The 1830s witnessed a rise in the frequency and intensity of riots and mob violence in the United States, a trend that continued through the Civil War. Vigilantes endeavored to expel groups such as abolitionists, free blacks, gamblers, and Latter-day Saints from communities. In 1833, vigilantes in Jackson County, Missouri, enumerated Latter-day Saint offenses and called for the Saints’ expulsion. In October 1833, opponents of the church in Ohio issued warrants “warning out” several Latter-day Saints residing in Kirtland, ostensibly for their impoverished condition but likely because of their unpopular religion. In 1836, Latter-day Saints were forced to leave Clay County, Missouri, where they had taken refuge after leaving Jackson County. In October 1838, Missouri governor Lilburn W. Boggs called for the expulsion of Latter-day Saints, backing efforts of Missouri vigilantes to drive the Latter-day Saints from the state. (Grimsted, “Rioting in Its Jacksonian Setting,” 361–368; Feldberg, Turbulent Era, 5–6; Historical Introduction to Letter from William W. Phelps, 6–7 Nov. 1833; “To His Excellency, Daniel Dunklin,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Dec. 1833, 114; Historical Introduction to Warrant, 21 Oct. 1833; Historical Introduction to Letter to John Thornton et al., 25 July 1836.)

Grimsted, David. “Rioting in Its Jacksonian Setting.” American Historical Review 77, no. 2 (Apr. 1972): 361–397.

Feldberg, Michael. The Turbulent Era: Riot and Disorder in Jacksonian America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1980.

The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

See Vision, 16 Feb. 1832 [D&C 76:101]; and Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 Mar. 1836 [D&C 109:41].

See John 14:23.

See Genesis 5:24; and Old Testament Revision 1, p. 13 [Moses 6:39].

See John 14:26.

See Acts 10:34.