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Letter from Benjamin Winchester, 8 August 1842

Source Note

, Letter, , Philadelphia Co., PA, to the (including JS), , Hancock Co., IL, 8 Aug. 1842; handwriting of ; one page; Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU. Includes address, docket, and archival marking.
Bifolium measuring 10 × 7¾ inches (25 × 20 cm). The letter was inscribed on the recto of the first leaf; the verso of the first leaf and recto of the second leaf are blank. The document was trifolded twice in letter style and addressed. Marked water damage and subsequent decay have resulted in a loss of text.
The letter was docketed by , who served as scribe to JS from 1842 to 1844. In late 1844, following JS’s death, became one of the interim church trustees and was appointed “first bishop” among other bishops. It was presumably during this time that many of the church’s financial and other administrative records passed into his possession. This document, along with many other personal and institutional documents that Whitney kept, was inherited by Newel K. and ’s daughter Mary Jane Whitney, who was married to Isaac Groo. The documents were passed down within the Groo family. Between 1969 and 1974, the Groo family donated their collection of Newel K. Whitney’s papers to the J. Reuben Clark Library (renamed Harold B. Lee Library in 1973) at Brigham Young University.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 29 June 1842; “Clayton, William,” in Jenson, Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1:718.

    Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson History Co., 1901–1936.

  2. [2]

    Richards, Journal, 9 Aug. 1844; “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1844, 5:693; see also Minutes, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:30.

    Richards, Willard. Journals, 1836–1853. Willard Richards, Papers, 1821–1854. CHL. MS 1490, boxes 1–2.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

  3. [3]

    Andrus and Fuller, Register of the Newel Kimball Whitney Papers, 24.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

Historical Introduction

On 8 August 1842, wrote from to the in , Illinois, informing them that the Latter-day Saints in Philadelphia wanted to return to that city to preach. Winchester had been called to preside over the Philadelphia in 1840. In 1841 and 1842, local controversies and the presence of , a member of the , placed Winchester’s leadership in question. In June 1842, although Winchester’s leadership in Philadelphia remained uncertain, he left on a proselytizing trip to , where he met up with Adams, who was on his own proselytizing trip. While preaching in and around Boston, Adams engaged in public debates with Presbyterian minister George Montgomery West, which caused a small stir in the local press and garnered the attention of members of the . Sometime in July, Adams left New England to continue his preaching elsewhere in the East. In late July or early August, he again debated West “on Mormonism” in Philadelphia. Within days of that debate, over five hundred Latter-day Saints met in Philadelphia and voted to ask church leaders to assign Adams to preach there again.
presumably wrote the 8 August 1842 letter featured here a few days after the debate. He informed JS and his counselors in the First Presidency of the Saints’ desires and added his own recommendation that quickly return to take advantage of current interest in the church in his area. Given the letter’s lack of postal markings, it was likely hand delivered to . It is not known who carried the letter, how much time it took to reach Nauvoo, or who received it. , a scribe for JS, docketed the letter, suggesting it may have been received by JS or Clayton, or it may have come into their possession sometime later. No reply from the First Presidency or JS is extant or otherwise known to exist. Adams, who was in Nauvoo by September, returned to Philadelphia in late 1842, when he attended a church there.
Because damage to the letter has resulted in lost and obscured text in several places, some text in the following transcript has been editorially supplied within brackets, based on context.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Winchester was occasionally absent from Philadelphia after being called to preside over the branch there, but he resumed his role when he returned.a In an 1841 letter to JS, Winchester expressed frustrations with Page, who was in Philadelphia. Soon after, when Winchester left for Nauvoo, Page began to exert considerable control over the Philadelphia branch. While in Nauvoo, Winchester was reprimanded by JS for “talebearing and slandering his brethren” in Philadelphia.b Divisions over leadership in Philadelphia led to a de facto split of the branch in April 1842.c In May, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles published a notice informing church members that Winchester had been “silenced from preaching . . . for not obeying the instruction which he received from the Presidency.” In July, another published notice stated that Winchester was “restored to his former fellowship and standing,” and also instructed him to leave Philadelphia. However, Winchester apparently remained in Philadelphia and continued to act in a leadership capacity.d

    (aPhiladelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 6 Apr. and 16 Nov. 1840; 6 Apr. 1841; see also “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 15 May 1841, 2:412. bLetter from Benjamin Winchester, 18 Sept. 1841; JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda Book, 19. cPetition from James B. Nicholson and Others, 22 Apr. 1842. d“Notice,” Times and Seasons, 16 May 1842, 3:798; Times and Seasons, 15 July 1842; see also Whittaker, “East of Nauvoo,” 51–59.)

    Philadelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 1840–1854. CCLA.

    Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    Whittaker, David J. “East of Nauvoo: Benjamin Winchester and the Early Mormon Church.” Journal of Mormon History 21 (Fall 1995): 30–83.

  2. [2]

    Whittaker, “East of Nauvoo,” 55. Adams, a former Methodist preacher and a high priest in the church, had returned to New York from a mission to England in April. (“Letter from Elder George J. Adams,” Times and Seasons, 15 June 1842, 3:826–828.)

    Whittaker, David J. “East of Nauvoo: Benjamin Winchester and the Early Mormon Church.” Journal of Mormon History 21 (Fall 1995): 30–83.

  3. [3]

    Letter from Lorenzo D. Wasson, 30 July 1842; see also Advertisement, Public Ledger (Philadelphia), 1 Aug. 1842, [2]; and Advertisement, Public Ledger, 2 Aug. 1842, [2].

    Public Ledger. Philadelphia. 1836–1925.

  4. [4]

    There is no record of this meeting in the minutes of the Philadelphia branch.

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 7 Sept. 1842; Philadelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 21 Dec. 1842.

    Philadelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 1840–1854. CCLA.

Page [1]

Aug 8th [1842]
To the of [the?] [churc]h at
This is to certify that [illegible] [conv]ening a vote was called in a congreg[ation] of more than five hundred to exp[ress] their desire thatt shoul[d re]turn to this to preach who ◊◊◊ there was not, a dissenting voice
For my own part I think it alltogether advisable for him to return immediately for there is now a great excitement on the subject of of our holy religion and a prospect of bringing scores into the kingdom
[1/3 page blank] [p. [1]]
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Source Note

Document Transcript

Page [1]

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Benjamin Winchester, 8 August 1842
ID #
10399
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D10:364–366
Handwriting on This Page
  • Benjamin Winchester

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    TEXT: Page torn.

  2. [2]

    TEXT: “of [page torn]h”.

  3. [3]

    TEXT: “that [page torn]ening”.

  4. [4]

    TEXT: “congreg[page torn]”.

  5. [5]

    At an April 1842 conference of the church in Philadelphia, James B. Nicholson reported that the Philadelphia branch consisted of two hundred and seventy-five members. (Philadelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 6 Apr. 1842.)

    Philadelphia, PA, Minutes and Records, 1840–1854. CCLA.

  6. [6]

    TEXT: “exp[page torn]”.

  7. [7]

    TEXT: “shoul[page torn]turn”.

  8. [8]

    TEXT: Page torn; possibly “and”.

  9. [9]

    While this kind of vote was apparently an anomaly, local church leaders sometimes wrote to the leaders in Nauvoo asking them to send specific individuals to assist in preaching. In one case, several individuals who were not members of the church in Pittsburgh petitioned church leaders to allow Page to return to preach. (Petition from Richard Savary and Others, ca. 2 Feb. 1842; see also Letter from William Appleby, ca. Mar. 1842.)

  10. [10]

    Winchester likely had in mind the stir created by Adams’s debates with West. As Lorenzo Wasson noted, the debate produced “great excitement.” (Letter from Lorenzo D. Wasson, 30 July 1842.)

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