This compilation of groundbreaking articles about Joseph Smith is selected from over fifty years of LDS scholarship published by BYU Studies. This volume features articles on young Joseph Smith’s leg surgery, the historical setting and early accounts of the First Vision, friends’ and family members’ recollections of Joseph’s early religious experiences, Joseph’s 1826 trial, and more. Contents Joseph Smith’s Boyhood Operation: An 1813 Surgical Success LeRoy S. Wirthlin Awakenings in the Burned-over District: New Light on the Historical Setting of the First Vision Milton V. Backman Jr. The Earliest Documented Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision Dean C. Jessee Katharine Smith Salisbury’s Recollections of Joseph’s Meetings with Moroni Kyle R. Walker The Colesville Branch and the Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon Larry C. Porter Joseph Knight’s Recollection of Early Mormon History Dean C. Jessee Joseph Smith and the Manchester (New York) Library Robert Paul Money-Digging Folklore and the Beginnings of Mormonism: An Interpretive Suggestion Marvin S. Hill Joseph Smith’s 1826 Trial: The Legal Setting Gordon A. Madsen