The Papers
Browse the PapersDocumentsJournalsAdministrative RecordsRevelations and TranslationsHistoriesLegal RecordsFinancial RecordsOther Contemporary Papers
Reference
PeoplePlacesEventsGlossaryLegal GlossaryFinancial GlossaryCalendar of DocumentsWorks CitedFeatured TopicsLesson PlansRelated Publications
Media
VideosPhotographsIllustrationsChartsMapsPodcasts
News
Current NewsArchiveNewsletterSubscribeJSP Conferences
About
About the ProjectJoseph Smith and His PapersFAQAwardsEndorsementsReviewsEditorial MethodNote on TranscriptionsNote on Images of People and PlacesReferencing the ProjectCiting This WebsiteProject TeamContact Us
Published Volumes
  1. Home > 
  2. The Papers > 

Letter from Robert McCorkle, 10 May 1844

Source Note

, Letter, Dyer Co., Tennessee, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 10 May 1844; handwriting and signature presumably of ; three pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address, docket, and notation.
Bifolium measuring 12¼ × 7⅝ inches (31 × 19 cm) and ruled with thirty-eight horizontal lines printed in blue ink. The document was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, and sealed with a red adhesive wafer, the remnants of which are present on the recto and verso of the second leaf. The second leaf tore slightly when the letter was opened. The letter was later refolded for filing.
The document was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865. It was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) circa 1904. By 1973 the letter had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early docket, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

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

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  2. [2]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [4], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

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

  3. [3]

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

Historical Introduction

On 10 May 1844, of Dyer County, Tennessee, wrote a letter to JS in , Illinois, expressing some of his concerns about JS and the . McCorkle—a farmer in his late thirties—had apparently learned about JS by February 1843 and was sufficiently impressed by JS to name a son after him. In April 1844, McCorkle visited Nauvoo to investigate the Latter-day Saints and their religion. While there, he attended the church’s April 1844 and purchased land in the city from church member on 17 April. As he later related in his letter, McCorkle sought to speak with JS during his visit so that he could present him with a list of questions. However, JS’s many responsibilities prevented the interview from taking place. Frustrated in his attempt to meet with JS, McCorkle returned home to Tennessee. There, McClellan apparently visited McCorkle and agreed to carry a letter for him free of charge. This opportunity led McCorkle to write JS a letter containing the questions he had been unable to submit to JS while in Nauvoo.
wrote the first part of his 10 May 1844 letter to JS in prose. In this portion, he explained his efforts to learn about the Saints and to speak with JS. He then described his reaction to what was taught at the April 1844 conference. McCorkle also posed some questions to JS about his claim to be a prophet and the economic feasibility of to . McCorkle wrote the second part of his letter in verse. The overarching concerns of his poetic inquiries were whether JS was a true prophet of God and whether the Saints were God’s people. McCorkle requested that JS respond to his poem in verse.
apparently delivered the letter to JS sometime after he returned from Tennessee on 26 May 1844. There is no known reply from JS and no evidence that joined the church or moved to .

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Although McCorkle signed his letter with his initials “R. A. H.”, other records indicate that his first name was Robert. (Nauvoo Registry of Deeds, Record of Deeds, bk. B, p. 122; Smoot, Diary, 26 May and 7 June 1844.)

    Smoot, Abraham O. Diary, 1836–1845. Photocopy. Abraham O. Smoot, Papers, 1836–1893. Photocopy. CHL.

  2. [2]

    McCorkle’s son Joseph Smith McCorkle was born on 9 February 1843. Latter-day Saint missionaries first arrived in Tennessee in 1834. Missionaries had subsequently preached in many of the counties in the western part of the state, although it seems they did not visit Dyer County until sometime between May and August 1843. (Death Certificate for Joseph Smith McCorkle, 10 Aug. 1924, Yorkville, Gibson Co., TN, certificate 312, Tennessee Division of Vital Records, Death Records, 1914–1966, microfilm 1,299,770, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; David W. Patten and Warren Parrish, Paris, TN, 11 Oct. 1834, Letter to the Editor, Messenger and Advocate, Nov. 1834, 1:24; Woodruff, Journal, 27 Mar.–9 Apr. 1835; “Elder’s Conference,” Times and Seasons, 1 Apr. 1843, 4:157; Z. D. Wilson, Hancock Co., IL, 20 Jan. 1844, Letter to the Editor, Times and Seasons, 15 Feb. 1844, 5:446–447.)

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

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

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

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

  3. [3]

    Nauvoo Registry of Deeds, Record of Deeds, bk. B, p. 122; Nauvoo Second Ward Census, [1], Nauvoo Stake, Ward Census, CHL.

    Nauvoo Stake. Ward Census, 1842. CHL.

  4. [4]

    McClellan traveled to Tennessee in 1844 to visit his wife’s family. He began his return journey to Nauvoo on 20 May 1844. (St. George Stake, High Priest Quorum Genealogical Sketches, part 2, pp. 66–67, Record of Members Collection, CHL.)

    Record of Members Collection, 1836–1970. CHL.

  5. [5]

    The notation “Per James M’Clelan”, the lack of postal marks, and the passage indicating that McCorkle was able to get the letter to JS free of charge all suggest that McClellan delivered McCorkle’s letter. (St. George Stake, High Priest Quorum Genealogical Sketches, part 2, p. 67, Record of Members Collection, CHL.)

    Record of Members Collection, 1836–1970. CHL.

  6. [6]

    See Boyd and Black, “Robert McCorkle’s 1844 Letter to Joseph Smith,” 82.

    Boyd, Hal R., and Susan E. Black. “A Question on My Mind: Robert McCorkle’s 1844 Letter to Joseph Smith.” BYU Studies Quarterly 49, no. 4 (Dec. 2010): 81–90.

Page [3]

A question on my mind appears
Which has been hanging there for years,
And for to bring it to your view
My pen will write it all out new.
 
I come to you the truth to find,
All hearsays I will leave behind.
For this I know, that all’s not true
That I have heard about .
 
Then let me hear the truth from you,
Bring nothing but the truth to view.
Do you possess the gifts of God.
As are recorded in his word?
 
To say these gifts are not for man,
To take this stand, I never can.
But this I only want to know,
Do you possess them at ?
 
If from on high, you have rec’d
The gifts of God, you’r[e] not deceiv’d.
Then is it so, that from the Lord
An angel’s brot a true record?
 
Does this record come with a grace,
Does it reveal the Indian’s race?
Your manly honor I invite,
To give an answer that is right.
 
My heart within me now doth burn,
To get an answer in return.
For if its true, that God has given
Late revelations, right from heaven,
 
I’ts also true, he’s set his hands
To gather Israel from all lands,
And if that’s so, we all may know
All kingdoms sure, God will o’erthrow.
 
Then dont deceive my honest soul,
I want Gods law, me to control,
Then if you are the chosen few
Show it to me, while at .
 
Your say, that you possess
The power of God, thro’ righteousness,
That you’ve rec’d the new
An angel gave it unto you.
 
This priesthood they pretend to say
Unveils the truth in this our day.
That by this power to man is given
An earnest of the joys of heaven.
 
If an angel of the Lord
Has come to man with a record,
Such record surely was design’d
To be a blessing to mankind.
 
Then if it were by God design’d
Sent as a blessing to mankind,
Then what am I, that I should stand
And raise objections to the plan?
 
But if it be a project plan
Invented by a cunning man,
This truth unveil, and set me free
An[d] show me who the Mormons be.
 
If you the special gifts enjoy
These blessing I would not destroy.
If with these power’s you have been bless’d
Your joy far triumphs o’er the rest—
 
Give me some reasons to decide
That you’r companions of the bride.
Or else come out; and plainly say
That you’r deceivers of our day.
 
If any questions I have form’d
Are calculated to do harm,
Then to such questions point your hand
And I will lay them to the land.
 
These lines convey my mind to you
Or any other in
If they deserve a moments time,
You will an answer form in rhyme
 
But if they like their author prove
Unworthy of your time, and love
In silence they’l remain unheard
By man! but answr’d from the Lord
Dyer county Yorkville post offic. Tennessee [p. [3]]
View entire transcript

|

Cite this page

Source Note

Document Transcript

Page [3]

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Robert McCorkle, 10 May 1844
ID #
1354
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Robert McCorkle

Footnotes

  1. [9]

    See 1 Corinthians 12:1, 8–10.

  2. [10]

    “A true record” is a reference to the Book of Mormon, JS’s translation of gold plates he said he found buried in the earth as revealed to him by a heavenly messenger. (See Revelation, ca. Aug. 1835 [D&C 27:5]; “History of Joseph Smith,” Times and Seasons, 15 Apr. 1842, 3:753–754; and “History of Joseph Smith,” Times and Seasons, 2 May 1842, 3:771–773.)

  3. [11]

    Based on their understanding of the Book of Mormon, Latter-day Saints believed that the American Indians were descendants of an ancient group of Israelites that God had brought from Jerusalem to the New World. (See Walker, “Native American during the Joseph Smith Period,” 3–4.)

    Walker, Ronald W. “Seeking the ‘Remnant’: The Native American during the Joseph Smith Period.” Journal of Mormon History 19 (Spring 1993): 1–33.

  4. [12]

    See Luke 24:32.

  5. [13]

    See Isaiah 11:11–12; and Ezekiel 28:25.

  6. [14]

    See Daniel 2:44.

  7. [15]

    See Matthew 22:14.

  8. [16]

    This may be a reference to JS’s statement that he had received the priesthood from an angel who identified himself as John the Baptist. (See Revelation, ca. Aug. 1835 [D&C 27:8]; and “History of Joseph Smith,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:865–866.)

  9. [17]

    See Revelation 21:2.

  10. [18]

    Yorkville is in Gibson County, which is contiguous with Dyer County.

© 2024 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Terms of UseUpdated 2021-04-13Privacy NoticeUpdated 2021-04-06