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Letter to Thomas Ford, 1 January 1844

Source Note

JS, Letter,
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
, Hancock Co., IL, to
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
, [
Springfield

Settled by 1819. Incorporated as town, 1832. Became capital of Illinois, 1837. Incorporated as city, 1840. Sangamon Co. seat. Population in 1840 about 2,600. Stake of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints organized in Springfield, Nov. 1840; discontinued...

More Info
, Sangamon Co., IL], 1 Jan. 1844. Featured version copied [ca. 1 Jan. 1844]; handwriting of
William W. Phelps

17 Feb. 1792–7 Mar. 1872. Writer, teacher, printer, newspaper editor, publisher, postmaster, lawyer. Born at Hanover, Morris Co., New Jersey. Son of Enon Phelps and Mehitabel Goldsmith. Moved to Homer, Cortland Co., New York, 1800. Married Sally Waterman,...

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; four pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes dockets, redactions, and archival marking.
Bifolium measuring 9⅞ × 7¾ inches (25 × 20 cm). The bifolium was trifolded for filing. The document has undergone some conservation.
The document was docketed by
Thomas Bullock

23 Dec. 1816–10 Feb. 1885. Farmer, excise officer, secretary, clerk. Born in Leek, Staffordshire, England. Son of Thomas Bullock and Mary Hall. Married Henrietta Rushton, 25 June 1838. Moved to Ardee, Co. Louth, Ireland, Nov. 1839; to Isle of Anglesey, Aug...

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, who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865.
1

Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

The document also includes a second docket in unidentified handwriting, likely that of an early church clerk. The document was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) circa 1904.
2

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


Comprehensive Works Cited

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

By 1973 the document had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL).
3

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


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]

    Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  2. [2]

    “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.

  3. [3]

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

Historical Introduction

On 1 January 1844, JS wrote from
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
, Illinois, to
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
governor
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
regarding escalating tensions between the
Latter-day Saints

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...

View Glossary
and their neighbors in
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

More Info
, Illinois, as well as JS’s earlier proposal to call out the
Nauvoo Legion

A contingent of the Illinois state militia provided for in the Nauvoo city charter. The Nauvoo Legion was organized into two cohorts: one infantry and one cavalry. Each cohort could potentially comprise several thousand men and was overseen by a brigadier...

View Glossary
for protection. The letter was in response to one from Ford the previous month.
1

Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.


The exchange was prompted by the kidnappings of Hancock County residents and suspected horse thieves
Daniel

1 July 1797–16 Oct. 1851. Farmer, carpenter. Born in Oswego Co., New York. Son of Daniel Avery and Sarah. Moved to Franklin Co., Ohio, by 1821. Married Margaret Adams, 4 Jan. 1821, in Franklin Co. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry...

View Full Bio
and
Philander Avery

13 June 1822 or 1823–9 May 1907. Farmer. Born in Franklin Co., Ohio. Son of Daniel Avery and Margaret Adams. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry, Franklin Co., by June 1830; to Colwell, Schuyler Co., Illinois, 1832; to Rushville, Schuyler...

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in November and December 1843. In mid-November, Philander was taken from his home in
Bear Creek Precinct

Named after stream that rises near Carthage, Illinois, and flows southwest into Mississippi River. JS arrested in area, 5 June 1841, by Adams Co., Illinois, sheriff Thomas King, acting on warrant from Illinois governor Thomas Carlin, who planned to deliver...

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in southern Hancock County and incarcerated across the
Mississippi 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
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
. His father, Daniel, a church member, was abducted on 2 December. The kidnappings were a coordinated effort by a group of vigilantes made up of citizens of Hancock County; Clark County, Missouri; and
Lee County

First permanent settlement established, 1820. Organized 1837. Population in 1838 about 2,800; in 1840 about 6,100; in 1844 about 9,800; and in 1846 about 13,000. Following expulsion from Missouri, 1838–1839, many Saints found refuge in eastern Iowa Territory...

More Info
, Iowa Territory.
2

Philander Avery, Testimony, [Clark Co., MO], 13 Nov. 1843, State of Missouri v. Philander Avery (Clark Co. Cir. Ct. 1843), Clark County Circuit Clerk’s Office, Clark County Courthouse, Kahoka, MO; Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843; Philander Avery, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 20 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL; Affidavit from Daniel Avery, 28 Dec. 1843; William W. Phelps, Nauvoo, IL, to J. White, Waterloo, MO, 21 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Clark County Circuit Clerk’s Office, Clark County Courthouse. Kahoka, MO.

The Averys were accused of having stolen two horses in Missouri four years earlier.
3

William W. Phelps, Nauvoo, IL, to J. White, Waterloo, MO, 21 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL; see also J. White, Waterloo, MO, to Jesse D. Hunter, Montrose, Iowa Territory, 10 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL.


Although
Philander

13 June 1822 or 1823–9 May 1907. Farmer. Born in Franklin Co., Ohio. Son of Daniel Avery and Margaret Adams. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry, Franklin Co., by June 1830; to Colwell, Schuyler Co., Illinois, 1832; to Rushville, Schuyler...

View Full Bio
had escaped and
Daniel

1 July 1797–16 Oct. 1851. Farmer, carpenter. Born in Oswego Co., New York. Son of Daniel Avery and Sarah. Moved to Franklin Co., Ohio, by 1821. Married Margaret Adams, 4 Jan. 1821, in Franklin Co. Moved to Worthington, Franklin Co., by Sept. 1825; to Perry...

View Full Bio
had been discharged in a
habeas corpus

“Have the body”; a written order from a court of competent jurisdiction commanding anyone having a person in custody to produce such person at a certain time and place and to state the reasons why he or she is being held in custody. The court will determine...

View Glossary
hearing by a
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
court by the time JS wrote this letter, the episode brought the region to the brink of war.
4

Affidavit from Daniel Avery, 28 Dec. 1843.


The abductions reignited JS’s own fears of being captured and taken to Missouri, as he had narrowly avoided a third extradition attempt the previous summer.
5

See Historical Introduction to Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 30 June 1843; and “Joseph Smith Documents from March through July 1843.”


In response, JS and the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
City Council bolstered the city’s police force and passed a controversial ordinance stipulating that any law officer attempting to apprehend JS and convey him to Missouri would be imprisoned for life.
6

See Ordinance, 12 Dec. 1843–A; Ordinance, 8 Dec. 1843; “Nauvoo City Council,” Quincy (IL) Whig, 27 Dec. 1843, [2]; “Meeting of Citizens at Carthage,” Warsaw (IL) Message, Extra, 17 Jan. 1844, [2]; and “The Mormons and Their Prophet—Legislation at Nauvoo—The Temple,” New-York Daily Tribune (New York City), 27 Jan. 1844, [1].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Quincy Whig. Quincy, IL. 1838–1856.

Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

New-York Daily Tribune. New York City. 1841–1924.

On 6 December, the day after hearing of the abductions, JS wrote to
Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
, forwarding an affidavit about the kidnappings and asking whether he should activate the
Nauvoo Legion

A contingent of the Illinois state militia provided for in the Nauvoo city charter. The Nauvoo Legion was organized into two cohorts: one infantry and one cavalry. Each cohort could potentially comprise several thousand men and was overseen by a brigadier...

View Glossary
to protect the city’s residents.
7

JS, Journal, 5 Dec. 1843; Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843.


JS wrote to Ford again on 11 December, sending another affidavit.
8

Letter to Thomas Ford, 11 Dec. 1843.


Ford replied to JS’s first letter on 12 December, stating that JS was not authorized to call out the city’s militia and explaining the limitations of the governor’s authority in cases of interstate crime.
9

Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.


By the time JS received
Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
’s response, the situation had escalated. Without waiting for word from Ford, on 8 December JS ordered
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
marshal
Henry G. Sherwood

20 Apr. 1785–24 Nov. 1867. Surveyor. Born at Kingsbury, Washington Co., New York. Son of Newcomb Sherwood and a woman whose maiden name was Tolman (first name unidentified). Married Polly by 17 May 1823. Lived at Bolton, Warren Co., New York, 1830. Baptized...

View Full Bio
to “take the necessary measures to have the rights of the citizens of this city held sacred” and instructed him that “should you judge that the peace and safety of this city required it, you are further notif[i]ed to call for a suitable portion of the
Nauvoo Legion

A contingent of the Illinois state militia provided for in the Nauvoo city charter. The Nauvoo Legion was organized into two cohorts: one infantry and one cavalry. Each cohort could potentially comprise several thousand men and was overseen by a brigadier...

View Glossary
to be in complete readiness to compel obedience to the ordinances of said city.”
10

Mayor’s Order to Henry G. Sherwood, 8 Dec. 1843.


Anticipating conflict from the Saints, Colonel
Levi Williams

18 Apr. 1794–27 Nov. 1860. Postmaster, farmer, military officer. Born in Madison Co., Kentucky. Married Mary (Polly) Reid. Moved to Hancock Co., Illinois, ca. 1831, eventually settling in Green Plains. Served in Black Hawk War, 1832. Served as captain in ...

View Full Bio
, one of the Averys’ abductors and commander of the Fifty-Ninth Regiment of the
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
state militia, gathered a force in
Warsaw

Located at foot of Des Moines rapids of Mississippi River at site of three military forts: Fort Johnson (1814), Cantonment Davis (1815–1818), and Fort Edwards (1816–1824). First settlers participated in fur trade. Important trade and shipping center. Post...

More Info
, Illinois. After hearing on 18 December of the “warlike force . . . collecting at or near Warsaw,” JS ordered Nauvoo Legion major general
Wilson Law

26 Feb. 1806–15 Oct. 1876. Merchant, millwright, land speculator, farmer. Born in Ireland. Son of Richard Law and Ann Hunter. Immigrated to U.S. and settled in Springfield Township, Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, by 1820. Moved to Delaware Township, Mercer Co....

View Full Bio
to mobilize the militia.
11

JS, Journal, 18 Dec. 1843; Willard Richards, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 18 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL; Military Order to Wilson Law, 18 Dec. 1843–B; Oaks and Hill, Carthage Conspiracy, 58.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Oaks, Dallin H., and Marvin S. Hill. Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1975.

On 1 January 1844, JS responded to
Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
’s 12 December letter, giving further details about developments in the county and arguing it would be appropriate to use the
Nauvoo Legion

A contingent of the Illinois state militia provided for in the Nauvoo city charter. The Nauvoo Legion was organized into two cohorts: one infantry and one cavalry. Each cohort could potentially comprise several thousand men and was overseen by a brigadier...

View Glossary
to defend the city’s citizens. JS concluded by reminding the governor 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
’s continued hostility toward the Saints and assuring him that they would not instigate aggression. It is unknown whether Ford sent a response directly to JS. However, in a 29 January 1844 letter that appears to have been addressed to the editor of the Warsaw Signal, Ford touched on many of these same issues and pleaded for all
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

More Info
residents to help maintain peace.
12

Thomas Ford, Letter, Springfield, IL, 29 Jan. 1844, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954, Chicago History Museum.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Manuscripts about Mormons at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, ca. 1832–1954. Microfilm. Chicago Historical Society.

The version featured here is a retained draft in the handwriting of
William W. Phelps

17 Feb. 1792–7 Mar. 1872. Writer, teacher, printer, newspaper editor, publisher, postmaster, lawyer. Born at Hanover, Morris Co., New Jersey. Son of Enon Phelps and Mehitabel Goldsmith. Moved to Homer, Cortland Co., New York, 1800. Married Sally Waterman,...

View Full Bio
. The sent copy of the letter is apparently not extant.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.

  2. [2]

    Philander Avery, Testimony, [Clark Co., MO], 13 Nov. 1843, State of Missouri v. Philander Avery (Clark Co. Cir. Ct. 1843), Clark County Circuit Clerk’s Office, Clark County Courthouse, Kahoka, MO; Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843; Philander Avery, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 20 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL; Affidavit from Daniel Avery, 28 Dec. 1843; William W. Phelps, Nauvoo, IL, to J. White, Waterloo, MO, 21 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL.

    Clark County Circuit Clerk’s Office, Clark County Courthouse. Kahoka, MO.

  3. [3]

    William W. Phelps, Nauvoo, IL, to J. White, Waterloo, MO, 21 Dec. 1843, copy, JS Office Papers, CHL; see also J. White, Waterloo, MO, to Jesse D. Hunter, Montrose, Iowa Territory, 10 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL.

  4. [4]

    Affidavit from Daniel Avery, 28 Dec. 1843.

  5. [5]

    See Historical Introduction to Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 30 June 1843; and “Joseph Smith Documents from March through July 1843.”

  6. [6]

    See Ordinance, 12 Dec. 1843–A; Ordinance, 8 Dec. 1843; “Nauvoo City Council,” Quincy (IL) Whig, 27 Dec. 1843, [2]; “Meeting of Citizens at Carthage,” Warsaw (IL) Message, Extra, 17 Jan. 1844, [2]; and “The Mormons and Their Prophet—Legislation at Nauvoo—The Temple,” New-York Daily Tribune (New York City), 27 Jan. 1844, [1].

    Quincy Whig. Quincy, IL. 1838–1856.

    Warsaw Message. Warsaw, IL. 1843–1844.

    New-York Daily Tribune. New York City. 1841–1924.

  7. [7]

    JS, Journal, 5 Dec. 1843; Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843.

  8. [8]

    Letter to Thomas Ford, 11 Dec. 1843.

  9. [9]

    Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.

  10. [10]

    Mayor’s Order to Henry G. Sherwood, 8 Dec. 1843.

  11. [11]

    JS, Journal, 18 Dec. 1843; Willard Richards, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 18 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL; Military Order to Wilson Law, 18 Dec. 1843–B; Oaks and Hill, Carthage Conspiracy, 58.

    Oaks, Dallin H., and Marvin S. Hill. Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1975.

  12. [12]

    Thomas Ford, Letter, Springfield, IL, 29 Jan. 1844, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954, Chicago History Museum.

    Manuscripts about Mormons at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, ca. 1832–1954. Microfilm. Chicago Historical Society.

Page [1]

Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
Jan’y 1 1844
Gov.
Thomas Ford

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
Your Letter of the 12th Dec last is before me, and lest a wrong impression may be imbibed, or may have been cherished by your
excellency

5 Dec. 1800–3 Nov. 1850. Schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, politician, judge, author. Born in Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Robert Ford and Elizabeth Logue Forquer. Moved to St. Louis, 1804; to New Design (later American Bottom), Randolph...

View Full Bio
or his friends relative to the late disturbances of the mob in this section as well as the outrageous act of kidnapping two citizens of
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
and my question whether I should call out any portion of the
Legion

A contingent of the Illinois state militia provided for in the Nauvoo city charter. The Nauvoo Legion was organized into two cohorts: one infantry and one cavalry. Each cohort could potentially comprise several thousand men and was overseen by a brigadier...

View Glossary
&c, let me say that there must have been a misconception of my idea as exprssd in the letter, <​and​> as backed up by the affidavit of
Mr [Dellmore] Chapman

28 Dec. 1804–23 Apr. 1857. Farmer. Born in Ellington, Tolland Co., Connecticut. Son of Hosea Chapman and Patty Converse. Purchased land in central Hancock Co., Illinois, 1829. Owned land southwest of Nauvoo, Hancock Co., by 1842. Swore affidavit before JS...

View Full Bio
.
1

On 6 December 1843, Chapman made an affidavit about the kidnappings of Daniel and Philander Avery, saying he believed both men were being held in the Monticello jail in Lewis County, Missouri. JS enclosed Chapman’s affidavit in his 6 December letter to Ford. (Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843.)


We have never talked of sending men to
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
<​to fight​> no you can not ever compel a witness to go there much less an armed force,
2

In his 12 December letter, Ford told JS, “If any of the people of Nauvoo should invade Missouri for the purpose of rescuing persons there in jail, the consequence would be that indictments would be presented against them and demands made upon me for their arrest and Surrender.” (Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.)


but as Col.
Levi Williams

18 Apr. 1794–27 Nov. 1860. Postmaster, farmer, military officer. Born in Madison Co., Kentucky. Married Mary (Polly) Reid. Moved to Hancock Co., Illinois, ca. 1831, eventually settling in Green Plains. Served in Black Hawk War, 1832. Served as captain in ...

View Full Bio
(sworn to support the constitution) had then, and still has, (if I am correctly informed and the numerous affidavits are true) from one to three hundred men well armed with rifles, pistols bowie <​knives​> &c to guard himself from being taken by a warrant, now in the hands of some constable;
3

On 18 December 1843, word reached Nauvoo that Williams was amassing a force near Warsaw. (See JS, Journal, 18 Dec. 1843; and Willard Richards, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 18 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL.)


<​and​> as was affirmed, to kidnap a Mr Turner [p. [1]]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to Thomas Ford, 1 January 1844
ID #
1237
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • William W. Phelps

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    On 6 December 1843, Chapman made an affidavit about the kidnappings of Daniel and Philander Avery, saying he believed both men were being held in the Monticello jail in Lewis County, Missouri. JS enclosed Chapman’s affidavit in his 6 December letter to Ford. (Affidavit from Dellmore Chapman and Letter to Thomas Ford, 6 Dec. 1843.)

  2. [2]

    In his 12 December letter, Ford told JS, “If any of the people of Nauvoo should invade Missouri for the purpose of rescuing persons there in jail, the consequence would be that indictments would be presented against them and demands made upon me for their arrest and Surrender.” (Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.)

  3. [3]

    On 18 December 1843, word reached Nauvoo that Williams was amassing a force near Warsaw. (See JS, Journal, 18 Dec. 1843; and Willard Richards, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 18 Dec. 1843, JS Office Papers, CHL.)

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