First printing of the book mormon

In it, he reports many interesting details of the printing work, including the fact that it was he who punctuated the book of mormon. Better understand the expansive growth of printing in early nineteenthcentury america and how that affected society. The earlier loss of 116 pages of the book of mormon manuscript together with rising antagonism in the palmyra area persuaded joseph and his followers to guard the text during printing. Printing the book of mormon crandall historical printing. Grandin, who owned and operated a printshop in the building. Grandin printed and sold the first copies of the book of. Weights booklet miracle on palmyras main street claims that the rate at which the first edition of the book of mormon was printed could only have occurred miraculously. For those interested in experiencing the original book of mormon, this high quality reprint will make a. On march 26, 1830, an announcement in the wayne sentinel, a local palmyra newspaper, announced the first copies of the book of mormon were officially on sale in e. The book of mormon was published in march 1830 in palmyra, new york, under the direction of printer egbert b. Early on, joseph smith convinced 1 martin harris that together they would make money publishing the book of mormon.

Grandins print shop to print the book was signed on tue 25 aug 1829, and the completed book was on sale by fri 26 march 1830. Here at the crandall printing museum, we attempted to see what it would be like to print 5,000 copies of the original 1830 book of mormon. Check out joyce kosofskys antiques roadshow appraisal of this 1830 book of mormon first printing from dallas, hour 1. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. Good with lightly bumped and rubbed edges, mushy spine, and a short closed tear in head of backstrip. The bible, the most salable book, was on occasion printed in a 10,000copy. The first published text from the book of mormon was the title page, which was printed inthe wayne sentinelof 26 june 1829, an item probably obtained from the application.

There were originally 5,000 firstedition copies of the book of mormon, and some collectors estimate that fewer than 500 may remain today. The same article reported the highest price paid for a firstedition book of. Mormon books digitized materials rare book and special. Despite the extraordinary sacrifice required to bring the work to light, it remained almost unmentioned within the early church, seldom spoken of in any of smiths numerous sermons. Complete payment was due within 18 months from the start of printing. The first edition book of mormon is composed in a narrative, paragraph format, uninterrupted by verses and chapters, which many readers will find easier to digest. Adherents to the mormon faith have revered it, critics have questioned its authenticity and scholars have approached it from multiple disciplines, such as literature, anthropology and archeology. The book of mormon has been criticized and praised for nearly 200 years. First edition book of mormon on display in the grandin complex. The first printed edition compared to the manuscripts and to the subsequent major lds english printed editions and that there was to be. Translating and printing the book of mormon the book of.

Lds church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon for. The first edition continues until the book is changed. The first edition, printed in 1830, is most precious to members of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints because joseph smith, the faiths. On july 11, 20, i was surprised to get an email from a community of christ colleague informing me that the smithpettit foundation was publishing john s. A photograph copy of the original printers manuscript for the first printing of the book of mormon sits next to a leather bound copy of the first book of mormon.

The seven months it took to print the book of mormon is well documented. It seems clear that his support of the first printing of the book of mormon ruined martin harris. But the better procedure is to test this statement against what we have been able to discover about the printing of. Book of mormon, 1830, page 0 the joseph smith papers.

Book of mormon by joseph smith, first edition abebooks. Primary manual 519 this image is to be used for church purposes only. Another testament of jesus christ official edition by smith, joseph and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. In 1851, twentyone years after its first printing, members of the church in denmark were the first to read the book of mormon in their native language. Page, which was printed in the wayne sentinel of 26 june 1829, an item probably obtained from. Book of mormon historic publishing site grandin building. Understanding the process of publishing the book of mormon.

Printing of the first book of mormon printing of the book. Printing of the first edition book of mormon duration. Organized in 1830, the church had recently issued february 2000 the one hundred millionth copy of the book of mormon, the volume that has been central to. A printing history of the book of mormon 101 the year 2000 marked an important event in the publishing history of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints.

The book of mormon and the growth of printing in america objectives. Book of mormon printing history showcased in storied provo. Grandin printed and sold the first copies of the book of mormon. March is the 190th anniversary of the printing of the first edition of the book of mormon. Dingers significant textual changes in the book of mormon. The rare book and special collections division has an important collection of early printed books relating to the history of the latterday saints, beginning with two copies of the first edition of the book of mormon by joseph smith, printed in palmyra, new york in 1830. Collecting the book of mormon by joseph, smith first edition. The oilbased ink used in printing at the time made better imprints when the paper was slightly moistened, which added the timely step of drying before a sheet could be flipped over to print on the reverse side. By wordprint analysis, it is now possible with a high degree of certainty to tell which suspected authors. If you have been thinking about picking one up, now is the. Modern computers have given birth to a new science of analyzing word patterns in documents whose authorship is disputed. Everything but the house ebth, a premier estate sale marketplace, placed a fine and rare partiallyrestored copy of the 1830 first edition of the book of mormon up for auction today.

Gordon is probably the only person on the planet that could have written with authenticity this booklet with subtitle, an oldtime printers perspective on printing the original copies of the book of mormon. The printing of the book of mormon jump to subtopic. The replica press is found at the crandall printing museum in provo, utah. The incredible story of the first printing of the book of mormon. To the inside front cover are affixed four clippings of descriptions of different versions of first edition copies of the book of mormon and of an 1854 edition of the doctrine and covenants, along with a clipping describing the origin of the text of the book of mormon and a bookplate of the shepard book company of salt lake city, utah. Hyrum smith is led by the spirit to go to the press on the sabbath. Lately, first edition has become widely accepted tto mean first edition, first printing when buying or selling books although, technically speaking, it shouldnt be. Hyrum took up one of the papers and discovered that the man was printing the book of mormon by piecemeal.

Browse our collection of utah art, historical documents, lds books, lds scripture, rare historical mormon items, and unique collectibles. Printing paper used in the first editions of the book of mormon was a softer, machinedmade paper that did not need moistening. Books available in provo, ut, including an original first edition book of mormon and bibles including tyndale, geneva, king james. Smith himself, having failed to sell the of his book to others, escaped the consequences of this disaster by getting his father out of debtors prison and. Book of mormon printing arrangements printing the book. A new version of the book is then typeset, which becomes the second edition. Printing of the first book of mormon printing of the book of mormon, by gary e. Copy made from the original book of mormon manuscript by oliver cowdery, for use by the typesetter for the first printing of the book of mormon 1830. In the world of scripturepublishing, the word annotation carries a variety of meanings and in the biblepublishing world it has been a staple for decades. The first book of mormon was published in 1830, where 5,000 copies were printed by e. The manpower, the paper, ink, ink balls and hours of. These are the first couple of pages of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon.

An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. There were five editions of the book of mormon printed during the life of joseph smith. Most latterday saints, however, have only a limited experience with annotated scriptures. How to identify first editions or a first printing of a book. Go behind the printing of the first edition of the book of. The copying of the printers manuscript, which was used by the typesetter, had been started in july 1829. Photocopy of the printers copy of the book of mormon. How one utah rare book collector acquired a first edition book of. First page says plainly not authorized by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The following year the book of mormon was printed in four additional languages. The book of mormon has attracted significant attention since its first printing in 1830. Book of mormon historic publication site wikipedia. First edition book of mormon history moons rare books.

In august 1829, harris signed over the mortgage to grandin, and production of the book of mormon began. The book of mormon and the growth of printing in america. My greatgreatgrandfather received it in massachusetts and brought it out west through missouri and finally. The printing and binding of the book of mormon were finished and the book was offered for sale to the public on march 26, 1830, just eleven days before the church was officially organized. But among the many recorded miracles, including an angel revealing where golden plates were buried and special interpreters being used so that they could be translated by the gift and power of god, to my knowledge the actual printing of the first edition of the book of mormon passed almost without comment among church historians until recently. Cole agreed to publish one form of joe smiths gold bible each week, and thereby furnish his subscribers with the principal portion of the book for a. Lr the first edition in palmyra in 1830, the second edition in kirtland, oh in 1837, the third edition in nauvoo in 1840, the first european in liverpool in 1841, and finally another printing in nauvoo in 1842. The book of mormon historic publication site is a historic site located in the village of palmyra, wayne county, new york, united states.

In it, he reports many interesting details of the printing work, including the fact that it. Moons rare books first edition book of mormon for sale. The books of mormon from the first printing remained behind, stored in a warehouse and largely ignored. The lds church purchased the manuscript from the community of christ on wednesday, sept.

Their plan for a first printing of 5,000 copies of the book of mormon was ambitious. When joseph came, he went immediately with martin harris to grandin and succeeded in removing his fears, so that he went on with the work until the books were printed, which was in the spring of 1830. Explore the connections in this period between religion and print culture. Undoubtedly this 26 june 1829 version reflects the punctuation and paragraphing that had already been determined for the first printing of the book of mormon. The book of mormon historic publication site in palmyra, new york, is the place where the first copies of the book of mormon were printed and bound in 1829 and 1830. He lost his wife, his farm and any semblance of financial security as a result. You will notice see figure 3 in the reproduction of the title page in the first edition 1830 that the wording, the essential. Mormon doctrine by mcconkie, first edition abebooks.

In fact, from start to finish, the first edition of the book of mormon was made by. Beautiful working replica of the original eb grandin acorn printing press that was used to print the first book of mormon. Today, the building the houses the bookstoreturnedreligiouslandmark is known as the book of mormon historic. Stuart johnson, deseret news george schweich, a grandson of early lds church member david whitmer, stands next to the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. This is the lowest price we will ever set this book at, and we have limited stock. The first published text from the book of mormon was the title. The incredible story of the first printing of the book of. It is also known as the grandin building, after egbert b. It is enclosed by folding the casing and then by sliding it into an additional case.