Movement1844
Joseph Smith Killed, Testing Religious Freedom
Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was killed by a mob while being held in jail in Carthage, Illinois. His murder tested the limits of religious freedom and tolerance in antebellum America.
Why It Matters
Smith's killing highlighted the ongoing struggle to uphold the First Amendment's guarantee of religious freedom, particularly for minority faiths, a principle the founders considered essential to a free republic.