At the 12 April 1845 estate sale organized by Joseph W. Coolidge, the trustees of the church purchased JS’s interest in the Nauvoo House Association for $6.50. (Bill of Sale, 12 Apr. 1845, microfilm, images 654–655, Illinois State Historical Society, Circuit Court Case Files, 1830–1900, CHL.)
Illinois State Historical Society. Circuit Court Case Files, 1830–1900. Microfilm. CHL. MS 16278.
Illinois state law authorized sheriffs to appoint deputies so long as a written appointment was “filed in the office of the clerk of the circuit court” and deputies were administered “the several oaths required to be taken by the sheriff.” There was no legal limit to the number of deputies a sheriff could appoint. (Sheriffs and Coroners [3 Mar. 1845], Revised Statutes of the State of Illinois [1844–1845], p. 515, sec. 10.)
Revised Statutes of the State of Illinois, Adopted by the General Assembly of Said State, at Its Regular Session, Held in the Years, A. D., 1844–’5. Springfield, IL: William Walters, 1845.