the Land of Desolation” 6. If Joseph Smith was speaking about the same “Desolation” mentioned in The Book of Mormon, this would place Zarahemla, Bountiful, Manti, and most other Book of Mormon cities south of this area (this would be about where Valley City, Illinois now is), and would place The Book of Mormon to far south for a Great Lakes geography. If one accepts the Zelph accounts as fact, they must also accept the implications of the story as well. By placing the land Desolation in Illinois, you automatically place most of The Book of Mormon events South of there, thereby eliminating many North American as plausible theories.
So what are we to think of Zelph? There are a few options. Either those events mentioned by Joseph Smith transpired from the last battles as the Nephites were being pushed Northward by the Lamanites, or, there were Nephites and dissenters of those who took on the name Lamanites, who had migrated North from Nephite lands. Fletcher Hammond argued that “it is possible and quite probable, that sometime during the Book of Mormon history, some adventurous Nephites and Lamanites settled in what is now the western plains of the United States, the Mississippi Valley, and as far north as the Great Lakes region. But, no account of what they did was important enough for Mormon to include it in the abridgment of the Large Plates of Nephi.”7
Another scholar asks: “Why were the prominent chieftain Zelph and the great Prophet Onandagus, who was known from the eastern sea to the Rocky Mountains, not mentioned at all in the Book of Mormon? Surely a prophet of such prominence would have received some notice had he been known to the historians of the Book of Mormon. The answer is very obvious:—Because the Book of Mormon historians who were down in Central America, knew nothing at all of either the Prophet Onandagus or [of] the Chieftain Zelph. It was more than 400 years before Mormon’s time that Hagoth sailed north, and we only have a report of the first ship returning. . . . Naturally, both Mormon and Moroni were too far removed from Onandagus and Zelph to report them.” 8
This would seem to make more sense. The Book of Mormon speaks about several migrations to the North. Alma 63:4-9 recounts the migration of “five-thousand and four hundred men, with their wives and their children” from Zarahemla to the land which was “northward”. That same year, Hagoth built a “large ship” and sailed “into the land northward”. That ship returned and was filled again, as well as many “other” ships that were built and again sailed “northward”. In the thirty-ninth year, another ship sailed northward carrying provisions to those who had previously left, and it did not return.
So where were these tens of thousands of these people going? It is possible that they migrated to areas which Joseph Smith was claiming as Nephites existed. There is evidence of contact and migrations between Mesoamerica and what is now known as the United States dating to Book of Mormon time periods. There was trade between Mesoamerica and Eastern U.S. possibly as early as 200 B.C. 9 Perhaps rumor came back to the Nephites from these traders about a land with good soil, and milder summers to cause these mass migrations northward. It would also seem fitting that many people would want to find a new land to live in after years of bloodshed in war with the Lamanites. They may have wanted to escape the continuous warring and move to a new land to find peace. Whatever the reason may have been, thousands of Nephites departed out of the land of Zarahemla, and moved northward. It is also interesting that there was a major influence of Mesoamerican social ideas, building structures 10, “And there are similarities between certain religious beliefs, legends, origin of stories, and symbols of the eastern Woodlands and Mesoamerica.” 11
One scholar “wondered if Mississippian culture spread up the Mississippi floodplain carried on the backs of “southern traders” who moved along a riverine “highway” that might even have seen some travelers from Mesoamerica. Certainly there are many known instances in other parts of the world of dramatic political events and the founding of dynasties associated with the arrival of foreign lords or “stranger-kings” who immigrated to new lands and super-imposed their wills and sense of order over those already there.”12 While the Mississippian culture post-dates Book of Mormon times, the knowledge of these routes may have been well known in Book of Mormon times. Trade had been happening between Mesoamerica and North America for centuries before the Lehites even entered the Americas. There is evidence of similar migrations of traders from Mexico who settled in North-Eastern Louisiana at a place called “Poverty Point” (1650-700 B.C.), pre-dating The Book of Mormon by at least one-hundred years.
“Archaeologist James A. Ford contends that the site (Poverty Point) flourished during a pivotal era, when hunting and dispersed small camps were giving way to farming and settled towns. Ford also suggests that Poverty Point was settled by Mexican Indian Traders who crossed over by way of the Gulf of Mexico.”13
We also have Mesoamerican influence in North American cultures that are contemporary with The Book of Mormon. These same cultures (namely the Hopewell) have been thought by some North American Theorists, to be Book of Mormon peoples.
“the early appearance of Mesoamerican cultigens in eastern North America raises the question of whether the emergence of ranked societies, first in the Ohio valley (Adena and Hopewell), then in the Mississippi Valley, would have occurred if there had not been significant influences from the south. At Present, the paucity of maize finds in Ohio and Illinois Hopewell sites suggests that cultivation of Mesoamerican crops was a minor part of Hopewellian subsistence base. Few other traits of Hopewell culture appear to be specifically Mexican; copper ear spools and panpipes might be markers of southern influence.”14
It should also be noted that the Zelph Mound had some archaeological excavations in the 1870’s and 1880’s and many relics were found, as well as finding “some connection with other geographic areas such as Michigan and Mexico.”15 If this is the case, and there were Mesoamerican migrations and influence up the Mississippi to the Hopewell and other cultures, then Joseph Smith would have been 100% correct in his assertions of Book of Mormon peoples living in North America. These people would have been satellite groups of the Nephites/Lamanites and not necessarily have been the same groups recorded in The Book of Mormon. 16
—————————— .
1. Zelph,” Book of Mormon Referenece Companion, ed. Dennis L. Largey, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2007), pg. 801-802
2. Kenneth W. Godfrey, “What is the Significance of Zelph In The Study Of Book of Mormon Geography?,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8/2 (1999): 70–79.
3. John A. Widstoe, The Improvement Era, July 1950, pg 547
4. Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1984) pg 324
5. Kenneth W. Godfrey, What is the Significance of Zelph in the Study of Book of Mormon Geography? Journal of Book of Mormon Studies: Volume – 8, Issue – 2, Pages: Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute, 1999, 70-79
6. Levi Hancock Journal, LDS Church Archives.
7. Fletcher B. Hammond, Geography of the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Utah Printing, 1959), 151—52.
8. Norman C. Pierce, Another Cumorah: Another Joseph (n.p.: Pierce, 1954), 35–36.
9. “Maize (Zea mays), the first Mesoamerican domesticate to reach ENA (Eastern North America), did not arrive for another 1,500 years, at ≈200 B.C.” (Bruce D. Smith et. Al., “Initial formation of an indigenous crop complex in eastern North America at 3800 B.P” PNAS 2009 106:6561-6566
10. Unmasking the Maya: The Story of Sna Jtz’ibajom, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Anthropology. On-line at http://anthropology.si.edu/maya/mayaprint.html (last accessed 30 May 2008).
11. Timothy R. Pauketat, Ancient Cahokia and the Mississippians, Cambridge University press, pg 72. It should be noted that the Cahokia post-date Book of Mormon peoples, but it does not negate an earlier Mesoamerican influence. It would take hundreds of years to influence a large culture with new beliefs.
12. Ibid.
13. Peter Nabokov, Native American Architecture, (Oxford University Press US, 1989) pg. 97
14. Stuart J. Fiedel, Prehistory of the Americas, (Cambridge University Press, 1992) pg. 353
15. Donald Q. Cannon, Church History Regional Studies, BYU Department of Church History and Doctrine, Regional Studies, Illinois,-Zelph Revisited, 97-109
16. see also Donald Q. Cannon, Church History Regional Studies, BYU Department of Church History and Doctrine, Regional Studies, Illinois,-Zelph Revisited, 97-109, FAIRs review of “DNA Evidence for Book of Mormon Geography” http://www.fairlds.org/DNA_Evidence_for_Book_of_Mormon_Geography/DEBMG03F.pdf accessed May 21, 2009, Kenneth W. Godfrey, “The Zelph Story,” BYU Studies (Spr 1989): 31-56
Thank you, that was fast!
Tyler,
Bravo! This is the best and fairest analysis of the Vision of Zelph that I have read.
I concur with Joseph Smith that it was in the Land of Desolation where Zelph was found. As you mentioned in your other post on “Book of Mormon Geography in Joseph Smith’s Day,” my research shows that these areas of North America are included in the Book of Mormon, and I find considerable evidence that supports Poverty Point as the city of Zarahemla. (see http://brandley.poulsenll.org/ )
Theodore
Thanks Tyler. Just curious if you know how they found the original mound for excavation purposes? I just downloaded the FAIR PDF that you have linked but thought I’d ask in addition to reading it.
Cheers.
Thank you Theodore. It is a theory that seems to make sense to me, and does not disregard the Zelph incident, evidences, or archaeology.
Keep up the good work, I enjoyed your work!
Tod,
We have descriptions of where this mound is, what it looked like, types of trees on it, etc… which give us an idea (History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, B. H. Roberts, ed., (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1967), Vol. 2, p. 66.) Also, during the march, you can get a rough estimate of the location of this mound by tracking the progress of JS and company.. So there is some guesswork, but many associate it with the Naples-Russell Mound Number 8.
Donald Q. Cannon writes:
“Many studies of the area have been conducted during the twentieth century. Zelph Mound is referred to in scientific terms in most of these reports as Naples-Russell Mound Number 8. Highway construction has prompted several recent archaeological investigations of the area. In order for the new state highway, Route 36, to span the Illinois River Valley, large cement and steel supports had to be constructed. The base of these supports on the west side of the river are located on the bluffs near Naples-Russell Mound Number 8. Before any major excavation began, teams of archaeologists came on site to conduct exploratory excavation and identify any artifacts recovered from the mounds. The results of these studies conducted by the state of Illinois, the University of Chicago, and other organizations are very revealing and interesting for Latter-day Saints. Although they use terminology such as Woodland and Hopewell Culture, which is not derived from Book of Mormon terms, the dates are clearly within the scope of Book of Mormon history. Some of the fabric recovered from the archaeological digs conducted on the bluffs dates between 100 BC and AD 400. I find this data to be absolutely astonishing. The various cultures and peoples which occupied the lower Illinois River Valley span several hundred years. Remarkably, items discovered in the Zelph Mound area fit precisely within the parameters of the Book of Mormon historical chronology. It seems to me that this general collection of evidence points to a possible North American Book of Mormon geographic location. At least it should be seriously considered and not ignored.” (Zelph Revisited,97-109)
Tyler Asks: “So what are we to think of Zelph? There are a few options” …but to be F.A.I.R. Tyler, you left out the most accepted and likely option with respect to the aboriginal bones Mormons refer to as Zelph, that being that the Zelph character was a complete fabrication of Joseph Smith and just another made up fictional personality Smith conjured up to impress his malleable followers.
In fact, only within the very limited Mormon community is Zelph actually viewed as a real historical personality. I would dare say that the majority of active Mormons have never even heard the name Zelph.
I think it is important to also point out that there is not one scintilla of evidence to support either a Northern or Central American setting for the Book of Mormon. It’s just a Mormon hypothesis that has yet to be anything other than a hypothesis.
If I may be so bold, I would dare say that if you asked any anthropologist with an emphasis in Early American anthropology, they would take issue with your claim that the bones removed from the desecrated Indian burial mound were anything other than the remains of an aboriginal American Indian. In the real world where wild claims must be supported with evidence in order to become believable, Zelph remains just another bizarre and unsupported claim of Joseph Smith.
There was an article a while back in the Los Angeles Times titled: “Major find: Oldest pre-Columbian city”…An ancient stone plaza unearthed in Peru dates back more than five millennia and is the oldest known urban settlement in the Americas, according to experts here…Archaeologists say the site, uncovered in a complex of ruins known as Sechin Bajo, is a major find that could help reshape their understanding of the continent’s pre-Columbian history…
Carbon dating puts the site at 5,500 years old, dating to about 3,500 B.C. which makes it older than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt…scientists say settlements were beginning to grow in Peru at about the time of urbanization in other cradles of civilization such as Mesopotamia, Egypt and India.
There is a great book, “1491” by Charles C. Mann about new revelations of the Americas before Columbus that is a must read as it buries ages of misconception and the failure of the teaching in our universities to support much new evidence that there was considerably more going on in the Americas that has not been told.
My vote is not for the “most accepted and likely option”, “I would dare say”, or “not one scintilla of evidence to support”, but rather for an “may I be so bold as to suggest that bizarre and unsupported may be a little premature” in light of the obvious knowledge that there was much more going on than is currently known so that it could be accepted.
Hi Cr@ig P@xton!
It is pretty obvious that you disbelieve Zelph’s existence because you disbelieve Joseph Smith’s calling as God’s Prophet, Seer, and Revelator. While you are perfectly free to do so, you are NOT free to make US disbelieve.
If–as we assert–Joseph Smith’s calling is genuine, then it follows that he would know of such things as Zelph’s history. Thus, it is not enough to bemoan the lack of archeological evidence. The fact that most people do not believe as we do is also irrelevant; prior to the twentieth century, most people didn’t believe that humans could transport hundreds of people at once through the air from point A to point B.
Just because YOU do not accept the reality of Zelph–or Joseph Smith’s calling, it does not follow that WE must not, either. To induce us to accept your view, you must either positively disprove Zelph’s existence (a virtual impossibility) or successfully impeach Joseph Smith’s authority.
As the saying goes, “Rotsa Ruck!” 😉
WEAK
Thanks for the link to the article on the Maya on the Smithsonian website. I live in South Africa and the conditions that the Maya are being subjected to, brings back memories of previous regimes, not only here but in other African countries. Heavenly Father must often just sit and shake his head in disgust at how we treat fellow-travellers.
I recently corresponded with a researcher from the Illinois Department of Roads (or something similar) who was to release a report into his excavation at the Zelph mound, (known as something entirely different to non-LDS), but have yet to see it published. His report was NOT to include DNA analysis. I’ll leave it to the experts to decide what the background to the mound is. Firstly, I believe it is possible to accept JS as a prophet and still consider the story of Zelph as a figment of his imagination, an attempt to pacify the incessant calls to be a “revelator” that came from his followers. Secondly, he also demonstrated a practice of transplanting events in time and space, that may have actually occurred elsewhere, at a different time. I include in this list such things as the hill cumorah cave deposits, the Garden of Eden location and the Book of Abraham. When one is in the spiritual realm, time and space lose significance. Despite these two possibilities I’ve raised, I would still welcome archaeological vindication of his statements. To treat JS as a fraud (as Craig does, above) would require some powerful explanations in the psychology of the religious experience. i do not read in JS’s writings and those of his associates a convincing argument that he was consciously defrauding his wife, family and followers. That he Could have been subconsciously doing so is another thing, but I’m yet to be convinced. Until then, I’ll have my cake and eat it too!
Terry,
Do you have any details on what will be in his paper? That sounds very interesting.
I think this article does the story much justice. I have been studying the Hopi and believe that they may be ancestors to some of those migrating groups into the land northward. We know that the people of Ammon were a peaceful people (at least at one time) and were part of the people who migrated northward as well (Helaman 3:12). They could possibly be descendants to at least some of the different clans or tribes of what is now considered the Hopi (possibley the parrot clan who specifically claim migrations from the land down south (Southern or Central America).
By the way Tyler, are you by chance related to a Tyler Livingston who had served in Kentucky in the late 90’s early 00’s?
Hi Tyler. I contacted the author after reading a post from Sevenbak (alias of course) on the FAIR blog. Sevenbak seems to have an interest in these things, particularly the Hopewell Indians who populated the area, and gave me the researcher’s contact details. He responded, indicating the report was to be published in a month, or so (this was back in March ’10). I got the impression it was going to cost $$$. The zelph story was done to death on the particular blog I refer to, but your input here, is a legitimate effort to add credibility to a literal interpretation. When I get back to my home base in New Zealand I will search out the details and let you know. Sevenbak also gave a link to a fascinating e-book that was originally produced in 1852, describing the location and archaeological findings of nearly every Indian mound in New York State and surrounds at that time. They were pretty boring really and would have offered little evidence to JS of a once advanced civilisation.
hi Tyler. This is the link to Ken Farnsworth who was going to publish his report. Refer to the item….”(2001) Documentation of Human Burials and Mortuary
Remains Recovered from Test Excavations at Naples-
Russell Mound #8, Ray Norbut Conservation Area,
Pike County Illinois: pp.1-127. (IL Department of
Transportation; IL Department of Natural Resources;
IL Historic Preservation Agency)”.
The link was actually supplied by a blogger called Mapman on the Mormon Apologetics discussion Board, hosted by FAIR
http://www.itarp.uiuc.edu/staff/kfarnsworth.html
I have a copy of the Indian mound book on my hard drive, but will look for the link supplied by Sevenbak on MADB if you’re interested. Otherwise i could send it to you, if I had your e-mail address.
Terry
Excellent, I just sent you an email. I look forward to reading the book. Thank you.
I recently learned of Zelph’s Mound and although I do not believe in Joseph Smith and the Mormon philosophy, I find their history interesting. So, I went and located Zelph’s Mound this last Wednesday, June 16th. It took a lot of work as some of the nearby roads were flooded. The remnant of the Zion trail is extremely rough and barely accessible by a 4 wheel drive. And low and behold, in the middle of the woods, is a sign stating that this is the trail to the Russell Naples Mound 8. The sign said it was established by an Eagle Scout as his project. I can be reached at [email protected].