Nauvoo the Beautiful...and beautiful it was!

This is a long overdue post! Last July, my parents, my sister, LaVoy, and her husband, Alan, and Hubby and I went to Nauvoo. Dad had been voicing the desire to go for a couple of years. So last January, we made the plans, bought our airline tickets, and reserved a house near Nauvoo. For connecting flights to work out we had to take a red eye flight from Seattle. We were all really tired as you can see!



Mom and Dad on the second leg of our flight.

For those who may not know that read my blog, Nauvoo, Ill. is a city that Joseph Smith and the early members of our church established from swamp land to have a peaceful place to dwell and worship as they believed. They had been severely persecuted with many being massacred and driven out of Missouri by mobs. The city grew to be over 35,000 in population. Nauvoo in Hebrew means, "the beautiful location". They dwelt there for quite a few years before persecution began again and the assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. They were there another couple of years before the leaders of the church continued with Joseph Smith's plan to move the Saints west where they could live and worship in peace. The "Trail of Hope" is a street that leads to the Mississippi River where they crossed after leaving everything they owned and had built up behind. Back then they called it "The Street of Tears"



Mom, Dad, Alan, LaVoy, and Hubby waiting in line for the "Trail of Hope".



Me and my sweet hubby.



Mom standing at the end of "The Trail of Hope" where the Saints crossed the Mississippi River.



All of us at the end of "The Trail of Hope".



I love this picture of Joseph and Hyrum Smith looking at the Nauvoo Temple on their way to Carthage Jail to face false charges and where they would end up being martyred. Joseph knew what his fate was and felt that he would never see Nauvoo again. They wouldn't live to see the temple completed. The temple was finally completed right before the Saints fled Nauvoo and then the mobs destroyed it. The church restored the temple and it was dedicated in 2002. We were able to attend a temple session while we were there. It is beautiful inside and was built as close as they could to the original temple.



This is Carthage Jail where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were martyred. Joseph was shot and fell from the 2nd story window, landing right by the well. A mob of about 200 men stormed the jail and opened fire in the room where they were being held. The picture below shows the door with a bullet hole in it. That was the shot that struck Hyrum Smith in the face, killing him.

This was probably my favorite place we visited. As we drove into the parking lot I got emotional immediately. There is a strong spirit that exists here. It remained with me through our entire visit. I'm grateful for that experience.





Mom and Dad at Carthage Jail with the statue of Joseph and Hyrum Smith.





Joseph and Hyrum Smith's graves. When Joseph was first buried it was unknown where his grave was because the family feared the mobs would destroy it. Many years later the family had him moved to a permanent resting place.



The above picture was taken after we had taken a wagon tour through Old Nauvoo. At the end of the tour, Hubby asked the two teamsters if he could sit up in their seat. They looked a little hesitant but then let him while I took pictures. The teamster sitting next to Hubby gave him his hat and whip for the picture. They're actually missionaries who've been called with their wives to serve in Nauvoo. The missionary that was off the wagon, holding the horses said to Hubby, "Brother, you must be living right. We just don't let anyone sit up there." Hubby quickly replied, "Yup, and I'm not even LDS!" This sparked their curiosity as the one looked at me. I said, "I've been trying for 17 years!" Then he said to Hubby, "What's up with that? Don't you want your wonderful wife for eternity?" Hubby quickly replied again, "I haven't decided I want her that long yet!" I got a big laugh out of that! I hope one day he'll decide he wants me for that long!



We're descendants of Brigham Young. Our grandmother, Suzanna Young Little was Brigham Young's sister. The above and below pictures are of Brigham Young's home in Nauvoo. It was one of the few homes not destroyed by the mobs.





There's a place in Old Nauvoo called "Lands and Records" that you can enter the names of ancestors who you believe may have lived in Nauvoo and it will give you the plot number of their land. The land where Mom is standing is the plot of land that our grandmother, Mary Jane Lytle lived. The home was destroyed but we have a journal entry of this grandmother that tells of when she was 12 and living in Nauvoo. Joseph and Hyrum Smith knocked on their door asking for a drink of water. They were on their way to Carthage Jail at this time. She tells of how she'd never forget how she felt looking upon the face of the prophet. She then tells how she felt when she saw their bodies being brought home from Carthage dead. What a precious gift she gave us of that journal entry. We had many of our ancestors who lived in Nauvoo and went through so much persecution for their beliefs. How grateful I am to them for the faith they had and the determination they had to give their posterity the gift of the gospel. They suffered much but their faith never wavered.



There's so many more pictures and so much more I could post about our wonderful trip to Nauvoo but this post is already long. I'm so thankful that we were able to go to Nauvoo and experience the spirit of those who lived there, who went through so much persecution, and left everything they owned to move west to worship the Lord in peace. I hope one day I'll meet them face to face and embrace them in love and gratitude for what they gave and sacrificed on my behalf. I love them all!