A retired history teacher and great-great-grandson of Porter Rockwell, he said he was unsure if Porter Rockwell would be impressed with the celebrations in his honor.

“I hope he would be pleased with it but knowing his character and the time he lived in birthdays might not have been that important to him,” the younger Rockwell said.

The Porter Rockwell presentation will be given three times beginning June 25 at 7:30 p.m., and again on June 27 at 8 p.m. inside the Hutchings Museum at 55 N. Center St. in Lehi. During the Lehi Roundup admission to the museum is only $2.

The Hutchings Museum is also hosting a birthday celebration for Porter Rockwell on June 28. All activities at the museum on that Friday are free. The museum will have a cake commemorating Rockwell’s birthday, kid-friendly games and a mountain man camp set.

John Rockwell will again share stories about his ancestor on Friday beginning at 8 p.m.

A resident of Lehi, he said he has always been interested in history and more than 30 years ago began giving firesides and lectures about his ancestor.

Porter Rockwell was a neighbor to Joseph Smith Jr., the first president of the LDS Church, and as a child formed a bond with Smith.

Rockwell’s descendent said he believes both Smith and Rockwell walked with a limp — Smith due to a bone infection and Porter Rockwell due to a poorly set broken leg.

Because of their limps both men were passed over for militia service and would have made poor farmers because they couldn’t plow a straight row. One of Porter Rockwell’s old saddles is on display at the Hutchings Museum. The stirrups are adjusted at two different lengths to accommodate Porter’s shorter leg.

As a teenager, the older Joseph Smith fought bullies for Rockwell but as an adult the roles were reversed and his ancestor became a personal bodyguard to Smith as well as Brigham Young.

Rockwell said his great-great-grandfather’s legacy was complicated.

“Some people called Porter Brigham’s destroying angel,” he said. His ancestor did kill people, but he believed it was done in self-defense or in his role as deputy lawman.

Ben Woodruff, Hutchings Museum manager, said he likes how John Rockwell doesn’t only focus on Porter’s service to the LDS Church.

“John talks about the controversial things Rockwell did as well,” Woodruff said. He said guests at the museum could view court documents from 1873 concerning a Lehi gunfight involving Porter Rockwell and Lorin Dibble. Documents also indicate Porter escaped after being charged for the shootout.

Porter’s Place, a historic restaurant located in downtown Lehi, is also celebrating Porter Rockwell’s 200th birthday by holding a Porter Rockwell Look-a-like contest.

Robert Trepanier, owner of Porter’s Place, said this is the first year they’ve celebrated their namesake’s birthday.

Adhering with the 200th birthday theme, the winner of contest will be awarded a $200 cash prize and gift certificates to local businesses in value of $1,000. The contest will be held June 28 at 4 p.m. at Porter’s Place, 24 W. Main St. in Lehi.