Since the beginning of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, members have kept records and honored their past. Documents and artifacts provide evidence of sacred events and connect the spiritual aspect of the Church to tangible objects.

This book reports on selected buildings and objects that bring to life important events that took place in the first two decades of the Restoration. As museum curators and historians worked to exhibit and tell the history of these objects, they sometimes found that stories told about them were incorrect. This collection’s aim is to tell a more accurate history about these treasured heirlooms.

Items discussed in this volume: the two Smith family homes in Palmyra-Manchester, New York; the artifacts of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, including weapons, canes, Carthage Jail, and watches; Eliza R. Snow’s watch, given to her by Joseph Smith; the Nauvoo Temple bells; the Relief Society Campanile on Temple Square; cannons and other artillery used in Nauvoo and Utah; and odometers used on the pioneer trail.

Telling a better history of these physical objects helps preserve them for future generations.