JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. D-1, created 4 July 1845–4 Feb. 1846 and 1 July 1854–2 May 1855; handwriting of , Robert L. Campbell, and ; 275 pages, plus 6 pages of addenda; CHL. This is the fourth volume of a six-volume manuscript history of the church. This fourth volume covers the period from 1 Aug. 1842 to 1 July 1843; the remaining five volumes, labeled A-1, B-1, C-1, E-1 and F-1, continue through 8 Aug. 1844.
Historical Introduction
History, 1838–1856, volume D-1, constitutes the fourth of six volumes documenting the life of Joseph Smith and the early years of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The series is also known as the Manuscript History of the Church and was originally published serially from 1842 to 1846 and 1851 to 1858 as the “History of Joseph Smith” in the Times and Seasons and Deseret News. This volume contains JS’s history from 1 August 1842 to 1 July 1843, and it was compiled after JS’s death.
The material recorded in volume D-1 was initially compiled under the direction of church historian , with the assistance of . After Richards’s death in 1854, continued work on the volume as the new church historian with Bullock’s continued help. The process adopted by Richards and Bullock involved Richards creating a set of rough draft notes and Bullock transcribing the notes into the volume along with the text of designated documents (such as letters and meeting minutes). George A. Smith followed a similar pattern, though he dictated the draft notes to Bullock and other scribes.
According to the Church Historian’s Office journal, finished the third volume of the series, volume C-1, on Thursday, 3 July 1845, in , Illinois. He began work on the fourth volume, D-1, the next day, beginning on page 1362 with the entry for 1 August 1842. (The pages in volumes A-1–E-1 were numbered consecutively.) Bullock continued work on the record, drawing upon ’s draft notes, until 3 February 1846—the day before D-1 and the other volumes were packed up in preparation for the Latter-day Saints’ exodus from Nauvoo. At that point he had reached page 1485 with the entry for 28 February 1843. Subsequently, apparently after the collection had arrived in Utah, Bullock added a brief comment beneath that entry: “end of W. Richard’s compiling[.] the books packed Feby. 4— 1846 in Nauvoo[.] Miles Romney— present. The records carried by T Bullock from Winter Quarters to G S L [Great Salt Lake] City in 1848.”
A notation at the top of page 1486 reports that “the books were unpacked in G. S. L. City by and . June 7. 1853. J[onathan] Grimshaw & Miles Romney present.” Vertically, in the margin, is a poignant epitaph: “Decr. 1 1853 Dr. Willard Richards wrote one line of History—being sick at the time—and was never able to do any more.” With Richards’s death on 11 March 1854, JS’s cousin was called to the office of church historian. The notation on the top of page 1486 acknowledges this change in officers, noting, “commencement of George A. Smith’s compiling as Historian. April 13. 1854[.] [C]ommenced copying July 1. 1854.” From mid-April to the end of June 1854, George A. Smith, in collaboration with Thomas Bullock, worked on the draft notes for the history before a new scribe, , resumed writing in D-1 on 1 July 1854, beginning with the entry for 1 March 1843.
continued transcribing intermittently into the late fall of 1854, when he was assigned other duties in the Historian’s Office. He had reached page 1546 with the entry for 5 May 1843. Work resumed in February 1855 in the hand of Robert L. Campbell, recently returned from a mission. He concluded volume D-1 on the morning of 2 May 1855 and began writing in E-1 that afternoon.
The 274 pages of volume D-1 contain a record of much that is significant in the life of JS and the development of the church he founded. Among these events are
• JS’s 6 August 1842 prophecy that the Saints would become a mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains.
•JS’s 8 August 1842 arrest on a warrant for being “an accessory before the fact” to an attack on former governor .
• ’s 17 August 1842 letter to governor , pleading for the humane treatment of her husband and family.
•JS’s 1 and 6 September 1842 instructions regarding the proper procedures for performing baptisms for the dead.
• JS’s 15 November 1842 “Valedictory” as he stepped down as editor of the Times and Seasons.
• The 26 December 1842 arrest of JS on a “proclamation” by former governor , and subsequent hearing in , Illinois.
• The 7 February 1843 recovery of a volume of patriarchal blessings given by , which had been stolen in , Missouri.
• JS’s 21 February 1843 remarks regarding the and .
• JS’s 2 April 1843 instruction at , Illinois, on the nature of God and other subjects.
• JS’s 16 May 1843 remarks at , Illinois, on the everlasting covenant and eternal marriage.
• The account of JS’s 23 June 1843 arrest and his hearing the following week at .
<July 1> Cross examined. He states that he was very intimate with Mr. Smith all the time he resided in the state of , and was with him almost daily, and that he knows positively that Mr. Smith held no office, either civil or military either real or pretended, in that ; and that he never bore arms, or did military duty, not even in self defence; but that he was a peaceable, law-abiding, and faithful citizen and a preacher of the Gospel, and exhorted all the citizens to be peaceable, long suffering and slow to act, even in self defence. He further stated that there was no fortress in , but a temporary fence, made of rails, house logs, floor planks, wagons, carts, &c., hastily thrown together, after being told by that they were to be massacred the following morning, and the town burnt to ashes, without giving any information by what authority. And he further states that he only escaped himself from that by walking out of the jail when the door was open to put in food, and came out in obedience to the ’s order of banishment, and to fulfil the same. .
sworn,
says that he concurs with the preceding witnesses and , in all the facts with which he is acquainted, that in the summer of 1838 he was elected Sheriff of the County of and State of . That in the fall of the same year while the county was threatened and infested with mobs, he received an order from the presiding Judge of said , to call out the Militia and he executed the same. The said order was presented by Joseph Smith, Sen. who shewed the witness a letter from General giving such advice as was necessary for the protection of the citizens of said ; reports of the mobs destroying property were daily received. Has no knowledge that Joseph Smith was concerned in organizing or commanding said Militia in any capacity whatever. About this time he received information that about forty or fifty “Yauger-Rifles” and a quantity of ammunition were being conveyed through to for the use of the mob: Upon which he deputized William Allred to go with a company of men and to intercept them if possible, he did so and brought the said arms and ammunition into which were afterwards delivered up to the order of , judge of the fifth circuit in .
It was generally understood at that time that said arms had been stolen by , and his company of volunteers, who had been upon a six months tour of service in the war between the [HC 3:432] and the Florida Indians, they were supposed to have been taken from the Fort at “Tampa Bay,” and brought to Clay County and that Captain Pollard or some other person loaned them to the mob— He further says that whilst in office as Sheriff he was forcibly and illegally compelled by Lieutenant Cook, the son in law or brother in law of , the Methodist Priest— to start for and when he demanded of him by what authority he acted he was shown a Bowie knife and a brace of pistols— And when he asked what they wanted of him he said they would let him know when he got to . Many of the citizens of County were taken in the same manner without any legal process whatever and thrust [p. 1625]