JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. F-1, created 9 Apr.–7 June 1856 and 20 Aug. 1856–6 Nov. 1856; handwriting of and Jonathan Grimshaw; 304 pages, plus 10 pages of addenda; CHL. This is the final volume of a six-volume manuscript history of the church. This sixth volume covers the period from 1 May to 8 Aug. 1844; the remaining five volumes, labeled A-1 through E-1, go through 30 Apr. 1844.
Historical Introduction
History, 1838-1856, volume F-1, constitutes the last 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 May 1844 to the events following his 27 June 1844 death, and it was compiled in Utah Territory in 1856.
The material recorded in volume F-1 was initially compiled under the direction of church historian , who was JS’s cousin, and also assistant church historian . Smith collaborated with in collecting material for the volume and creating a set of draft notes, which Smith dictated to Bullock and other clerks. Woodruff gathered additional material concerning the death of Joseph Smith as a supplement to George A. Smith’s work recording that event. Jonathan Grimshaw and , members of the Historian’s Office staff, transcribed the draft notes into the volume along with the text of designated documents.
According to the Historian’s Office journal, Jonathan Grimshaw initiated work on the text of volume F-1 on 9 April 1856, soon after Robert L. Campbell had completed work on volume E-1. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 5 and 9 Apr. 1856.) Grimshaw’s scribal work begins with an entry for 1 May 1844. Unlike previous volumes in which the numbering had run consecutively to page 2028, Grimshaw began anew with page 1. He transcribed 150 pages by June 1856, and his last entry was for 23 June 1844. Though more of his writing does not appear in the volume, he continued to work in the office until 2 August, before leaving for the East that same month. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 2 and 10 Aug. 1856.)
assumed the role of scribe on 20 August 1856. (Historian’s Office, Journal, 20 Aug. 1856.) He incorporated ’s draft notes for the period 24–29 June 1844 on pages 151–189, providing an account of JS’s death and its immediate aftermath. He next transcribed a related extract from ’s 1854 History of Illinois on pages 190–204. Pages 205–227 were left blank.
provided the notes for the final portion of the text. This account begins with an entry for 22 June 1844 and continues the record through 8 August 1844, ending on page 304. (The volume also included ten pages of addenda.) The last specific entry in the Historian’s Office journal that captures at work on the history is for 6 November 1856. A 2 February 1857 Wilford Woodruff letter to indicates that on 30 January 1857, the “presidency sat and heard the history read up to the organization of the church in , 8th. day of August 1844.” (Historian’s Office, Journal, 6 Nov. 1856; Wilford Woodruff, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to George A. Smith, 2 Feb. 1857, Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, p. 410; see also Wilford Woodruff, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to Amasa Lyman and Charles C. Rich, 28 Feb. 1857, Historian’s Office, Letterpress Copybooks, vol. 1, pp. 430–431.)
The pages of volume F-1 contain a record of the final weeks of JS’s life and the events of the ensuing days. The narrative commences with and arriving at , Illinois, on 1 May 1844 from their lumber-harvesting mission in the “” of Wisconsin Territory. As the late spring and summer of 1844 unfold, events intensify, especially those surrounding the suppression of the Nauvoo Expositor in mid-June. Legal action over the Expositor leads to a charge of riot, and subsequently JS is charged with treason and is incarcerated at the jail in , Illinois. The narrative of volume F-1 concludes with an account of the special church conference convened on 8 August 1844 to consider who should assume the leadership of the church.
<July 9> progress, you have heard of the persecution of the Saints in and their expulsion from thence, together with their kind reception by the citizens of , where we have been located for the last four years. For some months past we have been troubled with the wicked proceedings of certain apostates in our midst, who have striven to overthrow the Church and produce trouble and anguish in the mind of every viruous being, but their designs having been frustrated by the wise and judicious management on the part of the prophet and the Saints. These apostates, reckless of all consequences made a deadly thrust at our overthrow, leaving the suddenly and afterwards, by themselves, or agents, fired their own buildings, doubtless thinking they would charge it upon the Saints and by that means excite a mob in the surrounding country, who would fall upon, and burn the ; but in this they were disappointed, our vigilant police discovered and extinguished the flames.
“Their next course was to arrest the Prophet, the , and others, by legal process and false pretence, and take them to , the county seat, for investigation; but they gave themselves up to the requisition of the law, on the pledge of that they should be protected from all personal violence, and went voluntarily to , without even the attendance of the officer. Considerable exitement prevailed in the neighborhood, to allay which they voluntarily gave bonds for their appearance at the next session of the Circuit Court: their voluntary and noble conduct should have satisifed every mind, but certain individuals of the basest sort swore out a writ for treason against the Prophet Joseph, and the Patriarch , and they were thrust into jail without trial, without examination, without any legal course or procedure on the 25th of June, where they remained till next day, when they were brought before the magistrate, that a day might be set for their examination. They were immediately remanded to prison where they remained [HC 7:172] until the 27th, when but few of their friends were permitted to see them. Between 5 and 6 o’clock P. M. of that day a company of 150 or 200 armed, disguised and painted men rushed upon the guard who were set to watch the prison door— overpowered them, rushed up stairs into the entry adjoining the room where Joseph Smith and were, and and sitting with them to keep them company. As soon as the mob arrived at the head of the Stairs they fired through the door and shot in the face; he fell instantly, exclaiming, ‘I am a dead man’. The mob instantly forced open the door with the points of the bayonets, and recommenced an undiscriminate discharge of fire arms upon all in the room.
“, in attempting to leap from the window, was shot and fell back in the chamber; Joseph, in attempting to leap from the same window, was shot, and fell on the outside, about 20 ft <feet> descent, when the mob gathered instantly round him and again shot him. Joseph and received each four balls and were killed instantly. received four balls in his left wrist and left leg— is doing well and is likely to recover. was marked on his left ear and cheek, otherwise remained unharmed: the whole scenery occupied only two minutes, when the mob fled rapidly towards . [p. 258]