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Letter to Jesse B. Thomas, 26 June 1844–A

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Letter to Jesse B. Thomas, 26 June 1844–A

Source Note

[JS], Letter, , Hancock Co., IL, to , [, Adams Co., IL], 26 June 1844. Featured version copied [26 June 1844]; handwriting of ; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes dockets, notations, redactions, and archival marking.
Single leaf measuring 9⅝ × 7¾ inches (24 × 20 cm). The leaf contains a faint rectangular embossment in the upper right corner of the verso. The leaf was hand cut along the left side of the recto, which suggests that it was removed from a book or larger sheet. The letter was written on the recto. The verso contains unrelated notations written in graphite. The letter was trifolded for filing.
The letter was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from December 1841 until JS’s death in June 1844 and served as church historian from December 1842 until his own death in March 1854. It was later docketed again by , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865. In September 1856 , who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1859, copied the letter into JS’s history. The letter was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office circa 1904.“Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [4], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL At some point, Andrew Jenson, who began working in the Church Historian’s Office in 1891 and served as assistant church historian from 1897 to 1941, added JS’s signature to the letter. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early dockets and inclusion in JS’s history, its listing in the circa 1904 inventory, its signature added by Andrew Jenson, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. JS, Journal, 13 Dec. 1841 and 21 Dec. 1842; Orson Spencer, “Death of Our Beloved Brother Willard Richards,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 16 Mar. 1854, [2].

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  2. 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.

  3. JS History, vol. F-1, 167–168; Vogel, History of Joseph Smith, 1:ci; see also “Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497.

    Vogel, Dan, ed. History of Joseph Smith and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: A Source and Text-Critical Edition. 8 vols. Salt Lake City: Smith-Pettit Foundation, 2015.

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

  4. Jenson, Autobiography, 192, 389; Cannon, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891; Jenson, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891 and 19 Oct. 1897; Bitton and Arrington, Mormons and Their Historians, 47–52.

    Jenson, Andrew. Autobiography of Andrew Jenson: Assistant Historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1938.

    Cannon, George Q. Journals, 1855–1864, 1872–1901. CHL. CR 850 1.

    Jenson, Andrew. Journals, 1864–1941. Andrew Jenson, Autobiography and Journals, 1864–1941. CHL.

    Bitton, David, and Leonard J. Arrington. Mormons and Their Historians. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1988.

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

Historical Introduction

On 26 June 1844, JS wrote a letter from , Hancock County, Illinois, to Judge , presumably in , Adams County, Illinois, requesting that Thomas travel to , Hancock County, to preside over a hearing for JS and his brother , both of whom had been arrested and jailed the previous day on charges of . Two weeks before that, on 11 June, justice of the peace had issued a warrant for JS and seventeen others involved in the 10 June of the Nauvoo Expositor to be arrested on a charge of . On 12 and 13 June, JS and the others named in the writ were discharged from arrest during two habeas corpus hearings before the Nauvoo Municipal Court. These court decisions to release JS and others from custody enraged JS’s opponents throughout the county, who began issuing threats against JS and his supporters.
Amid these threats, visited on 16 June and reportedly advised JS and others to “go before some Jusstice of the peace— & have an examntion [examination].” He explained that the excitement in the could be allayed if JS and the others named in the 11 June warrant were either “acquitted or bou[n]d over.” Such a decision from a court of law would eliminate the “pretext for a mob.” Following Thomas’s advice as they understood it, JS and his associates appeared before , a local justice of the peace who was not a member, on 17 June for a hearing. Wells discharged JS and others from arrest. This, however, did not assuage the excitement and animosity against JS.
During the evening of 16 June, a public meeting was held in to discuss the growing threats throughout the . Those in attendance determined to appoint delegates to visit the various precincts throughout the county and “lay a true statement of [the] facts before the public.” , , , and David Evans were appointed to visit the Rocky Run precinct, in the southwestern portion of the county, near . Responding to the message of Call and his companions, JS’s opponents threatened to “wait on” “and give him a Coat of Tar and Feathers” for having provided legal advice to JS.
, Evans, and promptly returned to and on 19 June swore out an affidavit detailing their interaction with JS's opponents and the potential danger posed to . That day, JS assigned Call and Evans to carry a copy of the affidavit and a letter appealing for Thomas’s legal assistance to Thomas at Knoxville in nearby Knox County, Illinois, where he was holding court. After meeting briefly with Call and Evans on 20 or 21 June, Thomas declined to assist with the case, stating that it fell outside his jurisdiction and explaining that he had not instructed JS to have a hearing before . The only acceptable course of action that Thomas could see was for JS to appear at before the justice who had issued the writ. Call and Evans returned to Nauvoo with a letter from Thomas on 22 June and delivered it to JS’s wife , but for unknown reasons the letter was evidently not then transmitted to JS.
Although JS apparently did not receive the advice that communicated in his letter, he determined on 23 June to go to to answer the riot charge and traveled there the following day. On the morning of 25 June, constable arrested JS and on charges of against the state of . That evening, JS and Hyrum Smith were committed to the jail, in Carthage, despite their protest that the legal process leading to their incarceration had not been proper.
The following morning, governor visited JS in the jailhouse, and JS explained the circumstances surrounding the destruction of the Expositor’s press and the declaration of martial law in . , a church member who voluntarily stayed with JS at the jail in , later recalled that Ford “seemed to be satisfied” with JS’s explanation of events but nevertheless declined to interfere with the legal proceedings. Before leaving the jailhouse, however, Ford promised that “the prisoners were under his protection— & probably th[e]y would go to Nauvoo.”
Expecting that he would accompany to the following day, JS composed a letter around noon on 26 June soliciting ’s aid. Writing from the jail, JS explained that he and his had been arrested. JS contended that their incarceration was illegal because they had not been brought before the magistrate and that the mittimus justifying their incarceration was defective because it falsely claimed that a magistrate had examined their case before incarceration. He accordingly asked Thomas to journey to Nauvoo and hold a hearing when JS visited the city with Ford. The letter may have been inscribed by , who was with JS in the jail and who made a copy of the letter before sending the original to Thomas, presumably in . The letter was likely carried by a courier from . It is not known if Thomas received the letter. There is no known reply.
The letter sent to is apparently not extant. The copy made by is featured here.

Footnotes

  1. Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 12 June 1844.

  2. JS, Journal, 12–13 June 1844.

  3. See Letter from Isaac Morley, 16 June 1844; and Letter to Thomas Ford, 16 June 1844.

  4. JS, Journal, 16 June 1844.

  5. Historical Introduction to Statement, 17 June 1844.

  6. “Public Meeting,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [3].

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  7. Anson Call et al., Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 19 June 1844, Thomas Bullock First Copy, JS Office Papers, CHL.

  8. Anson Call et al., Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 19 June 1844, Thomas Bullock First Copy, JS Office Papers, CHL; Anson Call, Statement, 9 May 1848, [1]–[2], CHL; Call, Autobiography and Journal, 25–28; Anson Call, Affidavit, Bountiful, Utah Territory, 13 May 1879, 70–72, Historian’s Office, History of Persecutions, 1879–1880, CHL. Thomas's letter to JS, written on 20 or 21 June, instructed him to appear at Carthage. It is apparently not extant, but Call reconstructed the contents of the letter in his autobiography, as well as in an 1879 affidavit. While the contents of the two reconstructions are similar, the wording of the letter in the two documents differs significantly. It is not entirely clear why Thomas would have stated that the case fell outside of his jurisdiction, as his judicial district on the state circuit court included Hancock County. He was likely referencing the Illinois statute that specified that detained individuals should be brought “before the officer issuing said warrant.” Only in the case of that justice’s absence could they be brought “before any other judge or justice of the peace.” Accordingly, Thomas likely believed that the law required JS and the others named in the warrant to appear before Morrison. (JS, Journal, 20 May 1844; Jessee, Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, 607; An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 238, sec. 3; Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 12 June 1844.)

    Call, Anson. Statement, 9 May 1848. CHL

    Call, Anson. Autobiography and Journal, ca. 1857–1883. CHL. MS 313.

    Historian's Office. History of Persecutions, 1879–1880. CHL.

    Jessee, Dean C., ed. and comp. The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith. Rev. ed. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book; Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 2002.

    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.

  9. JS decided to appear in Carthage after receiving additional assurances of protection from Ford. (Letter to Thomas Ford, 23 June 1844.)

  10. Historical Introduction to Warrant, 24 June 1844; Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

  11. Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 30 June 1844, [1]; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:562; Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844. JS and Hyrum Smith had appealed to Illinois governor Thomas Ford, but John S. Fullmer later recalled that Ford had stated that they “were in the hands of the civil law, and therefore he had it not in his power to stay process.” (John S. Fullmer, Preston, England, to George A. Smith, [Utah Territory], 27 Nov. 1854, [1]–[2], Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, ca. 1839–1860, CHL; see also John Taylor, Statement, 23 Aug. 1856, 31–32, Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, CHL; and Ford, History of Illinois, 338.)

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

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

    Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Documents, 1839–1860. CHL. CR 100 396.

    Ford, Thomas. A History of Illinois, from Its Commencement as a State in 1818 to 1847. Containing a Full Account of the Black Hawk War, the Rise, Progress, and Fall of Mormonism, the Alton and Lovejoy Riots, and Other Important and Interesting Events. Chicago: S. C. Griggs; New York: Ivison and Phinney, 1854.

  12. John S. Fullmer, Preston, England, to George A. Smith, [Utah Territory], 27 Nov. 1854, [2], Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, ca. 1839–1860, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Documents, 1839–1860. CHL. CR 100 396.

  13. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

  14. Clayton, Journal, 26 June 1844; Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

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

  15. For more information regarding the purpose of habeas corpus hearings, see Historical Introduction to Docket Entry, 18–31 May 1844.

  16. JS, Journal, 21 Dec. 1842.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Letter to Jesse B. Thomas, 26 June 1844–A
History, 1838–1856, volume F-1 [1 May 1844–8 August 1844] “History of Joseph Smith”

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Jail. June 26. 1844
His Hon. ,
Dear Sir,
You will perceive by my date that I am in prison.— Myself and Brother were arrested yesterday on charge of ,— without bringing us before the magistrate. last evening we were committed on a mittimus from Justice . stating that we had been before the magistrate, which is utterly false, but, from the appearance of the case at present, we can have no reasonable prospect, of any thing but mob <​partial decisions of​> law,— and all the prospect we have of Justice being done, is to get our case on before an impartial Judge.— the excitement & prejudice is such in this place testimony is of little avail:
Therefore, Sir, I earnestly request your Honor. to repair to without delay, and make yourself at home at my until the papers can be in readiness for you to bring me <​us​> on Habeas. Our Witnesses are all at — & there You can Easily investigate the whole matter. And I will be responsible to you for all trouble and expense. [1/4 page blank] [p. [1]]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to Jesse B. Thomas, 26 June 1844–A
ID #
1450
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Willard Richards

Footnotes

  1. A mittimus is “a precept in writing” that orders a jailer “to receive and safely keep, a person charged with an offence therein named, until he shall be delivered by due course of law.” In the mittimus, Justice of the Peace Robert Smith stated that JS and Hyrum Smith had been “brought before me as a Justice of the Peace in and for said county, for trial at the seat of justice thereof” but that the charges had been necessarily postponed, a claim which JS and his legal advisers denied. (“Mittimus, Crim. Law, Practice,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:168; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 30 June 1844, [1]; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:562.)

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  2. Illinois statutes specified that no person could be “discharged on habeas corpus from his imprisonment merely by reason of any defect of legal precision, or want of technical form in the warrant of commitment.” (An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 240, sec. 10, italics in original.)

    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.

  3. On 25 June an unnamed correspondent in Carthage wrote a letter to the Daily Missouri Republican describing the circumstances in the town and noting a “perfect harmony and unanimity of sentiment between the Governor, citizens and troops.” The correspondent noted, however, that the people of the county had begun to worry that JS would “escape justice.” That morning, members of the Carthage Greys, the local militia, had verbally assaulted JS with “a shout of hisses and groans” as he was presented to their company and, by some accounts, were threatened with arrest—an accusation that both Thomas Ford and General Miner R. Deming denied. Ford calmed the situation by assuring them that “they were acting in the capacity of guards to Joe, and not as an escort” accorded to him as an honor. Following the incident, newspaper reports claimed that JS had fainted three times in response to the verbal assaults from the Greys. Later accounts of the events, written by the staff in the Church Historian’s Office, disputed the notion that JS had fainted. (“Correspondence of the Missouri Republican,” Daily Missouri Republican [St. Louis], 28 June 1844, [2]; Miner R. Deming, Carthage, IL, 30 June 1844, Letter to the Editor, Warsaw [IL] Signal, 24 July 1844, [1]; Ford, History of Illinois, 343; Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; History of the Martyrdom, 24–29 June 1844, 13–14, 48, Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, CHL; JS History, vol. F-1, 174–175; see also “From Nauvoo,” Cleveland Herald, 10 July 1844, [1]; and Gregg, History of Hancock County, Illinois, 372–373.)

    Daily Missouri Republican. St. Louis. 1822–1869.

    Warsaw Signal. Warsaw, IL. 1841–1853.

    Ford, Thomas. A History of Illinois, from Its Commencement as a State in 1818 to 1847. Containing a Full Account of the Black Hawk War, the Rise, Progress, and Fall of Mormonism, the Alton and Lovejoy Riots, and Other Important and Interesting Events. Chicago: S. C. Griggs; New York: Ivison and Phinney, 1854.

    Cleveland Herald. Cleveland. 1843–1853.

    Gregg, Thomas. History of Hancock County, Illinois, Together with an Outline History of the State, and a Digest of State Laws. Chicago: Charles C. Chapman, 1880.

  4. An 1827 Illinois statute specified that an individual applying for a writ of habeas corpus should submit an application “in writing, and signed by the prisoner, or some person on his or her behalf, setting forth the facts concerning his imprisonment, and in whose custody he is detained.” Along with the petition, the accused was to provide “a copy of the warrant or warrants of commitment” or an affidavit stating that a copy of the warrant had been requested but that the requests had been refused. (An Act Regulating the Proceeding on Writs of Habeas Corpus [22 Jan. 1827], Revised Laws of Illinois, p. 322, sec. 1.)

    The Revised Laws of Illinois, Containing All Laws of a General and Public Nature Passed by the Eighth General Assembly, at Their Session Held at Vandalia, Commencing on the Third Day of December, 1832, and Ending the Second Day of March, 1833, together with All Laws Required to Be Re-Published by the Said General Assembly. Vandalia, IL: Greiner and Sherman, 1833.

  5. On 26 June, JS and Willard Richards compiled a list of twenty-eight men who might serve as witnesses in Nauvoo and Carthage. The majority of the eyewitnesses on this list were living in Nauvoo. (Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; Willard Richards, List of Witnesses in Carthage and Nauvoo, 26 June 1844, JS Office Papers, CHL.)

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