ABSTRACT
The "Mormon" is a nickname ascribed to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Church members believe the Book of Mormon is a record of a branch of the tribes of Israel that left Jerusalem around 600 B.c.E., shortly before Jerusalem was captured by Babylon. The Book of Mormon contains an account of a visit by Jesus Christ to the Americas after his crucifixion and resurrection, and Latter-day Saints regard the book, according to its subtitle, as "Another Testament of Jesus Christ." Church founder Joseph Smith claimed to translate the book by the power of God from an ancient record written on gold plates that were buried in a hill named Cumorah, near Palmyra, New York. Rumors of Mormon aggression spread as a result of the battle, and Governor Boggs issued the "extermination order" on October 27, 1838, authorizing the Missouri militia to drive the Mormons from the state or exterminate them.
