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Letter to Lyman Wight and Others, 16 August 1834

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Letter to Lyman Wight and Others, 16 August 1834

Source Note

JS, Letter, , Geauga Co., OH, to , , , , and others, [, Clay Co.], MO, 16 Aug. 1834. Retained copy, [ca. 16 Aug. 1834], in JS Letterbook 1, pp. 84–87; handwriting of ; CHL. Includes redactions. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS Letterbook 1.

Historical Introduction

On 16 August 1834, JS wrote this letter to church leaders in , discussing how the Saints could redeem , or regain their lands. The expedition, led by JS a few months earlier, had been unable to restore the Saints to their property, and negotiations between Jackson County residents and church members had also come to naught. explained in a 1 August 1834 letter to Missouri governor that tensions remained high in western Missouri. Phelps related that sometime in summer 1834, one church member had crossed into Jackson County to collect a debt and had been brutally attacked. According to Phelps, the attackers had sworn “to kill every Mormon that came into Jackson County.” Therefore the prospect for the Saints reentering the county remained dim.
JS’s letter, however, instructed church leaders to continue to take measures to regain their land. He directed them to correspond with and president Andrew Jackson to try to obtain military protection from the mobs. Some church leaders in Missouri—designated as “first elders” in the letter—had been assigned by JS and a council of to travel to , Ohio, to receive an of power, but they were also instructed to try to generate sympathy for the Saints’ plight by preaching on their way to Kirtland. In addition, JS instructed to be prepared to take a “little army” into Jackson County if the need arose. On 25 June 1834, JS pledged that the Camp of Israel would be disbanded, but he left open the possibility that it could be reassembled if negotiations between church members and Jackson County citizens were not successful. Since negotiations seemed to be going nowhere, JS counseled Wight to be ready to call up his army, especially if residents of started to turn against the Saints. Finally, JS set the date for the redemption of Zion as 11 September 1836, a little more than two years away. This date was almost certainly derived from an 11 September 1831 revelation that stated that God would “retain a strong hold in the Land of Kirtland for the space of five years,” after which he would “not hold any guilty that shall go with open hearts up to the Land of Zion.”
In addition to giving instructions about redeeming Zion, JS mentioned the trouble he had encountered when and others accused him of committing improprieties as the leader of the Camp of Israel. An 11 August 1834 council cleared JS of any wrongdoing, and he expressed his hope that this incident was behind him so he could focus on other matters. JS also discussed the cholera epidemic that continued to rage in the and which had affected some church members, including members of the Camp of Israel. He concluded by lamenting the “languid cold disconsolate state” of the church.
The original of JS’s letter—which was addressed to , , , , and the —has not been located. copied it into JS’s letterbook, probably shortly before the letter was sent. At a 10 September 1834 meeting of the Missouri high council, read this letter aloud, along with a petition he had composed in accordance with JS’s instructions in the letter.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Historical Introduction to Declaration, 21 June 1834; Historical Introduction to Revelation, 22 June 1834 [D&C 105]; Historical Introduction to Letter to John Thornton et al., 25 June 1834.)

  2. [2]

    William W. Phelps, Liberty, MO, to Daniel Dunklin, Jefferson City, MO, 1 Aug. 1834, copy, William W. Phelps, Collection of Missouri Documents, CHL, underlining in original.

    Phelps, William W. Collection of Missouri Documents, 1833–1837. CHL. MS 657.

  3. [3]

    A June 1834 revelation stated that the elders must be “endowed with power from on high” before Zion could be redeemed. Those assigned to go to Kirtland included David Whitmer, William W. Phelps, and John Whitmer, who were the three presidents of the high council. (Revelation, 22 June 1834 [D&C 105:11]; Minutes, 23 June 1834; Minutes and Discourse, ca. 7 July 1834.)

  4. [4]

    Letter to John Thornton et al., 25 June 1834.

  5. [5]

    JS apparently gave this assignment to Wight before he left Missouri. A 12 July 1834 meeting of the Missouri high council referred to the “mission appointed” to Wight “by the seer” and assigned Amasa Lyman to go with Wight “to ascertain the strength of the Lord’s house.” According to Amasa Lyman’s journal, this meant visiting those who had been driven from Jackson County and determining how many Saints lived in “this land”—probably meaning either Clay County specifically or Missouri generally. (Minute Book 2, 12 July 1834; Lyman, Journal, 12 July 1834.)

    Lyman, Amasa. Journals, 1832–1877. Amasa Lyman Collection, 1832–1877. CHL. MS 829, boxes 1–3.

  6. [6]

    Revelation, 11 Sept. 1831 [D&C 64:21–22].

  7. [7]

    Minutes, 11 Aug. 1834.

  8. [8]

    Kimball, “Journal and Record,” 16–18; Parkin, “Zion’s Camp Cholera Victims Monument Dedication,” 4–5.

    Kimball, Heber C. “The Journal and Record of Heber Chase Kimball an Apostle of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,” ca. 1842–1858. Heber C. Kimball, Papers, 1837–1866. CHL. MS 627, box 1.

    Parkin, Max H. “Zion’s Camp Cholera Victims Monument Dedication.” Missouri Mormon Frontier Foundation Newsletter 15 (Fall 1997): 4–5.

  9. [9]

    Partridge, Corrill, and Morley constituted the bishopric in Missouri, but it is unclear why Wight, who was a member of the high council, was specifically mentioned. It may have been because Wight had served as the general of the Camp of Israel, or perhaps it was because JS gave him specific instructions in the letter. (Minutes, 3 July 1834; Kimball, “Journal and Record,” 12.)

    Kimball, Heber C. “The Journal and Record of Heber Chase Kimball an Apostle of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,” ca. 1842–1858. Heber C. Kimball, Papers, 1837–1866. CHL. MS 627, box 1.

  10. [10]

    Minute Book 2, 10 Sept. 1834.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Letter to Lyman Wight and Others, 16 August 1834
Letterbook 1 History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 84

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August 16th 1834
Copy from Joseph S to the brethr[e]n in Zion
Dear Brethren and others the of the ——
After so long a time I dictate a few lines to you to let you know that I am in and that I found all well on my arival, as pertaining to health &c but found our common advisary had taken the advantage of our brothe[r] and others who gave a false colloring to allmost every transaction from the time that we left untill we returned, and thereby Stirred up a great difficulty in the Church against me accordingly I was met in the face and eyes as soon as I had got home with a catalogue that was as black as the author himself and the cry was Tyrant! Pope!! King!!! Usurper!!!! Abuser of men!!!!! Ange!!!!!! False proph[e]t!!!!! Prophecying Lies in the name of the Lord!!!!!!! and taking Consecrated monies!!!!!!!! and every other lie to fill up and complete the cattelogue that was necissary to perfect the Church to be meet for the devourer the shaft of the devouring <​distroying​> Angel! and in consequence of having to combat all these I have not been [p. 84]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter to Lyman Wight and Others, 16 August 1834
ID #
233
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D4:102–108
Handwriting on This Page
  • Frederick G. Williams

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    The Missouri high council was formed in early July 1834 before JS left Missouri for Kirtland, Ohio. (Minutes, 3 July 1834; Minutes and Discourse, ca. 7 July 1834.)

  2. [2]

    JS arrived in Kirtland sometime around 1 August. (JS History, vol. A-1, 528.)

    JS History / Smith, Joseph, et al. History, 1838–1856. Vols. A-1–F-1 (original), A-2–E-2 (fair copy). Historian’s Office, History of the Church, 1839–ca. 1882. CHL. CR 100 102, boxes 1–7. The history for the period after 5 Aug. 1838 was composed after the death of Joseph Smith.

  3. [3]

    The devil.

  4. [4]

    For an explanation of Smith’s charges, see Minutes, 11 Aug. 1834.

  5. [5]

    It is unclear what word JS used here. A later JS history gives it as “angel.” Webster’s 1828 dictionary gives one definition of angel as “an evil spirit; as, the angel of the bottomless pit.” (JS History, vol. A-1, 533; “Angel,” in American Dictionary.)

    JS History / Smith, Joseph, et al. History, 1838–1856. Vols. A-1–F-1 (original), A-2–E-2 (fair copy). Historian’s Office, History of the Church, 1839–ca. 1882. CHL. CR 100 102, boxes 1–7. The history for the period after 5 Aug. 1838 was composed after the death of Joseph Smith.

    An American Dictionary of the English Language: Intended to Exhibit, I. the Origin, Affinities and Primary Signification of English Words, as far as They Have Been Ascertained. . . . Edited by Noah Webster. New York: S. Converse, 1828.

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