JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. F-1, created 9 Apr.–7 June 1856 and 20 Aug. 1856–6 Nov. 1856; handwriting of and Jonathan Grimshaw; 304 pages, plus 10 pages of addenda; CHL. This is the final volume of a six-volume manuscript history of the church. This sixth volume covers the period from 1 May to 8 Aug. 1844; the remaining five volumes, labeled A-1 through E-1, go through 30 Apr. 1844.
Historical Introduction
History, 1838-1856, volume F-1, constitutes the last of six volumes documenting the life of Joseph Smith and the early years of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The series is also known as the Manuscript History of the Church and was originally published serially from 1842 to 1846 and 1851 to 1858 as the “History of Joseph Smith” in the Times and Seasons and Deseret News. This volume contains JS’s history from 1 May 1844 to the events following his 27 June 1844 death, and it was compiled in Utah Territory in 1856.
The material recorded in volume F-1 was initially compiled under the direction of church historian , who was JS’s cousin, and also assistant church historian . Smith collaborated with in collecting material for the volume and creating a set of draft notes, which Smith dictated to Bullock and other clerks. Woodruff gathered additional material concerning the death of Joseph Smith as a supplement to George A. Smith’s work recording that event. Jonathan Grimshaw and , members of the Historian’s Office staff, transcribed the draft notes into the volume along with the text of designated documents.
According to the Historian’s Office journal, Jonathan Grimshaw initiated work on the text of volume F-1 on 9 April 1856, soon after Robert L. Campbell had completed work on volume E-1. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 5 and 9 Apr. 1856.) Grimshaw’s scribal work begins with an entry for 1 May 1844. Unlike previous volumes in which the numbering had run consecutively to page 2028, Grimshaw began anew with page 1. He transcribed 150 pages by June 1856, and his last entry was for 23 June 1844. Though more of his writing does not appear in the volume, he continued to work in the office until 2 August, before leaving for the East that same month. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 2 and 10 Aug. 1856.)
assumed the role of scribe on 20 August 1856. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 20 Aug. 1856.) He incorporated ’s draft notes for the period 24–29 June 1844 on pages 151–189, providing an account of JS’s death and its immediate aftermath. He next transcribed a related extract from ’s 1854 History of Illinois on pages 190–204. Pages 205–227 were left blank.
provided the notes for the final portion of the text. This account begins with an entry for 22 June 1844 and continues the record through 8 August 1844, ending on page 304. (The volume also included ten pages of addenda.) The last specific entry in the Historian’s Office journal that captures at work on the history is for 6 November 1856. A 2 February 1857 Wilford Woodruff letter to indicates that on 30 January 1857, the “presidency sat and heard the history read up to the organization of the church in , 8th. day of August 1844.” (Historian’s Office, Journal, 6 Nov. 1856; Wilford Woodruff, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 2 Feb. 1857, Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 410; see also Wilford Woodruff, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to Amasa Lyman and Charles C. Rich, 28 Feb. 1857, Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, pp. 430–431.)
The pages of volume F-1 contain a record of the final weeks of JS’s life and the events of the ensuing days. The narrative commences with and arriving at , Illinois, on 1 May 1844 from their lumber-harvesting mission in the “” of Wisconsin Territory. As the late spring and summer of 1844 unfold, events intensify, especially those surrounding the suppression of the Nauvoo Expositor in mid-June. Legal action over the Expositor leads to a charge of riot, and subsequently JS is charged with treason and is incarcerated at the jail in , Illinois. The narrative of volume F-1 concludes with an account of the special church conference convened on 8 August 1844 to consider who should assume the leadership of the church.
<June 22> property which belongs to the Mr. Laws and others. There has been no property meddled with to my knowledge belonging to any person, except property we have purchased of the rightful owners. turned over some property to a Mr. Hicks to pay a debt. This I purchased of Mr. Hicks, and I am responsible to him for the [HC 6:526] amount. We have been especially careful to preserve the property of those who are exciting the public against us, inasmuch as we knew that every means would be used which could be invented to raise excitement, and we have appointed the police to watch this property, and see that no harm was done to it by any person as they had tried to fire their own building, and was detected in the act; the fire was extinguished by the policemen, and no property damaged.
“There have been no prisoners taken in this , neither any person held as hostage, only some who are residents of this place, who had broke the laws. No stranger has been interfered with, nor detained in the , under any circumstances.
“In haste I have the honor to remain
Dear Sir, Your most obedt. Servt.,
Joseph Smith Lieut. Gen. N. L.”
This letter was accompanied by other affidavits, and sent by , who was delegated to go in place of . He started at noon in company with of . [HC 6:527]
Legion met as usual, and after receiving instructions, were dismissed until 6 P. M, when they met again. At 7 P. M., I instructed to cause the regiments of the 2nd Cohort to turn out tomorrow and work by turns three or four hours each with intrenching tools, and to take the best measures in case of attack. I also gave orders that a standard be prepared for the nations.
arrived from this morning, having come at the request of the , who thought it not wisdom to have , and , and others of the City Council go to .
made the following affidavit:—
“State of Illinois,)
City of .)
On the 22nd day of June, 1844, came before me, , Clerk of the Mayor’s Court in said , Dr. , who after being duly sworn deposeth and saith, that while at on the 18th and 19th ins’t, I heard several persons, who had assembled together for warlike purposes (having their arms and one cannon with them) say that they were gathering together for the purpose of destroying the property of General Joseph Smith, or as they said ‘Joe Smith’, and his followers, and the City Council, with the exception of [HC 6:528] one, and finally said that they would destroy the town, and exterminate the Latter day Saints.
.
“Subscribed and sworn to before me this 22nd day of June, 1844.
, Clerk M. C.”
James Olive made the following affidavit:—
“State of Illinois,)
Hancock County,)
City of )
June 22nd, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, , a Justice of the Peace in and for said , James Olive, who being first duly sworn, deposeth and saith that on Friday afternoon the 21st ins’t, about 3 o’clock he was at his own house about two miles from Appanoose, in a southeasterly direction, he saw a four horse wagon with some men before it, all traveling towards Appanoose. They went about a quarter of a mile beyond my house, there met a two horse wagon, and a [p. 137]
Hosea Stout, "Nauvoo Legion History," 22 June 1844, Nauvoo, IL, Legion Records, CHL.
Stout, Hosea. History of the Nauvoo Legion, Draft 1, ca. 1844–1845. Nauvoo Legion Records, 1841–1845. CHL. MS 3430, fd. 10. One of three drafts of the history; includes material dated 4 February 1841 through 22 June 1844. Pages are out of order; in the current order, this draft includes pp. [5]–[8], [15]–[22].