Joseph C. Dylkes

Who is Joseph C. Dylkes?

Joseph C. Dylkes, also referred to as the Leatherwood God, was a messianic figure in the early settlement of the Ohio Country in the United States.

Very little is known about him, when and where was born, or what happened to him after his public apparition.

He came out in August 1828, in a camp meeting near a chapel known as the Leatherwood Church in Salesville, Ohio. On Sunday afternoon, the United Brethren minister John Crum was preaching to a large congregation, when a voice shouted "Salvation" followed by a strange sound, taken by all who heard it to be the snort of a horse.

Everyone was taken by surprise and turned to see the stranger, dressed in a black broadcloth suit, frock coat, and white cravat and wearing a yellow beaver hat. He appeared to be between the ages of 45 and 50 and sported long black hair.

The stranger was hosted by some members of that congregation, attended various religious meetings, and sometimes preached. Displaying knowledge of the Bible, he started to declare himself to be a celestial being, and finally claimed he was the Messiah who had come to establish a kingdom that would never end.