Jay HawkinsonThe author grew up some 75 miles north of Nauvoo and over the years made a number of trips to the Nauvoo area. During each trip, he absorbed the Area's Mormon history. As trips progressed, Nauvoo began to reconstruct their historical buildings and ovrtime provided church missionaries in period costumes to educate the visitors. Over the years of these Nauvoo visits, the author became a Freemason. Some Masonic history was found that touched on the remote connections with the Mormon Church. He joined the US Air Force and was located in many Western United States areas densely populated with Mormans. This gave him a more personal in-depth view of the religion. After his discharge from the US Air Force, he returned home to Moline, Illinois. In the years that followed, his occasional trips to Nauvoo resumed. In the meantime, his activity in Freemasonry grew more intense as he rose through its ranks to leadership positions. His desire for history and writing was his highlight and he produced two presentation studies: articles about the Cherokee Masons in parallel with the Trail of Tears, and about the outstanding Masonic accomplishments of General Douglas MacArthur. The author's incentive to write this book came after he retired and moved to Rapid City, South Dakota where he joined in Masonic degree work and realized how more connected a Masonic Degree allegory was about the Morman church disciplines. Now he wants to share his research and interesting history. Read More Read Less