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Hill Cumorah |
Wayne County is Unique in Religion |
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Hill Cumorah |
Wayne County is Unique in Religion |
Wayne
County has the unique distinction of being the birthplace of two
religions. In Palmyra is where in 1823 Joseph Smith claimed to be
visited by the angel, Moroni, who told him where he could find
golden plates buried in the ground. They were translated into the
book of Mormon. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
was established in 1830 by Joseph Smith and his followers. Each
summer thousands of visitors attend the Hill Cumorah Pageant
which is a celebration of the Morman religion.
| In Hydesville, near Newark, in the town of Arcadia, is where the Fox sisters, Leah, Kate and Margaret, lived. It is believed that they were frightened one night in 1848 by mysterious rappings on the wall of their room, then for fun, Kate knocked in return. Many people say that these rappings were the start of Spritualism. |
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The Fox Sisters traveled the world showing off their powers. It is said that they could make furniture move, snatch blankets from beds, and cause dreadful noises. There were those who opposed to the growth of Spiritualism, and Margaret Fox even admitted that the entire thing was a hoax, that the rappings had actually been the snapping of the sister's toes. In 1927 a marker was placed at the site of the home of the Fox Sisters which has been moved to a Spiritualist camp in Chatauqua County.
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In 1823, a colony of Shakers purchased a large piece of land at the south end of Sodus Bay. The Shakers are a group of people who call themselves "Believers." They got the name, Shakers, because of the way they would shake their heads during religious services. The Shakers made butter and cheese as well as round Shaker boxes and furniture to sell. |
The Shakers moved from Wayne County about ten years later when William H. Adams and the Sodus Canal Company decided to build a canal twelve miles in length to connect Sodus Bay to the Erie Canal at Clyde. The canal was never to be constructed.
