Thomas B. Marsh
Encyclopedia
Thomas Baldwin Marsh was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement
and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He served as the first President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from 1835 to 1839. He was excommunicated from the Church in 1839, and remained disaffected for much of his life. Marsh rejoined the church in July 1857, but never again served in Church leadership positions.
, Middlesex County
, Massachusetts
to James Marsh and Mary Law. He spent his early life farming in Westmoreland
, New Hampshire
.
As a young man, Marsh developed a pattern of traveling and working for various employers. Marsh ran away at age fourteen to Chester
, Vermont
and worked as a farmer for three months. Then he left for Albany
, New York
, working as a waiter for eighteen months. He spent two years working at the New York City Hotel in New York City
, then returned to Albany for a year, and then back at the New York hotel for two more years. He spent eighteen months working as a groom
for Edward Griswold on Long Island, New York.
During the time Marsh was employed by Griswold, he was married to Elizabeth Godkin on his twenty-first birthday in 1820. After his marriage, he attempted unsuccessfully to run a grocery business for eighteen months. He subsequently spent seven years working at a type foundry
in Boston, Massachusetts.
During his work at the type foundry, Marsh became a member of the Methodist Church. However, Marsh became dissatisfied because he came to believe that Methodism did not correspond to the Bible
. Marsh left the Methodist Church and joined a group of friends in what others called a Quietist
sect.
in Livingston County
for three months before returning home. On the way home, he stopped at Lyonstown, where a woman informed him of the Golden Plates
that Joseph Smith had obtained. She directed him to Palmyra, New York
, and told him to seek out Martin Harris.
Marsh traveled to Palmyra and discovered Martin Harris at a printing office, working on the printing of the Book of Mormon
. Marsh was able to obtain the first sixteen pages as a printer's proof. Marsh also met Oliver Cowdery
at the printing office.
Returning to his home, he showed the sixteen pages to his wife. They both were pleased and began to correspond with Cowdery and Joseph Smith. After the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was formed on April 6, 1830, he moved with his family to Palmyra to join them that September.
Shortly after his arrival, Marsh was baptized by David Whitmer
in Cayuga Lake
, and a few months later ordained an elder by Cowdery. From September 26 to September 28, 1830, Joseph Smith received Doctrine and Covenants
section 31, a revelation
directed at Marsh. In this section, he was told that he would be as a physician to the church.
Marsh moved with the church to Kirtland
, Ohio
in the spring of 1831. He was ordained a high priest
and received a call to proselyte to Missouri
with Ezra Thayre
. Thayre delayed for a long time, and so Marsh went to Joseph Smith, who appointed Selah J. Griffin in Thayre's stead.
on the 14 and 15 of February 1835. Smith arranged the members by age. As there was confusion over David W. Patten
's birth date, Thomas B. Marsh was identified as the eldest of the Apostles and was therefore designated Quorum President
. According to Marsh's autobiographical sketch, published in 1864:
After these activities with the Twelve Apostles, Marsh returned to Fishing River, Clay County, Missouri, in April 1836. Severe difficulties between Mormons
and the larger community continued to plague the Latter Day Saints in Missouri. Marsh was chosen as a delegate from his community to try to resolve these issues. Despite the efforts of church members, their Missouri neighbors decided that the Saints must leave Clay County.
Marsh traveled to Latter Day Saint congregations in other states, including Tennessee
and Kentucky
, gathering loans at an interest of ten percent to help the Clay County Saints obtain new property. The diary of Apostle Wilford Woodruff
contains an account of part of that journey:
In September 1836, he returned to Missouri and joined the Saints in their new location, a city called Far West
in Caldwell County, Missouri
. The town had been founded by the presidency of the Missouri Stake, consisting of David Whitmer
, William Wines Phelps and John Whitmer
. These men were authorized to purchase land on behalf of the Church for the benefit of Latter Day Saint settlement. Meanwhile, in Kirtland, the financial situation of many of the Mormons unraveled with the failure of the Kirtland Safety Society
bank. A dispute arose between the presidency in Missouri and the Church Presidency
in Kirtland over the land funds, with both sides accusing the other of financial improprieties.
Marsh sided with the Church Presidency and convened a series of church courts in the spring of 1838. He charged the Whitmers and Phelps along with Oliver Cowdery
of financial impropriety and other failings. The court released these men from their positions and disfellowshipped them. On April 6, 1838, Marsh was named as President of the Church in Missouri, with David W. Patten
and Brigham Young
as Assistant Presidents.
moved to Far West
, which became the new church headquarters. Although disfellowshipped, David
and John Whitmer
, Oliver Cowdery
, W.W. Phelps and other former leaders (who were known as the "dissenters") continued to live in the county. By early June, some of the more zealous Mormons
, led by Sampson Avard
, formed a society which came to be known as the "Danite
s." According to Marsh, these men swore oaths to "support the heads of the church in all things that they say or do, whether right or wrong". According to Reed Peck, two of these Danites, Jared Carter and Dimick B. Huntington, proposed at a meeting that the society should kill the dissenters. Marsh and fellow moderate, John Corrill, spoke vigorously against the motion. On the following Sunday, however, Sidney Rigdon
issued his "Salt Sermon
" in which he likened the dissenters to salt that had lost its savor and was "good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men". Within a week the dissenters had fled the county.
Although he may have been concerned about these events, Marsh remained in the church until late October. According to his sworn testimony, Marsh claimed that a Mormon invasion of Daviess County and the subsequent looting and burning of non-Mormon settlements, including Gallatin
, the county seat, were the acts that caused him to leave. Marsh stated:
On October 19, 1838, the day after Gallatin was burned, Thomas B. Marsh and fellow apostle Orson Hyde
left the association of the Church. Marsh drafted and signed a legal affidavit against Joseph Smith on October 24, 1838, which Hyde also signed. In addition to reporting on the organization of the Danites and on the events in Daviess County, Marsh reported rumors that the Danites had set up a "destroying company" and that "if the people of Clay & Ray made any movement against them, this destroying company was to burn Liberty & Richmond." He further stated his belief that Joseph Smith planned "to take the State, & he professes to his people to intend taking the U.S. & ultimately the whole world".
Marsh's testimony added to the panic in northwestern Missouri and contributed to subsequent events in the Mormon War.
Because a Mormon attack was believed imminent, a unit of the state militia
from Ray County was dispatched to patrol the border between Ray and Mormon Caldwell County
to the north. On October 25, 1838, reports reached Mormons in Far West
that this state militia unit was a "mob" and had kidnapped several Mormons. The Mormons formed an armed rescue party and attacked the militia in what became known as the Battle of Crooked River
. Although only one Missourian was killed, initial reports held that half the unit had been wiped out. This attack on the state militia, coupled with the earlier expulsion of non-Mormons from Daviess County led Missouri's governor Lilburn W. Boggs to respond with force. On October 27 he called out 2,500 state militia to put down what he perceived as a Mormon rebellion and signed Missouri Executive Order 44, which became known as the "Extermination Order"
Marsh was excommunicated from the Church in absentia
on March 17, 1839 in Quincy, Illinois
.
After Marsh moved to Utah
and rejoined the Latter-day Saints, he looked back at his decision to leave the Church with regret, recanting the 1838 affidavit. Concerning his actions in Missouri, he wrote:
The year before Marsh rejoined the church, George A. Smith
claimed in a sermon on April 6, 1856, that Marsh had left the church because of a dispute between his wife and other Mormon women over a milk cow, which had escalated all the way up to the First Presidency.
into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Marsh wrote an autobiography in 1864, recounting his Church service and rebellion. It was published in the Millennial Star
of that year. However, his religious affiliation still may not have been fixed. According to Elder Thomas Job, a missionary of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now known as the Community of Christ
) serving in Utah
, shortly before his death Marsh
Thomas B. Marsh died in Ogden
, Utah Territory
in January 1866, apparently a pauper. He is buried at the Ogden Cemetery.
can be in convincing people of the truthfulness of the Church. When his apostasy is mentioned, he is often referred to either as an example of pride or as an example of one who failed to fulfill his calling to serve the Church. For example, in 2006, David A. Bednar
of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve Apostles repeated the story that Marsh left the church partially because his wife was angry over being accused of stealing the cream from a milk trading deal with her neighbor. He contrasted Marsh's faithlessness with the devotion of Brigham Young
. He said: In many instances, choosing to be offended is a symptom of a much deeper and more serious spiritual malady. Thomas B. Marsh allowed himself to be acted upon, and the eventual results were apostasy and misery. Brigham Young was an agent who exercised his agency and acted in accordance with correct principles, and he became a mighty instrument in the hands of the Lord.
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is a group of independent churches tracing their origin to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 14 million members...
and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He served as the first President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from 1835 to 1839. He was excommunicated from the Church in 1839, and remained disaffected for much of his life. Marsh rejoined the church in July 1857, but never again served in Church leadership positions.
Early life
Marsh was born on November 1, 1799, in the town of ActonActon, Massachusetts
Acton is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States about twenty-one miles west-northwest of Boston along Route 2 west of Concord and about ten miles southwest of Lowell. The population was 21,924 at the 2010 census...
, Middlesex County
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
-National protected areas:* Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge* Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge* Longfellow National Historic Site* Lowell National Historical Park* Minute Man National Historical Park* Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
to James Marsh and Mary Law. He spent his early life farming in Westmoreland
Westmoreland, New Hampshire
Westmoreland is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,874 at the 2010 census. Westmoreland is historically an agricultural town, with much arable farmland.-History:...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
.
As a young man, Marsh developed a pattern of traveling and working for various employers. Marsh ran away at age fourteen to Chester
Chester, Vermont
Chester is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,044 at the 2000 census. The town was originally chartered by New Hampshire Governor Benning Wentworth as Flamstead in 1754. The terms of the charter were not met and the town was re-chartered as New Flamstead in 1761...
, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
and worked as a farmer for three months. Then he left for Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, working as a waiter for eighteen months. He spent two years working at the New York City Hotel in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, then returned to Albany for a year, and then back at the New York hotel for two more years. He spent eighteen months working as a groom
Domestic worker
A domestic worker is a man, woman or child who works within the employer's household. Domestic workers perform a variety of household services for an individual or a family, from providing care for children and elderly dependents to cleaning and household maintenance, known as housekeeping...
for Edward Griswold on Long Island, New York.
During the time Marsh was employed by Griswold, he was married to Elizabeth Godkin on his twenty-first birthday in 1820. After his marriage, he attempted unsuccessfully to run a grocery business for eighteen months. He subsequently spent seven years working at a type foundry
Type foundry
A type foundry is a company that designs or distributes typefaces. Originally, type foundries manufactured and sold metal and wood typefaces and matrices for line-casting machines like the Linotype and Monotype machines designed to be printed on letterpress printers...
in Boston, Massachusetts.
During his work at the type foundry, Marsh became a member of the Methodist Church. However, Marsh became dissatisfied because he came to believe that Methodism did not correspond to the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. Marsh left the Methodist Church and joined a group of friends in what others called a Quietist
Quietism (Christian philosophy)
Quietism is a Christian philosophy that swept through France, Italy and Spain during the 17th century, but it had much earlier origins. The mystics known as Quietists insist, with more or less emphasis, on intellectual stillness and interior passivity as essential conditions of perfection...
sect.
Conversion and Baptism
In 1829 Marsh unexpectedly left his home in Boston and journeyed west, traveling with Benjamin Hall, one of his friends from the Quietist sect. In his words, "I believed the Spirit of God dictated me to make a journey west." He stayed at Lima, New YorkLima (village), New York
Lima is a village in Livingston County, New York, USA. The population was 2,459 at the 2000 census.The Village of Lima is in the Town of Lima and is nineteen miles south of the city of Rochester, NY.- History :...
in Livingston County
Livingston County, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 64,328 people, 22,150 households, and 15,349 families residing in the county. The population density was 102 people per square mile . There were 24,023 housing units at an average density of 38 per square mile...
for three months before returning home. On the way home, he stopped at Lyonstown, where a woman informed him of the Golden Plates
Golden Plates
According to Latter Day Saint belief, the golden plates are the source from which Joseph Smith, Jr. translated the Book of Mormon, a sacred text of the faith...
that Joseph Smith had obtained. She directed him to Palmyra, New York
Palmyra (town), New York
Palmyra is a town in Wayne County, New York, USA. The population was 7,672 at the 2000 census. The town is named after the ancient city Palmyra in Syria....
, and told him to seek out Martin Harris.
Marsh traveled to Palmyra and discovered Martin Harris at a printing office, working on the printing of the Book of Mormon
Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
. Marsh was able to obtain the first sixteen pages as a printer's proof. Marsh also met Oliver Cowdery
Oliver 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...
at the printing office.
Returning to his home, he showed the sixteen pages to his wife. They both were pleased and began to correspond with Cowdery and Joseph Smith. After the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was formed on April 6, 1830, he moved with his family to Palmyra to join them that September.
Shortly after his arrival, Marsh was baptized by David Whitmer
David Whitmer
David Whitmer was an early adherent of the Latter Day Saint movement who eventually became the most interviewed of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates.-Early life:...
in Cayuga Lake
Cayuga Lake
Cayuga Lake is the longest of central New York's glacial Finger Lakes, and is the second largest in surface area and second largest in volume. It is just under 40 miles long. Its average width is 1.7 miles , and it is at its widest point near Aurora...
, and a few months later ordained an elder by Cowdery. From September 26 to September 28, 1830, Joseph Smith received Doctrine and Covenants
Doctrine and Covenants
The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...
section 31, a revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
directed at Marsh. In this section, he was told that he would be as a physician to the church.
Marsh moved with the church to Kirtland
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:...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
in the spring of 1831. He was ordained a high priest
High priest (Mormonism)
In most denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, a high priest is a member of the priesthood within the Melchizedek priesthood order. High priests are typically older and more seasoned leaders within the priesthood. The term derives in part from the Epistle to the Hebrews which describes...
and received a call to proselyte to Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
with Ezra Thayre
Ezra Thayre
Ezra Thayre was an early convert and leader in the Latter Day Saint movement.-Conversion to Mormonism:...
. Thayre delayed for a long time, and so Marsh went to Joseph Smith, who appointed Selah J. Griffin in Thayre's stead.
Apostleship
Joseph Smith organized the first Quorum of the Twelve ApostlesQuorum of the Twelve Apostles
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is one of the governing bodies in the church hierarchy...
on the 14 and 15 of February 1835. Smith arranged the members by age. As there was confusion over David W. Patten
David 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...
's birth date, Thomas B. Marsh was identified as the eldest of the Apostles and was therefore designated Quorum President
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
. According to Marsh's autobiographical sketch, published in 1864:
- In January, 1835, in company with Bishop PartridgeEdward PartridgeEdward Partridge was the grandson of Massachusetts Congressman Oliver Partridge, Esq., and a member of a family noted for commercial, social, political, and military leadership in Western Massachusetts. One of the first converts to the Latter Day Saint movement, he was baptized in or near Seneca...
and agreeable to revelation, I proceeded to Kirtland, where we arrived early in the spring, when I learned I had been chosen one of the Twelve Apostles.
- May 4, 1835, in company with the Twelve I left Kirtland and preached through the eastern states, holding conferences, regulating and organizing the churches, and returned September 25.
- In the winter of 1835–36, I attended school, studied the first English grammar under Sidney RigdonSidney RigdonSidney Rigdon was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Baptist background:...
, and Hebrew under Professor Seixas (a Hebrew by birth)....
After these activities with the Twelve Apostles, Marsh returned to Fishing River, Clay County, Missouri, in April 1836. Severe difficulties between Mormons
Mormons
The Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, a religion started by Joseph Smith during the American Second Great Awakening. A vast majority of Mormons are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while a minority are members of other independent churches....
and the larger community continued to plague the Latter Day Saints in Missouri. Marsh was chosen as a delegate from his community to try to resolve these issues. Despite the efforts of church members, their Missouri neighbors decided that the Saints must leave Clay County.
Marsh traveled to Latter Day Saint congregations in other states, including Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, gathering loans at an interest of ten percent to help the Clay County Saints obtain new property. The diary of Apostle Wilford Woodruff
Wilford Woodruff
Wilford Woodruff, Sr. was the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1889 until his death...
contains an account of part of that journey:
- Aug. 20th - Elder [David] PattenDavid W. PattenDavid Wyman Patten was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles...
preached at the house of Randolph Alexander, and after meeting baptized him and his wife. Brother T. B. Marsh arrived in Tennessee on his mission to collect means, and attend a Conference with the brethren laboring in Tennessee and Kentucky, which was held on Damon's Creek, Callaway County, Kentucky, Sept. 2nd 1836. T. B. Marsh presided. Seven Branches were represented containing 133 members....
- Sept. 19th. - Elders T. B. Marsh, D. [David] W. Patten, E. H. Groves and Sister Patten left the Saints in Kentucky and Tennessee and started for Far West, MissouriFar West, MissouriFar West, Missouri, was a Latter Day Saint settlement in Caldwell County, Missouri.-Foundation and early history:The town was founded by Missouri Mormon leaders, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer in August 1836 shortly before the county's creation. The town was platted originally as a square area,...
, where they arrived in peace and safety." (Woodruff, Wilford - Diary, August 20th,and Sept. 19, 1836)
In September 1836, he returned to Missouri and joined the Saints in their new location, a city called Far West
Far West, Missouri
Far West, Missouri, was a Latter Day Saint settlement in Caldwell County, Missouri.-Foundation and early history:The town was founded by Missouri Mormon leaders, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer in August 1836 shortly before the county's creation. The town was platted originally as a square area,...
in Caldwell County, Missouri
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...
. The town had been founded by the presidency of the Missouri Stake, consisting of David Whitmer
David Whitmer
David Whitmer was an early adherent of the Latter Day Saint movement who eventually became the most interviewed of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates.-Early life:...
, William Wines Phelps and John Whitmer
John Whitmer
John Whitmer was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates...
. These men were authorized to purchase land on behalf of the Church for the benefit of Latter Day Saint settlement. Meanwhile, in Kirtland, the financial situation of many of the Mormons unraveled with the failure of the Kirtland Safety Society
Kirtland Safety Society
The Kirtland Safety Society was a quasi-bank organized in 1836 by leaders and followers of the Church of the Latter Day Saints. According to KSS's 1837 "Articles of Agreement", it was intended to serve the banking needs of the growing Mormon community in Kirtland, Ohio...
bank. A dispute arose between the presidency in Missouri and the Church 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...
in Kirtland over the land funds, with both sides accusing the other of financial improprieties.
Marsh sided with the Church Presidency and convened a series of church courts in the spring of 1838. He charged the Whitmers and Phelps along with Oliver Cowdery
Oliver 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...
of financial impropriety and other failings. The court released these men from their positions and disfellowshipped them. On April 6, 1838, Marsh was named as President of the Church in Missouri, with David W. Patten
David 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...
and 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...
as Assistant Presidents.
Dissatisfaction with the Church
In April 1838, Church President Joseph Smith and his first counselor Sidney RigdonSidney Rigdon
Sidney Rigdon was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Baptist background:...
moved to Far West
Far West, Missouri
Far West, Missouri, was a Latter Day Saint settlement in Caldwell County, Missouri.-Foundation and early history:The town was founded by Missouri Mormon leaders, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer in August 1836 shortly before the county's creation. The town was platted originally as a square area,...
, which became the new church headquarters. Although disfellowshipped, David
David Whitmer
David Whitmer was an early adherent of the Latter Day Saint movement who eventually became the most interviewed of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates.-Early life:...
and John Whitmer
John Whitmer
John Whitmer was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates...
, Oliver Cowdery
Oliver 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...
, W.W. Phelps and other former leaders (who were known as the "dissenters") continued to live in the county. By early June, some of the more zealous Mormons
Mormons
The Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, a religion started by Joseph Smith during the American Second Great Awakening. A vast majority of Mormons are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while a minority are members of other independent churches....
, led by Sampson Avard
Sampson Avard
Sampson Avard was the leader of a band of Mormon vigilantes called the Danites, which existed in Missouri during the period of the 1838 Mormon War.-Biography:...
, formed a society which came to be known as 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...
s." According to Marsh, these men swore oaths to "support the heads of the church in all things that they say or do, whether right or wrong". According to Reed Peck, two of these Danites, Jared Carter and Dimick B. Huntington, proposed at a meeting that the society should kill the dissenters. Marsh and fellow moderate, John Corrill, spoke vigorously against the motion. On the following Sunday, however, Sidney Rigdon
Sidney Rigdon
Sidney Rigdon was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Baptist background:...
issued his "Salt Sermon
Salt Sermon
The salt sermon was an oration delivered on June 17, 1838 by Mormon leader, Sidney Rigdon, against Mormon dissenters. Rigdon was First Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and often acted as spokesman for Joseph Smith, Jr....
" in which he likened the dissenters to salt that had lost its savor and was "good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men". Within a week the dissenters had fled the county.
Although he may have been concerned about these events, Marsh remained in the church until late October. According to his sworn testimony, Marsh claimed that a Mormon invasion of Daviess County and the subsequent looting and burning of non-Mormon settlements, including Gallatin
Gallatin, Missouri
Gallatin is a city in Daviess County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,789 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Daviess County.-History:...
, the county seat, were the acts that caused him to leave. Marsh stated:
- "A company of about eighty of the Mormons, commanded by a man fictitiously named Captain Fearnot [David W. Patten], marched to Gallatin. They returned and said they had run off from Gallatin twenty or thirty men and had taken Gallatin, had taken one prisoner and another had joined the company. I afterwards learned from the Mormons that they had burned Gallatin, and that it was done by the aforesaid company that marched there. The Mormons informed me that they had hauled away all the goods from the store in Gallatin, and deposited them at the Bishop's storehouses at Adam-ondi-AhmonAdam-ondi-AhmanAdam-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...
"
On October 19, 1838, the day after Gallatin was burned, Thomas B. Marsh and fellow apostle Orson Hyde
Orson Hyde
Orson Hyde was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles...
left the association of the Church. Marsh drafted and signed a legal affidavit against Joseph Smith on October 24, 1838, which Hyde also signed. In addition to reporting on the organization of the Danites and on the events in Daviess County, Marsh reported rumors that the Danites had set up a "destroying company" and that "if the people of Clay & Ray made any movement against them, this destroying company was to burn Liberty & Richmond." He further stated his belief that Joseph Smith planned "to take the State, & he professes to his people to intend taking the U.S. & ultimately the whole world".
Marsh's testimony added to the panic in northwestern Missouri and contributed to subsequent events in the Mormon War.
Because a Mormon attack was believed imminent, a unit of the state militia
Militia (United States)
The role of militia, also known as military service and duty, in the United States is complex and has transformed over time.Spitzer, Robert J.: The Politics of Gun Control, Page 36. Chatham House Publishers, Inc., 1995. " The term militia can be used to describe any number of groups within the...
from Ray County was dispatched to patrol the border between Ray and Mormon 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...
to the north. On October 25, 1838, reports reached Mormons in Far West
Far West, Missouri
Far West, Missouri, was a Latter Day Saint settlement in Caldwell County, Missouri.-Foundation and early history:The town was founded by Missouri Mormon leaders, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer in August 1836 shortly before the county's creation. The town was platted originally as a square area,...
that this state militia unit was a "mob" and had kidnapped several Mormons. The Mormons formed an armed rescue party and attacked the militia in what became known as 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...
. Although only one Missourian was killed, initial reports held that half the unit had been wiped out. This attack on the state militia, coupled with the earlier expulsion of non-Mormons from Daviess County led Missouri's governor Lilburn W. Boggs to respond with force. On October 27 he called out 2,500 state militia to put down what he perceived as a Mormon rebellion and signed Missouri Executive Order 44, which became known as the "Extermination Order"
Marsh was excommunicated from the Church in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
on March 17, 1839 in Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...
.
After Marsh moved to Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
and rejoined the Latter-day Saints, he looked back at his decision to leave the Church with regret, recanting the 1838 affidavit. Concerning his actions in Missouri, he wrote:
-
- "About this time I got a beam in my eye and thought I could discover a mote in Joseph's eye, though it was nothing but a beam in my eye; I was so completely darkened that I did not think on the Savior's injunction: 'Thou hypocrite, why beholdest thou the mote which is in thy brother's eye, when a beam is in thine own eye; first cast out the beam out of thine own eye, then thou shalt see clearly to get the mote out of thy brother's eye'."
The year before Marsh rejoined the church, George A. Smith
George A. Smith
George Albert Smith was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and as a member of the church's First Presidency.-Childhood:Smith was born in Potsdam, St...
claimed in a sermon on April 6, 1856, that Marsh had left the church because of a dispute between his wife and other Mormon women over a milk cow, which had escalated all the way up to the First Presidency.
Rejoining
In 1857, Thomas Marsh was rebaptizedRebaptism (Mormonism)
Rebaptism is a practice in some denominations of the Latter Day Saint or Mormonism movement.The Latter Day Saints were headquartered in Nauvoo, Illinois. Many who were already baptized members of the church, were rebaptised either to show a renewal of their commitment to the movement or as part of...
into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Marsh wrote an autobiography in 1864, recounting his Church service and rebellion. It was published in the Millennial Star
Millennial Star
The Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star was the longest continuously published periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, being printed from 1840 until 1970....
of that year. However, his religious affiliation still may not have been fixed. According to Elder Thomas Job, a missionary of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now known as the Community of Christ
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"...
) serving in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, shortly before his death Marsh
had been in the Josephite conference in Salt Lake City, and bore a strong testimony to the truth, and necessity of the reorganization; and when a revelation through young Joseph was read to him he said that it was the voice of God, and again testified that he knew it, and desired us to write to the young prophet to send for him back from here, that he had faith that he would bear the journey, and join the young prophet, if he could go that [last] spring. (True Latter Day Saints' Herald, vol. 9, p. 139)
Thomas B. Marsh died in Ogden
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
, 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....
in January 1866, apparently a pauper. He is buried at the Ogden Cemetery.
Modern opinion in LDS Church
Despite his prominence in early Church history, Marsh is infrequently mentioned in instructional classes, discourses on religion or sermons in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Marsh's conversion story is occasionally cited as an example of how powerful the Book of MormonBook of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
can be in convincing people of the truthfulness of the Church. When his apostasy is mentioned, he is often referred to either as an example of pride or as an example of one who failed to fulfill his calling to serve the Church. For example, in 2006, David A. Bednar
David A. Bednar
-External links:*, lds.org**...
of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve Apostles repeated the story that Marsh left the church partially because his wife was angry over being accused of stealing the cream from a milk trading deal with her neighbor. He contrasted Marsh's faithlessness with the devotion of 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...
. He said: In many instances, choosing to be offended is a symptom of a much deeper and more serious spiritual malady. Thomas B. Marsh allowed himself to be acted upon, and the eventual results were apostasy and misery. Brigham Young was an agent who exercised his agency and acted in accordance with correct principles, and he became a mighty instrument in the hands of the Lord.
External links
- "History of Thomas B. Marsh", Millennial Star 26 (1864):359-60, 375-76, 390-92, 406.
- Grampa Bill's G.A. Pages: Thomas B. Marsh
- Information on the events before his death
- Thomas Baldwin Marsh: Find A Grave Memorial