The Joseph Smith Papers Project is made possible by the help and cooperation of hundreds of people. Though we here primarily identify the individuals and institutions who have contributed to this volume, we are mindful of our ever-increasing debt to our many colleagues and friends who are assisting with later volumes or more general undertakings.
Administrators and officials of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, and Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, have provided support and resources that have facilitated this work. In addition to our institutional sponsorship, the project is blessed to receive generous funding from the Larry H. and Gail Miller family, and we thank them for their continuing support and friendship. We give special acknowledgment to management and staff at the Church History Library, Salt Lake City, where the bulk of the Joseph Smith papers are housed. We also express deep appreciation to officials of the Community of Christ, Independence, Missouri, who made the four loose leaves from Revelation Book 1 available from their archives. In addition to the Church History Library and the Community of Christ Library-Archives, other repositories have provided valuable material and assistance, including the L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University and the Family History Library, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City.
We express special thanks to Community of Christ historian Mark Scherer and archivist Ronald E. Romig for helping coordinate the photographing of the four loose leaves of Revelation Book 1. Chris McAfee and Russell C. Fuhriman of the Church History Library’s conservation lab provided necessary work in conserving the fragile pages of Revelation Book 1, including the loose leaves.
The Joseph Smith Papers Project relies on the skills and dedication of employees of the Church History Department; faculty, researchers, and editors at Brigham Young University; retired scholars and other volunteers; and independent researchers and editors. Among those who contributed to the development of this volume are Linda Hunter Adams, Mark Ashurst-McGee, Brian P. Barton, Noel R. Barton, Alexander L. Baugh, Kathryn Burnside, Jeffrey G. Cannon, Lee Ann Clanton, Jared P. Collette, Justin Collings, Lia Suttner Collings, Joseph F. Darowski, Kay Darowski, Karen Lynn Davidson, Patrick C. Dunshee, Amanda K. Fronk, William G. Hartley, Kay Hausheer, Maurice G. Hausheer, Sharalyn D. Howcroft, Elizabeth L. Jensen, Emily W. Jensen, Carol H. Jones, Christopher C. Jones, Viola Knecht, Mary-Celeste Lewis, Mark I. Macdonald, Andrea Maxfield, Kaitlin W. Merkley, Steven Motteshard, Helen Jo Murphy, Benjamin E. Park, Martha Parker, Max Parkin, Elizabeth Pinborough, Ryan W. Saltzgiver, Heather Seferovich, Alex D. Smith, Kelli M. Smith, Anna Staley, Elizabeth Stubbs, Grant Underwood, Norman E. Waite, Kathryn Jensen Wall, F. Michael Watson, Lorin Welker, Vivian Wellman, David J. Whittaker, Julia K. Woodbury, and Ellen Yates.
Employees of several other departments at church headquarters in Salt Lake City provided invaluable assistance. Welden C. Andersen, of the Audiovisual Department, shot the textual photographs in this volume. Charles M. Baird, Materials Management Department, prepared the photographs for publication. Among the skilled professionals in the Curriculum Department who advised us on editorial or design matters are Neil E. Brown, Susan Hainsworth, Daniel B. Hogan, Scott M. Mooy, Andrew D. Olsen, and Scott Welty. We benefited from the wisdom of Craig K. Sedgwick and his colleagues at the church’s Salt Lake Printing Center, a division of the Materials Management Department. Clark D. Christensen, Information and Communications Systems Department, provided technical support.
We are grateful for the expertise of Gene A. Ware, Brigham Young University, who applied multispectral imaging techniques to assist with the recovery of badly faded text. Management and staff at Deseret Book Company, Salt Lake City, expertly and patiently assisted with the printing and distribution of this volume. In particular, we thank Sheri L. Dew, Cory H. Maxwell, Anne Sheffield, Richard Erickson, Suzanne Brady, Gail Halladay, Sophie Barth, Rebecca Chambers, Vicki Parry, and Lani Rush. We thank Scott Eggers, of Scott Eggers Design, Salt Lake City, for designing the dust jacket and cover.
Finally, we express gratitude to our families, who have stood by us during the long process of preparing this volume.