Last updated: May 16, 2026
Place
Carthage Jail
Photo/Amy M. Kostine, Middle Tennessee State University
Quick Facts
Location:
310 Buchanan St, Carthage, IL 62321
Significance:
A mob assassinated Joseph Smith, founder and first prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and his brother, Hyrum, at this jailhouse in 1844. Those deaths led to escalating anti-Mormon violence and expulsion of the Latter-day Saints from Nauvoo in 1846, when members began emigrating west along the Mormon Pioneer Trail.
Designation:
National Register of Historic Places
MANAGED BY:
Amenities
6 listed
Accessible Sites, Benches/Seating, Cellular Signal, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Parking - Auto, Restroom
As converts to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gathered to Nauvoo in the early 1840s, the community’s economic exclusiveness, political influence, and 2,000-man militia alarmed other residents of Hancock County, IL.
On June 7, 1844, an opposition newspaper, the Nauvoo Expositor, publicly accused church founder Joseph Smith of secretly marrying other men’s wives, which Smith denied. By order of the Nauvoo City Council, the town marshal destroyed the paper’s press. When the State of Illinois issued a warrant for the arrest of Smith and others for destruction of the press, Smith declared martial law and called on his militia to defend Nauvoo. However, Joseph, his brother Hyrum, and other church leaders voluntarily submitted to authorities and were taken to the county jailhouse in neighboring Carthage, IL. There, the jailer permitted the men to use a second-floor bedroom while awaiting Smith’s court appearance on charges of treason for declaring martial law. On June 27, 1844, a mob of 150-200 armed men stormed the building, fatally shot Hyrum Smith through the bedroom door, and critically wounded 2 others.
Joseph Smith was preparing to leap from a bedroom window when gunfire struck him and he fell to the ground outside. The mob propped the wounded man against a well in the side yard and killed him there. After the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young was called to lead the church and, facing pressure from state officials and rumors of more violence, began evacuating Nauvoo in February 1846. The route followed by Young’s vanguard party on the trek to Utah is commemorated today as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail.
Visitors can learn about events at the Carthage Jail at the missionary-operated Visitors’ Center and join a free guided tour of the rooms and grounds where events unfolded.
Site Information
Location (310 Buchanan St, Carthage, IL 62321)
More Site Information
Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
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- Duration:
- 1 minute, 23 seconds
Take a guided tour of this restored jail house and explore why it was the site of one of the pivotal events in the history of the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. It was here in June of 1844 that an armed mob stormed the jail and killed Joseph and Hyrum Smith as they awaited trial. Today, visitors can hear the story as they walk through the jail on a guided tour, and at the site’s visitor center. The Carthage Jail is operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. go.nps.gov/CarthageJail