Sacred Grove (Latter Day Saints)
Coordinates: 43°02′26″N 77°14′40″W / 43.040669°N 77.244404°W The foundational event of the Latter Day Saint movement took place in what is commonly referred to as the Sacred Grove. This Grove is a forested area near the border of western New York near the home of Joseph Smith. It is the location where Smith said he had his First Vision, an important theophany in the movement's theology, occurring in the spring of 1820.
The exact location of the Sacred Grove is not known, but it would likely have been west of Smith's adolescent home on the border of the towns of Palmyra and Manchester. This area was being cleared at the time for farming by the Smith family, who were also using the trees to harvest maple syrup. The area has been purchased by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which cares for the area and allows tourists to visit. Latter Day Saints view the place as a sacred site.
The Sacred Grove's historical significance is as the location of Joseph Smith's First Vision. In the early 19th century, the western New York area had "caught fire" so many times with intense revivalism that it later became known as the burned-over district. As an early adolescent, the revivalism both interested and confused Smith, and he became concerned "for the wellfare of my immortal Soul," which led him to study the scriptures (Smith 1832, pp. 1–2). Believing that "there was no society or denomination that built upon the gospel of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament" (Smith 1832, p. 2), and not knowing where to turn for forgiveness of his sins, he went to the woods near his home to pray (Smith 1832, p. 3). While praying, Smith said he saw a "pillar of light", and then "his mind was caught away" into a vision (Pratt 1840, p. 5) where two personages, identified as God the Father and Jesus Christ, told him his sins were forgiven and that all churches were false and corrupt (Pratt 1840, p. 5; Smith 1842c, p. 748).
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