Lyman Wight
Encyclopedia
Lyman Wight 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
Apostles. After the death of Joseph Smith, Jr. resulted in a succession crisis, Wight led his own group of Latter Day Saints to Texas
, where they created a settlement. While in Texas, Wight broke with other factions of Latter Day Saints, including the group led by Brigham Young
. Wight was ordained president of his own church, but he later sided with the claims of William Smith
and eventually of Joseph Smith III
. After his death, most of the "Wightites" (as members of this church were called) joined with the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
.
. He fought in the War of 1812
. He united with Isaac Morley
and others in forming a common stock utopian society in Kirtland, Ohio
.
in 1830. He was ordained a high priest in June 1831. He claimed to have seen Jesus Christ. Shortly afterwards, he went to Missouri, and later Cincinnati, Ohio
to preach. There he baptized over 100 people.
, to build the "City of Zion". The Mormons in Jackson County were at odds with their non-Mormon neighbors, who resorted to vigilantism to drive the church from the county. In one scuffle with a vigilante group, Wight outran them on bare horseback by jumping over a ditch that they could not jump.
On July 23, 1833, Wight signed an agreement with the vigilantes which specified that the Latter Day Saints would leave Jackson County by 1834. The saints were driven out anyway into neighboring Clay County. The church membership called on several elders to go up to Kirtland to tell Joseph Smith about the events. When the elders refused, Lyman stepped forward to make the journey, despite his wife being ill with a three-day old child and only three days of food. Parley P. Pratt
also volunteered to go with Wight.
He arrived in Kirtland, Ohio
on February 22, 1834. Two days later he and Pratt testified about the conflict in Missouri to the newly formed high council. This led to the organization of Zion's Camp
. Joseph sent out men, two by two, to recruit volunteers. Lyman left on April 21 with Hyrum Smith
to recruit from the northwest. Recruitment was difficult, as many people did not want to leave their homes to defend someone else's. Hyrum and Lyman recruited about twenty individuals, including Hosea Stout
, who was not a Church member but was impressed with their preaching. They met with the main company on June 8 at the Salt River in Missouri, bringing the total to 207 men, 11 women, 11 children, and 25 wagons.
Lyman tolerated the conditions of the rest of the company including the eating of moldy and rancid food, under the promises from Joseph Smith that they would not be afflicted by it. After a 900-mile march, the members of the camp reached Missouri where they were smitten with cholera. They were then discharged without having accomplished their goal of returning the Latter Day Saints to Jackson County. At the end of Zion's Camp, Lyman Wight wrote up the discharge orders, and remained in Missouri according to Joseph's command.
.
In 1835, he was encouraged to travel to the temple at Kirtland. While on the journey, he preached. He stopped by Richmond, Indiana
. He knew that people in the area were antagonistic towards the church, yet he made an appointment to preach at the courthouse. At the appointed time, he went to the courthouse. People with tar and feathers filled the room, ready to lynch him. The event is described thus:
accused him of teaching false doctrine, for which he was tried before the high council in Far West
. Being found guilty, he made the necessary acknowledgments.
Settling near the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri on about February 1, 1838, Lyman Wight built a house and later a ferry which became known as "Wight's Ferry". On May 19, 1838, Joseph Smith, Jr. paid a visit to Lyman's home and ferry, and used his home as the headquarters during his visit. It was from his house that Smith received revelation about Adam-ondi-Ahman
and foretold the future gathering there.
On June 28, 1838, at a conference of local church members, Joseph Smith organized a stake at Adam-ondi-Ahman
with Joseph's uncle John Smith
as president, and Reynolds Calhoon and Lyman Wight as counselors. With the organization, members began settling in the area, including new members and refugees from Kirtland, Ohio
.
Wight had also become a Colonel in the 50th regiment of the Missouri Regiment, in the state militia, under the command of General H. G. Parks. By end of June, he was also head of the Danite
organization in Daviess County. Between his several roles, Wight became the preeminent leader of the Latter Day Saints in Daviess.
After the trial, emotions did not abate on either side. The Mormons and non-Mormons in Daviess engaged in non-fatal conflicts. Non-Mormon vigilantes from other counties came to Daviess and began to harass the Latter Day Saints in outlying areas, burning their homes and looting their property. Refugees began pouring into Adam-ondi-Ahman, seeking protection. The Mormon response was to call up armed volunteers from Caldwell County
. Combining with the Daviess men, the Mormons split into three groups and raided the chief non-Mormon settlements. Wight led the raid on Millport. The old settlers and their families fled and Wight and his men looted their property and burned their homes to the ground (Baugh, pp. 86–87).
Following these actions, the Battle of Crooked River
took place. Joseph Smith advised every church member to go to Adam-ondi-Ahman or Far West for protection and strength. When Far West fell under siege after the Missouri Executive Order 44, Lyman Wight organized members in Adam-ondi-Ahman to assist them. No battle took place, however, as Wight and the other Mormon leaders were arrested by the state militia and the Mormon militia subsequently surrendered.
While in custody of the state troops, Lyman endured the mockery and vulgarity of the troops, lying in the ground in the rain. A court martial which might have led to Wight's execution was averted by General Alexander William Doniphan
of Clay County who challenged the legality of any such court. Instead, Wight and the other leaders were tried in the civil courts. Wight and other leaders were allowed to escape from jail during their transfer to Boone County
on April 16, 1839.
, who died in the Battle of Crooked River in 1838. Wight and George Miller
became co-responsible for a common-stock, religious cooperative company/church mill and logging town in the wilds of Wisconsin. Much lumber for the Nauvoo Temple
and the Nauvoo House
were floated down the Mississippi River from the several Mormon mills in the area.
. Wight moved a group of Latter Day Saints there and eventually founded several communities on the central Texas frontier. The first Mormon temple west of the Mississippi was built at Zodiac, Texas
, about three miles from Fredericksburg
. Sealings, ordinations, washing and anointing
s, and adoptions
were performed in this temple by the Wightites.
Brigham Young
tried to get Wight to join the main body of Mormonism (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Utah Territory
) several times, but Wight refused each time. Wight was eventually excommunicated in December 1848; his most prominent follower, Bishop George Miller
, was also disfellowshipped. Most of the anger between Wight and Young seemed to weigh heavily on Wight.
Wight later recognized William Smith
as the President of the Church (Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) for a short time and served as a counselor in William's short-lived First Presidency
. After 1849, Wight wrote and stated that he believed the prophetic mantle of church leadership should fall on the shoulders of Joseph Smith's sons. By then he had no use for Brigham Young, William Smith, and James Strang
as pretenders, in his mind, as successors to Joseph Smith. In 1851, after the Pedernales River
overflowed its banks and destroyed Zodiac, the colonists moved to Burnet County
, establishing Morman Mill.
Wight died on March 31, 1858 with a small remnant of his colony in a few miles from San Antonio. Wight's group had been trekking for Jackson County, Missouri, where he wished to rejoin the remainder of the Mid-Western Saints. He was buried in his temple robes
at the Mormon cemetery at Zodiac, which no longer exists. The only remaining material infrastructure of the colony is the Morman Mill cemetery near Hamilton Creek, about fifty miles east by north of Fredericksburg
.
Quorum of the Twelve
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve was one of the governing bodies of the church hierarchy organized by the movement's founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and patterned after the twelve apostles of Christ In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the...
Apostles. After the death of Joseph Smith, Jr. resulted in a succession crisis, Wight led his own group of Latter Day Saints to Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, where they created a settlement. While in Texas, Wight broke with other factions of Latter Day Saints, including the group led by Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
. Wight was ordained president of his own church, but he later sided with the claims of William Smith
William Smith (Mormonism)
William Smith was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and one of the original members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Smith was the eighth child of Joseph Smith, Sr...
and eventually of Joseph Smith III
Joseph Smith III
Joseph Smith III was the eldest surviving son of Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, and Emma Hale Smith...
. After his death, most of the "Wightites" (as members of this church were called) joined with the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Community of Christ
The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , is an American-based international Christian church established in April 1830 that claims as its mission "to proclaim Jesus Christ and promote communities of joy, hope, love, and peace"...
.
Early life
Lyman Wight was born in Fairfield, New YorkFairfield, New York
Fairfield is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,607 at the 2000 census. The town is named after Fairfield, Connecticut.The Town of Fairfield is north of the Village of Herkimer and east of Utica...
. He fought in the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. He united with Isaac Morley
Isaac Morley
Isaac Morley was an early member of the Latter Day Saint movement and a contemporary of both Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. He was one of the first converts to Smith's Church of Christ...
and others in forming a common stock utopian society in Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
.
Service in the church
He was baptized by Oliver CowderyOliver Cowdery
Oliver H. P. Cowdery was, with Joseph Smith, Jr., an important participant in the formative period of the Latter Day Saint movement between 1829 and 1836, becoming one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's golden plates, one of the first Latter Day Saint apostles, and the Second Elder of...
in 1830. He was ordained a high priest in June 1831. He claimed to have seen Jesus Christ. Shortly afterwards, he went to Missouri, and later Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
to preach. There he baptized over 100 people.
Jackson County conflict and Zion's Camp
With many of his converted people, he went to settle in Independence, MissouriIndependence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
, to build the "City of Zion". The Mormons in Jackson County were at odds with their non-Mormon neighbors, who resorted to vigilantism to drive the church from the county. In one scuffle with a vigilante group, Wight outran them on bare horseback by jumping over a ditch that they could not jump.
On July 23, 1833, Wight signed an agreement with the vigilantes which specified that the Latter Day Saints would leave Jackson County by 1834. The saints were driven out anyway into neighboring Clay County. The church membership called on several elders to go up to Kirtland to tell Joseph Smith about the events. When the elders refused, Lyman stepped forward to make the journey, despite his wife being ill with a three-day old child and only three days of food. Parley P. Pratt
Parley P. Pratt
Parley Parker Pratt, Sr. was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1835 until his murder in 1857. He served in the Quorum with his younger brother, Orson Pratt...
also volunteered to go with Wight.
He arrived in Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
on February 22, 1834. Two days later he and Pratt testified about the conflict in Missouri to the newly formed high council. This led to the organization of Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp was a paramilitary expedition of Latter Day Saints, led by Joseph Smith, Jr., 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...
. Joseph sent out men, two by two, to recruit volunteers. Lyman left on April 21 with Hyrum Smith
Hyrum Smith
Hyrum Smith was an American religious leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the original church of the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the older brother of the movement's founder, Joseph Smith, Jr....
to recruit from the northwest. Recruitment was difficult, as many people did not want to leave their homes to defend someone else's. Hyrum and Lyman recruited about twenty individuals, including Hosea Stout
Hosea Stout
Hosea Stout was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement, a Mormon pioneer, and a lawyer and politician in Utah Territory....
, who was not a Church member but was impressed with their preaching. They met with the main company on June 8 at the Salt River in Missouri, bringing the total to 207 men, 11 women, 11 children, and 25 wagons.
Lyman tolerated the conditions of the rest of the company including the eating of moldy and rancid food, under the promises from Joseph Smith that they would not be afflicted by it. After a 900-mile march, the members of the camp reached Missouri where they were smitten with cholera. They were then discharged without having accomplished their goal of returning the Latter Day Saints to Jackson County. At the end of Zion's Camp, Lyman Wight wrote up the discharge orders, and remained in Missouri according to Joseph's command.
Itinerant preaching
For the remainder of 1834, he worked making bricks in Missouri, and built a large brick house for Colonel Arthur of Clay County, employing several others, including Wilford WoodruffWilford Woodruff
Wilford Woodruff, Sr. was the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1889 until his death...
.
In 1835, he was encouraged to travel to the temple at Kirtland. While on the journey, he preached. He stopped by Richmond, Indiana
Richmond, Indiana
Richmond is a city largely within Wayne Township, Wayne County, in east central Indiana, United States, which borders Ohio. The city also includes the Richmond Municipal Airport, which is in Boston Township and separated from the rest of the city...
. He knew that people in the area were antagonistic towards the church, yet he made an appointment to preach at the courthouse. At the appointed time, he went to the courthouse. People with tar and feathers filled the room, ready to lynch him. The event is described thus:
- He preached about two hours, reproving them most severely for their meanness, wickedness and mobocraticOchlocracyOchlocracy or mob rule is government by mob or a mass of people, or the intimidation of legitimate authorities.As a pejorative for majoritarianism, it is akin to the Latin phrase mobile vulgus meaning "the fickle crowd", from which the English term "mob" was originally derived in the...
spirit. At the close of the meeting he said, "If there is a gentleman in this congregation, I wish he would invite me to stay with him overnight." Whereupon, a gentleman stepped forward and tendered him an invitation, which he willingly accepted. His host said, "Mr Wight, it is astonishing how you have become so well acquainted with the people here, for you have described them very correctly." He was kindly entertained and furnished with money in the morning to aid him on his journey.
Mormon leader in Daviess County
Staying the winter in Kirtland, Lyman set out to return to Missouri in 1836. In 1837, David W. PattenDavid W. Patten
David Wyman Patten was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles...
accused him of teaching false doctrine, for which he was tried before the high council in Far West
Far West
Far West most frequently refers to the American Old West.Far West may also refer to:* "Far West", a common colloquial term for a distinct area of the far Western United States* Far West, Missouri...
. Being found guilty, he made the necessary acknowledgments.
Settling near the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri on about February 1, 1838, Lyman Wight built a house and later a ferry which became known as "Wight's Ferry". On May 19, 1838, Joseph Smith, Jr. paid a visit to Lyman's home and ferry, and used his home as the headquarters during his visit. It was from his house that Smith received revelation about Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman is an historic site along the east bluffs above the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri. According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , it is the site where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden...
and foretold the future gathering there.
On June 28, 1838, at a conference of local church members, Joseph Smith organized a stake at Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman is an historic site along the east bluffs above the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri. According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , it is the site where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden...
with Joseph's uncle John Smith
John Smith (1781-1854)
John Smith , known as Uncle John, was an early leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....
as president, and Reynolds Calhoon and Lyman Wight as counselors. With the organization, members began settling in the area, including new members and refugees from Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
.
Wight had also become a Colonel in the 50th regiment of the Missouri Regiment, in the state militia, under the command of General H. G. Parks. By end of June, he was also head of the Danite
Danite
The Danites were a fraternal organization founded by Latter Day Saint members in June 1838, in the town of Far West in Caldwell County, Missouri. During their period of organization in Missouri, the Danites operated as a vigilante group and took a central role in the events of the 1838 Mormon War...
organization in Daviess County. Between his several roles, Wight became the preeminent leader of the Latter Day Saints in Daviess.
The Mormon War
In the summer of 1838, the troubles of the Mormon War began with events on the Gallatin Election Day Battle. In response, Wight armed over 150 men at this time to defend the Latter Day Saints in Daviess. Lyman Wight was accused, along with Joseph Smith, of organizing an army and threatening and harassing various old settlers of Daviess County. Joseph and Lyman agreed to hold trial to ease the tensions in the area. On September 7, 1838, they were tried before Judge Austin A. King. The judge ordered them to stand trial before the circuit court on bail of $500.After the trial, emotions did not abate on either side. The Mormons and non-Mormons in Daviess engaged in non-fatal conflicts. Non-Mormon vigilantes from other counties came to Daviess and began to harass the Latter Day Saints in outlying areas, burning their homes and looting their property. Refugees began pouring into Adam-ondi-Ahman, seeking protection. The Mormon response was to call up armed volunteers from Caldwell County
Caldwell County, Missouri
Caldwell County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. , the population was 8,969. Its county seat is Kingston. The county was organized in 1836 as a haven for the Mormons, who had been previously driven from Jackson County, Missouri in November of 1833 and had been refugees in...
. Combining with the Daviess men, the Mormons split into three groups and raided the chief non-Mormon settlements. Wight led the raid on Millport. The old settlers and their families fled and Wight and his men looted their property and burned their homes to the ground (Baugh, pp. 86–87).
Following these actions, the Battle of Crooked River
Battle of Crooked River
The Battle of Crooked River was a skirmish between Latter Day Saint forces and Missouri state militia unit from southeast of Elmira, Missouri in Ray County under the command of Samuel Bogart...
took place. Joseph Smith advised every church member to go to Adam-ondi-Ahman or Far West for protection and strength. When Far West fell under siege after the Missouri Executive Order 44, Lyman Wight organized members in Adam-ondi-Ahman to assist them. No battle took place, however, as Wight and the other Mormon leaders were arrested by the state militia and the Mormon militia subsequently surrendered.
While in custody of the state troops, Lyman endured the mockery and vulgarity of the troops, lying in the ground in the rain. A court martial which might have led to Wight's execution was averted by General Alexander William Doniphan
Alexander William Doniphan
Alexander William Doniphan was a 19th-century American attorney, soldier and politician from Missouri who is best known today as the man who prevented the summary execution of Mormon founder Joseph Smith, Jr. at the close of the 1838 Mormon War in that state...
of Clay County who challenged the legality of any such court. Instead, Wight and the other leaders were tried in the civil courts. Wight and other leaders were allowed to escape from jail during their transfer to Boone County
Boone County, Missouri
Boone County is a county centrally located in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the eighth most populous county in Missouri. In 2010, the population was 162,642. Its county seat, Columbia, is the fifth largest city in Missouri and the anchor city of the Columbia Metropolitan Area.-History:Boone...
on April 16, 1839.
Nauvoo era
Lyman Wight was ordained an apostle on April 8, 1841 by Joseph Smith to replace David W. PattenDavid W. Patten
David Wyman Patten was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles...
, who died in the Battle of Crooked River in 1838. Wight and George Miller
George Miller (Latter Day Saints)
-External links:**...
became co-responsible for a common-stock, religious cooperative company/church mill and logging town in the wilds of Wisconsin. Much lumber for the Nauvoo Temple
Nauvoo Temple
The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons. The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio, United States in 1836. When the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo, Illinois in the...
and the Nauvoo House
Nauvoo House
The Nauvoo House in Nauvoo, Illinois is a boarding house that Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, 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...
were floated down the Mississippi River from the several Mormon mills in the area.
Succession crisis and Wightite colonization in Texas
During the succession crisis after the death of Joseph Smith, Wight felt compelled to follow the orders Joseph Smith had given him to found a safe haven for the Latter-day Saints in the Republic of TexasRepublic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
. Wight moved a group of Latter Day Saints there and eventually founded several communities on the central Texas frontier. The first Mormon temple west of the Mississippi was built at Zodiac, Texas
Zodiac, Texas
Zodiac is a vanished Mormon settlement established in 1847 on the Pedernales River, located southeast of Fredericksburg, in Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. It was the first Mormon colony established by Lyman Wight in Texas. The second settlement was Mormon Mill, Burnet County, Texas...
, about three miles from Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg, Texas
Fredericksburg is the seat of Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census estimate, the city had a population of 10, 530...
. Sealings, ordinations, washing and anointing
Washing and anointing
The washing and anointing is a temple ordinance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that pertains to exaltation within the Celestial Kingdom. Combined, the two ordinances are known as the initiatory, which is performed for both the living and the dead.-History:Ritual anointings were...
s, and adoptions
Law of adoption
The law of adoption was a ritual practiced in Latter Day Saint temples between 1846 and 1894 in which men who held the priesthood were sealed in a father–son relationship to other men who were not part of nor even distantly related to their immediate nuclear family.-Practice:Some younger men who...
were performed in this temple by the Wightites.
Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
tried to get Wight to join the main body of Mormonism (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Utah Territory
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....
) several times, but Wight refused each time. Wight was eventually excommunicated in December 1848; his most prominent follower, Bishop George Miller
George Miller (Latter Day Saints)
-External links:**...
, was also disfellowshipped. Most of the anger between Wight and Young seemed to weigh heavily on Wight.
Wight later recognized William Smith
William Smith (Mormonism)
William Smith was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and one of the original members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Smith was the eighth child of Joseph Smith, Sr...
as the President of the Church (Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) for a short time and served as a counselor in William's short-lived First Presidency
First Presidency
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
. After 1849, Wight wrote and stated that he believed the prophetic mantle of church leadership should fall on the shoulders of Joseph Smith's sons. By then he had no use for Brigham Young, William Smith, and James Strang
James Strang
James Jesse Strang was an American religious leader, politician and self-proclaimed monarch who founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , a faction of the Latter Day Saint movement...
as pretenders, in his mind, as successors to Joseph Smith. In 1851, after the Pedernales River
Pedernales River
The Pedernales River is a tributary of the Colorado River, approximately long, in central Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the Edwards Plateau, flowing west to east across the Texas Hill Country west of Austin...
overflowed its banks and destroyed Zodiac, the colonists moved to Burnet County
Burnet County, Texas
Burnet County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population was 34,147. The 2008 Census Bureau Estimate was 44,488. Its county seat is Burnet. Burnet is named for David Gouverneur Burnet, the first president of the Republic of Texas...
, establishing Morman Mill.
Wight died on March 31, 1858 with a small remnant of his colony in a few miles from San Antonio. Wight's group had been trekking for Jackson County, Missouri, where he wished to rejoin the remainder of the Mid-Western Saints. He was buried in his temple robes
Temple robes
Temple robes describe the ceremonial clothing worn in the performance of ordinances and ceremonies in a temple.- Old Testament tradition :The 28th and 29th chapters of the Book of Exodus describe in detail the ritual clothing worn by priests in the ancient temple...
at the Mormon cemetery at Zodiac, which no longer exists. The only remaining material infrastructure of the colony is the Morman Mill cemetery near Hamilton Creek, about fifty miles east by north of Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg, Texas
Fredericksburg is the seat of Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census estimate, the city had a population of 10, 530...
.
External resources
- Grampa Bill's G.A. Pages: Lyman Wight
- Lyman Wight, "Saints Without Haloes", Leonard J. ArringtonLeonard J. ArringtonLeonard James Arrington was an author, academic and the founder of the Mormon History Association. He is known as the "Dean of Mormon History" and "the Father of Mormon History" because of his many influential contributions to the field.-Biographical background:Arrington was born in Twin Falls,...
and Davis BittonDavis Bitton-External links:*...
. Signature BooksSignature BooksSignature Books is a press specializing in subjects related to Utah, Mormonism, and Western Americana. The company was founded in 1980 by George D...
. - Lyman Wight's Mormon Colony in Texas excerpt from "Mormon Trails" chapter in Hill Country travel guide by Richard Zelade (2001). Accessed online August 6, 2007.