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 .
Section 5. Where any Prisoner or Prisoners brought upon a , shall be remanded to Prison it shall be the duty of the Municipal Court remanding him, her, or them, to make out and deliver to the Sheriff, or other Person or Persons to whose Custody he she, or they shall be remanded, an Order in writing, stating the Cause or causes of remanding him, her, or them. If such Prisoner or Prisoners shall obtain a second writ of habeas Corpus, it shall be the duty of such Sheriff or other Person or Persons upon whom the same shall be served to return therewith the Order aforesaid; and if it shall appear that the said Prisoner or Prisoners were remanded for an offence adjudged not bailable, it shall be taken and received as conclusive, and the Prisoner or Prisoners shall be remanded without further proceedings.
Section 6. It shall not be lawful for the Municipal Court on a second writ of Habeas Corpus obtained by such Prisoner or Prisoners to discharge the said Prisoner or Prisoners if he, she, or they are proven guilty of the charges clearly and specifically charged in the Warrant of Commitment with a criminal Offence, but if the Prisoner, or Prisoners shall be found guilty, the Municipal Court shall only admit such Prisoners or Prisoners to bail, where the offence is bailable by law, or Ordinance, or remand him, her, or them to Prison where the offence is not bailable; or being bailable, if such Prisoner or Prisoners shall fail to give the Bail required.
Section. 7. No Person or Persons who have been discharged by Order of the Municipal Court on a habeas Corpus, shall be again imprisoned, restrained, or kept in Custody for the same cause, unless he, she, or they, be afterwards— indicted for the same offence or unless by the legal Order or Process of the Municipal Court werein he, she, or they, are bound, by recognizance to appear; the following shall not be deemed to be the same cause, First, if after a discharge for defect of proof, or any material defect in the Commitment in a criminal case the Prisoner or Prisoners should be again arrested upon sufficient proof and committed by legal process, for the same offence: Second,— if in a civil suit the [HC 5:189] Party or Parties have been discharged for any ille illegality in the judgment or Process and are afterwards imprisoned by— llegal process, for the same cause of Action; Third, generally whenever the discharge has been ordered on account of the nonobservance of any of the forms required by law, the Party or Parties may be a second time imprisoned if the cause be legal and the forms required by law observed.
Section. 8. If any Person or Persons shall be committed for a criminal matter in case of the absences of a Witness or Witnesses, whose testimony may be considered to be of importance in behalf of the People, the Municipal Court may adjourn from time to time at its discretion, provided they decide upon the case within thirty days, if it shall appear by oath or affirmation that the witness or witnesses for the people of the State are absent such witness or witnesses being mentioned by name and the Court shewn wherein their testimony is—— material. Section 9. Any Person or Persons being committed to< the> or County Jail, as provided in the Charter of the City of , or in the Custody of any Officer,—— Sheriff, Jailor, keeper, or other Person or Persons on his or their under Officer [p. [1419]]