Joseph Smith's Healing of the Camp Horses
Published October 19, 2026 at 2:09 AM
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Young Woman's Journal Research
During Zion's Camp, the horses were suffering significantly; Joseph Smith ministered to them through prayer and faith, resulting in their recovery.
The event occurred on May 17–18, 1834. On the evening of May 17, Joseph Smith settled a dispute among the brethren in Zion's Camp and rebuked the rebellious spirit of Sylvester Smith and others, warning them that they would meet with 'misfortunes, difficulties and hindrances' and would know it before leaving that place. The following morning, nearly every horse in the camp was found to be sick or lame. Joseph promised that if the men humbled themselves and resolved their discord, the animals would be restored; the horses were healed by noon that same day, with the exception of the horse belonging to Sylvester Smith, which died shortly thereafter.
In Their Own Words
“On the 17th, we arrived at the west bank of the Illinois River, and ferried over. We encamped on the bank of the river. This evening there was a difficulty between some of the brethren and Sylvester Smith, on account of which I was called to decide in the matter; and finding a rebellious spirit in Sylvester Smith, and to some extent in others, I told them they would meet with misfortunes, difficulties, and hindrances, and that they would know it before they left this place; and that there would be a scourge come upon the camp in consequence of the refractory and unruly spirits, and they should die like sheep with the rot. On the following morning, when we arose, we found almost every horse in the camp so badly foundered, that we could scarcely lead them a few rods to the water. The brethren then greatly multiplied their prayers and supplications, in order that they might obtain deliverance from the scourge that had come upon them. I told them, if they would humble themselves and covenant to keep the commandments of God, and do His will, that the horses should be restored to health; and by noon the horses were as nimble as ever, with the exception of one of Sylvester Smith's horses, which soon after died.”
— Joseph Smith, History of the Church, Vol. 2, pp. 71-72
Sources & References
The Young Woman's Journal, vol. 20 no. 4 (April 1909). L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University digital collections. https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/YWJ/id/15605 (account extracted verbatim from the collection's page-level OCR; research confidence: high) Additional sources (periodical research): FAIR (Faithful Answers, Informed Response), 'Miraculous Events in Early Church History'. https://www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/archive/publications/miraculous-events-in-early-church-history History of Mormonism, 'Zion's Camp'. https://historyofmormonism.com/mormon-history/two-church-centers/tcc-1832/zions-camp/ Full first-person account: History of the Church, Vol. 2, pp. 71-72 https://byustudies.byu.edu/further-study/history-of-the-church-volume-2/
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