Far West

In August 1836, Saints began to establish a stake of Zion in a place they called Far West.  They were forced to abandon the place about two years later.  After they left, the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and a few others returned and dedicated a temple site there, in obedience to a commandment from the Lord. (D&C 115:11, 118:5)




The four cornerstones site withing the fenced area.  










I had the site all to myself, and just as I pulled away a giant tour bus pulled up.  Score 1 quiet reflection for me.  

Adam-ondi-Ahman

On June 28, 1838 the third stake of Zion was organized here.  Today, it is a place of beauty, and quiet contemplation.  And also some people still live there, not in the valley, but inside the site - which kind of blew my mind.



When I initially arrived I was greeted by this sign, which heavily influenced the order in which I saw the site.



Do you see it?


Yes, I 100% choose the outlook with restrooms.  I had (as you'll recall) been driving all over the hinterlands of Independence for hours by this time.









D&C Section 116:1

"Spring Hill is named by the Lord Adam-ondi-Ahman, because said he, it is the place where Adam shall come to visit his people, or the Ancient of Days shall sit, as spoken of by Daniel the prophet."

I don't think I can convey exactly how verdant this valley was, I've so rarely seen that vibrant a green before.
 

Hawn's Mill

Spoiler alert:  I did not actually visit Hawn's Mill.  I got within 2 miles of it, but then had to turn down a unpaved road, and that was not ideal, but ok.  And then, there was a giant (what looked like a 90 degree) hill that I'd have to climb, and... just nope.  I turned that rental car around.

Currently, the Church owns the land, but it is simply a large open field and the website warns that during seasons of heavy rain, the site is often flooded and the roads impassable.  So yeah, I drove through BFE (with signage to prove it).  



I did also see this license plate, which kind of made me feel like I was still in redneck Texas.


Also unrelated to Hawn's Mill, but very important for the BFE portion of the day, I listened to the radio station non-stop and I would almost move to Independence just for it.


It was like the late 80s/early 90s section of iPod.  I loved it.

And finally, I ate dinner at this BBQ place by my hotel, and I actually liked it better than Arthur Bryant's.  I got the burnt ends sandwich and I loved that they'd chopped it all up so it wasn't a choking hazard.  I asked them to mix a little bbq sauce into the sandwich, but also to give me a dish on the side.  That way I could dip each bite into the sauce, which meant I could eat it without the mess.  



It came with cheesy corn, which, as it turned out...was in the same boat as weird bbq spaghetti in Memphis - not actually terrible, but also not good.

Three Witnesses Monument and Pioneer Cemetery

In Richmond, Missouri the Church maintains a small cemetery that includes the grave of Oliver Cowdery.  There is also a monument commemorating the testimony of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon.  Before the Church took over maintenance the lot was overrun by weeds and grass and most of the markers had toppled or were broken.  They were cemented as close to their original location as possible. 

JB Turner and I were born on the same day, 160 years apart.

 

Historic Liberty Jail

In the late 1830s, dissension within the Church and persecution from outside were growing. In late 1838 Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Lyman Wight, Caleb Badwin, and Alexander McRae and others were imprisoned in Liberty, Missouri for treason.  Sidney Rigdon was released in early February; the others were kept imprisoned until early April.


You cannot imagine how truly oppressive it feels and how much faith the men imprisoned here had to have in order to stave off hopelessness.




After the presentation they asked if they could pray with me and offered that the Lord had impressed them to give share a personal message.  It was an intense and special experience in such a dark and dreadful place.

Basically, these 2 cute sisters were awesome, and I especially enjoyed their matching necklaces.

Eight Witnesses Monument

The graves of two of the Eight Witnesses (Christian Whitmer and Peter Whitmer, Jr.) are at this site.  The monument gives information about the discharging of Zion's Camp and the calling of early Church leaders.

It is also far enough off the beaten path, that I thought I might be pulling into a private driveway, and thank Heaven's there was already a family there who had opened the gate or I wouldn't have known how to get in!