Robert Edge - an introduction

There have been many stories of communities being prepared for the missionaries by an mysterious figure. In Tennessee, the most interesting of them is that of Robert Edge. In May 1878, in Lexington, Henderson County, Tennessee, a man came into town announcing that he would be holding a meeting that evening to preach. Travelling preachers were not uncommon in Tennessee, but this man was not dressed a well as these preachers tended to be. Plus he appeared to know the area very well. He would make appointments at homes of people he met without asking for directions, yet arrive on time.

He taught the same doctrines as taught by the Mormons: Apostasy, the need for Apostles, authority from God, Baptism by immersion, etc., but claimed to belong to the Church of God. His answers to more personal questions were frequently more obscure. For example:
Mr. Jones enquired, “My friend, where are you from?”
Mr. Edge—“From about six miles,” meaning the next neighborhood where he had just left.
Mr. Jones—“What church do you belong to?”
Mr. Edge—“The Church of God, sir.”
Mr. Jones—“Where is it?”
Mr. Edge—“In the United States.”
Mr. Jones—“You have been speaking about one being ordained before he had the right to preach. By whom were you ordained?”
Mr. Edge—“By Jesus Christ, sir.”
Mr. Jones—“Where?”
Mr. Edge—“In Eternity.”
Mr. Jones—“How long have you been preaching?”
Mr. Edge—“About eighteen hundred years.”
At this point Mr. Jones sprang to his feet and walked away in disgust.

Though he taught the importance of baptism, he refused to baptize anyone, saying that in the future they would have the opportunity to be baptized by those who had the right. He did perform marriages that he said would allow them to be together for eternity and gave them "tokens" so they would know when they entered true temples of God.

By July 1879, Mr Edge had collected a number of enemies. Some of them tried to have him killed. At which point he announced it was time for him to move on. While staying at the Reed home he awoke in the middle of the night saying a mob was on its way and that he should move on. When the mob arrived, he had gone and he was never seen again.

Members of Robert Edge's group continued to meet. At some point they saw a summary of the LDS church doctrine in the New York Sun. Being impressed they contacted the church asking for more information and were directed to Missionaries serving in Cane Creek, Tennessee, the nearest branch. Several of Robert Edge's followers joined the Church.

So who was Robert Edge? Well, readers will recognized all the makings of a Three Nephites story. I'm more of a sceptic. There are just so many other options to choose from. But to do that I'll need to sort out fact from myth. What really happened and what was the product of imagination?

Reading Journals

I first ran across Elders Belnap's Autobiography almost a year ago. At the time I could barely understand most of what he was describing. Places and names were unfamiliar and obscure. And the abbreviations and misspellings made it even more difficult. I'm glad I didn't have to work my way through the handwriting too. But now, I have learned a great deal about the people of the Cane Creek area. Even the places are familiar. So now, as I read through Elder Belnap's writings, I find familiar places and people. And reading it is more like reading about someone I knew personally.


I shared this with a friend of mine who pointed out this is what reading Isaiah is like. We are told that Isaiah is important for us to understand. That it is relevant to us today. People read Isaiah and don't understand it. Of course that isn't too surprising. It was written over 2700 years ago. But once you know the background, know the people, the places, the metaphors, and the style, the meaning becomes clear.

Hickman Pioneer

I spend part of Tuesday in the Tennessee State Library and Archives. My focus was a newspaper published in Centerville called the Hickman Pioneer. It had some great stuff in it. For example. Parson Vandeveer has been an elusive figure inthe events leading up to the Massacre. He only appears in accounts written by Mormons. Even the Census does not list a minister by the last name of Vandeveer. But in the Pioneer I found a note on Lewis County date June 13 1884.

Elder J. H. Vandeveer preached on Indian Creek last Sunday.

No other text accompanies the note. Indian Creek is only five miles from Cane Creek.

Then in the Spetember 26th issue, I found a note indicating that the Mormons had been given until October 1st to leave the County or renounce their membership in the Church. By the October 17th issue only two Mormon families, the Winters and the Garretts, had yet left Lewis County. but that the rest appeared to be ready to do so shortly. By March 6th, 1885 a newsreport from Cane Creek included none of the names of known members of the Church.

The John H Gibbs Papers

In a recent article about the Cane Creek Massacre, I found a reference to the John H. Gibbs Papers at BYU. I really need to make a trip out to Utah soon. The collection is not available on line and I'm sure they won't mail it to me to look at. But a summary of the content is available and in it I found a wonderful story.

While the Gibbs family was sailing from Wales to America in 1866, Fanny Gibbs wrote a story about two boys on the boat. One was her brother, John H Gibbs. The story describes a game of marbles which was played "for keeps." John who, was 13, had lost and did not want to give up his marbles to the winner, a 9 year old boy also going to Utah. A fight broke out which the sailor in charge of the children on the ship had to break up. There was no indication of who got to keep the marbles, but the name of the other boy was recorded: Brigham Henry Roberts, who would eighteen years later at great personal risk retrieve the bodies of Elders John H. Gibbs and Willian S. Berry to return them to Utah.

Attitude about Utah

At the bottom of an article describing the history of a Tennessee Stake, I found a short bio of the author, which was apparently self written. In it the writer indicated how proud he was that his ancestors were NOT transplants from Utah. Now look at this carefully. The focus of the statement isn't how grateful he was for his local heritage, but how proud he was that he did not have Utah heritage. His exact words were "No transplanted Utahns in his lineage"

Does this show something? I have seen attitudes like this before, though I don't generally share them. I have to say, however, I can see why some people feel this way. In one ward we recently lived in there were a large number of transplants who had a very different view on life. They were still in school, grad school in most cases, living on student loans, but they drove the newest cars, they wore the most fashionable clothes and had distinct opinions about how the church should be run. Sometimes they were annoying, though on balance we were glad they were there. Most were in their early 20's so maybe they just needed to mature a little.

Elders Gibbs & Berry Together continued...

I have recently run across an account of the Cane Creek Murders that asserts that a descendant of Elder Gibbs was currently (1974) serving in the headwaters of Cane Creek. The author even names him as Elder Roberts (no first name). But she gave no reference for her assertion. In truth I don't trust her claim, mostly because it sounds like she is perpetuating the "urban legend." Nor does she claim to have met with or spoken with this Elder Jones. I wonder if there is a local paper in Hohenwald with archives from 1974.

Most mission sites don't go back that far, in 1974 this area was either in the Kentucky-Tennessee Mission, which doesn't exist anymore or in the Kentucky Louisville Mission (the change was midyear 1974). The current website for the Kentucky Louisville Mission does have space for missionaries who served in 1974 under President Durrant. But the list is incomplete (self reported only) and Elder Roberts is not listed.

Then in a history book of Lewis County Tennessee, I found a biography of Elder William Berry submitted by Kyle W. Wilson, who claimed to be a descendant of Elder Berry and to be currently (in 1994) serving a mission in Lewis County, TN. The editor of the book obviously felt his claim was credible enough to print. Though in truth I doubt the editor did anything more than proofread the submissions for spelling errors. Even so, this one I can probably accept at face value.

Three weeks ago I spoke with a member who served his mission in Nashville in 1994. He claims his mission President Josiah W. Douglas, was the one who "opened" the Cane Creek area back up and even sent two descendants of Gibbs and Berry to be the first missionaries back. As of yet I have been unable to make contact with President Douglas. The only contact info I have is an email address which is no longer valid.

Jacob Franklin Miller

March 11, 1884 found Elder Jacob Miller spending some time in Nashville doing whay we would call P-Day (for preparation) activities. He and his companion, along with two other Elders, found a room in which to stay at the "Weller House." Later that night between 8 and 9 pm Elder Miller and Elder Holbrook met two other Elders (from Cane Creek) at the train station. Back at the Weller House, the six of them talked "until a late hour at night."

The next day they explored the city, at one point they went out on a "wire bridge" that spans the Cumberland River. From there they could see the section of the city flooded. After arranging to meet for lunch at the "top of the state house" they split up into pairs each seeing what they could find to bring to the capital. Elder Miller and Elder Wilson bought "cookies and fried cakes." The others bought bread, cheese, maple sugar and bananas. The Capital building is on the highest point in the city and affords a spectacular view, even today. From the top they could see more of the flooded portion of the city, and noted that "through the streets men were going in skiffs and canoes."

After singing "Let Us All Press On" It began to rain so the Elders descended to the Library and the Museum. That night they purchased some clothes and went back to their room to write letters.

The next day, they saw more of the city and had pictures taken together and "a few on tin." I wish I had a copy. The six of them were Jacob Franklin Miller, Orson Wilson, William Hess, Brigham Holbrook, Willis E. Robison and John H. Gibbs.

Northcutts Cove Chapel

When missionaries approached John Tipton he turned them away. But before they left one of the Elders dusted off his shoes. John’s wife noticed what had happened and insisted that they hear what the Missionaries had to say. The next day he invited the missionaries in and was later, baptized into the Church. By 1896, several families in what is now called Northcutts' Cove, joined the LDS Church.
They originally met in members homes, but it didn't take them long to decide they needed a chapel in which to meet. Accordingly they formed a committee: John Tipton, Bill Tanner, Reuben Smartt, Henry Smartt, and Beecher Smartt. The land was donated by John and Belle Tipton and built by the donated labor, both of the members of the branch, non-members and missionaries.
Henry Smartt and Albert Fults made the wooden benches for the seating (see photo). The chapel was dedicated on October 24, 1909 by Charles A. Callis. Though regular services are not held there today, it is still in use for special occasions, such as the annual Easter service. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 18 April 1979.
The Northcutts Cove Chapel of is located just north of Altamont, in Grundy County, Tennessee. It sits at the top of the Cumberland plateau.
It served as the headquarters for the Eastern Tennessee Conference. (Missions used to be divided into conferences) It was the site of a three day debate (24-26 Oct 1909) between Charles A. Callis and Reverend Mansfield a Church of Christ (Campbellite) minister. This little church is believed to be the oldest existing chapel of the LDS Church in the southeastern United States.
The location of the Chapel is quite rural, due to the practice of proselyting outside urban areas. Originally this was done to avoid the organized persecution that was known to happen in cities. In truth, persecution was just as organized and virulant in rural areas as it had been in urban areas. The Cane Creek Massacre is the most tragic example of this.
As of 2000, Grundy county has the highest percent of LDS Church members of any other county in Tennessee. Just over 2%, which is almost 5 times the state average of just over 0.4%. By way of comparison, California's statewide average for the same period was 1.5%

Practical Jokes on those you love

Elder John H. Gibbs was known for being an outgoing fellow, not above playing a prank on someone. Elder Willis E. Robison recorded this in his journal on Saturday, March 8th, 1884

Weather Cloudy all day. After Breakfast this morning we went down the creek about half a mile and visited Bro Wm Winters after which we went up the creek to Bro James [Condors] where I was introduced to the family. Bro C. was out hunting squirels (sic) and as he was a Jocular man and one very devoted to his religon(sic) also. Bro Gibbs concieved (sic) the plan of playing a joke on him. by me assuming the Role of a Baptist preacher who had come to talk to him about Mormonism The whole family entered into the joke, and Bro Gibbs went to a neighbors as That he would not be seen. When Bro Condor came in I spoke to him relative to the meeting I understood the Mormons were intending to hold at his place tomorrow and of my desire to be present and hear them. We conversed some few minutes on diferent (sic) topics pertaining to them. I told him I had heard the L.D.S. frequently spoken of but generaly (sic) with disrespect & during our converstaion (sic) he had been [staring] intently at me and finaly (sic) said. You cant (sic) fool me on them eyes. You are an Elder yourself. so I was compelled to admit the fact. and that he was able to distinguish Mormons on sight.

On August 10th, Elder Robison was in Shady Grove in the next county when he heard rumours about Elder Gibbs and others being killed at the Condor home, he risked his life by sneaking his way to the Condor's house, passing himself off as a wandering laborer by removing his garments (and hiding them in a tree) and possibly accepting chewing tobacco when offered. His principle purpose was to determine the welfare of the members of the branch and who of the Elders were truly killed. His courage speaks for the love he truly had for those he served.

Elder Belnap's Journal (cont.)

Nov. 13, [1880] We remained here until afternoon, then went over to Spring Creek [Tennessee]. We had obtained permission from the trustees of the meeting house to hold a meeting this night. However, when we reached the house just at dusk the doors were locked and the Parson had left three guards with guns to see that we did not hold meeting. We laughed and chatted with the guards a while and discovered another old school house that had been abandoned and the chinking and plastering all out. We enquired whom this belonged to. One of the guards, with his gun in his hand, said it belonged to his father. We enquired if it were possible to obtain this, as the people were then gathering for meeting, and he did not know. This young man’s name was Bart Weems. I prevailed upon him to go with me to his father’s place, about a quarter of a mile away, so he put his gun on his shoulder and we went to se his father, Walt Weems, and Bateman stayed and kept the crowd from leaving. Mrs. Weems granted us the house. We then
gathered a few brass lamps and went to the building against the protest of our friends who said we would surely be killed if we held meeting. Upon reaching the house we gathered up five rails and soon had some seats and a crowded house for our meeting. Altho it was cold and chilly, the people stayed with us. We came to this place through the invitation of Wesley Hunt, a blacksmith and a trustee of the new school house. Later, the other two trustees opposed him thru the persuasion of the minister. Returned to Weems for the night. Announced a meeting for the next day in the old house.

Elder Belnap's Journal

While searching through missionary journals I found the following passage. The entry is dated 29 Febrary 1880. (leap year)

... we borrowed some animals and in company with Mr. Garrett and daughter we went over to Mr. Turner’s on Rock House Creek.

After meeting, a great many people came down to Mr. Turner’s house where we
ate dinner. As soon as we had received our refreshments the whole crowd gathered around us and began to ask questions, one of which I will mention. One Mr. Holley, a local Methodist preacher, rather sneeringly spoke up to Brother Spencer, as he was talking on the healing ordinances and said, “Say Mister, I suppose if you have this power the people do not die out in Utah.” Before Brother Spencer had time to answer, Mr. Garrett spoke up quickly and said, “No, the people never die out there. They live until they get so old life is a misery to them. Then the old people will gather together in large companies and go over into Colorado in order to die.”

And who says Mormons don't have a sense of humor?

Photos with the Survivors

With the help of Ardis Parshall in Salt Lake and Trenton here in Nashville (Thank You!!), I have a collection of photos about the Cane Creek Murders taken long after the fact. The first three were probably taken in 1943 or 1944. The last three were probably taken in 1957 or 1958.

This shotgun was donated to the church historic library. It was owned by John Riley Hudson and was used in the massacre to defend, unsuccessfully, the missionaries, and is believed to have fired the shot that killed David Hinton, the one member of the Mob who was killed. The gun is being held by Elder Gaell W. Lindstrom. According to various accounts it was a double barrel shot gun, which this appears to be.







Elder Riego S. Hawkins (left) with sisters Rachel Condor and Lavicia Condor Haley,who survived the massacre unscathed and Elder Gaell W. Lindstrom (right).

The same two missionaries standing at the grave marker for Martin Condor and John Hudson, who will killed at the massacre. Standing with them is Hiram (Herman) Britt Talley with his wife Annie Bastin and his two sons Glenn and David.

H. B. Talley was the son of Andrew Jackson Talley who was 15 at the time of the massacre and may have been in the congregation.

Monument in memory of John Riley Hutson (1856-1884) and William Martin Conder (1863-1884), local Mormons, killed in Mormon massacre. Horace Cooper Talley and Dr. Marshall Wingfield are standing behind monument. Horace was the son of Banister (Bash) Talley and Eliza Morehead. Horace was 8 years old at the time of the Massacre, and was probably at the Condor home that day. His father Bash, was baptised in May 1884





Monument in memory of John Riley Hutson (1856-1884) and William Martin Conder (1863-1884), local Mormons, killed in Mormon massacre. Dr. Marshall Wingfield, Horace Cooper Talley, Arthur Talley, and Dr. Hall Tackett are standing behind monument.
Dr. Wingfield wrote a scholarly treatment of the events at Cane Creek, probably the first non-Mormon to do so. His article was published in 1958, and it is likely that his visit corresponded with the publishing of the article.



Monument in memory of John Riley Hutson (1856-1884) and William Martin Conder (1863-1884), local Mormon's, killed in Mormon massacre. Horace Cooper Talley, Dr. Marshall Wingfield, Arthur Talley, and L.B. Spencer are standing behind monument.
I have not identified how Arthur is connected to the rest of the Talley family. But the family is quite large with many branches about which I have no information.

Condor Sisters Photo

I found this undated photo with the caption below in a pictoral history of Lewis county, published in 1974.

Rachel Conder, LaVisey Haley, William Haley, Arthur Talley

Some Conder family members injured in Mormon Massacre on Cane Creek in Lewis County in 1884.

Rachel and Lavicia Condor were sisters. Born in 1868 and 1871 in rural Tennesee. Their father had fought for the confederacy in the 3rd Tennessee Volunteers. They had two brothers, one of which was really their half brother from their mother's first husband who had died even before his son was born.
The family were coverts to the Mormon Church. In 1884, while hosting a church service at heir home, both brothers were killed in what has come to be called the Tennessee Mormon Massacre. Their mother was crippled from a gunshot tothe hip that day, the only one of the wounded to survive. The sisters left Lewis county with the parents as soon as their mother was well enough to travel. By 1900 the whole family were back in Lewis county, though I don't know when they came back. It must have been before 1896 when Lavicia married William Haley.

I have no doubt the sisters were close. They lived together most of their life together. Rachel never married. After her father died in 1911 and her mother in 1916, Rachel went to live with Lavicia. The last record of where they lived is the 1930 census. They lived in civil district 7 in Lewis county. Lavicia had three children Melinda, Johnny, and Mary.

Melinda (Melindy) married Ollie Barber in 1919. But by 1930 she and a 9 year old boy named Carrol E Barber were living with her parents. I found a note indicating that they were divorced but with no source.

Johnny died in 1917. No indication of how he died, and I did not find anything in WWI records. He never married.

Mary Ann (Annie) married Valantine (Val) Tatum in 1919. They had 5 children: Clora, Dorothy, Mary Helen, Elsie and Ronald. Mary died in 1976.


Rachel died in 1955 in Lewis County,

Lavicia died in 1958 in Lewis County.

Appreciate your right to vote!!

On Aug 26, 1888, a newspaper article appeared in the New York Times describing the disenfranchisement of Idaho voters, which means they would not be allowed to vote or run for election. The means by which this was accomplished was requiring each person who votes to give an oath that

he is not a member of any order sect organization which teaches, advises, counsels, or encourages its members, devotees, or other persons to commit the crime of bigamy or polygamy, or any other crime defined by law, as a duty arising or resulting from membership in such organization, or which practices bigamy or polygamy, or plural or celestial marriage as a doctrinal rite;

The oath went on, but in practice this essentially prevented Mormons from voting which at the time in Idaho consisted of one fourth of the population of the state. In 1890 the US Supreme Court refused to overturn the law. And Congressmen were preparing to draft federal versions. After the Manifesto was given, and people started to believe it was for real, it was eventually recinded in 1892.

So as you go to vote today, and you are voting, aren’t you? Be grateful for the privilege.

What you don't know about your own family

I was talking with my mother the other day, and it turns out that her grandfather Jacob Franklin Miller served a mission in Tennessee in 1883 & 1884. In fact, according to my mother, he knew the Elders involved in the Cane Creek Murders and wrote about the incident in his journal (so, Mom, any luck finding the journal?). How did I miss that growing up? I guess it proves that you never know what your living relatives might have until you ask.