The Mansion House was larger, when
Uncle Porter barged in on the Smiths’ festivities. This cellar hole suggests the dimensions of the vanished south wing, which accommodated a large function room for balls, banquets, and other such hospitable events.
Friendship and hospitality were not abstractions to the Joseph Smith I am laboring to know. A suitable place to stage a really big social event fulfilled a profound need for this complicated man. I wish the south wing had survived, so that we could walk on the dance floor and give thanks for the spirit that drove its construction.
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