Ohio Historic Sites

Historic Kirtland, in Kirtland, Ohio, includes a visitors’ center and six historic structures: a schoolhouse, a sawmill, an ashery, the Newel K. Whitney and Company store, Newel and Ann Whitney’s home, and the Johnson Inn, which now houses historical exhibits. President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated Historic Kirtland on May 18, 2003, after which it was opened to the public. Tours and exhibits are available at the site year-round. They tell about experiences of early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who gathered in Kirtland in the 1830s. For information about visiting Historic Kirtland, click or tap here.  In early 1831, the Lord commanded Latter-day Saints to go to Ohio, where they would receive His law, be endowed with power from on high, and prepare to share His gospel among all nations (see Doctrine and Covenants 38:32–33). While they were there, they built a temple—a place of learning, worship, and revelation. In Kirtland, Joseph Smith received many revelations to guide the government of the Savior’s restored Church and to guide the individual lives of Church members.  The Kirtland Temple is owned and operated by Community of Christ. They offer tours for a small fee, which enables them to preserve the temple. For information about visiting the temple, click or tap here.

The historic Morley farm, located near Kirtland, Ohio, is where Isaac and Lucy Morley once lived.

The Johnson Home, in Hiram, Ohio, is the carefully restored home where John and Elsa Johnson lived in the 1830s. Joseph and Emma Smith lived in this home for one year. While they were there, Joseph received 16 revelations that are now recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants. He also worked on his inspired translation of the Bible. President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Johnson Home on October 28, 2001, after which it was opened to the public. Today the home is open for guided tours. For information about visiting the historic Johnson Home, click or tap here. One night, a group of men broke into this home and ripped Joseph from his bed. They forced him outside and carried him to a meadow some distance away, where they tarred and feathered him. The next day, after Emma nursed his wounds and cleaned the tar and feathers from his skin, he delivered a sermon.  Probably the most well-known revelation Joseph Smith received in the Johnson Home is the vision recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 76. In that vision, he and Sidney Rigdon saw God the Father and Jesus Christ and learned of different kingdoms of glory that people will inherit after they are resurrected.