From 1839 to 1844, kept an account book of his work for the and in the , Illinois, city government. He was appointed by the Nauvoo to survey land and supervise the sale of town lots in Nauvoo. He took on additional tasks as an agent for JS and the church. He also held a variety of civic responsibilities, most prominently his position as Nauvoo city marshal from 1841 to 1843.

kept a record of his work and the donations he received, specifically noting that he was “keeping accounts that relate to the business of H[enry] G. Sherwood for the Church of Jesus Christ L. D. Saints.” He apparently considered his work for the and court to be part of the business he was conducting for the . Sherwood’s attitude was not unusual; in Nauvoo there often was not a clear separation between ecclesiastical and municipal responsibilities. However, Sherwood submitted claims to the Nauvoo City Council requesting payment for his civic work, which were evaluated by the council and usually paid. So, even though Sherwood included municipal work in the account book designated for church transactions, he seems to have expected the city rather than the church to pay for his civic efforts.

kept his accounts in a small book he acquired in . The book had previously been used by , who had served as a church recorder and clerk for the . Robinson had used it to record a survey of land in . Sherwood used the mostly blank book to keep a record of the transactions he oversaw for JS and the city of Nauvoo, and he then used it to verify accounts, submit claims to the city council requesting payment, or copy other records into the proper books. Sherwood’s account book contains entries from November 1839 to June 1844. A few later miscellaneous entries written on the back pastedown and flyleaf are separated from the main accounts by approximately ninety blank pages. Most of these entries are undated, but two are dated November 1844. Three of these later entries appear to have a connection to counterfeiting. Sherwood wrote statements on the two pages containing the entries indicating that they were “in no way connected with any Church affair” but were instead “private in nature—or apart from the Church.” However, because he recorded them in this account book and they relate to his finances, they are reproduced here as miscellaneous accounts.