Great Destruction at the Time of the
 Savior's Death
 

     The scriptures make it clear that the Nephites experienced the same earthquake as others around the world, but one far worse, and accompanied by a tempest of biblical proportions which lasted three agonizing hours.

     And it came to pass that when the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the storm, and the tempest, and the quakings of the earth did cease--for behold, they did last for about the space of three hours; and it was said by some that the time was greater; nevertheless, all these great and terrible things were done in about the space of three hours--and then behold, there was darkness upon the face of the land. (3 Nephi 8:19.)

     The earthquake felt around the world was duly noted in this account. But it appears that a volcano may have erupted somewhere in the area which may have created some of the other weather phenomenon described. For instance, when the clouds of vapor, which are initially expelled from the volcano, heat up, severe thunder and lightning storms are created, and when winds are high, whirlwinds can occur. The great and terrible tempest described in the Nephite account includes all of the above, including a terrible vapor of darkness. A volcanic eruption would also explain the description of fire being sent down from heaven, something apparently different than the lightning mentioned—all conditions associated with the eruption of a volcano.
     An old Washoe Indian legend affirms that at least one volcanic episode occurred somewhere in the northwest of America at the time of the crucifixion, an eruption of such magnitude that the sun was hidden by ash and debris for three full days—that being a witness to the Indians carrying the blood of Israel in the western part of the continent that their Savior had died. That event was carried in legends throughout the ages by the Washoe Indians of northern Nevada, and subsequently included in Le Grand Richards book, A Marvelous Work And A Wonder, much of the story preserved in the broken English of the Indians.
     Typical of these traditions is the following Washoe Indian Legend which seems to have preserved the story of the disappearance of a great intermountain lake. This immense “sheet” of water was called Lahontan. Its existence in the past is attested by the fossilized remains of animals that have been found in various parts of the basin, as well as by other unmistakable evidences. The Indian legend is related as follows:

    The area described can be reconciled with ancient Lake Lahontan, which covered much of northwestern Nevada, northeastern California, and southern Oregon, an area of 8500 square miles. As the ice in the north countries began to melt away at the end of the last Ice Age, the larger lake began to evaporate, leaving behind a number of smaller lakes, with Pyramid, Winnemucca and Walker lakes, along with the Carson Sink, all that remains of that ancient body of water. But, if legends can be trusted, some part of that big body of water appears to have disappeared at the time of the crucifixion, with their narrative making it clear that a volcanic eruption was involved.
     The USGS instructs us that ash fall from a violent eruption can cause partial or complete darkness by blocking sunlight. They explain that depending on several factors, including the size and duration of an eruption, strength and direction of the wind, and distance from the volcano, an area may experience dark conditions for as little as a few minutes to as long as 1-3 days, just as described by the Washoe Indians, and just as described by the Nephites in the Book of Mormon. But could the eruption in Nevada have moved so quickly along air-currents so as to cause the darkness which covered the lands around Cumorah? While the ash from Washington State’s Mt. St. Helens was found in Quebec, Canada, the day after its explosive eruption in 1980, it seems unlikely that a volcano erupting along the Sierras, as described by the Washoe Indian legend, would have sent enough ash and debris into the atmosphere to cause three days of darkness in far away New York. Thus, we must look further eastward.
     While a considerable number of volcanoes have been noted along the Pacific northwest, as many as 46 active and extinct volcanoes have been documented in Iceland, a small island off the coast of Greenland to the northeast of the United States, with Heckla, being one of the most active in the world. The Hengell system of volcanoes in Iceland erupted around the time of Christ (1900 +/- 100 years ago), and may well have had an impact on both the northeast of America and the isles off the west coast of Europe. However, while the weather in the northeast has been known to have changed dramatically after volcanic explosions in Iceland, it seems unlikely that eruptions so far from home would account for the severe weather patterns experienced by the people of New York, nor the profound period of darkness they experienced. Thus, a look at the areas closer to ground zero is necessary.
     While volcanoes do exist off the northeast coast of America, most are underwater. It is said that if you drain the ocean basins, tens of thousands of seamounts, or sea mountains, meaning under water volcanoes, would appear with some in clusters which stretch across the ocean floor for hundreds of miles. One such cluster known as the Emperor Chain, stretches from the Hawaiian Islands westward to Alaska. But other impressive chains exist in the Atlantic as well, including the Corner Rise and the New England Seamounts. About 25 ancient Seamounts make up the New England Seamounts, which are the middle portion of a chain of hotspots which stretch from Canada across the Atlantic to the African plate.
     Quebec’s Monteregian Hills is a series of eight-butte type mountains located about 50 miles from Montreal and stretch across the St. Lawrence to the Appalachian highlands. They are the eroded remnants of oldest volcanoes in the New England hotspot track, as are some very ancient hotspots in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, and neighboring states. If one were to speculate about which of the dormant hot spot cones in the area were to have erupted at the time of the crucifixion, one of the eight Monteregian mounts would be the likeliest candidates, for they lay just to the north of Lake Champlain on the borders of Quebec, which is the land northward of the Nephites, and right where the Gadianton bands may have taken refuge. Not only did fire rain down on the Gadiantons and destroy many of their cities, but this area would have been close enough to have affected those in Zarahemla as well. Clay deposits containing volcanic ash have been found all across most of central New York. Even the rocks in New York show evidence of nearby volcanoes long since gone dormant, or eroded away.
     While most of the volcanic activity noted in the region is thought to have taken place millions of years ago, the traditions of the Indians tell a different story, as does an eye witness to an eruption somewhere along the St. Lawrence River in the late 1800's. The traditions of the Indians speak of a “fire mountain” in either Quebec or Labrador which was active until at least a few centuries ago. White settlers living in the region also carried such tales. Other stories circulated about possible eruptions in New Hampshire, although modern accounts refer to rather insignificant eruptions, accompanied by nothing more than great booming noises like cannon fire accompanied by earthquakes and a small amount of ash and lava being found on mountain slopes. Yet, accounts noted by early colonial settlers living along the St. Lawrence River speak of earthquakes followed by periods of profound darkness, violent gusts of winds, rain, and lightning, just as described in the scriptures. Thus, regardless of any lack of scientific verification that such an eruption took place in the area at the time of the crucifixion, all the weather phenomenon mentioned in the Book of Mormon, including those in both Zarahemla and the land northward clear to Quebec, can be explained by such an event, including the fact that there was more damage done in the land northward somewhere up the path of the St. Lawrence where volcanoes are said to exist, which is verification enough.
     While we have no first hand evidence of the eruption of one of the cones which make up the Monteregian Hills, stories of eruptions of volcanoes along the St. Lawrence have circulated for hundreds of years. One report of a possible eruption was noted in Historical Magazine in 1785, which spoke of a period of “dark days” and extensive earthquake activity in lower Canada. Also covering the event was the Quebec Gazette of October 20th, 1785, which carried the minutely detailed report of Chief Justice, Sewell, who was President of the Library and Historical Society of Quebec. His report claimed that on Sunday, October 10th, 1785, it was so dark shortly after ten in the morning that printing from ordinary type could not be read. A short period of darkness was experienced the day before around four o’clock in the afternoon, with a luminous glow noted in the sky to the northeast, turning to yellow along the horizon. On the 15th, the same phenomenon took place, but a little earlier in the day. And, just as it had on the 9th, it was accompanied by violent gusts of wind, lightening, thunder, and rain. The next morning was perfectly calm, except that a thick fog now covered the area. {Thick vapor of darkness.} By nine o’clock a light wind from the north-east entirely dissipated the fog, which was soon replaced with black clouds which came in so rapidly from the northeast that by ten o’clock, ordinary print could not be read. The darkness lasted for about ten minutes. At twelve, a second period of darkness took place, then a third, and a fourth, and a fifth, each at regular intervals so that by 4 o’clock in the afternoon it was as dark as midnight.”
     Chief Justice Sewell noted four distinct accounts of similar phenomenon on July 3rd, 1814. One was taken from Captain Payne, an officer of the Royal Engineers, and subsequently written up in Philosophical Magazine. A second report describes a similar event on July 2nd and 3rd while Sir William Heathcott’s ship was anchored in the river St. Lawrence. The third account provided additional facts from men on another ship which lay off the coast of Cape Chat. The fourth describes events observed by Justice Sewell himself while on the banks of Newfoundland. He reported that on July 2nd, clouds began to arrive from the northward, and the atmosphere became thick and hazy. By four o’clock the cabin was totally dark and they had to dine by candlelight. By nine o’clock dust and ashes began falling and continued all night, with the darkness becoming more and more excessive. As morning approached, the whole atmosphere “was red and fiery to a wonderful degree,” and the moon, which was full at the time, was not visible. He explained that as he looked through his cabin window it was as though he were surrounded by a mass of fire;” and that the sea sparkled much more than was usual for these latitudes. Ashes continued to fall through July 4th, which were as black as burnt wood.
     From the descriptions of the various accounts from four separate sightings, the winds of July 2nd carried ashes, sand, smoke and vapor across the St. Lawrence River and then across the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the island of Newfoundland and enveloped the ships anchored off Canada. Justice Sewell was convinced these phenomenon were the result of volcanic eruption rather than an extensive conflagration. After explaining in detail his reasons for that belief, he concluded with: “It seems impossible to suppose that the conflagration of a forest could have produced a mass of smoke so dense and so extensive as to overspread, as it did in October, 1785, the surface of a territory exceeding certainly 300 miles in length and probably 200 miles in breadth, and producing at its utmost longitudinal extremity, and at mid-day, the obscurity of the darkest night.” Giving in to the traditions among the Indians then living to the north of the St. Lawrence River, he believed that the period of dark days in Canada should be attributed to the eruption of an active volcano the Indians claim existed in the Labrador Peninsula, a “fire mountain” 200 miles inland.
     Others argued for the existence of a volcano in the regions to the southeast of the Saguenay, a major river near the city of Quebec, Canada. Lieutenant Ingall, who explored the area between the Saguenay and the St. Maurice, mentioned the fact that an opinion prevailed among the local inhabitants, borne out by traditions, that an active volcano is somewhere in existence among the mountains southeast of the Saguenay. ²
      In 1828, Captain F. H. Baddely, R. E, published a report that the area of Murray Bay on the St. Lawrence, 90 miles from the city of Quebec has long been remarkable for its frequency of earthquakes, which occur nine or ten times a year. He reported further that there exists highly respectable evidence of a volcanic eruption having happened somewhere in the rear of St. Pauls Bay, not far from Murray Bay, situated on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, half way between Quebec and the Saguenay River. He said: “No one, we think, will feel disposed to doubt that fact after perusing the following account of it, with which through the politeness of Messrs. Gognon and Chaperon, we have been furnished. It is the former gentlemen who wrote: ‘In the place of a journal, which happens to be lost—receive the following:’”

    “Tuesday, December 6, 1791—at St Paul’s Bay, and at neighboring places, at about a quarter after seven, a severe earthquake was felt; the whole night was disturbed by small ones, repeated at intervals, and by a sudden shaking running toward the east. The shocks were felt for forty-one days, from two (shocks) to five a day. On Monday, December 5th, the shocks were fully one-third weaker than those on the 3rd; the others were only small ones, or rumbling noises, the weather always being gloomy. Before the night of the 26th, and 27th, I had not yet remarked any eruptions or thick smoke, at times curling into a flame. The temperature at a quarter after eleven was 11º above zero by the thermometer of Reaumur (plus 56º.7 of Fahrenheit); the next morning the heat had risen to 21º (plus 79 ½º of Fahrenheit). Two mountains near my dwelling, at some 40º north west have a valley between them, so that you may see beyond them. It is by this valley or passage, that I saw a continual eruption, mixed with smoke and flame which appeared very plain on the horizon, and at other times struggling among themselves as if too oppressed in their issue. I have remarked several times that this eruption is always followed by shocks of earthquakes the same day, and when it fails, a dark-yellowish day follows. When the earthquake arises you can predict that is going to be so much the nearer as this agitated smoke struggles to get out. . . . Finally, on the night of the 26th and 27th, a most beautiful spectacle was produced. The whole atmosphere was in flames and agitated, one’s face suffered from the heat. The eruption continued the whole night with flames. The certain approach of the earthquake is known, when the passage between the mountains, you see a cloud, or smoke, quiet or agitated, and on the left and right the horizon is perfectly clear.”³

     The volcano described lay just to the northeast of the city of Quebec. Thus, any eruption of the past would have had a major impact on the regions in all directions, including New York, the land southward of the Nephites, although most of the destruction would have been felt in the land northward, just as described in the scriptures. What could be more perfect?!

     But behold, there was a more great and terrible destruction in the land northward; for behold, the whole face of the land was changed, because of the tempest and the whirlwinds and the thunderings and the lightnings, and the exceedingly great quaking of the whole earth; (3 Nephi 8:12.)




Notes:
1- Mrs. M. M. Garwood, Progressive West Magazine, reprinted in Deseret Semi-Weekly News, Feb. 5, 1906
2- Transaction of the Library and Philosophical Society of Quebec, 1830, V. II.)
3- Quoted in, Notes on the Earthquake of October 1860. By J. W. Dawson, LLD., F.G.S., Historic Magazine, p. 63.)
 

Copyright © 1998 by Phyllis Carol Olive