Footnotes

1. [1]

   Although the document does not use the word declaration, when Clay County sheriff Samuel Hadley executed the summons, he referred to the document as a declaration, and it follows the usual format for declarations. Land records show that McLellin purchased property in Caldwell County in late 1837. McLellin’s wife, Emeline Miller McLellin, recalled that the family resided in Caldwell County for only a few months in 1838 before moving to Clay County, where the family had previously resided. The McLellins were apparently in Clay County by June 1838. (Summons, 6 Mar. 1839, JS v. McLellin [Clay Co. Cir. Ct. 1839], Clay County Archives and Historical Library, Liberty, MO; Johnson and Romig, Index to Early Caldwell County, Missouri, Land Records, 121; Porter, “Odyssey of William Earl McLellin,” 323; [William E. McLellin], Editorial, Ensign of Liberty, Mar. 1847, 9.)

   Johnson, Clark V., and Ronald E. Romig. An Index to Early Caldwell County, Missouri, Land Records. Rev. ed. Independence, MO: Missouri Mormon Frontier Foundation, 2002.

   Porter, Larry C. “The Odyssey of William Earl McLellin: Man of Diversity, 1806–83.” In The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836, edited by Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, 291–378. Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994.

   Ensign of Liberty. Kirtland, OH. Mar. 1847–Aug. 1849.

2. [2]

   JS, Journal, 11 May 1838; Porter, “Odyssey of William Earl McLellin,” 314–324.

   Porter, Larry C. “The Odyssey of William Earl McLellin: Man of Diversity, 1806–83.” In The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836, edited by Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, 291–378. Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994.

3. [3]

   Berrett, Sacred Places, 4:212–213; Woodson, History of Clay County, Missouri, 313. Latter-day Saint William Swartzell noted on 24 May 1838 that the Mormons primarily used the landing near Richmond, Ray County, Missouri, to receive goods. (Swartzell, Mormonism Exposed, 9.)

   Berrett, LaMar C., ed. Sacred Places: A Comprehensive Guide to Early LDS Historical Sites. 6 vols. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1999–2007.

   Woodson, W. H. History of Clay County, Missouri. Topeka, KS: Historical Publishing, 1920.

   Swartzell, William. Mormonism Exposed, Being a Journal of a Residence in Missouri from the 28th of May to the 20th of August, 1838, Together with an Appendix, Containing the Revelation concerning the Golden Bible, with Numerous Extracts from the ‘Book of Covenants,’ &c., &c. Pekin, OH: By the author, 1840.

4. [4]

   A May 1837 inventory of a store that JS co-owned in Chester, Ohio, listed items similar to those that McLellin allegedly took, including various types of tools, fabric, and buttons; books on history, geography, arithmetic, and Hebrew grammar; and a polyglot Bible. (Bill of Goods from Rigdon, Smith & Co., 20 May 1837, JS Collection, CHL; see also Bill of Goods from Rigdon, Smith & Co., between 19 and 24 May 1837, JS Office Papers, CHL; and Notes Receivable from Rigdon, Smith & Co., 22 May 1837, in JSP, D5:382–385.)

5. [5]

   Ebenezer Page, Letter to the Editor, Zion’s Reveille, 15 Apr. 1847, 55.

   Zion’s Reveille. Voree, Wisconsin Territory. 1846–1847.

6. [6]

   James Mulholland et al., Complaint, [Far West, MO], Statements against William E. McLellin et al., CHL.

   Statements against William E. McLellin and Others, ca. 1838–1839. CHL.

7. [7]

   Phoebe Babcock Patten et al., Complaint against William E. McLellin, [Far West, MO], 1838, Statements against William E. McLellin et al., CHL; see also Butler, Autobiography, 26.

   Statements against William E. McLellin and Others, ca. 1838–1839. CHL.

   Butler, John L. Autobiography, ca. 1859. CHL. MS 2952.

8. [8]

   “Trover,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:454.

   Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

9. [9]

   “Action,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 1:53.

   Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

10. [10]

    “Venue,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:467.

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

11. [11]

    “Declaration,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 1:293.

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

12. [12]

    See “Declaration,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 1:293–294.

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

13. [13]

    See “Trover,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:454–455; and Troubat and Haly, Practice in Civil Actions and Proceedings, 2:40–46.

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; with References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: T. and J. W. Johnson, 1839.

    Troubat, Francis J., and William W. Haly. The Practice in Civil Actions and Proceedings, in the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and in the District Court and Court of Common Pleas for the City and County of Philadelphia; and Also in the Courts of the United States. 2 vols. Philadelphia: R. H. Small, 1837.

14. [14]

    History of Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri, 580; see also Alexander McRae, “Incidents in the History of Joseph Smith,” Deseret News, 2 Nov. 1854, [1].

    History of Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri, Written and Compiled from the Most Authentic Official and Private Sources. . . . St. Louis: National Historical Co., 1885.

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

15. [15]

    Summons, 6 Mar. 1839, JS v. McLellin (Clay Co. Cir. Ct. 1839), Clay County Archives and Historical Library, Liberty, MO.

16. [16]

    Clay Co., MO, Circuit Court Records, 1822–1878, vol. 2, p. [279], 18 Apr. 1839; p. 298, 20 Apr. 1839; p. [315], 21 Aug. 1839, Clay County Archives and Historical Library, Liberty, MO.

    Clay County, Missouri, Circuit Court Records, 1822–1878. Vol. 2, 1832–1841. Clay County Archives and Historical Library, Liberty, MO.