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Church of the Messiah
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George Jones Adams
(founder)
Description of the Church of the Messiah Collection
The Church of the Messiah was founded by George Jones Adams who was the leader of a splinter sect of the Latter-day Saints formed after the death of the prophet Joseph Smith Jr. Adams initially followed schismatic leader James Jesse Strang, but was excommunicated from his sect in 1851. By the late 1850s he formed the Church of the Messiah, which was based in northern Maine. He proposed to settle his followers in a colony in Palestine to facilitate the second coming of Christ. Adams's mission ended in disaster, and his colony at Jaffa lasted only two years, 1866-1867. Adams's newspaper, The Sword of Truth and Harbinger of Peace, is quite rare, and is of importance for both Mormon and communal studies.
External Resources
- George J. Adams (wikipedia.org)
Research on site at Hamilton College
To schedule a research visit, please contact us in advance.
Christian Goodwillie, Director and Curator of Special Collections and Archives
E-mail: cgoodwil (at) hamilton (dot) edu
Telephone: (315) 859-4447
Special Collections
Burke Library
198 College Hill Road
Clinton, NY 13323
Regular hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Materials Digitized
- The Sword of Truth and Harbinger of Peace (3 vols., 1862-1866)
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- The Sword of truth and harbinger of peace
- Publication of the Church of the Messiah. Edited by Adams, G. J. (George Jones), 1813-1880. Sept. 1862-June 1864: South Lebanon, Me. : G.J. Adams, editor and proprietor Aug. 1864-Dec. 1864: Indian River, Me. : G.J. Adams, editor and proprietor Jan. 1865-Apr. 1866: Indian River, Me. : Adams & McKenzie, proprietors