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Letter from Almon Babbitt, 5 May 1844

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Letter from Almon Babbitt, 5 May 1844

Source Note

, Letter, , Hancock Co., IL, to JS and the , , Hancock Co., IL, 5 May 1844; handwriting and signature of ; one page; CHL. Includes address and docket.
Single leaf measuring 12½ × 7⅝ inches (32 × 19 cm). The letter was written in dark blue ink on unlined paper. The text occupies only the first half of the recto. The letter was folded in half horizontally then trifolded twice in letter style and addressed. It was later refolded for filing.
The document was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from December 1841 until JS’s death in June 1844 and served as church historian from December 1842 until his own death in March 1854. The letter was apparently kept with other records in 1844. The Council of Fifty ceased meeting in the 1880s, after which its early records were transferred into the custody of the church’s . In 2010 the Office of the First Presidency transferred this document to the CHL.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 13 Dec. 1841 and 21 Dec. 1842; Orson Spencer, “Death of Our Beloved Brother Willard Richards,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 16 Mar. 1854, [2].

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  2. [2]

    See Historical Introduction to Council of Fifty, “Record.”

  3. [3]

    Letter of Transfer, Salt Lake City, UT, 15 Nov. 2010, CHL; Almon Babbitt, Macedonia, IL, to JS et al., Nauvoo, IL, 5 May 1844, Council of Fifty, Papers, 1845–1883, CHL.

    Letter of Transfer, Salt Lake City, UT, 15 Nov. 2010. CHL.

    Council of Fifty. Papers, 1844–1885. CHL.

Historical Introduction

On 5 May 1844, addressed a letter from , Illinois, to JS and the other members of the in , Illinois, apologizing for his intended absence from the next day’s council meeting. Babbitt had attended most of the meetings from 26 March 1844, when he became a council member, up to the time he wrote this letter. In a council meeting Babbitt missed on the evening of 3 May, JS “suggested the idea of adjourning till monday and write to Uncle and to come to council.” Babbitt heard about this upcoming meeting and authorized Smith and Johnson—fellow council members who also lived in the Macedonia area—to vote on his behalf. Babbitt likely also asked Smith or Johnson to deliver this message. The absence of postal markings and the short time (one day) between the composition of the letter and its intended date of reception indicate that the letter was hand carried by a private courier.
When the council convened on the morning of 6 May, ’s letter was read aloud as one of the first items of business. Immediately after the letter was read, JS proposed that Babbitt be appointed to serve a mission to “, Russia or some popular [populous?] Kingdom.” In spite of Babbitt’s absence, the council unanimously voted in the afternoon session to appoint him to serve a “special mission” to France.
Per later orders from JS and decisions made by the , and destroyed most of the council’s early documents. This letter is one of the few council documents from the era that survived.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 26 Mar. 1844; 4–5, 18, and 25 Apr. 1844; 3 May 1844; Letter from Almon Babbitt, 10 Apr. 1844. Babbitt was present at the meetings held on 4 and 5 April but was absent from council meetings on 11 April. William Clayton did not mention Babbitt in the records he took of the meetings held on 18 and 25 April; Babbitt likely attended those meetings, as there is no evidence that he notified the council that he would be absent. Babbitt missed the next meeting, which JS called on short notice on 3 May 1844 after the recent returns of Lyman Wight from Wisconsin Territory and Lucien Woodworth from his mission to the Republic of Texas to negotiate a possible Latter-day settlement there. (See JS, Journal, 1–3 May 1844.)

  2. [2]

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 3 May 1844.

  3. [3]

    JS’s journal records that a letter was sent to John Smith to notify him of the next meeting. (JS, Journal, 3 May 1844.)

  4. [4]

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 6 May 1844. No action was taken on this item until the council convened in the afternoon.

  5. [5]

    Babbitt did not go to France but remained in the Nauvoo area providing legal counsel to JS and serving as a liaison between the church and government officials. (See JS, Journal, 25–27 May 1844; 4 and 22 June 1844.)

  6. [6]

    See Historical Introduction to Council of Fifty, “Record”; and Council of Fifty, “Record,” 4 Feb. 1845; 1, 11, and 18 Mar. 1845.

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May 5th 1844
To the Honorable President and
I regret to inform you that circmstnces [circumstances] over which I have no power, prevnt me from meeting with you Tomorow I therefo[re] delegate power to my respetived [respected?] brethren father a[n]d to vote for me beleiving that if I were present that my mind would be theirs and theirs mine and from the confidence I have in your deliberations I beleive that all things will be conducted to the Glory of God and for the salvation of men
Yours very Respe[c]tfully
Joseph Smith [1/2 page blank] [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Almon Babbitt, 5 May 1844
ID #
10314
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Almon Babbitt
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