The Rise of the Latter-Day Saints

Historians and academics use a handful of histories written by those closest to Joseph Smith during ministry to document and tell the story of the Latter-day Saints. One of the most important histories that has not previously been available is a complex history of the early Church written in several installments by Newel Knight. He was one of a few early converts to write about the founding events in Church history. Knight died in January 1847, north of Winter Quarters, at the young age of forty-six.

During the last five years of his life, he wrote a personal history composed of two elements: autobiography and journal. Though extremely important to the history of the Church, Knight's history has always been a difficult source to use because it was never published in one place until now. This publication of his history will bring together his manuscripts and offer a way to cite them more precisely.

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William G. Hartley

WILLIAM G. HARTLEY is an emeritus associate professor of history at Brigham Young University.

Michael Hubbard MacKay

Michael Hubbard MacKay is an associate professor in the Department of Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University. He is lead historian and editor of Documents, Volume 1 in Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers and the author or coauthor of several books, including From Darkness unto Light: Joseph Smith’s Translation and Publication of the Book of Mormon; Joseph Smith’s Seer Stones; and Sacred Space: Exploring the Birthplace of Mormonism. He is also the editor of several anthologies, including Producing Ancient Scripture.