Letter from William Worthyson, 31 May 1842
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Source Note
William Worthyson, Letter, , Sangamon Co., IL, to JS, , Hancock Co., IL, 31 May 1842; handwriting of William Worthyson; one page; Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU. Includes address, postal stamp, postal notations, docket, and archival marking.Single leaf, which has separated into two pieces, with the upper section of the leaf measuring 3¼ × 8 inches (8 × 20 cm) and the lower section of the leaf measuring approximately 7½–8 × 7¾–8 inches (20 × 20 cm). When intact, the letter was trifolded twice in letter style, then later folded again for filing. Marked water damage has caused severe deterioration, separating the letter at horizontal and vertical folds, resulting in the loss of text. Three additional fragments, each measuring less than one-inch square, are also detached., who served as scribe to JS from 1842 to 1844, docketed the letter. In late 1844, following JS’s death, became one of the interim church trustees and was appointed “first bishop” among other . It was presumably during this time that many of the church’s financial and other administrative records passed into his possession. This document, along with many other personal and institutional documents that Whitney kept, was inherited by Newel K. and ’s daughter Mary Jane Whitney, who was married to Isaac Groo. The documents were passed down within the Groo family. Between 1969 and 1974, the Groo family donated their collection of Newel K. Whitney’s papers to the J. Reuben Clark Library (renamed Harold B. Lee Library in 1973) at Brigham Young University.
Footnotes
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1
JS, Journal, 29 June 1842; “Clayton, William,” in Jenson, Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1:718.
Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson History Co., 1901–1936.
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2
Richards, Journal, 9 Aug. 1844; “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1844, 5:693; see also Minutes, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:30.
Richards, Willard. Journals, 1836–1853. Willard Richards, Papers, 1821–1854. CHL. MS 1490, boxes 1–2.
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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3
Andrus and Fuller, Register of the Newel Kimball Whitney Papers, 24.
Andrus, Hyrum L., and Chris Fuller, comp. Register of the Newel Kimball Whitney Papers. Provo, UT: Division of Archives and Manuscripts, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, 1978.
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Historical Introduction
On 31 May 1842, William Worthyson wrote from , Illinois, to JS in , Illinois, reporting on the progress of the in Springfield and on local news. Little is known about Worthyson. His letter suggests he was a relatively new member of the church in Springfield. Church leaders had created a in Springfield, the state capital, in November 1840, with Edwin P. Merriam as president. The Springfield stake was discontinued in May 1841 when the dissolved all stakes outside of , Illinois, and , Iowa, and directed the Saints to to Nauvoo. In January 1842, a Springfield was organized with , a probate judge and close friend of JS, as president. Presumably, Worthyson was a member of this branch.Worthyson’s 31 May letter to JS emphasized the healthy state of the church in and noted the recent mechanical failure of a locomotive there. He also asked JS to write back with news of . The stamped postmark indicates the letter was sent from Springfield on 12 June 1842, nearly two weeks after Worthyson began writing the letter. The letter would have taken a few days to reach Nauvoo. No reply from JS is apparently extant.Because of deterioration along the first horizontal fold, the letter has separated into two pieces, resulting in missing or obscured text. Where possible, text has been editorially supplied in square brackets based on context.
Footnotes
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1
Although labeled a “branch” in some sources, the church unit created in November 1840 included a presidency and a bishop’s court, which suggests it was a stake. Furthermore, in 1842, Abraham C. Hodge described the unit that was organized in 1840 as a “stake.” The terms stake and branch were sometimes used interchangeably during this period. (JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda Book, 3; Letter from Abraham C. Hodge and Springfield, IL, Branch, 25 Jan. 1842; see also “Branch” and “Stake” in the glossary.)
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3
Letter from Abraham C. Hodge and Springfield, IL, Branch, 25 Jan. 1842; Proclamation, 15 Jan. 1841.
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