Footnotes
Henry King, Keokuk, Iowa Territory, to John Chambers, Burlington, Iowa Territory, 14 July 1843, in Territorial Papers of the United States, the Territory of Iowa, reel 56; “Interview between Joseph Smith & the Pottowatomie Chiefs,” ca. 1856, in Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, July 1843; Dunham, Journal, 14 July–26 Aug. 1843; JS, Journal, 26 Aug. 1843; Clayton, Journal, 28 Aug. 1843; Letter to Paicouchaiby and Other Potawatomi, 28 Aug. 1843.
Carter, Clarence Edward, and John Porter Bloom, comps. Territorial Papers of the United States. 28 vols. Washington DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1934–1975.
Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Draft Notes, ca. 1839–1856. CHL. CR 100 92.
Dunham, Jonathan. Journals, 1837–1846. Jonathan Dunham, Papers, 1825–1846. CHL. MS 1387, fds. 1–4.
Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.
Clayton, Journal, 4 Apr. 1844; 3 July 1844; 18 Aug. 1844. Clayton likely made some adjustments to the text when he wrote the fair copy of the minutes and discourse from this meeting, as he had done with other portions of the council records from the Nauvoo era. (Historical Introduction to Council of Fifty, “Record.”)
Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.
For a full record of the Council of Fifty under JS, see “Part 1: March–June 1844.”
Illinois senator Sidney Breese, a Democrat, addressed the United States Senate on 27 February 1844 and expressed his support for fellow Illinois senator James Semple’s resolution to inform Great Britain that the United States wished to end the joint occupation of Oregon territory. Breese claimed to be acting under the authorization of his constituents, who possessed “clear convictions that the territory west of the Rocky mountains between latitudes 42° and 54°40′ north is ours by an undoubted title.” He also traced the diplomatic history of the dispute over Oregon and discounted the threat of war over the territory, arguing that it was in Britain’s own interest to “yield it up in a friendly manner.” Breese closed his speech by quoting several descriptions of Oregon, focusing on its potential for settlement and trade. His remarks were published in the Congressional Globe and then as a pamphlet. (Congressional Globe, Appendix, 28th Cong., 1st Sess., pp. 216–225 [1844]; Speech of Mr. Breese, of Illinois, 3, 20.)
The Congressional Globe, Containing Sketches of the Debates and Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth Congress. Vol. 8. Washington DC: Blair and Rives, 1840.
Speech of Mr. Breese, of Illinois, on the Oregon Territory: Delivered in the United States Senate, February 27, 1844. Washington DC: Globe, 1844.
At the 11 March 1844 meeting, the council appointed a committee composed of John Taylor, Willard Richards, William W. Phelps, and Parley P. Pratt to draft a constitution. (Council of Fifty, “Record,” 19 Mar. 1844.)
Pratt left Nauvoo at some point following the 11 March 1844 meeting of the Council of Fifty. In his autobiography Pratt wrote, “In the spring I went to Boston as a missionary, and on business.” On 19 April 1844, Pratt wrote a letter to JS from Chicago while en route to the eastern United States. (Pratt, Autobiography, 367; Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 19 Apr. 1844.)
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.