The late 1830s and early 1840s were a period of rapid growth for the young church. As converts continued to join in large numbers, the need for a new edition of the Doctrine and Covenants became increasingly evident. In 1839, apostle Parley P. Pratt, who had stopped in New York on his way to serve a mission in England, wrote to JS describing the growth of the church and missionary work in the eastern United States. In his letter he stated that there was “a great call for our Books” and proposed plans to begin printing the Book of Mormon and other church publications.1 Requests for church publications continued to come from other branches of the church during the early 1840s.2 Church leaders in Nauvoo, Illinois, expressed a concern about scriptures being published in the United States without the “immediate inspection” of the First Presidency of the church.3 Though careful about the authority under which scripture such as the Doctrine and Covenants would be published, the leadership in Nauvoo made it clear that the publication of scripture was a top priority. Published minutes of a conference held in October 1840 indicated that another edition of the Book of Mormon was nearly completed and that arrangements had been made for printing the Doctrine and Covenants and the church hymnal.4

In the spring of 1841, Ebenezer Robinson turned his attention to stereotyping what would become the second edition of the Doctrine and Covenants,5 using the first edition of the volume as the primary source text. Robinson, an experienced editor and printer, had recently assisted with printing the third edition of the Book of Mormon (1840).6 At the time Robinson began stereotyping the Doctrine and Covenants, the Nauvoo printing establishment was housed in a frame building at the corner of Water and Bain streets, near the river. Before the end of 1841, it moved into a larger building, located across the street from the earlier building at the same intersection.7

In early 1842, while the stereotyping work was still ongoing, control of the printing establishment was transferred from Robinson to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. A January 1842 revelation dictated by JS commanded the Twelve to “take in hand the Editorial department of the Times and Seasons,” ratifying a decision that had already been discussed in earlier meetings of the Quorum of the Twelve.8 According to Wilford Woodruff, a member of that quorum, the Twelve were to “govern the printing of the Times & Seasons & all the church publications as they are directed by my Holy Spirit in the midst of their councils.”9 Ebenezer Robinson recalled telling JS and the other leaders “that they could have the Times and Seasons, but they must [also] take the whole establishment, including the stereotype foundery, book-bindery, and the whole book concern.”10 This request was accepted, and Robinson sold the entire business to JS for the sum of $6,600 on 4 February 1842.11 Wilford Woodruff and fellow apostle John Taylor were placed in charge of the printing office.12

The Doctrine and Covenants had likely been stereotyped through page 109 when Robinson left.13 It is unknown who else assisted in the initial stereotyping, but Robinson’s departure delayed the project’s completion. Robinson recalled working with JS, comparing the 1830 and 1837 editions of the Book of Mormon in preparation for the publication of the 1840 edition.14 If similar preliminary work was done before the stereotyping of the Doctrine and Covenants commenced, JS likely would have had some input in the format of the newer edition.15 Whatever the preparatory process, the 1844 Doctrine and Covenants is—in content, arrangement, basic format, and section and verse numbering—largely a reprint of the 1835 edition. The 1844 edition matches the 1835 edition almost word for word and character for character, except for minor corrections and stylistic changes and a few substantive changes.16

Work on printing the Doctrine and Covenants did not resume until a year after the printing establishment had changed hands. According to Woodruff, stereotyping recommenced on 30 January 1843.17 JS and William W. Phelps read proofs of this work a few weeks later.18 By the end of 1843, the printers had stereotyped to page 409 (partway into the twelfth gathering), leaving a modest amount of stereotyping to be completed the following year.19 It appears that the printing may have been delayed for want of paper and other materials. On 7 November 1843, the Quorum of the Twelve appointed Woodruff, Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt, Willard Richards, and John Taylor, all members of that quorum, as a committee to raise five hundred dollars “to get paper &c to print the Doctrine and covenants.”20 A month later, on 5 December, JS advised the Twelve “to raise money to send Elder [Orson] Hyde east to get paper to print Doctrine & Covenants— get new type & metal for stereotyping.”21

By the following summer, the work was nearly complete. A notice dated 11 June 1844 and published the next day in the Nauvoo Neighbor announced optimistically: “The Book of Doctrine and Covenants will be published in about one month from this time. Those wishing for an early supply had better make immediate application.”22 A little over two weeks later, however, JS and Hyrum Smith were killed by a mob at Carthage, Illinois, and printer John Taylor was seriously wounded, delaying the printing of the volume yet again.23 The above-mentioned notice continued to run in the Nauvoo Neighbor from 26 June through 30 October 1844, though copies of the volume were available well before the 30 October issue.

In a letter to his wife written from Carthage two days before the killings, John Taylor stated that “1000 copies of the Book of Doctrine & Covenants” should be printed “as quick as possible.”24 At a 28 July 1844 church meeting, William W. Phelps announced that names would be taken of those desiring to purchase the volume at one dollar and twenty-five cents. Two weeks later, Phelps stated in another meeting that the “1000 copies [of the Doctrine and Covenants] are not all yet taken up,” suggesting that the books were sold by subscription.25 The date on which the new edition was first available to the public is unknown, but the volume was in use soon after its release: it was cited in the 2 September 1844 issue of Times and Seasons, and Parley P. Pratt quoted from it at a meeting on 8 September 1844.26 Because the book had been stereotyped, keeping it in print was practical. A second printing of the book was authorized the following year and a third in 1846, presumably indicating a short supply of the books and a growing demand.27

Besides the individuals identified above as having assisted with or overseen work on the publication, others may have contributed as compilers, editors, typesetters, or printers. A number of people worked in the Nauvoo printing office at the time the volume was being produced, but records do not identify which of them had a hand in this project.

The 1844 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants is essentially a reprint of the 1835 edition, with the addition of eight new items. The second edition reprinted the seven “Lectures on Faith” and all 103 numbered sections included in the “Covenants and Commandments” part of the 1835 Doctrine and Covenants. The 1835 edition included two sections numbered 66 (here referred to as 66a and 66b). This mistake was corrected in the 1844 edition. As a result, sections 1 through 66a of the 1835 edition correspond with sections 1 through 66 of the 1844 edition, and sections 66b through 99 in the 1835 edition correspond with sections 67 through 100 in the 1844 edition. The final three sections of the 1835 edition, sections 100 through 102, were numbered as sections 108 through 110 in the 1844 edition.

The eight new items added to the 1844 edition became sections 101 through 107 and section 111. Sections 101 and 102—both revelations regarding the redemption of Zion—were available for use in the 1835 publication but were not printed therein. Sections 103 (which was printed without a section number), 104, and 107 are JS revelations dictated after 1835. Sections 105 and 106 are JS letters written in the 1840s. Section 111, a tribute to the slain JS and Hyrum Smith, is believed to have been written by John Taylor, the publisher of the 1844 Doctrine and Covenants and an eyewitness to the murders. It was composed after most of the work on the volume had been completed. Only by using a smaller typeface than what appears in the rest of the volume were the printers able to fit this last section into the available space following section 110 and preceding a brief three-page “index.” The editors of the 1844 edition used a variety of sources to set type for these eight items.28 The sources used by the editors contained other revelations and letters that would have been candidates for publication in the Doctrine and Covenants, and the reasons for selecting the particular revelations and letters that were included are unknown.

The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; Carefully Selected from the Revelations of God. By Joseph Smith, President of Said Church. 2nd ed. Nauvoo, IL: John Taylor, 1844; 3–448; includes typeset signature marks and copyright notice. The copy presented herein is held at CHL; includes marginalia and archival markings.

All but the final gathering of this book was printed in octodecimo format on thirteen sheets that were cut and folded into thirteen gatherings of eighteen leaves (thirty-six pages) each. The final gathering comprises eight leaves (sixteen pages). The text block measures 5⅞ × 3⅝ inches (15 × 9 cm).

Th e copy of the book presented herein is in a presentation binding of red sheepskin with gilt edges. The volume measures 6 × 3⅞ × 1 inches (15 × 10 × 3 cm). The spine is stamped with gilt ornamental panels and “Doctrine | and | Covenants” and “J. Glenn.” in gilt. The front and back pastedowns, the front flyleaf, and the back flyleaf are single-sided marbled leaves featuring a shell pattern with brown body and veins of red and white. In this copy, the first leaf of the first gathering, which is blank in other extant copies, is missing. The verso of the front flyleaf has two inscriptions, the first in graphite and the second in ink: “RN 69025 | Vault | Book Area | M223.1 | D632 | 1844” and “Jane Glenn | from her friend | Leonora Taylor | Nauvoo Oct 27th | 1844”. The handwriting of the first inscription is unknown; Leonora Taylor inscribed the second.

As the aforementioned ink inscription indicates, Leonora Taylor, wife of early church leader and printer John Taylor, presented this book to Jane Glenn. The book came into the possession of the Historical Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints circa 1983.