Acts of God / Intervention

Town of Conway Inhabitants' Earthquake Experience and Subsequent Turning to Prayer

Published October 27, 2026 at 5:13 AM

1850s · 1852

Conway

Contributed by

Zion's Trumpet Research

An earthquake occurred in the town of Conway on Tuesday morning, November 9, 1852, between four and five o'clock, lasting for a few minutes. The event caused significant excitement and triggered a spirit of prayer among the inhabitants, leading them to decide to reform their lives to avoid future destruction. Consequently, they offered the Saints a convenient place to hold their next conference.

In Their Own Words

“EarthQuake.—We are informed by “R. R.”, considerable excitement was caused in the town of Conway, by an earthquake which happened there, and in other places, Tuesday morning, the 9th of November, between four and five o’clock, which continues for a few minutes. The spirit of prayer fell on the inhabitants of the town at the same time, and they have decided to reform, lest they be destroyed next time; and they have promised to loan a convenient place for the Saints to hold their next conference.— Udgorn Seion (Zion's Trumpet), No. 23 (November 13, 1852) (English translation by Ronald D. Dennis)”

Sources & References

Ronald D. Dennis, trans. and ed., Zion's Trumpet: 1852 Welsh Mormon Periodical (Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University), No. 23 (November 13, 1852) issue. https://rsc.byu.edu/sites/default/files/pub_content/pdf/nov_13.pdf (account extracted verbatim from the published English translation PDF; research confidence: high)

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