Zion's Camp (1834)

Zion's Camp was an expedition of Latter Day Saints, led by Joseph Smith, from Kirtland, Ohio to Clay County, Missouri during May and June 1834 in an unsuccessful attempt to regain land from which the Saints had been expelled by non-Mormon settlers. In Latter Day Saint belief, this land had been destined to become a city of Zion, the center of the Millennial kingdom; and Smith dictated a command from God ordering him to lead his church like a modern Moses to redeem Zion "by power, and with a stretched-out arm."

Receiving word of the approaching Latter Day Saints, the Missourians formed militias, which outnumbered Smith's men. Smith then dictated another revelation stating that the church was presently unworthy to "redeem Zion" because of its lack of commitment to the United Order, a form of religious communism more closely related to capitalism. They were told they must "wait a little season" until its elders could receive their promised endowment of heavenly power. The expedition was disbanded on July 25, 1834, during a cholera epidemic, and a majority of survivors returned to Ohio. Nevertheless, the failed expedition permitted Smith to determine the most faithful Latter-Day Saints among the group, and most Latter Day Saint leaders of the following years were selected from among these men.

Background
The Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), had previously received a revelation (D&C 57:1-3) in 1831 that designated Jackson County, Missouri as the future Zion or central gathering place of the newly organized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). A great many of his followers moved to help settle this area but friction with the old settlers arose and they violently forced the Mormons from their lands and destroyed much of their homes and crops.

After the Saints failed to get help from the state government to punish the criminals and restore them to their properties, Joseph received a revelation (D&C 101 on 16 Dec 1833) directing him to raise a group of men from their Ohio colony to help rescue and protect their Missouri brethren.

Militia Recruitment & Organization
On 01 May 1834, the volunteers began to assemble at the appointed starting place, New Portage, Ohio, a small town located about 50 miles southwest of the church headquarters in Kirtland, Ohio. By May 7th about 150 men were assembled, they were joined by their prophet-leader, other key leaders appointed and they began the journey to Western Missouri. Additional men would later join them bringing their numbers to about 220.

They were organized into small companies of about 12 men each. Within each company the men picked their own captain and all others were assigned duties: two cooks, two firemen, two tentmakers, two watermen, two wagoners, one runner, one commissary.

March to Missouri
The distance marched was about 770 miles (New Portage OH to Fishing Creek, MO).

Salt River Encampment
On 07 Jun 1834, the band arrived in Salt River at James Allred (1784-1876)’s home and stayed several days to rest and replenish. The next day the camp was joined by a group recruited from Mormon branches in Michigan by his brother Hyrum Smith (1800-1844) and Lyman Wight. Combined, they involved two hundred and five men. James Allred and nine of his relatives were called by the Prophet to be members of Zion’s Camp.

Just prior to their arrival at Salt River (03 Jun 1834), Heber C Kimball recorded an interesting prophecy from Joseph, that promised a plaque on the camp because of the friction and unbrotherly spirit manifested by a number of its members.

While at Salt River, Parley Pratt and Orson Hyde were dispatched to take another petition to Gov. Dunklin.

Fishing River Battle
On 19 Jun 1834, Zions Camp passed peacefully through Richmond,MO despite many threats to disrupt the march there. Two days later (21 Jun 1834) they reached their final destination at Fishing River.

Sometime after their arrival the group was disbanded, some stayed in Missouri and many returned to their homes.

Stories from the March
George Albert Smith (1817-1875) related how the group wanted to keep secret the nature and intention of their big group. Residents along the way were quite concerned about such a large group marching past their homes. This is how they responded to inquiries from strangers: "My boy, where are you from?" "From the east." "Ware are you going?" "To the west." "What for?" "To see where we can get land cheapest and the best." "Who leads the camp?" "Sometimes one, sometimes another." "What name?" "Captain Wallace, Major Bruce, Orson Hyde, James Allred, etc."

The people not unfrequently, however, began to suspect that they were Mormons and many times this band was threatened and harassed. Even spies were sent to sneak into camp. Threats to block their passage thru Illinois and Indiana came to naught.

Parley Pratt, the Chief recruitment officer of the camp tells the story of how an angel protected him as he was returning to the group from a long recruitment trip.

He stopped along the road at about noon, being very tired from all of his travels: "...I sank down, overpowered with a deep sleep, and might have lain in a state of oblivion till the shades of night had gathered about me, so completely was I exhausted for the want of sleep and rest; but I had only slept a few moments till the horse had grazed sufficiently, when a voice, more loud and shrill than I had ever before heard, fell upon my ear, and thrilled through every part of my system, it said: 'Parley, it is time to be up and on your journey.' "In the twinkling of an eye I was perfectly aroused, I sprang to my feet so suddenly that I could not at first recollect where I was, or what was before me to perform. I afterwards related the circumstance to Brother Joseph Smith, and he bore testimony that it was the angel of the Lord who went before the camp, who found me overpowered with sleep, and thus awoke me."

After crossing the Illinois River, the camp passed several of the large Indian mounds in that area. At one of these mounds they found the bones of an Indian with a arrowhead between his ribs. Here the prophet Joseph had a vision wherein he named this man Zelph and called him a righteous white Lamanite warrior who was slain here.

Notable Leaders

 * Joseph Smith (1805-1844) - Prophet/Leader of the Mormon Church
 * Hyrum Smith (1800-1844) - led recruitment detachment via Michigan Area
 * Lyman Wight - Appointed military leader of the expedition for his knowledge of military affairs and drills
 * Frederick G Williams - Treasurer & Paymaster
 * Zerubbabel Snow - Commissary General
 *  Parley P Pratt (1807-1857) - Chief recruitment officer

A

 * Hazen Aldrich
 * Joseph S. Allen
 *  Allred, Isaac (1813-1859) - son of James
 *  Allred, James (1784-1876) - homeowner of Allred Settlement at Salt River, MO
 *  Allred, Martin C (1806-1840) - son of James
 * Milo Andrus
 * Solomon Angel
 * Allen A. Avery

B
Almon W. Babbitt Alexander Badlam Samuel Baker Nathan Bennett Baldwin Elam Barber Israel Barlow Lorenzo D. Barnes Edson Barney Royal Barney Henry Benner Samuel Bent Hiram Backman Lorenzo Booth George W. Brooks Albert Brown Harry Brown Samuel Brown John Brownell Peter Buchanan Alden Burdick Harrison Burgess David Byur

C
William F. Cahoon John Carpenter John S. Carter Daniel Cathcart Alonzo Champlin Jacob Chapman William Cherry John M. Chidester Alden Childs Nathaniel Childs Stephen Childs Albert Clements Thomas Colborn Alanson Colby Zera S. Cole Zebedee Coltrin Libeus T. Coon Horace Cowan Lyman Curtis Mecham Curtis

D
Solomon W. Denton Peter Doff David D. Dort John Duncan James Dunn Philemon Duzette Philip Ettleman Bradford W. Elliot David Elliot David Evans Asa Field Edmund Fisher Alfred Fisk Hezekiah Fisk Elijah Fordham George Fordham Frederick Forney John Fossett James Foster Solon Foster Jacob Gates Benjamin Gifford Levi Gifford Sherman Gilbert Tru Glidden Dean C. Gould Jedediah M. Grant Addison Green Michael Griffith Everett Griswold Elisha Groves

H
Henry Herriman Martin Harris Joseph Hartshorn Thomas Hayes Nelson Higgins Seth Hitchcock Amos Hogers Chandler Holbrook Joseph Holbrook Milton Holmes Osmon Houghton Marshal Hubbard Solomon Humphrey Joseph Huntsman John Hustin
 * Joseph Hancock
 * Levi Ward Hancock (1803-1882) - Later a LDS General Authority who also joined The Mormon Battalion
 * Joseph Harmon
 * Elias Hutchins
 * Heman T. Hyde
 *  Hyde, Orson (1805-1878) - Future LDS Apostle noted for his famous trip in 1841 across Europe to Jerusalem.

I
Warren S. Ingalls Edward Ivie James Russell Ivie John A. Ivie William S. Ivie

J

William Jessop Luke S. Johnson Lyman E. Johnson Noah Johnson Seth Johnson Isaac Jones Levi Jones

K

 * Charles Kelley
 *  Kimball, Heber C (1801-1868) - later LDS Apostle and counselor to Brigham Young
 * Samuel Kingsley
 * Dennis Lake
 * Jesse B. Lawson
 * L.S. Lewis
 * Josiah Littlefield
 * Lyman O. Littlefield
 * Waldo Littlefield
 * Amasa M. Lyman

M

 * Moses Martin
 * Edward W. Marvin
 * Reuben McBride
 * Robert McCord
 * Eleazer Miller
 * John Miller
 * Justin Morse
 * John Murdock (1792-1871) - gave adopted twins to Joseph, later bishop in Nauvoo and Salt Lake City.

N

 * Freeman Nickerson
 * Levi S. Nickerson
 * Uriah C. Nickerson
 * Joseph Nicholas
 * Joseph B. Noble
 * Uriah North

O

 * Roger Orton

P

 * John D. Parker
 * Warren Parrish
 * David W. Patten
 *  Orson Pratt (1811-1881) - later LDS Apostle
 *  Parley P Pratt (1807-1857) - later LDS Apostle
 * William D. Pratt

R
Charles C. Rich Leonard Rich Darwin Richardson Burr Riggs Harpin Riggs Nathaniel Riggs Milcher Riley Alanson Ripley Lewis Robbins Erastus Rudd

S
William Henry Sagers Wilkins Jenkins Salisbury Henry Sherman Lyman Sherman Henry Shibley Cyrus Smalling Avery Smith Sylvester Smith William Smith Zechariah B. Smith Willard Snow Zerubbabel Snow Harvey Stanley Hyrum Stratton Daniel Stephens Elias Strong
 * George Albert Smith (1817-1875) - later counselor to Pres Brigham Young
 * Hyrum Smith (1800-1844) - brother of Prophet Joseph, camp leader
 * Jackson Smith
 * Joseph Smith (1805-1844) - The Mormon Prophet-Leader
 * Lyman Smith

T
John Joshua Tanner Nathan Tanner Ezra Thayer James L. Thompson Samuel Thompson William. P. Tippetts Tinney Thomas Nelson Tribbs

V
Joel Vaughn

W

 * Salmon Warner
 * William Weden
 * Elias Wells
 * Alexander Whiteside
 * Andrew Hiram Whitlock (1805-1865) - Allred Relative - joined camp at Salt River Branch.
 * Lyman Wight - military commander of Zions Camp
 * Eber Wilcox
 * Sylvester B. Wilkinson
 * Frederick G. Williams
 * Alonzo Winchester
 * Benjamin Winchester
 * Lupton Winchester
 * Alvin Winegar
 * Samuel Winegar
 * Hiram Winter
 * Henry Wissmiller
 * Wilford Woodruff (1807-1898) - Later a famous Mormon missionary, LDS Apostle and 4th President of the LDS Church

Y

 * Brigham Young (1801-1877) - Later a LDS Apostle and successor to Joseph Smith as 2nd President of the LDS Church
 * Joseph Young

Women and Children

 * Charlotte Alvord
 * Mary Chidester
 * Ada Clements
 * Sophronia Curtis
 * Diana Drake
 * Mary Snow Gates
 * Eunice Holbrook
 * Nancy Lambson Holbrook
 * Mrs. Houghton
 * ---?--- Ripley
 * Eunice Chidester (daughter of John M. Chidester)
 * John P. Chidester (son of John M. Chidester)
 * Charlotte Holbrook (daughter of Joseph Holbrook)
 * Diana Holbrook (daughter of Chandler Holbrook)
 * Sarah Lucretia Holbrook (daughter of Joseph Holbrook)
 * Sarah Pulsipher (daughter of Zera Pulsipher)
 * Almira Winegar (daughter of Samuel Winegar)