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Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 5 February 1842

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Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 5 February 1842

Source Note

, Letter, , Lancashire, England, to JS and “the Saints in America,” [, Hancock Co., IL], 5 [Feb.] 1842; handwriting of ; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes docket.
One leaf measuring 9⅛ × 7¾ inches (23 × 20 cm). The document may have been folded for delivery; it was later folded for filing.
The document was docketed by , who served as a clerk in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) from 1853 to 1859. It was listed in an inventory 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 docket as well as its inclusion in the circa 1904 inventory and in the JS Collection by 1973 indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    “Obituary of Leo Hawkins,” Millennial Star, 30 July 1859, 21:496–497.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  2. [2]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [2], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

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

  3. [3]

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

Historical Introduction

On 5 February 1842 , who presided over the British mission, wrote a letter to JS providing an update on migration from to , Illinois. Pratt had recently moved from to to assist in arranging travel for the growing number of British converts eager to make the voyage to the . In the letter, Pratt alerted JS to the departure of approximately 370 British Latter-day Saints on two vessels headed to . In total, an estimated 1,760 Saints had made the voyage, with the first company of converts leaving in June 1840.
This letter was likely taken to by a member of the emigrating company that departed on the Hope on 5 February 1842. The group arrived in Nauvoo via steamer on 13 April 1842, and JS presumably received the letter shortly thereafter. misdated the letter 5 December 1842, but in the body of the letter he identified the correct date of 5 February 1842.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Pratt, Autobiography, 361.

    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.

  2. [2]

    Sonne, Saints on the Seas, 148; William Clayton, Penwortham, England, to Brigham Young and Willard Richards, Manchester, England, 19 Aug. 1840, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL.

    Sonne, Conway B. Saints on the Seas: A Maritime History of Mormon Migration, 1830–1890. University of Utah Publications in the American West, vol. 17. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1983.

    Reed, John S. Letter, Mexico, NY, to Brigham Young, 6 Dec. 1861. Brigham Young Office Files, CHL. CR 1234 1, box 28, fd. 13.

  3. [3]

    Morris, Reminiscences, 24–25, 33; “Shipping Intelligence,” Morning Chronicle (London), 7 Feb. 1842, [4].

    Morris, George. Reminiscences, ca. 1867–1886. CHL.

    Morning Chronicle. London. 1789–1865.

Page [1]

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, Eng,
Dec, [February] 5th 1842,
To, Joseph Smith and the in . whom it may concern
Dear Brethren,
I Drop you a line In haste, to inform you, that on the 12th of Jan, We Sent a Ship of near 100 Saints, by on Ship Tremont. And that we have this Day (feb 5th) Dispatched another. the Largest in , Called the Hope, Capt, Soule Marster with about 270 Souls on Board, for . under the superintendance of . Each of these will contain some Money for the . We Shall Send another Ship in on about the 18th of this month. and another in fore pa[r]t of March next.
In Great Haste I Remain yours in the Cause of
We are all well.
[p. [1]]
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Source Note

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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 5 February 1842
ID #
761
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D9:147–149
Handwriting on This Page
  • Parley P. Pratt

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    The Tremont departed Liverpool on 12 January 1842 with 143 passengers, most of whom were Latter-day Saints. (“Emigration Movements,” Millennial Star, Feb. 1842, 2:155.)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  2. [2]

    According to the Millennial Star, most of these passengers were Latter-day Saints. (“Emigration Movements,” Millennial Star, Feb. 1842, 2:155.)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  3. [3]

    Burnham, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy, arrived in Liverpool in early November 1840 for his mission in Great Britain. (James Blakeslee, Rome, NY, to “Dear Brethren,” 11 June 1841, in Times and Seasons, 15 July 1841, 2:483–484.)

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  4. [4]

    On 15 January 1841 the First Presidency issued “A Proclamation, to the Saints Scattered Abroad,” which urged the Saints to contribute financially and otherwise to building a temple in Nauvoo. On 24 October 1841 Parley P. Pratt and Amos Fielding pledged to send $1,000 over the course of the year and began to facilitate the Saints’ donations. (Proclamation, 15 Jan. 1841; Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 24 Oct. 1841.)

  5. [5]

    The John Cumming was scheduled to depart Liverpool for New Orleans on 20 February 1842. (“Emigration Movements,” Millennial Star, Feb. 1842, 2:155.)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  6. [6]

    The March 1842 edition of the Millennial Star advertised that Parley P. Pratt and Amos Fielding were chartering the Hanover to transport Saints to New Orleans; the ship was scheduled to depart Liverpool on 12 March. (“Emigration,” Millennial Star, Mar. 1842, 2:176.)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

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