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Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 19 April 1844

Source Note

, Letter, , Cook Co., IL, to JS and the , , Hancock Co., IL, 19 Apr. 1844; handwriting and signature of ; two pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes address, postal stamps, postal notation, dockets, notation, and use mark.
Bifolium measuring 9¾ × 7¾ inches (25 × 20 cm). The interior pages of the bifolium are ruled with thirty horizontal lines printed in blue ink. The upper left corner of the recto of the first leaf includes a circular embossed seal featuring a perched eagle circumscribed by the words “Hubbard Norwich”. The letter was inscribed on the recto and verso of the first leaf. The document was trifolded twice in letter style, addressed, sealed with a red adhesive wafer, and postmarked. The letter was torn when opened, and the wafer remains on the recto of the second leaf. The bifolium was later refolded for filing.
The letter 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. It was also docketed by Jonathan Grimshaw, who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1856. The document was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office circa 1904. By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early dockets, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

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]

    Historian’s Office, Journal, 7 June 1853; Wilford Woodruff, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 30 Aug. 1856, in Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 364.

    Historian’s Office. Journal, 1844–1997. CHL. CR 100 1.

    Historian’s Office. Letterpress Copybooks, 1854–1879, 1885–1886. CHL. CR 100 38.

  3. [3]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [4], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

  4. [4]

    See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection, 1827–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On 19 April 1844, apostle wrote a letter from to JS and Pratt’s fellow members of the in , Illinois, regarding the prospect of establishing more of the throughout . Pratt had left Nauvoo sometime after being admitted as a member of the at its organizational meeting on 11 March and prior to 4 April. Pratt, who was en route to on a proselytizing mission and on business, wrote this letter while awaiting a steamboat to convey him from Chicago to , New York.
In his letter, described some of the towns and cities he had passed through on his journey and commented on their great potential in terms of transportation and economy. He also discussed the growth of the church in the area and recommended that the church establish and additional branches throughout the state, between and .
It is unclear when JS received ’s letter, and no response has been located.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Council of Fifty, “Record,” 11 Mar. and 4 Apr. 1844.

  2. [2]

    Pratt, Autobiography, 367.

    Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.

Page [1]

, Ill, April 19th 44
President Smith and the ,
Dear Brethren, I am here awaiting a Boat for , the “Madison” a fine Steamer sails in the morning. Navigation has but fairly opened between and . I am well and in as good spirits as I can be away from home. I hope all are well at .
I write at this time to Call your special attention <​to​> this part of our , or the part between and , as affording every facility for settlements and of . from , and other seaports on the Atlantic communication is easy, cheep, and expeditious to by way of the Lakes and canal and Rail Roads. it is now but six days journey from to .— has a good harbour, and will soon have a canal, connecting the Lakes with the . it is a good Market, as it only costs a few cents on a Bushel of Wheat for transportation from here to . The Country between and 150 miles is composed mostly of Rich, Dry, Rolling, and healthy Prairies most beautifully watered with Durable Streams and Rivers, and will, so far as can be ascertained from the appearance, and from the history of the past be one of the healthyest counties in the world, and certainly it is the most productive and pleasant. is on the one hundred miles from , and is only eaqualed by in Beauty of Location, is Little Inferior. is not beautiful in Natural Cite, but is the best Location for trade of any port of the west. [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 19 April 1844
ID #
1335
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • Parley P. Pratt

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    The boat was probably the James Madison, reportedly the first steamer to run regularly between Buffalo and Chicago. The James Madison had been making the trip since at least 1837. (Hilton, Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, 28–29; Notice, Milwaukie Sentinel [Milwaukee], 9 Nov. 1844, [3].)

    Hilton, George W. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2002.

    Milwaukie Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin Territory. 1841–1845.

  2. [2]

    Pratt’s estimate may have been a little conservative. Although the voyage was sometimes faster, the average passage from Chicago to Buffalo alone took six days at the time. (Hilton, Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, 32.)

    Hilton, George W. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2002.

  3. [3]

    The intended Illinois and Michigan Canal would connect the Great Lakes with the Illinois River and effectively link New York and the northeastern United States with the Mississippi River and all its navigable tributaries. The greatly anticipated canal was widely envisioned as a continental thoroughfare of major geographic and economic importance. Although construction of the ninety-six-mile canal, connecting Lake Michigan with the Illinois River from Chacago to LaSalle, began in 1836, the canal was not completed until 1848. (Ranney and Harris, Prairie Passage, 37–43.)

    Ranney, Edward, and Emily J. Harris. Prairie Passage: The Illinois and Michigan Canal Corridor. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1998.

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