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Introduction to Steamboat Nauvoo

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In the late 1830s, 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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government purchased the steamboat Des Moines for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Under the direction of Robert E. Lee, the corps was improving navigation and travel conditions on 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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by removing rock on narrow portions, beginning at the Des Moines rapids near
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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. After the federal government discontinued the project in 1840, Captain Lee sold the Des Moines at auction on 10 September 1840.
1

Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 735–738.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

Peter Haws

17 Feb. 1796–1862. Farmer, miller, businessman. Born in Leeds Co., Johnstown District (later in Ontario), Upper Canada. Son of Edward Haws and Polly. Married Charlotte Harrington. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Moved to Kirtland...

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, along with partners JS,
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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,
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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, and
Henry W. Miller

1 May 1807–9 Oct. 1885. Carpenter, builder, farmer. Born in Lexington, Greene Co., New York. Family resided at Windham, Greene Co., 1810. Son of James Miller and Ruth Arnold. Moved to Illinois, ca. 1829. Married first Elmira Pond, 19 June 1831. Baptized into...

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, purchased the steamboat from Lee for $4,866.38 and provided Lee with a promissory note for the amount, payable in eight months.
2

Promissory Note to Robert E. Lee, 10 Sept. 1840.


The partners then changed the name of the steamboat from Des Moines to Nauvoo.
3

Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 739.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

A few weeks after the purchase, the steamboat was damaged. JS and the other owners blamed pilots Benjamin and William Holladay, claiming that due to “unskilfulness and willfull mismanagement” as well as reckless piloting, the Holladays ran the steamboat into a sandbar, causing several timbers in the hull to split and crack.
4

Affidavit, 30 Nov. 1840 [Miller et al. v. B. Holladay and W. Holladay]. The incident may have occurred in early October 1840, as the Diving Bell company of St. Louis was hired to raise the stacks of the damaged steamboat from the Mississippi River on 10 October. (Amended Pleas, ca. 30 Oct. 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street].)


The boat was en route from
Galena

County seat. Originally known as the Point; laid out and named Galena, 1826. Principal town in lead-mine country. Population in 1840 about 1,800. Population in 1845 about 4,000. Several Saints worked in mines while Nauvoo temple was being built.

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, Illinois, to
St. Louis

Located on west side of Mississippi River about fifteen miles south of confluence with Missouri River. Founded as fur-trading post by French settlers, 1764. Incorporated as town, 1809. First Mississippi steamboat docked by town, 1817. Incorporated as city...

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, laden with 180 tons of lead belonging to Campbell & Co., when it was damaged. The incident delayed the shipment five months and resulted in significant financial losses by both the company and the owners of the steamboat.
5

Amended Pleas, ca. 30 Oct. 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street].


JS and his partners brought a lawsuit against the Holladays in November 1840, claiming $2,000 in damages.
6

Introduction to Miller et al. v. B. Holladay and W. Holladay.


The men soon looked into selling the steamboat Nauvoo. On 25 January 1841, they sold a one-sixth ownership interest in the steamboat to Edwin Guthrie.
7

Floyd E. Risvold Collection, 2:78–79; Pleas and Account, ca. 23 May 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street]. By the time of the indenture, Vinson Knight had replaced Henry W. Miller as a partner in the steamboat. The January 1841 indenture between JS, his partners, and Guthrie is in private possession, but an auction catalog captured the details of the indenture. For his share of the boat, Guthrie agreed to two payments. The first, for $811.06, was due 1 May 1841, while the second, for $415, was due 1 November 1841. (Floyd E. Risvold Collection, 2:78–79.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Floyd E. Risvold Collection: American Expansion and the Journey West. 3 vols. 2009. Catalog of the 27–29 January 2010 auction of the Floyd E. Risvold estate at New York City by the Spink Shreves Galleries and Spink Smythe of Dallas, TX.

At some point between September 1840 and February 1841, the partners sold a majority interest, five-sixths, in the steamboat 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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, Illinois, merchants Charles B. and Marvin B. Streets. As part of the purchase, the Streets signed a promissory note on 17 February for $3,133.62, payable in goods and merchandise, which was due 1 June 1841. The Streets made a payment of $1,025 on 22 June 1841, but the remaining balance was apparently left unpaid. This resulted in JS and his partners suing the Streets for repayment in February 1844.
8

Introduction to JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street.


The promissory note that the five partners had given to 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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government in September 1840 to pay for the steamboat became due in May 1841. Solicitor of the United States Treasury Charles B. Penrose attempted to arrange payment by seeking the arrest of JS 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...

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in Missouri.
9

Letter, Solicitor of the Treasury to Montgomery Blair, 1 June 1841.


This plan failed as the men were not in Missouri, and Penrose then instructed Illinois district attorney
Justin Butterfield

1790–Oct. 1855. Teacher, lawyer. Born in Keene, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Moved to Watertown, Jefferson Co., New York, ca. 1810, where he taught school and studied law. Admitted to bar, 1812, at Watertown. Practiced law in Adams, Jefferson Co., and Sackets...

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to sue for repayment of the note. In April 1842, with the promissory note still unpaid, Butterfield initiated a lawsuit against the five partners.
10

Introduction to United States v. Haws et al.; Summons, 25 Apr. 1842 [U.S. v. Haws et al.]; Charles B. Penrose to Justin Butterfield, Chicago, IL, 12 Aug. 1842, microfilm, Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury, copy at CHL.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury / National Archives Reference Service Report, 23 Sept. 1964. “Record Group 206, Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury, and Record Group 46, Records of the United States Senate: Records Relating to the Mormons in Illinois, 1839–1848 (Records Dated 1840–1852), Including Memorials of Mormons to Congress, 1840–1844, Some of Which Relate to Outrages Committed against the Mormons in Missouri, 1831–1839.” Microfilm. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1964. Copy in Records Related to Church Interaction with Federal Government, 1840–1852, CHL.

The lawsuit came to trial on 11 June 1842. JS and his partners failed to appear at the court in
Springfield

Settled by 1819. Incorporated as town, 1832. Became capital of Illinois, 1837. Incorporated as city, 1840. Sangamon Co. seat. Population in 1840 about 2,600. Stake of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints organized in Springfield, Nov. 1840; discontinued...

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, Illinois, and the court awarded $4,866.38 for the delinquent promissory note and $317.93 in damages, as well as the court costs, to Butterfield and the United States.
11

Introduction to United States v. Haws et al.; Transcript of Proceedings, ca. 11 June 1842 [United States v. Haws et al.]; Docket Entry, Fieri Facias, ca. 18 July 1842 [United States v. Haws et al.].


In April 1842, JS 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...

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submitted applications for bankruptcy, and the repayment of the steamboat debt became a major concern in the proceedings. This led
Butterfield

1790–Oct. 1855. Teacher, lawyer. Born in Keene, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Moved to Watertown, Jefferson Co., New York, ca. 1810, where he taught school and studied law. Admitted to bar, 1812, at Watertown. Practiced law in Adams, Jefferson Co., and Sackets...

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to investigate JS for potentially fraudulent land transactions, and he filed an objection with the court to block JS’s bankruptcy proceedings.
12

Introduction to Joseph Smith’s Bankruptcy.


In December 1842, a group of Latter-day Saints met with Butterfield in
Springfield

Settled by 1819. Incorporated as town, 1832. Became capital of Illinois, 1837. Incorporated as city, 1840. Sangamon Co. seat. Population in 1840 about 2,600. Stake of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints organized in Springfield, Nov. 1840; discontinued...

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and attempted to reach a settlement to pay the steamboat debt owed to 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
government.
13

JS, Journal, 9–20 Dec. 1842, p. 214.


Butterfield sent a proposed agreement to Penrose, outlining repayment of the debt by church leaders over the course of the next four years. However, Penrose was reluctant to accept the agreement and countered with stricter terms for repayment, requiring an immediate cash payment of one third of the debt.
14

Letter, Justin Butterfield to Charles B. Penrose, 17 Dec. 1842; Letter, Charles B. Penrose to Justin Butterfield, 11 Jan. 1843.


Whether because of miscommunication or the repeal of the bankruptcy act, this repayment agreement was never finalized. The debt for the steamboat Nauvoo was not paid before JS’s death in 1844, and the government pursued repayment into the 1850s.
15

Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 735–771; Introduction to United States v. Joseph Smith III et al.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

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Introduction to Steamboat Nauvoo
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    Footnotes

    1. [1]

      Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 735–738.

      Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

    2. [2]

      Promissory Note to Robert E. Lee, 10 Sept. 1840.

    3. [3]

      Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 739.

      Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

    4. [4]

      Affidavit, 30 Nov. 1840 [Miller et al. v. B. Holladay and W. Holladay]. The incident may have occurred in early October 1840, as the Diving Bell company of St. Louis was hired to raise the stacks of the damaged steamboat from the Mississippi River on 10 October. (Amended Pleas, ca. 30 Oct. 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street].)

    5. [5]

      Amended Pleas, ca. 30 Oct. 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street].

    6. [6]

      Introduction to Miller et al. v. B. Holladay and W. Holladay.

    7. [7]

      Floyd E. Risvold Collection, 2:78–79; Pleas and Account, ca. 23 May 1844 [JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street]. By the time of the indenture, Vinson Knight had replaced Henry W. Miller as a partner in the steamboat. The January 1841 indenture between JS, his partners, and Guthrie is in private possession, but an auction catalog captured the details of the indenture. For his share of the boat, Guthrie agreed to two payments. The first, for $811.06, was due 1 May 1841, while the second, for $415, was due 1 November 1841. (Floyd E. Risvold Collection, 2:78–79.)

      The Floyd E. Risvold Collection: American Expansion and the Journey West. 3 vols. 2009. Catalog of the 27–29 January 2010 auction of the Floyd E. Risvold estate at New York City by the Spink Shreves Galleries and Spink Smythe of Dallas, TX.

    8. [8]

      Introduction to JS et al. v. C. B. Street and M. B. Street.

    9. [9]

      Letter, Solicitor of the Treasury to Montgomery Blair, 1 June 1841.

    10. [10]

      Introduction to United States v. Haws et al.; Summons, 25 Apr. 1842 [U.S. v. Haws et al.]; Charles B. Penrose to Justin Butterfield, Chicago, IL, 12 Aug. 1842, microfilm, Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury, copy at CHL.

      Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury / National Archives Reference Service Report, 23 Sept. 1964. “Record Group 206, Records of the Solicitor of the Treasury, and Record Group 46, Records of the United States Senate: Records Relating to the Mormons in Illinois, 1839–1848 (Records Dated 1840–1852), Including Memorials of Mormons to Congress, 1840–1844, Some of Which Relate to Outrages Committed against the Mormons in Missouri, 1831–1839.” Microfilm. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1964. Copy in Records Related to Church Interaction with Federal Government, 1840–1852, CHL.

    11. [11]

      Introduction to United States v. Haws et al.; Transcript of Proceedings, ca. 11 June 1842 [United States v. Haws et al.]; Docket Entry, Fieri Facias, ca. 18 July 1842 [United States v. Haws et al.].

    12. [12]

      Introduction to Joseph Smith’s Bankruptcy.

    13. [13]

      JS, Journal, 9–20 Dec. 1842, p. 214.

    14. [14]

      Letter, Justin Butterfield to Charles B. Penrose, 17 Dec. 1842; Letter, Charles B. Penrose to Justin Butterfield, 11 Jan. 1843.

    15. [15]

      Oaks and Bentley, “Joseph Smith and Legal Process,” 735–771; Introduction to United States v. Joseph Smith III et al.

      Oaks, Dallin H., and Joseph I. Bentley. “Joseph Smith and Legal Process: In the Wake of the Steamboat Nauvoo.” Brigham Young University Law Review, no. 3 (1976): 735–782.

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