4 - Monday, May 12, 2025 - Horses and History

 "The beautiful inverted stained glass stars that adorn the top of the Nauvoo Temple have a meaningful history dating back to the early Christian church. Known as the "morning star" in Revelations 22:16 it is a symbol of Jesus Christ. When the actual morning star's (Venus) orbit is tracked each morning it creates a perfect inverted five-point star. 

Carved in stone in Old Testament times the inverted star can still be seen on surviving structures and in museums. 

The inverted star was used on various versions of the United States flag until 1876; the most famous flag being the one that flew over Fort McHenry in 1814 and inspired the verses of the Star Spangled Banner. 

Unlike the large. intricate stained glass inverted stars found in the famous cathedrals, the early Latter-day Saints had only the means to gather enough materials for a humble three color inverted star window: red, white, and blue. 

When the Nauvoo Temple was rebuilt and dedicated in 2002, President Hinckley determined that the three-color stained glass windows would once again adorn the temple. The beautiful morning star windows again glow at night as they once did and reminds us of the sacrifice of those early pioneers who loved the Lord."   (from an information card found at Zion's Mercantile)

We went one morning to see the Nauvoo horses as they were being fed and readied for their day's work.  The horses are called by name and each comes and goes to its' own name-labeled eating trough. The black Percherons are on the left and they are the "boss."  The Belgians are on the right.  There are currently 24 horses.  They buy them from the Amish.  They 'work' (wagon rides around town) every second day and they are shod every six weeks.  They are well taken care of. 

Percherons eating

Belgians eating

Elder Munns brushing

Brushing before harnessing

Harnessing

All harnessed and ready

Porter and Parley are ready for work

Last thing - team prayer

A bit more Nauvoo history:

Stoddard Tin Shop

Sylvester Stoddard joined the Church in Maine. Two days later he was called on a mission.  Later in Nauvoo, he was one of several tinsmiths.  He helped with the horns of the oxen in the baptistry and the angel-shaped weather vane on top of the temple. Afterwards they had a watermelon feast in the unfinished temple attic. 

Tinsmith tools - the making of a skimming pan

Finished skimming pan and apple corer

Pioneer mousetrap. The bucket might have water or someone would just take care of the trapped mouse.

Browning Gunsmith Shop and Home 

Jonathan Browning was already well-known as a gunsmith and blacksmith at age 19 in Tennessee.  He and Elizabeth moved to Quincy, IL and he was one who helped the destitute Saints when they first arrived.  He was very impressed with them and asked his friend, Daniel H. Wells about them.  Wells told him they were very good people.  They both later joined the Church.  He bought this home and moved to Nauvoo with his 9 children. He was very generous, never worried about patents, and taught many the art of gunsmithing.  However, his son, John Moses Browning, has 128 patents and is known as "the greatest inventor who has contributed more to the national security of the United States than any other inventor."

The bottom two are original Jonathan Browning guns.	A tray owned by the Brownings.
A rocking cupboard.  Open the top, set the milk inside, rock and roll and you get butter.  Set the baby on top and you can rock him/her to sleep. You could use your foot while you do some knitting -- true multi-tasking!	The Browning cabin in rear of home.

The Post Office and General Store, John Taylor Home, and Print Shop

The combination Post Office and General Store was a gathering place.  Stamps for mailing were charged by the paper, so letters could be written horizontally as normal, the paper turned and horizontally written over the original writing, and if there was more to say, one could write diagonally over both previous writings. Cheaper to mail, but it might take weeks to decipher.  You could pay in full to mail something, pay one-half of it, or pay none of it and the receiver would then pay upon receipt.  At one time Joseph Smith published a notice in the paper that he would receive no more unpaid mail from friends or foe--it was getting too expensive.  

Mail boxes from the time period.

Replica of the original press.  The original was buried in Missouri at one time to avoid destruction,  and later dug up and brought to Nauvoo.

John Taylor was editor of the Times and Seasons newspaper, hence he also ran the post office and general store. His home was in the center.  Pioneer printing was time consuming, but important.  Individual letters had to be 'set' first in a galley and then in a chase backwards so they would print frontwards.  The 'upper case' held the capital letters and the 'lower case' held the small letters.  In a hurry you could bypass the galley and 'cut to the chase.' Small p's and q's and d's and b's are similar and thus you must 'watch your p's and q's.'  Dingbats (graphic images) were defined as " a pretty little thing that takes up space."  

General Store hardware items	General Store kitchenware items
Pull the 'tail' at the left and this becomes not a chalk line, but a berry line.  No chalk at that time, but they could put berries in the container and a berry juice line would be made for a marking.	A pottery canteen.  Why the hole?  It fits over   a saddle horn.

Bedroom in the John Taylor home.  The shaving stand  with mirror is original.

A room in the John Taylor home where meetings were held with Church leaders after Joseph's death.  Plans for the exodus west were talked about here.

Small Pendleton Home and School

Calvin Pendleton joined the Church in Maine in 1838, moved to Kirtland in 1839 and to Nauvoo in 1840.  He was a school teacher known for his handwriting and taught it (cursive) to adults. After his three and a half year mission back to Maine, he met Sally and they lived here.  He also learned gunsmithing and blacksmithing.  He attended a medical school in Ohio and learned botanical medicine. He was asked to stay in Council Bluffs for several years to help the Saints as they came through.  He and Sally later help settle Parowan, UT.   

Here's the math problem given us at the school:  In 1845 there were 2,500 homes in Nauvoo.  There were 350 brick homes and 650 clapboard homes.  How many cabins were there?  

And we close with this beautiful photo that Stan took of the Joseph and Hyrum Smith statue
across from the temple at sunset.