, “Brief History,” Manuscript, ca. 6 April 1838– ca. 26 January 1839; handwriting of and an unidentified scribe; seventy pages numbered 20–90, plus three unnumbered pages; John Fletcher Darby Papers, Missouri History Museum Archives, St. Louis.
, a careful observer, had enjoyed a close association with Mormon leaders, and consequently his account provides valuable insights into the development and structure of the early church. He summarized many of the doctrines taught by JS and provided a detailed description of the conflict between the Latter-day Saints and other settlers. But his chronicle also related the story of a personal spiritual journey into and then out of the church as came to disapprove of the church’s course in 1838 in Missouri. Yet despite his estrangement from the church and his excommunication in 1839, he retained a degree of sympathy for the Saints and maintained some contact.
apparently began compiling portions of his account while serving as an officially appointed church historian in . He probably completed his narrative by 11 February 1839, when he secured a copyright with the district federal copyright office. He arranged for Thomas Watson & Son of to print A Brief History. The entire print run may have included up to twelve hundred copies.
The document presented here, ’s circa 1838–1839 rough draft of his history, is incomplete. It includes the title page, copyright notice, and preface but is missing twenty-one pages, including the nineteen pages that constitute chapters 1 through 6. The manuscript is almost entirely in Corrill’s handwriting, though some of the chapter summaries (added after he drafted the narrative) were written in a different hand, possibly that of the printer.
’s published version of A Brief History receives comprehensive treatment in volume 2 of the Histories series of The Joseph Smith Papers and is available on this website as part of the history series.
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go to states prision for twenty years or had rather die himself than have the people exterminated. About three Oclock in the evening we received word that the ’s order had arrived, so we we went again to meet them and see what it was. , , , and went and read the order to us. Smith had previously requested that after receiving the order, or finding out what the required, we should see him before we agreed to any proposals. We did so, and although the Mormons have accused us of giving up their leaders by intrigue we yet smith himself was the first man that agreed to the proposals. The following is a true copy of the s order.
“Head quaters of the Militia City of Oct 27. 1838. Sir since the orders of the morning to you, directing you to cause four hundred mounted men to be raised within your Division I have received by of and W C Williams Esqr. one of my aids information of the most appalling nature, which entirely changes the face of things, and places the Mormons in the attitude of an open and avowed defianc[e] of the laws and of having made war upon the people of this . Your orders are therefore to hasten your operations and endeavor to reach in with all possible speed [p. 75]