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  2. Introduction to Journals: Volume 3

Nauvoo Journals, May 1843–June 1844

The final fourteen months of Joseph Smith’s life were marked by important developments in the growth of
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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, Illinois, and in the doctrine and practices of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

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. These months were some of the busiest and most complex of Joseph Smith’s life, as he functioned in his roles of president and trustee-in-trust of the church, mayor of Nauvoo, lieutenant general of the Nauvoo Legion, and candidate for the
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

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presidency. During this time, violence both threatened and real increased against Joseph Smith and other members of the church, culminating in the murder of Joseph and his brother
Hyrum

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

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in
Carthage

Located eighteen miles southeast of Nauvoo. Settled 1831. Designated Hancock Co. seat, Mar. 1833. Incorporated as town, 27 Feb. 1837. Population in 1839 about 300. Population in 1844 about 400. Site of acute opposition to Latter-day Saints, early 1840s. Site...

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, Illinois, on 27 June 1844. The journals of Joseph Smith presented in this volume are an essential source for understanding this critical period of Mormon history as well as the life and thought of the church’s founding leader in the time leading up to his death.
Joseph Smith’s journals during this period were kept exclusively by his private secretary,
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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. Richards had been one of the principal writers for Smith’s earlier
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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journals, and by September 1843 he was also serving as the church historian, church recorder, Nauvoo city recorder, and clerk of the municipal court. Until late in the journal, many entries document relatively few events—often only one—for each day rather than provide a comprehensive account of Joseph Smith’s activities. Most entries in Richards’s own journal for this period are even shorter, suggesting that the brevity of the entries in Joseph Smith’s journal resulted more from Richards’s journal-keeping style than from a lack of familiarity with Smith’s activities. Because of Richards’s terse style, we often know more about Smith’s activities through other individuals’ journals and other sources than we do through his own journal. Longer, more detailed entries toward the end of the journal probably resulted from Richards’s own interest in the growing number and seriousness of the threats against Joseph Smith beginning in January 1844. Unless otherwise noted, the first-person pronouns that occur in the journal refer to Joseph Smith and probably reflect Richards’s conscious effort to make this document Smith’s personal journal.
Though
Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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appears to have either participated in or witnessed most of the events he documented, he at times he wrote retrospectively or from secondhand information.
1

In the 16 June 1843 entry, for example, Richards wrote that James Adams sent a letter from Springfield, Illinois, on that date, even though Richards was likely not aware of the letter until it arrived on 18 June. Similarly, Richards was probably trying to bring the journal up to date in April 1844 when he corrected the date of Emma Smith’s return from St. Louis from 24 April to 25 April. (JS, Journal, 16 June 1843; 24 and 25 Apr. 1844.)


Occasionally, such practices resulted in factual error.
2

In the 30 April 1844 entry, for instance, he wrote that a complaint was made against William and Wilson Law in the Masonic lodge. Lodge records, however, indicate that charges against Wilson Law and Robert D. Foster (rather than Wilson and William Law) were preferred on 2 May. (JS, Journal, 30 Apr. 1844; Nauvoo Masonic Lodge Minute Book, 2 May 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo Masonic Lodge Minute Book. / “Record of Na[u]voo Lodge Under Dispensation,” 1842–1846. CHL. MS 3436

Only on rare occasions was Richards not personally aware of Smith’s actions; Richards, for example, remained in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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in June 1843 while Joseph Smith and his wife
Emma

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

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visited relatives in
Dixon

Post village in northwestern Illinois, located on Rock River. Area settled and ferry established, spring 1828. Post office established, 1829. John Dixon settled in area with family, 11 Apr. 1830, and purchased ferry. Fort built in area during Black Hawk War...

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, Illinois, some 130 miles northeast of Nauvoo.
3

See JS, Journal, 14–29 June 1843, where references to Joseph Smith are few and apparently retrospective.


The trip to
Dixon

Post village in northwestern Illinois, located on Rock River. Area settled and ferry established, spring 1828. Post office established, 1829. John Dixon settled in area with family, 11 Apr. 1830, and purchased ferry. Fort built in area during Black Hawk War...

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was ill timed. That same month, a special term of the circuit court in
Daviess County

Area in northwest Missouri settled by European Americans, 1830. Sparsely inhabited until 1838. Created from Ray Co., Dec. 1836, in attempt to resolve conflicts related to Latter-day Saint settlement in that region. County is transected diagonally from northwest...

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, Missouri, indicted Joseph Smith for treason committed during the “Mormon War” in 1838. Based on the indictment,
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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governor
Thomas Reynolds

12 Mar. 1796–9 Feb. 1844. Attorney, politician, judge. Born at Mason Co. (later Bracken Co.), Kentucky. Son of Nathaniel Reynolds and Catherine Vernon. Admitted to Kentucky bar, 1817. Moved to Illinois, by 1818. Served as clerk of Illinois House of Representatives...

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issued a requisition to
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

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governor
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

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calling for Smith’s extradition to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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for trial—the third such call to return Joseph Smith to Missouri in as many years. The requisition resulted in his arrest on 23 June 1843, news of which began a massive rescue effort in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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that ended with Smith’s release at a habeas corpus hearing before the Nauvoo Municipal Court on 1 July.
Because of
Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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’s physical separation from Joseph Smith during much of the third extradition attempt, little of this drama appears in the journal. Later entries and sources, however, indicate Smith’s continued concern about enemies in
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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. Referencing the three extradition attempts, for example, the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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City Council passed an ordinance on 8 December 1843 stating that anyone found guilty of attempting to arrest Joseph Smith or others for alleged activities in Missouri in the 1830s would be incarcerated for life in the city prison.
4

JS, Journal, 8 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 8 Dec. 1843, 191–192.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo City Council Minute Book / Nauvoo City Council. “A Record of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Nauvoo Handcock County, State of Illinois, Commencing A.D. 1841,” ca. 1841–1845. CHL. MS 3435.

Another ordinance passed later in the month authorized the mayor to “select and have in readiness for every emergency” forty policemen, and a third required that all warrants originating outside of Nauvoo receive the signature of Nauvoo’s mayor before they could be served in the city.
5

JS, Journal, 12 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 12 and 21 Dec. 1843, 193, 197–198; Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 12 and 21 Dec. 1843, 24–25, 27–30.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo City Council Minute Book / Nauvoo City Council. “A Record of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Nauvoo Handcock County, State of Illinois, Commencing A.D. 1841,” ca. 1841–1845. CHL. MS 3435.

Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

While these measures appear to have been a direct result of both real and rumored efforts to extradite Joseph Smith to Missouri, they also appear to have been influenced by the news that Missourians had crossed the
Mississippi River

Principal U.S. river running southward from Itasca Lake, Minnesota, to Gulf of Mexico. Covered 3,160-mile course, 1839 (now about 2,350 miles). Drains about 1,100,000 square miles. Steamboat travel on Mississippi very important in 1830s and 1840s for shipping...

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into
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

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(where Nauvoo was located) and kidnapped two Mormons,
Philander Avery

13 June 1822 or 1823–9 May 1907. Farmer. Born in Franklin Co., Ohio. Son of Daniel Avery and Margaret Adams. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry, Franklin Co., by June 1830; to Colwell, Schuyler Co., Illinois, 1832; to Rushville, Schuyler...

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and his father,
Daniel

1 July 1797–16 Oct. 1851. Farmer, carpenter. Born in Oswego Co., New York. Son of Daniel Avery and Sarah. Moved to Franklin Co., Ohio, by 1821. Married Margaret Adams, 4 Jan. 1821, in Franklin Co. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry...

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, on the grounds that Daniel had stolen two horses in Missouri a few years earlier. Father and son eventually returned safely to
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

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, but not before residents of Nauvoo had petitioned
Governor Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
to somehow prevent Missourians “from committing further violence upon the citizens of Illinois.”
6

JS, Journal, 5–7 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 9 Dec. 1843; “Public Meeting,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 13 Dec. 1843, [1].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

Former and current difficulties with
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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lay behind several other petitions issued from
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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during this period. Between December 1843 and the end of February 1844, Joseph Smith and others petitioned several states—
Vermont

Area served as early thoroughfare for traveling Indian tribes. French explored area, 1609, and erected fort on island in Lake Champlain, 1666. First settled by Massachusetts emigrants, 1724. Claimed by British colonies of New York and New Hampshire, but during...

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,
New York

Located in northeast region of U.S. Area settled by Dutch traders, 1620s; later governed by Britain, 1664–1776. Admitted to U.S. as state, 1788. Population in 1810 about 1,000,000; in 1820 about 1,400,000; in 1830 about 1,900,000; and in 1840 about 2,400,...

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,
Maine

Initially established as district of Massachusetts, 1691. Admitted as state, 1820. Population in 1830 about 400,000. Population in 1840 about 500,000. Capital city and seat of government, Augusta. First visited by Latter-day Saint missionaries, Sept. 1832...

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,
Pennsylvania

Area first settled by Swedish immigrants, 1628. William Penn received grant for territory from King Charles II, 1681, and established British settlement, 1682. Philadelphia was center of government for original thirteen U.S. colonies from time of Revolutionary...

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,
Massachusetts

One of original thirteen colonies that formed U.S. Capital city, Boston. Colonized by English religious dissenters, 1620s. Population in 1830 about 610,000. Population in 1840 about 738,000. Joseph Smith Sr. born in Massachusetts. Samuel Smith and Orson Hyde...

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, and Tennessee—to use their influence to help force Missouri to recompense the Mormons for the losses they suffered there in the 1830s.
7

JS, Journal, 30 Nov. and 4 Dec. 1843; 2 Feb. 1844.


At the same time, non-Mormon
John Frierson

1804–18 May 1844. U.S. surveyor, politician. Born in South Carolina. Moved to Muscatine Co., Iowa Territory, 1837. Elected to represent Muscatine, Louisa, and Slaughter counties in first Iowa territorial legislature, 1838–1839. Appointed brigadier general...

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, a
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

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surveyor from
Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

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, Illinois, petitioned Congress on behalf of the Saints to consider Missouri’s crimes against the Mormons “and grant such relief as by the Constitution and Laws you may have power to give.”
8

JS, Journal, 28 Nov. 1843; JS et al., Memorial to U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, 28 Nov. 1843, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.


In a separate document written in December 1843, the Nauvoo City Council memorialized Congress to grant territorial status to Nauvoo until the state of Missouri provided redress for Mormon losses and to authorize Nauvoo’s mayor to call upon federal troops if necessary to help the Nauvoo Legion “repel the invasion of mobs, keep the public peace, and protect the innocent from the unhallowed ravages of lawless banditti.”
9

JS, Journal, 21 Dec. 1843; Hyrum Smith et al., Memorial to U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, 21 Dec. 1843, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.


Like earlier appeals to Congress, none of these efforts resulted in any tangible aid for the Saints.
In a separate action, Joseph Smith instructed the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Members of a governing body in the church, with special administrative and proselytizing responsibilities. A June 1829 revelation commanded Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer to call twelve disciples, similar to the twelve apostles in the New Testament and ...

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in February 1844 to send a small exploring party to the western reaches of the continent to find a location where the Saints could move, build a city, and “have a governme[n]t of [their] own.” Within six weeks, some twenty-nine men either volunteered for the expedition or were assigned to go.
10

JS, Journal, 20, 21, and 23 Feb. 1844.


Over the course of those six weeks, however, the plan changed significantly. On 10 March, Joseph Smith received two letters from
Lyman Wight

9 May 1796–31 Mar. 1858. Farmer. Born at Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York. Son of Levi Wight Jr. and Sarah Corbin. Served in War of 1812. Married Harriet Benton, 5 Jan. 1823, at Henrietta, Monroe Co., New York. Moved to Warrensville, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, ...

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and
George Miller

25 Nov. 1794–after July 1856. Carpenter, mill operator, lumber dealer, steamboat owner. Born near Stanardsville, Orange Co., Virginia. Son of John Miller and Margaret Pfeiffer. Moved to Augusta Co., Virginia, 1798; to Madison Co., Kentucky, 1806; to Boone...

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, who were harvesting lumber along the Black River in Wisconsin Territory for the construction of the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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House and Nauvoo temple. Wight and Miller proposed that they and their associates in
Wisconsin

Area settled by French, before 1700. Became part of U.S. by Treaty of Paris, 1783. Territory officially formed, 1836, with Belmont established as capital. Capital moved to present-day Burlington, Iowa, 1837. Territory initially included all or part of present...

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be called to preach the gospel in the southern
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

More Info
and other points south and to build a new settlement in the Republic of Texas, which would serve as a center of gathering. Using the letters as a springboard, Joseph Smith and others met the following day and “agreed to look to some place” where they could go “and establish a Theocracy either in Texas or Oregon or somewhere in California.” The group also appointed a committee to draft a constitution “according to the mind of God” that would serve as “an ensign to the nations.” Under Smith’s direction, those assembled then organized themselves into a council—later known most often as the
Council of Fifty

An organization intended to establish the political kingdom of God on the earth. An 1842 editorial in the church newspaper stated that the “design of Jehovah” was to “take the reigns of government into his own hand.” On 10 and 11 March 1844, JS and several...

View Glossary
, but also as the Kingdom of God or Council of the Kingdom—to oversee the endeavor.
11

Council of Fifty, “Record,” 10 and 11 Mar. 1844.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

The Council of Fifty met on sixteen occasions between March and the end of May 1844, often for the better part of an entire day. In most cases,
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
recorded very little about the council’s proceedings in Joseph Smith’s journal, even though both men attended the meetings. Extensive minutes kept by
William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

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, however, provide details about the council’s discussions and plans. According to
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

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, a member of the council as well as a
counselor

An assistant appointed next to the presiding authority in an organization in the church. Assistants, or counselors, were first appointed to assist the bishop. They were expected to “understand the laws of the kingdom” in order to assist “in all things pertaining...

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in the church’s governing
First Presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

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, the group’s ultimate goal was “to form a theocracy according to the will of Heaven, planted without any intention to interfere with any government of the world. . . . We will hunt a spot somewhere on the earth where no other government has jurisdiction and cannot interfere with us and there plant our standard.”
12

As Joseph Smith understood the term, the essence of a theocracy was “for the people to get the voice of God and then acknowledge it, and see it executed.” (Council of Fifty, “Record,” 11 Apr. 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

The council dealt with several concerns, one of which was issuing yet another petition to Congress, this one proposing a bill that would make Joseph Smith a member of the
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

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Army and authorize him “to raise a company of one hundred thousand armed volunteers, in the United States and Territories” to protect American interests in the West.
13

JS, Memorial to Congress, 26 Mar. 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.


After its organization in March, the Council of Fifty also oversaw Joseph Smith’s 1844 campaign for the presidency of the
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

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, an effort launched in earnest the previous month. Smith had accepted the nomination from fellow church members in January 1844 after writing to leading Whig and Democratic candidates two months earlier and asking them what their “rule of action” would be toward the Latter-day Saints, particularly in helping them obtain redress for the losses they had sustained earlier in
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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. Unsatisfactory answers from three of the candidates, and silence from the other two, appear to have been significant factors behind Joseph Smith’s decision to run. Smith explained that he accepted the nomination because “no portion of the government as yet has step[p]ed forward” to protect the Saints from persecution and compensate them for their losses in Missouri. “Under view of these things,” he told a small assembly in February, “I feel it to be my right & privilege to obtain what influence & power I can . . . for the protection of injured innocence.”
14

JS, Nauvoo, IL, to Henry Clay et al., 4 Nov. 1843, JS Collection, CHL; Woodruff, Journal, 8 Feb. 1844.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

Joseph Smith proffered a commitment to protect the rights of all people—not just the Mormons—and expressed a desire to alter the United States Constitution “to make it imperative on the officers to enforce the protection of all men in their rights.”
15

Council of Fifty, “Record,” 18 Apr. 1844.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

His expansive platform called for a variety of legal, economic, military, and social reforms, as well as for the annexation of both Texas and Oregon. Some of these proposals, such as annexing Texas, reflected Democratic ideals; others, such as abolishing slavery and annexing Oregon, were more aligned with Whig priorities. Predictably, Smith’s platform also argued that the president should have “full power to send an army to suppress mobs” and that governors should not have to ask the president for troops “in cases of invasion or rebellion.”
16

JS, General Smith’s Views of the Powers and Policy of the Government of the United States; also published in Nauvoo Neighbor, 8 May 1844, [2].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

Erroneously believing that his first choice of a running mate,
James Arlington Bennet

21 Dec. 1788–25 Dec. 1863. Attorney, newspaper publisher, educator, author. Born in New York. Married first Sophia Smith, 8 May 1811. Served as third and later second lieutenant in First U.S. Artillery, 1 Aug. 1813–14 Oct. 1814. Published American System ...

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of
New York

Located in northeast region of U.S. Area settled by Dutch traders, 1620s; later governed by Britain, 1664–1776. Admitted to U.S. as state, 1788. Population in 1810 about 1,000,000; in 1820 about 1,400,000; in 1830 about 1,900,000; and in 1840 about 2,400,...

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, was ineligible for the office of vice president and evidently not receiving a reply from his second choice,
Solomon Copeland

1799–between May 1843 and July 1845. Farmer, business investor. Born in Sumner Co. (later in Overton Co.), Tennessee. Son of Stephen Copeland. Elected surveyor of Henry Co., Tennessee, 1831, 1839. Served as Henry Co. estate administrator and court commissioner...

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of Tennessee, Joseph Smith ultimately asked
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
to run as his vice-presidential candidate.
17

JS, Journal, 4 Mar. and 6 May 1844


A “state convention” held in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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on 17 May formally selected Smith and Rigdon as candidates and resolved to hold a national convention in Baltimore in July.
18

JS, Journal, 17 May 1844; “Minutes of a Convention,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 22 May 1844, [2].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

Joseph Smith and his followers found themselves involved in more local political concerns during this period as well. Most consequential was the election of 7 August 1843, which pitted Whig candidate
Cyrus Walker

6 May 1791–Dec. 1875. Lawyer. Born in Rockbridge Co., Virginia. Son of Alexander Walker and Mary Magdalene Hammond. Presbyterian. Moved to Adair Co., Kentucky, ca. 1794. Lived in Columbia, Adair Co., by 1810. Married Flora Montgomery, 30 Jan. 1817, in Adair...

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against Democratic candidate
Joseph P. Hoge

15 Dec. 1810–14 Aug. 1891. Lawyer, judge, politician. Born in Steubenville, Jefferson Co., Ohio. Son of David Hoge and Jane Scott. Graduated from Jefferson College, in Washington, Washington Co., Pennsylvania. Admitted to Ohio bar, 1836. Moved to Galena, ...

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for the seat in the
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

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House of Representatives for the
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

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district that included
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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. The day before the election, Joseph Smith told a group of assembled Saints that he had planned to support Walker, one of his attorneys and “an old fri[e]nd,” and recounted the help he had received from Walker after his arrest in
Dixon

Post village in northwestern Illinois, located on Rock River. Area settled and ferry established, spring 1828. Post office established, 1829. John Dixon settled in area with family, 11 Apr. 1830, and purchased ferry. Fort built in area during Black Hawk War...

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two months earlier. Following these remarks, however, he told the congregation that
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

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“has had a testimo[n]y” that it would be “better for this people to vote for hoge” than for Walker and that he, Joseph, “never kn[e]w Hiram say he ever had a revelation & it faild.”
19

JS, Journal, 6 Aug. 1843.


With strong Mormon support, Hoge won the election handily, as did the Democratic candidates for most of the contested county positions. The victories set off a violent backlash from non-Mormons and Whigs in the county, who complained at a meeting in
Carthage

Located eighteen miles southeast of Nauvoo. Settled 1831. Designated Hancock Co. seat, Mar. 1833. Incorporated as town, 27 Feb. 1837. Population in 1839 about 300. Population in 1844 about 400. Site of acute opposition to Latter-day Saints, early 1840s. Site...

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the following month that they “have had men of the most vicious and abominable habits, imposed upon us, to fill our most important county offices, by his [Joseph Smith’s] dictum, . . . that he may the more certainly control our destinies, and render himself, through the instrumentality of these base creatures of his ill-directed power as absolutely a despot over the citizens of this county, as he now is, over the serfs of his own servile clan.” The meeting ultimately resolved to resist all future “wrongs” imposed by the Saints “peaceably, if we can, but forcibly, if we must,” thus helping to set the stage for violence the following year.
20

“Great Meeting of Anti-Mormons!,” Warsaw (IL) Message, 13 Sept. 1843, [1].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

Despite growing opposition from without, Joseph Smith continued to instruct faithful members of the church, delivering more than sixty public addresses in the months covered by the journal presented in this volume. Most of these discourses are noted in the journal, though the detail with which
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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recorded their contents varies considerably. Joseph Smith delivered most of these addresses to the general membership of the church in various outdoor meeting places, although some, reflecting the variety of activities in which he was engaged, were given to the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
Legion, Nauvoo policemen, or some other group. He spoke on a variety of topics, often transitioning from religious themes to civic and political ones within the same discourse. Prominent among the more temporal concerns he addressed were his political views, the ongoing threats of violence directed against him and his followers, and the government’s inability to offer protection. He also defended the Nauvoo city charter, which some
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
citizens and lawmakers wanted amended or revoked. Religious topics included resurrection and salvation, as well as unique Mormon doctrines such as baptism for the dead, other priesthood ordinances, and a complex, multi-tiered heaven. On 7 April 1844, Joseph Smith delivered his well-known “King Follett discourse,” in which he taught that God had a mortal past and that humans could progress to godhood.
21

JS, Journal, 7 Apr. 1844; Woodruff, Journal, 7 Apr. 1844; General Church Minutes, Bullock copy, 7 Apr. 1844, 23–33; Clayton copy, 7 Apr. 1844, 1–18. Joseph Smith spoke on similar themes on 16 June 1844. (JS, Sermon, 16 June 1844, JS Collection, CHL; Laub, Reminiscences and Journal, 15–19; McIntire, Notebook, 16 June 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

By 1843 it was not unusual for several people to record his sermons, thereby providing historians with a rich record of Joseph Smith’s theological ideas during the last months of his life.
Continuing a practice he had begun earlier, Joseph Smith married several women as plural wives during the first six months covered in the journal presented here.
22

For a discussion of Joseph Smith’s introduction of plural marriage and of the sources related to its early practice, see JSP, J2:xxiv–xxx; and “An Annotated List of Joseph Smith’s Plural Wives.”


Several of his close associates, including
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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and
William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

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, also married plural wives in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
. While relatively few members of the church were aware of these plural marriages, rumors that something of the sort was taking place were rampant, especially after
John C. Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

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publicly accused Joseph Smith in 1842 of having multiple “spiritual” wives.
23

See Bennett’s letters printed in the 8, 15, and 22 July and 19 August 1842 issues of the Sangamo Journal, as well as his book The History of the Saints, 217–225. Neither Joseph Smith nor others who participated in plural marriage in Nauvoo used the terms “spiritual wife” or “spiritual wifery” to describe the practice. Similarly, Bennett’s description of Joseph Smith’s plural wives as a “seraglio. . . . divided into three distinct orders, or degrees,” is uncorroborated by other sources.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

Believing the practice to be legitimate only under his direction as prophet and church president, Joseph Smith emphasized the general standard that “no man shall have but one wife” and directed Richards to discipline “those who were preaching teaching . . . the doctrin of plurality of wives” on their own.
24

JS, Journal, 5 Oct. 1843.


In a rare exception to his practice of not noting plural marriages in Joseph Smith’s journal,
25

For example, the entry for 1 May 1843 simply notes that Joseph Smith “rode out. fore noon & afte[r]noon,” but later sources suggest that Smith was sealed to Lucy Walker on that date. The entry for 2 November 1843 similarly records only Smith’s decision to write a letter to the five leading candidates in the upcoming 1844 presidential election, while later sources indicate that he was sealed to Fanny Young Murray on that date. (JS, Journal, 1 May 1843; 2 Nov. 1843; Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11; Clayton, Journal, 1 May 1843; Eliza Partridge, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Augusta Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 12 July 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:52, 2:30.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

Richards recorded in shorthand Smith’s marriage to
Rhoda Richards

8 Aug. 1784–17 Jan. 1879. Seamstress. Born at Framingham, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Daughter of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., 1787. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1803. Returned to Hopkinton, before...

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—Willard’s older sister—on 12 June 1843, as well as his own plural marriage to Susan Liptrot on the same date. Though
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
evidently agreed to and even attended at least some of these marriages,
26

For example, Emma reportedly witnessed a sealing of Joseph Smith to Emily and Eliza Partridge in May 1843. (Young, Diary and Reminiscences, 2; Eliza Lyman, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Emily Dow Partridge Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 1 May 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:13, 2:33–34.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Young, Emily Dow Partridge. Diary and Reminiscences, Feb. 1874–Nov. 1883. CHL. MS 22253.

Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

carefully worded entries in the journal and evidence from other sources indicate that by the summer of 1843 she would no longer countenance them.
27

Clayton, Journal, 12 July and 16 Aug. 1843. Although Emma Smith had a difficult time accepting plural marriage, several people close to her and Joseph later reported that she told them or others that she knew it was a true doctrine. After her husband’s death, however, Emma disavowed the practice and maintained that Joseph Smith had never practiced plural marriage. (Lambert, “Leonora Cannon Taylor,” 347; Young, Diary and Reminiscences, 1–3, 5; “Joseph the Seer’s Plural Marriages,” Deseret News, 22 Oct. 1879, 605; Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11–12.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Young, Emily Dow Partridge. Diary and Reminiscences, Feb. 1874–Nov. 1883. CHL. MS 22253.

Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

Most of these plural marriages took place before 12 July 1843, the day Joseph Smith dictated the revelation explaining that a man was permitted to have multiple wives if God commanded it.
28

Revelation, 12 July 1843, in Revelations Collection, CHL [D&C 132]. Joseph Smith reportedly understood the general outlines of this revelation several years before he dictated it to William Clayton. (Orson Pratt, in Journal of Discourses, 7 Oct. 1869, 13:193; Bachman, “Ohio Origins of the Revelation on Eternal Marriage,” 19–32.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Revelations Collection, 1831–ca. 1844, 1847, 1861, ca. 1876. CHL. MS 4583.

Journal of Discourses. 26 vols. Liverpool: F. D. Richards, 1855–1886.

Bachman, Danel W. “New Light on an Old Hypothesis: The Ohio Origins of the Revelation on Eternal Marriage.” Journal of Mormon History 5 (1978): 19–32.

After two additional plural marriages—one in September and one in November
29

Later sources indicate Joseph Smith was sealed to Malissa Lott in September 1843 and to Fanny Young Murray on 2 November 1843. (Lott Family Bible; Malissa Lott Willes, Testimony, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, 17 Mar. 1892, p. 95, question 63, Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints v. Church of Christ of Independence, Missouri, et al. [C.C.W.D. Mo. 1894], typescript, Testimonies and Depositions, CHL; Malissa Lott Willes, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 20 May 1869; Augusta Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 12 July 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:23, 52.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints v. Church of Christ of Independence, Missouri, et al. (C.C.W.D. Mo. 1894). Typescript. Testimonies and Depositions, 1892. Typescript. CHL.

Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

—Smith appears to have stopped marrying new plural wives.
The same revelation that explained the conditions under which a man could take plural wives also explained the principle of eternal marriage, whereby a man and a woman who were “sealed” as husband and wife by one holding the proper priesthood authority would “pass by the
angels

Being who acts as a minister and messenger between heaven and earth. JS taught that angels were individuals who “belonged to this earth”; those who had already lived on earth were often resurrected beings. In addition to giving instruction, direction, and...

View Glossary
and the gods . . . to their exaltation and glory” after death.
30

Revelation, 12 July 1843, in Revelations Collection, CHL [D&C 132:19].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Revelations Collection, 1831–ca. 1844, 1847, 1861, ca. 1876. CHL. MS 4583.

Such sealings were an integral part of many (perhaps all) of Joseph Smith’s plural marriages, as evidenced by several of his plural wives later testifying that they had been “married or sealed” to him “for time and eternity.”
31

Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11; Eliza Lyman, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Emily Dow Partridge Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 1 May 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:13, 2:33–34.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

An entry in shorthand in Joseph Smith’s journal suggests that he and
Emma

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
, who had been married civilly in 1827, were sealed for eternity on 28 May 1843. One of his close associates,
James Adams

24 Jan. 1783–11 Aug. 1843. Lawyer, judge, insurance agent, land speculator. Born at Simsbury, Hartford Co., Connecticut. Son of Parmenio Adams and Chloe. In New York militia, served as ensign, 1805; as lieutenant; as captain, 1807; and as major, 1811–1815...

View Full Bio
, was evidently sealed to his wife the same day, and other trusted friends were sealed to their current spouses over the ensuing months.
These sealing ceremonies generally took place in meetings of church members who had earlier participated in rituals, or ordinances, that would later be performed in the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
temple.
32

According to William Clayton, only those designated “by Revelation” were admitted. (Clayton, Journal, 5 Dec. 1843.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

In Joseph Smith’s journal,
Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
referred to meetings of this group by a variety of names, including “
council

A gathering of church leaders assembled “for consultation, deliberation and advice”; also a body responsible for governance or administration. As early as 9 February 1831, a revelation instructed that “the Elders & Bishop shall Council together & they shall...

View Glossary
,” “
quorum

An organized group of individuals holding the same office in the Melchizedek priesthood or the Aaronic priesthood. According to the 1835 “Instruction on Priesthood,” the presidency of the church constituted a quorum. The Twelve Apostles also formed a quorum...

View Glossary
,” “council of the quorum,” and “prayer meeting.”
33

Heber C. Kimball, a member of this council, described the group as “a small company” to whom Joseph Smith could “open his bosom . . . and feel him self safe,” while William Clayton referred to it on occasion as “the quorum of anointing” or the “Quorum of Priesthood.” (Heber C. Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Parley P. Pratt, 17 June 1844, Parley P. Pratt, Correspondence, CHL; Clayton, Journal, 2 Dec. 1843; 3 Feb. 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Pratt, Parley P. Correspondence, 1842–1855. CHL. MS 897.

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Members of this group first met on 4 May 1842 when, in Richards’s words, Joseph Smith taught nine men about the “
washings

A ritual ablution of bodies symbolizing a purification from sin. As early as 1830, the Book of Mormon and JS revelations characterized baptism by immersion as a washing away of sins. On 23 January 1833, JS led the members of the School of the Prophets in ...

View Glossary
&
anointings

To apply ceremonial oil to the head or body, often in conjunction with priesthood ordinances and the blessing of the sick. The practice of blessing the sick included anointing with oil and laying hands on the sick person. Ritual washings and anointings were...

View Glossary
,
endowments

Bestowal of spiritual blessings, power, or knowledge. Beginning in 1831, multiple revelations promised an endowment of “power from on high” in association with the command to gather. Some believed this promise was fulfilled when individuals were first ordained...

View Glossary
, and the communications of
keys

Authority or knowledge of God given to humankind. In the earliest records, the term keys primarily referred to JS’s authority to unlock the “mysteries of the kingdom.” Early revelations declared that both JS and Oliver Cowdery held the keys to bring forth...

View Glossary
. . . & all those plans & principles by which any one is enabled to secure the fulness of those blessings which has been prepared for the chu[r]ch of the first-born, and come up, and abide in the prese[n]ce of Eloheim in the eternal worlds.”
34

JS, Journal, 4 May 1842; Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, 4 May 1842. “Elohim” is Hebrew for “Gods,” though it is generally translated as the singular “God.”


Comprehensive Works Cited

Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Draft Notes, ca. 1839–1856. CHL. CR 100 92.

This group met four more times by the end of June 1842, after which it did not meet again until 26 May 1843, almost a year later. On this date, Joseph Smith evidently repeated the same instruction to some of the same men, probably to prepare them for the additional
ordinance

A religious rite. JS taught that ordinances were covenants between man and God, in which believers could affirm faith, gain spiritual knowledge, and seek blessings. Some ordinances were considered requisite for salvation. The manner in which ordinances were...

View Glossary
of being sealed to their wives. Several were sealed just days later.
35

According to the manuscript history of Brigham Young, Joseph Smith administered “the first ordinances of endowment” on 26 May 1843. On 28 May 1843, Joseph Smith and James Adams were evidently sealed to their respective wives, Emma Smith and Harriet Denton, and on 29 May 1843, Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young, and Willard Richards were probably sealed to their respective wives, Mary Fielding Smith, Mary Angell Young, and Jennetta Richards Richards. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 69; JS, Journal, 28 and 29 May 1843.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

In a separate ordinance performed the following September, Joseph and
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
were “anointed & ordd. [ordained] to the highest and holiest order of the
priesthood

Power or authority of God. The priesthood was conferred through the laying on of hands upon adult male members of the church in good standing; no specialized training was required. Priesthood officers held responsibility for administering the sacrament of...

View Glossary
.”
36

JS, Journal, 28 Sept. 1843. Joseph Smith had previously taught the importance of receiving the full blessings of the priesthood and of becoming priests and kings “not to the kingdoms of this earth but of the most high god.” (JS, Journal, 23 July 1843.)


Other members of this council—including all nine members of the Quorum of the Twelve who were living in the area and their wives—eventually received the same ordinance, which
Wilford Woodruff

1 Mar. 1807–2 Sept. 1898. Farmer, miller. Born at Farmington, Hartford Co., Connecticut. Son of Aphek Woodruff and Beulah Thompson. Moved to Richland, Oswego Co., New York, 1832. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Zera Pulsipher,...

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, a member of the council, often referred to as a “second anointing” in his journal.
37

See, for example, Woodruff, Journal, 21, 25, 26, and 28 Jan. 1844. Later, the history of Brigham Young used the same term for this ordinance. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 91a; “History of Brigham Young,” Deseret News, 24 Mar. 1858, 17.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

In addition to participating in these rituals, the growing number of men and women invited to attend these meetings often prayed together and received instructions from Joseph Smith about teachings and doctrines related to the temple.
Joseph Smith spoke about the temple and its ordinances in more public settings as well, and he frequently urged church members to complete the construction of the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
temple as soon as possible so they could receive the promised blessings therein. The effort to finish the temple extended well beyond the borders of Nauvoo, with
George Miller

25 Nov. 1794–after July 1856. Carpenter, mill operator, lumber dealer, steamboat owner. Born near Stanardsville, Orange Co., Virginia. Son of John Miller and Margaret Pfeiffer. Moved to Augusta Co., Virginia, 1798; to Madison Co., Kentucky, 1806; to Boone...

View Full Bio
,
Lyman Wight

9 May 1796–31 Mar. 1858. Farmer. Born at Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York. Son of Levi Wight Jr. and Sarah Corbin. Served in War of 1812. Married Harriet Benton, 5 Jan. 1823, at Henrietta, Monroe Co., New York. Moved to Warrensville, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, ...

View Full Bio
, and several others harvesting lumber in
Wisconsin Territory

Area settled by French, before 1700. Became part of U.S. by Treaty of Paris, 1783. Territory officially formed, 1836, with Belmont established as capital. Capital moved to present-day Burlington, Iowa, 1837. Territory initially included all or part of present...

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for the temple and authorized agents collecting money for its construction from church members living elsewhere in the
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

More Info
and
England

Island nation consisting of southern portion of Great Britain and surrounding smaller islands. Bounded on north by Scotland and on west by Wales. Became province of Roman Empire, first century. Ruled by Romans, through 447. Ruled by Picts, Scots, and Saxons...

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.
38

JS, Journal, 23 Aug. 1843 and 13 Mar. 1844.


Stone for the walls and window arches was one of the most pressing needs for the temple by June 1843, leading Joseph Smith and others to repeatedly request men and means to quarry and haul stone to the temple site.
39

JS, Journal, 11 June and 24 Sept. 1843; 7 Mar. 1844.


By the winter of 1843–1844, the temple’s stone walls were “as high as the arches of the first tier of windows all around” and Joseph Smith was examining fringe designed for the temple’s pulpits.
40

Clayton, History of the Nauvoo Temple, 40–41; JS, Journal, 8 Nov. 1843.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. History of the Nauvoo Temple, ca. 1845. CHL. MS 3365.

Up to this time the Mormons had also been building the Nauvoo House, which was to be used as both a private residence for Joseph Smith’s family and as a boardinghouse or hotel for visitors to Nauvoo.
41

A Joseph Smith revelation dated 19 January 1841 commanded church members to build both the Nauvoo temple and the Nauvoo House. (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841, in Doctrine and Covenants [103], 1844 ed. [D&C 124].)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; Carefully Selected from the Revelations of God. Compiled by Joseph Smith. 2nd ed. Nauvoo, IL: John Taylor, 1844.

Faced with limited resources, however, Smith decided in March 1844 to halt construction of the Nauvoo House until the temple was completed.
42

JS, Journal, 4 and 7 Mar. 1844; “Conference,” Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1844, 5:456.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

Church leaders renewed their call for laborers and supplies for the temple the following month, and on 4 May 1844
Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
reported that four circular windows of the temple’s upper story had been completed.
43

JS, Journal, 9 Apr. and 4 May 1844.


While work on the temple appears to have continued apace during the first half of 1844, Richards made fewer references to it in the journal as he devoted more attention to the growing opposition to Joseph Smith.
The opposition that Joseph Smith faced stemmed from a variety of sources. Many non-Mormons in the area, for example, felt the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
Municipal Court had overstepped its authority on 1 July 1843 when it discharged Joseph Smith from his arrest in
Dixon

Post village in northwestern Illinois, located on Rock River. Area settled and ferry established, spring 1828. Post office established, 1829. John Dixon settled in area with family, 11 Apr. 1830, and purchased ferry. Fort built in area during Black Hawk War...

More Info
. Following the Democratic Party’s virtual sweep in the August 1843 county elections, others, especially local Whigs, opposed Smith’s growing political influence in western
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
. In addition, rumors, misunderstandings, and disagreements about the practice and validity of plural marriage turned several influential Latter-day Saints against the Mormon leader. Some church members also turned against him over doctrinal developments—such as those taught in the King Follett discourse—and over concern that his roles as president of the church and mayor of Nauvoo represented a dangerous combination of church and state. Joseph Smith’s tendency to speak freely and publicly against his detractors—a habit his brother
Hyrum

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
cautioned him about
44

JS, Journal, 23 May 1844.


—also probably contributed to the intensity of the opposition against him.
In some cases, Joseph Smith was able to peacefully resolve differences with his opponents. In March 1843, for example, he accused
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

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of colluding with
John C. Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

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and other apostates and threatened to disfellowship Rigdon from the church “unless satisfa[c]tion was made.”
45

JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1843. Joseph Smith’s concern about a possible association between Rigdon and Bennett may date back to January 1843, when Smith learned of a letter Bennett had sent Rigdon about new indictments that were being filed against Smith and others on charges growing out of the Missouri conflict of 1838–1839. (JS, Journal, 18 Jan. 1843.)


The matter was apparently dropped after Rigdon protested his innocence, but conflict resurfaced on 13 August 1843 when Joseph Smith told a meeting of church members that he had heard from gentlemen abroad that Rigdon had “made a covena[n]t” to betray him. “I most solmnly proclaim the withdrawal of my fellowship from this man, on the conditi[o]n that the foregoi[n]g be true,” Smith told the assembled Saints, who then sanctioned his decision by a unanimous vote.
46

JS, Journal, 13 Aug. 1843.


Two months later, however, following appeals by
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
,
Almon Babbitt

Oct. 1812–Sept. 1856. Postmaster, editor, attorney. Born at Cheshire, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts. Son of Ira Babbitt and Nancy Crosier. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ca. 1830. Located in Amherst, Lorain Co., Ohio, July 1831....

View Full Bio
,
William Law

8 Sept. 1809–12/19 Jan. 1892. Merchant, millwright, physician. Born in Co. Tyrone, Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co...

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, and Rigdon himself, the October
conference

A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...

View Glossary
of the church voted that Rigdon retain his position as a counselor in the First Presidency. Joseph Smith told the gathered Saints that he had not received “any material benefit” from Rigdon as his counselor for some time and that while he was willing to have Rigdon as a counselor, he still lacked confidence “in his integrity and steadfastness, judging from their past intercourse.”
47

“Minutes of a Special Conference,” Times and Seasons, 15 Sept. 1843, 4:329–330.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

Though Rigdon apparently did not play a prominent role in the First Presidency after this time, the following year he actively participated in the Council of Fifty and was Smith’s choice (albeit his third choice) for a running mate in his presidential campaign.
Conflicts with other associates were resolved less successfully. In early January 1844, Joseph Smith informed
William Law

8 Sept. 1809–12/19 Jan. 1892. Merchant, millwright, physician. Born in Co. Tyrone, Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co...

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that he had been removed from the First Presidency and from the group that participated in temple ordinances—both decisions evidently rooted in Law’s increasingly strident opposition to Joseph Smith, especially over plural marriage.
48

JS, Journal, 7 and 8 Jan. 1844; Law, Record of Doings, 8 Jan. 1844, in Cook, William Law, 46; Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 3 Jan. 1844, 32–36. According to William Clayton, William Law and his brother Wilson “were especially active in fanning the flame of prejudice and excitement, because Prest. Joseph would not seal Wm. Law to his wife for eternity in consequence of his being an adulterer.” (Clayton, Journal, 12 June 1844; Council of Fifty, “Record,” 279 [290]; see also Neibaur, Journal, 24 May 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Neibaur, Alexander. Journal, 1841–1862. CHL. MS 1674.

At the same time, conflict arose between Joseph Smith and influential lawyer and businessman
Francis M. Higbee

1820–after 1850. Attorney, merchant. Born in Tate, Clermont Co., Ohio. Son of Elias Higbee and Sarah Elizabeth Ward. Moved to Fulton, Hamilton Co., Ohio, by 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832. Moved to Jackson Co., Missouri...

View Full Bio
following a 5 January 1844 city council meeting in which Smith accused Higbee of immoral conduct and of “conniving with
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
.”
49

Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 5 Jan. 1844, 36; Law, Record of Doings, 5 Jan. 1844, in Cook, William Law, 45.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

In addition, long-standing differences between Joseph Smith and
Robert D. Foster

14 Mar. 1811–1 Feb. 1878. Justice of the peace, physician, land speculator. Born in Braunston, Northamptonshire, England. Son of John Foster and Jane Knibb. Married Sarah Phinney, 18 July 1837, at Medina Co., Ohio. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of ...

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, a prominent land speculator and physician, flared into open hostility two months later, in part because Joseph Smith believed Foster’s brother
Charles

Sept. 1815–1904. Physician, pharmacist. Born in England, likely in Braunston, Northamptonshire. Son of John Foster and Jane Knibb. Immigrated to U.S., arriving in New York on 27 June 1831. Moved to Hancock Co., Illinois, by Feb. 1843. Publisher of Nauvoo ...

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had written a letter berating the Saints to the New York Weekly Tribune.
50

Conflict between Robert D. Foster and Joseph Smith extended back to at least February 1843, when Smith publicly charged Foster with putting his own building projects ahead of building the Nauvoo House and the Nauvoo temple. (JS, Journal, 21 Feb. 1843; JS, Journal, 7 Mar. 1844; see also Clayton, Journal, 23 Mar. 1844.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

In spite of his efforts to bring about a reconciliation in each case, Joseph Smith learned in late March of a conspiracy against his life, spearheaded by William Law, his brother
Wilson Law

26 Feb. 1806–15 Oct. 1876. Merchant, millwright, land speculator, farmer. Born in Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co....

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, Robert D. Foster,
Joseph H. Jackson

?–? Moved to Nauvoo, Hancock Co., Illinois, by fall 1842. Moved to Carthage, Hancock Co., winter 1842–1843. Returned to Nauvoo, spring 1843. Hired to sell land for JS, 20 May 1843. Appointed aide-de-camp to lieutenant general in Nauvoo Legion, by 5 Jan. 1844...

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, and Francis M. Higbee’s brother Chauncey, who had been excommunicated in 1842.
51

JS, Journal, 24 Mar. 1844.


The Laws and Robert D. Foster were excommunicated the following month for “unchristianlike conduct,” as was Francis M. Higbee in May.
52

JS, Journal, 18 Apr. 1844.


By that time the dissidents and their supporters had proclaimed that Joseph Smith was a fallen prophet and organized a new church, with William Law as their president, Wilson Law as one of his counselors, and Robert D. Foster and Francis M. Higbee as members of a new quorum of twelve apostles.
53

JS, Journal, 28 Apr. 1844.


Joseph Smith’s opponents also took their grievances to the courts. On 6 May 1844, Smith was arrested by
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

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deputy sheriff John Parker on a writ issued by the Hancock County Circuit Court on complaint of Francis M. Higbee, who accused Joseph Smith of defaming his character in the 5 January city council meeting “and on divers other days and times with in one year last past.”
54

JS, Journal, 6 May 1844; Francis M. Higbee, Declaration, 1 May 1844, Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, Twentieth-Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts, BYU.


Two days later, the same day the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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Municipal Court discharged Smith on a writ of habeas corpus, the clerk of the Hancock County Circuit Court issued Smith a summons to appear before the circuit court to answer the charge.
55

JS, Journal, 8 and 20 May 1844.


Later in the month, Joseph Smith learned the grand jury had indicted him for two offenses. The first indictment, based largely on the testimony of
Robert D. Foster

14 Mar. 1811–1 Feb. 1878. Justice of the peace, physician, land speculator. Born in Braunston, Northamptonshire, England. Son of John Foster and Jane Knibb. Married Sarah Phinney, 18 July 1837, at Medina Co., Ohio. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of ...

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, was for perjury;
56

Foster based his testimony on an accusation from Alexander Sympson. Sympson claimed Joseph Smith swore in an affidavit that Sympson had robbed and stabbed Richard Badham even though he, Joseph Smith, did not believe Sympson had actually done so. Smith denied having made the affidavit, and no such affidavit has been located. (JS, Journal, 13 Apr. 1844.)


the second, based largely on the testimony of
William

8 Sept. 1809–12/19 Jan. 1892. Merchant, millwright, physician. Born in Co. Tyrone, Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co...

View Full Bio
and
Wilson Law

26 Feb. 1806–15 Oct. 1876. Merchant, millwright, land speculator, farmer. Born in Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co....

View Full Bio
and clearly related to Smith’s marriages to
Maria Lawrence

18 Dec. 1823–1847. Born in Pickering, York Co. (later in Ontario), Upper Canada. Daughter of Edward Lawrence and Margaret. Moved with family to Lima, Adams Co., Illinois, 1838. Father died, between 5 Nov. and 23 Dec. 1839. Resided in Quincy, Adams Co., 1840...

View Full Bio
and other women as plural wives, was for adultery and fornication.
57

JS, Journal, 20 and 25 May 1844.


In spite of Joseph Smith’s hope to “meet [his] enemies—before the court and have [his] Indictments invstigat [investigated],” none of these cases were resolved by the time of his murder the following month.
58

JS, Journal, 27 May 1844. Higbee’s suit was eventually heard in McDonough County, Illinois, where records indicate that he lost the case. The perjury, adultery, and fornication charges were scheduled to be heard in the October term of the Hancock County Circuit Court. Because of JS’s death, however, the hearings never occurred. (Redemption Certificate, 23 Feb. 1846, microfilm, Illinois State Historical Library, Circuit Court Case Files, 1830–1900, CHL; Order to Issue Capias, 24 May 1844, Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Records, vol. D, p. 129, microfilm 947,496, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Capias on Indictment, 22 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery [Hancock Co. Cir. Ct. 1844], Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Indictments and Arrest Warrant, CHL.)


In the 7 May 1844 entry of the journal,
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

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noted the report that
Robert D. Foster

14 Mar. 1811–1 Feb. 1878. Justice of the peace, physician, land speculator. Born in Braunston, Northamptonshire, England. Son of John Foster and Jane Knibb. Married Sarah Phinney, 18 July 1837, at Medina Co., Ohio. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of ...

View Full Bio
had just obtained “an opposition printing press” from
Columbus

Franklin Co. seat. State capital. Incorporated as borough, 1816. Incorporated as city, Feb. 1834. Population in 1820 about 1,400; in 1830 about 2,400; in 1840 about 6,000; and in 1850 about 18,000.

More Info
, Ohio.
59

JS, Journal, 7 May 1844.


Precisely one month later, on 7 June 1844, Foster and other dissenters published the first and only issue of the Nauvoo Expositor, a paper dedicated to providing its readers with “a full, candid and succinct statement of facts, as they exist in the city of Nauvoo, fearless of whose particular case they may apply.” Setting their sights squarely on Joseph Smith, the paper’s publishers charged the Mormon leader with combining church and state in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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, teaching false doctrine, and marrying convert women as “spiritual” wives.
60

“Preamble” and “Prospectus of the Nauvoo Expositor,” Nauvoo Expositor, 7 June 1844, [2], [4], italics in original.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo Expositor. Nauvoo, IL. 1844.

Persuaded by the argument that the paper’s publishers were intending to “raise a mob” against Nauvoo by publishing lies, on 10 June the city council directed Smith, in his capacity as mayor of Nauvoo, to “cause said printing establishment and papers to be removed without delay”—an order Joseph Smith fulfilled by directing Nauvoo marshal
John P. Greene

3 Sept. 1793–10 Sept. 1844. Farmer, shoemaker, printer, publisher. Born at Herkimer, Herkimer Co., New York. Son of John Coddington Greene and Anna Chapman. Married first Rhoda Young, 11 Feb. 1813. Moved to Aurelius, Cayuga Co., New York, 1814; to Brownsville...

View Full Bio
to destroy the press. Greene reported later that evening that he and others “had removd the press. type—& pinteed [printed] pape[r]s—& fixtures into the street & fired them.”
61

Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 10 June 1844, 21–31; Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844; “To the Public,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [2]–[3]; JS, Journal, 10 June 1844. For a discussion on the legality of the Nauvoo City Council’s proceedings in this case, see Oaks, “Suppression of the Nauvoo Expositor,” 862–903.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

The reaction of Joseph Smith’s enemies, both within
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
and without, was immediate.
Francis M. Higbee

1820–after 1850. Attorney, merchant. Born in Tate, Clermont Co., Ohio. Son of Elias Higbee and Sarah Elizabeth Ward. Moved to Fulton, Hamilton Co., Ohio, by 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832. Moved to Jackson Co., Missouri...

View Full Bio
, one of the paper’s publishers, charged Joseph and
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
,
John P. Greene

3 Sept. 1793–10 Sept. 1844. Farmer, shoemaker, printer, publisher. Born at Herkimer, Herkimer Co., New York. Son of John Coddington Greene and Anna Chapman. Married first Rhoda Young, 11 Feb. 1813. Moved to Aurelius, Cayuga Co., New York, 1814; to Brownsville...

View Full Bio
, and several others with committing a riot, while armed men from surrounding communities began gathering to
Carthage

Located eighteen miles southeast of Nauvoo. Settled 1831. Designated Hancock Co. seat, Mar. 1833. Incorporated as town, 27 Feb. 1837. Population in 1839 about 300. Population in 1844 about 400. Site of acute opposition to Latter-day Saints, early 1840s. Site...

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, the county seat of
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

More Info
. Apprised of the growing tension by letters and messengers,
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
governor
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

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traveled to Carthage as well, ostensibly to prevent violence between the Mormons and their enemies. After reviewing the situation, Ford ordered Joseph Smith and the others accused of riot to come to Carthage for a hearing on the charge, even though they had already been discharged from arrest by two different courts in Nauvoo. Fearing they would be killed if they went to Carthage, Joseph Smith, his brother Hyrum, and
Orrin Porter Rockwell

June 1814–9 June 1878. Ferry operator, herdsman, farmer. Born in Belchertown, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts. Son of Orin Rockwell and Sarah Witt. Moved to Farmington (later in Manchester), Ontario Co., New York, 1817. Neighbor to JS. Baptized into Church of...

View Full Bio
crossed the
Mississippi River

Principal U.S. river running southward from Itasca Lake, Minnesota, to Gulf of Mexico. Covered 3,160-mile course, 1839 (now about 2,350 miles). Drains about 1,100,000 square miles. Steamboat travel on Mississippi very important in 1830s and 1840s for shipping...

More Info
to
Iowa Territory

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803. First permanent white settlements established, ca. 1833. Organized as territory, 1838, containing all of present-day Iowa, much of present-day Minnesota, and parts of North and South Dakota. Population in...

More Info
the night of 22–23 June to avoid arrest.
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
, who had not been charged, accompanied them. In Iowa the men spoke with
John Bernhisel

23 June 1799–28 Sept. 1881. Physician, politician. Born in Sandy Hill, Tyrone Township, Cumberland Co. (later in Perry Co.), Pennsylvania. Son of Samuel Bernhisel and Susannah Bower. Attended medical lectures at University of Pennsylvania, 1818, in Philadelphia...

View Full Bio
, who had talked with the captain of the posse that was to arrest the Smiths. Bernhisel gave Joseph and Hyrum “greater assurance of protection” if they were to go to Carthage and satisfied them that Ford had “succeeded in bringing in subjection . . . to some extent” the men who had gathered there.
62

JS and Hyrum Smith, “Bank of the River Mississippi,” IL, to Thomas Ford, Carthage, IL, 23 June 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

Abandoning their plan to travel to
Washington DC

Created as district for seat of U.S. federal government by act of Congress, 1790, and named Washington DC, 1791. Named in honor of George Washington. Headquarters of executive, legislative, and judicial branches of U.S. government relocated to Washington ...

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for help, the two Smiths and Richards returned to Illinois and, in company with others who were charged with riot, made their way to Carthage, where they arrived shortly before midnight on 24 June.
63

According to Vilate Murray Kimball, wife of Heber C. Kimball, Joseph and Hyrum Smith returned to Illinois after Joseph had “composed his mind” and received a revelation directing him to “go back.” Threats that a mob would attack Nauvoo unless Joseph Smith went to Carthage probably also factored into their decision to return to Illinois. (Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9–24 June 1844, Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL; JS, Nauvoo, IL, to Thomas Ford, [Carthage, IL], 22 June 1844, copy; JS, “Safety,” IL, to Emma Smith, Nauvoo, IL, 23 June 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

The following morning, Joseph and
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
were arrested on the charge of treason, reportedly because Joseph Smith had put
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
under martial law a week earlier, when an attack by anti-Mormons appeared imminent. After posting bail in the riot case later in the day, both men—along with several of their supporters—were committed to the debtors’ room on the first floor of the
Carthage

Located eighteen miles southeast of Nauvoo. Settled 1831. Designated Hancock Co. seat, Mar. 1833. Incorporated as town, 27 Feb. 1837. Population in 1839 about 300. Population in 1844 about 400. Site of acute opposition to Latter-day Saints, early 1840s. Site...

More Info
jailhouse to await trial on the treason charge, which was not eligible for bail. Two days later, still awaiting trial, Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered in the jailhouse by an armed mob of between 150 and 250 men.
64

”Awful Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:560.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
likely inscribed the last entry recorded in Joseph Smith’s journal—dated 22 June 1844—shortly before he and the others left
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
for
Iowa Territory

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803. First permanent white settlements established, ca. 1833. Organized as territory, 1838, containing all of present-day Iowa, much of present-day Minnesota, and parts of North and South Dakota. Population in...

More Info
the night of 22–23 June. Evidently leaving Smith’s journal in Nauvoo, Richards recorded in his own journal, in great detail, the events of the following five days, probably intending to use it to fill in Joseph Smith’s journal at some later time. These entries in Richards’s journal are included as Appendix 1 in this volume. Appendix 2 reproduces entries from a daily record kept by
William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

View Full Bio
that focuses on Joseph Smith’s activities during the nine days preceding his flight from Nauvoo (14–22 June 1844). Clayton’s journal contains entries that highlight his own activities on these same nine days, suggesting that his record on Joseph Smith may be a second authorized journal of Joseph Smith, though no evidence has been found indicating that Smith commissioned Clayton to keep such a record. Appendix 3 includes draft notes made by Richards, some of which were later incorporated in Joseph Smith’s Nauvoo journals.
For all their significance in Mormon history, the events in
Carthage

Located eighteen miles southeast of Nauvoo. Settled 1831. Designated Hancock Co. seat, Mar. 1833. Incorporated as town, 27 Feb. 1837. Population in 1839 about 300. Population in 1844 about 400. Site of acute opposition to Latter-day Saints, early 1840s. Site...

More Info
, Joseph Smith’s candidacy for the presidency, the third attempt to extradite him to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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, and the Council of Fifty figure far less prominently in his journal than more mundane activities such as business transactions, pleasure trips, visits with American Indians, conversations with friends, and observations on the weather. Many entries deal with land transactions, some of which appear to be connected to Joseph Smith’s role as trustee-in-trust for the church. Others deal with issues arising from his position as mayor of
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

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, including city council decisions and court rulings. The journals also show Joseph Smith’s engagement with many of the larger political and cultural issues of the time, such as abolitionism, the annexation of Texas, communitarianism, and a national bank. True to form,
Willard Richards

24 June 1804–11 Mar. 1854. Teacher, lecturer, doctor, clerk, printer, editor, postmaster. Born at Hopkinton, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Joseph Richards and Rhoda Howe. Moved to Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, 1813; to Chatham, Columbia Co...

View Full Bio
kept most entries quite brief, and his record is incomplete in many ways. Yet in their terse recital of any given day’s events, his entries illustrate the variety of activities in which Joseph Smith was involved and his significance in the church, community, and region. The journal also provides glimpses into the richness and vibrancy of life in Nauvoo as well as the complexity of a society under tension, a society whose finer features are often blurred in broader historical narratives and thematic studies. The journal presented here is an essential primary source for anyone interested in understanding one of the most significant periods, and certainly the most significant personality, in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
  1. 1

    In the 16 June 1843 entry, for example, Richards wrote that James Adams sent a letter from Springfield, Illinois, on that date, even though Richards was likely not aware of the letter until it arrived on 18 June. Similarly, Richards was probably trying to bring the journal up to date in April 1844 when he corrected the date of Emma Smith’s return from St. Louis from 24 April to 25 April. (JS, Journal, 16 June 1843; 24 and 25 Apr. 1844.)

  2. 2

    In the 30 April 1844 entry, for instance, he wrote that a complaint was made against William and Wilson Law in the Masonic lodge. Lodge records, however, indicate that charges against Wilson Law and Robert D. Foster (rather than Wilson and William Law) were preferred on 2 May. (JS, Journal, 30 Apr. 1844; Nauvoo Masonic Lodge Minute Book, 2 May 1844.)

    Nauvoo Masonic Lodge Minute Book. / “Record of Na[u]voo Lodge Under Dispensation,” 1842–1846. CHL. MS 3436

  3. 3

    See JS, Journal, 14–29 June 1843, where references to Joseph Smith are few and apparently retrospective.

  4. 4

    JS, Journal, 8 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 8 Dec. 1843, 191–192.

    Nauvoo City Council Minute Book / Nauvoo City Council. “A Record of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Nauvoo Handcock County, State of Illinois, Commencing A.D. 1841,” ca. 1841–1845. CHL. MS 3435.

  5. 5

    JS, Journal, 12 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 12 and 21 Dec. 1843, 193, 197–198; Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 12 and 21 Dec. 1843, 24–25, 27–30.

    Nauvoo City Council Minute Book / Nauvoo City Council. “A Record of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Nauvoo Handcock County, State of Illinois, Commencing A.D. 1841,” ca. 1841–1845. CHL. MS 3435.

    Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

  6. 6

    JS, Journal, 5–7 Dec. 1843; Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 9 Dec. 1843; “Public Meeting,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 13 Dec. 1843, [1].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  7. 7

    JS, Journal, 30 Nov. and 4 Dec. 1843; 2 Feb. 1844.

  8. 8

    JS, Journal, 28 Nov. 1843; JS et al., Memorial to U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, 28 Nov. 1843, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.

  9. 9

    JS, Journal, 21 Dec. 1843; Hyrum Smith et al., Memorial to U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, 21 Dec. 1843, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.

  10. 10

    JS, Journal, 20, 21, and 23 Feb. 1844.

  11. 11

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 10 and 11 Mar. 1844.

    Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

  12. 12

    As Joseph Smith understood the term, the essence of a theocracy was “for the people to get the voice of God and then acknowledge it, and see it executed.” (Council of Fifty, “Record,” 11 Apr. 1844.)

    Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

  13. 13

    JS, Memorial to Congress, 26 Mar. 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.

  14. 14

    JS, Nauvoo, IL, to Henry Clay et al., 4 Nov. 1843, JS Collection, CHL; Woodruff, Journal, 8 Feb. 1844.

    Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  15. 15

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 18 Apr. 1844.

    Council of Fifty. “Record of the Council of Fifty or Kingdom of God,” Mar. 1844–Jan. 1846. CHL.

  16. 16

    JS, General Smith’s Views of the Powers and Policy of the Government of the United States; also published in Nauvoo Neighbor, 8 May 1844, [2].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  17. 17

    JS, Journal, 4 Mar. and 6 May 1844

  18. 18

    JS, Journal, 17 May 1844; “Minutes of a Convention,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 22 May 1844, [2].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  19. 19

    JS, Journal, 6 Aug. 1843.

  20. 20

    “Great Meeting of Anti-Mormons!,” Warsaw (IL) Message, 13 Sept. 1843, [1].

    Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

  21. 21

    JS, Journal, 7 Apr. 1844; Woodruff, Journal, 7 Apr. 1844; General Church Minutes, Bullock copy, 7 Apr. 1844, 23–33; Clayton copy, 7 Apr. 1844, 1–18. Joseph Smith spoke on similar themes on 16 June 1844. (JS, Sermon, 16 June 1844, JS Collection, CHL; Laub, Reminiscences and Journal, 15–19; McIntire, Notebook, 16 June 1844.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  22. 22

    For a discussion of Joseph Smith’s introduction of plural marriage and of the sources related to its early practice, see JSP, J2:xxiv–xxx; and “An Annotated List of Joseph Smith’s Plural Wives.”

  23. 23

    See Bennett’s letters printed in the 8, 15, and 22 July and 19 August 1842 issues of the Sangamo Journal, as well as his book The History of the Saints, 217–225. Neither Joseph Smith nor others who participated in plural marriage in Nauvoo used the terms “spiritual wife” or “spiritual wifery” to describe the practice. Similarly, Bennett’s description of Joseph Smith’s plural wives as a “seraglio. . . . divided into three distinct orders, or degrees,” is uncorroborated by other sources.

    Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

  24. 24

    JS, Journal, 5 Oct. 1843.

  25. 25

    For example, the entry for 1 May 1843 simply notes that Joseph Smith “rode out. fore noon & afte[r]noon,” but later sources suggest that Smith was sealed to Lucy Walker on that date. The entry for 2 November 1843 similarly records only Smith’s decision to write a letter to the five leading candidates in the upcoming 1844 presidential election, while later sources indicate that he was sealed to Fanny Young Murray on that date. (JS, Journal, 1 May 1843; 2 Nov. 1843; Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11; Clayton, Journal, 1 May 1843; Eliza Partridge, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Augusta Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 12 July 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:52, 2:30.)

    Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

    Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

  26. 26

    For example, Emma reportedly witnessed a sealing of Joseph Smith to Emily and Eliza Partridge in May 1843. (Young, Diary and Reminiscences, 2; Eliza Lyman, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Emily Dow Partridge Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 1 May 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:13, 2:33–34.)

    Young, Emily Dow Partridge. Diary and Reminiscences, Feb. 1874–Nov. 1883. CHL. MS 22253.

    Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

  27. 27

    Clayton, Journal, 12 July and 16 Aug. 1843. Although Emma Smith had a difficult time accepting plural marriage, several people close to her and Joseph later reported that she told them or others that she knew it was a true doctrine. After her husband’s death, however, Emma disavowed the practice and maintained that Joseph Smith had never practiced plural marriage. (Lambert, “Leonora Cannon Taylor,” 347; Young, Diary and Reminiscences, 1–3, 5; “Joseph the Seer’s Plural Marriages,” Deseret News, 22 Oct. 1879, 605; Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11–12.)

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

    Young, Emily Dow Partridge. Diary and Reminiscences, Feb. 1874–Nov. 1883. CHL. MS 22253.

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

    Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

  28. 28

    Revelation, 12 July 1843, in Revelations Collection, CHL [D&C 132]. Joseph Smith reportedly understood the general outlines of this revelation several years before he dictated it to William Clayton. (Orson Pratt, in Journal of Discourses, 7 Oct. 1869, 13:193; Bachman, “Ohio Origins of the Revelation on Eternal Marriage,” 19–32.)

    Revelations Collection, 1831–ca. 1844, 1847, 1861, ca. 1876. CHL. MS 4583.

    Journal of Discourses. 26 vols. Liverpool: F. D. Richards, 1855–1886.

    Bachman, Danel W. “New Light on an Old Hypothesis: The Ohio Origins of the Revelation on Eternal Marriage.” Journal of Mormon History 5 (1978): 19–32.

  29. 29

    Later sources indicate Joseph Smith was sealed to Malissa Lott in September 1843 and to Fanny Young Murray on 2 November 1843. (Lott Family Bible; Malissa Lott Willes, Testimony, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, 17 Mar. 1892, p. 95, question 63, Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints v. Church of Christ of Independence, Missouri, et al. [C.C.W.D. Mo. 1894], typescript, Testimonies and Depositions, CHL; Malissa Lott Willes, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 20 May 1869; Augusta Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 12 July 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:23, 52.)

    Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints v. Church of Christ of Independence, Missouri, et al. (C.C.W.D. Mo. 1894). Typescript. Testimonies and Depositions, 1892. Typescript. CHL.

    Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

  30. 30

    Revelation, 12 July 1843, in Revelations Collection, CHL [D&C 132:19].

    Revelations Collection, 1831–ca. 1844, 1847, 1861, ca. 1876. CHL. MS 4583.

  31. 31

    Kimball, Autobiographical Sketch, 11; Eliza Lyman, Affidavit, Millard Co., Utah Territory, 1 July 1869; Emily Dow Partridge Young, Affidavit, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 1 May 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:13, 2:33–34.

    Kimball, Presendia Lathrop Huntington. Autobiographical Sketch, 1881. CHL. MS 5038.

    Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

  32. 32

    According to William Clayton, only those designated “by Revelation” were admitted. (Clayton, Journal, 5 Dec. 1843.)

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

  33. 33

    Heber C. Kimball, a member of this council, described the group as “a small company” to whom Joseph Smith could “open his bosom . . . and feel him self safe,” while William Clayton referred to it on occasion as “the quorum of anointing” or the “Quorum of Priesthood.” (Heber C. Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Parley P. Pratt, 17 June 1844, Parley P. Pratt, Correspondence, CHL; Clayton, Journal, 2 Dec. 1843; 3 Feb. 1844.)

    Pratt, Parley P. Correspondence, 1842–1855. CHL. MS 897.

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

  34. 34

    JS, Journal, 4 May 1842; Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, 4 May 1842. “Elohim” is Hebrew for “Gods,” though it is generally translated as the singular “God.”

    Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Draft Notes, ca. 1839–1856. CHL. CR 100 92.

  35. 35

    According to the manuscript history of Brigham Young, Joseph Smith administered “the first ordinances of endowment” on 26 May 1843. On 28 May 1843, Joseph Smith and James Adams were evidently sealed to their respective wives, Emma Smith and Harriet Denton, and on 29 May 1843, Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young, and Willard Richards were probably sealed to their respective wives, Mary Fielding Smith, Mary Angell Young, and Jennetta Richards Richards. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 69; JS, Journal, 28 and 29 May 1843.)

    Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

  36. 36

    JS, Journal, 28 Sept. 1843. Joseph Smith had previously taught the importance of receiving the full blessings of the priesthood and of becoming priests and kings “not to the kingdoms of this earth but of the most high god.” (JS, Journal, 23 July 1843.)

  37. 37

    See, for example, Woodruff, Journal, 21, 25, 26, and 28 Jan. 1844. Later, the history of Brigham Young used the same term for this ordinance. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 91a; “History of Brigham Young,” Deseret News, 24 Mar. 1858, 17.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  38. 38

    JS, Journal, 23 Aug. 1843 and 13 Mar. 1844.

  39. 39

    JS, Journal, 11 June and 24 Sept. 1843; 7 Mar. 1844.

  40. 40

    Clayton, History of the Nauvoo Temple, 40–41; JS, Journal, 8 Nov. 1843.

    Clayton, William. History of the Nauvoo Temple, ca. 1845. CHL. MS 3365.

  41. 41

    A Joseph Smith revelation dated 19 January 1841 commanded church members to build both the Nauvoo temple and the Nauvoo House. (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841, in Doctrine and Covenants [103], 1844 ed. [D&C 124].)

    The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; Carefully Selected from the Revelations of God. Compiled by Joseph Smith. 2nd ed. Nauvoo, IL: John Taylor, 1844.

  42. 42

    JS, Journal, 4 and 7 Mar. 1844; “Conference,” Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1844, 5:456.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  43. 43

    JS, Journal, 9 Apr. and 4 May 1844.

  44. 44

    JS, Journal, 23 May 1844.

  45. 45

    JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1843. Joseph Smith’s concern about a possible association between Rigdon and Bennett may date back to January 1843, when Smith learned of a letter Bennett had sent Rigdon about new indictments that were being filed against Smith and others on charges growing out of the Missouri conflict of 1838–1839. (JS, Journal, 18 Jan. 1843.)

  46. 46

    JS, Journal, 13 Aug. 1843.

  47. 47

    “Minutes of a Special Conference,” Times and Seasons, 15 Sept. 1843, 4:329–330.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  48. 48

    JS, Journal, 7 and 8 Jan. 1844; Law, Record of Doings, 8 Jan. 1844, in Cook, William Law, 46; Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 3 Jan. 1844, 32–36. According to William Clayton, William Law and his brother Wilson “were especially active in fanning the flame of prejudice and excitement, because Prest. Joseph would not seal Wm. Law to his wife for eternity in consequence of his being an adulterer.” (Clayton, Journal, 12 June 1844; Council of Fifty, “Record,” 279 [290]; see also Neibaur, Journal, 24 May 1844.)

    Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

    Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

    Neibaur, Alexander. Journal, 1841–1862. CHL. MS 1674.

  49. 49

    Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 5 Jan. 1844, 36; Law, Record of Doings, 5 Jan. 1844, in Cook, William Law, 45.

    Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

    Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

  50. 50

    Conflict between Robert D. Foster and Joseph Smith extended back to at least February 1843, when Smith publicly charged Foster with putting his own building projects ahead of building the Nauvoo House and the Nauvoo temple. (JS, Journal, 21 Feb. 1843; JS, Journal, 7 Mar. 1844; see also Clayton, Journal, 23 Mar. 1844.)

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

  51. 51

    JS, Journal, 24 Mar. 1844.

  52. 52

    JS, Journal, 18 Apr. 1844.

  53. 53

    JS, Journal, 28 Apr. 1844.

  54. 54

    JS, Journal, 6 May 1844; Francis M. Higbee, Declaration, 1 May 1844, Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, Twentieth-Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts, BYU.

  55. 55

    JS, Journal, 8 and 20 May 1844.

  56. 56

    Foster based his testimony on an accusation from Alexander Sympson. Sympson claimed Joseph Smith swore in an affidavit that Sympson had robbed and stabbed Richard Badham even though he, Joseph Smith, did not believe Sympson had actually done so. Smith denied having made the affidavit, and no such affidavit has been located. (JS, Journal, 13 Apr. 1844.)

  57. 57

    JS, Journal, 20 and 25 May 1844.

  58. 58

    JS, Journal, 27 May 1844. Higbee’s suit was eventually heard in McDonough County, Illinois, where records indicate that he lost the case. The perjury, adultery, and fornication charges were scheduled to be heard in the October term of the Hancock County Circuit Court. Because of JS’s death, however, the hearings never occurred. (Redemption Certificate, 23 Feb. 1846, microfilm, Illinois State Historical Library, Circuit Court Case Files, 1830–1900, CHL; Order to Issue Capias, 24 May 1844, Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Records, vol. D, p. 129, microfilm 947,496, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Capias on Indictment, 22 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery [Hancock Co. Cir. Ct. 1844], Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Indictments and Arrest Warrant, CHL.)

  59. 59

    JS, Journal, 7 May 1844.

  60. 60

    “Preamble” and “Prospectus of the Nauvoo Expositor,” Nauvoo Expositor, 7 June 1844, [2], [4], italics in original.

    Nauvoo Expositor. Nauvoo, IL. 1844.

  61. 61

    Nauvoo City Council Draft Minutes, 10 June 1844, 21–31; Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844; “To the Public,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [2]–[3]; JS, Journal, 10 June 1844. For a discussion on the legality of the Nauvoo City Council’s proceedings in this case, see Oaks, “Suppression of the Nauvoo Expositor,” 862–903.

    Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Books, 1841–1845. Nauvoo, IL. Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 16800, box 1, fds. 2-5.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  62. 62

    JS and Hyrum Smith, “Bank of the River Mississippi,” IL, to Thomas Ford, Carthage, IL, 23 June 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.

    Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

  63. 63

    According to Vilate Murray Kimball, wife of Heber C. Kimball, Joseph and Hyrum Smith returned to Illinois after Joseph had “composed his mind” and received a revelation directing him to “go back.” Threats that a mob would attack Nauvoo unless Joseph Smith went to Carthage probably also factored into their decision to return to Illinois. (Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9–24 June 1844, Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL; JS, Nauvoo, IL, to Thomas Ford, [Carthage, IL], 22 June 1844, copy; JS, “Safety,” IL, to Emma Smith, Nauvoo, IL, 23 June 1844, copy, JS Collection, CHL.)

    Smith, Joseph. Collection, 1827–1846. CHL. MS 155.

  64. 64

    ”Awful Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:560.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

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