The Mormons in Hancock County
About 1839, the Mormons came to the town of Commerce. The settlement was renamed Nauvoo (Beautiful Place). From 1839-1846, Nauvoo was Illinois' largest (population 20,000) and most politically powerful town. In June of 1844, the Mormon prophet and leader, Joseph Smith, and his brother Hyrum Smith were killed by a mob while detained in the jail at Carthage. The Mormon exodus from Nauvoo began in early 1846 as they traveled across the Great Plains to their new headquarters in Utah.



French Icarians - Utopia in Nauvoo
The Icarians came to Nauvoo in 1849. They established a utopian society. Emile Baxter, an Icarian, planted Baxter's Vineyards, now the oldest winery in Illinois.

©2006 Hancock County, IL Genealogy Trails