Upstate New York and Canada: Seneca Falls and Harmony (9.8.24)

 We visited, on September 8, 2024, the houses in northern Pennsylvania where Joseph Smith and his wife, Emma, courted and were married, and where the first branch of the Church was organized. We visited the Harmony, Pennsylvania sites where the Aaronic and Melchezidek priesthoods were restored to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery.  But first, we visited the sites in Seneca Falls, New York, where the women's suffrage movement was born.

In 1848, in Seneca Falls, New York, Elizabeth Cady Stanton made the first public demand for women's suffrage.  We visited the Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls, honoring the suffragettes and the continuing struggle for women's rights.

The women's rights movement arose out of the fight against slavery.  Northern New York State was a hotbed for abolitionists, and was visited by Frederick Douglas, the freed slave who was a powerful abolitionist in the years leading up to the Civil War.

As slaves became free, women who supported that freedom also wanted their own freedom.  Women's right to vote was not granted in federal elections until 1920.

We visited the home of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, where she wrote letters and strategized for getting the vote for women.

Susan B. Anthony (left) came to Seneca Falls to work with Elizabeth Cady Stanton on gaining women's suffrage.

Palmyra and Seneca Falls are near the top blue dot on the map above.  The Priesthood Restoration site in Harmony, Pennsylvania is marked by the lower blue dot.

Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were given the Aaronic priesthood by John the Baptist, and the Melchizedek priesthood by Apostles Peter, James, and John, during the time period that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon and parts of the Bible..

Joseph and Oliver were baptized in the beautiful Susquehanna River, nearby.  Our granddaughter, Annie, was also baptized in the Susquehanna River.

Joseph built a house in Harmony, Pennsylvania, for himself and Emma.  Their first child was born and soon died in this home.

Joseph wrapped the plates in a cloth.  He translated most of the Book of Mormon while he lived in Harmony, Pennsylvania with Emma.

We saw a box that was the same size and weighed the same as the box Joseph found, full of gold plates.

We toured the reconstructed house of Emma's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Hale.  Eventually, Joseph and Emma left Harmony, never to return, because of the hostility of the townspeople.

We drove 30 miles north to visit the Joseph Knight home, where the first branch of the Church was formed, after its organization.  

The house is owned by a private foundation which arranges for volunteers to spend two week sessions living in the house and acting as guides for tourists.  This couple was from Idaho.

Parts of the house had been reconstructed, but the stairs were original.

The house nearby was owned by Josiah Stowell, who had originally asked Joseph to come to work for him in Pennsylvania.  Joseph met Emma and eloped with her while he lived with Josiah Stowell.  Church history stories come alive for me when I can see where they happened! 

Dave and I stood next to the mantel in the Josiah Stowell home where Joseph and Emma were married.