D&C 84:3-5 is a commonly cited "false" prophecy of Joseph Smith. I have discussed this in some length in Refuting James Walker on Joseph Smith's Prophecies (cf. Resources on Joseph Smith's Prophecies).
It is true, however, that many Latter-day Saints were hopeful that the return to Jackson County would take place in the near-future. For example, Lorenzo Snow held out this hope, and taught such during a meeting held June 12, 1901.
We have two reports offering a summary and brief overview of the meeting and Pres. Snow’s comments on June 12, 1901 (the very day it was held):
Ogden, June 12.—The long-looked for and much talked of union at Weber
Stake officers took place in this city today. The gathering was honored by the
presence of Presidents Lorenzo Snow and Joseph F. Smith, Apostles Teasdale,
Lund and Clawson, Patriarch John Smith, the Webster Stake High Council, the
Bishops of the various wards and officers of the Mutual Improvement, Relief and
Primary societies and Sunday schools.
. . .
President Snow was the next speaker and was listened to with rapt
attention by the large congregation present. He said that it was fifty-two
years ago since he first visited Ogden and remarked that the Saints now
present, if faithful and living fifty-two years hence, would mostly be back in
Jackson county. (“A Big Reunion at Ogden Today,” Deseret Evening News no. 174
[June 12, 1901]: 1)
The reunion of ecclesiastical authorities of the Weber Stake of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints which took place today in the Fifth
ward meeting house partook, to a great extent, of the nature of a great family
reunion. Those assembled observed no formality which adds stiffness to the
occasion and as a result the event proved one of the most enjoyable in the
history of the members of the church of that ward.
Members of the first presiden[c]y of the church and apostles arrived
at 10:45 in Ogden over the Oregon Short Line and were met at the depot by
President Shurtliff and Counsellors Flygare and Middleton of Weber Stake.
. . .
The choir again sang and President Lorenzo Snow addressed those
present. He said he could say for himself that he was glad to be present. . . .
He referred to the sacredness of the building with which the exercises were
being held. There was something sweet and grand and glorious about the sacred
precincts of the meeting house. He had never felt more at home to talk and to
talk the fullness of his heart out. His feelings were deep and broad and could
not be expressed toward the president of Weber Stake, his counsellors and all
those assembled. He recalled a visit to this spot 52 years ago in the fall of
1849, when the foundation of a portion of Zion was laid on that spot. There
were then about ten families living in what is now Ogden. In reply to a question
of how many who were there in 1849 were present five hands were raised.
President Snow referred with the feeling of the absence of so many and took
occasion to praise and encourage the living and held out to them a promise of
returning to Jackson County and of seeing the Lord.
He referred to his own baptism at Kirtland, Ohio, in 1836; told many
reminiscences of the early days of the church, and state that the patriarchal
blessings which he had received from Patriarch Smith, father of the Prophet
Joseph Smith, had been fulfilled. (“First Presidency of Church in Ogden Today,” Ogden Daily Standard 31, no. 139
[June 12, 1901]: 5)
A fuller report
would be published in the Deseret Evening News on June 15, 1901. Notice,
however, when quoted directly, Lorenzo Snow was giving his opinion concerning
the matter, he was not declaring doctrine nor prophesying:
A reunion of the authorities of the Priesthood in the Weber Stake of
Zion was held Wednesday, June 12, 1901, in the Fifth ward assembly hall and
educational institute, commencing at 11 a.m.
PRESIDENT SNOW’S RESPONSE
. . .
I was here over fifty years ago, in 1849. Are any here who met with me
at that time? (The hands of Joseph Hall, James Owen, James Burch, and E. W.
Wade of the High Council, and Sister Sarah Herrick were raised.) There are only
five now here. At that time I remember stopping at the log house of Capt.
Brown. Of the ten families then living here there are present here today only
five persons, and so we pass away. After the same time shall have passed which
has elapsed since then how many of you will be living and where will you be? I
can tell you what I think:
Many of you will be living in Jackson county and there you will be
assisting in building the Temple; and if you will not have seen the Lord Jesus
at that time you may expect Him very soon, to see Him, to eat and drink with
Him, to shake hands with Him and to invite Him to your Houses as He was invited
when He was there before. I am saying things to you now of which know something of the truth of them. I feel
with all my heart to say God bless you from the President down to the
Counsellors of the Bishops and all of you. God has blessed you with light and
knowledge; and all those within the sound of my voice who have not received a
perfect understanding of their prospects and what they may reach in the next
life, I want you to so live and to so exercise your faith that you may go into
the Temple and receive your higher blessing, and have there unfolded to your
view the glorious prospects for which the Latter-day Saints have struggled and
suffered and for which they have been drive and driven until they finally
located here. I suppose I am talking to some who have had worry and trouble and
heart burnings and persecution, and have at times been caused to think that
they never expected to endure quite so much. But for everything you have
suffered, for everything that has occurred to you which you thought an evil at
that time, you will receive four-fold and that suffering will have had a
tendency to make you better and stronger and to feel that you have been
blessed. When you look back over your experiences you will then see that you
have advanced far ahead and have gone up several rounds of the ladder toward
exaltation and glory. (“Notable Reunion of Weber Stake,” The Deseret Evening News no. 177
[June 15, 1901]: 1, emphasis in bold added)
To be fair,
belief that the Saints would fulfill D&C 84:4 in their lifetime was popular.
Another early Latter-day Saint who believed it would take place in “this
generation” was Orson Pratt. In August 1866, he wrote:
Question 4: Will the Latter-day Saints return to Jackson County,
Missouri, within ten or twelve years from this time?
Answer: I do not know the exact time. They will most certainly return
and build a temple upon the consecrated spot in that country, before all the
generation who were living in 1832 have passed away. (Orson Pratt, “Questions and Answers,” The Latter-day Saints’ Millennial
Star 28, no. 33 [August 18, 1866]: 518)
