John first met Joseph Smith in June 1829 when David Whitmer brought Joseph, Emma, and Oliver Cowdery to the Whitmer homestead in Fayette, New York to complete the translation of the Book of Mormon. He assisted Joseph and Oliver by compiling and transcribing Joseph’s revelations. John was baptized into the Church by Oliver Cowdery that same month, nearly a year prior to the formal organization of the Church of Christ. In that same month, he became one of eight men who signed a testimony that they had handled and been shown the Golden Plates. Known as the “Testimony of the Eight Witnesses” the statement was printed in the first edition of the Book of Mormon and has been included in almost every subsequent edition.
The original Church was formally organized on April 6, 1830, in the Whitmer home in Fayette. John was one of the earliest members, and he was ordained an elder of the church on June 9, 1830. The next year, on March 8, 1831, Joseph Smith received a revelation from God, calling John to “write and keep a regular history” of the Church. This revelation was printed in the Book of Commandments (precursor to the Doctrine and Covenants) as section 50, and in the Doctrine and Covenants originally as section 63. The revelation is now section 47 of the current LDS edition. As a result, John was called as the first official church historian and wrote the first history of the church spanning 1831- 1838.
John Whitmer was active as a servant to the Church in Missouri. He left for Jackson County in 1831 and married Sarah Jackson on February 10, 1833. They would have 5 children and took refuge in Clay County in 1833. He petitioned the Missouri government for redress on behalf of the beleaguered Saints. He purchased land for the Church in Caldwell county and founded the settlement at Far West as a safe haven for the members of the Church.
John Whitmer was officially excommunicated from the Church by the High Council at Far West, Missouri, March 10, 1838. The Whitmer family moved to Richmond in neighboring Ray County. Eventually, John Whitmer brought his family back to Far West. The family remained there, even as most of the Saints escaped to Illinois. He purchased property and established a large farm and livestock ranch. After the martyrdom of Joseph Smith, David Whitmer founded a new, but short-lived Church, the Church of Christ (Whitmerite), of which John became a member for a time. John Whitmer died on July 11, 1878, in Far West. His history, The Book of John Whitmer, Kept by Commandment is in the archives of the Community of Christ, formerly known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Adapted from www.MormonWiki.com (used by permission)