Life
Lucy and Martin were first cousins. They were married on March 27, 1808, in Palmyra, New York.
Early on during the translation of the Book of Mormon Lucy became frustrated with Martin (and skeptical of Joseph Smith, Jr.) because of how much her husband was helping Smith with the translation of the Book of Mormon. In order to convince Lucy that they were translating an ancient book of scripture, Martin Harris asked Joseph Smith, Jr. to let him borrow the first 116 pages of the translation of the Book of Mormon. Smith said that these pages of the translation of the Book of Mormon were a translation from the Book of Lehi. At Harris' insistence (and despite Smith saying he was warned not to by the Lord) Smith reluctantly loaned the pages to Harris. The manuscript was subsequently lost, and a variety of theories as to its disappearance have arisen. Some Mormons believe that Lucy hid them from Joseph Smith, Jr, gave them to friends, disposed of them in some way or that they were stolen from the Harris's house. Others believe that she hid the pages on purpose to see if Joseph Smith could replicate what he previously "read" off the golden plates.
When Harris approached Smith and told him what happened, the latter became angry with himself for not heeding the Lord's admonition not to loan the manuscript to Harris and left to go and pray. Subsequently Joseph lost the ability to translate "for a season" while he went through the repentance process. Ultimately he received a revelation wherein he was instructed not to retranslate the portion of the Golden Plates the 116 pages were taken from. Instead, the material would be replaced with Nephi's Abridgment of his father's record.
In part due to their continued disagreement over the legitimacy of Joseph Smith and the golden plates, and because of the loss of his farm, which he had mortgaged to publish the Book of Mormon, Harris and his wife separated. Lucy Harris was described by Lucy Mack Smith as a woman of "irascible temper," but Harris may also have abused her. Lucy Harris also suggested that her husband may have committed adultery with a neighboring "Mrs. Haggart."
Read more about this topic: Lucy Harris
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