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Minutes, 27 May 1843

Source Note

, Minutes, [, Hancock Co., IL], 27 May 1843; handwriting of ; five pages; Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 1840–1844, CHL. Includes dockets.
Two bifolia, each measuring 12⅛ × 7⅝ inches (31 × 19 cm). The rectos of the first and second leaves of the first bifolium appear to be ruled with thirty-five horizontal blue lines; the versos of the first and second leaves of the first bifolium appear to be ruled with thirty-seven horizontal blue lines. The recto of the first leaf of the second bifolium is ruled with thirty-six horizontal blue lines. Ruling in the two bifolia is now faded. The minutes of this meeting were written on all pages of the first bifolium and on the recto of the first leaf of the second bifolium. went back through the minutes after their initial inscription, correcting some words and adding pagination. The verso of the first leaf of the second bifolium and the recto of the second leaf of the second bifolium contain minutes of additional meetings of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The bifolia were folded in half twice horizontally for filing.
, who served as clerk of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from October 1840 until his death in March 1854, presumably retained the minutes in his possession after inscribing them, and they were likely among the “Minutes of the Twelve 1840 to 1844” listed on an 1846 inventory of the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department). The document was docketed by Richards and by Andrew Jenson, who began working in the Church Historian’s Office in 1891 and served as assistant church historian from 1897 to 1941. In 1986, the minutes of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for the 1840s were transferred from the Church Historical Department (later Church History Department) to the Office of the First Presidency. In 2008, this collection of minutes was returned to the Church History Department (now CHL).

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 8 Oct. 1840; Orson Spencer, “Death of Our Beloved Brother Willard Richards,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 16 Mar. 1854, [2].

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  2. [2]

    “Schedule of Church Records. Nauvoo 1846,” [1], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

  3. [3]

    Jenson, Autobiography, 192, 389; Cannon, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891; Jenson, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891 and 19 Oct. 1897; Bitton and Arrington, Mormons and Their Historians, 47–52.

    Jenson, Andrew. Autobiography of Andrew Jenson: Assistant Historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1938.

    Cannon, George Q. Journals, 1855–1864, 1872–1901. CHL. CR 850 1.

    Jenson, Andrew. Journals, 1864–1941. Andrew Jenson, Autobiography and Journals, 1864–1941. CHL.

    Bitton, David, and Leonard J. Arrington. Mormons and Their Historians. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1988.

  4. [4]

    See the full bibliographic entry for Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 1840–1844, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On 27 May 1843, JS attended an afternoon meeting of the in , Illinois, to discuss a letter had written to JS about , the former of the . Armstrong’s letter was one of at least three sent to JS in 1843 by Philadelphia branch members complaining about Winchester and his conduct. In February 1843, , the branch’s presiding elder, wrote to JS that Winchester was a “secret spring” who inserted himself into branch business when he was not wanted and who needed to be removed so that the branch could prosper in “majesty and streng[t]h.” On 23 April 1843, , another Philadelphia branch member, wrote to JS and the Nauvoo that Winchester was “under the influense of the evil one” and had tried to destroy her character. “Winchester will continue to injure my reputation every where he goes,” she declared. In a 1 May 1843 letter, Armstrong claimed that Winchester had slandered her and “mutilated” her character. She asked for “redress at the hands of the ” and for justice “for the deepest wrongs inflicted without the slightest provction [provocation].” She also requested that JS submit her letter to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who had authority over the branches of the church outside of Nauvoo. The considered the letter at a 23 May 1843 meeting and decided to discuss it further at a later meeting to which various individuals with knowledge of Winchester’s actions could be invited.
The meeting to address 's concerns was held on 27 May and was attended by JS, , , , and other church members, including , who had been preaching in when some of the difficulties between and occurred. Winchester, who was also present, spent the first part of the meeting explaining rumors he had heard about Armstrong, implying that she was a drunkard and had loose morals, before JS called for order and chastised Winchester for his conduct. The letters from Hess and were then read, and the apostles ultimately revoked Winchester’s preaching and ordered him and his family to move to . Thereafter, JS instructed the apostles on their responsibilities when trying church members. JS and the apostles also conducted some additional business, which included withdrawing the ’s license of Adams, who had been accused of adultery. The apostles assigned a few elders to preach in various locations, and was blessed before the meeting adjourned.
took the minutes of the meeting. also provided a summary of the meeting in his journal. Because Woodruff was not the official minute taker of the meeting and provided only a summary of it, only Richards’s minutes are featured here. However, Woodruff captured JS’s instructions to the Twelve on their duties, and his account of that discourse is featured here as well.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Letter from Sybella McMinn Armstrong, 1 May 1843.

  2. [2]

    Letter from Peter Hess, 16 Feb. 1843.

  3. [3]

    Letter from Eliza Lowry Nicholson, 23 Apr. 1843.

  4. [4]

    Letter from Sybella McMinn Armstrong, 1 May 1843.

  5. [5]

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 23 May 1843.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

  6. [6]

    JS, Journal, 27 May 1843; Letter from Peter Hess, 16 Feb. 1843. Winchester and his family relocated to Nauvoo by November 1843. (JS et al., Memorial to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, 28 Nov. 1843, p. 14, Record Group 46, Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives, Washington DC.)

  7. [7]

    See Letter from Caroline Youngs Adams, ca. 15 Jan. 1843; Historical Introduction to Resolutions of the Boston Conference, 12 Mar. 1843; and Historical Introduction to Letter from Austin Cowles, 13 Mar. 1843.

  8. [8]

    Woodruff, Journal, 27 May 1843.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. *Minutes, 27 May 1843 Minutes, 27 May 1843, as Reported by Wilford Woodruff History Draft [1 March–31 December 1843] History, 1838–1856, volume D-1 [1 August 1842–1 July 1843] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 2

her dropsical. left late in the evening gone 6 or 8 months in Kentucky, inder suspicus circumstances
Mrs Thacher says that Isabellas sister said every family had a black sheep— & they had one. a certain Lady had seen her in drink, & run in debt to give money to the Saints.—
Ned simpson: Is ferquntly seen with her. & blackley, atrocois villain.—
She have been the public talk in the , my being silencd by the has caused me a great deal of trouble &c
. when he was in — one said Isabellas conduct was very rediculous. & if she was not moved she ought to be.— towns talk,— when I preached on adultery, she left the house
said he was pesident of the counsil in — when this subject was investegated,
, said the council might be called at my request, to settle the money affair, nothing—
, I deny having in vited any thing about old affairs.— in calling the council—
to <​but​> it was called to investigate the money. & about ,—— after which.— , & othe[r]s came forward after the money investigation.—
President Joseph Smith called for order.—
said there was no tiel [trial] before the councel.
“J. Smith said that there it was a bag of nonsense to sit here without witnesses & hear one story [after?] another. Prest, J. Smith, it has been the character of from the beginning to contredict every body & evey thing, and I have been under the ire of his tongue.— he introduced me into several familyes & I had to have a contention with him at every house. I disgraced him before the . & to be revenged he told one of the most damnable lies about me. visited Sister Smith sister [Hannah Dubois] Dibble. small hat shop.— told her to come to with me. & I would protect hers & set up a howl [p. 2]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Minutes, 27 May 1843
ID #
12026
Total Pages
5
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:343–350
Handwriting on This Page
  • Willard Richards

Footnotes

  1. [8]

    Dropsy, which is now referred to as edema, was seen as a medical condition that sometimes occurred “in persons of lax habits” and as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. (“Dropsy,” in American Dictionary [1828]; Keller, “Historical Overview of Alcohol and Alcoholism,” 2825.)

    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.

    Keller, Mark. “A Historical Overview of Alcohol and Alcoholism.” Cancer Research 39, no. 7, part 2 (July 1979): 2822–2829.

  2. [9]

    “Mrs Thacher” may have been Catharine McMinn Thacher, Armstrong's sister. (Church of the Brethren [Germantown, Philadelphia Co., PA], Cemetery Records, Old Section, lots 158 and 159, microfilm 1,723,615; Marriage Record for Arthur Thacher and Catharine McMinn, 25 Dec. 1833, in Union Methodist Episcopal Church, Philadelphia, PA, Church Records, 1801–1923 [Marriages, 1829–1867], microfilm 1,730,931, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; “Catharine Evans Mc Minn, 1810–1877,” Individual Record, FamilySearch [ID no. LH3F-L6T].)

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

    FamilySearch. https://familysearch.org

  3. [10]

    Ned Simpson—apparently an alias for Ned Hammond—was a well-known thief and pickpocket who was arrested at various times between 1838 and 1850 in Philadelphia and New York City. He was reportedly a member of a gang of English pickpockets based in Philadelphia. He was arrested on 27 March 1843 for pickpocketing in Philadelphia but was released on $500 bail. There is no evidence from extant newspaper reports that Armstrong and Simpson were connected. (“Arrest of a Fugitive from Justice,” New-York Tribune [New York City], 7 June 1841, [4]; “An English Pickpocket Caught,” Public Ledger [Philadelphia], 1 July 1843, [1]; “Movements of Thieves,” National Police Gazette [New York City], 17 Feb. 1849, [2]; Philadelphia, PA, Prisoners for Trial Docket, 1790–1882, vol. 22, pp. 316, 406, 27 Mar. and 6 June 1843, microfilm 973,544, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)

    New-York Tribune. New York City. 1841–1842.

    Public Ledger. Philadelphia. 1836–1925.

    National Police Gazette. New York City. 1845–.

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

  4. [11]

    In May 1842, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles silenced Winchester from preaching “until he makes satisfaction for not obeying” instruction from the First Presidency. Winchester was “restored to his former fellowship and standing in the Church” in July 1842. (“Notice,” Times and Seasons, 16 May 1842, 3:798; “Notice,” Times and Seasons, 15 July 1842, 3:862.)

  5. [12]

    Hyrum Smith and William Law traveled to Philadelphia in October 1842 to reorganize the branch and set it in order. (Philadelphia Branch Record Book, 15 Oct. 1842, 32–33.)

    Philadelphia Branch Record Book, 1840–1854. Microfilm. CHL. Original at CCLA.

  6. [13]

    On 21 and 22 April 1843, Adams presided over a meeting of the “official members” of the Philadelphia branch that, on Winchester’s request, investigated monetary issues involving Peter Hess, who was both the presiding elder of the branch and the branch treasurer. The main issue seems to have been Hess loaning money from church members to Adams, something that Hess denied. After “disscussing the subject fully,” the council decided to drop the matter and to have Hess pay sixteen dollars as rent for the church building the branch was using. The same meeting also considered charges that James B. Nicholson made against Winchester for disparaging the character of his mother, Eliza Nicholson. When Hyrum Smith and William Law reorganized the Philadelphia branch in October 1842, Smith counseled the branch to forget “all former dificulties” and never speak of them again. (Philadelphia, PA, Council Minutes, 21–22 Apr. 1843, General Ecclesiastical Court Trials, CHL; Philadelphia Branch Record Book, 14 Sept. and 15 Oct. 1842, 31–33.)

    General Ecclesiastical Court Trials 1832–1963. CHL.

    Philadelphia Branch Record Book, 1840–1854. Microfilm. CHL. Original at CCLA.

  7. [14]

    The minutes of the 21–22 April 1843 meeting do not contain anything about Derby, who was proselytizing in Philadelphia in fall 1842. According to Edwin Woolley, who was also preaching in the area, Derby made “some disturbance in the branch” when he was there. (Philadelphia, PA, Council Minutes, 21–22 Apr. 1843, General Ecclesiastical Court Trials, CHL; Woolley, Diary, 16 Nov. 1842.)

    General Ecclesiastical Court Trials 1832–1963. CHL.

    Woolley, Edwin D. Diary, Sept.–Dec. 1842. CHL.

  8. [15]

    This may have happened when JS visited Philadelphia in December 1839 and January 1840. He also attended a conference of the Philadelphia branch in January 1840, during which he advised “travelling Elders” to be “especially cautious of incroaching on the ground of stationed & presiding Elders,” although the minutes do not indicate that he referred to Winchester, who was one of the traveling elders, by name. (Orson Pratt to Sarah Marinda Bates Pratt, 6 Jan. 1840, in Times and Seasons, Feb. 1840, 1:61; Historian’s Office, JS History, Draft Notes, 21 Dec. 1839; Minutes and Discourse, 13 Jan. 1840.)

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

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