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Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, 23 January 1844

Source Note

JS, Lease, [, Hancock Co., IL], to , [, Hancock Co., IL], 23 Jan. 1844; handwriting of ; three pages; Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU. Includes seal, docket, and archival markings.
Bifolium measuring 12⅜ × 7⅝ inches (31 × 19 cm). The paper is ruled with thirty-six horizontal lines printed in blue ink. The lease was inscribed on the first three pages. The bifolium was folded in half horizontally twice for filing and docketed.
The document was docketed by , who served as scribe to JS from 1842 to 1844 and as Nauvoo temple recorder from 1842 to 1846. In late 1844, following JS’s death, became one of the interim church trustees and was appointed “first bishop” among other Nauvoo bishops. It was presumably during this time that many of the church’s financial and other administrative records passed into his possession. This document, along with many other personal and institutional documents that Whitney kept, was inherited by Newel K. and ’s daughter Mary Jane Whitney, who was married to Isaac Groo. The documents were passed down within the Groo family. Between 1969 and 1974, the Groo family donated their collection of Newel K. Whitney’s papers to the J. Reuben Clark Library (renamed Harold B. Lee Library in 1973) at Brigham Young University.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 29 June 1842; “Clayton, William,” in Jenson, Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1:718; Clayton, History of the Nauvoo Temple, 18, 30–31.

    Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson History Co., 1901–1936.

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

  2. [2]

    Richards, Journal, 9 Aug. 1844; “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1844, 5:693; see also Minutes, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:30.

    Richards, Willard. Journals, 1836–1853. Willard Richards, Papers, 1821–1854. CHL. MS 1490, boxes 1–2.

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

  3. [3]

    Andrus and Fuller, Register of the Newel Kimball Whitney Papers, 24; Wilkinson et al., Brigham Young University, 4:255.

    Andrus, Hyrum L., and Chris Fuller, comp. Register of the Newel Kimball Whitney Papers. Provo, UT: Division of Archives and Manuscripts, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, 1978.

    Wilkinson, Ernest L., Leonard J. Arrington, and Bruce C. Hafen, eds. Brigham Young University: The First One Hundred Years. Vol. 4. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 1976.

Historical Introduction

On 23 January 1844, JS entered into an agreement to lease his home and hotel in , Illinois, to member . Located on lot 3 of block 147, the was diagonally across Water and Main streets from the Smiths’ first Nauvoo home, in the southwestern part of the city. JS and had lent and rented rooms in their “old house” to visitors and incoming Latter-day Saints since shortly after arriving in the , Illinois, area in late spring 1839. A January 1841 revelation had commanded the construction of a large boardinghouse to be called the that would also serve as a residence for the Smith family. Over the years, however, work on the Nauvoo House frequently halted due to competition with the construction project for materials and labor, which were in limited supply. When it became clear that the massive stone and brick Nauvoo House would not be completed for some time, JS had the two-story frame Nauvoo Mansion—referred to in this document as the “Mansion House”—built as a temporary residence and hotel. JS and his family moved into the Nauvoo Mansion in August 1843 and opened it as a hotel in the following weeks.
The terms of the lease stipulated that the Smiths would retain a set of rooms for their own accommodation and would take control of the hotel and its outbuildings as well as a nearby barn. In addition to JS, , and their four children, JS’s mother, , and three servants would also receive board. In exchange for gaining control of the hotel and its business, Robinson would pay JS $1,000 per year in quarterly payments of $250 each, as well as any taxes assessed on the property. The lease agreement was for one year, with the option to continue for another two years or more if both parties agreed. A three-page “Inventory of Goods & Furniture delivered E. Robinson Jany 23 1843 [1844]” accompanied the lease agreement, noting various items such as furniture, kitchenware, beds and bedding, and tools that JS was leasing to Robinson.
The original version of the lease, presumably signed, may have been given to . Two additional copies of the lease—one apparently a partial draft—like the retained version featured here, ended up in the possession of .

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Hills, Map of the City of Nauvoo, 1842.

    Hills, Gustavus. Map of the City of Nauvoo. New York: J. Child, 1842. CHL.

  2. [2]

    See JS, Journal, 10 May 1839; and JS, Journal, 31 Aug. 1843; 12 and 21 Nov. 1843.

  3. [3]

    Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:22–24, 56–61].

  4. [4]

    Smith, “Nauvoo Boarding House,” 125–129.

    Smith, Alex D. “Symbol of Mormonism: The Nauvoo Boarding House.” John Whitmer Historical Association Journal 35, no. 2 (Fall/Winter 2015): 109–136.

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 31 Aug. 1843; 15 Sept. 1843; 3 Oct. 1843.

  6. [6]

    “Inventory of Goods & Furniture Delivered E. Robinson,” 23 Jan. 1843 [1844], Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.

  7. [7]

    JS, Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, ca. 23 Jan. 1844; JS, Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, ca. 23 Jan. 1844, Excerpt, Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, 23 January 1844, Partial Draft
*Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, 23 January 1844
Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, 23 January 1844, Copy

Page [1]

This Indenture, made this the twenty third day of January in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty four, between Joseph Smith at of the county of and State of of the one part, and of the and aforesaid of the other part, Witnesseth, that the said Joseph Smith, for the and in consideration of the rent, covenants, and agreements hereafter in and by these present mentioned, reserved, and contained on the part and behalf of the said , his executors, administrators, and assigns, to be paid, observed, done and performed, hath demised, granted and leased, and doth hereby <​demise​> grant and lease; unto the said his executors, administrators and assigns, all the following described premises, situate and being in the City of , in the county of and State of , to wit; all of Lot number three in Block number one hundred and forty seven, together with the “” outhouses, back houses and all the premises thereunto belonging, together with the contemplated improvements to be made on the east end of said “” whenever completed. Also all the furniture fixtures & utensils belonging to the said as will appear by refference to an inventory of the same and bearing even date herewith.
Secondly All that New Brick Barn which is situated on the North East part of Block No one hundred and fifty-six together with the Barn Yard surrounding it, and is to have the privilege of having the said Barn Yard enlarged if it is needed to be so enlarged,
Thirdly, All that Barn and Barn Yard situated on the West end of Block No one hundred and fifty five <​if necessary——​>
fourthly. The said is to have the privilege of drawing the manure from the stables &c on to the said L3 B157 B147 in such quantities as he shall deem necessary to enrich the same.
Provided however, and it is hereby expressly understood by the said that the said [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Lease to Ebenezer Robinson, 23 January 1844
ID #
1816
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • William Clayton

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    This property amounted to one acre on the northeast corner of Water and Main streets. (Hancock Co., IL, Plat Books, 1836–1938, vol. 1, p. 37, Nauvoo Plat, 3 Sept. 1839, microfilm 954,774, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Hills, Map of the City of Nauvoo, 1842.)

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

    Hills, Gustavus. Map of the City of Nauvoo. New York: J. Child, 1842. CHL.

  2. [2]

    It is unclear which improvements these were. The lease is probably referring to a small addition that at some point was made to the east wing, which became Lucy Mack Smith’s residence for a time. Alternatively, it may refer to the east wing itself. Architectural evidence on the building suggests that the southeast “hotel” wing was not part of the original building’s construction but that the wing may have been added when the home was opened as a hotel in October 1843. (Lachlan MacKay, email to Alex D. Smith, 13 Aug. 2021, copy in editors’ possession.)

    MacKay, Lachlan. Email, to Alex D. Smith, 13 Aug. 2021. Copy in editors' possession.

  3. [3]

    “Inventory of Goods & Furniture Delivered E. Robinson,” 23 Jan. 1843 [1844], Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.

  4. [4]

    Nauvoo block 156 was directly south of the Nauvoo Mansion across Water Street, where the Nauvoo House was then under construction. (Hills, Map of the City of Nauvoo, 1842.)

    Hills, Gustavus. Map of the City of Nauvoo. New York: J. Child, 1842. CHL.

  5. [5]

    The west end of Nauvoo block 155 was where JS’s brick store was located, on the southeast corner of Water and Granger streets. (Hills, Map of the City of Nauvoo, 1842.)

    Hills, Gustavus. Map of the City of Nauvoo. New York: J. Child, 1842. CHL.

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