Footnotes

1. [1]

   Letter to Emma Smith, 19 Aug. 1836.

2. [2]

   Ebenezer Robinson, “Items of Personal History of the Editor,” Return, July 1889, 104–106; see also Historical Introduction to Revelation, 6 Aug. 1836 [D&C 111]. Robinson’s account suggests that Burgess told JS about hidden money or treasure in Salem, motivating the trip to the eastern United States. Robinson implied that Burgess lived in Salem previously, but he did not include any information that might help identify the man, such as his age or when he might have lived there.

   The Return. Davis City, IA, 1889–1891; Richmond, MO, 1892–1893; Davis City, 1895–1896; Denver, 1898; Independence, MO, 1899–1900.

3. [3]

   The federal census for 1820 lists about sixty men in Massachusetts with the surname of Burgess, and the census for 1830 includes about seventy men with the surname of Burgess. No city directories exist for Salem before 1837, but Salem’s vital records name a William Burgess, baptized 22 November 1803, son of William. It also names a Jonathan Burges baptized at two years of age in September 1786. The marriage record also names the marriages of William Burgess and Mary Joseph, 6 November 1798, and a William Burges with intent to marry Mary Underwood, 15 September 1832, without giving the relationship of the two Williams. (1820 U.S. Census, MA; 1830 U.S. Census, MA; Vital Records of Salem Massachusetts, 1:140; 3:166–167.)

   Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.

   Vital Records of Salem Massachusetts, to the Year 1849. 6 vols. Salem, MA: Essex Institute, 1916–1925.

4. [4]

   Historian Milton Backman identifies the family of William Burgess, including four men, all born in New York: William Burgess, Harrison Burgess, Horace Burgess, and William Burgess Jr. William, Harrison, and Horace Burgess are also mentioned in the Kirtland high council minutes. Harrison left an autobiographical sketch later in his life, and he did not refer to Salem, Massachusetts. (Backman, Profile, 11; Minute Book 1, 14–15 Feb. 1835; 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835; 7–8 Mar. 1835; 2 May 1835; 17 Aug. 1835; Burgess, Autobiography, ca. 1883, CHL.)

   Backman, Milton V., Jr., comp. A Profile of Latter-day Saints of Kirtland, Ohio, and Members of Zion’s Camp, 1830–1839: Vital Statistics and Sources. 2nd ed. Provo, UT: Department of Church History and Doctrine and Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1983.

   Burgess, Harrison. Autobiography, ca. 1883. Photocopy. CHL. MS 893. Also available as “Sketch of a Well-Spent Life,” in Labors in the Vineyard, Faith-Promoting Series 12 (Salt Lake City: Juvenile Instructor Office, 1884), 65–74.

5. [5]

   Minute Book 1, 2 Nov. 1837.

6. [6]

   “Cancellation,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary [1839], 1:151–152; Chitty, Practical Treatise on Bills of Exchange, 214.

   Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

   Chitty, Joseph. A Practical Treatise on Bills of Exchange, Checks on Bankers, Promissory Notes, Bankers’ Cash Notes, and Bank Notes. Springfield, IL: G. and C. Merriam, 1836.