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Letter from Don Carlos Smith, circa Late May 1838

Source Note

Don Carlos Smith

25 Mar. 1816–7 Aug. 1841. Farmer, printer, editor. Born at Norwich, Windsor Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816–Jan. 1817. Moved to Manchester, Ontario Co., 1825. Baptized into Church of Jesus...

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, Letter, near
Terre Haute

Situated high on east bank of Wabash River. French settlement, 1720–1763; name is French for “high land.” Founded as Fort Harrison, 1811. Laid out and incorporated, 1816. Vigo Co. seat. Population in 1830 about 600; in 1837 about 1,100; and in 1840 about ...

More Info
, Vigo Co., IN, to JS, [
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

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, Caldwell Co., MO], [ca. late May 1838]. Featured version copied [ca. July 1838] in JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, pp. 50–51; handwriting of
George W. Robinson

14 May 1814–10 Feb. 1878. Clerk, postmaster, merchant, clothier, banker. Born at Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1836. Clerk and recorder for Kirtland high...

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; CHL. Includes use marks. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838.

Historical Introduction

While the extended Smith family was moving from
Ohio

French explored and claimed area, 1669. British took possession following French and Indian War, 1763. Ceded to U.S., 1783. First permanent white settlement established, 1788. Northeastern portion maintained as part of Connecticut, 1786, and called Connecticut...

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to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

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in mid-1838,
Don Carlos Smith

25 Mar. 1816–7 Aug. 1841. Farmer, printer, editor. Born at Norwich, Windsor Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816–Jan. 1817. Moved to Manchester, Ontario Co., 1825. Baptized into Church of Jesus...

View Full Bio
wrote to his brother JS regarding the journey. The move was in response to a revelation that JS had dictated in January, directing the members of the
First Presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

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and their families to leave
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

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“as soon as it is praticable” and for their “faithfull friends” to “arise with their families also and get out of this place and gather themselves together unto
Zion

JS revelation, dated 20 July 1831, designated Missouri as “land of Zion” for gathering of Saints and place where “City of Zion” was to be built, with Independence area as “center place” of Zion. Latter-day Saint settlements elsewhere, such as in Kirtland,...

More Info
.”
1

Revelation, 12 Jan. 1838–C.


JS left Kirtland, Ohio, that night and was joined by his
wife

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

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and children a few days later in
Norton

Area first settled, 1814. Formed from Wolf Creek Township, 1818. Reported location of “great Mormon excitement,” 1832–1838. Population in 1830 about 650. Primarily populated by immigrants from New England states. Increased German Pennsylvanian immigration...

More Info
, Ohio. From there, they made their way to
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

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, Missouri.
2

JS History, vol. B-1, 780.


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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, JS’s brother and a counselor in the First Presidency, departed Kirtland with his family in late March and arrived at Far West in late May.
3

Hyrum Smith, Commerce, IL, to “the Saints Scattered Abroad,” Dec. 1839, in Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:21; O’Driscoll, Hyrum Smith, 167–170.


Comprehensive Works Cited

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

O'Driscoll, Jeffrey S. Hyrum Smith: A Life of Integrity. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003.

Before leaving, he arranged for the Smiths still in Ohio to receive financial assistance for their move to Missouri. These arrangements, however, fell through, and the twenty-eight travelers, consisting of the extended Smith family and a few others, were underfunded when they departed Norton on 7 May 1838. Before the group was halfway to
Caldwell County

Located in northwest Missouri. Settled by whites, by 1831. Described as being “one-third timber and two-thirds prairie” in 1836. Created specifically for Latter-day Saints by Missouri state legislature, 29 Dec. 1836, in attempt to solve “Mormon problem.” ...

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, they had spent over one hundred dollars and had only twenty-five dollars for the remainder of the journey. While the group was traveling through the vicinity of
Terre Haute

Situated high on east bank of Wabash River. French settlement, 1720–1763; name is French for “high land.” Founded as Fort Harrison, 1811. Laid out and incorporated, 1816. Vigo Co. seat. Population in 1830 about 600; in 1837 about 1,100; and in 1840 about ...

More Info
, Indiana, one of the horses became lame and the group stopped to care for it, providing an opportunity for Don Carlos Smith to write to JS.
Although the letter is undated, the timing of the letter can be estimated by correlating the group’s month-long journey between
Norton

Area first settled, 1814. Formed from Wolf Creek Township, 1818. Reported location of “great Mormon excitement,” 1832–1838. Population in 1830 about 650. Primarily populated by immigrants from New England states. Increased German Pennsylvanian immigration...

More Info
and 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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(as referenced in the reminiscences of
Lucy Mack Smith

8 July 1775–14 May 1856. Oilcloth painter, nurse, fund-raiser, author. Born at Gilsum, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Daughter of Solomon Mack Sr. and Lydia Gates. Moved to Montague, Franklin Co., Massachusetts, 1779; to Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont, 1788...

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and in the featured letter) with contemporaneous accounts of other Latter-day Saints traveling the same or nearly the same route.
4

See, for example, JS History, vol. A-1, 477–479, addenda, 6–12; Travel Account and Questions, Nov. 1837; Hyrum Smith, Commerce, IL, to “the Saints Scattered Abroad,” Dec. 1839, in Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:21; George A. Smith, Autobiography, 14–36; and Kirtland Camp, Journal, 6 July–2 Oct. 1838; see also Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [3]–[6]; and Plewe et al., Mapping Mormonism, 38–39.


Comprehensive Works Cited

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

Smith, George A. Autobiography, ca. 1860–1882. George Albert Smith, Papers, 1834–1877. CHL. MS 1322, box 1, fd. 2.

Kirtland Camp. Journal, Mar.–Oct. 1838. CHL. MS 4952.

Plewe, Brandon S., S. Kent Brown, Donald Q. Cannon, and Richard H. Jackson, eds. Mapping Mormonism: An Atlas of Latter-day Saint History. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 2012.

The well-documented travels of the 1834
Camp of Israel

A group of approximately 205 men and about 20 women and children led by JS to Missouri, May–July 1834, to redeem Zion by helping the Saints who had been driven from Jackson County, Missouri, regain their lands; later referred to as “Zion’s Camp.” A 24 February...

View Glossary
expedition (later known as Zion’s Camp) and of the 1838 “Kirtland Camp” migration suggest that the Smiths’ group was likely in the vicinity of
Terra Haute

Situated high on east bank of Wabash River. French settlement, 1720–1763; name is French for “high land.” Founded as Fort Harrison, 1811. Laid out and incorporated, 1816. Vigo Co. seat. Population in 1830 about 600; in 1837 about 1,100; and in 1840 about ...

More Info
sometime between 24 and 28 May.
5

The Camp of Israel traveled nearly the same route, crossing the Wabash River about fifteen miles north of Terre Haute; the Kirtland Camp traveled through Terre Haute. It took the Camp of Israel seventeen days to travel from Norton Township to the Wabash River, while it took the Kirtland Camp twenty-eight days to travel from Norton to Terre Haute—not counting the days the camp members stopped to work for wages along the way.a The Camp of Israel spent eleven days traveling from the Wabash River to the Mississippi River, while the Kirtland Camp spent thirteen days traveling from Terre Haute to the Mississippi River.b Lucy Mack Smith recollected that her daughter Katharine Smith Salisbury gave birth after they crossed the Mississippi River; additional sources recall the birth as occurring 7 June.c This collection of information suggests that the Smith party—departing from Norton on 7 May and arriving at the Mississippi River by 7 June—would have reached Terre Haute before 25 May and would have left by 27 May. The letter was written “Nine Miles from Terre Haute”—either to the east or the west—adding approximately one day on either side.(aJS History, vol. A-1, 478–479, addenda 8n4; “Camp of Israel Route, May–June 1834”; Kirtland Camp, Journal, 11 July–7 Sept. 1838.bJS History, vol. A-1, 483, addenda 8n4; Kirtland Camp, Journal, 7–20 Sept. 1838.cLucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [4]; Solomon J. Salisbury, “Reminiscences of an Octogenarian,” Journal of History, Jan. 1922, 18; “Records of Early Church Families,” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, Oct. 1935, 152.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Kirtland Camp. Journal, Mar.–Oct. 1838. CHL. MS 4952.

Journal of History. Lamoni, IA, 1908–1920; Independence, MO, 1921–1925.

“Records of Early Church Families.” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine 26 (Oct. 1935): 145–192.

At the end of the letter,
Don Carlos Smith

25 Mar. 1816–7 Aug. 1841. Farmer, printer, editor. Born at Norwich, Windsor Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816–Jan. 1817. Moved to Manchester, Ontario Co., 1825. Baptized into Church of Jesus...

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wrote, “It is now dark and I close,” suggesting that he wrote the letter in the twilight.
In the letter,
Don Carlos Smith

25 Mar. 1816–7 Aug. 1841. Farmer, printer, editor. Born at Norwich, Windsor Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816–Jan. 1817. Moved to Manchester, Ontario Co., 1825. Baptized into Church of Jesus...

View Full Bio
recounted the difficulty the Smith family experienced trying to fund their migration, and he also mentioned some of the problems the party encountered en route. Because of these challenges, he requested that JS or
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...

View Full Bio
send money to help the travelers complete their journey. It is uncertain when JS received the letter. It should have reached
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
from near
Terre Haute

Situated high on east bank of Wabash River. French settlement, 1720–1763; name is French for “high land.” Founded as Fort Harrison, 1811. Laid out and incorporated, 1816. Vigo Co. seat. Population in 1830 about 600; in 1837 about 1,100; and in 1840 about ...

More Info
in about one to two weeks.
6

Mail between Kirtland and western Missouri generally required three to four weeks of travel time. (Hartley, “Letters and Mail between Kirtland and Independence,” 176.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Hartley, William G. “Letters and Mail between Kirtland and Independence: A Mormon Postal History, 1831–33.” Journal of Mormon History 35, no. 3 (Summer 2009): 163–189.

JS’s scribe,
George W. Robinson

14 May 1814–10 Feb. 1878. Clerk, postmaster, merchant, clothier, banker. Born at Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1836. Clerk and recorder for Kirtland high...

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, copied the letter into JS’s journal after a letter that JS received from
Heber C. Kimball

14 June 1801–22 June 1868. Blacksmith, potter. Born at Sheldon, Franklin Co., Vermont. Son of Solomon Farnham Kimball and Anna Spaulding. Married Vilate Murray, 22 Nov. 1822, at Mendon, Monroe Co., New York. Member of Baptist church at Mendon, 1831. Baptized...

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and
Orson Hyde

8 Jan. 1805–28 Nov. 1878. Laborer, clerk, storekeeper, teacher, editor, businessman, lawyer, judge. Born at Oxford, New Haven Co., Connecticut. Son of Nathan Hyde and Sally Thorpe. Moved to Derby, New Haven Co., 1812. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, ...

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on 6 July and before a journal entry for 8 July 1838, suggesting JS received the letter sometime between 6 and 8 July.
7

Years later, the Latter-day Saints working on the history JS initiated in 1838 implied that both letters were received the same day. This assumption was likely based on the placement of the letters in JS’s journal, not knowledge of when the letters arrived in Far West. However, both letters may well have arrived in the same delivery of mail. (JS History, vol. B-1, 801.)


These entries fall within a large gap in regular journal keeping, and Robinson apparently did not resume making regular entries until late July, which indicates that he may not have copied the letter from Don Carlos Smith before that time.
8

JS, Journal, 4–8 and 26–31 July 1838.


The original letter is apparently not extant.
JS may have responded to the letter by sending the requested financial assistance, just as the Saints in
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
had sent him financial assistance to complete his journey.
9

JS was met in Huntsville, Missouri, by John Barnard, who had been sent from Caldwell County with money to assist JS and those with him in completing their journey. (See Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 17; and JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

The Smith party may have received such assistance when they arrived in
Huntsville

Located in north-central Missouri. Settled in 1820s. Randolph Co. seat. Described in 1837 as having brick courthouse and seven stores, but no church buildings. Members of 1834 Camp of Israel and 1838 Kirtland Camp passed through Huntsville en route to Missouri...

More Info
, Missouri.
Lucy Mack Smith

8 July 1775–14 May 1856. Oilcloth painter, nurse, fund-raiser, author. Born at Gilsum, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Daughter of Solomon Mack Sr. and Lydia Gates. Moved to Montague, Franklin Co., Massachusetts, 1779; to Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont, 1788...

View Full Bio
later recounted that upon arriving there, they rested in a home for a while and arranged for a buggy to transport her daughter
Katharine Smith Salisbury

28 July 1813–2 Feb. 1900. Seamstress, weaver. Born at Lebanon, Grafton Co., New Hampshire. Daughter of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Norwich, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1813; to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816–Jan. 1817; and to Manchester, Ontario...

View Full Bio
, who was ill and lagging behind. Lucy further recounted that when the group moved on from Huntsville, they were able to pursue their journey “without any further difficulty.”
10

Don Carlos Smith, who went ahead of the main group, arrived in Far West by 8 July 1838, as did his wife, Agnes Coolbrith Smith, and possibly other members of the party. (Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [5]–[6]; Deed to Samuel F. Whitney, 8 July 1838.)


Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Revelation, 12 Jan. 1838–C.

  2. [2]

    JS History, vol. B-1, 780.

  3. [3]

    Hyrum Smith, Commerce, IL, to “the Saints Scattered Abroad,” Dec. 1839, in Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:21; O’Driscoll, Hyrum Smith, 167–170.

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

    O'Driscoll, Jeffrey S. Hyrum Smith: A Life of Integrity. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003.

  4. [4]

    See, for example, JS History, vol. A-1, 477–479, addenda, 6–12; Travel Account and Questions, Nov. 1837; Hyrum Smith, Commerce, IL, to “the Saints Scattered Abroad,” Dec. 1839, in Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:21; George A. Smith, Autobiography, 14–36; and Kirtland Camp, Journal, 6 July–2 Oct. 1838; see also Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [3]–[6]; and Plewe et al., Mapping Mormonism, 38–39.

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

    Smith, George A. Autobiography, ca. 1860–1882. George Albert Smith, Papers, 1834–1877. CHL. MS 1322, box 1, fd. 2.

    Kirtland Camp. Journal, Mar.–Oct. 1838. CHL. MS 4952.

    Plewe, Brandon S., S. Kent Brown, Donald Q. Cannon, and Richard H. Jackson, eds. Mapping Mormonism: An Atlas of Latter-day Saint History. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 2012.

  5. [5]

    The Camp of Israel traveled nearly the same route, crossing the Wabash River about fifteen miles north of Terre Haute; the Kirtland Camp traveled through Terre Haute. It took the Camp of Israel seventeen days to travel from Norton Township to the Wabash River, while it took the Kirtland Camp twenty-eight days to travel from Norton to Terre Haute—not counting the days the camp members stopped to work for wages along the way.a The Camp of Israel spent eleven days traveling from the Wabash River to the Mississippi River, while the Kirtland Camp spent thirteen days traveling from Terre Haute to the Mississippi River.b Lucy Mack Smith recollected that her daughter Katharine Smith Salisbury gave birth after they crossed the Mississippi River; additional sources recall the birth as occurring 7 June.c This collection of information suggests that the Smith party—departing from Norton on 7 May and arriving at the Mississippi River by 7 June—would have reached Terre Haute before 25 May and would have left by 27 May. The letter was written “Nine Miles from Terre Haute”—either to the east or the west—adding approximately one day on either side.

    (aJS History, vol. A-1, 478–479, addenda 8n4; “Camp of Israel Route, May–June 1834”; Kirtland Camp, Journal, 11 July–7 Sept. 1838. bJS History, vol. A-1, 483, addenda 8n4; Kirtland Camp, Journal, 7–20 Sept. 1838. cLucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [4]; Solomon J. Salisbury, “Reminiscences of an Octogenarian,” Journal of History, Jan. 1922, 18; “Records of Early Church Families,” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, Oct. 1935, 152.)

    Kirtland Camp. Journal, Mar.–Oct. 1838. CHL. MS 4952.

    Journal of History. Lamoni, IA, 1908–1920; Independence, MO, 1921–1925.

    “Records of Early Church Families.” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine 26 (Oct. 1935): 145–192.

  6. [6]

    Mail between Kirtland and western Missouri generally required three to four weeks of travel time. (Hartley, “Letters and Mail between Kirtland and Independence,” 176.)

    Hartley, William G. “Letters and Mail between Kirtland and Independence: A Mormon Postal History, 1831–33.” Journal of Mormon History 35, no. 3 (Summer 2009): 163–189.

  7. [7]

    Years later, the Latter-day Saints working on the history JS initiated in 1838 implied that both letters were received the same day. This assumption was likely based on the placement of the letters in JS’s journal, not knowledge of when the letters arrived in Far West. However, both letters may well have arrived in the same delivery of mail. (JS History, vol. B-1, 801.)

  8. [8]

    JS, Journal, 4–8 and 26–31 July 1838.

  9. [9]

    JS was met in Huntsville, Missouri, by John Barnard, who had been sent from Caldwell County with money to assist JS and those with him in completing their journey. (See Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 17; and JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16.)

    Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.

  10. [10]

    Don Carlos Smith, who went ahead of the main group, arrived in Far West by 8 July 1838, as did his wife, Agnes Coolbrith Smith, and possibly other members of the party. (Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [5]–[6]; Deed to Samuel F. Whitney, 8 July 1838.)

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Letter from Don Carlos Smith, circa Late May 1838
Journal, March–September 1838 History, 1838–1856, volume B-1 [1 September 1834–2 November 1838] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 50

Nine Miles from
Terre Haute

Situated high on east bank of Wabash River. French settlement, 1720–1763; name is French for “high land.” Founded as Fort Harrison, 1811. Laid out and incorporated, 1816. Vigo Co. seat. Population in 1830 about 600; in 1837 about 1,100; and in 1840 about ...

More Info
, Ind.
Bro. Joseph
I sit down to inform you of our situation at the present time. I started from
Norton

Area first settled, 1814. Formed from Wolf Creek Township, 1818. Reported location of “great Mormon excitement,” 1832–1838. Population in 1830 about 650. Primarily populated by immigrants from New England states. Increased German Pennsylvanian immigration...

More Info
, Ohio,
1

New Portage, in Norton Township, had a strong branch of the church. Situated on the Ohio and Erie Canal, Norton was an important junction for Latter-day Saints traveling from Kirtland to Missouri.a For example, in 1834 groups of men from Kirtland and other places met in Norton to embark on the Camp of Israel.b In January 1838, after fleeing Kirtland, JS waited in Norton for his wife and children to join him on his journey to Far West.c Joseph Smith Sr. and Don Carlos Smith moved from Kirtland to Norton soon thereafter to avoid being arrested for performing marriages without being considered regularly ordained ministers. When the remainder of the extended Smith family was ready to move to Far West, they joined with Joseph Smith Sr. and Don Carlos Smith in Norton to pursue their journey together.d(a1833 Ohio Gazetteer, 344.bJS History, vol. A-1, 477–479; “Elder Kimball’s Journal,” Times and Seasons, 15 Jan. 1845, 6:771; Baldwin, Account of Zion’s Camp, 8–9; McBride, Reminiscence, 2.cJS History, vol. B-1, 780.dLucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [1]–[3].)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The 1833 Ohio Gazetteer, or, Topographical Dictionary: Being a Continuation of the Work Originally Compiled by the Late John Kilbourn. Revised by a citizen of Columbus. 11th ed. Columbus, OH: Scott and Wright, 1833. Reprint, Knightstown, IN: Bookmark, 1978.

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

Baldwin, Nathan Bennett. Account of Zion’s Camp, 1882. Typescript. CHL. MS 499.

McBride, Reuben, Sr. Reminiscence, no date. CHL. MS 8197.

the 7th of May, in company with
Father

12 July 1771–14 Sept. 1840. Cooper, farmer, teacher, merchant. Born at Topsfield, Essex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Nominal member of Congregationalist church at Topsfield. Married to Lucy Mack by Seth Austin, 24 Jan. 1796, at Tunbridge...

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,
Wm. [Smith]

13 Mar. 1811–13 Nov. 1893. Farmer, newspaper editor. Born at Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Lebanon, Grafton Co., New Hampshire, 1811; to Norwich, Windsor Co., 1813; and to Palmyra, Ontario Co., New York, 1816...

View Full Bio
,
Jenkins salsbury [Wilkins Jenkins Salisbury]

6 Jan. 1809–28 Oct. 1853. Lawyer, blacksmith. Born at Rushville, Yates Co., New York. Son of Gideon Salisbury and Elizabeth Shields. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1831. Married...

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,
Wm. McClerry [McCleary]

9 Oct. 1793–ca. 1847. Born at Rupert, Bennington Co., Vermont. Married Sophronia Smith Stoddard, 11 Feb. 1838, at Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio. Ordained an elder in Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Reuben Hedlock, 26 Feb. 1838, at Kirtland. Left...

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&
Lewis Rob[b]ins

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, and families,
2

William Smith was Don Carlos Smith’s brother. Wilkins Jenkins Salisbury and William McCleary were the husbands of Don Carlos’s sisters Katharine and Sophronia. Lewis Robbins lived with Don Carlos Smith in Kirtland. (Robbins, Autobiographical Sketch, 3–4; Backman, Profile, 111.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Robbins, Lewis. Autobiographical Sketch, ca. 1845. Typescript. CHL.

Backman, Milton V., Jr., comp. A Profile of Latter-day Saints of Kirtland, Ohio, and Members of Zion’s Camp, 1830–1839: Vital Statistics and Sources. 2nd ed. Provo, UT: Department of Church History and Doctrine and Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1983.

also sister singly
3

Possibly Margaret Leasure Singley (1791–1874). (Ambrosia Branch, Lee Co., Iowa Territory, Record Book, 4; Obituary for Margaret Leasure Singley, True Latter Day Saints’ Herald, 1 Dec. 1874, 733.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Ambrosia Branch, Lee Co., Iowa Territory, Record Book, 1844–1846. CHL.

Saints’ Herald. Independence, MO. 1860–.

is one of our number, we started with 15 horses seven wagons, & two cows, we have left two horses by the way sick one with a swelling in <​on​> his shoulder, a 3rd horse (as it were our dependance) was taken lame, last evening and is not able to travel, and we have stop[p]ed to docter him We were disappointed on every hand before we started, in getting money, we got no assistance whatever only as we have taken in sister singly and she has assisted us as far as her means extends, we had when we started, $75 dollars in money, we sold the 2 cows for $13.50 per cow we have sold of your goods to the amt of $45.74 and now we have only $25 dollars to carry 28 souls & 13 horses, 500 miles, we have lived very close and camped out knight, notwithstanding the rain & cold, & my babe only 2 weeks old when we started,
Agness [Agnes Coolbrith Smith]

11 July 1811–26 Dec. 1876. Born at Scarborough, Cumberland Co., Maine. Daughter of Joseph Coolbrith and Mary Hasty Foss. Moved to Boston, by 1832. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832, at Boston. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio...

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is very feeble
4

Don Carlos Smith’s wife, Agnes Coolbrith Smith, gave birth to Sophronia Smith on 22 April 1838. Sophronia was apparently named after her aunt Sophronia Smith McCleary, who was also part of the group traveling with Don Carlos Smith. (“Family Record of Don C. Smith,” in Smith Family Genealogy Record, CHL.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Smith Family Genealogy Record, circa 1840. CHL. MS 1024 2.

Father

12 July 1771–14 Sept. 1840. Cooper, farmer, teacher, merchant. Born at Topsfield, Essex Co., Massachusetts. Son of Asael Smith and Mary Duty. Nominal member of Congregationalist church at Topsfield. Married to Lucy Mack by Seth Austin, 24 Jan. 1796, at Tunbridge...

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&
Mother

8 July 1775–14 May 1856. Oilcloth painter, nurse, fund-raiser, author. Born at Gilsum, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Daughter of Solomon Mack Sr. and Lydia Gates. Moved to Montague, Franklin Co., Massachusetts, 1779; to Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont, 1788...

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are not well but very much fatigued,
Mother

8 July 1775–14 May 1856. Oilcloth painter, nurse, fund-raiser, author. Born at Gilsum, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Daughter of Solomon Mack Sr. and Lydia Gates. Moved to Montague, Franklin Co., Massachusetts, 1779; to Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont, 1788...

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has a severe cold,
5

Lucy Mack Smith later recounted that she “took a severe cold” after having to travel three days in wet clothing. By the time they reached the Mississippi River, she was “unable to sit up any length and could not walk without assistance.” (Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [4].)


and it is nothing in fact but the prayer of faith
6

See James 5:15.


and the power of God, that will sustain them and bring them through, our carriage is good and I think we shall be braught through, I leave it with you and
Hyram [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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to devise some way to assist us to some more expence money, we have had unaccountable road <​bad​> roads, had our horses down in the mud, and broke of[f] one wagon tongue [p. 50]
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Source Note

Document Transcript

Page 50

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Don Carlos Smith, circa Late May 1838
ID #
395
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D6:148–152
Handwriting on This Page
  • George W. Robinson

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    New Portage, in Norton Township, had a strong branch of the church. Situated on the Ohio and Erie Canal, Norton was an important junction for Latter-day Saints traveling from Kirtland to Missouri.a For example, in 1834 groups of men from Kirtland and other places met in Norton to embark on the Camp of Israel.b In January 1838, after fleeing Kirtland, JS waited in Norton for his wife and children to join him on his journey to Far West.c Joseph Smith Sr. and Don Carlos Smith moved from Kirtland to Norton soon thereafter to avoid being arrested for performing marriages without being considered regularly ordained ministers. When the remainder of the extended Smith family was ready to move to Far West, they joined with Joseph Smith Sr. and Don Carlos Smith in Norton to pursue their journey together.d

    (a1833 Ohio Gazetteer, 344. bJS History, vol. A-1, 477–479; “Elder Kimball’s Journal,” Times and Seasons, 15 Jan. 1845, 6:771; Baldwin, Account of Zion’s Camp, 8–9; McBride, Reminiscence, 2. cJS History, vol. B-1, 780. dLucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [1]–[3].)

    The 1833 Ohio Gazetteer, or, Topographical Dictionary: Being a Continuation of the Work Originally Compiled by the Late John Kilbourn. Revised by a citizen of Columbus. 11th ed. Columbus, OH: Scott and Wright, 1833. Reprint, Knightstown, IN: Bookmark, 1978.

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

    Baldwin, Nathan Bennett. Account of Zion’s Camp, 1882. Typescript. CHL. MS 499.

    McBride, Reuben, Sr. Reminiscence, no date. CHL. MS 8197.

  2. [2]

    William Smith was Don Carlos Smith’s brother. Wilkins Jenkins Salisbury and William McCleary were the husbands of Don Carlos’s sisters Katharine and Sophronia. Lewis Robbins lived with Don Carlos Smith in Kirtland. (Robbins, Autobiographical Sketch, 3–4; Backman, Profile, 111.)

    Robbins, Lewis. Autobiographical Sketch, ca. 1845. Typescript. CHL.

    Backman, Milton V., Jr., comp. A Profile of Latter-day Saints of Kirtland, Ohio, and Members of Zion’s Camp, 1830–1839: Vital Statistics and Sources. 2nd ed. Provo, UT: Department of Church History and Doctrine and Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1983.

  3. [3]

    Possibly Margaret Leasure Singley (1791–1874). (Ambrosia Branch, Lee Co., Iowa Territory, Record Book, 4; Obituary for Margaret Leasure Singley, True Latter Day Saints’ Herald, 1 Dec. 1874, 733.)

    Ambrosia Branch, Lee Co., Iowa Territory, Record Book, 1844–1846. CHL.

    Saints’ Herald. Independence, MO. 1860–.

  4. [4]

    Don Carlos Smith’s wife, Agnes Coolbrith Smith, gave birth to Sophronia Smith on 22 April 1838. Sophronia was apparently named after her aunt Sophronia Smith McCleary, who was also part of the group traveling with Don Carlos Smith. (“Family Record of Don C. Smith,” in Smith Family Genealogy Record, CHL.)

    Smith Family Genealogy Record, circa 1840. CHL. MS 1024 2.

  5. [5]

    Lucy Mack Smith later recounted that she “took a severe cold” after having to travel three days in wet clothing. By the time they reached the Mississippi River, she was “unable to sit up any length and could not walk without assistance.” (Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 15, [4].)

  6. [6]

    See James 5:15.

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