Vision of the Lamanite Chief in Washington
Published October 5, 2026 at 2:48 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
While a delegation of Uintah Indians was in Washington, D.C. in 1874 to consult with U.S. government officials, a chief reported being visited by a bright, beautiful personage on three separate evenings in his hotel room. The messenger instructed him against killing and stealing, counseled him to live righteously, and taught him about the Book of Mormon and a future record to be revealed. The visitor also told the chief that the 'Mormons' were friends to the Indians. The chief recounted his experience to A. K. Thurber, S. P. Davies, and A. L. Farnsworth, noting the visitor had a 'God-like' conversation and a bright, beautiful face. John Nicholson, writing in the Millennial Star, suggests that such visitations to Native American chiefs may be manifestations of the Three Nephites, who were granted the desire by Jesus Christ to tarry on the earth until his second coming to bring the souls of men unto Him.
Fuller account of this event (as retold in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 37, No. 9 (2 March 1875), p. 138):
The chief described the visitor as a person with a very beautiful, bright face, and in every way like a man. His conversation was God-like. He told his experience, so the writer is informed on good authority, to Brothers A. K. Thurber, S. P. Davies and A. L. Farnsworth, and the substance of the narrative as told the writer, is to the effect that, while in his room, in a hotel, at Washington, he was visited by a personage, on three different evenings, who conversed with him in a similar strain to what the messengers did who visited Torbuka. The visitor told him that the 'Mormons' were friends to the Indians, and that they were the people who had the record of their forefathers. He instructed him to tell his people not to kill, not to steal, and to live righteously, and that he would yet be taught more fully concerning the record, and that it would be a blessing to his people. The personage had a very bright, beautiful face, and in every way appeared like a man, but his conversation was God-like.
In Their Own Words
“The chief described the visitor as a person with a very beautiful, bright face, and in every way like a man. His conversation was God-like. He told his experience, so the writer is informed on good authority, to Brothers A. K. Thurber, S. P. Davies and A. L. Farnsworth, and the substance of the narrative as told the writer, is to the effect that, while in his room, in a hotel, at Washington, he was visited by a personage, on three different evenings, who conversed with him in a similar strain to what the messengers did who visited Torbuka. — The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star 37:9”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 2 March 1875 (Vol. 37, No. 9). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1875-03-02_37_9 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Additional sources (periodical research): John Nicholson, "The Lamanites," The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star 37, no. 7 (16 February 1875): 97-99. https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/sites/default/files/archive-files/pdf/nicholson/2023-07-19/ms_37.07_john_nicholson_the_lamanites_16_february_1875_97-99.pdf John Nicholson, "The Lamanites," The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star 37, no. 8 (23 February 1875): 113-114. https://scripturecentral.org/archive/periodicals/magazine-article/lamanites-2 Fuller account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 37, No. 9 (2 March 1875), p. 138 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1875-03-02_37_9
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