Joseph Stacy Murdock (June 26, 1822 – February 14, 1899) was an American colonizer, leader, and Latter-day Saint hymn writer. He wrote the words to "Come Listen to a Prophet's Voice."

Early years

Murdock was born in

upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...

in 1822. He married Eunice Sweet. He and his family were taught by a Latter Day Saint

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

and were

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. They had a desire to live with others of their faith and moved to

Nauvoo, Illinois Nauvoo ( ; from the ) is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States, on the Mississippi River near Fort Madison, Iowa. The population of Nauvoo was 950 at the 2020 census. Nauvoo attracts visitors for its historic importance and its ...

, in 1841. Murdock and his wife migrated with the Mormon population to the

Salt Lake Valley Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, and West Valley City; its total po ...

in Daniel Spencer's 1847

Mormon pioneer The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter Day Saints, who migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the Midwest to the S ...

company. Murdock was asked by

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...

to enter the practice of

plural marriage Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more tha ...

and was sent to jail for doing so in 1889. Murdock was pardoned in 1894 by U.S. President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

. He had 32 children from six wives: Eunice Sweet, Eliza Clark, Adeline Warner, Jane Sharp, Elizabeth Hunter, and Pernetta.

Colonizer

After arriving in Utah, Brigham Young assigned Murdock the task of helping establish settlements in several areas of present-day

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, and

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

. Murdock participated in the creation of

American Fork, Utah American Fork is a city in north-central Utah County, Utah, United States, at the foot of Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Range, north from Utah Lake. This city is thirty-two miles southeast of Salt Lake City. It is part of the Provo–Ore ...

;

Heber City, Utah Heber City is a city and county seat of Wasatch County, Utah, Wasatch County, Utah, United States. The population was 11,362 at the time of the 2010 census. It is located 43 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. History Heber City was first sett ...

;

Carson City, Nevada Carson City is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the sixth largest city in Nevada. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the ...

; and Muddy River (an abandoned settlement along the then southern

Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th state. ...

and northern

Arizona Territory The Territory of Arizona (also known as Arizona Territory) was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of ...

, now in

and called the

Moapa Valley Moapa Valley is an unincorporated town in Clark County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 6,924. The valley in which the community lies, also named Moapa Valley, is about long and lies roughly northwest to sou ...

Poet

Murdock wrote the poem "Come Listen To A Prophet's Voice", which was put to music by Joseph J. Daynes. The hymn was based on Murdock's friendship with

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

, for whom he had acted as a

bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects a person or a group of people — usually witnesses, high-ranking public officials or officers, w ...

Heber City

In 1860, Murdock was set apart as a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

and sent to preside over the Latter-day Saints in

, and vicinity. In this capacity he served as both the ecclesiastical and political leader for this new settlement. On August 20, 1867, Murdock negotiated a peace treaty with Chief

Tabby-To-Kwanah Chief Tabby-To-Kwanah (or Tabby, Tabiona, or Tabiuna; 1789 – 1898) was the leader of Timpanogos when they were displaced to the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation. He rose to power as a young man and was sub-chief under his cousin Chief Walkara ...

, the local

Ute Ute or UTE may refer to: * Ute (band), an Australian jazz group * Ute (given name) * ''Ute'' (sponge), a sponge genus * Ute (vehicle), an Australian and New Zealand term for certain utility vehicles * Ute, Iowa, a city in Monona County along ...

Indian chief, to end hostilities between the Ute Indians and the local settlers. This was one of the turning points which led to the end of the Utah Black Hawk War. Murdock's home in Heber City is registered with the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

Later life

After working to establish cities throughout the west, Murdock settled in Heber City and worked as a farmer. He continued to serve in leadership positions in his church throughout his life. He died of pneumonia at the age of 76.''The Wasatch Wave'', February 17, 1899.

References

External links

Joseph Stacy Murdock Family Organization
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murdock, Joseph S. 1822 births 1899 deaths American people convicted of bigamy American Latter Day Saint hymnwriters American prisoners and detainees Deaths from pneumonia in Utah Mormon pioneers People from Heber City, Utah Writers from New York (state) Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government 19th-century American writers American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Recipients of American presidential pardons