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Letter from Edward Southwick, 7 August 1843

Source Note

, Letter, , Lee Co., IL, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 7 Aug. 1843; handwriting of ; two pages; photocopy in Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU. Includes address, postal notation, docket, and endorsements. Transcription from photocopy.
Three leaves measuring 14 × 8½ inches (36 × 22 cm). The photocopy does not contain an image of the third page. The original letter was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, and sealed with an adhesive wafer. The letter was torn when opened, and the final page contains wafer residue. The leaves were later stapled together in the upper left corner of the recto.
The letter was docketed and endorsed by , who served as JS’s scribe from December 1841 until JS’s death in June 1844 and served as church historian from December 1842 until his own death in March 1854. In late 1844, following JS’s death, became one of the interim church trustees and was appointed “first bishop” among other 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 its 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, 13 Dec. 1841 and 21 Dec. 1842; Orson Spencer, “Death of Our Beloved Brother Willard Richards,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 16 Mar. 1854, [2].

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  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 7 August 1843, , Illinois, attorney wrote a letter to JS seeking information about the recent congressional election and requesting that JS pay the legal fees he incurred the previous month. On 23 June 1843, , Illinois, constable arrested JS near Dixon and turned him over to sheriff , the agent authorized to convey JS to Missouri. Shortly after, JS retained Southwick, , and as legal counsel. Over the next week, JS and his attorneys employed several strategies to prevent his extradition to Missouri. On 1 July, JS appeared before the Municipal Court on a writ of , resulting in a discharge from custody.
Following this episode, provided the Warsaw Message with an account of JS’s arrest, his treatment by his captors, his arrival in , and the habeas corpus hearing, which the newspaper printed in a 12 July extra. The Warsaw Message reprinted the account in the full edition of that week’s paper, issued on 15 July, but editor Thomas Gregg noted that asserted that Southwick’s statement contained “two unqualified falsehoods.” Specifically, Wilson denied Southwick’s claims that prevented JS from communicating with his legal counsel while in and that the who met the company near Nauvoo were unarmed. Angered by the “falsehood and vilianous conduct of Wilson,” Southwick promptly sent Gregg two affidavits supporting his original account. Fearing that Gregg would not print his response, Southwick also sent the affidavits to JS on 29 July, requesting that he have them published.
On 7 August 1843, wrote the letter featured here to JS. Southwick reiterated his desire for JS to publish the affidavits he sent him ten days earlier, asked for the results of the congressional election in and in , and requested payment for the legal services he had provided JS. Southwick mailed the letter, presumably from , and JS received it in Nauvoo. An endorsement in the handwriting of indicates that JS responded to Southwick’s letter on 16 August, though the response is apparently not extant.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Historical Introduction to Extradition of JS for Treason; Historical Introduction to Discourse, 6 Aug. 1843; Minutes, 1 July 1843, Extradition of JS for Treason (Nauvoo Mun. Ct. 1843), JS Collection, CHL.

  2. [2]

    JS, Journal, 5 July 1843; [Edward Southwick], “Statement,” Warsaw (IL) Message, Extra, 12 July 1843, [1].

    Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

  3. [3]

    [Edward Southwick], “Statement,” and Editor, Notice, Warsaw (IL) Message, 12 [15] July 1843, [3].

    Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

  4. [4]

    Letter from Edward Southwick, 29 July 1843. The affidavits were published in the Nauvoo Neighbor in November 1843. (Affidavits, Nauvoo Neighbor, 8 Nov. 1843, [2]–[3].)

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

Page [1]

, Lee Co. Ills. August 7th 1843.
Gen. Joseph Smith
My Dear Sir.
I hope you have received my Communication for the Warsaw Message sent you a few days since, as I deem its publication of consequence to me as it vindicates my Character from the aspersions of a man who if well known I should take no trouble to contradict, as I am satisfied no one who knows him will believe him. I refer to the Gentleman who lately arrested You.
I wish you to <​do​> me the favour to send me by return of mail the result of the Election for member to Congress in the County of and also the result of said Election for said Member of Congress in the precinct in which the City of is situate.
I wish you also to send me by mail if you can procure Current bills the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars.
If you will send it to me within two or three weeks from this date I will [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Edward Southwick, 7 August 1843
ID #
1133
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D13:27–30
Handwriting on This Page
  • Edward Southwick

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    It is possible that Southwick was interested in this information because Cyrus Walker, who was also involved in JS’s defense during his July habeas corpus hearing, was a candidate in the election. In the 7 August 1843 election, 2,088 Hancock County citizens voted for Democrat Joseph P. Hoge, while 733 voted for Whig candidate Walker. In the city of Nauvoo, 1,080 citizens voted for Hoge and 98 voted for Walker. (Historical Introduction to Discourse, 6 Aug. 1843; Pease, Illinois Election Returns, 1818–1848, 140; “Election Returns,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 16 Aug. 1843, [2].)

    Pease, Theodore Calvin, ed. Illinois Election Returns, 1818–1848. Springfield, Illinois: Illinois State Historical Library, 1923.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

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