Skip to main content

Letter to Edward Johnstone, 23 June 1844

  1. Home > 
  2. The Papers > 

Letter to Edward Johnstone, 23 June 1844

Source Note

JS, Letter, [, Iowa Territory, or , Hancock Co., IL?], to , [, Lee Co., Iowa Territory], 23 June 1844; handwriting of ; signature of JS in the handwriting of ; one page; CHL. Includes dockets.
Single leaf measuring 7½ × 7¾ inches (19 × 20 cm). The recto is ruled with approximately twenty-four brown printed horizontal lines (now faded), while the verso is similarly ruled with twenty-five horizontal lines (now faded). The right edge of the recto has the straight cut of manufactured paper, whereas its left edge is rough, which suggests the leaf was torn from a book or larger sheet. The letter’s top and bottom edges are uneven, which suggests they were hand cut. The document was trifolded twice in letter style and sealed with a red adhesive wafer, a remnant of which is on the verso. The letter was later folded for storage.
At some point, the document was docketed by . It was also docketed by a second, unidentified scribe. Johnstone presumably kept it throughout his life, and it was apparently passed down among his descendants. In 2002 members of the Johnstone family donated it to the Family and Church History Department (now CHL).

Footnotes

  1. “The Prophet’s Last Written Word,” in Caleb Forbes Davis, Scrapbooks, 8:327–328, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City; see also the full bibliographic entry for JS, Letter to Edward Johnstone, Fort Madison, Iowa Territory, 23 June 1844, in the CHL catalog.

    Davis, Caleb Forbes. Scrapbooks, 1882–1898. 10 vols. Special Collections, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City.

Historical Introduction

On 23 June 1844, JS wrote a letter, possibly from , Illinois, to attorney in , Iowa Territory, requesting legal assistance at his upcoming hearing on the charge of related to his role in the 10 June destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor’s press. JS was scheduled to appear in court on this charge the next day in , Illinois.
On 22 June, governor wrote to JS and insisted that he appear in to answer the charge. Refusing to submit to Ford’s instructions, JS and a small group fled , crossing the into during the early hours of 23 June. Later that day, JS relented and wrote to Ford at two o’clock in the afternoon from the bank of the Mississippi River, agreeing to travel to Carthage on Monday, 24 June, and proposing to meet Ford’s posse “at or near the Mound at or about two oclock.” JS further explained that the afternoon meeting time would allow him to “get our witnesses & prepare for trial.”
To prepare for his hearing, JS sent the featured 23 June letter requesting to represent him; he also sent letters to attorney , asking him to represent JS, and to , asking him to appear as a witness. Johnstone, a prominent citizen of , had lived in since 1839. He worked as an attorney with and was licensed to practice law in . A later account of Johnstone’s life indicated that he knew JS and received several letters from him, which he did not keep. JS apparently directed his clerk to write the 23 June letter to Johnstone on his behalf. Richards could have composed this letter either in , immediately after JS wrote to , or after returning to in the late afternoon. The address lines on copies of the 23 June letters to Hugins and Wakefield indicate that those letters were written in Nauvoo. No location appears on the letter to Johnstone. According to Johnstone, the letter from JS was delivered to him on 23 June by a “Mr. Adams,” likely member . In the evening on 23 June, Johnstone wrote a reply declining JS’s request.

Footnotes

  1. See “Joseph Smith Documents from 16 May through 28 June 1844.”

  2. Letter from Thomas Ford, 22 June 1844.

  3. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; Events of June 1844; see also Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9, 11, and 24 June 1844, [3], Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL.

    Kimball Family Correspondence, 1838–1871. CHL. MS 6241.

  4. Clayton, Journal, 23 June 1844; Letter to Thomas Ford, 23 June 1844; see also Events of June 1844.

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

  5. Letter to Henry T. Hugins, 23 June 1844; Letter to John R. Wakefield, 23 June 1844.

  6. History of Lee County, Iowa, 699–700; Stiles, Recollections and Sketches, 326–328; An Act concerning Attorneys and Counselors at Law [1 Mar. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois (1839), p. 83, secs. 8, 11; Welch, “Joseph Smith’s Iowa Quest for Legal Assistance,” 130; see also Life Portrait of Edward Johnstone, Cedar Rapids (IA) Evening Gazette, 18 Mar. 1891, 2.

    The History of Lee County, Iowa, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, &c., a Biographical Directory of Citizens. . . . Chicago: Western Historical Co., 1879.

    Stiles, Edward H. Recollections and Sketches of Notable Lawyers and Public Men of Early Iowa. Des Moines, IA: Homestead Publishing, 1916.

    The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

    Welch, John W. “Joseph Smith’s Iowa Quest for Legal Assistance: His Letters to Edward Johnstone and Others on Sunday, June 23, 1844.” BYU Studies 57, no. 3 (2018): 111–142.

    Evening Gazette. Cedar Rapids, IA. 1888–1912.

  7. Stiles, Recollections and Sketches, 327.

    Stiles, Edward H. Recollections and Sketches of Notable Lawyers and Public Men of Early Iowa. Des Moines, IA: Homestead Publishing, 1916.

  8. Hosea Stout placed their return at “about half past five o’clock P.M.,” though William Clayton recorded that they returned at around five o’clock. (Hosea Stout, Miscellaneous Notes on Nauvoo Legion History, 23 June 1844, Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, CHL; Clayton, Journal, 23 June 1844.)

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

  9. Letter to Henry T. Hugins, 23 June 1844; Letter to John R. Wakefield, 23 June 1844.

  10. Letter from Edward Johnstone, 23 June 1844. Years later, Johnstone described the man who visited him as “a peripatetic p[r]eacher and play actor among the Mormons. He was the head of a strolling theatrical company who administered to histronic tastes during week days and to the spiritual wants of his hearers on Sundays.” George J. Adams was an actor in the eastern United States before joining the church, and he was noted as a compelling preacher. Additionally, both Vilate Murray Kimball and Zina Huntington Jacobs reported that Adams preached in Nauvoo on 23 June, which suggests he was available to deliver Johnstone’s letter. (“The Prophet’s Last Written Word,” in Caleb Forbes Davis, Scrapbooks, 8:327–328, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City; Amann, “Saga of George J. Adams,” 479; “The American Colony at Jaffa,” New-York Times [New York City], 19 Aug. 1867, 6; “Great Discussion on Mormonism,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:863–865; Letter from Benjamin Winchester, 8 Aug. 1842; Historical Introduction to Letter from George J. Adams and David Rogers, 11 Oct. 1842; JS, Journal, 25 Apr. 1844; Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9, 11, and 24 June 1844, [4], Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL; Zina Huntington Jacobs, Diary, 23 June 1844.)

    Davis, Caleb Forbes. Scrapbooks, 1882–1898. 10 vols. Special Collections, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City.

    Amann, Peter. “Prophet in Zion: The Saga of George J. Adams.” New England Quarterly 37 (Dec. 1964): 477–500.

    New York Times. New York City. 1857–.

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

    Kimball Family Correspondence, 1838–1871. CHL. MS 6241.

    Young, Zina Diantha Huntington. Diaries, 1844–1845, 1886, 1889. CHL. MS 6240.

  11. Letter from Edward Johnstone, 23 June 1844.

Page [1]

Go to next page 2
Sunday June 23d 1844.—
Col—— Esqr—
Sir— I have to attend a case at tomorrow— at 12 noon— <​State of vs Joseph Smith &c​> and especially reque[s]t Your attendamce professionally.— without fail.
Yours Respctfully
Joseph Smith
per clerk—
P S.— we meet the s possie on the mou[n]d at 10 A. M [13 lines blank] [p. [1]]
View entire transcript

|

Cite this page

Source Note

Document Transcript

Page [1]

Go to next page 2

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to Edward Johnstone, 23 June 1844
ID #
2251
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Willard Richards

Footnotes

  1. Edward Johnstone later explained that “the military title of ‘colonel’ prefixed to my name was according to the custom of the country in those early times, when the name of nearly every man was so ornamented.” (“The Prophet’s Last Written Word,” in Caleb Forbes Davis, Scrapbooks, 8:327, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City.)

    Davis, Caleb Forbes. Scrapbooks, 1882–1898. 10 vols. Special Collections, State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City.

  2. JS’s letters to Henry T. Hugins and John R. Wakefield similarly indicated that they would meet with the posse at ten o’clock in the morning, while his letter to Ford indicated the meeting was at two o’clock in the afternoon. In a letter to her husband, Vilate Murray Kimball wrote that the meeting was to take place at eight o’clock in the morning. A later history reported that sometime after nine o’clock on the evening of 23 June, Illinois governor Thomas Ford rescinded his offer to provide JS with a protective escort and demanded that he appear in Carthage by ten o’clock the next morning. (Letter to Henry T. Hugins, 23 June 1844; Letter to John R. Wakefield, 23 June 1844; Letter to Thomas Ford, 23 June 1844; Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9, 11, and 24 June 1844, [3], Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL; JS History, vol. F-1, 149.)

    Kimball Family Correspondence, 1838–1871. CHL. MS 6241.

Go to page