TODAY IN CHURCH HISTORY: 11 August

[Hemidakota]

1831 - While returning to Kirtland, Ohio, from Jackson County, Missouri, the Prophet Joseph, and those traveling with him, traveled by canoe on the Missouri River. While camped at McIlwaine's Bend, W. W. Phelps has a vision of "the destroyer" (Satan) riding upon the face of the waters.

1834 - Kirtland, Ohio. Elder Sylvester Smith accused the Prophet Joseph Smith of criminal conduct during his journey to and from Missouri, but later confessed that his accusation was false and asked Joseph for forgiveness. (History of the Church, 2:142)

1838 - Joseph Smith traveled, with members of the high council, from Far West to visit the Canadian brethren who had settled on the Grand River at Three Forks, Gentry County, contrary to the Church's counsel. (History of the Church, 3:62)

1842 - While in seclusion at his uncle John Smith's home in Zarahemla, Iowa, as a result of an arrest warrant on being an accessory to the shooting of Lilburn W. Boggs, the Prophet Joseph sent word he would like to see Emma and others. Emma, Hyrum Smith, William Law, Newel K. Whitney, and others, met with Joseph after dark on an island in the Mississippi River between Nauvoo and Montrose. (History of the Church, 5:89-90, 108-109)

1848 - The Saints celebrate their first harvest in the Salt Lake Valley with a large feast

1856 - The Willie Handcart company arrives in Florence, Nebraska.

1970 - The Church is officially recognized by the government of Indonesia.

1996 - The first stake is organized in Kiribati at Tarawa.

1999 - A rare tornado touched down in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Some damage occurred on Temple Square and across the street at the construction site of the new conference center. Many homes in Salt Lake City were also damaged. One person was killed, 150 injured.