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Letter to William Marks and Newel K. Whitney, 8 July 1838

Source Note

Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

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, JS, and
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

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, Letter,
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
, Caldwell Co., MO, to
William Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

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and
Newel K. Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
, [
Kirtland Township

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
, Geauga Co., OH], 8 July 1838; copy, [ca. Aug. 1838]; handwriting of
Newel K. Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
; two pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes redaction and docket.
One leaf measuring 12½ × 7¾ inches (32 × 20 cm). The top, right, and bottom edges of the leaf have the square cut of manufactured paper, whereas the left edge is uneven, suggesting it was cut from a blank book or a larger sheet. The letter includes a redaction in graphite. The letter was folded for filing and docketed in graphite. In various places, the paper has separated at the folds. The document has undergone conservation.
It is not known how or when
Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

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’s copy came into the possession of the LDS church. The church’s Historical Department processed the letter as part of the JS Collection in 1973.

Historical Introduction

On 8 July 1838, JS and his counselors in the
First Presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

View Glossary
wrote a letter to
William Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
and
Newel K. Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
, conveying a revelation JS dictated that morning. The revelation directed Marks and Whitney to relocate from
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
, Ohio, to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
before winter and then preside over the Saints—with Marks as the
president

An organized body of leaders over priesthood quorums and other ecclesiastical organizations. A November 1831 revelation first described the office of president over the high priesthood and the church as a whole. By 1832, JS and two counselors constituted ...

View Glossary
of the church in
Zion

JS revelation, dated 20 July 1831, designated Missouri as “land of Zion” for gathering of Saints and place where “City of Zion” was to be built, with Independence area as “center place” of Zion. Latter-day Saint settlements elsewhere, such as in Kirtland,...

More Info
and with Whitney as a
bishop

An ecclesiastical and priesthood office. JS appointed Edward Partridge as the first bishop in February 1831. Following this appointment, Partridge functioned as the local leader of the church in Missouri. Later revelations described a bishop’s duties as receiving...

View Glossary
in
Adam-ondi-Ahman

Settlement located in northwest Missouri. 1835 revelation identified valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman as place where Adam blessed his posterity after leaving Garden of Eden. While seeking new areas in Daviess Co. for settlement, JS and others surveyed site on which...

More Info
. To expedite their move, the revelation directed
Oliver Granger

7 Feb. 1794–23/25 Aug. 1841. Sheriff, church agent. Born at Phelps, Ontario Co., New York. Son of Pierce Granger and Clarissa Trumble. Married Lydia Dibble, 8 Sept. 1813, at Phelps. Member of Methodist church and licensed exhorter. Sheriff of Ontario Co. ...

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, who had recently traveled from Kirtland to
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
, Missouri, to return to Kirtland and continue settling the debts of the First Presidency.
1

See Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117].


In addition to including the full text of the revelation in the letter, the First Presidency expressed confidence that
Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
and
Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
would follow the direction in the revelation. The presidency also encouraged all
Latter-day Saints

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
in
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
to migrate to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
. The letter may have been written on behalf of the First Presidency by
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
, the first signatory.
Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
and
Whitney

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
apparently received the letter, as the extant copy is in Whitney’s handwriting. Marks and Whitney moved from
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
later in the year but did not reach northwestern
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
before Missouri governor
Lilburn W. Boggs

14 Dec. 1796–14 Mar. 1860. Bookkeeper, bank cashier, merchant, Indian agent and trader, lawyer, doctor, postmaster, politician. Born at Lexington, Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of John M. Boggs and Martha Oliver. Served in War of 1812. Moved to St. Louis, ca...

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called for the expulsion of the Latter-day Saints from the state.
2

Whitney heard of the expulsion en route to Missouri and therefore waited for a time in St. Louis.a Marks left Kirtland in October, before he could have heard of the expulsion.b They eventually rejoined the Latter-day Saints in Commerce, Illinois, where Marks was appointed president of the stake and Whitney became bishop of the Middle Ward.c(a[Elizabeth Ann Smith Whitney], “A Leaf from an Autobiography,” Woman’s Exponent, 15 Nov. 1878, 91.bGeauga Co., OH, Deed Record, 1795–1921, vol. 27, pp. 149–150, 1 Oct. 1838, microfilm 20,242, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Letter from William Perkins, 29 Oct. 1838.cMinutes, 6 May 1839; see also Minutes, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:30–31.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

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

As directed,
Granger

7 Feb. 1794–23/25 Aug. 1841. Sheriff, church agent. Born at Phelps, Ontario Co., New York. Son of Pierce Granger and Clarissa Trumble. Married Lydia Dibble, 8 Sept. 1813, at Phelps. Member of Methodist church and licensed exhorter. Sheriff of Ontario Co. ...

View Full Bio
continued his efforts in Kirtland to settle the debts of the First Presidency.
3

See Authorization for Oliver Granger, 13 May 1839; JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda, 11–12; Thomas Griffith and John Seymour, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 19 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40; Horace Kingsbury, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 26 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40; and Letter of Introduction from John Howden, 27 Oct. 1838.


Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117].

  2. [2]

    Whitney heard of the expulsion en route to Missouri and therefore waited for a time in St. Louis.a Marks left Kirtland in October, before he could have heard of the expulsion.b They eventually rejoined the Latter-day Saints in Commerce, Illinois, where Marks was appointed president of the stake and Whitney became bishop of the Middle Ward.c

    (a[Elizabeth Ann Smith Whitney], “A Leaf from an Autobiography,” Woman’s Exponent, 15 Nov. 1878, 91. bGeauga Co., OH, Deed Record, 1795–1921, vol. 27, pp. 149–150, 1 Oct. 1838, microfilm 20,242, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; Letter from William Perkins, 29 Oct. 1838. cMinutes, 6 May 1839; see also Minutes, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:30–31.)

    Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

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

  3. [3]

    See Authorization for Oliver Granger, 13 May 1839; JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda, 11–12; Thomas Griffith and John Seymour, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 19 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40; Horace Kingsbury, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 26 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40; and Letter of Introduction from John Howden, 27 Oct. 1838.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117]

Page [1]

Far W[e]st

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
July 8, 1838
Prest.

An organized body of leaders over priesthood quorums and other ecclesiastical organizations. A November 1831 revelation first described the office of president over the high priesthood and the church as a whole. By 1832, JS and two counselors constituted ...

View Glossary
William Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
and
Bishop

An ecclesiastical and priesthood office. JS appointed Edward Partridge as the first bishop in February 1831. Following this appointment, Partridge functioned as the local leader of the church in Missouri. Later revelations described a bishop’s duties as receiving...

View Glossary
N K Whitny [Newel K. Whitney]

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
Gnt. We send you by the hand of br
O[liver] Granger

7 Feb. 1794–23/25 Aug. 1841. Sheriff, church agent. Born at Phelps, Ontario Co., New York. Son of Pierce Granger and Clarissa Trumble. Married Lydia Dibble, 8 Sept. 1813, at Phelps. Member of Methodist church and licensed exhorter. Sheriff of Ontario Co. ...

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a revelation recd this morning which reads as follows
1

See Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117].


Verily thus saith the Lord unto my servants
Wm Marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
&
N K Whitny

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
let them settle up their businss speedily & Journy from the Land of
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
before me I the Lord sendeth snow again upon the ground, Let them awake & arise & come forth & not tarry for I the Lord commandeth it. Therefor if they tarry it shall not be well with them.
Let them repent of all their sins & of all their covetous desires before me saith the Lord, For what is property unto me Saith the Lord. Let the properties of
Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Latter-day Saint missionaries visited township, early Nov. 1830; many residents joined Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and...

More Info
be turned out for debts debt saith the Lord. Let them go saith the Lord & whatsoever remaineth let it remain in your hands saith the Lord. For have I not the fowls of Heaven & also the fish of the sea & the beasts of the mountains, Have I not made the earth. do I not hold the destinies of all the armies of the nations of the earth. Therefore will I not make the solitary places to bud & to blossom & to bring forth in abundance saith the Lord. Is there not room enough upon the mountains of
Adam ondi awman

Settlement located in northwest Missouri. 1835 revelation identified valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman as place where Adam blessed his posterity after leaving Garden of Eden. While seeking new areas in Daviess Co. for settlement, JS and others surveyed site on which...

More Info
& upon the plains of Obashinihah or
Oleashinihah

Associated with Adam-ondi-Ahman. Shinehah defined as “sun” and Olea as “moon” in JS’s translated Book of Abraham. See also “Adam-ondi-Ahman.”

More Info
or in the Land of where Adam dwelt that you should not covet that which is but the drop & neglect the more weighty matters— Therefore come up hither unto the Land of my people even
Zion

JS revelation, dated 20 July 1831, designated Missouri as “land of Zion” for gathering of Saints and place where “City of Zion” was to be built, with Independence area as “center place” of Zion. Latter-day Saint settlements elsewhere, such as in Kirtland,...

More Info
— Let my servt.
Wm marks

15 Nov. 1792–22 May 1872. Farmer, printer, publisher, postmaster. Born at Rutland, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of Cornell (Cornwall) Marks and Sarah Goodrich. Married first Rosannah R. Robinson, 2 May 1813. Lived at Portage, Allegany Co., New York, where he...

View Full Bio
be faithful over a few things & he shall be ruler of over many things— Let him preside in the midst of my (blank or omited)
2

The version of the revelation in JS’s journal has “people” at this point in the text. (JS, Journal, 8 July 1838.)


in the city
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
& let him be blessed with the blessings of my people Let my Servt.
N K Whitny

3/5 Feb. 1795–23 Sept. 1850. Trader, merchant. Born at Marlborough, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of Samuel Whitney and Susanna Kimball. Moved to Fairfield, Herkimer Co., New York, 1803. Merchant at Plattsburg, Clinton Co., New York, 1814. Mercantile clerk for...

View Full Bio
be ashamed of the Nicholatins & of all their secret abominations & of all his littleness of soul before me saith the Lord & come up unto the Land of
Adam ondi awman

Settlement located in northwest Missouri. 1835 revelation identified valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman as place where Adam blessed his posterity after leaving Garden of Eden. While seeking new areas in Daviess Co. for settlement, JS and others surveyed site on which...

More Info
& be a
Bishop

An ecclesiastical and priesthood office. JS appointed Edward Partridge as the first bishop in February 1831. Following this appointment, Partridge functioned as the local leader of the church in Missouri. Later revelations described a bishop’s duties as receiving...

View Glossary
unto my people saith the Lord, Not in name Name but in deed saith the Lord— And again verily I say unto you I remember my servt,
Oliver Granger

7 Feb. 1794–23/25 Aug. 1841. Sheriff, church agent. Born at Phelps, Ontario Co., New York. Son of Pierce Granger and Clarissa Trumble. Married Lydia Dibble, 8 Sept. 1813, at Phelps. Member of Methodist church and licensed exhorter. Sheriff of Ontario Co. ...

View Full Bio
behold verily I say unto him that his name shall be had in sacred remembrence from generation to generation for ever & ever saith the Lord. Therefore let him Contend earnestly for the redemption of the
first presidency

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

View Glossary
of my
church

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
saith the Lord (over) [p. [1]]
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Source Note

Document Transcript

Page [1]

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to William Marks and Newel K. Whitney, 8 July 1838
ID #
396
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D6:194–197
Handwriting on This Page
  • Newel K. Whitney

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117].

  2. [2]

    The version of the revelation in JS’s journal has “people” at this point in the text. (JS, Journal, 8 July 1838.)

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