From Deseret News archives:

Groups unearth historical treasures

Nauvoo-Missouri region is rich in archaeological sites

Published: Friday, May 24, 2002 6:03 p.m. MDT
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A mill stone at the site — inscribed with paint noting the massacre — was photographed in 1907 by western photographer George A. Andersen, but over time the exact location of the events has been lost. Association members have made "several attempts to survey the site over the past two years seeking to better understand the community's physical layout and perhaps relocate the Haun's Mill well site," where some of the bodies were placed, according to the groups' Web site.

In cooperation with the two groups, a stone marker commemorating the massacre was recently placed at a park in Breckenridge, Mo., reminding readers of the continuing need for greater tolerance and understanding between people of all faiths.

An organized brush-clearing effort was also mounted by the two groups in March at the site, and archaeologist Paul DeBarthe will lead the scheduled dig.

DeBarthe will oversee an ongoing dig at an early Mormon home site south of the Far West cemetery June 24-28. Under way for the past three years, the dig has involved local high school students and other volunteers. College students who participate can earn credit from Graceland College of Lamoni, Iowa, for their participation in the excavations.

Other projects that have come about in recent years include not only investigations into archaeological sites but placement of markers commemorating LDS leaders and friends. Among them:

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  • Hiram Page, one of the eight witnesses to the Book of Mormon. A marker was placed on his grave in April after association members located it near a roadside north of Excelsior Springs, Mo. Visitors should take Highway 10 to Excelsior Springs, north on Prentiss Avenue to 146th Street (gravel). 146th Street runs northeast. When you reach a "Y" turn to the right (east) and continue on 146th Street until you see a yellow house on the left and a two-story older house beyond on the right. The Page grave is just past the yellow house on the opposite (south) side of the gravel road. The grave is in the grass right-of-way between the road and fence. Though unmarked, it is outlined with large quarried rocks.

  • Alexander Doniphan, a non-Mormon who in 1838 refused to carry out an order to execute church founder Joseph Smith and other LDS leaders. The marker in Liberty, Mo., was placed at Doniphan's home site, now a small park owned by the First Presbyterian Church. It is located a half block southeast of the church's Liberty Jail Visitors' Center.

  • A ground penetrating radar survey at the Far West Cemetery done by the the Community of Christ and the Mormon Historic Sites Foundation, looking for grave locations. More than 200 grave sites have been located, including that of early LDS Apostle David Patten.

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Alexander Doniphan

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