Today in Mormon History - Jul 31

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On this day in Mormon History
http://TodayInMormonHistory.com/

-- 190 years ago today - about Jul 31, 1832 --

Hiram, Ohio. Joseph Smith completed his work on the inspired translation of the New Testament and resumed translating the Old Testament at Genesis 24. (1)
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-- 190 years ago today - Jul 31, 1832 --

Joseph Smith writes to W. W. Phelps: "and now I conjure and exhort mine accusers and the hypocrite in Zion in the love of Christ yea in the name of Jesus of Nazareth"
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-- 175 years ago today - Jul 31, 1847 --

Orson Pratt and Henry G. Sherwood began the first survey in Salt Lake City. It is completed three weeks later, and construction of a bowery is begun on the Temple lot.
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-- 170 years ago today - Jul 31, 1852 (Saturday) --

Elder Christoffer O. Folkman was brutally whipped and nearly killed by a mob at Tinstad, Bornholm, Denmark, where he labored as a missionary. (2)
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-- 165 years ago today - Jul 31, 1857 --
[Apostle Wilford Woodruff]
July 31 I Called upon Brother Kimball early this morning & had some Conversation with him. He told me a dream. He said He thought He had some Hogs caught with ropes & he was driving them up a mountain. He had one vary fat hog. He said we had better kill him. He would never be as good again to kill as now. He told some one to take Care of him for a while till he could attend to some others, and they let him get away from them & the hog ran up the mountain with all his might. When Brother Kimball saw him he took after him & told the brethren to help ketch him & kill him but they Could not ketch him so he got away.

He gave me what He thought to be [an] interpetation of the dream. The Hogs were our Enemies & one of them run away.

A few days since I Called upon Presidet Young & had some Conversation with him. I then went to the Endowment House & worked till 2 oclok. <President Young sealed Sarah Delight Stocking to me [the 3rd "Sara" Woodruff has married]. She was born in Canton, Hartford County> Ct July 28 1838.

I spent the Afternoon in the office. While in the Endowment House President Kimball said He wished me to write the account of the sayings of Joseph the prophet when He pledged himself that He would not speak upon a certain occasion untill all the 12 Had spoken so he had to sit 3/4 of a day & hear the 12 express their feelings & he could not say a word. He then said to the 12 you have caught me this once & I now want to give you some advise. Never get Caught as I have. Never go into a Cornor unless you Can see your way out in some manner. We gathered togeth[er] a Copy of all our works by request of Presidet Brigham Young to make a Deposit of them <in the corner of the temple.> (3)
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Nancy Marinda Hyde sealed to Joseph Smith for all eternity by her Husband Orson Hyde (4)
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-- 130 years ago today - Jul 31, 1892 • Sunday --
[George Q. Cannon]
In the afternoon, President Smith spoke spiritedly for about 85 minutes. Although the usual time was exhausted, I took the liberty of speaking for some five or ten minutes on the necessity of the saints refraining from controversies and from engendering ill-feelings and animosity over politics.

I felt impressed, as there were three Bishops present, to have them and their Counselors and a few other leading men, remain after the meeting while we spoke to them on the policy that the First Presidency was endeavoring to pursue, so far as they could use their influence, in political matters in the Territory. The brethren expressed the pleasure that they had at what we said to them. There seems to be a great deal of bigotry in the minds of many people concerning this question of politics, and we find it principally, if not altogether among the Democrats. (5)
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-- 120 years ago today - Jul 31, 1902 --
[First Presidency letter]
We learn from your communication of 29 inst. that in your stake there are children who have been baptized before they were quite 8 years of age; the time varying from a few days to a month. You ask 'should such baptisms be considered valid, or shall they be set aside and the ordinance repeated?' In reply we will say that it has been decided by the General Authorities of the Church that such baptisms are valid; but we advise that all children should be baptized as near as possible when they are 8 years old. ... Some children are more advanced, both mentally and bodily, even at seven than others are at 8 years old, consequently, in our opinion a few days either before or after the 8th birthday makes but little, if any, difference. ... (6)
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-- 35 years ago today - Jul 31, 1987 --
[Mark Hofmann]
County Attorney's office releases 600-page transcript of interviews its staff conducted with prisoner Hofmann. Hofmann confessed that all the documents listed on statement of probable cause were forged. Some dissatisfaction is expressed in scholarly circles and in the public with the incompleteness of Hofmann's confessions. (7)
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-- 30 years ago today - Jul 31, 1992 --

Counselor Gordon B. Hinckley is a speaker with RLDS president Wallace B. Smith at the RLDS Auditorium in Independence, Missouri, where the Mormon Tabernacle Choir also performs a concert "to the sell-out audience of 5200." (8)
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1 - BYU Studies Journal, volume 46, no. 4: A Chronology of the Life of Joseph Smith, http://byustudies.byu.edu
2 - Jenson, Andrew, Church Chronology
3 - Wilford Woodruff's Journal: 1833-1898 Typescript, Volumes 1-9, Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books 1993, http://amzn.to/newmormonstudies
4 - Genealogical Archives in Salt Lake City; Exploring Mormonism: Polygamy Timeline, http://www.exploringmormonism.com/polygamy-timeline/
5 - The Journal of George Q. Cannon, Church Historian's Press, https://churchhistorianspress.org/george-q-cannon
6 - Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, and Anthon H. Lund, Letter to George C. Parkinson, as quoted in Minutes of the Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1835-1951, Electronic Edition, 2015
7 - Whittaker, David J., The Hofmann Maze, A Book Review Essay with a Chronology and Bibliography of the Hofmann Case, BYU Studies Vol. 29, No. 1, pg.80,
8 - The Mormon Hierarchy - Extensions of Power by D. Michael Quinn, [New Mormon History database ( http://bit.ly/NMHdatabase )]