The Knight Family Farm and the Josiah Stowell Home — where the first branch of the Church began
Joseph Knight Sr. was a prosperous farmer and miller who purchased farmland along the Susquehanna River in what is now Nineveh, New York, around 1810. In 1825 he hired a young Joseph Smith as a farmhand. Knight recalled that Smith was “the best hand he ever hired.” As their friendship deepened, Smith confided in Knight about the angelic visitations he had received. Knight believed him — making the Knights among the very earliest believers, even before Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, or David Whitmer. For this reason, historians have called the Knight family “the Second Family of the Restoration.”
Knight provided critical material support at pivotal moments: lending his horse and wagon, and delivering food, paper, and supplies during the translation of the Book of Mormon. On the night of September 22, 1827, Knight and Josiah Stowell waited at the Smith home while Joseph went to the Hill Cumorah to receive the golden plates. The Lord gave a revelation for Joseph Knight Sr., now recorded as Doctrine and Covenants Section 12.
The Knight farm was the site of the first miracle performed in the Church after its organization — when Joseph Smith cast an evil spirit from Newel Knight in April 1830 — and of the Colesville baptisms in June 1830, when thirteen people were baptized despite mob opposition. These converts formed the Colesville Branch, widely regarded as the first branch of the Church, with roughly sixty to eighty members drawn from the Knight, Peck, DeMille, Stringham, and other families.
The Colesville Branch was remarkable for its unity. When the Saints gathered to Ohio in 1831, the entire branch migrated together. They pressed on to Jackson County, Missouri, becoming the first branch to settle the land dedicated as Zion. Joseph Knight Sr. remained faithful to the end, dying in 1847 at Winter Quarters.
The farmhouse, dating to approximately 1815, was privately purchased and restored beginning in 2004 by the Mecham, Glenn, and Painter families. After thirteen years of work, it opened to visitors in 2016. It is not owned or operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Josiah Stowell was a respected farmer and sawmill owner in what is now Afton, New York. In October 1825 he hired Joseph Smith for a project near Harmony, Pennsylvania. Though the venture was short-lived, it proved providential: it brought Joseph to the area where he met Emma Hale, and it forged a lasting bond between Stowell and Smith.
Stowell became one of Joseph Smith’s earliest and most steadfast supporters. He testified in Joseph’s defense in court in 1826, declaring he “positively know it to be true.” He was present with Joseph Knight Sr. on the night Joseph received the golden plates in 1827, and he assisted the young couple after their marriage. Stowell was among the early converts baptized in the Colesville area and remained faithful until his death in May 1844.
The Stowell home at 323 State Highway 7 in Afton has been preserved and restored alongside the Knight farm. Like the Knight property, it is privately maintained and available for guided tours.