Newel K. Whitney Store, Kirtland, Ohio, USA

Newel K. Whitney Store, Kirtland, Ohio. Photo (2017) by Kenneth Mays.

The Newel K. Whitney Store served as the home of Joseph and Emma Smith between September 1832 and February 1834. Joseph Smith III was born here on November 6, 1832. The store served as the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during the time that the Smith family lived here.

Many significant events occurred here including the organization of the School of the Prophets, the First Presidency receiving the keys of the kingdom, and receiving of the revelation known as the Word of Wisdom, Doctrine and Covenants Section 89.

School of the Prophets room, Whitney store. Photo (2009) by Kenneth Mays.

During one of the meetings of the School of the Prophets, God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to members of the school. Zebedee Coltrin, a member of the school related the following experience:

I saw a person passing through the room as plainly as I see you now. Joseph asked us if we knew who it was and answered himself, ‘That is Jesus our Elder Brother, the Son of God!’ After the vision closed, Joseph then told those present to resume their former position of prayer. Again I saw passing through the same room, a personage whose glory and brightness was so great, that I can liken it to nothing but the burning bush that Moses saw, and its power was so great that had it continued much longer I believe it would have consumed us. After this personage had disappeared from the room, Joseph announced that the men had seen the father of the Lord Jesus Christ.1

Newel K. Whitney store. Photo (2009) by Kenneth Mays.

In the late 1970s, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acquired the store from Lilian Wood and restored it. The store was dedicated by President Ezra Taft Benson on August 25, 1984.2 On November 18, 1988, President Ronald Reagan presented the Church with the Historic Preservation Award for restoring the Newel K. Whitney Store in 1984.3

SOURCES

1 Larry C. Porter and Susan Easton Black, eds., The Prophet Joseph: Essays on the Life and Mission of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1988), 110-111.

2 Karl Ricks Anderson, Joseph Smith’s Kirtland (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1989), 249.

3 “Whitney Store Given Prestigious Award,” LDS Church News, (November 19, 1988).

Map & Directions

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Ownership Status

The Newel K. Whitney Store is owned and maintained by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is located in the restored historic village at Kirtland, Ohio. The village is open to all at no charge daily from dawn until dusk. Free tours of the interior begin at the visitors’ center. Virtual tours are also available to interested parties. For more information go to: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/learn/historic-sites/ohio/historic-kirtland-virtual-tours?lang=eng

Photos

Newel K. Whitney store as originally restored. Photo (1985) by Kenneth Mays.
Newel K. Whitney store. Photo (2020) by Kenneth Mays.

 

Newel K. Whitney store, three years after the dedication of Kirtland Village. Photo (2006) by Kenneth Mays.
Translation or revelation room, Whitney store. Photo (2009) by Kenneth Mays.
School of the Prophets room, Whitney store. Photo (1985) by Kenneth Mays.

Articles & Resources

Various Accounts of the Appearance of the Father and the Son at the Newel K. Whitney Store

Author(s): Zebedee Coltrin, John Murdock
Type: First-person accounts
Source(s): Larry C. Porter and Susan Easton Black, eds., The Prophet Joseph: Essays on the Life and Mission of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1988), 110 – 111; “House of Revelation,” Ensign, (January 1993), 31.

I saw a person passing through the room as plainly as I see you now. Joseph asked us if we knew who it was and answered himself, ‘That is Jesus our Elder Brother, the Son of God!’ After the vision closed, Joseph then told those present to resume their former position…

Brigham Young's Account of the Receiving of the Word of Wisdom

Author(s): Brigham Young
Type: First-person account
Source(s): Journal of Discourses, 26 vols. (London: Latter-day Saints’ Book Depot, 1854-1886), 12: 157-158.

When the school of the prophets was inaugurated one of the first revelations given by the Lord to His servant Joseph was the Word of Wisdom. The members of that school were but a few at first, and the prophet commenced to teach them in doctrine to prepare them to…

Newel K. Whitney Store, at LDS.org

Newel K. Whitney Store, at JosephSmith.net

Newel K. Whitney Store, at Doctrine & Covenants Revelvation Sites Website

“Whitney Store Wins Major U.S. Preservation Award,” Ensign, January 1989, 76.

Keith W. Perkins, “Whitney Store,” Encyclopedia of Mormonism, ed. Daniel H. Ludlow et al., 1992.

D. Michael Quinn, “The Newel K. Whitney Family,” Ensign, December 1978, 42.