David Whitmer
| David Whitmer | |
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President of the Church (Church of Christ—Whitmerites) |
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| January 28, 1876 – January 25, 1888 | |
| Successor | John C. Whitmer |
| Reason | Reorganized |
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President of the Church (Church of Christ—Whitmerites) |
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| September 7, 1847 – ca. 1848 | |
| Reason | William McLellin asserted Whitmer's claim |
| End reason | Separated from McLellin. |
| President High Council | |
| July 3, 1834 – January, 1838 | |
| Reason | Elected by vote of the Council. |
| End reason | Vote of the Council. |
| President of Zion | |
| July 7, 1834 – February 5, 1838 | |
| End reason | Vote of members. |
| Latter Day Saint Apostle | |
| June 1829 – June, 1838 | |
| End reason | Separated from the Church |
| Mayor of Richmond, Missouri | |
| In office | |
| 1867 – 1868 | |
| Councilman | |
| In office | |
| pre-1867 – pre-1867 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 7, 1805 Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Died | January 25, 1888 (aged 83) Richmond, Missouri |
| Resting place | Richmond Cemetery 39°16′44″N 93°59′10″W / 39.279°N 93.986°W |
| Baptism Date | June 3, 1829 |
| Known For |
Book of Mormon Witness Founding Church Member |
| Monuments | David Whitmer at Find a Grave |
| Notable works | (1881) (1887) (1887) |
| Spouse(s) | Julia Ann Jolly (m. January 9, 1831) |
| Children | David J. Whitmer (1833-1895) Julia Ann (Schweich)(1835-1914) |
| Signature | |
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David Whitmer (January 7, 1805 – January 25, 1888) was an early adherent of the Latter Day Saint movement who eventually became the most interviewed of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's golden plates.
Whitmer was born near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the fourth of nine children of Peter Whitmer, Sr. and Mary Musselman. Whitmer's ancestry on both sides of his family were German, and the family spoke with a German accent. His grandfather was George Witmer, who was born in Prussia, and his great-grandfather was born in Switzerland. By the 1820s, the Whitmer family had moved to a farm in Fayette, in New York's Finger Lakes area. On March 12, 1825, Whitmer was elected sergeant in a newly organized militia called the Seneca Grenadiers.
Whitmer and his family were among the earliest adherents to the Latter Day Saint movement. Whitmer first heard of Joseph Smith and the golden plates in 1828 when he made a business trip to Palmyra, New York, and there talked with his friend Oliver Cowdery, who believed that there "must be some truth to the matter."
Whitmer eventually accepted the story and brought his father's family to join the Smiths in Palmyra. Whitmer was baptized in June 1829, nearly a year prior to the formal organization of the Church of Christ. During that same month, Whitmer said that he, along with Smith and Cowdery, saw an angel present the golden plates in a vision. Martin Harris reported that he experienced a similar vision with Smith later in the day. Evidence places this event near his father's home in Fayette, New York, on June 28, 1829. Whitmer, Cowdery, and Harris then signed a joint statement declaring their testimony to the reality of the vision. The statement was published in the first edition of the Book of Mormon and has been included in nearly every subsequent edition.
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