Miles Henry Lightner (1836 - 1847)

Born 18 Jun 1836 in Far West, Caldwell, Missouri, United States

Ancestors

Died 20 Sep 1847 at age 11 in St. Croix Falls, St. Croix, Wisconsin Territory, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Tuli Bennett-Bose [send private message]

Miles Lightner died young.

Biography

Miles Henry Lightner was born on June 18, 1836 in Far West, Caldwell, Missouri, United States. He was the son of Adam Lightner and Mary Rollins.^[1][2][3]

In late 1838, his family left Missouri. They lived in Louisville, Kentucky for six months, then moved to Alton, Madison County, Illinois.^[1][2]

Around October 1839 or 1840, they relocated to Half Breed Tract near Montrose, Lee County, Iowa Territory. From there, they moved to Farmington, Van Buren County, Iowa Territory for a short time, but returned to Montrose in January of the following year.^[1][2][4] By early 1842 they were living in Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois.^[1][2][5]

They family moved to Pontoosuc, Hancock, Illinois in July 1842, then back to Nauvoo later in 1844. They left Nauvoo for Galena, Jo Daviess County, Illinois around early 1847 and moved to St. Croix Falls, St. Croix County, Wisconsin Territory soon after.^[2]

On September 20, 1847, a traveling salesman came to his family home and offered everyone free samples of a supposed cure-all root. The whole family became violently ill moments after eating the root, and Miles and his younger brother Florentine died within a few hours. According to their mother Mary's autobiography, the poisoner was motivated by anti-Mormon hatred.^[1][2]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Lightner, Mary Elizabeth Rollins. "Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner," The Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, vol. 17 (July-October 1926): pp. 193-205, 250-260. FamilySearch (accessed 16 March 2021). Autobiography. Transcription available via Perry Porter's Page website.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5} Compton, Todd. "Miracle Tale: Mary Elizabeth Rollins (Lightner Smith Young)." In Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith. Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 1997, pp. 205-227. Transcription available via Perry Porter's Page website.
3. ↑ Black, Susan Easton, compiler. Membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1830–1848. 50 vols. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Religious Studies Center, 1989. Private Donor. Ancestry Record 5333 #55565. Membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1830-1848 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1840," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHTG-4FR : 2 March 2021), Adam Lightner, Van Buren, Iowa Territory, United States; citing p. 277, NARA microfilm publication , (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll ; FHL microfilm.
5. ↑ "1842 Nauvoo Census", index with images, Henry Lightman, Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois. BYU Nauvoo Community Project, Brigham Young University. Record connected to Miles Henry Lightner: "Recorded as under eight. With both of his parents being considered non-members, they were not recorded. However, all of the children under eight years old were recorded. With records implying that they lived in the Second Ward of Nauvoo, and their relatives recorded nearby, (in addition to searching for any one else by the name of Lightman in our database) this brings me to believe that this is referring to Miles Henry Lightner. For more information refer to http://nauvoo.byu.edu."

See also:

• Compton, Todd. "Miracle Tale: Mary Elizabeth Rollins (Lightner Smith Young)." In Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith. Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 1997, pp. 205-227. Transcription available via Perry Porter's Page website.
• Lightner, Mary Elizabeth Rollins. "Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner," The Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, vol. 17 (July-October 1926): pp. 193-205, 250-260. FamilySearch (accessed 16 March 2021). Autobiography. Transcription available via Perry Porter's Page website.