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Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 10 June 1844

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Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 10 June 1844

Source Note

JS as lieutenant general, Military Order, [, Hancock Co., IL], to , [, Hancock Co., IL], 10 June 1844; sealed by ; included endorsement. Featured version copied [ca. 10 June 1844]; handwriting of and ; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes docket and notations.
Single leaf measuring 9⅝ × 7¾ inches (24 × 20 cm). The left edge of the recto was unevenly cut, which suggests the leaf was removed from a book or larger sheet. The document was later trifolded for filing.
The order was docketed by , who served as a clerk for JS in 1844. It was possibly listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) circa 1904. The notation “AJ” was later added by Andrew Jenson, who began working in the Church Historian’s Office in 1891 and served as assistant church historian from 1897 to 1941. By 1973 this letter had been included in the JS Collection at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early docket, its possible listing in the circa 1904 inventory, its notation, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection indicate continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. See JS History, vol. F-1, 133; Nauvoo Registry of Deeds, Record of Deeds, bk. B, pp. 213–214; and Source Note for Ordinance, 10 June 1844.

  2. “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [4], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL. This inventory lists two undated letters to Dunham under the year 1844. However, JS wrote more than two letters to Dunham in 1844, so it is unclear which letters are referenced in the inventory.

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

  3. Jenson, Autobiography, 192, 389; Cannon, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891; Jenson, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891 and 19 Oct. 1897; Bitton and Arrington, Mormons and Their Historians, 47–52.

    Jenson, Andrew. Autobiography of Andrew Jenson: Assistant Historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1938.

    Cannon, George Q. Journals, 1855–1864, 1872–1901. CHL. CR 850 1.

    Jenson, Andrew. Journals, 1864–1941. Andrew Jenson, Autobiography and Journals, 1864–1941. CHL.

    Bitton, David, and Leonard J. Arrington. Mormons and Their Historians. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1988.

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

Historical Introduction

As lieutenant general of the , JS issued an order on 10 June 1844 in , Illinois, to acting major general instructing him to prepare the legion to assist city marshal in destroying the press of the Nauvoo Expositor. Earlier that day, the Nauvoo City Council had approved a resolution declaring the newspaper a nuisance and directing JS, as mayor of Nauvoo, to remove its printing establishment. That evening JS ordered Greene to destroy the Expositor’s press, jumble or scatter its type, and burn all copies of the paper and any other libelous materials in its printing office. Presumably just after issuing the order to Greene, JS directed Dunham to have the Nauvoo Legion ready to help Greene if needed.
It is unclear whether subsequently requested the assistance of the . Although no orders showing that mustered the legion have been found, , one of the legion’s lieutenant colonels, stated that he was “notified to assist the Marshale” specifically as an officer of the legion. , however, recollected in a later account that Greene “called for Volunteers to assist him and obtained the requisite number among the bystanding,” which suggests that the legion was not formally mustered. Regardless of how it was raised, a posse led by Greene did gather in the evening and carry out JS’s orders.
While most of the posse members are unknown, the list of men later charged with riot in relation to the press’s destruction and the testimony given in subsequent hearings indicate that members of the played a prominent role in destroying the Expositor’s press. For instance, P. T. Rolfe, who was working in the Expositor’s office on 10 June, testified that members of the legion such as , , , and assisted in removing the press. , one of the Expositor’s proprietors, also concluded that the posse was composed of members of the Nauvoo Legion, as did John R. Wakefield, a visitor to who was friendly to JS. Also noteworthy is the fact that after the posse finished its work, it split into two companies, one headed by Dunham and the other led by Markham, both of whom commanded regiments in the legion.
JS’s original 10 June order was presumably transmitted to the day it was written. At some point a copy of the order was made, and certified it in his role as the city recorder. Apparently, and then made a copy of this certified copy, with McEwan transcribing the order and Clayton signing for JS and writing out Richards’s certification. The Nauvoo Neighbor subsequently published a version of JS’s order to Dunham in its 17 June 1844 extra and 19 June 1844 issue. Neither the original order nor the certified copy is extant. The copy made by McEwan and Clayton is featured here, with significant differences between it and the published versions noted.

Footnotes

  1. Resolution, 10 June 1844. The same day, the city council also declared an old barn on Hyde Street to be a nuisance and ordered that it be removed. (Alanson Ripley et al. to Nauvoo City Council, Petition, Nauvoo, IL, 10 June 1844, Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL; Minutes, 10 June 1844; Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 10 June 1844, 212.)

  2. Mayor’s Order to Nauvoo City Marshal, 10 June 1844.

  3. The act incorporating Nauvoo, also known as the Nauvoo charter, stated that the Nauvoo Legion “shall be at the disposal of the Mayor in executing the laws and ordinances of the City Corporation.” There was a precedent for Nauvoo’s government calling upon the legion to abate a nuisance: in October 1841 two companies of the legion removed a grog shop that had been declared a nuisance by the city council. (Act to Incorporate the City of Nauvoo, 16 Dec. 1840; Woodruff, Journal, 30 Oct. 1841; “The Neusance,” Times and Seasons, 15 Nov. 1841, 3:599–600; Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Book, 23 Oct. 1841, 25–27.)

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

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

  4. Testimonies, Nauvoo, IL, 12 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS for Riot on Habeas Corpus (Nauvoo Mun. Ct. 1844), p. [1], Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL. Turley was the lieutenant colonel of the Fifth Regiment of the Second Cohort of the Nauvoo Legion. (“Rank Roll of the Commissioned Officers of the 5th Regt 2 Cohort Nauvoo Legion of Illinois Militia for the Spring Parades for the Year A.D. 1844,” 1843–1844, [1], Nauvoo Legion Records, CHL.)

  5. Stephen Perry, Las Vegas Mission, to George A. Smith, 28 Aug. 1855, 1–2, Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, ca. 1839–1860, CHL.

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

  6. Clayton, Journal, 10 June 1844; John R. Wakefield, Affidavit, Henry Co., Iowa Territory, 24 June 1844, JS Office Papers, CHL; JS, Journal, 10 June 1844; Mayor’s Order to Nauvoo City Marshal, 10 June 1844. Accounts differ regarding the size of this posse and the degree to which it was armed. Charles A. Foster stated that the posse consisted “of some two or three hundred of the Nauvoo Legion, assisted by as many volunteers, armed with muskets, swords, pistols, Bowie knives, &c.” JS’s journal, however, records that there were only about a hundred men in the posse, a difference that may be explained by the fact that only half of the posse returned to the Nauvoo Mansion to report to JS. Vilate Murray Kimball also reported that “some hundred of the Brethren turned out and burned the printing press.” While Foster emphasized that the posse was armed, John R. Wakefield testified that some of the men, “but not many,” had weapons. (“News from Nauvoo,” New York Herald [New York City], 26 June 1844, [1]; Testimonies, Nauvoo, IL, 12 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS for Riot on Habeas Corpus (Nauvoo Mun. Ct. 1844), p. [1], Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL; Vilate Murray Kimball, Nauvoo, IL, to Heber C. Kimball, Baltimore, MD, 9, 11, and 24 June 1844, [2], Kimball Family Correspondence, CHL.)

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

    New York Herald. New York City. 1835–1924.

    Kimball Family Correspondence, 1838–1871. CHL. MS 6241.

  7. Some witnesses, like William Clayton and John S. Fullmer, credited the city’s police with destroying the Expositor’s press. Several of the men charged with riot—such as John Lytle, William H. Edwards, Jesse Harmon, and Jonathan Dunham—were Nauvoo policemen. Hosea Stout, however, noted that the police “were mostly officers in the Legion.” For instance, Jonathan Dunham was both the high policeman—the head of Nauvoo’s police force—and the acting major general, or second-in-command, of the Nauvoo Legion. The overlapping personnel in the legion and the police may explain why some thought the posse was composed of militia while others thought it was made up of policemen. (Clayton, Journal, 10 June 1844; John S. Fullmer, [Carthage], IL, to “Uncle John,” 27 Sept. 1844, in Fullmer, Letterbook, 198; Dunham, Account Book, [89]–[91]; Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 12 June 1844; Thomas Bullock, Record of Events, 26 June 1844, [1], Nauvoo Legion Records, CHL.)

    Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

    Fullmer, John S. Letterbook, 1836–1881. John S. Fullmer Journal and Letterbook, 1836–1881. CHL.

  8. “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 21 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 16 [26] June 1844, [2]. Dunham normally commanded the Fourth Regiment of the Second Cohort at the rank of colonel. Markham was the colonel of the First Regiment of the First Cohort. Harmon was the major of the Fourth Regiment of the Second Cohort. Perry was a third lieutenant in the Fifth Regiment of the Second Cohort. (Stout, “History of the Nauvoo Legion,” 2 Apr. 1842; 24 Sept. 1842; 18 June 1844; “Rank Roll. of the Nauvoo Legion of the Illinois Militia for the Year 1843,” in Nauvoo Legion Minute Book, 68; “Rank Roll of the Commissioned Officers of the 5th Regt 2 Cohort Nauvoo Legion of Illinois Militia for the Spring Parades for the Year A.D. 1844,” 1843–1844, [2], Nauvoo Legion Records, CHL.)

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  9. “News from Nauvoo,” New York Herald [New York City], 26 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 21 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 16 [26] June 1844, [2]; John R. Wakefield, Nauvoo, IL, to Thomas Ford, Springfield, IL, 14 June 1844, JS Office Papers, CHL; Letter to John R. Wakefield, 23 June 1844; see also Letter from John R. Wakefield, ca. 24 June 1844.

    New York Herald. New York City. 1835–1924.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  10. One of the companies remained near the Expositor office to “see whether there would be any disturbanse,” while the other marched to the Nauvoo Mansion, where it was dismissed by JS. (Testimonies, Nauvoo, IL, 12 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS for Riot on Habeas Corpus (Nauvoo Mun. Ct. 1844), p. [1], Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL.)

  11. Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Book, 12 Aug. 1843, 20.

  12. McEwan was a member of JS’s office staff. Clayton was JS’s private clerk. (See JS History, vol. F-1, 133; and Clayton, History of the Nauvoo Temple, 31.)

    Clayton, William. History of the Nauvoo Temple, ca. 1845. CHL. MS 3365.

  13. “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [3].

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 10 June 1844
Revised Minutes, 17 June 1844 Revised Minutes, 17 June 1844, as Published in Nauvoo Neighbor

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To ) Head Quarters
acting Major Gen of ) Nauvoo Legion
June 10th. 1844.
You are hereby commanded to hold the Nauvoo Legion in readiness for[th]with to assist the of said to execute the city ordinance, and especially to remove the printing establishment of the Nauvoo Expositor, and this you are required to do at sight under penalty of the Law. provided the shall require it and need your Services
Joseph Smith
Lieut. Genl. N. Legion
Endorsed The within is a true copy of the original order of Lieut Gen Smith to
In testimony whereof I have hereto set my hand & private seal at June 10— 1844
Recorder C. [city of Nauvoo] L. S. [1/4 page blank] [p. [1]]
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Source Note

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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 10 June 1844
ID #
1591
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page
  • John McEwan
  • William Clayton

Footnotes

  1. John McEwan handwriting begins.

  2. The phrase “to assist the Marshall of said city” is not present in the version of this order published in the Nauvoo Neighbor. (“For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [3].)

  3. The Nauvoo Neighbor renders this word as “ordinances” instead of “ordinance.” (“For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [3].)

  4. The Nauvoo Neighbor renders this phrase as “under the penalty of the laws” instead of “under penalty of the Law.” (“For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 17 June 1844, [1]; “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 19 June 1844, [3].)

  5. Signature of JS in the handwriting of William Clayton.

  6. John McEwan handwriting ends; William Clayton begins.

  7. TEXT: “L. S.” (an abbreviation of locus sigilli, Latin for “location of the seal”) is enclosed within a hand-drawn representation of a circular seal.

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