revelations from God throughout his leadership as the first prophet of the church. Mormons settled in Ohio, Missouri, and Illinois after the early years in New York State. They were persecuted heavily during their time in Missouri, in part because of their radical claims about taking ownership in Jackson County. Smith proclaimed that Independence, Missouri, would be the site of the New Jerusalem predicted in the book of Revelation. During the early 1840s, there were both internal dissent and external