E63: The Mysterious Death of Samuel Smith

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:29)
Honestly, it didn't matter which side of the pond you were listening to it on.
If you were in the UK, you started off with Mother's Little Helper. If you were in the US, it was Paint a Black. Then a couple tracks later, you had Under My Thumb. I mean, it was just a great album.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:42)
Wait, what are you talking about?

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:45)
Talking about Aftermath, like obviously one of the Rolling Stones' best albums.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:49)
Okay, that's not the Aftermath we're talking about. We're not talking about the Rolling Stones.
We're talking about Mormonism.

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:56)
Ah, crap. Well, I guess we're gonna change our course here then.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:01)
Hi, this is Lindsay Hansen Park.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:03)
And this is Bryan Buchanan.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:04)
Bringing you the story of Mormonism from the shadow of the Everlasting Hills, straight out of Zion. This isn't your grandpa's Mormon history.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:32)
This is the tale of Mormon saints and sinners from our roots until present day.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:37)
Gird your loins, lock your hearts, and pay your tithing, because we're bringing you the story of Mormonism in all its paradisiacal glory.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:45)
It's the Sunstone History Podcast.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (2:08)
Hot Girl Summer in Nauvoo, 1844, didn't really turn out great. Not as fun as it sounds. Mormons were left with one of the biggest what nows ever.
Despite all the craziness, Joseph Smith is murdered, there's lawsuits, despite everything. This was still a giant surprise to everyone. They did not see this coming for Mormonism. So what now?
Joseph, even the Prophet Joseph was just gone. And like we talked about in the presidential campaign episode, so were a lot of other people. Not in the permanent dead way like Joseph Smith, just in the missionary kind of way.
Brigham Young, Kieber Kimball, old Wilford Woodruff himself, Orson Pratt, Harley Pratt, John C. Bennett. Okay, not so much the last one. He left a little earlier. But those guys were gone on missions. And as a result, a chaotic scene in Nauvoo seemed even less stable. We know how the story turned out. So it's really hard from our vantage point to be scandalized, but it's really interesting to think about how they must have felt on the ground with all this chaos. Your prophet's gone. Now what?

**Bryan Buchanan** (3:19)
Nauvoo Mormonism wasn't early Mormonism.
That's another point that's easy to forget.
It had evolved from this egalitarian, quasi Protestant group to a very unique animal. Hierarchical layers, secret rituals, councils of 50s, doctrinal innovations, polygamy. Yes, I see you, community of Christ dude, vigorously waving your hand saying, that's not a good thing. Calm down, sir. We'll be getting there.
The Bonko's Magic Mountain Ride that was Nauvoo era Joseph Smith had stopped suddenly. Halfway through the loop, leaving all the passengers hanging out, waiting for some zit face kid named Daxton to come and get things going again. Wait up though, folks. It's not quite time for Daxton yet.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (3:58)
I will say I was on the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland when the lights turned on one time and that was a bomber.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:05)
We were on Thunder Mountain when it stopped for like half an hour.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:09)
Suddenly the magic is gone.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:11)
Started yelling for free churros and we got no free churros.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:14)
Well, we were stuck on the Small World ride for 15 minutes once.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:18)
Please tell me the music was still going.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:19)
It was and it made me think about that lawsuit because when I first saw it, people had sued Disney for being stuck on Small World and I was like, come on, really? You're gonna complain about being in the happiest place on earth? And after 15 minutes, I feel like I understood a little.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:35)
After all.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:55)
Okay, let's review all the hats again. Remember, by this point, Joseph Smith was buried under hats.
He had a prophet, head of the Council of 50, leader of the anointed quorum hat, the mayor, trustee in trust, debtor. Holy crap, there was so much debt. So when the hat wearer is no longer trying out the hats in front of some full-length theological and political mirror in front of the rest of the country, that doesn't mean that those hats just disappear.
While it might not seem like it, actually, those last few hats were the most critical hats, the trustee in trust, creditor, debtor hats, especially in the short term. If the council of 50 or anointed quorum doesn't meet for a while, it's not gonna be the end of the world, but a dude who is owed a bunch of dollars by Joseph Smith is not super interested in whether a mystical mantle has fallen on to anyone else or who's gotten their second anointing. The guy just wants his money.