“[Joseph] told Sylvester he was possessed of a wicked spirit and said, in the name of the Lord that if he did not get rid of that spirit the day would come when a dog should bite him, and gnaw his flesh and he would not be able to resist it.” — George A. Smith1
Sylvester Smith was an early member of the Church of Christ, with a multifaceted involvement that often placed him at the heart of early Church tensions and activities. Born on March 25, 1806, in Tyringham, Massachusetts, Sylvester moved to Amherst, Ohio, around 1815, and later became a farmer, carpenter, lawyer, and realtor. He married Elizabeth Frank in 1827 and was baptized into the Church by 1831.2
Sylvester quickly rose within the Church's ranks, being ordained a high priest by Oliver Cowdery in 1831. He served a mission to New England with Gideon Carter in 1832 and moved to Kirtland, Ohio, by 1834, where he was appointed to the Kirtland high council. Sylvester participated in the Camp of Israel (Zion's Camp) expedition to Missouri in 1834.2
A notable incident during Zion's Camp involved Sylvester and Joseph Smith, the Church's founder. Sylvester, serving as a captain of the arriving company, threatened to kill Joseph Smith's dog, Old Major, due to its barking. The situation escalated into a heated exchange where Sylvester and Joseph publicly confronted each other, with Joseph threatening to retaliate if Sylvester harmed the dog. This event highlighted the frayed nerves and tensions within the camp, illustrating Sylvester's often contentious relationship with Church leadership.3
Despite these tensions, Sylvester and Joseph managed to reconcile their differences at a Kirtland high council hearing that summer.4 Sylvester was appointed as a president of the First Quorum of the Seventy in 1835, showcasing a temporary resolution to their conflicts. However, by 1838, Sylvester had left the Church.4
