Letter to the Presidency in Kirtland, 29 March 1838
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Source Note
JS, Letter, , Caldwell Co., MO, to “the Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Kirtland,” , Geauga Co., OH, 29 Mar. 1838. Featured version copied [ca. mid- or late Apr. 1838] in JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, pp. 23–26; handwriting of ; CHL. Includes use marks. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838.
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Historical Introduction
About two weeks after JS’s arrival in , Missouri, he wrote the following letter to the of the church in , Ohio: , president, and and , assistant presidents. In the letter, JS recounted the difficulties of the journey from Kirtland in the middle of winter, his safe arrival in Far West, and information regarding and his family, who had stopped traveling for several days because of illness. JS and his family had pushed on, arriving in Far West on 14 March. , Rigdon’s son-in-law, arrived two weeks later, on 28 March, with news that Rigdon would probably arrive soon.JS’s letter to the presidency also reported that the problems with and , former members of the presidency, had been recently “a[d]justed” by and in collaboration with the . JS conveyed expressions of friendship for those in Kirtland and relayed a vision he had seen of , which JS interpreted as an indication that God would deliver Marks from his enemies. JS requested that the Saints migrating to bring seeds for vegetables, fruit trees, and hay and bring well-bred cattle and horses. With the letter, JS enclosed a copy of the “Motto of the Church of Christ of Latterday Saints,” which he had composed for the church upon arriving in .Although the original letter sent to the presidency is apparently not extant, made a copy of the letter in JS’s “Scriptory Book.” Robinson apparently made this transcript from a retained copy of the letter sometime in mid- or late April.
Footnotes
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1
John Smith and Clarissa Lyman Smith, Kirtland, OH, to George A. Smith, Shinnston, VA, 1 Jan. 1838, George Albert Smith, Papers, CHL; Hepzibah Richards, Kirtland, OH, to Willard Richards, Bedford, England, 18–19 Jan. 1838, Willard Richards, Papers, CHL.
Smith, George Albert. Papers, 1834–1877. CHL. MS 1322.
Richards, Willard. Journals and Papers, 1821–1854. CHL.
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3
The letter references the enclosure of the motto, stating that the motto was transcribed in the Scriptory Book. This indicates that the Scriptory Book, which begins in and is almost entirely in Robinson’s handwriting, was started sometime between Robinson’s arrival in Far West on 28 March and JS’s composition of the letter on 29 March. Although Robinson began the book at this time, with an account of JS’s arrival in Far West and a copy of the motto, he apparently did not add anything further to the book until the middle of April, at the time of the excommunications of Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer. The title page of the Scriptory Book is dated 12 April 1838, the date of Cowdery’s church trial, and editorial notes between the various documents that Robinson transcribed into the book explain how the events documented in the various transcripts led up to the excommunications of Cowdery and Whitmer. (JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, pp. 15–32.)
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Document Transcript
Footnotes
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1
JS’s later history states that he and Rigdon left Kirtland on 12 January 1838 at “about 10 o’clock” at night and arrived “at 8 o clock of the morning of the 13th . . . in Norton Township, Medina County, Ohio.” (JS History, vol. B-1, 780.)
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2
After receiving word that JS and Rigdon were on their way, the Zion high council in Far West planned to send men with two wagons and $300 to meet the travelers and help them finish their journey. John Barnard met JS and his family at Huntsville, Missouri, and brought them in his carriage to his home in Caldwell County. (Minute Book 2, 24 Feb. 1838; Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 17; JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16.)
Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.
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3
These men from Far West met JS’s party in Caldwell County at John Barnard’s home, where the party had stopped for the night. (JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16.)
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4
In 1831, JS dictated revelations that designated Missouri as the “land of your [the Saints’] inheritance.” (Revelation, 6 June 1831 [D&C 52:42]; Revelation, 14 June 1831 [D&C 55:5]; see also Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57].)
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5
See Psalm 110:2.
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6
JS moved to Kirtland in February 1831.a Several of JS’s revelations referred to Kirtland Township or the Kirtland area as the “Land of Kirtland.”b
(aJS History, vol. A-1, 92; [Matthew S. Clapp], “Mormonism,” Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 15 Feb. 1831, [1]–[2].bSee, for example, Revelation, 11 Sept. 1831 [D&C 64:21]; see also Bushman, Rough Stone Rolling, 191.)Painesville Telegraph. Painesville, OH. 1822–1986.
Bushman, Richard Lyman. Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling. With the assistance of Jed Woodworth. New York: Knopf, 2005.
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7
En route to Missouri, JS, Rigdon, and their families endured severe cold and several difficult river crossings. (JS History, vol. B-1, 780; JS, Journal, 29 Dec. 1842; Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 16–17.)
Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.
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8
Warren Parrish had served as JS’s personal scribe from fall 1835 to spring 1837 and was a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy. He had also served as the clerk of the Kirtland Safety Society and later as its cashier.a After questioning JS’s leadership and decisions as president of the church, Parrish renounced church leaders and led a group of dissenters in an effort to establish a new church.b
(aNotice, ca. Late Aug. 1837; Staker, Hearken, O Ye People, 465–466, 480, 600.bIntroduction to Part 6: 20 Apr.–14 Sept. 1837; Backman, Heavens Resound, 327–329; Staker, Hearken, O Ye People, 535, 600.)Staker, Mark L. Hearken, O Ye People: The Historical Setting of Joseph Smith’s Ohio Revelations. Salt Lake City: Greg Kofford Books, 2009.
Backman, Milton V., Jr. The Heavens Resound: A History of the Latter-day Saints in Ohio, 1830–1838. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1983.
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9
Within the prior two weeks, JS had composed a church motto, which denounced “tyrants, Mobs, Aristocracy, Anarchy and Toryism.” (Motto, ca. 16 or 17 Mar. 1838.)
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10
JS’s Scriptory Book notes that upon arriving in Far West, his family was “immediately received under the hospitable roof of George W. Harris who treated us with all kindness possible.” (JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16.)
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11
See Minute Book 2, 20 Jan. and 10 Mar. 1838; and Letter from Thomas B. Marsh, 15 Feb. 1838.
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12
For an example of correspondence from dissidents, see Lyman Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, to Oliver Cowdery, Richmond, MO, 21 Aug. 1838, photocopy, CHL.
Cowdery, Lyman. Letter, Kirtland, OH, to Oliver Cowdery, Richmond, MO, 21 Aug. 1838. Western Americana Collection. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University, New Haven, CT. Photocopy at CHL.
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13
Young was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Miles was a member of the Presidency of the Seventy, and Richards was a high priest. (Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 14–15 Feb. 1835; Quorums of the Seventy, “Book of Records,” 6 Apr. 1837, 18; Stevenson, Richards Family History, 1:13.)
Record of Seventies / First Council of the Seventy. “Book of Records,” 1837–1843. Bk. A. In First Council of the Seventy, Records, 1837–1885. CHL. CR 3 51, box 1, fd. 1.
Stevenson, Joseph Grant, ed. Richards Family History. 2 vols. Provo, UT: By the author, 1977–1981.
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14
Young and others joined JS and his traveling party near Jacksonville, Illinois. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 16.)
Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.
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15
Young later recounted that he “purchased a small improvement on mill creek . . . and proceeded to fence in a farm.” Miles owned land in Caldwell County. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 17; Hamer, Northeast of Eden, 75, 88; see also Revelation, 17 Apr. 1838.)
Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.
Hamer, John. Northeast of Eden: A Historical Atlas of Missouri’s Mormon County. [Mirabile, MO]: Far West Cultural Center, 2004.
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16
The church motto JS had composed within the prior two weeks denounced “vexatious lawsuits.” (Motto, ca. 16 or 17 Mar. 1838.)
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17
JS incurred several thousand dollars of debt while living in Kirtland, primarily as a result of building the Kirtland House of the Lord.a Prior to leaving for Missouri, he appointed William Marks and others to oversee efforts to pay church debts.b
(aSee, for example, Statement of Account from John Howden, 29 Mar. 1838; Statement of Account from Perkins & Osborn, ca. 29 Oct. 1838; Agreement with Mead & Betts, 2 Aug. 1839; and “Schedule Setting Forth a List of Petitioner[’]s Creditors, Their Residence, and the Amount Due to Each,” ca. 15–16 Apr. 1842, CCLA.bSee Pay Order to Edward Partridge for William Smith, 21 Feb. 1838.)“Schedule Setting Forth a List of Petitioner[’]s Creditors, Their Residence, and the Amount Due to Each,” ca. 15–16 Apr. 1842. CCLA.
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18
Sarah Burt Beman was the widow of Alvah Beman, with whom the Smith family had been friends since before the organization of the church in 1830. (Noble and Noble, Reminiscences, [16]; Pratt, Autobiography, 117–118; “Mormonism—No. II,” Tiffany’s Monthly, Aug. 1859, 167.
Noble, Joseph B., and Mary Adeline Beman Noble. Reminiscences, ca. 1836. CHL. MS 1031, fd. 1.
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.
“Mormonism,” Tiffany’s Monthly 5 (May 1859): 46–51; (July 1859): 119–121; (Aug. 1859): 163–170. Tiffany's Monthly. New York City. 1856–1859.
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19
Possibly Ezra Strong Sr. (1788–1877) or Harvey Strong (1803–1875). (Backman, Profile, 69; Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Northwest Illinois District, Church Records, 1866–1870, pp. 4–5, microfilm 1,927,666; Berrien Co., MI, Death Records, 1867–1929, 1934–1967, vol. A, p. 158, microfilm 945,406, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)
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.
U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.
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20
Granger, a member of the high council in Kirtland, was also a church agent working with Marks to help JS and Rigdon manage and settle debts. (See, for example, Power of Attorney to Oliver Granger, 27 Sept. 1837; and Grandison Newell, Assignment of Judgment to William Marks and Oliver Granger, Kirtland, OH, 1 Mar. 1838, Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU; see also “Memorandum O. Granger G Newell Assignment,” Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.)
Whitney, Newel K. Papers, 1825–1906. BYU.
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21
Possibly Vinson Knight, a counselor in the Kirtland bishopric. Knight, like Granger and Bishop Newel K. Whitney, was probably involved in resolving financial problems that JS left behind in Kirtland.
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22
Newel K. Whitney was the bishop in Kirtland.
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23
See Acts 14:3; 20:32.
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24
See 2 Timothy 3:15.
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25
See Psalm 2:7; and Old Testament Revision 1, p. 1 [Moses 1:4].
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26
See 2 Kings 2:11.
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28
George W. Robinson was married to Rigdon’s daughter Athalia. JS’s multivolume manuscript history recounts that JS left the Rigdon family at Terre Haute, Indiana, about twenty miles east, not west, of Paris. Similarly, Rigdon’s son recounted that his family parted with JS in Indiana and then traveled to Paris. (JS History, vol. B-1, 780; Rigdon, “Life Story of Sidney Rigdon,” 62.)
Rigdon, John Wickliff. “Life Story of Sidney Rigdon,” no date. CHL. MS 3451.
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29
See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 18, 39, 540 [1 Nephi 8:1; 16:11; Ether 1:41; 2:3].