Carthage Jail and Visitors Center

Visit the restored Carthage Jail, where Joseph Smith, the first President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and his brother Hyrum were murdered. Tours begin at the Visitors’ Center with an 18-minute film on Joseph Smith’s life. You can also enjoy a walk through the beautiful gardens, where a life-sized statue of Joseph and Hyrum Smith pays tribute to the brothers.Trouble for Latter-day Saints in Nauvoo increased when the Nauvoo city council issued orders to destroy a newspaper press that had printed criticisms against the Church. This act angered the newspaper’s supporters and neighboring citizens. To bring calm, Governor Thomas Ford promised the council members full protection if they would submit to arrest and go to Carthage for a trial. Notwithstanding the promise of protection, Joseph Smith felt that he was “going like a lamb to the slaughter.”