The Papers
Reference
About
Letters to John Burk, Sally Waterman Phelps, and Almira Mack Scobey, 1–2 June 1835
Source Note
Source Note
Letters, JS, , , and , , Geauga Co., OH, to , , Clay Co., MO, 1 June 1835; , , Geauga Co., OH, to , , Clay Co., MO, 2 June 1835; JS, , Geauga Co., OH, to , , MO, ca. 2 June 1835; handwriting of and JS; signatures of JS, , , and ; four pages; JS Collection, CHL. Includes docket.
These letters were inscribed on a large single sheet folded in half, creating two leaves measuring 16¾ × 10½ inches (42 × 27 cm). The top, bottom, and outside edges of the leaves were irregularly cut. The document was tri-folded twice in letter style for mailing. Three of the center panels on the verso of the second leaf have residue from an adhesive wafer; one of the panels contains a largely complete adhesive wafer with the letters “WWP”, for , still visible. Opening of the seal resulted in some minor loss to the text of the recto of the second leaf. Soiling is heaviest on the address panel and the other exterior panel, suggesting that it was kept folded in letter style for some time. All the folds are weak, and many folds and corners have loss of text because of wear. Some folds have been mended with Japanese paper. A docket in the handwriting of Andrew Jenson is inscribed vertically in graphite on the address panel and reads: “June 2 1, 1835”. Asterisks (redactions) inscribed in graphite in the margins throughout the manuscript suggest the letter may have been copied at some point.
The custodial history is uncertain. The address label specifies the letter was sent to “Mr or ” in , Clay County, Missouri, but the absence of any postmark indicates it was hand carried, even though a statement in the letter speaks of postage. Manuscript materials relating to were donated to the Historian’s Office incrementally starting in the 1860s. Sometime between 1906 and 1913, Assistant Church Historian Andrew Jenson copied the letters into the Journal History of the Church, stating that they were “on file” at the Church Historian’s Office.
Footnotes
- [1]
Historical Department, Journal History of the Church, 1–2 June 1835; Bergera, “Commencement of Great Things,” 23, 30.
Historical Department. Journal History of the Church, 1896–. CHL. CR 100 137.
Bergera, Gary James. “The Commencement of Great Things: The Origins, Scope, and Achievement of the Journal History of the Church.” Mormon Historical Studies 4, no. 1 (Spring 2003): 23–39.
Historical Introduction
Historical Introduction
On 1 June 1835, JS, , , and wrote a letter to , president of the in , Clay County, Missouri, explaining that elders did not have the authority to conduct disciplinary councils in . They also provided more general information on the duties of elders, , , and . Phelps and Whitmer had left their homes in where they served as two of the presidents of the Missouri high council, on 28 April 1835, and they arrived in , Ohio, on 17 May 1835. On 20 May, they participated in a meeting that determined that a Missouri disciplinary council held for , an elder in Missouri, was not authorized. Phelps then served as the scribe for this letter—signed by himself, JS, Cowdery, and Whitmer—informing Burk of that decision.
The letter suggests that there was some confusion regarding the responsibilities of elders, especially in terms of church discipline. In the past, conferences of elders had filled a disciplinary role. In 1834, the and the high council were formed and given the responsibility of disciplining members accused of transgressions in , or Missouri, and Kirtland, a of Zion, although maintained a role in this as well. Yet in of the church outside of Kirtland and Missouri, conferences of elders continued to serve as disciplinary bodies. Further complicating matters in Missouri was the fact that, as of 1 June 1835, the presidency of the Missouri high council—, , and —and at least ten of the twelve counselors had gone to Kirtland or were serving on missions elsewhere. With only two counselors in Missouri, the high council could not function. and his counselors, and , had also gone to Kirtland, leaving the Saints in Missouri essentially leaderless and without the ability to conduct disciplinary proceedings. Burk may have supposed that, given this situation, the elders had to take charge of disciplinary matters. This letter corrected Burk, explaining that the elders did not have the authority to discipline in areas where a high council was organized. Instead, the Missouri high council, its presidency, and the Missouri would regulate the Missouri church from Kirtland for the time being. An August 1835 letter reiterated that the Saints in Missouri “should let the high counsel which is appointed of God and for that purpose, make and regulate all the affairs of Zion.” Those priesthood officers who remained in Missouri were to “confine themselves to teaching the first principles of the Gospel: not endeavoring to institute regulations or laws for Zion.”
The letter also clarifies the role of different officers in the church, a common topic of church leaders’ meetings and writings around this time because of the recent designation of some men as or members of the . The letter reiterates the duties of elders, priests, teachers, and deacons and emphasizes the importance of mercy in dealing with wayward members. In addition, the letter explains the need for elders to preach and call people to repentance. According to notations made on the letter, these general instructions were meant for all members of the church and for “each grade of officers.” Accordingly, they were published, with several additions and modifications by Phelps, in the June 1835 issue of the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate under the title “To the Saints Scattered Abroad.” Not published in the Messenger and Advocate were portions of the letter explaining the specific decision in ’s case, expressing hope that an “Elder Fosdick” would “improve his talent,” and chastising for not traveling to as he had been instructed in June 1834.
Included in the transmission of this letter to Burk was a separate letter from to his wife, , and their six children who remained in . In addition, the letter includes a short postscript from JS to his cousin , who was also living in Clay County. Phelps’s letter provides counsel to Sally about raising their children in his absence and conveys information about the church in , especially the preaching of elders sent from there. On the letter to his wife, Phelps drew part of what appears to be the original plat of the , which was created in June 1833. Phelps gives no reasons for providing this to Sally, saying only that she should keep the drawing confidential. The plans for the city of Zion had been sent to church leaders in , Missouri, in summer 1833, not long before the Saints were expelled from the county in November 1833. However, redeeming Zion by reclaiming their lands in Jackson County was still an item of concern to JS and other leaders.
Just a month before this letter was written, JS made “some very appropriate remarks, relative to the deliverance of Zion” to a gathering of church officers. Those present at the meeting then unanimously voted “that we never give up the struggle for Zion, even until Death. or until Zion is Redeemed.” JS had also told others that church members needed to be ready to move back to Jackson County by 11 September 1836, which he called “the appointed time for the redemption of Zion.” In 1835, he was already making plans for this return, including, as recorded in an earlier letter to Sally, “the order of receiving inheritances in Zion when it is redeemed.” Church leaders in were thus regularly addressing the topic of returning to Zion (including a brief mention in the letter to ), which may have prompted Phelps to provide the drawing in the letter. The theme of Zion’s redemption also appears in JS’s short note to .
Although statements in the letter to refer to the cost of postage for the letter, there are no postage markings on it. It appears to have been received in , however, because a later letter from states that informed him in July 1835 that the letter “had checked the Elders in their crusade for exaltation.” In addition, was laboring as a missionary by 1836, indicating that he was in good standing with the church, and arrived in in November 1835, presumably as a result of the chastisement he received in the letter to Burk.
Footnotes
- [1]
- [2]
In a later letter to his wife, Sally Waterman Phelps, William W. Phelps referred to a letter that “checked the Elders in their crusade for exaltation.” He called the letter “my letter,” indicating that he likely drafted the letter on behalf of the other three. (William W. Phelps, Kirtland, OH, to Sally Waterman Phelps, Liberty, MO, 20 July 1835, in Historical Department, Journal History of the Church, 20 July 1835.)
Historical Department. Journal History of the Church, 1896–. CHL. CR 100 137.
- [3]
- [4]
Revised Minutes, 18–19 Feb. 1834 [D&C 102]; Minutes, 3 July 1834; Minutes and Discourse, ca. 7 July 1834. A November 1831 revelation had designated the bishop as “a common judge among the inhabitants of Zion.” (Revelation, 11 Nov. 1831–B [D&C 107:74].)
- [5]
See, for example, Minutes and Discourse, 21 Apr. 1834.
- [6]
David Whitmer, William W. Phelps, John Whitmer, Newel Knight, Calvin Beebe, William E. McLellin, Solomon Hancock, Thomas B. Marsh, Simeon Carter, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, John Murdock, and Levi Jackman had all left Missouri by this time, leaving Christian Whitmer and Lyman Wight as the only remaining high council members. (Oliver Cowdery, Editorial, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Oct. 1834, 1:3; Whitmer, History, 70–71; Knight, History, 791; Partridge, Diary, 27 Jan.–29 Apr. 1835; Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 14–15 Feb. 1835; McLellin, Journal, 9 July 1834; Solomon Hancock, Kirtland, OH, 12 Dec. 1835, Letter to the Editor, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Feb. 1836, 2:272; Simeon Carter, Report, 4 May 1835, Missionary Reports, 1831–1900, CHL; Minutes and Blessings, 21 Feb. 1835; Pratt, Diary, 26 Apr. 1835; Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 Mar. 1835; Levi Jackman and C. Baldwin, Clear Creek, IL, 7 July 1835, Letter to the Editor, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Sept. 1835, 1:185–186.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
Knight, Newel. History. Private possession. Copy in CHL. MS 19156.
Partridge, Edward. Diaries, 1818 and 1835–1836. Edward Partridge, Papers, 1818–1839. CHL. MS 892, box 1, fds. 1–2.
McLellin, William E. Journal, July 1834–Apr. 1835. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 4. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
Missionary Reports, 1831–1900. CHL. MS 6104.
Pratt, Orson. Journal, 1833–1837. Orson Pratt, Autobiography and Journals, 1833–1847. CHL. MS 587, fds. 2–4.
- [7]
Edward Partridge, Report, 31 Oct. 1835, Missionary Reports, 1831–1900, CHL; John Corrill to Margaret Corrill, 20 July 1835, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU.
Missionary Reports, 1831–1900. CHL. MS 6104.
Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.
- [8]
Letter to Church Officers in Missouri, 31 Aug. 1835; see also William W. Phelps to Sally Waterman Phelps, 20 July 1835, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU. Perhaps foreseeing the lack of leadership in Missouri, a November 1834 council decided “that there be no more stated meetings” there, although the elders could “administer the sacrament if they see a convenient opportunity.” (Minute Book 2, 5 Nov. 1834.)
Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.
- [9]
See, for example, Instruction on Priesthood, between ca. 1 Mar. and ca. 4 May 1835 [D&C 107]; Minutes and Discourse, 2 May 1835; and Minutes and Discourses, 27 Feb. 1835.
- [10]
A resolution accepted at a 2 May 1835 meeting of church officers stated that “all the Elders of the Church are bound to travel in the World to preach the gospel with all their might mind & Strength.” (Minutes and Discourse, 2 May 1835.)
- [11]
- [12]
- [13]
Whitmer, History, 70–71; JS History, vol. B-1, 592.
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.
- [14]
Plat of the City of Zion, ca. Early June–25 June 1833. Church leaders also developed a plat for Kirtland around this same time. They created a revised plat of the City of Zion likely in August 1833, but Phelps’s drawing appears to depict the original plat of Zion. It includes two squares in the middle, designated “for the Houses of God,” which seem to correspond to the two squares in the center of the city of Zion plat where twenty-four houses of the Lord were to be built. The square directly to the right of those squares contains horizontal lines, also conforming to the original plat. (Plat of Kirtland, OH, not before 2 Aug. 1833; Revised Plat of the City of Zion, ca. Early Aug. 1833.)
- [15]
Historical Introduction to Plat of the City of Zion, ca. Early June–25 June 1833; see also Historical Introduction to Revised Plat of the City of Zion, ca. Early Aug. 1833.
- [16]
- [17]
Letter to Lyman Wight et al., 16 Aug. 1834; JS, Journal, 24 Sept. 1835; William W. Phelps, Kirtland, OH, to Sally Waterman Phelps, Liberty, MO, 26 May 1835, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU.
Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.
- [18]
William W. Phelps, Kirtland, OH, to Sally Waterman Phelps, Liberty, MO, 20 July 1835, in Historical Department, Journal History of the Church, 20 July 1835.
Historical Department. Journal History of the Church, 1896–. CHL. CR 100 137.
- [19]
“Extract of G. Burket’s Letter,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Jan. 1836, 2:256; JS, Journal, 2 Nov. 1835.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
strive to have the children brought up in the way they should go, and they come <go> back to they will thank you and honor you for your “motherly admonition”, Waterman is well— one accident befel him. He went in to the millpond to swim, and like to have drowned, but was brought out by Br. Bump’s boy: He will never be caught in that folly again, I trust. Br Joseph told me of it and talked to him like an angel—
I know you will like to hear some news from as well as advice, so I shall give you some. The are constantly coming in and going. Last week Elders and , started for the east last week. , and counsellor will start soon: Elder came in last week; Elders and arrived la[s]t week, and Elder this week. says he preached to Jerusha, and she believed and will eventually come into the . I beseech of you to pray God that she may come in, so that you can have one natural heir in the Kingdom with you, for consolation I shall try to send some of the elders to preach to Flavius and Mary, so thus they may come in too, if they will I have sent and to my fathers, and to Lydia— Now is the Harvest and you must pray, and the children must pray thus they may be brought into the kingdom. President Smith preached last Sabbath, and I gave him the text: “This is my beloved Son; hear ye him!” He preached one of the greatest sermons I ever heard— it was about 3½ hours long— and unfolded more mysteries than I can write at this time. The Congregations of saints at — is larger than any one we used to have at , and when any of the world come in, we have what may well be called <a> Large Congregation.
wanted I should say to Mary, that he is well— He left here for and may be expect[ed] in the west in the course of the summer. President Smith, as I before said, told me he had written to Sister [Elizabeth Van Benthusen] Gilbert, who I sincerly hope lives humble enough to have the spirit of God continally to console her in her widowhood, and cheer <herself> up to look with Joy for the hour of redemption. When I left you, , I said:— “The blessings of God, and my peace with you, till I return”, Live so that you may inherit these things: for the Lord will surely grant them, if you are worthy. Be careful of my Letters for I have not time to copy them. Give respects to the saints I remain yours forever
and children
NB If I was able to bear the expense I would write weekly but as it would cost $12,50, both ways, I can not afford it. If the inhabitant[s] of of will raise you six dollars, I will write for their good
[Drawing of plan of city of Zion]
Be careful and let no one Copy this plan least you bring persecutions on your selves.
Plan of the city— you will have keep such things to yourself for wisdom
Cousin
Brother has left a little space for me to occupy and I gladly improve it, I would be glad to see the children of and del[i]ver the <word> of Eternal <life> to them from my own mouth but cannot this year nevertheless the day will come that I shall enjoy this privileege I trust. and we all shall receive an in the land of refuge which is so much to be desired seeing it is under the direction of the Allmighty therefore let us live faithful before the Lord and it shall be well with us I feel for all the Chilldren of Zion and pray for them in all my prayrs peace be multiplyed unto their redeemtion and favor from God Amen
Joseph Smith Jr [p. [4]]
Source Note
Source Note
Document Transcript
Document Information
Document Information
Footnotes
Footnotes
- [39]
See Proverbs 22:6.
- [40]
William Waterman Phelps, Phelps’s son, was twelve years old at this time. (Van Orden, “Writing to Zion,” 584n59.)
Van Orden, Bruce A. “Writing to Zion: The William W. Phelps Kirtland Letters (1835–1836).” BYU Studies 33, no. 3 (1993): 542–593.
- [41]
This is likely Asa Bump, the son of Jacob Bump, who would have been ten or eleven at this time. (1850 U.S. Census, Kirtland, Lake Co., OH, 223[A].)
Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.
- [42]
John Corrill noted in a later history that “in the winter of 1834 and 5, all the principal elders in Upper Missouri went to Kirtland. Some of them spent the Summer there, while others traveled and preached in the eastern States, and some went to the south.” (Corrill, Brief History, 22.)
Corrill, John. A Brief History of the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints, (Commonly Called Mormons;) Including an Account of Their Doctrine and Discipline; with the Reasons of the Author for Leaving the Church. St. Louis: By the author, 1839.
- [43]
Simeon Carter arrived in Kirtland on 4 May 1835 after traveling from Missouri and preaching in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Solomon Hancock left Missouri in January 1835, preaching in Missouri and Illinois on his way to Ohio. (Simeon Carter, Report, 4 May 1835, Missionary Reports, 1831–1900, CHL; Solomon Hancock, Report, ca. Apr. 1835, Missionary Reports, 1831–1900, CHL.)
Missionary Reports, 1831–1900. CHL. MS 6104.
- [44]
Partridge and Morley departed on 2 June 1835 to preach in the eastern states. They returned to Kirtland at the end of October 1835. (Edward Partridge, Report, 31 Oct. 1835, Missionary Reports, 1831–1900, CHL; see also Recommendation for Edward Partridge and Isaac Morley, 1 June 1835.)
Missionary Reports, 1831–1900. CHL. MS 6104.
- [45]
Amasa Lyman had been preaching in Illinois and other locations. A letter published in the June 1835 issue of the Messenger and Advocate noted that Lyman was present at a conference held in Clinton County, Illinois, on 25 April 1835 and that he departed there on 28 April. (“Extract of a Letter,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, June 1835, 1:142.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
- [46]
In November 1834, Dustin and Emmett both applied to the Missouri high council “for a reccommend to go and preach the gospel.” The high council gave them recommends and assigned them to preach together. In July 1835, Emmett reported that he and Dustin had baptized twenty-two individuals since December 1834. (Minute Book 2, 5 Nov. 1834; Letters from Elders Abroad, LDS Messenger and Advocate, July 1835, 1:160.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
- [47]
In August 1834, the Missouri high council voted that Uzziel Stevens “should go into the world to preach the Gospel in the due time of the Lord.” (Minute Book 2, 21 Aug. 1834.)
- [48]
Jerusha Waterman was Sally’s sister. It is unclear whether she ever became a member of the church or where she was living at this time. (Van Orden, “Writing to Zion,” 584n74.)
Van Orden, Bruce A. “Writing to Zion: The William W. Phelps Kirtland Letters (1835–1836).” BYU Studies 33, no. 3 (1993): 542–593.
- [49]
Flavius Waterman, Sally’s brother, and Mary Waterman, Flavius’s wife. The 1830 census lists Flavius as living in Homer, Athens County, Ohio. (1850 U.S. Census, Windsor, Morgan Co., OH, 174[A]; 1830 U.S. Census, Homer, Athens Co., OH, 218.)
Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.
- [50]
Lydia, who was born in 1793, was Sally’s sister. She was apparently living in Smyrna, New York. Sometime after this letter was written, she told Libbeus Coons, who was preaching there, that she “accounted herself a Mormon.” (Van Orden, “Writing to Zion,” 591n149; 1850 U.S. Census, Troy, Athens Co., OH, 80[A]; William W. Phelps to Sally Waterman Phelps, no date, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU; L. T. Coons, Kirtland, OH, 6 Nov. 1833, Letter to the Editor, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Oct. 1835, 2:207.)
Van Orden, Bruce A. “Writing to Zion: The William W. Phelps Kirtland Letters (1835–1836).” BYU Studies 33, no. 3 (1993): 542–593.
Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.
Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
- [51]
The previous Sunday was 31 May.
- [52]
See Matthew 17:5; Mark 9:7; Luke 9:35; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 476 [3 Nephi 11:7]. A later JS history stated that in the spring of 1820, God and Jesus Christ appeared to JS and God said, “This is my beloved Son, Hear him” as he pointed to Christ. (JS History, vol. A-1, 3.)
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.
- [53]
Preaching for that length of time was perhaps not unusual. William E. McLellin noted that JS preached a sermon in March 1835 in Huntsburgh, Ohio, that lasted three hours. (McLellin, Journal, 29 Mar. 1835.)
McLellin, William E. Journal, July 1834–Apr. 1835. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 4. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
- [54]
Prior to moving to Kirtland in June 1831, Phelps and his family resided in Canandaigua, New York. (William W. Phelps, “Letter No. 6,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Apr. 1835, 1:97.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
- [55]
Samuel Bent, who married Mary Kilbourne in 1805, was baptized in Pontiac, Michigan Territory, in January 1833. He went to Missouri with the Camp of Israel expedition in 1834 and then traveled to Kirtland. Apparently Mary had also relocated to Missouri, although it does not appear she went with the Camp of Israel. (“Historical Sketch and Obituary Notice of Samuel Bent,” [1], Obituary Notices and Biographies, CHL; “Journal of the Branch of the Church of Christ in Pontiac,” 1.)
Obituary Notices and Biographies, 1854–1877. CHL. MS 4760.
“Journal of the Branch of the Church of Christ in Pontiac,” May–June 1834. CHL. MS 4610.
- [56]
Sidney Gilbert, the husband of Elizabeth Van Benthusen Gilbert, died on 29 June 1834 after contracting cholera in the same outbreak that hit the Camp of Israel. This letter from JS to Elizabeth Gilbert is not extant.
- [57]
TEXT: This note is written down the left margin of page 3.
- [58]
TEXT: This note is written at the top of the page in four lines, partially writing over the hand-drawn plan.
- [59]
A June 1834 revelation counseled church members to “reveal not the things” that God had “revealed unto them” in terms of the redemption of Zion. Speaking about plans to return to Jackson County in 1836, JS similarly told the Saints to keep such things to themselves: “Let not this be noised abroad let every heart beat in silence and every mouth be shut.” (Revelation, 22 June 1834 [D&C 105:23]; Letter to Lyman Wight et al., 16 Aug. 1834.)
- [60]
TEXT: This note is written up the right side of the page in two lines.
The body of the letter resumes here. William W. Phelps handwriting ends; JS begins.
- [61]
In a 26 May 1835 letter, William W. Phelps told his wife, Sally, that “the order of receiving inheritances in Zion when it is redeemed was commenced to day in council—Elder Martin [Harris] for his great good in assaying to bring for[th] the Book of Mormon, he is No 1 President Smith No 2.” (William W. Phelps, Kirtland, OH, to Sally Waterman Phelps, Liberty, MO, 26 May 1835, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU; see also Whitmer, History, 71–72.)
Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.