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Poem from Stephen Ross, 15 January 1844

Source Note

, Poem, , St. Louis Co., MO, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 15 Jan. 1844; handwriting probably of ; three pages; JS Office Papers, CHL. Includes address, postal notation, postal stamp, and docket.
Bifolium measuring 11¾ × 7½ inches (30 × 19 cm). The document was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, and sealed with an adhesive wafer. It was later refolded for filing. The verso of the second leaf, which bears the address, also includes a large amount of spilled ink.
The document was docketed 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 2012 the document was cataloged as part of the JS Office Papers. The document’s early docket and its later inclusion in the JS Office Papers suggest continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    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.

  2. [2]

    This collection comprises correspondence addressed to JS’s clerks, correspondence to other recipients that was forwarded to JS for his perusal, copies of miscellaneous documents created by JS’s clerks, and miscellaneous financial documents. (See “Introduction to Joseph Smith Office Papers.”)

Historical Introduction

On 15 January 1844, member wrote a poem in for JS, whom he called his “beloved brother in ,” identifying signs of the second coming of Jesus Christ, describing his poor health and his family’s difficult financial situation, and expressing a desire to move somewhere with better work opportunities. Little is known about Ross beyond the information contained in the poem. He was a shoemaker who had previously presided over the of the church at , New Jersey. In fall 1843, he apparently moved to Nauvoo with his wife and three children but could not find work there. Like many other Latter-day Saints, he and his family traveled to nearby St. Louis to seek employment.
filled the first half of his poem with allusions to biblical prophecies about the latter days. He used the next portion of the poem to describe the poverty he had experienced since leaving and to express his belief that moving to or back to New Jersey would considerably improve his family’s circumstances. However, he wanted to be sure that he could find work and lodging in Nauvoo before making the journey from . Ross asked JS for advice on the matter and requested that he write back to him in St. Louis.
mailed his poem to on 17 January 1844. He addressed it to church member , whom he apparently knew, with a note in the margin of the second page requesting that Spencer give the poem to JS. JS presumably received the letter sometime in mid- or late January. There is no known reply.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    It is unknown for how long Ross presided over the branch at Newark, but he was acting in this capacity during a conference in New York City in May 1843. (“Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1843, 4:286.)

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

  2. [2]

    Jane Stephenson Ross

  3. [3]

    Kimball, “Saints and St. Louis, 1831–1857,” 490, 496.)

    Kimball, Stanley B. “The Saints and St. Louis, 1831–1857: An Oasis of Tolerance and Security.” BYU Studies 13 (Summer 1873): 489–519.

Page [3]

I now work hard both night and Day
And Just keep up and pay my way
So now I want to know if you
Think I can live up in
It’s my Desire and my will
To Spend my Days on s hill
But this complaint I have to make
Of Zions
Since I have left my native home
there’s no man there to fill my room
The are Scattered here and there
And no presiding officer
Though () was there the night
I Asked to go, he said I might
And he to them would Soon return
But never has as I Since learnd
My friends all wish me to come Back
And Send me word to that effect
And tell me if I will come home
I Shall have money for to come
My Mother is a mormon too
But cannot get out to
Because her husband wont adhere
To anything she Does Declare
She has much trouble to Surmount
And wories much on my account
Besides she has brought Sickness on
In grieving much about her
I wish you now to write and Say
Weather I Shall go or Stay
As I Dont want the Journy twice
Without first having your advice
I want to live an upright life
Suport my children and my wife
And always Do the thing thats right
And live and Die a mormonite
, late over the at New Jersey— Direct to me [p. [3]]
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Source Note

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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Poem from Stephen Ross, 15 January 1844
ID #
3445
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Stephen Ross

Footnotes

  1. [11]

    The Nauvoo stake was formed in 1839. (Minutes and Discourses, 5–7 Oct. 1839.)

  2. [12]

    Page preached in the eastern United States at various times from 1840 to 1844. He presided at a conference of the church in New York City on 29 November 1841, at which an elder familiar with the state of the branch at Newark was present. The conversation about Ross moving to Nauvoo may have occurred then. (Orson Hyde and John E. Page, Quincy, IL, 28 Apr. 1840, Letter to the Editor, Times and Seasons, June 1840, 1:116–117; Historical Introduction to Petition from Richard Savary and Others, ca. 2 Feb. 1842; Willard Richards, Nauvoo, IL, to Mary Judd Page, Pittsburgh, PA, 25 Nov. 1843, CHL; Minutes and Discourses, 6–8 Apr. 1842; “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 15 Apr. 1842, 3:763–764.)

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

    Richards, Willard. Letter, Nauvoo, IL, to Mary Page, Pittsburgh, PA, 25 Nov. 1843. Photocopy. CHL. MS 74.

  3. [13]

    In April 1844, three months after Ross wrote this poem to JS, the minutes of a conference in New York City indicated that the Newark branch consisted of twelve members, including an unnamed priest who was the only branch member ordained to the priesthood. (“Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 1 May 1844, 5:525.)

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

  4. [14]

    After proselytizing in the eastern United States from 1840 to 1842 and subsequently returning to Nauvoo, Page presided over the branch of the church at Pittsburgh until summer 1843 and also preached in Washington DC. (Minutes and Discourses, 6–8 Apr. 1842; Editorial Note, Times and Seasons, 1 July 1842, 3:843; Woodruff, Journal, 3–27 Aug. 1843; Willard Richards, Nauvoo, IL, to Mary Judd Page, Pittsburgh, PA, 25 Nov. 1843, CHL.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    Richards, Willard. Letter, Nauvoo, IL, to Mary Page, Pittsburgh, PA, 25 Nov. 1843. Photocopy. CHL. MS 74.

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