property, without paying for it. He has received a letter from Mr [Hilary] Tucker of on the subject but it is so worthless he dont intend to answer it. He has thought that if we can leave some trusty men as agents in charge of our property we shall defeat the enemy and probably they will be able before long to dispose of it so as to help the poor away. When we leave here his mind is to go just beyond the , somewhere on the Mexican claim and the will have no business to come there and if they do we will treat them as enemies. We can make a stand somewhere on the vallies of the Bear River, near to the beer springs. Their are parks in that region which abound with Buffallo, and in fact it is the greatest place for Buffallo on the Continent, and would be near where we [p. [88]]
On 7 January church leaders received a letter from Father Hilary Tucker stating that the Catholics would not be “able to purchase our property but would be glad to lease the Temple but would not be responsible for its safety against fire, mobs riots &c.” Clayton recorded in response, “So that we may now conclude that our only help is from God and each other all human influence and means being shut out from us.” As Young stated in the meeting, no response was sent. (Clayton, Journal, 7 Jan. 1846; Kimball, Journal, 7 Jan. 1846; see also Bennett, “Has the Lord Turned Bankrupt?,” 237–250.)
Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.
Kimball, Heber C. Journal, Nov. 1845–Jan. 1846. CHL.
Bennett, Richard. “‘Has the Lord Turned Bankrupt?’ The Attempted Sale of the Nauvoo Temple, 1846–1850.” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society 95 (Winter 2002/2003): 235–263.
Beer Springs, or Soda Springs, was located on the Bear River along the immigrant road to Oregon in what is now southeastern Idaho. The springs were considered one of the most remarkable features along the trail and were described at great length by John C. Frémont and other western explorers. (Frémont, Report of the Exploring Expedition, 135–140; Farnham, Travels in the Great Western Prairies, 2:78–80.)
Frémont, John C. Report of the Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains in the Year 1842, and to Oregon and North California in the Years 1843–’44. Washington DC: Gales and Seaton, 1845.
Farnham, Thomas J. Travels in the Great Western Prairies, the Anahuac and Rocky Mountains, and in the Oregon Territory. 2 vols. London: Richard Bentley, 1843.