Biography Oliver Cowdery

1 biography

1.1 life
1.2 book of mormon scribe , witness
1.3 second elder of church
1.4 written history of church
1.5 1838 split smith
1.6 1838–48
1.7 member of church of jesus christ of latter-day saints

biography
early life

cowdery born october 3, 1806, in wells, vermont. father, william, farmer, moved family poultney in rutland county, vermont when cowdery three. (cowdery s mother rebecca fuller cowdery died on september 3, 1809.) in youth, cowdery hunted buried treasure using divining rod.

at age 20 (c. 1826), cowdery left vermont upstate new york, older brothers had settled. clerked @ store on 2 years , in 1829 became school teacher in manchester, new york. cowdery lodged different families in area, including of joseph smith, sr., said have provided cowdery additional information golden plates of cowdery said had heard quarters.

book of mormon scribe , witness

cowdery met joseph smith on april 5, 1829—a year , day before official founding of church—and heard him how had received golden plates containing ancient native american writings. cowdery told smith had seen golden plates in vision before 2 ever met.

from april 7 june 1829, cowdery acted smith s primary scribe translation of plates later become book of mormon. cowdery unsuccessfully attempted translate part of book of mormon himself. before meeting cowdery, smith had virtually stopped translating after first 116 pages had been lost martin harris. working cowdery, smith completed manuscript in remarkably short period (april–june 1829), during richard bushman called burst of rapid-fire translation.

cowdery , smith said on may 15, 1829, received aaronic priesthood resurrected john baptist, after baptized each other in susquehanna river. cowdery said , smith later went forest , prayed until glorious light encircled us, , arose on account of light, 3 persons stood before dressed in white, faces beaming glory. 1 of 3 announced apostle peter , said others apostles james , john.

later year, cowdery reported sharing vision, along smith , david whitmer, in angel showed him golden plates. martin harris said saw similar vision later day. cowdery, whitmer , harris signed statement effect , became known 3 witnesses. testimony has been published in every edition of book of mormon.

second elder of church

when church organized on april 6, 1830, smith became first elder , cowdery second elder. although cowdery technically second in authority smith organization of church through 1838, in practice sidney rigdon, smith s spokesman , counselor in first presidency, began supplant cowdery 1831. cowdery held position of assistant president of church 1834 until resignation/excommunication in 1838. cowdery member of first presiding high council of church, organized in kirtland, ohio, in 1834.

on december 18, 1832, cowdery married elizabeth ann whitmer, daughter of peter whitmer, sr. , sister of david, john, jacob , peter whitmer, jr. had 5 children, of whom 1 daughter survived maturity.

cowdery helped smith publish series of smith s revelations first called book of commandments , later, revised , expanded, doctrine , covenants. cowdery editor, or on editorial board, of several church publications, including evening , morning star, messenger , advocate, , northern times.

when church created bank known kirtland safety society in 1837, cowdery obtained money-printing plates. sent smith monroe, michigan, became president of bank of monroe, in church had controlling interest. both banks failed same year. cowdery moved newly founded latter day saints settlement in far west, missouri, , suffered ill health through winter of 1837–38.

early written history of church

in 1834 , 1835, of smith, cowdery published contribution anticipated full history of rise of church of latter day saints series of articles in church s messenger , advocate. version not entirely congruent later official history of church. instance, cowdery ignored first vision described angel (rather god or jesus) called smith work in september 1823. placed religious revival inspired smith in 1823 (rather 1820) , stated revival experience had caused smith pray in bedroom (rather woods of official history). further, after first asserting revival had occurred in 1821, when smith in fifteenth year, cowdery corrected date 1823 , stated in smith s 17th year (though 1823 smith s 18th year).

1838 split smith

by 1838, smith , cowdery disagreed on 3 significant issues. first, cowdery competed smith leadership of new church , disagreed prophet s economic , political program , sought personal financial independence [from the] zion society joseph smith envisioned. too, in march 1838, smith , rigdon moved far west, had been under presidency of w. w. phelps , cowdery s brothers-in-law, david , john whitmer. there smith , rigdon took charge of missouri church , initiated policies cowdery, phelps, , whitmers believed violated separation of church , state. finally, in january 1838, cowdery wrote brother warren , smith had conversation in in every instance did not fail affirm had said strictly true. dirty, nasty, filthy affair of , fanny alger s talked on in strictly declared had never deserted truth in matter, , supposed admitted himself. alger, teenage maid living smiths, may have been smith s first plural wife, practice cowdery opposed.

on april 12, 1838, church court excommunicated cowdery after failed appear @ hearing on membership , sent letter resigning church instead. david whitmer excommunicated church @ same time , apostle lyman e. johnson disfellowshipped; john whitmer , phelps had been excommunicated similar reasons month earlier.

cowdery , whitmers became known dissenters, continued live in , around far west, owned great deal of property. on june 17, 1838, sidney rigdon announced large congregation dissenters salt had lost savor , duty of faithful cast them out trodden beneath feet of men. salt sermon seen threat against lives , implicit instruction danites, secret vigilante group.

the danite manifesto letter addressed cowdery , other dissenters signed 84 mormons (but not joseph smith). warned

you shall have 3 days after receive communication you, including twenty-four hours in each day, depart families peaceably; may undisturbed person; in time, if not depart, use means in our power cause depart.

cowdery , dissenters fled county. reports treatment circulated in nearby non-mormon communities , increased tension led 1838 mormon war.

1838–48

from 1838 1848, cowdery put latter day saints behind him.

he studied law , practiced @ tiffin, ohio, became civic , political leader. cowdery joined methodist church there , served secretary in 1844. edited local democratic newspaper until learned 1 of book of mormon witnesses; assigned assistant editor. in 1846, cowdery nominated district s democratic party candidate state senate, when mormon background discovered, defeated. contemporary mormons believed cowdery had denied testimony of book of mormon, there no direct evidence of this, , cowdery may have repeated testimony while estranged church.

in wisconsin

after death of joseph smith, succession crisis split latter day saints. 1 faction followed james j. strang next prophet, seer, , revelator . strang claimed had found , translated ancient records engraved upon metal plates.

cowdery s father, william, , brother, lyman, followers of strang, martin harris , initially, of joseph smith s surviving family, including william smith, lucy mack smith, , 3 of joseph s sisters. strang called upon saints gather in voree, wisconsin.

in 1847, cowdery , brother moved elkhorn, wisconsin, 12 miles away strang s headquarters in voree. entered law practice brother. became co-editor of walworth county democrat. in 1848, ran state assemblyman. however, mormon ties revealed , defeated.

member of church of jesus christ of latter-day saints

in 1848, cowdery traveled meet followers of brigham young , quorum of twelve encamped @ winter quarters, nebraska, asked reunited church. quorum of twelve referred application high council in pottawattamie county, iowa. pottawattamie high council convened meeting high priests in area consider matter. after cowdery convinced meeting attendees no longer maintained claim leadership within church, pottawattamie high council , high priests in attendance unanimously approved application rebaptism. on november 12, 1848, cowdery rebaptized orson hyde of quorum of twelve into—what had become following succession crisis—the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints, in indian creek @ kanesville, iowa.

after rebaptism, cowdery desired relocate state of deseret (utah) in coming spring or summer, due financial , health problems decided not able make journey in 1849. because not latter-day saints in utah, cowdery not given position of responsibility in church, in july 1849 young wrote cowdery letter inviting him travel washington, d.c., almon w. babbitt publicize state of deseret s desire statehood , draft formal statehood application. cowdery s deteriorating health did not allow him accept assignment, , within 8 months had died.

in 1912, official church magazine improvement era published statement jacob f. gates, son of mormon leader jacob gates, had died twenty years prior. according recollection son, elder gates had visited cowdery in 1849 , inquired witness testimony concerning book of mormon. cowdery reportedly reaffirmed witness:

jacob, want remember you. dying man, , profit me tell lie? know, said he, book of mormon translated gift , power of god. eyes saw, ears heard, , understanding touched, , know whereof testified true. no dream, no vain imagination of mind—it real .

on march 3, 1850, cowdery died in david whitmer s home in richmond, missouri.