Picturing history: Zion's Camp, Sugar Creek

By Kenneth Mays, For the Deseret News

Published: Wednesday, July 11 2012 5:00 a.m. MDT

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May 20, 1834, was a day of fighting muddy roads for Joseph Smith's division of Zion?'s Camp. One member recorded that he saw the Prophet wade in mud over the tops of his bootlegs and helped draw the wagons out. After passing through Greenfield, Ind., the camp found the refreshing waters of Sugar Creek and decided to make camp there. The creek is close to the town of Philadelphia, Hancock County, Ind. By this time, Zion's Camp had stirred up quite a bit of curiosity as it traveled along. While they were camped at Sugar Creek, several men whom the camp supposed were spies, visited to learn what they could about this strange and 'suspicious' group. Camp members who spoke with the spies gave their usual cryptic answers so as not to disclose too much information.

Kenneth Mays,

Summary

May 20, 1834, was a day of fighting muddy roads for Joseph Smith's division of Zion's Camp. One member recorded that he "saw the Prophet wade in mud over the tops of his bootlegs and helped draw the wagons out."

After passing through Greenfield, Ind., the camp found the refreshing waters of Sugar Creek and decided to make camp there. The creek is close to the town of Philadelphia, Hancock County, Ind.

By this time, Zion's Camp had stirred up quite a bit of curiosity as it traveled along. While they were camped at Sugar Creek, several men whom the camp supposed were spies, visited to learn what they could about this strange and "suspicious" group. Camp members who spoke with the spies gave their usual cryptic answers so as not to disclose too much information.

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