Mormon Discussion Podcast The Don Juan of Nauvoo
In this episode, we step into one of the most provocative and uncomfortable chapters ever written about Joseph Smith — “The Don Juan of Nauvoo,” from Dr. W. Wyl’s 1886 exposé. These are not modern critics looking backward with hindsight. These are men and women living in Utah in the late 1800s — people who lived through Nauvoo, who knew Joseph personally, who saw the culture firsthand, and who were willing to share their memories of Joseph’s behavior with women. Their recollections paint a portrait very different from the sanitized image often presented today. We will read their words directly. Their observations. Their accusations. Their recollections of Joseph’s charisma, his influence, and his interactions with women in Nauvoo. This episode isn’t about speculation. It’s about historical memory — and how Joseph Smith’s contemporaries understood him.
You’ll hear:
• How Joseph was perceived by those who lived in Nauvoo
• The reputation he carried among insiders
• What Utah Saints privately said decades later
• Why these accounts were preserved and published
• And how charisma, authority, and attraction intersected in Nauvoo
Whether you see Joseph Smith as prophet, fraud, or something in between, these firsthand recollections provide a window into how he was experienced by those who lived in his shadow.
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