The Hill Cumorah?

My genration grew up knowing absolutely where the "narrow neck of land" of Book of Mormon fame was;
obviously it was the Panama peninsula, with the "sea west" being the Pacific Ocean and the "sea east" being the Atlantic Ocean.

Well, maybe not.

Did you know that the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon contains this footnote:
"Lehi..landed on the continent of South America in Chili [Chile] thirty degrees south latitude."
This statement is attributed to Joseph Smith, Jr by Apostle Franklin D. Richards and Apostle James A. Little and accepted by Orson Pratt.

Nephi says the "narrow neck of land" could be crossed in a day and a half.  That would be impossible anywhere in Panama, even at the narrowest point.

Could the narrow neck of land be in Peru? How about the City of Nephi, Zarahemla, Bountiful? The Hill Cumorah?
At one point in Book of Mormon history it is stated "we live on an island in the sea." Where might this be?

Could the "sea west" be the Pacific Ocean and the "sea east" be Lake Titicaca (which has a large island where, according to oral history, a great people once lived)?

George D. Potter spent two years as a missionary in Peru several years ago and became acquainted with the  geographic features of the country, as well as many of the oral histories of the natives.  He has written a book "Nephi in the Promised Land" (a follow up of his book "Lehi in the Desert") in which he makes a case for many of the events recorded in the Book of Mormon having taken place in what is now Peru.

He is not dogmatic, but builds a very interesting case for his views.  The book is loaded with pictures, maps, etc. It is not an "easy read" but a fascinating one.  I recommend it to anyone interested in things having to do with the Book of Mormon.  No, our salvation does not depend on knowing any of this sort of thing, but it is, nevertheless, interesting to contemplate.

One final question:  How many years transpired between the final battle on the Hilll Cumorah and Moroni burying the plates?  Thirty seven.  During all those years, Moroni was a lonely man, fleeing for his life. He would certainly have wanted to put as much distance as possible between him and the Lamanites who were out to kill him.  If he had walked only five miles a day he could have easily gotten from Peru to upstate New York, even taking the plates with him.  Could the mountain shown below be where the final battle at "the Hill Cumorah" took place?  Who knows?