The upcoming dedication of the Hill Cumorah in New York is an ideal time to learn about and share the historical record about Cumorah. This series of posts contributes to that effort.
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The discussion below about Cumorah was posted on ldshistoricalnarratives.com but is reposted here with some edits as part of the countdown to the dedication of Cumorah in September 2025.
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There are awesome websites about Church History locations. They offer excellent resources. However, the content needs some work to make it more accurate and to better inform readers.
This is the main page:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/learn/history/sites?lang=eng
Here's the page for New York/Pennsylvania:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/learn/history/sites/new-york-and-pennsylvania?lang=eng
It has an excellent overview map.
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| (click to enlarge) |
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The page for the Book of Mormon fortunately portrays the stone box fairly accurately, without the "sword of Laban" that some people claim was in there, contrary to what Joseph and Oliver said.
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| (click to enlarge) |
Lucy Mack Smith reported what Moroni told Joseph that first night.
the record is on a side hill on the Hill of Cumorah 3 miles from this place remove the Grass and moss and you will find a large flat stone pry that up and you will find the record under it laying on 4 pillars
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/lucy-mack-smith-history-1844-1845/41
Accordingly when the time arrived he went to the place appointed and removed the moss and grass from the surface of the rock and then pryed up the flat stone according to the directions which he had received he then discovered the plates laying on on 4 pillars in the inside of the box
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/lucy-mack-smith-history-1844-1845/44
In the photograph above, the stone is rounded, which would make it more obvious. Joseph wouldn't need to remove the grass and moss to find it. Lucy's description ("a large flat stone") makes more sense, but her account has been largely ignored.
Which brings up another point.
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The page for Cumorah needs work. Here are my suggestions for improvement and accuracy:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/learn/locations/hill-cumorah?lang=eng
Original in blue, my comments in red, proposed changes in green.
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Original
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Comments
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Hill Cumorah
in Manchester, New York, is the place where Joseph Smith met annually with
the angel Moroni from 1823 to 1827 and obtained the gold plates from which
the Book of Mormon would be translated.
|
This is
accurate but incomplete and thus misleading. It leaves readers without an
answer to the obvious question: "Why is this hill named
Cumorah?"
It's not a
difficult question to answer.
Proposed
emendation. Add the following sentence:
The hill
is called "Cumorah" because that is how Moroni identified it when
he first visited Joseph in September 1823.
|
|
The events
that took place at the Hill Cumorah were foundational to the establishment of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
|
|
|
Directed by
the angel Moroni, Joseph Smith found the golden plates deposited in the hill
on September 22, 1823.
|
Proposed
emendation: Add the following in the narrative or in a footnote:
Joseph's
mother explained what Moroni told him that night: "the record is on a
side hill on the Hill of Cumorah 3 miles from this place
remove the Grass and moss and you will find a large flat
stone pry that up and you will find the record under it laying on 4
pillars
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/lucy-mack-smith-history-1844-1845/41
|
|
Joseph then
met the angel there on the same date for the next three years until he was
finally allowed to obtain the plates on September 22, 1827.
|
Joseph met
Moroni on at least one other occasion that was significant.
Proposed
emendation: Add the following in the narrative or in a footnote :
Joseph's
mother related one of Joseph's encounters with Moroni: "as I passed
by the hill of Cumorah, where the plates are, the angel of the Lord met me
and said, that I had not been engaged enough in the work of the Lord; that
the time had come for the record to <be> brought forth; and, that
I must be up and doing, and set myself about the things which God had
commanded me to do."
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/lucy-mack-smith-history-1845/111
|
|
From those
plates, Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of
God.
|
This
incomplete paraphrase of what Joseph actually said omits an essential part of
the narrative Joseph and Oliver gave us.
Proposed
emendation. Delete the sentence and replace it with what Joseph
actually said, such as one of these:
Joseph
explained that "I obtained them [the plates] and the Urim and
Thummim with them, by the means of which I translated the plates and
thus came the Book of Mormon."
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/elders-journal-july-1838/11
Joseph
explained that “With the records was found a curious instrument which
the ancients called “Urim and Thummim,” which consisted of two transparent
stones set in the rim of a bow fastened to a breastplate.
Through
the medium of the Urim and Thummim I translated the record by the gift,
and power of God.”
(Times and
Seasons III.9:707 ¶5–6)
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/times-and-seasons-1-march-1842/5
|
|
The site
includes a variety of trails, the Angel Moroni Monument, and a visitors’ center.
|
|
|
Although it
is commonly known as the Hill Cumorah, this name was not used sometime after
the pivotal events of 1823–1827.
|
This
confusing sentence appears to be missing a word. The historians apparently
meant to write "this name was not used until sometime
after the pivotal events of 1823–1827."
But if that
is what they meant to write, then the sentence is misleading because there
are no known documents from 1823-1827 regarding the plates, the hill, Moroni,
the First Vision, or any other Restoration events.
To be
consistent, historians would also observe that "the name
"Moroni" was not used until sometime after the pivotal events of
1823-1827." Instead, relying on retrospective accounts, they state the
dates of Moroni's visit as a fact. Which is fine.
But to be
consistent, they should also state as a fact that it was Moroni who
identified the hill as Cumorah in the first place.
Everything we
know about this time period was recorded retrospectively. For example, the
claim that Joseph met Moroni in September 1827 is based on retrospective
accounts.
To claim that
the name "Cumorah" was not used because there are no known
contemporaneous documents is to also claim that none of the other Restoration
events took place because there is no known contemporaneous
documentation.
We assume
people talked about these events at the time they occurred. They just didn't
write anything down until later. Historians rely on Lucy Mack Smith's
accounts as the best, and often only, source of information about Joseph
Smith's life before people began recording events
contemporaneously. [Even the New Testament was written from memory
long after the events described.]
The selective
omission of "Cumorah" from the historical record reflects a policy
to promote modern ideological theories, at the expense of accurately
informing people about the historical record.
Proposed
emendation. Replace this confusing sentence with the
following.
The hill
is commonly known as the Hill Cumorah because that is what Moroni called it
when he first visited Joseph Smith. Oliver Cowdery explained that it was a
fact that this is the same hill referenced in Mormon 6:6.
http://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/history-1834-1836/90
|
|
In the latter
half of the nineteenth century, many residents of Wayne and Ontario Counties
referred to it as “Gold Bible Hill” and “Mormon Hill.”
|
The relevance
of this sentence is unclear, but it obfuscates the historical reality that
Joseph's contemporaries all referred to the hill as Cumorah as early as 1829.
Proposed
emendation. Add the following sentence.
Although
early Church members including Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, who lived
in the area, referred to the hill as Cumorah, in the latter half of the
nineteenth century, many residents of Wayne and Ontario Counties referred to
it as "Gold Bible Hill" and "Mormon Hill." The Church
acquired the Hill Cumorah in 1928 and restored the name Cumorah, by which it
is still known today.
|
|
However, many
early members of the Church, including some of Joseph Smith’s closest friends
and family members, referred to the hill as “Cumorah” at various times in
Joseph Smith’s lifetime.
|
While
technically accurate, this is misleading because it implies these "early
members of the Church" invented the term or adopted a false narrative.
Historians should explain that Lucy Mack Smith related what Moroni told
Joseph the first night, that Joseph referred to the hill as Cumorah even
before he got the plates, that Oliver Cowdery explained it was Moroni who
called the hill Cumorah, that Oliver declared it is a fact that the New York
Cumorah is the same as the Cumorah/Ramah mentioned in the text, that David
Whitmer met the messenger who had the plates and was going to Cumorah before
going to Fayette, etc.
Proposed
emendation. Replace the sentence with the following.
Many early
members of the Church, including some of Joseph Smith's closest friends and
family members, related accounts that affirmed Moroni's identification of the
hill as Cumorah.
|
|
This is
likely because Moroni, the Book of Mormon’s final author and the angel who
met with Joseph Smith, wrote that he would “hide up the record in the earth”
once he had finished adding a few words of his own (see Mormon 8:4, 14).
|
This
speculative sentence should be omitted because there are zero historical
documents that state, imply, or even suggest that this is the reason why
Joseph and his contemporaries referred to the hill as Cumorah. Instead, the
historical references indicate that it was Moroni himself who identified the
hill as Cumorah, along with the messenger to whom Joseph gave the plates
before leaving Harmony (whom Joseph identified as one of the Three Nephites).
Proposed
emendation. Delete the sentence.
|
|
Since this
passage follows Moroni’s account of the great final battle between the
Nephites and Lamanites, which occurred at a hill called Cumorah, many assumed
that Moroni buried the plates in the same hill (see Mormon 8:2–4) and it was there that Joseph later received
the record.
|
This
speculative sentence should be omitted because there are zero historical
documents that state, imply, or even suggest that this is the reason why
Joseph and his contemporaries referred to the hill as Cumorah. To the
contrary, President Cowdery stated the New York Cumorah/Ramah was a fact, not
an assumption, inference, or interpretation.
Proposed
emendation. Delete the sentence.
|
|
One of Joseph
Smith’s later letters likewise refers to the “glad tiding from Cumorah” and
the visit of “Moroni, an angel from heaven” (Doctrine and Covenants 128:20).
|
This is
subtle editing that most readers probably would not notice. By changing the
word order and omitting part of the scripture, the historians have changed
the meaning of what Joseph wrote here. The actual sentence demonstrates that
Joseph learned the name Cumorah from Moroni before he received the
plates.
Moroni told
him about "the book to be revealed." IOW, as his mother and others
explained, Joseph reported that Moroni identified Cumorah when the book was
yet to be revealed; i.e., before he first went to see the plates.
Proposed
emendation. Replace the edited quotation with the full quotation the
way Joseph wrote it.
Glad
tidings from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfilment
of the prophets—the book to be revealed. (Doctrine and Covenants 128:20)
|
|
While the
Church “does not take a position on the specific geographic locations of Book
of Mormon events in the ancient Americas,” records kept by Joseph Smith and
his contemporaries make it clear that this hill is the place where Joseph
Smith met with Moroni and where Joseph received the plates containing the
Book of Mormon (see Gospel Topics: Book of Mormon Geography).
|
The entry on
Book of Mormon Geography does not mention Cumorah. As such, it retains the
teachings of the prophets from the beginning because they always emphasized
two things: (i) Cumorah is in New York and (ii) we don't know the location of
the other events in the New World.
Proposed
emendation. Replace the sentence with this.
While the
Church “does not take a position on the specific geographic locations of Book
of Mormon events in the ancient Americas,” the prophets have consistently
taught two things: (i) Cumorah/Ramah is in New York and (ii) we don't know
the location of the other events in the New World. Additionally,
retrospective records kept by Joseph Smith and his contemporaries make it
clear that this hill is the place where Joseph Smith met with Moroni and
where Joseph received the plates containing the Book of Mormon (see Gospel
Topics: Book of Mormon Geography).
|
paragraph format:
Hill Cumorah
Hill Cumorah in Manchester, New York, is the place where Joseph Smith met annually with the angel Moroni from 1823 to 1827 and obtained the gold plates from which the Book of Mormon would be translated.
This is accurate but incomplete and thus misleading. It leaves readers without an answer to the obvious question: "Why is this hill named Cumorah?"
It's not a difficult question to answer.
Proposed emendation. Add the following sentence:
The hill is called "Cumorah" because that is how Moroni identified it when he first visited Joseph in September 1823.
The events that took place at the Hill Cumorah were foundational to the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Directed by the angel Moroni, Joseph Smith found the golden plates deposited in the hill on September 22, 1823. Proposed emendation: Add the following in the narrative or in a footnote:
Joseph's mother explained what Moroni told him that night: "the record is on a side hill on the Hill of Cumorah 3 miles from this place remove the Grass and moss and you will find a large flat stone pry that up and you will find the record under it laying on 4 pillars
Joseph then met the angel there on the same date for the next three years until he was finally allowed to obtain the plates on September 22, 1827.
Joseph met Moroni on at least one other occasion that was significant.
Proposed emendation: Add the following in the narrative or in a footnote :
Joseph's mother related one of Joseph's encounters with Moroni: "as I passed by the hill of Cumorah, where the plates are, the angel of the Lord met me and said, that I had not been engaged enough in the work of the Lord; that the time had come for the record to <be> brought forth; and, that I must be up and doing, and set myself about the things which God had commanded me to do."
From those plates, Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God.
This incomplete paraphrase of what Joseph actually said omits an essential part of the narrative Joseph and Oliver gave us. It is better for people to see what they actually said.
Proposed emendation. Delete the last sentence and replace it with what Joseph actually said, such as one of these:
Joseph explained that "I obtained them [the plates] and the Urim and Thummim with them, by the means of which I translated the plates and thus came the Book of Mormon."
With the records was found a curious instrument which the ancients called “Urim and Thummim,” which consisted of two transparent stones set in the rim of a bow fastened to a breastplate.
Through the medium of the Urim and Thummim I translated the record by the gift, and power of God.
(Times and Seasons III.9:707 ¶5–6)
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/times-and-seasons-1-march-1842/5
The site includes a variety of trails, the Angel Moroni Monument, and a visitors’ center. No changes suggested.
Although it is commonly known as the Hill Cumorah, this name was not used sometime after the pivotal events of 1823–1827.
This confusing sentence appears to be missing a word. The historians apparently meant to write "this name was not used until sometime after the pivotal events of 1823–1827."
But if that is what they meant to write, then the sentence is misleading because there are no known documents from 1823-1827 regarding the plates, the hill, Moroni, the First Vision, or any other Restoration events.
To be consistent, historians would also observe that "the name "Moroni" was not used until sometime after the pivotal events of 1823-1827." Instead, relying on retrospective accounts, they state the dates of Moroni's visit as a fact. Which is fine.
But to be consistent, they should also state as a fact that it was Moroni who identified the hill as Cumorah in the first place.
Everything we know about this time period was recorded retrospectively. For example, the claim that Joseph met Moroni in September 1827 is based on retrospective accounts.
To claim that the name "Cumorah" was not used because there are no known contemporaneous documents is to also claim that none of the other Restoration events took place because there is no known contemporaneous documentation.
We assume people talked about these events at the time they occurred. They just didn't write anything down until later. Historians rely on Lucy Mack Smith's accounts as the best, and often only, source of information about Joseph Smith's life before people began recording events contemporaneously. [Even the New Testament was written from memory long after the events described.]
The selective omission of "Cumorah" from the historical record reflects a policy to promote modern ideological theories, at the expense of accurately informing people about the historical record.
Proposed emendation. Replace this confusing sentence with the following.
The hill is commonly known as the Hill Cumorah because that is what Moroni called it when he first visited Joseph Smith. Oliver Cowdery explained that it was a fact that this is the same hill referenced in Mormon 6:6.
http://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/history-1834-1836/90
In the latter half of the nineteenth century, many residents of Wayne and Ontario Counties referred to it as “Gold Bible Hill” and “Mormon Hill.”
The relevance of this sentence is unclear, but it obfuscates the historical reality that Joseph's contemporaries all referred to the hill as Cumorah as early as 1829.
Proposed emendation. Add the following sentence.
Although early Church members including Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, who lived in the area, referred to the hill as Cumorah, in the latter half of the nineteenth century, many residents of Wayne and Ontario Counties referred to it as "Gold Bible Hill" and "Mormon Hill." The Church acquired the Hill Cumorah in 1928 and restored the name Cumorah, by which it is still known today.
However, many early members of the Church, including some of Joseph Smith’s closest friends and family members, referred to the hill as “Cumorah” at various times in Joseph Smith’s lifetime.
While technically accurate, this is misleading because it implies these "early members of the Church" invented the term or adopted a false narrative. Historians should explain that Lucy Mack Smith related what Moroni told Joseph the first night, that Joseph referred to the hill as Cumorah even before he got the plates, that Oliver Cowdery explained it was Moroni who called the hill Cumorah, that Oliver declared it is a fact that the New York Cumorah is the same as the Cumorah/Ramah mentioned in the text, that David Whitmer met the messenger who had the plates and was going to Cumorah before going to Fayette, etc.
Proposed emendation. Replace the sentence with the following.
Many early members of the Church, including some of Joseph Smith's closest friends and family members, related accounts that affirmed Moroni's identification of the hill as Cumorah.
This is likely because Moroni, the Book of Mormon’s final author and the angel who met with Joseph Smith, wrote that he would “hide up the record in the earth” once he had finished adding a few words of his own (see Mormon 8:4, 14). This speculative sentence should be omitted because there are zero historical documents that state, imply, or even suggest that this is the reason why Joseph and his contemporaries referred to the hill as Cumorah. Instead, the historical references indicate that it was Moroni himself who identified the hill as Cumorah, along with the messenger to whom Joseph gave the plates before leaving Harmony (whom Joseph identified as one of the Three Nephites).
Proposed emendation. Delete the sentence.
Since this passage follows Moroni’s account of the great final battle between the Nephites and Lamanites, which occurred at a hill called Cumorah, many assumed that Moroni buried the plates in the same hill (see Mormon 8:2–4) and it was there that Joseph later received the record. This speculative sentence should be omitted because there are zero historical documents that state, imply, or even suggest that this is the reason why Joseph and his contemporaries referred to the hill as Cumorah. To the contrary, President Cowdery stated the New York Cumorah/Ramah was a fact, not an assumption, inference, or interpretation.
Proposed emendation. Delete the sentence.
One of Joseph Smith’s later letters likewise refers to the “glad tiding from Cumorah” and the visit of “Moroni, an angel from heaven” (Doctrine and Covenants 128:20). This is subtle editing that most readers probably would not notice. By changing the word order and omitting part of the scripture, the historians have changed the meaning of what Joseph wrote here. The actual sentence demonstrates that Joseph learned the name Cumorah from Moroni before he received the plates.
Moroni told him about "the book to be revealed." IOW, as his mother and others explained, Joseph reported that Moroni identified Cumorah when the book was yet to be revealed; i.e., before he first went to see the plates.
Proposed emendation. Replace the edited quotation with the full quotation the way Joseph wrote it.
Glad tidings from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfilment of the prophets—the book to be revealed. (Doctrine and Covenants 128:20)
While the Church “does not take a position on the specific geographic locations of Book of Mormon events in the ancient Americas,” records kept by Joseph Smith and his contemporaries make it clear that this hill is the place where Joseph Smith met with Moroni and where Joseph received the plates containing the Book of Mormon (see Gospel Topics: Book of Mormon Geography). The entry on Book of Mormon Geography does not mention Cumorah. As such, it retains the teachings of the prophets from the beginning because they always emphasized two things: (i) Cumorah is in New York and (ii) we don't know the location of the other events in the New World.
Proposed emendation. Replace the sentence with this.
While the Church “does not take a position on the specific geographic locations of Book of Mormon events in the ancient Americas,” the prophets have consistently taught two things: (i) Cumorah/Ramah is in New York and (ii) we don't know the location of the other events in the New World. Additionally, retrospective records kept by Joseph Smith and his contemporaries make it clear that this hill is the place where Joseph Smith met with Moroni and where Joseph received the plates containing the Book of Mormon (see Gospel Topics: Book of Mormon Geography).
