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Deed to John Smith, 10 February 1844

Source Note

JS, Deed for property in
Lee Co.

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
, Iowa Territory, to
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

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, 10 Feb. 1844. Featured version copied [ca. 10 Feb. 1844]; handwriting of
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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; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes redaction and archival notation.
Single leaf measuring 11⅛ × 7⅛ inches (28 × 18 cm). The leaf is ruled with thirty-two horizontal lines printed in blue ink. The left and bottom edges of the recto are hand cut. The verso is blank.
The document, apparently a retained version, may have been kept among JS’s papers. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL).
1

See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.


The document’s likely provenance and inclusion in the JS Collection suggest continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On 10 February 1844, JS’s private clerk,
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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, drafted a deed for JS to transfer all the property he owned in
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
to his uncle
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

View Full Bio
. The property included all the land JS had acquired in
Lee County

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
, Iowa Territory, from
Jacob Remick

17 Mar. 1798–June 1860. Lawyer. Born in Tamworth, Strafford Co., New Hampshire. Son of William Remick and Abigail Gilman. Moved to Industry, Kennebec Co., Maine, 1805. Married Hannah Shaw, 3 Feb. 1824, in Industry. Moved to Bangor, Penobscot Co., Maine, by...

View Full Bio
in 1842, along with any other interests JS held in any Iowa properties. The sale price was to be one dollar, an amount commonly specified when one party was effectively gifting property to another.
JS’s land in
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
was part of the “
Half-Breed Tract

Tract consisted of 119,000 acres located in southeastern Iowa between Des Moines and Mississippi rivers. In 1824, U.S. Congress set aside tract for offspring of American Indian mothers and white fathers. Subsequent act passed, 1834, relinquishing Congress...

More Info
,” a 119,000-acre area in the southeastern part of the territory that 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
Congress set aside for the mixed-race children of white soldiers and Sauk and Meskwaki women in 1824.
1

Treaty with the Sac and Fox Indians [4 Aug. 1824], Public Statutes at Large, vol. 7, p. 229, art. 1.


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

A subsequent act in 1834 removed the federal government’s interest and allowed the owners of the land to sell it directly.
2

An Act to Relinquish the Reversionary Interest of the United States in a Certain Indian Reservation Lying between the Rivers Mississippi and Desmoins [30 June 1834], Public Statutes at Large, 23rd Cong., 1st Sess., chap. 167, p. 740.


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

In 1836 the
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,...

More Info
Land Company purchased much of the area through its trustee
Isaac Galland

15 May 1791–27 Sept. 1858. Merchant, postmaster, land speculator, doctor. Born at Somerset Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Matthew Galland and Hannah Fenno. Married first Nancy Harris, 22 Mar. 1811, in Madison Co., Ohio. Married second Margaret Knight, by 1816....

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.
3

Cook, “Isaac Galland,” 264–265.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cook, Lyndon W. “Isaac Galland—Mormon Benefactor.” BYU Studies 19 (Spring 1979): 261–284.

Through
agents

A specific church office and, more generally, someone “entrusted with the business of another.” Agents in the church assisted other ecclesiastical officers, especially the bishop in his oversight of the church’s temporal affairs. A May 1831 revelation instructed...

View Glossary
,
church

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...

View Glossary
leaders purchased nearly 18,000 acres of land in Iowa Territory from Galland in 1839, but it is unclear in what portion of that land JS had an interest in February 1844.
4

Deeds, Isaac and Elizabeth Wilcox Galland to Oliver Granger, 29 May 1839–A and –B, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 1, pp. 507–509, microfilm 959,238, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Deeds, Isaac and Elizabeth Wilcox Galland to Vinson Knight, 26 June 1839–A, –B, –C, –D, and –E, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 2, pp. 3–6, 13–16, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; see also Cook, “Isaac Galland,” 270–275.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Cook, Lyndon W. “Isaac Galland—Mormon Benefactor.” BYU Studies 19 (Spring 1979): 261–284.

Despite plans to develop the area around
Montrose

Located in southern part of county on western shore of Mississippi River. Area settled by Captain James White, 1832, following Black Hawk War. Federal government purchased land from White to create Fort Des Moines, 1834. Fort abandoned; remaining settlement...

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, Iowa Territory, as a twin city to
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, questions about title and negative experiences with
Remick

17 Mar. 1798–June 1860. Lawyer. Born in Tamworth, Strafford Co., New Hampshire. Son of William Remick and Abigail Gilman. Moved to Industry, Kennebec Co., Maine, 1805. Married Hannah Shaw, 3 Feb. 1824, in Industry. Moved to Bangor, Penobscot Co., Maine, by...

View Full Bio
led JS in April 1843 to instruct the Latter-day Saints to abandon their interests in
Lee County

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
and settle on 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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side of 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
.
5

Revelation, ca. Early Mar. 1841 [D&C 125]; JS, Journal, 6 Apr. 1843.


It is unclear whether the transaction between JS and
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

View Full Bio
occurred, as no signed or witnessed copy of the deed exists. Although JS would have given the original to John Smith, typically even retained versions bore original or at least copied signatures of the parties involved. The deed was also never recorded in the
Lee County

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
deed books. Recording deeds with the county was not legally required but was in the interest of the grantee—particularly in cases where title was as notoriously contested as the lands in the federally designated
Half-Breed Tract

Tract consisted of 119,000 acres located in southeastern Iowa between Des Moines and Mississippi rivers. In 1824, U.S. Congress set aside tract for offspring of American Indian mothers and white fathers. Subsequent act passed, 1834, relinquishing Congress...

More Info
were—and was therefore common.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Treaty with the Sac and Fox Indians [4 Aug. 1824], Public Statutes at Large, vol. 7, p. 229, art. 1.

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

  2. [2]

    An Act to Relinquish the Reversionary Interest of the United States in a Certain Indian Reservation Lying between the Rivers Mississippi and Desmoins [30 June 1834], Public Statutes at Large, 23rd Cong., 1st Sess., chap. 167, p. 740.

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

  3. [3]

    Cook, “Isaac Galland,” 264–265.

    Cook, Lyndon W. “Isaac Galland—Mormon Benefactor.” BYU Studies 19 (Spring 1979): 261–284.

  4. [4]

    Deeds, Isaac and Elizabeth Wilcox Galland to Oliver Granger, 29 May 1839–A and –B, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 1, pp. 507–509, microfilm 959,238, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Deeds, Isaac and Elizabeth Wilcox Galland to Vinson Knight, 26 June 1839–A, –B, –C, –D, and –E, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 2, pp. 3–6, 13–16, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; see also Cook, “Isaac Galland,” 270–275.

    Cook, Lyndon W. “Isaac Galland—Mormon Benefactor.” BYU Studies 19 (Spring 1979): 261–284.

  5. [5]

    Revelation, ca. Early Mar. 1841 [D&C 125]; JS, Journal, 6 Apr. 1843.

Page [1]

Know all men by these presents that I Joseph Smith of the County of
Hancock

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
and State of
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
for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar to me in hand paid by
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

View Full Bio
of the
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
and
State

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
aforesaid the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledge have granted bargain and sold, and by these presents do grant, bargain, sell, release convey and forever quit-claim unto the said
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

View Full Bio
and to his heirs and assigns forever all my right, title, interest, claim and demand, of, in, and to all those tracts and parcels of land situated and being in the County of
Lee

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
and Territory of
Iowa

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
, which were deeded to me by
J[acob] G. Remick

17 Mar. 1798–June 1860. Lawyer. Born in Tamworth, Strafford Co., New Hampshire. Son of William Remick and Abigail Gilman. Moved to Industry, Kennebec Co., Maine, 1805. Married Hannah Shaw, 3 Feb. 1824, in Industry. Moved to Bangor, Penobscot Co., Maine, by...

View Full Bio
said Deeds being on Record in the recorders office at
Fort Madison

Fort established in area, fall 1808. Fort evacuated and torched, 3 Sept. 1813, to prevent capture by Indians. Area settled, 1832, and surveyed, June 1835. Significant center of trade, manufacturing, and shipping on Mississippi River. Established as Lee Co...

More Info
. together with all my interest to said lands and all lands now owned by me in said County of
Lee

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
and Territory of
Iowa

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
whatsoever.
1

On 20 January 1842, Isaac Galland appointed Remick as his attorney with authority to recover or sell any of the Iowa Territory lands for which Galland was a trustee, amounting to roughly 119,000 acres. On 1 September 1842, Jacob and Hannah Shaw Remick transferred property in Iowa Territory to JS in two transactions. One of the deeds, for $12,500, conveyed about 20,000 acres that Galland had deeded to church member Vinson Knight in 1839. The second, for $20,000, transferred to JS the “undivided half part in common” of all of Remick’s remaining land in the Half-Breed Tract except for a few parcels of land that Remick had already conveyed to other people. Remick’s September 1842 transfers to JS were quitclaim deeds, meaning that the transfer documents did not include any legal warranty that Remick owned the title to these lands, merely that he was conveying to JS any interest Remick may have had in these properties. Consequently, JS’s deed to John Smith would also have to be, as it declares itself, a quitclaim deed. (Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 3, pp. 178–180, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Deeds from Jacob Remick, 1 Sept. 1842–A and –B, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 3, pp. 449–451, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; “Quit Claim,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:402.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

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: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

To have and to hold the said premises to the said
John Smith

16 July 1781–23 May 1854. Farmer. Born at Derryfield (later Manchester), Rockingham Co., New Hampshire. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Member of Congregational church. Appointed overseer of highways at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York, 1810. Married...

View Full Bio
his heirs and assigns, forever together with all the privileges and appurtenances to the same belonging or in anywise appertaining so far as the same is owned by me and free from any claim or claims whatever of the said Joseph Smith
To have and to hold <​In witness whereof​> I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 10th day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty four. [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Deed to John Smith, 10 February 1844
ID #
1943
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • William Clayton

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    On 20 January 1842, Isaac Galland appointed Remick as his attorney with authority to recover or sell any of the Iowa Territory lands for which Galland was a trustee, amounting to roughly 119,000 acres. On 1 September 1842, Jacob and Hannah Shaw Remick transferred property in Iowa Territory to JS in two transactions. One of the deeds, for $12,500, conveyed about 20,000 acres that Galland had deeded to church member Vinson Knight in 1839. The second, for $20,000, transferred to JS the “undivided half part in common” of all of Remick’s remaining land in the Half-Breed Tract except for a few parcels of land that Remick had already conveyed to other people. Remick’s September 1842 transfers to JS were quitclaim deeds, meaning that the transfer documents did not include any legal warranty that Remick owned the title to these lands, merely that he was conveying to JS any interest Remick may have had in these properties. Consequently, JS’s deed to John Smith would also have to be, as it declares itself, a quitclaim deed. (Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 3, pp. 178–180, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Deeds from Jacob Remick, 1 Sept. 1842–A and –B, Lee Co., IA, Land Records, 1836–1961, Deeds [South, Keokuk], vol. 3, pp. 449–451, microfilm 959,239, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; “Quit Claim,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:402.)

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

    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: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

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