The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) recently dedicated its first temple in Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, but the church has long had a presence in the commonwealth.
In December 1827, years before the church was established, Joseph Smith and his wife, Emma, moved from Palmyra, New York, to Susquehanna County to a place referred to as Harmony in Mormon history. Joseph brought with him golden plates that he said he had been directed to unearth by an angel named Moroni. He and Emma were seeking a peaceful place where he could translate the ancient writings on the plates.
The Smiths moved in with Isaac Hale and his wife, Elizabeth. The Hales were Emma’s parents.
“The majority of the Book of Mormon was translated here and the priesthood was restored here. These are very significant contributions to the history of the church,” said Elder Kyle Walker. He and his wife are from Wyoming, but they are serving a mission at the church’s 160-acre Priesthood Restoration Site in Oakland Township.
The translation tells the story of people who lived on the American continent hundreds of years before and after the time of Jesus Christ, whom also visited the people after his resurrection. Joseph’s translation did not begin in earnest until after the Smiths moved into a home of their own next to Isaac Hale’s farm that had been owned by Isaac’s son, Jesse. At that time, Joseph’s brother, Samuel, helped with the farming while Joseph worked at the translation assisted by Oliver Cowdery who acted as a scribe. Nearly all of what would become the Book of Mormon was translated between April and June of 1829.
It was during this time that Joseph learned about the need for proper baptism. He and Oliver were baptized in the Susquehanna River on May of 1829 becoming to the first two members of the yet-to-organized church. This was also the time when the two received the restored priesthood from John the Baptist, in an angelic form.
Smith also received several revelations while living here that eventually became part of the Doctrine and Covenants, which is a collection of revelations given to Joseph with some additional revelations given to later presidents of the church that were deemed important enough to be added.
By September 1830, many people in the area had grown uneasy with having a new faith growing in their midst. Even Emma’s parents grew 
uncomfortable so when the Whitmer family invited the Smiths to stay with them in Fayette, New York, Joseph and Emma decided to move on.
From those early days, the church soon moved westward to Ohio, Illinois, and the western frontier. It would establish itself in modern-day Utah, where the church’s headquarters are now located. As the church grew, it began working to preserve historical sites in its history as well as building temples and meetinghouses around the world.
“The church acquired the properties in different stages,” Walker said. “Some have been owned by the church since the 1950s. The last piece was purchased in 2011.”
However, not much was done with the property for years.
“The only thing here in 2013 was just a monument,” Walker said.
That year, the church began work reconstructing structures that had been on the Isaac Hale Farm and building a visitor’s center. The entire site was dedicated on September 13, 2015, by Russell M. Nelson, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Visitors can take guided tours along wooded walking paths, along the Susquehanna River, and through the reconstructed homes to see how people lived in the early 19th century and see where Joseph Smith began his translation of the Book of Mormon. There are two homes on the site: The Hale home and a second smaller home that Joseph and Emma moved into later. You can walk through the landscaped grounds and see sculptures by Avard Fairbanks that portray the events that took place on the grounds. The visitor’s center, which has been incorporated into a meeting house, features interactive exhibits, artworks, and artifacts. Near the visitor’s center is the site where the church believes John the Baptist appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery to restore the Aaronic and Melchezidek Priesthoods to the world.
The site’s goal is to tell visitors the story of a young prophet who was trying to discover what God wanted him to do, while facing the challenges such a goal brought. However, it also provides a glimpse into life in the early 1800s and how Joseph had to balance his spiritual work with that of a provider for his family.
During the first year since its dedication, more than 30,000 people have visited the Priesthood Restoration Site.
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