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Letter from Hugh Legaré, 31 March 1843 [Forgery]

Source Note

Hugh Legaré, Letter,
Washington DC

Created as district for seat of U.S. federal government by act of Congress, 1790, and named Washington DC, 1791. Named in honor of George Washington. Headquarters of executive, legislative, and judicial branches of U.S. government relocated to Washington ...

More Info
, to JS,
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....

More Info
, Hancock Co., IL, 31 Mar. 1843; forgery in unidentified handwriting; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address and docket.
Bifolium measuring 9½ × 7¾ inches (24 × 20 cm). Each page is ruled with twenty-seven horizontal gray lines. The upper left corner of the recto is embossed with the partially legible oval insignia of a paper manufacturer that reads “
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...

More Info
”. The letter was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, and sealed with a red adhesive wafer. The letter was later refolded for filing.
Jonathan Grimshaw, who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1856, docketed the letter.
1

Historian’s Office, Journal, 7 June 1853; Wilford Woodruff, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 30 Aug. 1856, in Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 364.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Historian’s Office. Journal, 1844–1997. CHL. CR 100 1.

Historian’s Office. Letterpress Copybooks, 1854–1879, 1885–1886. CHL. CR 100 38.

Around the same time,
Leo Hawkins

19 July 1834–28 May 1859. Clerk, reporter. Born in London. Son of Samuel Harris Hawkins and Charlotte Savage. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by John Banks, 23 Oct. 1848. Immigrated to U.S. with his family; arrived in New Orleans...

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, who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office from 1853 to 1859, copied the missive into the multivolume manuscript history of the church.
2

“Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497; JS History, vol. D-1, 1535; Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 441.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

The document was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office circa 1904.
3

“Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [3], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL).
4

See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.


The letter’s early dockets, its inclusion in the manuscript history, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Historian’s Office, Journal, 7 June 1853; Wilford Woodruff, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 30 Aug. 1856, in Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 364.

    Historian’s Office. Journal, 1844–1997. CHL. CR 100 1.

    Historian’s Office. Letterpress Copybooks, 1854–1879, 1885–1886. CHL. CR 100 38.

  2. [2]

    “Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497; JS History, vol. D-1, 1535; Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 441.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

  3. [3]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [3], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

  4. [4]

    See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On 16 April 1843 in
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....

More Info
, Illinois, JS received a forged letter that was produced to appear as though it had been written by
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
attorney general Hugh Legaré in
Washington DC

Created as district for seat of U.S. federal government by act of Congress, 1790, and named Washington DC, 1791. Named in honor of George Washington. Headquarters of executive, legislative, and judicial branches of U.S. government relocated to Washington ...

More Info
. The letter asserted that JS had been charged with high treason and ordered him to surrender himself to
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
governor
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

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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...

More Info
, Illinois, so that JS could be tried by the United States Supreme Court. The missive also stated that if JS did not turn himself in, President
John Tyler

29 Mar. 1790–18 Jan. 1862. Lawyer, politician. Born on Greenway Plantation, Charles City Co., Virginia. Son of John Tyler and Mary Armistead. Attended College of William and Mary. Following graduation, returned to Greenway, 1807. Served as Virginia state ...

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would issue a proclamation for JS’s arrest on 1 May 1843. JS’s scribe
William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

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wrote on 23 April that “we all considered [the letter] to be a hoax, but designed to alarm us by some of our enemies who would undoubtedly be glad to see the prophet run to springfield like a fool, at such a dictum.”
1

Clayton, Journal, 23 Apr. 1843.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Several factors confirm
Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

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’s assessment of the letter’s inauthenticity. First, the letter is not in the handwriting of Hugh Legaré.
2

Compare, for example, Hugh Legaré, New York City, NY, to “My Dear Mary,” 10 Oct. 1839, Hugh Swinton Legaré, Papers, 1814–1890, South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Legaré, Hugh Swinton. Papers, 1814–1890. South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia.

Second, the letter demonstrates a lack of familiarity with legal procedure and the jurisdiction of the federal courts, information that Legaré, as attorney general, would have known.
3

If JS was charged with committing treason against the United States, he would have been arrested by a federal marshal, not the governor of Illinois. In addition, his trial would have been held before a United States circuit court with jurisdiction where the treason was allegedly committed rather than the Supreme Court. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave circuit courts “exclusive cognizance of all crimes and offences cognizable under the authority of the United States,” whereas the Supreme Court possessed only appellate jurisdiction over federal crimes. (An Act to Establish the Judicial Courts of the United States [24 Sept. 1789], Public Statutes at Large, vol. 1, pp. 78–81, 87, secs. 11, 13, 27; U.S. Constitution, art. 3, sec. 2.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

Third, the document lacks a postmark, indicating that it was hand delivered rather than mailed from the nation’s capital. Furthermore,
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

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, the
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....

More Info
postmaster, received a similarly suspect letter claiming to be from
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
postmaster general Charles A. Wickliffe that informed Rigdon that the Nauvoo post office was closed immediately and that he was relieved of his duties. Upon investigation, Rigdon determined that the missive was a hoax, and the mail continued to arrive in Nauvoo without interruption.
4

JS, Journal, 17 Apr. 1843; Clayton, Journal, 23 Apr. 1843.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

Finally,
President Tyler

29 Mar. 1790–18 Jan. 1862. Lawyer, politician. Born on Greenway Plantation, Charles City Co., Virginia. Son of John Tyler and Mary Armistead. Attended College of William and Mary. Following graduation, returned to Greenway, 1807. Served as Virginia state ...

View Full Bio
did not issue a proclamation for JS’s arrest on the appointed date. Although it remains unknown who produced the hoax letters or for what purpose, they were most likely created by one or more individuals who knew that JS had been charged with treason 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
and that Rigdon’s position as Nauvoo postmaster was shrouded in controversy.
5

See Historical Introduction to State of Missouri v. Gates et al. for Treason; and Historical Introduction to Letter to Sidney Rigdon, 27 Mar. 1843.


Unlike twentieth-century forgeries, this letter is included in the print edition because it was produced during JS’s lifetime, and he received and owned it.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Clayton, Journal, 23 Apr. 1843.

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

  2. [2]

    Compare, for example, Hugh Legaré, New York City, NY, to “My Dear Mary,” 10 Oct. 1839, Hugh Swinton Legaré, Papers, 1814–1890, South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia.

    Legaré, Hugh Swinton. Papers, 1814–1890. South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia.

  3. [3]

    If JS was charged with committing treason against the United States, he would have been arrested by a federal marshal, not the governor of Illinois. In addition, his trial would have been held before a United States circuit court with jurisdiction where the treason was allegedly committed rather than the Supreme Court. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave circuit courts “exclusive cognizance of all crimes and offences cognizable under the authority of the United States,” whereas the Supreme Court possessed only appellate jurisdiction over federal crimes. (An Act to Establish the Judicial Courts of the United States [24 Sept. 1789], Public Statutes at Large, vol. 1, pp. 78–81, 87, secs. 11, 13, 27; U.S. Constitution, art. 3, sec. 2.)

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

  4. [4]

    JS, Journal, 17 Apr. 1843; Clayton, Journal, 23 Apr. 1843.

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

  5. [5]

    See Historical Introduction to State of Missouri v. Gates et al. for Treason; and Historical Introduction to Letter to Sidney Rigdon, 27 Mar. 1843.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Letter from Hugh Legaré, 31 March 1843 [Forgery] History, 1838–1856, volume D-1 [1 August 1842–1 July 1843] “History of Joseph Smith”

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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Hugh Legaré, 31 March 1843 [Forgery]
ID #
1627
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:129–132
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