, “Brief History,” Manuscript, ca. 6 April 1838– ca. 26 January 1839; handwriting of and an unidentified scribe; seventy pages numbered 20–90, plus three unnumbered pages; John Fletcher Darby Papers, Missouri History Museum Archives, St. Louis.
, a careful observer, had enjoyed a close association with Mormon leaders, and consequently his account provides valuable insights into the development and structure of the early church. He summarized many of the doctrines taught by JS and provided a detailed description of the conflict between the Latter-day Saints and other settlers. But his chronicle also related the story of a personal spiritual journey into and then out of the church as came to disapprove of the church’s course in 1838 in Missouri. Yet despite his estrangement from the church and his excommunication in 1839, he retained a degree of sympathy for the Saints and maintained some contact.
apparently began compiling portions of his account while serving as an officially appointed church historian in . He probably completed his narrative by 11 February 1839, when he secured a copyright with the district federal copyright office. He arranged for Thomas Watson & Son of to print A Brief History. The entire print run may have included up to twelve hundred copies.
The document presented here, ’s circa 1838–1839 rough draft of his history, is incomplete. It includes the title page, copyright notice, and preface but is missing twenty-one pages, including the nineteen pages that constitute chapters 1 through 6. The manuscript is almost entirely in Corrill’s handwriting, though some of the chapter summaries (added after he drafted the narrative) were written in a different hand, possibly that of the printer.
’s published version of A Brief History receives comprehensive treatment in volume 2 of the Histories series of The Joseph Smith Papers and is available on this website as part of the history series.
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prisoners <to > where had been previously ordered to return the prisoners and arms he had taken to . In they guarded the prisioners seven of whom (the leaders) they put in irons and held a court of enquiry before over them after which they retained thirty six for trial and let the rest between twenty and thirty go free. Those retained for trial were charged with various crimes, murder Treason, Murder, Arson Burglary, Robbery and Larceny. <before leaving > sent to with a sufficient <force> and he so regulated matters there as to have all the Mormons leave except a very few who was to see to the property &c. The Mormons from mostly went to . The prisioners charged with with Treason and murder were confined in jail <in and > and the rest let to bail. During this campaign many reports were circulated concerning the misconduct of the soldiers but how far they were true I am not able to say, but I thought at the time that the officers tried to keep good order among the troops and that whatever troops abuse was practiced on the Mormons ought to have been charged on the individuals that did it and not upon the officers or community at large. It was said that women were insulted and even ravished, but the I doubt the truth of the latter. Some were insutld [insulted] yet as as soon as the officers were informed they set guards to prevent further insult. Two men that were taken prisoners were struct on the head, one was badly hurt and the other [p. 80]