The Nauvoo House in

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 ...

, is a boarding house that

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 ...

, the founder of the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

, began constructing in the 1840s. The boarding house was never completed, but the structure was later converted into a residential home and renamed the Riverside Mansion. The Nauvoo House, as it is referred to today, is part of the

Nauvoo Historic District Nauvoo Historic District is a National Historic Landmark District containing the city of Nauvoo, Illinois. The historic district is nearly coterminous with the City of Nauvoo as it was incorporated in 1840, but it also includes the Pioneer Saint ...

, a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

. In January 1841, Smith received a

revelation In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities. Background Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...

with instructions to construct a house in Nauvoo which would be "a resting-place for the weary traveler". The revelation also instructed that the building should be called the Nauvoo House, and set out detailed instructions about how the building of the house would be financed. George Miller,

Lyman Wight Lyman Wight (May 9, 1796 – March 31, 1858) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the leader of the Latter Day Saints in Daviess County, Missouri, in 1838. In 1841, he was ordained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apost ...

, John Snider, and Peter Haws were appointed as the overseers of the project, and they created the Nauvoo House Association on 23 February 1841. Construction of the Nauvoo House began later in 1841, with Smith placing the original manuscript of the

Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude date ...

in the cornerstone of the building. Construction continued until 1844, when resources were pulled away from the Nauvoo House to concentrate on completion of the

Nauvoo Temple The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.''Manuscript History of the Church'', LDS Church Archives, book A-1, p. 37; reproduced in Dean C. Jessee (comp.) (1989). ''The Papers of Jose ...

. After Smith and his brother Hyrum were killed by a mob in June 1844, their bodies were secretly buried in the cellar of the unfinished house to prevent their bodies from being stolen.Joseph Smith (

B. H. Roberts Brigham Henry Roberts (March 13, 1857 – September 27, 1933) was a historian, politician, and leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He edited the seven-volume ''History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

, ed., 1902). '' History of the Church'' 6:628. Later, their bodies were removed and buried close to the Homestead. JSHS Nauvoo House P6081198

After Smith's death, his widow

Emma Smith Emma Hale Smith Bidamon (July 10, 1804 – April 30, 1879) was an American homesteader, the official wife of Joseph Smith, and a prominent leader in the early days of the Latter Day Saint movement, both during Smith's lifetime and afterward as a ...

retained title to the Nauvoo House. When the majority of Latter Day Saints left Nauvoo in the late 1840s, the house was still only partially completed. In the 1870s, Emma and her husband

Lewis C. Bidamon Lewis Crum Bidamon (January 16, 1806 – February 11, 1891) was a leader in the Illinois militia that assisted Latter Day Saints in the 1846 " Battle of Nauvoo". In 1847, Bidamon married Emma Smith, the widow of Joseph Smith, the founder of the ...

converted the unfinished hotel into a smaller structure called the Riverside Mansion (also called Bidamon House). At this time, Lewis Bidamon removed the Book of Mormon manuscript from the cornerstone, and it was subsequently purchased by

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

. Emma Bidamon and Lewis Bidamon both lived in Riverside Mansion from 1871 until their deaths. In 1909, the

Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

(RLDS Church) purchased the property.''

Encyclopedia of Mormonism The ''Encyclopedia of Mormonism'' is a semi-official English-language encyclopedia for topics relevant to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, see also "Mormon"). The five-volume texts have been digitized and are availabl ...

'' (New York: Macmillan, 1992) s.v. "Nauvoo House". The Nauvoo House is still owned by the RLDS Church, which is now called the

Community of Christ The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

, and it operates the house as a dormitory available for group rental, as well as a stop on their guided walking tour of the Joseph Smith Historic Site.

Notes

External links

Joseph Smith Historic Site
including the Nauvoo House, Community of Christ
Historic Nauvoo: Joseph Smith Historic Site
{{coord, 40.5401, -91.3914, type:landmark_region:US-IL, display=title Community of Christ Historic house museums in Illinois Joseph Smith Latter Day Saint movement in Illinois Museums in Hancock County, Illinois Nauvoo, Illinois Religious museums in Illinois Significant places in Mormonism