“Mormonism Unvailed” by Eber Dudley Howe (1798-1885)

Front piece of Mormonism Unvailed.

“Mormonism Unvailed”
by Eber Dudley Howe (1798-1885)

Wikipedia: Eber D. Howe

Eber Dudley Howe (June 9, 1798 – November 10, 1885) was the founder and editor of the Painesville Telegraph, a newspaper that published in Painesville, Ohio, starting in 1822. Howe was the author of one of the first books that was critical of the spiritual claims of Joseph Smith Jr, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. His 1834 book Mormonism Unvailed [sic] was based largely on affidavits collected by Latter Day Saint dissenter Doctor Philastus Hurlbut and on the letters of dissenter Ezra Booth, which in 1831 had been published in the Ohio Star.

While living in Painesville, Howe’s wife, sister, and niece converted to Mormonism.[citation needed] On January 11, 1831, Howe wrote a letter to W. W. Phelps, a newspaper publisher in Canandaigua, New York, asking about the origins of the new religion. Phelps, who had read the Book of Mormon and met Joseph Smith, responded to Howe by writing that “we have nothing by which we can positively detect it as an imposition”, but that “if it is false, it will fall, and if of God, God will sustain it.” Phelps was baptized into the Latter Day Saint church a few months later. Howe continued to be interested in the Mormons, and in November 1834 he published Mormonism Unvailed, which he described as “a history of the Mormon imposition, from its rise to the present time, with many other peculiarities of the sect.”

Eber D. Howe’s 1834 exposé of Mormonism has left a lasting legacy. Any member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who has ever found themselves defending their faith has likely encountered arguments originating from Howe’s work. This groundbreaking publication combined existing news articles with approximately thirty firsthand accounts collected by Howe and his associates.

Howe, a resident of Painesville, Ohio, had previously reported on Joseph Smith’s purported discovery of a “golden bible” in 1829. Howe’s first interaction with the Mormon community occurred in Kirtland upon their arrival in 1830. Shortly after, his wife became a member of the church, prompting Howe to initiate an investigation into the then-emerging Church of Christ. During this time, he established communication with various individuals who were critical of Joseph Smith and his movement. Among them was Abner Cole, a figure known for publishing excerpts of the Book of Mormon in the Palmyra Reflector in 1829, accompanied by strong criticism of Smith and his family.

Driven by personal concerns and journalistic curiosity, Howe launched an investigation into the fledgling Church. He assembled a network of like-minded individuals, including reporters and critics, to gather information. By 1834, he had amassed a substantial collection of investigative material, including testimonials from Smith’s former neighbors in New York and his father-in-law in Pennsylvania.

Howe’s research delved into Smith’s early fascination with buried treasure and his use of a seer stone to locate it. He also documented various theories circulating among Smith’s acquaintances, followers, and family regarding the origins of the Book of Mormon.

Howe raises various objections to the Book of Mormon’s content, such as Nephi’s use of steel (a material not discovered until over 1500 years later) and his ability to construct a ship. He questions Nephi’s vision of Christ and the revelation of the Christian gospel centuries before Christ’s birth. Howe also finds the rapid population growth of Nephites and Lamanites across North and South America implausible. He criticizes the brevity with which 4 Nephi covers hundreds of years and takes issue with the verbatim quoting of both Matthew and Isaiah from the King James Bible.

It’s important to acknowledge that a significant portion of the material published in the book was gathered by Doctor Hurlbut (his given name, not a title). Hurlbut, who had been excommunicated from the Church of Christ (the former name of the Church) in 1833, was financially supported by several notable Kirtland residents in his efforts to investigate the origins of Mormonism. Doctor Hurlbut’s personal research on the origins of Mormonism was never formally published. His animosity towards Joseph Smith reached a boiling point, culminating in threats against the prophet’s life. As a consequence, Hurlbut was arrested and required to post a $200 bail to ensure his peaceful conduct. Discredited and facing legal repercussions, Hurlbut sold his entire collection of research materials to E.D. Howe. Howe, utilizing Hurlbut’s affidavits and findings, authored an extensive exposé on the topic.

Despite its critical nature, Howe’s exposé is regarded by historians as a valuable resource due to its inclusion of primary source material and its detailed account of the early growth of Mormonism in northeastern Ohio. It remains a significant text in the study of the Church’s history, even as its conclusions and interpretations are debated.

Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry: Mormonism Unveiled Defended
by Matt Slick | Dec 17, 2008 | Mormonism, World Religions

The book Mormonism Unvailed by Eber D. Howe, printed in 1834, contains sworn testimonies from neighbors and acquaintances of Joseph Smith concerning the dubious character of him and his family. The testimonies were gathered by a Mr. Philastus Hurlbut and were included in E. D. Howe’s Book. Many of the witnesses deal specifically with Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, and show him being involved in money digging, divination, and lacking moral integrity.

If these testimonies were true about Joseph Smith, then it would be difficult for Mormons to continue to proclaim him as a true and virtuous prophet of God. For this reason, many Mormons have attempted to discredit the accounts contained in Mormonism Unveiled as well as other equally damaging testimonies by other witnesses concerning Joseph Smith’s character. This is to be expected.

Are we to say that all these people, 66 in total, who signed these documents, were lying or had been coerced or unduly influenced by Mr. Hurlbut? Do the Mormons actually think that Mr. Hurlbut was of sufficient deceit and mesmerizing influence that he could get so many people to sign documents that were not true?

Mr. Howe was wary about including the affidavits in his book, Mormonism Unveiled because he knew that Hurlbut was having legal difficulties with Joseph Smith. Mr. Howe was naturally cautious about the trustworthiness of the documents. But, it turns out that Mr. Howe actually conducted some spot checks by interviewing some of the witnesses against Joseph Smith.

It seems the real issue behind the Mormon complaints about the affidavits is not concerning their reliability and accuracy. Remember, these are legal documents. Rather, the Mormon is concerned with their content. I do not believe the Mormons want to hear about their prophet’s sins and shameful character. They claim a testimony from God that Mormonism is true; and, in their eyes, there is no way the accusations against Joseph Smith could be valid. Therefore, they automatically assume the affidavits must be wrong and react and believe accordingly.

But, I believe they are sufficiently accurate as to reflect the true nature of Joseph Smith: a false prophet.

However, it is not the eyewitness’ accounts that convince me of Joseph Smith’s error. It is the Word of God that contradicts his teachings and condemns his doctrines. Joseph Smith isn’t wrong because the eyewitnesses said that he is. He is wrong because God’s Word says that he is.

Inside cover of book Mormonism Unvailed: Or, A Faithful Account of that Singular Imposition and Delusion, from its Rise to the Present Time, by E. D. Howe.

From the Advertisement page…

THE following work was undertaken with reluctance, at the earnest solicitation of a great number of friends, who had, with the author, long looked upon the subject of which it treats, with mingled feelings of abhorence and pity–the Impostors and their victims of delusion, were viewed through these two different media. The truth, and the whole truth, have been his constant aim: But the difficulty of procuring, or arriving at the whole truth, in relation to a religious imposition, which has from its birth been so studiously vailed in secrecy, and generally under a belief that the judgments of God would follow any disclosures or what its notaries had seen or heard–will be readily discovered. He fears, therefore, that the half is yet untold. He has, in all his enquires, endeavored to pay the most rigid regard to all the ordinary methods of eliciting truth, from every source within his reach. If he shall have failed in his desires and exertions, in any important particular, it will be a matter of regret. That his statements should fully escape censure or contradiction, by a sect whose foundation was falsehood, and which has been built up of the same material, is more than he can expect. He is fully persuaded, nevertheless, that sufficient, and more than sufficient, has been developed by unimpeachable testimony, to satisfy every rational person, whose mind has not already been prostrated by the machinations of the Imposters, that the Supreme Being has had as little agency in the prosperity of Mormonism, as in the grossest works of Satan.
Painesville, (Ohio) October, 1834. E. D. H.

Introduction…

OF all the impositions which “flesh is heir to,” none ought to be more abhorred or dreaded, then those which come in the garb of sanctity and religion.

Every age of the world has produced impostors and delusions. Jannes and Jambers withstood Moses, and were followed by Pharaoh, his court and clergy. To say nothing of the false prophets of the Jewish age, the diviners, soothsayers, the magicians, and all the ministry of idols among the Gentiles, by which the nations were so often deceived, the Impostors which have appeared since the Christian era, would fill volumes of the most lamentable details. The false Messiahs which have afflicted the Jews since their rejection of Jesus Christ, have more than verified the predictions of the “true and faithful witness.”

But at these things we only intended to hint, in this place, in order to prepare the mind for a detailed account of the more recent, more absurd, and, perhaps more extensive, delusion of MORMONISM. It will present in somewhat a new light, to the enquiring mind, the depths of folly, degradation and superstition, to which human nature can be carried. It will show that there is no turning a fanatic from his folly — that the distemper is more incurable than the leprosy — that the more glaring the absurdity, the more determined the tenacity of its dupes — and the more apparent you can render the imposture, the stronger become its advocates.

Our object, therefore, in the present undertaking, will not be so much to break the spell which has already seized and taken possession of great numbers of people in our enlightened country, as to raise a warning voice, to those who are yet liable, through a want of correct knowledge of the imposition, to be enclosed within its fetters.

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