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Order from Newel K. Whitney, 18 April 1834

Source Note

, Order, to JS, , Geauga Co., OH, 18 Apr. 1834; handwriting of ; one page; JS Collection, CHL. Includes docket.
One leaf, measuring 9 × 7¾ inches (23 × 20 cm). The left side of the leaf was unevenly torn off from either a larger sheet of paper or a book. The document was cross-folded twice, resulting in four folds along both length and width. However, soiling on two panels on the verso indicates that the document was kept folded without the final vertical fold for some time. The verso includes a docket in ’s handwriting—“s | order | pr Joseph Smith”—but is otherwise blank. Most of the folds are weak, and two have been mended with clear cellophane tape, now largely broken along the same folds.
The custodial history of the order is uncertain. -era clerk ’s endorsement suggests that the document has been in church custody since at least 1842.

Historical Introduction

On 18 April 1834, prepared a statement explaining debts owed by an unspecified “we” and how much money was necessary to satisfy those debts. The “we” apparently refers to , the mercantile firm that Whitney formed with in December 1826 and that operated a store in , Ohio. In April 1832, N. K. Whitney & Co. became a branch of the , an organization that in 1834 consisted of eleven men, including JS, who directed the church’s mercantile and publishing endeavors. Since becoming part of the United Firm, N. K. Whitney & Co.’s debts had grown. Whitney and JS journeyed to in fall 1832 to purchase goods for Whitney’s store, and Whitney made a return trip in fall 1833, contracting over $4,400 of additional debt to firms. A June 1833 revelation had also directed Whitney to take charge of the former . That same month, Whitney purchased the farm from , presumably taking over the responsibility for two outstanding $1,500 payments and possibly paying Coe the $2,000 that Coe had initially paid for the farm. The following month, a mob in destroyed the church’s in , so in October 1833, used money borrowed from Whitney to purchase a new press and type in New York. In total, N. K. Whitney & Co. had $8,000 in debts and needed at least $4,000 for payments due in April 1834, including the first of the two $1,500 payments for the French farm.
On the same page where he outlined these debts, provided written authorization for JS to obtain a loan of between $1,000 and $8,000 in the name of N. K. Whitney & Co. The purpose of this loan is not clear from the document. Whitney may have intended it to help JS pay off debts so he could lead a planned expedition to to assist the Saints who had been expelled from . Or Whitney may have seen the loan as a way to help N. K. Whitney & Co. make at least some of the necessary payments due in April.
On 18 April, JS commenced a short trip to , Copley, and , Ohio. He may have planned on trying to obtain funds during this trip, though there is no evidence that he attempted to secure a loan at that time. However, a JS journal entry of 23 April 1834 implies that members of the United Firm were attempting to borrow money through church member , who lived in Worthington, Richland County, Ohio, approximately fifty-five miles southwest of Norton, where JS and others held a on 21 April. Myers had recently sold a mill and land in Richland County to Joseph Kanagy for $10,250. It is possible that Myers attended the 21 April conference and that JS discussed a loan with him at that time, but it is unknown whether Myers ever made a loan to JS or N. K. Whitney & Co. An 1834 account book for N. K. Whitney & Co. records that the company made payments totaling $685 to firms in June and July 1834, but there is no indication of where Whitney obtained this money.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Staker, Hearken, O Ye People, 217.

    Staker, Mark L. Hearken, O Ye People: The Historical Setting of Joseph Smith’s Ohio Revelations. Salt Lake City: Greg Kofford Books, 2009.

  2. [2]

    Minutes, 26–27 Apr. 1832; Revelation, 26 Apr. 1832 [D&C 82:11].

  3. [3]

    Letter to Emma Smith, 13 Oct. 1832; “New York Account Book Sept. 1834,” Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU; Frederick G. Williams, Kirtland, OH, to “Dear Brethren,” 10 Oct. 1833, in JS Letterbook 1, p. 58. According to Williams, Whitney went on this latter trip “with money enough to pay all the debts” owed by N. K. Whitney & Co. However, Williams explained, Whitney also contracted new debts through the purchase of “a larger supply of goods than at any former time.”

    Whitney, Newel K. Papers, 1825–1906. BYU.

    JS Letterbook 1 / Smith, Joseph. “Letter Book A,” 1832–1835. Joseph Smith Collection. CHL. MS 155, box 2, fd. 1.

  4. [4]

    Revelation, 4 June 1833 [D&C 96:2]; Geauga Co., OH, Deed Records, 1795–1921, vol. 17, pp. 360–361, 17 June 1833, microfilm 20,237, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

  5. [5]

    Letter from John Whitmer, 29 July 1833; Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, to Warren Cowdery, Freedom, NY, 30 Oct. 1833, in Cowdery, Letterbook, 1–3; Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland Mills, OH, to Ambrose Palmer, New Portage, OH, 30 Oct. 1833, in Cowdery, Letterbook, 4–5; F. G. Williams & Co., Account Book, 1; Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, to John Whitmer, 1 Jan. 1834, in Cowdery, Letterbook, 14–17. The F. G. Williams & Co. account book shows that Cowdery spent $630.15 on his trip to New York, including $190.60 for the printing press and $360.21 for type.

    Cowdery, Oliver. Letterbook, 1833–1838. Huntington Library, San Marino, CA.

    F. G. Williams & Co. Account Book, 1833–1835. CHL. In Patience Cowdery, Diary, 1849–1851. CHL. MS 3493.

  6. [6]

    In a 31 March 1834 letter, Orson Hyde informed JS about the unsuccessful fund-raising efforts in New York on behalf of Missouri church members and Kirtland church leaders. In his 7 April response, JS stated that unless he could get financial help, he would be unable to go to Missouri and the expedition would not occur. Obtaining a loan may have been JS’s last recourse to get the financial aid he needed. His best chance of executing a loan was using the name of N. K. Whitney & Co., an established firm apparently in good standing, notwithstanding its existing debts. (Letter to Orson Hyde, 7 Apr. 1834.)

  7. [7]

    JS, Journal, 18–19 Apr. 1834.

  8. [8]

    JS, Journal, 23 Apr. 1834; 1830 U.S. Census, Worthington, Richland Co., OH, 151; Minutes and Discourse, 21 Apr. 1834.

    Census (U.S.) / U.S. Bureau of the Census. Population Schedules. Microfilm. FHL.

  9. [9]

    Richland Co., OH, Deed Books, 1814–1913, vol. 11, p. 464, 27 Mar. 1834, microfilm 386,085, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL; see also Graham, History of Richland County, Ohio, 1:630–631; and Baughman, History of Richland County, Ohio, 1:370–371. Kanagy’s name was alternately spelled Kenagy on the title of the deed.

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

    Graham, A. A., comp. History of Richland County, Ohio, (Including the Original Boundaries.) Its Past and Present, Containing a Condensed Comprehensive History of Ohio, Including an Outline History of the Northwest; a Complete History of Richland County. . . . Mansfield, OH: A. A. Graham, 1880.

    Baughman, Abraham J. History of Richland County, Ohio, from 1808 to 1908. 2 vols. Chicago: S. J. Clarke, 1908.

  10. [10]

    “New York Account Book Sept. 1834,” Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU. There is also no indication that Whitney was able to meet the $1,500 payment on the French farm, which was due on 10 April 1834. A biographical sketch of John Tanner states that when Tanner came to Kirtland in January 1835, he loaned JS $2,000 to stave off foreclosure of the French farm, which suggests that the April 1834 payment had not been made. (“Sketch of an Elder’s Life,” 12.)

    Whitney, Newel K. Papers, 1825–1906. BYU.

    “Sketch of an Elder’s Life” (John Tanner). In Scraps of Biography, Faith-Promoting Series 10, pp. 9–19. Salt Lake City: Juvenile Instructor Office, 1883.

Page [1]

We owe Eight Thousands dollars, which must be paid by the first of Sept. next. but if we can get 4 or 5 Thousand this month I can pay our debts here & so much of our debts in that they will wait till Sept for the balance & I also shall be able to purchase some goods this Spring for to make my assortment more compleet through the summer—
At any rate we must have 4 thousand dollars this month
The bearer hereoff Joseph Smith Jr is authorised by us to borrow from One to Eight thousand dollars & sign a note for the same in the name of which note we will hold ourselves bound to pay
18 apl. 1834
N. K. Whitney & Co [p. [1]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Order from Newel K. Whitney, 18 April 1834
ID #
2005
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D4:10–13
Handwriting on This Page
  • Newel K. Whitney

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Whitney’s account book of his New York debts shows that he owed approximately $4,400 to various firms located in New York City—including Halsted, Haines & Co.; M. Wilbur & Buckley; Collins & Hannay; and C. B. Grannis & Co.—for invoices issued in October 1833. The account book indicates that $161 in interest on all these debts was due by mid-October 1834. At least some of these debts may have remained unpaid; the Halsted firm, for example, filed suit against JS in April 1838 for $2,337.35. (“New York Account Book Sept. 1834,” Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU; Circular, New-York Spectator, 30 Aug. 1832, [3]; Madsen, “Tabulating the Impact of Litigation on the Kirtland Economy,” 234.)

    Whitney, Newel K. Papers, 1825–1906. BYU.

    New-York Spectator. New York City. 1804–1867.

    Madsen, Gordon A. “Tabulating the Impact of Litigation on the Kirtland Economy.” In Sustaining the Law: Joseph Smith’s Legal Encounters, edited by Gordon A. Madsen, Jeffrey N. Walker, and John W. Welch, 227–246. Provo, UT: BYU Studies, 2014.

  2. [2]

    Whitney’s account book indicates that he made additional purchases in fall 1834, but there are no entries for spring 1834. (“New York Account Book Sept. 1834,” Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.)

    Whitney, Newel K. Papers, 1825–1906. BYU.

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