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Letter from Emma Smith, 7 March 1839

Source Note

Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

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, Letter,
Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

More Info
, Adams Co., IL, to JS,
Liberty

Located in western Missouri, thirteen miles north of Independence. Settled 1820. Clay Co. seat, 1822. Incorporated as town, May 1829. Following expulsion from Jackson Co., 1833, many Latter-day Saints found refuge in Clay Co., with church leaders and other...

More Info
, Clay Co., MO, 7 Mar. [1839]. Featured version copied [between 29 May and 30 Oct. 1839] in JS Letterbook 2, p. 37; handwriting of
James Mulholland

1804–3 Nov. 1839. Born in Ireland. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Married Sarah Scott, 8 Feb. 1838/1839, at Far West, Caldwell Co., Missouri. Engaged in clerical work for JS, 1838, at Far West. Ordained a seventy, 28 Dec. 1838....

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; JS Collection, CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS Letterbook 2.

Historical Introduction

On 7 March 1839,
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
wrote the following letter to JS, who remained imprisoned in
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
, updating him on her situation since her departure from
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
, Missouri, the previous month. Accompanied by
Latter-day Saint

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

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Stephen Markham

9 Feb. 1800–10 Mar. 1878. Carpenter, farmer, stock raiser. Born at Rush (later Avon), Ontario Co., New York. Son of David Markham and Dinah Merry. Moved to Mentor, Geauga Co., Ohio, 1809. Moved to Unionville, Geauga Co., 1810. Married Hannah Hogaboom, before...

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, Emma and her children left Far West on 7 February 1839 and arrived in
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
in mid-February.
1

Far West Committee, Minutes, 7 Feb. 1839; Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, 6–7 and 15 Feb. 1839.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Far West Committee. Minutes, Jan.–Apr. 1839. CHL. MS 2564.

She and her children found lodging in the home of
John

21 May 1790–24 Nov. 1860. Farmer, wagon maker, carpenter, builder. Born in Duanesburg, Schenectady Co., New York. Son of Gardner Cleveland and Annis Durkee. Moved to Cincinnati, before 1826. Married Sarah Marietta Kingsley Howe, 1826, in Cincinnati. Moved...

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and
Sarah Kingsley Cleveland

20 Oct. 1788–21 Apr. 1856. Born in Becket, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts. Daughter of Ebenezer Kingsley and Sarah Chaplin. Moved to New Haven, New Haven Co., Connecticut, by 1807. Married first John Howe, 7 Dec. 1807, in New Haven. Moved to Cincinnati, by ...

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, about four miles east of
Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

More Info
, Illinois. In late February or early March 1839, church leaders in Quincy decided to send important documents to JS, and family members of the prisoners were invited to send letters with the courier.
2

See Historical Introduction to Letter from Edward Partridge, 5 Mar. 1839.


In this 7 March letter, which Emma likely wrote in the Clevelands’ residence, she expressed her feelings upon leaving her imprisoned husband and described the sufferings of the Latter-day Saint refugees during their winter migration to Illinois.
Church leaders in
Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

More Info
chose Latter-day Saint
David W. Rogers

4 Oct. 1787–21 Sept. 1881. Born in New Hampshire. Son of Samuel Rogers and Hannah Sinclair. Married Martha Collins, 5 Dec. 1811, in Montreal, Lower Canada. Moved to Pomfret, Chautauque Co., New York, by 1820. Moved to New York City, 1830. Baptized into Church...

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to deliver the letters and other documents to the
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
prisoners. Rogers left Quincy on 10 March and arrived in
Liberty

Located in western Missouri, thirteen miles north of Independence. Settled 1820. Clay Co. seat, 1822. Incorporated as town, May 1829. Following expulsion from Jackson Co., 1833, many Latter-day Saints found refuge in Clay Co., with church leaders and other...

More Info
on the evening of 19 March.
3

Rogers, Statement, [1], CHL; Historical Introduction to Letter from Edward Partridge, 5 Mar. 1839.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Rogers, David W. Statement, [not before 1846]. CHL.

JS acknowledged receipt of his
wife

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

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’s letter and expressed profound gratitude for it in his 20 March 1839 general epistle to the church.
4

Letter to the Church and Edward Partridge, 20 Mar. 1839.


The following day, he wrote a personal response to her letter.
5

See Letter to Emma Smith, 21 Mar. 1839.


Emma Smith’s original letter, which is apparently not extant, was copied into JS Letterbook 2 by
James Mulholland

1804–3 Nov. 1839. Born in Ireland. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Married Sarah Scott, 8 Feb. 1838/1839, at Far West, Caldwell Co., Missouri. Engaged in clerical work for JS, 1838, at Far West. Ordained a seventy, 28 Dec. 1838....

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between 29 May and 30 October 1839.
6

Mulholland copied his own 29 May 1839 letter to Edward Partridge on page 15 of JS Letterbook 2, making that the earliest likely copying date for documents he subsequently copied but that had dates preceding 29 May.


Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Far West Committee, Minutes, 7 Feb. 1839; Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, 6–7 and 15 Feb. 1839.

    Far West Committee. Minutes, Jan.–Apr. 1839. CHL. MS 2564.

  2. [2]

    See Historical Introduction to Letter from Edward Partridge, 5 Mar. 1839.

  3. [3]

    Rogers, Statement, [1], CHL; Historical Introduction to Letter from Edward Partridge, 5 Mar. 1839.

    Rogers, David W. Statement, [not before 1846]. CHL.

  4. [4]

    Letter to the Church and Edward Partridge, 20 Mar. 1839.

  5. [5]

    See Letter to Emma Smith, 21 Mar. 1839.

  6. [6]

    Mulholland copied his own 29 May 1839 letter to Edward Partridge on page 15 of JS Letterbook 2, making that the earliest likely copying date for documents he subsequently copied but that had dates preceding 29 May.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Letter from Emma Smith, 7 March 1839
Letterbook 2

Page 37

Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

More Info
March 7th
Dear Husband
Having an opportunity to send by a friend I make an attempt to write, but I shall not attempt to write my feelings altogether, for the situation in which you are, the walls, bars, and bolts, rolling rivers, running streams, rising hills, sinking vallies and spreading prairies that separate us, and the cruel injustice that first cast you into prison and still holds you there,
1

For more information on the events leading to JS’s arrest and imprisonment, see Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.


with many other considerations, places my feelings far beyond description.
Was it not for conscious innocence, and the direct interposition of divine mercy, I am very sure I never should have been able to have endured the scenes of suffering that I have passed through, since what is called the Militia, came in to
Far West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

More Info
, under the ever to be remembered
Governor

14 Dec. 1796–14 Mar. 1860. Bookkeeper, bank cashier, merchant, Indian agent and trader, lawyer, doctor, postmaster, politician. Born at Lexington, Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of John M. Boggs and Martha Oliver. Served in War of 1812. Moved to St. Louis, ca...

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’s notable order; an order fraught with as much wickedness as ignorance and as much ignorance as was ever contained in an article of that length;
2

For more information on the expulsion order that Missouri governor Lilburn W. Boggs issued on 27 October 1838 and the state militia’s occupation of Far West, see Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.


but I still live and am yet willing to suffer more if it is the will of kind Heaven, that I should for your sake.
We are all well at present, except
Fredrick

20 June 1836–13 Apr. 1862. Farmer, merchant. Born at Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio. Son of JS and Emma Hale. Married Anna Marie Jones, 13 Sept. 1857, in Hancock Co., Illinois. Died in Nauvoo, Hancock Co.

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who is quite sick.
Little
Alexander

2 June 1838–12 Aug. 1909. Photographer, carpenter, postmaster, minister. Born at Far West, Caldwell Co., Missouri. Son of JS and Emma Hale. Moved to Commerce (later Nauvoo), Hancock Co., Illinois, 1839. Married Elizabeth Agnes Kendall, 23 June 1861, at Nauvoo...

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who is now in my arms is one of the finest little fellows, you ever saw in your life, he is <​so​> strong that with the assistance of a chair he will run all round the room.
I am now living at
Judge [John] Cleveland

21 May 1790–24 Nov. 1860. Farmer, wagon maker, carpenter, builder. Born in Duanesburg, Schenectady Co., New York. Son of Gardner Cleveland and Annis Durkee. Moved to Cincinnati, before 1826. Married Sarah Marietta Kingsley Howe, 1826, in Cincinnati. Moved...

View Full Bio
’s four miles from the village of
Quincy

Located on high limestone bluffs east of Mississippi River, about forty-five miles south of Nauvoo. Settled 1821. Adams Co. seat, 1825. Incorporated as town, 1834. Received city charter, 1840. Population in 1835 about 800; in 1840 about 2,300; and in 1845...

More Info
. I do not know how long I shall stay here. I want you to write an answer by the bearer. I left your change of clothes with
H. C. Kimbal [Heber C. Kimball]

14 June 1801–22 June 1868. Blacksmith, potter. Born at Sheldon, Franklin Co., Vermont. Son of Solomon Farnham Kimball and Anna Spaulding. Married Vilate Murray, 22 Nov. 1822, at Mendon, Monroe Co., New York. Member of Baptist church at Mendon, 1831. Baptized...

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when I came away, and he agreed to see that you had clean clothes as often as necessary.
3

Whereas most of the Saints had left Missouri, Kimball was instructed to remain in Far West to assist the prisoners until their release. (Heber C. Kimball, Far West, MO, to Vilate Murray Kimball, Quincy, IL, 2 Apr. 1839, Heber C. Kimball, Collection, CHL; Alanson Ripley, Statements, ca. Jan. 1845, Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, 1839–1860, CHL.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Kimball, Heber C. Collection, 1837–1898. CHL. MS 12476.

Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Documents, 1839–1860. CHL. CR 100 396.

No one but God, knows the reflections of my mind and the feelings of my heart when I left our house and home, and allmost all of every thing that we possessed excepting our little Children, and took my journey out of the State of
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
, leaving you shut up in jail that lonesome prison. But the reflection recollection is more than human nature ought to bear, and if God does not record our sufferings and avenge our wrongs on them that are guilty,
4

See Romans 12:19.


I shall be sadly mistaken.
The daily sufferings of our brethren in travelling and camping out nights, and those on the other side of the
river

Principal U.S. river running southward from Itasca Lake, Minnesota, to Gulf of Mexico. Covered 3,160-mile course, 1839 (now about 2,350 miles). Drains about 1,100,000 square miles. Steamboat travel on Mississippi very important in 1830s and 1840s for shipping...

More Info
would beggar the most lively description.
5

Church members began leaving Far West in significant numbers in January and February 1839. They traveled through snow and other hazards, and upon reaching the Mississippi River, some found that they had to wait up to two weeks before the river thawed sufficiently to cross safely by boat. According to one estimate, as many as one hundred families camped on the Missouri side of the river in late February. (Hartley, “Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri,” 354–364; see also Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Hartley, William G. “The Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri, 1839.” In Joseph Smith: The Prophet and Seer, edited by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Kent P. Jackson, 347–389. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010.

The people in this
state

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
are very kind indeed, they are doing much more than we ever anticipated they would;
6

The citizens of Quincy provided temporary shelter, basic assistance, and employment for the Mormon refugees. (See Bennett, “Study of the Mormons in Quincy,” 88–95; and Hartley, “Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri,” 366–370.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Bennett, Richard E. “‘Quincy the Home of Our Adoption’: A Study of the Mormons in Quincy, Illinois, 1838–1840.” In A City of Refuge: Quincy, Illinois, edited by Susan Easton Black and Richard E. Bennett, 83–105. Salt Lake City: Millennial Press, 2000.

Hartley, William G. “The Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri, 1839.” In Joseph Smith: The Prophet and Seer, edited by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Kent P. Jackson, 347–389. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010.

I have many more things I could like to write but have not time and you may be astonished at my bad writing and incoherent manner, but you will pardon all when you reflect how hard it would be for you to write, when your hands were stiffened with hard work, and your heart convulsed with intense anxiety. But I hope there is better days to come to us yet, Give my respects to all in that place that you respect, and am ever your’s affectionately.
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
Joseph Smith Jr [p. 37]
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Source Note

Document Transcript

Page 37

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Emma Smith, 7 March 1839
ID #
427
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
JSP, D6:338–340
Handwriting on This Page
  • James Mulholland

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    For more information on the events leading to JS’s arrest and imprisonment, see Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.

  2. [2]

    For more information on the expulsion order that Missouri governor Lilburn W. Boggs issued on 27 October 1838 and the state militia’s occupation of Far West, see Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.

  3. [3]

    Whereas most of the Saints had left Missouri, Kimball was instructed to remain in Far West to assist the prisoners until their release. (Heber C. Kimball, Far West, MO, to Vilate Murray Kimball, Quincy, IL, 2 Apr. 1839, Heber C. Kimball, Collection, CHL; Alanson Ripley, Statements, ca. Jan. 1845, Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, 1839–1860, CHL.)

    Kimball, Heber C. Collection, 1837–1898. CHL. MS 12476.

    Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Documents, 1839–1860. CHL. CR 100 396.

  4. [4]

    See Romans 12:19.

  5. [5]

    Church members began leaving Far West in significant numbers in January and February 1839. They traveled through snow and other hazards, and upon reaching the Mississippi River, some found that they had to wait up to two weeks before the river thawed sufficiently to cross safely by boat. According to one estimate, as many as one hundred families camped on the Missouri side of the river in late February. (Hartley, “Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri,” 354–364; see also Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.)

    Hartley, William G. “The Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri, 1839.” In Joseph Smith: The Prophet and Seer, edited by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Kent P. Jackson, 347–389. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010.

  6. [6]

    The citizens of Quincy provided temporary shelter, basic assistance, and employment for the Mormon refugees. (See Bennett, “Study of the Mormons in Quincy,” 88–95; and Hartley, “Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri,” 366–370.)

    Bennett, Richard E. “‘Quincy the Home of Our Adoption’: A Study of the Mormons in Quincy, Illinois, 1838–1840.” In A City of Refuge: Quincy, Illinois, edited by Susan Easton Black and Richard E. Bennett, 83–105. Salt Lake City: Millennial Press, 2000.

    Hartley, William G. “The Saints’ Forced Exodus from Missouri, 1839.” In Joseph Smith: The Prophet and Seer, edited by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Kent P. Jackson, 347–389. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010.

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