A CONDENSED HISTORY OF JAMES J. STRANG
As printed in the Standard-Press, Burlington, Wis., Oct. 17, 1963
By, Donna Falk, Teacher
He was any one of a dozen different men, this man; depending on which of the thousands whose lives he has affected is discussing him.
He was either a superb orator and a profound scholar, or he was a charlatan and a caitiff.
He was either a thief who richly merited a long term in prison, which he never served, or he was a saint who spent his life in service to his fellow man.
He was either unscrupulous, a growing political power to be feared, or he was a talented political leader whose sole motivation was genuine regard for the true interests of the people and the obligations of his official oath.
But on one thing all agreed: he was an incredible man.
His name was James Jesse Strang, though most people who spoke to him called him either “Prophet” or “King”. Behind his back he was called everything from a traitor to the United States to a blasphemer of God’s name. He was a man of medium stature, five feet seven inches tall, with sandy-red hair and prominent features, of German-Jewish descent. At 31, he began a fabulous career which made him loved by some and hated by others. Even now, a century since his death, his name still stands for good or for evil. Articles, constantly appearing in newspapers and magazines, repeating the testimony of his bitterest enemies, are continually being refuted by followers still faithful to the religion he claimed to have re-established under the direction of Almighty God. However, no purely historical account exists dealing with his accomplishments during those 12 years.
His Education
It is interesting to note that though Mr. Strang procured only the bare rudiments of an education in the miserable county schools of old New York state where he was born, he studied law at home and was finally admitted to the bar of Chautauqua county, New York, in October, 1836. Dr. Milo M. Quaife, historian, said that, “to some men, however, is given the ability to acquire knowledge without the aid of formal schooling; Abraham Lincoln was one such person, and Jesse. J. Strang was another.”
Although Strang could undoubtedly have had a brilliant law career in New York, he felt there would be advantages for a young lawyer on the newer frontier of Wisconsin, and consequently he removed to Burlington, in the summer of 1843. Here he became the law partner of Caleb. P. Barnes, facing a promising future until he came into intimate connection with members of the Mormon faith through his marriage to Mary Perce whose sister was the wife of Moses Smith, an ardent Mormon elder. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Strang recognized the verity of Mormonism and with Aaron Smith, brother Moses Smith, journeyed to Nauvoo, Illinois, in February, 1844.
Under the personal instruction of Joseph and Hyrum Smith and Sidney Rigdon, at this time the three highest officers of Mormonism, Mr. Strang quickly became a convert to the faith. A proficient orator, possessed of a brilliant mind and equipped with a fund of information, he evidently made a strong impression upon the Mormon leaders. He was soon baptized and ordained to the ministry, and with Aaron Smith was delegated to investigate the country of Wisconsin as a possible future site for a Mormon city. This done, on May 24, 1844, Strang mailed his report to Joseph Smith at Nauvoo, setting forth minutely the advantages of building a Mormon town near Burlington.
Smith Killed
However, before the response to this letter reached Strang, the Mormon leader, Joseph Smith, was killed by a mob on June 27, 1844, while being held in protective custody in the jail at Carthage, Illinois. At the very moment Joseph was dying in Illinois, James J. Strang claimed an angel of God appeared to him in Wisconsin, “accompanied by a numerous heavenly train,” and anointed his head with oil, divinely ordained him to the same prophetic office which Joseph had held. When the letter from Joseph Smith did reach him, it was sufficiently startling to cause an internal dissension with the Mormon church. The former prophet wrote, “If evil befall me, thou [Strang] shalt lead the flock to pleasant pastures,...and to [you]shall the gathering of the people be, for [you] shall plant a stake of Zion in Wisconsin.”
Brigham Young and others of the Council of the Twelve refused to acknowledge either this letter or the leadership of Strang, although according to the letter Strang claimed came from Joseph Smith, the Lord said, “Now I command my servants, the apostles and priests and elders of the Church of the Saints, that they communicate and proclaim this, my word, to all the saints of God in all the world; that they may be gathered unto and round about the city of Voree and be saved from their enemies, for I will have a people to serve me.”
From this time forward the ministerial duties of Mr. Strang consumed most of his time and his fame spread across the nation. His name was upon the lips of every Mormon, and although Brigham Young held the reins of power in Nauvoo and by means of threats and cajoling persuaded most of the Mormons to follow him, Strang succeeded in establishing the city of Voree near Burlington, Wisconsin, with about 3,000 inhabitants.
Revelation
In 1846, he claimed to have received a revelation from God in which he “beheld a land amidst wide waters, with a deep, broad bay on one side of it” and was told that “here shall God establish his people,” and “from thence shall the gospel of the Kingdom go unto the tribes, and they shall not any more be despised.” He recognized in this revelation that the land “amidst wide waters” was the islands of Lake Michigan, and accordingly, on May 11, 1847, he and four others arrived at Beaver Island south of the Straits of Mackinac, to explore it, and prepare for settlement. It is worthy of remark that they were so destitute of means for the undertaking that they were obliged to sell their blankets to pay their passage on the little hooker that landed them there and went ashore with less than two days’ provision and not one cent of money. They were not well received at the local trading houses so they went into the woods, made a camp of hemlock boughs, and commenced a thorough exploration of the island, living principally on leeks and beechnuts.
This perseverance in a frontier community, where men who would work at all were rare, soon got them employment, a stock of provisions, and the use of a boat. After making most thorough exploration of the group of islands and building a cabin, Strang and two of his companions returned to Voree. Two others, Gurdon Brown and R. Frederick Mills, remained and were the first Mormons settled on Beaver Island. In the course of the summer several families moved to the island, but some became dissatisfied with the prospects and left. At the setting in of winter, the Mormon population consisted of five men and their families--in all, 18 persons. The city of St. James became the headquarters of the church, and by 1850, Strang had established the island as a kingdom and had been ordained as King in Zion. This title of “King” was no more a threat to the sovereignty of the United States and its democratic way of life than is the title “Monsignor” given to Catholic prelates today.
Polygamy
The establishment of the law and organization of the kingdom brought with it polygamy, which was practiced according to the following law: “Thou shalt not take unto thee a multitude of wives disproportioned to thy inheritance, and thy substance; nor shalt thou take wives to vex those thou hast; neither shalt thou put away one to take another.”
Elvira Field, Betsy McNutt, Sarah and Phoebe Wright joined the family of Mr. Strang successively in the order given. Children were born to him posthumously by all these women. In all, Mary Perce, his first wife, bore the prophet four children, Elvira Field, four, Betsy McNutt, four, Sarah and Phoebe Wright, one each.
Sarah Wright, questioned years afterward concerning the family relationship in Strang’s polygamous home, answered: “You ask if we all lived in the same house. We did, but had separate rooms, and all met in prayer and ate at the same table. [Strang] was a very mild-spoken, kind man to his family, although his word was law. We were all honest in our religion and made things as pleasant as possible. There were four of us living in one house.” And more recently, Mark A. Strang, grandson of James, wrote: “My grandmother, Sarah, was the physician in charge at my birth and was an intimate and confiding friend for more than a quarter of a century. She never ceased to praise James, especially his gentleness, sincerity, kindness and brilliance, and related many incidents to illustrate. She would always end our conversations about him with this simple statement, ‘He was a good man.’ Possibly you did not know that she studied medicine after the assassination and lived out a long useful life as a practicing physician devoted to the service of mankind as was James.”
Although a few other men among his membership also practiced polygamy, after the prophet’s death the practice was discontinued. His followers subscribe to a commandment of God given in the “Book of Mormon” which says polygamy can only be practiced by direct revelation from God: “...if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me [by polygamy], I will command my people...” After the Saints were driven from their inheritances by the Gentiles, the social order necessary for the well working of the institution was not possible without a prophet to receive continued revelation on the subject. Unlike the Mormons, who followed Brigham Young, and were prosecuted for breaking the laws of the land in practicing polygamy, the followers of Strang did not break the law, none yet being passed; by the time a law was passed against polygamy there were no Strangites following this practice.
During the summer of 1850, the Mormon immigration was considerable, and by 1855, they occupied and had exclusive control of the counties of Manatee and Emmett, and the township of Bremen in Chipped county, Michigan, with a population of 1,700 souls.
All Not Well
But all did not go well with the Mormons. As early as 1850, a full-scale attempt was made by the local fishermen to drive them from Beaver Island. This failed as a result of Strang’s shrewdness. They were charged with being a lawless band of banditti, and by 1851, feelings against the Mormons had run so high that a man by the name of Granger “offered a reward for [Strang’s] head. The reward offered at first was but twenty-five dollars.” Then, as the idea grew of getting rid of this man who by his mere presence was bringing law and order to a wild community, the stakes went higher. From $25 the reward shot up to $300. This was big money and Strang was hunted for four weeks by bands of armed men, Indians and half-breeds, Irish, other settlers, varying from 75 to 350 in number at the prospect of success increased or diminished. Most of those men doubtless fully believed that the advertisement would legally justify them in killing Strang, but some there were who simply knew this was a convenient season to get rid of a man with a conscience, a man who stood in the way of their plans. They hoped to get him murdered quietly so, they could to back to their lawless ways, and there is not the slightest doubt that had they succeeded in killing him then, the result would have verified these opinions. The murderers would never have been prosecuted. When the reward did not bring about his death, they tried other means.
One accuser and another charged James Jesse Strang, the mild-tempered, sandy-haired Mormon prophet with treason, robbing the U.S. mails, counterfeiting, plundering his neighbor’s goods, horse stealing, and other gross atrocities. However, though he was prosecuted over a hundred times in the courts of the United States at Mackinac and Detroit, Michigan, between 1850, and his death in 1856, he was discharged as innocent every single time. Moreover, through all the trials and persecutions he managed to maintain his seat in the House of Representatives in Michigan for two terms, 1852-54 and 1855-56, although he was constantly harassed by the many times he was arrested and brought to trial on these unprovable charges.
An example of this can be found in the columns of the Pontiac Jacksonian of January 11, 1853: “The Mormon prophet Strang, more familiarly known as King Strang, was yesterday arrested by a Detroit officer upon a bench warrant. Strang claimed his privilege as a member and sustained his position in an able speech. His arrest he attributed to malice, and the position was sustained by strong proof. The house today discharged him from arrest, in spite of a strong and powerful prejudice against him.”
Such arrests and releases were familiar to Mr. Strang and to the other members of his congregation. Their religion was unfamiliar, different, and therefore frightening, and they refused to compromise with their consciences. At one time 99 Mormon men had been arrested and were waiting trial in the court at Detroit. But as often as they were arrested they were released as innocent of the crimes charged against them. Evidence of this occurs in an article appearing in the New York Daily tribune of July 2, 1853: “We have heard of them as deluded and vicious persons, stirrers-up of crime and disorder, and sure to receive prompt and condign punishment. These reports have, however, not been verified by the subsequent chastisement of the alleged offenders, and now we’re informed that the reason is that they have committed no offense at all.”
In an article “A King Sleeps in Wisconsin” appearing in a publication of the Wisconsin State Historical Society, Conan Bryant Eaton says: “Surely, at this period James Jesse Strang emerges as a man quite different from the wild-eyed madman or unbridled libertine some writers paint him”
Letters on File
To any person interested in knowing the true facts in the case of Strang, countless letters are on file in historical libraries such as the following from Dr. O.M. Aldrich to Mr. Strang’s sons, Clement, refuting as article printed in the Deseret Evening News of Salt Lake City:
“Now, sir, am I am a stranger to you, you will pardon if I take the liberty of forming your acquaintance. As I was well acquainted with your father, and with all his public acts, in the legislature of Michigan and out of it; and further I will say I was well acquainted with those islands at the time of your father’s locating there and also at his death. [The author of the article being refuted] starts out assuring that the island in 1847, was only inhabited by just, upright, and honorable men; in fact, angels fit only for angelic worlds.
“But sir, I am here to tell you it was the slough hole of eternal hell! The inhabitants were a conglomerate mass of French, Irish, Indian - with one McKinley (not president) as their leader and dealer; and his stock in trade was raw, villainous whiskey! That, sir, was the condition of affairs when your father bought a home for himself and people upon those islands. Not a school-house, habitation for a church, nor in its whole domain the leaf of a primer! What was the condition when you father left? I have traveled somewhat upon those islands with your father, and saw churches, school-houses, farms, and in fact the whole island booming with the products OD earth. I saw a mighty change as by magic; from a barbarous to an intelligent people!
“It is not a question how this is brought about, either by divine power or your father’s native shrewdness! It is not so as stated, that he discouraged all visitors, because, sir, myself (sic) was always a welcome visitor and well known as an agnostic or infidel.
“I saw under the old conditions, the native Indians robbed of their products and labor, lying drunk in their tents: under the new conditions making farms, building homes, schools, and gathering around their own happy firesides. Yes, sir, I saw your father arrested by the United States authorities; taken to Detroit and there tried for robbing the U.S. mails; prosecuted by one John C. Bates; surrounded by enemies, and as it were, convicted. I saw him stand before that court and plead his own case; I saw him put to route the falsifying of his character; I saw him honorably discharged and returned by the U.S. steamer Michigan. I was personally acquainted with Wentworth and his grievance; I saw him assassinate your father; I with others carried him into McCulloch’s store.
“Well, sir, I am a friend of humanity, and in favor of advancing, either by ecclesiastical power or otherwise. Therefore, I will always cherish the memory of your father; for he believed in bettering the conditions of man! Many obstacles were in his way. If he had been left to follow out the chain of his thoughts, those islands would be fit for Gods to dwell on.!”
Host of Activities
It might be well to note that during the siege of persecutions against him, Strang managed to edit a newspaper, the Northern Islander, carry on a correspondence with over 500 elders, attend nearly all the church conferences, travel hundreds of miles preaching the gospel, and carry on an extensive correspondence with members of his congregation and anyone interested in the church. A portion of this correspondence is preserved in the Coe Collection at Yale University library. Also during that time he succeeded in carrying on three religious controversies through his church paper at one and the same time. But there remain still more records of Strang’s achievements in the short 12 years of his career. He wrote and published a history of the Mackinac region entitled “Ancient and Modern Michil-Mackinac”, a 336 page book entitled the “Book of the Law of the Lord,” and the “Voree Record”, as well as numerous revelations he accredited as having received from the Lord. The year 1855, saw the publication in the Smithsonian Institute’s Annual Report of 1854, of his “Natural History and Cure of the Bite of Serpents, and the Wounds of Poisoned Arrows,” and “On the Amblystoma Luridum, A Salamander Inhabiting Wisconsin.”
In addition to this, he regulated all the affairs of his church and previous to the editing of the Northern Islander, in succession, edited church papers entitled The Voree Herald, Zion’s Reveille, and the Gospel Herald, and under his direction a United States government weather station was maintained at his home. He was also justice of the peace on Beaver Island even thou he had to spend weeks and sometimes months in jail on false charges. He was once even condemned to life imprisonment for saying “I object” to a false charge against him, but was released on a writ of habeas corpus.
It has been established that the Beaver Islanders were, previous to Mormon rule, a barbarous, lawless band of fishermen who harbored renegades fleeing from the mainland. But during Mr. Strang’s rule on the island, things changed greatly for the better. He brought the first civil law to the island, established a quarantine ground, a hospital, schools, churches, a pound for animals found at large, local ordinances regulating gunpowder and licensing of dogs, and miscellaneous health measures. He also passed a law prohibiting the storage of stinking fish within 10 rods of a dwelling house, in streets or along roads, for fishing had always been a major industry. Through his influence roads were built to the interior of the island, some of them still in use today. The sale of whiskey to the Indians, in accordance with United States law, was of course forbidden, but the law was enforced, and justice was given to all men who came to the island, whether Mormon or Gentile. The Mormons and most of the Gentiles willingly accepted these advantages and regulations, but the renegade residents found them increasingly galling and contained their hatred only because of the growing strength of Strang and his followers.
There were those who defended him. The Detroit Free Press of February 14, 1853, says concerning Strang’s law career: “King Strang’s senatorial career has been an eloquent and an honorable one.” And Colonel DeLand of the Saginaw Herald who was also clerk and reporter in the Michigan house of representatives wrote: “We knew Mr. Strang well, and that he was a far better man than he has at times been represented. As a legislator he was vigilant, careful, and just; and some of the best laws of Michigan, made in those days, were made by his pen and influence.” And finally, from the Detroit Advertiser of February 10, 1853: “Mr. Strang’s course as a member of the present legislature has disarmed much of the prejudice which had previously surrounded him. Whatever may be said or thought of the peculiar sect of which he is the local head, throughout his session he has conducted himself with a degree of decorum and propriety which have been equaled by his industry, sagacity, good temper, apparent regards for the true interests of the people, and the obligations of his official oath.”
There was good reason to respect Strang’s ability as a legislator. Among the many bills he introduced were those to organize the counties of Manistique, Alpena, Delta, and Grand Traverse; bills to construct important highways throughout the state; bills on draining and reclaiming lands. His record in the legislature has probably never been equaled by any other representative before or since. Also worthy of note is that he laid a foundation for the present-day bridge across the Straits of Mackinac and the St. Lawrence Seaway.
More Trouble
The summer of 1856 saw troublesome times for the people who lived on the beautiful, emerald isle of the Great Lakes - a time of hatred that flared into open warfare against the Saints. The population at this time numbered over 2,000 Mormons and only a handful of resident Gentile fishermen. Once a year the U.S.S. Michigan visited each American port on the Lakes, but on Monday, June 26, the steamer returned to the harbor at Beaver Island for the second time. James Jesse Strang was heard to say, “They are not coming back for any good.” Even though he doubted the good intentions of Captain Charles W. McBlair who sent the ship’s pilot, Alexander St. Barnard, to bring him on board the steamer, he willingly complied with the captain’s orders.
It was a quarter mile from Strang’s home to the pier. Undoubtedly he felt an ominous apprehension which was evidenced in the fact that he grasped Barnard’s arm as if to steady himself. As they stepped onto the bridge leading to the pier in from of F. Johnson and Co.’s store, two assassins approached silently from the rear, unobserved by Strang, and fired point blank upon him.
The first shot took effect upon the left side of his head, entering a little back of the top of his ear and, rebounding, passed out near the top of his head. This shot brought him down. He staggered against Barnard and desperately tried to maintain his balance. Strang clutched Barnard’s arm and turned so that he saw the assassins as they fired the second and third shots, both finding their mark, one just below the temple, on the right side of the face, and the other near the tenth rib, following the rib about two inches and half where it lodged.
The wounded Mormon prophet recognized in the persons of the assassins, Thomas Bedford and Alexander Wentworth. Wentworth had a revolver and Bedford a horse pistol with which they struck the dying man over the head and face, following which they fled on board the U.S. steamer, weapons still in had, claiming the protection of the captain, who immediately place them in custody.
The approaching assassins had appeared in full view of several of the officers and crew from the dock of the steamer. Also, Dr. H.D. McCulloch, Franklin Johnson, and others were witnesses, but apparently those in the know consented to the act and even his friends were transfixed with horror. Strang was taken up by a few friends, among whom was Wingfield Watson, and some of the officers of the steamer and carried to McCulloch’s store where the surgeon of the steamer made an examination of his wounds and declared recovery hopeless.
The Mormons took out process for the apprehension of Wentworth and Bedford, and the sheriff of the county called on captain McBlair for delivery. The captain refused to turn them over, saying he would take them to Mackinac and deliver them into the hands of the civil authorities of the state there.
And a statement by Alexander St. Bernard regarding the murder of James J. Strang appeared in the Detroit Free Press, June 30, 1889. It is as follows:
“I was an officer on the United States Steamer Michigan for 25 years. She was the first iron boat that navigated the Lakes, and she is in first rate condition yet. During the war we were kept pretty busy cruising between Erie and Chicago. We generally took on wood at Beaver Island. There were between 2,000 and 3,000 Mormons living there then with their leader, King Strang, besides the Gentiles who were mostly fishermen and wood choppers...
“I was well acquainted with the King, for he often came on board the ship. He was a fine looking, sociable sort of a man...
“When we stopped as usual on one of our trips around the Lakes, the complaints [against Mr. Strang] were so bitter that our Captain made up his mind to arrest him again, and he told me to find him and bring him on board the ship. I went to the temple [tabernacle probably, for the temple was never built] first where I was told that he had just gone home. I found him sitting in his room with four of his wives, where he received me very cordially, and when I told him my errand, accompanied me willingly. He linked arms with me and we walked along talking pleasantly. Just as we stepped on the dock and started to walk down the narrow passage between the piles of wood, two of his enemies sprang from behind some hiding place and shot at him. He clung to my arm until they began to pound him with the butt of their pistols, when he let go and fell, leaving me covered with blood from my head to my feet...
“Poor King Strang, he was a fine fellow and deserved a better fate.”
Mr. Strang’s newspaper, the Daily Northern Islander, the only daily newspaper then published north of Grand Rapids, Michigan, in an extra edition dated June 20, 1856, referred to this incident in the following words: “The steamer left the next day carrying off all the persons supposed to be implicated in the affair, thus affording military protection to murderers, and overthrowing the sovereignty of civil law.”
No Action Taken
Later the U.S. Steamer stopped at Mackinac, and Gabriel Strang, the prophet’s son, writing of the action taken against the assassins there said, ”When the boat left it carried them to Mackinac, 50 miles east, where they were turned over to the civil authorities under a charge of murder. As most of the evidence was that they were over the water and consequently not in the jurisdiction of the state, they were returned to the ship’s officers and carried to Erie, Pa., which is the naval headquarters on the Great Lakes and turned over to the federal courts where the evidence submitted indicated that when the fatal shot was fired, they were on the wharf which was connected with the land which was under state jurisdiction, and they were discharged by the federal court. As they had been discharged by the state court at Mackinac and the constitution of the U.S.. forbids being tried the second time for an offense after being once discharged, they could not be tried again so that was the end of the farce.”
Upon closer examination than is usually given to the case, it appears that his murder plot involved many more persons than Wentworth and Bedford, the reasons for Strang’s death being fear of his growing political power rather than because of personal grievances his assassins held against him. Gabriel Strang wrote, “In 1856, her [U.S. Steamer Michigan’s] annual visit to Beaver Island was in May. A short time later Father received a package through the mail that contained 36 letters all of which were suggestions or instructions concerning getting rid of him... Most of them were from or to civil, naval or military officers. The rest were from enemies who had been friends.”
Who the master-minds were that originated the fantastic murder plot ending a career that was equally incredible probably can never be ascertained, but one thing is sure: as long as the name Mormon remains in the world, men will remember James Jesse Strang. Even though he returned to Voree near Burlington, Wisconsin, where he died on July 9, 1856, 23 days after being shot, and where he is now buried in a quiet, shady cemetery, his life is constantly revived from century-old newspapers, various letters of the time, records, and documents of a United States district court. Whether he was scholar or charlatan; thief or saint, his history still interests people. It is as though his death lies heavy on the conscience of his fellow man.
Lawful Succession
The “letter of appointment” was an important step in the succession of leadership in the Church. Through it the prophet Joseph Smith, Jr., in accordance with God’s command, appointed James J. Strang as the next prophet to lead the Church. This was done according to the law that had been previously given to the Church. Concerning the prophet Joseph Smith the law reads:
“2. For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye have received a commandment for a law unto my church, through him whom I have appointed unto you to receive commandments and revelations from my hand. 3. And this ye shall know assuredly--that there is none other appointed unto you to receive commandments and revelations until he be taken, if he abide in me. 4. But verily, verily, I say unto you, that none else shall be appointed unto this gift except it be through him; for if it be taken from him he shall not have power except to appoint another in his stead. 5. And this shall be a law unto you, that ye receive not the teachings of any that shall come before you as revelations or commandments; 6. And this I give unto you that you may not be deceived, that you may know they are not of me. 7. For verily I say unto you, that he that is ordained of me shall come in at the gate and be ordained as I have told you before, to teach those revelations which you have received and shall receive through him whom I have appointed.” (D. & C. 43)
The law specifically states that none other than Joseph Smith was to receive revelations/commandments for the Church. No other person was to lead the Church unless something happened to Joseph and then he could only appoint another. The second key to receive the prophetic office, was the commandment that he “shall come in at the gate and be ordained as I have told you before.” Only one ordained under the hand of angels could succeed Joseph Smith.
The Letter of Appointment
“My Dear Son: — Your epistle of May 24th; proposing the planting a Stake of Zion in Wisconsin, and the gathering of the Saints there, was duly received, and I, with most of the brethren whose advice I called in, were of opinion that you was deceived by a spirit not of this world, great but not good. Brother Hyrum, however, thought otherwise, and favored the project, not doubting it was of God. I, however, determined to return you an unfavorable answer for the present. But, Oh! the littleness of man in his best earthy state! Not so the will of the Almighty. God hath ruled it otherwise, and a message from the throne of grace directed me as it hath inspired you,and the faith which thou hast in the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel, hath been repaid to thee a thousand fold, and thou shalt be like unto him; but the flock shall find rest with thee, and God shall reveal to thee his will concerning them.
“I have long felt that my present work was almost done, and that I should soon be called to rule a mighty host, but something whispers me it will be in the land of spirits, where the wicked cease from troubling and the bands of the prisoner fall off. My heart yearns for my little ones, but I know God will be a father to them, and I can claim face to face the fulfillment of promises from him who is a covenant-keeping God, and who sweareth and performeth and faileth not to the uttermost.
“The wolves are upon the scent, and I am waiting to be offered up, if such be the will of God, knowing that though my visage be more marred than that of any, it will be unscarred and fair when archangels shall place on my brow the double crown of martyr and king in a heavenly world.
“In the midst of darkness and boding danger, the spirit of Elijah came upon me, and I went away to inquire of God how the Church should be saved.
“I was upon the hill of the Temple. The calm father of waters rolled below, changeless and eternal. I beheld a light in the heavens above, and streams of bright light illuminated the firmament, varied and beautiful as the rainbow, gentle, yet rapid as the fierce lightning.
“The Almighty came from his throne of rest. He clothed himself with light as with a garment. He appeared, and moon and stars went out. The earth dissolved in space. I trod on air and was borne on wings Cherubims. The sweetest strains of heavenly music thrilled in my ear, but the notes were low and sad as though they sounded the requiem of martyred Prophets.
“I bowed my head to the earth and asked only wisdom and strength for the Church. The voice of God answered, My servant Joseph, thou hast been faithful over many things and thy reward is glorious; the crown and sceptre are thine, and they wait thee. But thou hast sinned in some things, and thy punishment is very bitter. The whirlwind goeth before, and its clouds are dark, but rest followeth, and to its days there shall be no end. Study the words of the vision for it tarrieth not.
“And now behold my servant James J. Strang hath come to thee from far for truth when he knew it not, and hath not rejected it, but had faith in thee, the Shepherd and Stone of Israel, and to him shall the gathering of the people be, for he shall plant a stake of Zion in Wisconsin, and I will establish it; and there shall my people have peace and rest and shall not be moved, for it shall be established on the prairie on White River, in the lands of Racine and Walworth; and behold my servants James and Aaron shall plant it, for I have given them wisdom, and Daniel shall stand in his lot on the hill beside the river, looking down on the prairie, and shall instruct my people, and shall plead with them face to face.
“Behold my servant James shall lengthen the cords and strengthen the stakes of Zion, and my servant Aaron shall be his counselor, for he hath wisdom in the gospel, and understandeth the doctrines, and erreth not therein.
“And I will have a house built unto me there of stone, and there will I show myself to my people by many mighty works, and the name of the city shall be called Voree, which is, being interpreted, garden of peace, for there shall my people have peace and rest and wax fat and pleasant in the presence of their enemies.
“But I will again stretch out my arm over the river of waters, and on the banks thereof shall the house of my choice be. But now the city of Voree shall be a stronghold of safety to my people, and they that are faithful and obey me I will there give them great prosperity, and such as they have not had before; and unto Voree shall be the gathering of my people, and there shall the oppressed flee for safety, and none shall hurt or molest them.
“And by this shall they know that I have spoken it; the people there and the owners of the land shall show kindness to them, for great calamities are coming on the church, and such as have not been, and if they scatter, the ungodly of the world shall swallow them up, but it they gather to my city of Voree there will I keep them under the shadow of my wings, and the cities from whence my people have been driven shall be purged with a high hand, for I will do it, and my people shall be again restored to their possession; but dark clouds are gathering, for the church is not yet wholly purged.
“And now I command my servants, the Apostles and Priests and Elders of the Church of the Saints, that they communicate and proclaim this, my word, to all the saints of God in all the world, that they may be gathered unto and round about the city of Voree and be saved from their enemies, for I will have a people to serve me.
“And I command my servant Moses Smith that he go unto the saints with whom he is acquainted, and unto many people, and command them in my name to go unto my city of Voree, and gain inheritances therein, for he hath left all for my sake; and I will add unto him many fold if he is faithful, for he knows the land and can testify to them that it is very good.
“So spake the Almighty God of heaven. They duty is made plain, and if thou lackest wisdom, ask of God, in whose hands I trust thee, and he shall give thee unsparingly, for it evil befall me thou shalt lead the flock to pleasant pastures. God sustain thee.”
Joseph Smith
"James J. Strang met the requirement of the law that Joseph Smith was to appoint his Successor. James also had to “come in at the gate” by being ordained by the hands of angels; since there was none on the earth holding the prophetic office." - Samuel West, Elder.
