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Letter from John McKee, 7 March 1843

Source Note

, Letter, , Washington Co., PA, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 7 Mar. 1843; handwriting and signature of ; three pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address, postal notations, endorsement, and docket.
Bifolium measuring 12 × 7¾ inches (30 × 20 cm). Each page is lined with thirty-two horizontal blue lines. wrote the letter on the recto of the first leaf and both sides of the second leaf. He then reversed the fold of the bifolium, addressed the letter on the remaining blank page (the verso of the first leaf), sealed it with a red adhesive wafer, and posted it. When the letter was opened, two holes were torn in the first leaf, resulting in the loss of some text. drafted a reply to McKee around the address block on the verso of the first leaf. The document was later refolded for filing.
The document was endorsed by , who served as JS’s scribe from December 1841 until JS’s death in June 1844. , who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1859, docketed the document. It was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office circa 1904. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early endorsement and docket, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See JS, Journal, 13 Dec. 1841.

  2. [2]

    “Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497.

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

  3. [3]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [2], 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 7 March 1843, , a resident of , Pennsylvania, wrote a letter to JS in , Illinois, stating that he and a group of several others in Claysville were interested in learning more about the and in relocating to Nauvoo if JS could provide them information about the city. This letter was McKee’s second attempt to contact JS; JS never received the first communication. Little is known about McKee or any of the other individuals in Claysville who expressed interest in the church. Claysville was located in the western county of , where five church members resided in 1837, but McKee’s letter does not indicate any familiarity with Latter-day Saints in the area. According to McKee, he and others in his neighborhood became intrigued with the church after church member preached there and after Daniel Rider, one of the local residents, purchased a Book of Mormon. It is possible that McKee and the others who wanted more information were affiliated with the Disciples of Christ movement; Claysville had a large congregation of Disciples, followers of which group had at other times converted to the church. In addition to desiring information about Nauvoo, McKee inquired into the church’s economic policies. In particular, he wanted to know whether he and others would have to donate their property to the church if they moved to Nauvoo. McKee also asked if employment was available in Nauvoo.
The letter was postmarked 10 March and arrived in by 28 March, when answered it on JS’s behalf.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Letter to John McKee, 28 Mar. 1843.

  2. [2]

    McKee was listed in the 1840 census as being between thirty and forty years of age. He was apparently married with four children. (1840 U.S. Census, Claysville, Washington Co., PA, 192.)

    Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.

  3. [3]

    “Minutes of a Conference,” Messenger and Advocate, Sept. 1837, 3:574.

    Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

  4. [4]

    Crumrine, History of Washington County, Pennsylvania, 756–757; “Caswall’s Prophet of the Nineteenth Century,” Millennial Star, Apr. 1843, 3:197.

    Crumrine, Boyd. History of Washington County, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men. Philadelphia: L. H. Everts, 1882.

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

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Letter to John McKee, 28 March 1843

Page [1]

Washington— County March 7th. 184[3]
Mr Joseph Smith
De[a]r Sir I take my pen in my hand to a Dress a few lines to you and I. Hope you will parding [pardon] me for making So Free I simply wright to you for in fer mation and I hope you will answer this letter I wrote wonst bee fore and I Could not tell whither you Got the letter or not I Come to the Conclution if you Did you treated me with Contempt and I— hope you wont this time if you plese there is a Grate many people in our place that I tends [intends] Joining in with yo[u a]nd they [page torn]r [are] Jest wating till <​I​> Receve your an[swer] I think [t]o the best of my Knowledg ther [i]s about 60 to 70 in my nabourhood that intends Jorning [journeying] to Ever since preched in our place there hase been a Grate Converts to the mormens fa[i]th there was a man By the name of— Daniel Rider Baught the Book of— mormens and since Reding that Book— there has been a Grate Excitement in our place I had not the plesure of Seeing my self as i was absent the night he preced [preached] as i would Been Glad to had a Conversation with him and I was Sorey that he was Gon bee fore I Got home but I hope you will atend to this in hast[e] and you will not lose aneything By it— [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from John McKee, 7 March 1843
ID #
1005
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:14–18
Handwriting on This Page
  • John McKee

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS’s reply to McKee stated that this 7 March letter was the first letter JS received from him. (Letter to John McKee, 28 Mar. 1843.)

  2. [2]

    TEXT: “yo[page torn]nd”. Text missing because of damage here and in the rest of the document has been supplied from context.

  3. [3]

    TEXT: “an[page torn]”.

  4. [4]

    TEXT: “[page torn]o”.

  5. [5]

    TEXT: “[page torn]s”.

  6. [6]

    Brown was an elder in the church who proselytized in Maryland. By this time, he was apparently either back in Nauvoo or soon would be, as he was appointed in April 1843 “to labor on the Temple” there. It is unclear when Brown was in Pennsylvania, but he may have stopped there on his way back to Nauvoo. (“Elder’s Conference,” Times and Seasons, 1 Apr. 1843, 4:157–158.)

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

  7. [7]

    Rider was a prominent tanner in Claysville. He was elected postmaster of the town in 1833 and had “an extensive library and pursued a systematic course of reading.” (Crumrine, History of Washington County, Pennsylvania, 755; U.S. Post Office Department, Record of Appointment of Postmasters, reel 113, vol. 9, p. 203.)

    Crumrine, Boyd. History of Washington County, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men. Philadelphia: L. H. Everts, 1882.

    U.S. Post Office Department. Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832–September 30, 1971. National Archives Microfilm Publications, microcopy M841. 145 microfilm reels. Washington DC: National Archives, 1977.

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