“[Martin Harris was] an industrious, hard-working farmer, shrewd in his business calculations, frugal in his habits, and what was termed a prosperous man in the world.” — Palmyra Courier¹

Martin Harris, born in 1783 in New York, was a farmer in Palmyra. He married Lucy Harris, his first cousin, in 1808 and served in the War of 1812 with the New York militia.² Harris met Joseph in 1824 and even gave Joseph $50 to help him move from Palmyra to Harmony.³

A few months after Joseph and Emma moved, Harris came by and said he felt called to consult with expert scholars in ancient language about the translations. Joseph copied some of the characters from the gold plates and gave them to Harris, who took the paper to New York City. He spoke with Luther Bradish, a family friend who had traveled in the Near East and Egypt; Samuel L. Mitchill, a linguist and scholar; and Charles Anthon, a professor of Latin and Greek at Columbia College.¹ Anthon originally verified the characters but tore up his authentification statement when he heard of the angelic origin of the plates.⁴

After returning to Palmyra, Harris also served as an initial scribe for the Book of Mormon translation.¹ Because of pressure from his wife, Harris persuaded Joseph Smith to let him take the first 116 pages of the translation home. These pages were lost.⁷

Later on, Harris became one of the Three Witnesses, and he reported seeing an angel and the gold plates.⁶ He also mortgaged his farm to finance the printing of the Book of Mormon.⁷

1. "The Contributions of Martin Harris," churchofjesuschrist.org

2. "Harris, Martin," josephsmithpapers.org

3. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 5, 45

4. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 5, 46-48

5. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 5, 49-53

6. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 7, 73-74

7. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 8, 77-78