Feb 27, 1833 - The "Word of Wisdom" discourages use of tobacco, wine, and "strong drink" but encourages the use of "mild drinks" made from barley (beer).

Feb 27, 1840 - William Clayton, on a mission in England writes: "Sarah [Crooks] appeared rather tempted to get married. I felt to sorrow on this account. I don't want Sarah to be married. I was much [] and tempted on her account and felt to pray that the Lord would preserve me from impure affections. She gave me an orange. I certainly feel my love towards her to increase but shall strive against it. I feel too much to covet her and afraid lest her troubles should cause her to get married. The Lord keep me pure and preserve me from doing wrong." Clayton has a wife in Nauvoo but is falling in love with Sarah Crooks. Later in Nauvoo, when Joseph explains plural marriage to Clayton he sends for Sarah but the two never do marry each other.

Feb 27, 1844 - Presidential Candidate Joseph Smith mails copies of his pamphlet GENERAL SMITH'S VIEWS OF THE POWERS AND POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES to"President and Cabinet, Supreme [Court] Judges, Senators, Representatives, principal papers in the U.S. all the Governors, and many postmasters and individuals. In all about 200."
Joseph Smith calls a meeting of the Twelve and others "for the purpose of selecting a company to survey [explore] Oregon and California — and select a site for a new city for the saints,"

Feb 27, 1845 - At a meeting of apostles with several Council of Fifty members, W. W. Phelps says, "B. Young has found out that we are in Eternity, the Millenium has now commenced." In the "evening some person or persons took Washington Peck and bedaubed him all over with privy dirt. . . . This is one of those mean traitors who lurks about continually in our midst communicating with our enemies & seeking to have the twelve destroyed. He is marked as a mean conspirator." Apostle John Taylor, in the NAUVOO NEIGHBOR, soon writes "But one person [Washington Peck] has been introduced to 'Queen Peggy's privy cabinet.' and so every man minds his own business." William Marks hurriedly leaves Nauvoo to avoid similar treatment.

Feb 27, 1853 - Brigham Young preaches, "when the Saints were taken up with the spirit of the fiddle & dancing & had not the spirit of God they were wrong & in the wrong road. . . .some Elders would threaten to curse their wives if they did not obey him because he had the priesthood. . . . the Curses of such men wer[e] of no force & the women need have no fears of it. . . .Who should have women sealed to them? Those men who have proved to God, Angels & man that they are willing to do anything that God requires of them . . . The difference between Christ & the devil is Christ will increase & the devil will decrease until Christ will have power to destroy death & him that hath power of death which is the devil. Yes the devil will finally be destroyed & disorganized & will cease to exist as a devil & the elements of which he is composed will go back to its mother Element & the devil will cease to be & so will his Angels . . . there were many who had a tabernacle on Earth that would never have a resurrection."

Feb 27, 1858 - Mormon Judge Hosea Stout describes with no disapproval how Mormons "disguised as Indians" drag a man "out of bed with a whore and castrated him by a square and close amputation."

Feb 27, 1870 - Thomas C. Griggs, faithful Mormon, writes in his diary: "in the afternoon we had a lengthy if not interesting discourse from Elder Erastus Snow."

Feb 27, 1872 - LDS MILLENIAL STAR editorial, "Motherhood of God," repeats a child's question: "Why don't you tell me about the Heavenly Mother? Don't SHE give us anything?" Editorial speaks of those who "yearn to adore her" and expresses approval of praying to "Father and Mother God." Editorial conclusion: "When we draw nearer the Divine Man, lo! we shall find a Divine Woman smiling upon us...In the Father's many mansions, we shall find her and be satisfied."

Feb 27, 1873 - Apostle Joseph F. Smith dreams of anti-Mormon who uses bottle of "concentrated essence of S--t" to attack plural marriage. He thinks dream refers to Congress.

Feb 27, 1875 - DESERET NEWS reports Orson Pratt sermon: "Little did we suppose when we were driven out from Jackson County, the place where God has promised to give his Saints their inheritances, and in the regions round about, that nearly half a century would pass over our heads before we would be restored back to that land." He adds that a few who were in the church at the time they were driven from Jackson County "will live to behold the day, and will return and receive their inheritances."

Feb 27, 1884 - John H. Gilbert, who was the typesetter for the first edition of the Book of Mormon, answers questions: "I. [There was] not a punctuation mark of any kind from beginning to end of [the] manuscript. II. Sentences were not commenced with capitals: If they had been there would not have been so much difficulty in punctuation [Gilbert supplied all the punctuation for the first edition]. III. The spelling was good. . . .[Oliver] Cowdery looked over the manuscript when the proof was read. IV. We were not allowed to correct any grammatical errors."

Feb 27, 1888 - James A. Briggs writes the editor of the NEW YORK TIMES, "[I] heard Jo Smith in a justice court, where he was before it on a charge of assault and battery, testify as to his finding the 'Golden Plates' of the 'Mormon Bible,' and how he was kicked out of the hole in the earth where he was digging, when he struck the plates, by an unseen power"

Feb 27, 1889 - LDS political newspaper SALT LAKE HERALD's article titled, "FAILED MARRIAGES," regarding "the report of the Labor Commissioner Wright, presented last week, on the statistics of marriage and divorce in the United States from 1867 to 1886 inclusive," with following: In 1870 Utah had highest rate of divorce out of all states and territories. In 1870 Utah's rate was one divorce per 185 marriages. National averages was 1:664. States with lowest divorce rates are South Carolina at 1:4,938, Delaware at 1:123,672, New Mexico at 1:16,077, North Carolina at 1:4,938, and Louisiana at 1:4,579. In 1880 Utah had tenth highest rate of divorce out of all states and territories. In 1880 Utah's rate was one divorce per 219 marriages, which was more than twice the national average of 1:479. In twentieth century, divorce rates for LDS temple marriages starts out three times higher than this "divorce mill" rate for early Utah civil marriages.

Feb 27, 1889 - Wilford Woodruff tells his secretary "he would about as soon attend a funeral as one of our council meetings." Several apostles have opposed each of his efforts to organize First Presidency.

Feb 27, 1896 - Court dismisses long-standing indictment against John M. Higbee. Other participants say privately that he was most blood-thirsty man at Mountain Meaows Massacre.

Feb 27, 1902 - Joseph F. Smith rules that stake president has authority to ordain bishops, but only if authorized by First Presidency. He instructs apostle to re-ordain man who has been ordained bishop by his stake president.
President Joseph F. Smith replies to a letter asking about the Adam-God doctrine: "As to the personality and position of each God, as to which of all is the greater, these are matters immaterial at the present time, and are at best but an unprofitable speculation. . . . to us there is but one God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ"

Feb 27, 1941 - Leigh A. Harline receives two "Oscars" from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (music score of PINOCCHIO and best song, "When You Wish Upon a Star").

Feb 27, 1954 - CHURCH NEWS article by Joseph Fielding Smith, "Where Is the Hill Cumorah? Book of Mormon Establishes Location of Historic Region." Apostle Smith argues that the Hill Cumorah of the Book of Mormon is the same Hill Cumorah that was near Joseph Smith's farm in New York: "Within recent years there has arisen among certain students of the Book of Mormon a theory to the effect that within the period covered by the Book of Mormon, the Nephites and Lamanites were confined almost within the borders of the territory comprising Central America and the southern portion of Mexico; the Isthmus of Tehuantepec probably being the `narrow neck' of land spoken of in the Book of Mormon rather than the Isthmus of Panama. . . . This modernistic theory of necessity, in order to be consistent, must place the waters of Ripliancum and the Hill Cumorah someplace within the restricted territory of Central America, notwithstanding the teachings of the Church to the contrary for upwards of 100 years."

Feb 27, 1960 - Lifelong Mormon Jerald Tanner writes to a Book-of-Mormon believing friend: "Actually I would like to believe the Book of Mormon is true. My prejudice leans toward it instead of away from it. I pray about it all the time, but as yet I have received no answer. I hope God will give me a positive answer soon." Tanner later becomes a leading critic of the LDS Church and of claims of authenticity of the Book of Mormon.

Feb 27, 1974 - After writing a requested article on changes in the church since the 1870s for the NEW ERA, having the article accepted and being paid $75 for it LDS historian James B. Allen is told the article will not be printed. he receives "a call from the editor who said that the correlation committee had turned down the article, and there seemed to be two basic reasons: (1) the committee could not see any value in talking about change as such, and (2) it was fearful that in discussing so many changes we would leave the impression that everything was changing, and therefore raise questions in the minds of the New Era readers about whether gospel doctrines were changing and whether or not the Church was true."

Feb 27, 1981 - First Presidency authorizes stake presidents to ordain partiarchs. Previously, the Twelve maintained that as exclusive right, even denying it to church's patriarch.

Feb 27, 1987 - Forger/murderer Mark Hofmann meets with prosecutors to be interviewed as per his plea agreement. He describes his feelings in April 1980 when he took the forged "Anthon transcript" to President Spencer W. Kimball and other Mormon officials: "I believed it would pass their inspection as far as being in Joseph Smith's handwriting. And, as far as how I felt, probably a combination of emotions. There was, of course, a little bit of fear involved since, of course, it was a forged document. There was some excitement involved, a feeling of duping them, I guess. . . . I wasn't fearful of the church inspiration detecting the forgery, . . ."

So B. Young said the millennium had now commenced? And no one ever talked of that again? Wow. Maybe B.Young and some of the prophets are a bit like the Little Boy Who Cried Wolf and their words didn't mean much anymore?

And how could General Joseph not have won the presidency when he had God in his corner? Hardy har har har.