Kinderhook...what does it mean?

Question

Why does the Mormon church collect artifacts connected to it?

Answer 1

Here's an article about the Kinderhook plates
http://www.lds.org/portal/site/LDSOrg/menuitem.b12f9d18fae655bb69095bd3e44916a0/?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=b6a8aeca0ea6b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1

Answer 2

Kinderhook, Illinois was the alleged site of the discovery of six metallic plates. The plates were fake and designed to discredit Joseph Smith. The designers apparently wanted him to try to translate the plates to make him look foolish. The prophet was murdered shortly thereafter and that was pretty much the end of the incident.

To my knowledge the church does not collect artifacts connected to it because there were only the original six fake plates.

Answer 3

Kinderhook is a town in the northern part of Columbia County, New York, USA.

Answer 4

The Kinderhook plates were forged, buried, and "discovered" by three men who had lost faith in Joseph Smith as a prophet of God.

They took the plates to Smith, who said at the time that they were engraved by a warrior descendant of Pharaoh, and that he would need more time to accurately translate them.

Later, he claimed that he had done more translating, and that the warrior was a very fierce one, and that he was also a descendant of Ham. Of course, when the hoax was exposed, he was publicly ridiculed and a good chunk of church membership left the church.

Answer 5

Probably cause it is part of the history of the church, even tho it was a hoax.