A 19th Century Mormon Near-Death Experience (Phoebe Carter Woodruff)

In 1838 a Mormon pioneer woman named Phoebe Carter Woodruff had an NDE as a result of "brain fever."

Her illness was brought on by a long, cold, arduous wagon journey from Maine to Illinois with her baby and her religious zealot husband, Wilford. Phoebe seemed to die on three separate occasions. On the third, Wilford claimed that he himself brought her back to life through a shamanic-like practice of prayers and rituals.

It's not widely known that NDEs hold a special fascination for Mormons. In fact, in 1847 Brigham Young, the second president of the church after founder Joseph Smith, told a friend, “I actually went into Eternity last Wednesday and came back again.” Although he did not elaborate specifically in the context of his NDE, Young did describe the nature and features of the afterlife in subsequent writings. We get more details of Woodruff's experience, which was recounted by Wilford.

To read this NDE from the United States pioneer era, 183 years ago, and to subscribe to the Historical NDE of the Month (along with many other benefits) please sign up on my Patreon page https://www.patreon.com/gregoryshushan You will be directly supporting my work, including my forthcoming Historical Anthology of Near-Death Experiences - which will include 5 or 6 additional Mormon examples, mostly dating from the 19th century.

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