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Letter from Thaddeus Keeler Jr., 10 June 1844

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Letter from Thaddeus Keeler Jr., 10 June 1844

Source Note

, Letter, , Fairfield Co., CT, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 10 June 1844; handwriting and signature presumably of ; two pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address, postal stamp, postal notation, and dockets.
Bifolium measuring 9½ × 8 inches (24 × 20 cm). There is an illegible oval embossment on the upper left corner of the recto of the first page. The letter was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, sealed with a red adhesive wafer, remnants of which are on the first and last pages, and postmarked. The document was later refolded for filing.
The letter was docketed by , who served as scribe to JS from 1842 to 1844 and as temple recorder from 1842 to 1846. The letter was also docketed by , who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1859. The document 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 dockets, its inclusion in the circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. JS, Journal, 29 June 1842; “Clayton, William,” in Jenson, Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1:718; Clayton, History of the Nauvoo Temple, 18, 30–31.

    Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson History Co., 1901–1936.

    Clayton, William. History of the Nauvoo Temple, ca. 1845. CHL. MS 3365.

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

Historical Introduction

On 10 June 1844, wholesale merchant wrote a letter from , Connecticut, to JS in , Illinois, petitioning JS for payment of a substantial overdue debt. In 1836 two , Ohio, mercantile firms— and —had each purchased a sizable quantity of goods on credit from Keeler, McNeil & Co. in . By October the combined debts of these two firms to Keeler, McNeil & Co. amounted to $5,977.51. Although JS was a partner in the firm of Rigdon, Smith & Cowdery, and therefore was responsible for the debt that company accrued, he had no original involvement with the debts for H. Smith & Co., for which was the sole debtor. However, after the majority of left Kirtland in 1838, JS and his began efforts to consolidate the debts of the Kirtland mercantile firms. This resulted in JS assuming the debts of H. Smith & Co. by 1839. Troubled by the lack of payment, Keeler, McNeil & Co. evidently commenced legal action against JS and others between 1838 and 1840 but ultimately abandoned the litigation for unknown reasons.
After JS and the Saints were expelled from , church leaders assigned to return to in May 1839 to “preside over the general affairs of the Church in that place” and to continue settling JS’s Kirtland debts. Writing in January 1841, JS urged Granger to resolve JS’s debts to creditors, which would have included Keeler, McNeil & Co., stating that he “should be much pleased to hear that they were settled.” Despite Granger’s efforts, means to resolve JS’s indebtedness were limited, and Granger was unable to pay the funds owed to Keeler, McNeil & Co. In February 1841 Amos Keeler, ’s brother and a fellow proprietor of Keeler, McNeil & Co., wrote to JS, seeking payment on the debts. JS responded that while he desired to pay the amount due and assist Amos in his “present circumstances,” JS’s imprisonment and “great loss of property” in Missouri had left him without any means except those he had given to Granger to pay his creditors. Granger’s untimely death in August 1841 further complicated JS’s efforts to settle the obligations.
In April 1842 JS applied for relief under the ’ 1841 bankruptcy law. His application included a schedule, or inventory, of his known debts, which listed the unpaid obligations to Keeler, McNeil & Co. district attorney challenged JS’s bankruptcy proceedings in 1842 on the grounds that JS had transferred land to noncreditors, including family members, after he applied for bankruptcy. Because of Butterfield’s objections and an unpaid debt owed to the federal government, JS’s bankruptcy proceedings stalled. Consequently, he remained responsible for resolving the debts owed to Keeler, McNeil & Co. In May 1844 consulted with Butterfield and learned the status of JS’s bankruptcy filing. On 10 June, Keeler wrote JS to report on his recent discussion with Butterfield and to request immediate payment of JS’s debts to his company. Keeler expressed his desire that repayment be settled between themselves, without any need for compulsion. He asked JS to send a partial payment soon and to indicate when he could complete payment.
The letter was postmarked 11 June from , Connecticut. Ordinarily, mail between and took between two and four weeks for delivery. However, a number of difficulties made mail delivery challenging in Nauvoo during June 1844. Therefore, it is unlikely JS received this letter before leaving Nauvoo for on 24 June or his death there on 27 June. There is no known reply from JS to .

Footnotes

  1. Keeler, McNeil & Co. described itself on its company letterhead as “WHOLESALE DEALERS IN FANCY AND STAPLE DRY GOODS.” An October 1836 invoice listed the debts of Rigdon, Smith & Cowdery as amounting to $2,959.46, while a circa 1838 document noted that since 10 October 1836, Keeler, McNeil & Co. had held two notes against H. Smith & Co., for $1,509.02 and $1,509.03, respectively. (Keeler, McNeil & Co., New York City, NY, to Rigdon, Smith & Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, Invoice, 11 Oct. 1836, JS Office Papers, CHL, emphasis in original; Hitchcock & Wilder, Statement of Account, between ca. 3 Apr. and 6 Nov. 1838, JS Collection, CHL.)

  2. Statement of Account from Perkins & Osborn, ca. 29 Oct. 1838; William L. Perkins, Statement, 23 July 1867, in Franklin D. Richards, Liverpool, England, to Brigham Young, 27 Aug. 1867, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL.

    Brigham Young Office Files, 1832–1878. CHL. CR 1234 1.

  3. Hitchcock & Wilder, Statement of Account, between ca. 3 Apr. and 6 Nov. 1838, JS Collection, CHL.

  4. Authorization for Oliver Granger, 6 May 1839; Recommendation for Oliver Granger, 1 Nov. 1839; Agreement with Oliver Granger, 29 Apr. 1840.

  5. Letter to Oliver Granger, 26 Jan. 1841.

  6. Letter to Amos Keeler, 16 Mar. 1841.

  7. “Obituary,” Times and Seasons, 15 Sept. 1841, 2:550; Account with Estate of Oliver Granger, between ca. 3 Feb. and ca. 2 Mar. 1842.

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

  8. Application for Bankruptcy, ca. 14–16 Apr. 1842; see also JS, Journal, 18 Apr. 1842. JS listed his debts to Keeler, McNeil & Co. “on notes or accounts jointly with Hyrum Smith, Sydney [Sidney] Rigdon, Oliver Cowdery Reynolds Cahoon & Jared Carter” as amounting to $8,000. This amount apparently included debts owed to Keeler, McNeil & Co. by the firm Cahoon, Carter & Co., whose debts JS had also assumed by 1839. (Statement of Account from Perkins & Osborn, ca. 29 Oct. 1838; Application for Bankruptcy, ca. 14–16 Apr. 1842; William L. Perkins, Statement, 23 July 1867, in Franklin D. Richards, Liverpool, England, to Brigham Young, 27 Aug. 1867, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL.)

    Brigham Young Office Files, 1832–1878. CHL. CR 1234 1.

  9. Notice to Creditors and Others, 17 June 1842.

  10. Application for Bankruptcy, ca. 14–16 Apr. 1842. The unpaid federal debt was related to an 1841 promissory note tied to the 1840 purchase of the steamboat Des Moines by JS and others. (Historical Introduction to Demurrer, ca. 29 May 1844.)

  11. See Letter from Horace Hotchkiss, 24 July 1841; Letter from Horace Hotchkiss, 13 Sept. 1841; and Letter from Smith Tuttle, ca. 15 Sept. 1841.

  12. Willard Richards’s journal seems to indicate that Emma Smith received this letter by 8 July 1844. On that date, Richards noted that “Emma told [William W.] Phelps that she had had a letter from N. York for $6000 old debts.” (Richards, Journal, 8 July 1844.)

    Richards, Willard. Journals, 1836–1853. Willard Richards, Papers, 1821–1854. CHL. MS 1490, boxes 1–2.

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(, Fairfield Co
(Connecticut— June 10th. 1844
Sir,
I hold three notes made by Messrs , an on and one note made by each payable to Keeler McNeil & Co or order, Amounting to about $5,800—
The payment of this debt has been long delayed, by which I am a great sufferer— You have had the goods, I have paid for them—
During the past month, in , I had an interview with , of the law firm of Butterfield & Collins—of —from whom, and from others, I think this payment should not be longer neglected— It is my wish that it may be arranged by ourselves—
Your reported situation enables you, and I should hope you, and those liable with you, possessed the disposition, voluntarily to do justice in the case—
On this debt there are liable four, among whome are the most prominent men of your community, from whom we ought to find a readiness [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Thaddeus Keeler Jr., 10 June 1844
ID #
1387
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Thaddeus Keeler Jr.

Footnotes

  1. The firm Butterfield & Collins was formed around 1836 and lasted as one of the preeminent law firms in Chicago until 1845. In 1844 the Butterfield & Collins law offices were at 105 Lake Street in Chicago. (Proceedings of the Illinois State Bar Association, part 2, 60–61; Andreas, History of Chicago, 425, 433–434; Norris, General Directory and Business Advertiser of the City of Chicago, 27.)

    Proceedings of the Illinois State Bar Association at Its Nineteenth Annual Meeting Held in the City of Springfield, January 23 and 24, 1896 with the Constitution, Officers, Standing Committees and Roll of Members for the Year 1896. Springfield: Illinois State Register Book Publishing House, 1896.

    Andreas, A. T. History of Chicago from the Earliest Period to the Present Time. 3 vols. Chicago: By the author, 1884.

    Norris, J. W. General Directory and Business Advertiser of the City of Chicago for the Year 1844 with a Historical Sketch and Statistics Extending from 1837 to 1844. Chicago: Ellis and Fergus, 1844.

  2. This refers to JS, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and Oliver Cowdery. All four belonged to the church presidency in Kirtland, Ohio, in 1836. JS, Hyrum Smith, and Sidney Rigdon were still members of the general church presidency in Nauvoo, Illinois. Oliver Cowdery was excommunicated in 1838 and did not live in Nauvoo. (Minutes, 12 Apr. 1838.)

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