Book of Mormon Witnesses - Eight Witnesses

The Eight Witnesses were the second of the two groups of "special witnesses" to the Book of Mormon's golden plates. They were all members of the Whitmer or Smith families: Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, Jr., John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sr., Hyrum Smith, and Samuel Harrison Smith. Joseph Smith Sr. was Joseph's father, and Hyrum and Samuel H. Smith were his brothers. Christian, Jacob, Peter Jr. and John were David Whitmer's brothers, and Hiram Page was his brother-in-law.

Unlike the Three Witnesses, the Eight testified that they both saw and handled the plates. Another difference is that the Eight testified they were shown the plates by Joseph Smith, Jr. rather than by an angel as had the Three Witnesses. Christian Whitmer died in 1835 and his brother Peter Whitmer, Jr. died the following year. In 1838, the surviving Whitmers became estranged from Joseph Smith Jr. during a leadership struggle in Far West, Missouri, and all were excommunicated with other dissenters and fled Caldwell County after receiving an ultimatum from the Danites. None of the Whitmers ever rejoined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although none of the Eight Witnesses is known to have denied his testimony to the authenticity of Book of Mormon or the golden plates, in 1838 a former Mormon leader, Stephen Burnett, claimed Martin Harris had told him that "the eight witnesses never saw & hesitated to sign that instrument for that reason, but were persuaded to do it."