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Revelation, 20 March 1841

Source Note

Revelation, , Hancock Co., IL, 20 Mar. 1841. Featured version copied [between ca. 20 Mar. 1841 and 7 Apr. 1841] in Book of the Law of the Lord, p. 15; handwriting of ; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124].

Historical Introduction

JS dictated a revelation on 20 March 1841, directing and to assist in the effort to build the . The revelation was given at a time when JS was trying to consolidate settlement in and around , Illinois, and focusing efforts on constructing the Nauvoo and the Nauvoo House in accordance with a January 1841 revelation. JS dictated this 20 March revelation in response to a specific question from Allred and Miller. Though recorded 20 March as the date of the revelation, he did not record the precise date Allred and Miller made their inquiry, listing only “March” and leaving a space for the exact date to be written later. It is possible the two men posed their question several days before the revelation was dictated.
A few weeks after this revelation was dictated, the cornerstones of the were laid during a ceremony preceding a general church . During the conference, JS spoke on the necessity of building not only the temple but also “the , that suitable accommodations might be afforded for the strangers who might visit this city.” At that same conference meeting, the charter for the was read.
The revelation’s appointment of and to assist the Nauvoo House Association anticipated the eventual dissolution of the of and Freedom, where Allred was a and Miller was a stake . In a 24 May 1841 letter, JS instructed members that “all the stakes, excepting those in this county [], and in , Iowa, are discontinued, and the saints instructed to settle in this county as soon as circumstances will permit.” In accordance with the revelation featured here, on 10 April 1841 Miller and Allred received $4,000 and $500, respectively, in stock certificates “to sell and account for.”

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    See Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124].

  2. [2]

    Minutes, 7–11 Apr. 1841.

  3. [3]

    Letter to the Saints Abroad, 24 May 1841. Despite this clear directive that the stakes be dissolved, some stake organizations apparently continued. In September 1841, William Draper wrote Brigham Young, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, to report on the “proceedings of a conference held in our stake” in Pleasant Vale, Illinois. The stake in Kirtland, Ohio, also continued to function after receiving this directive. (William Draper, Pleasant Vale, IL, to Brigham Young, Nauvoo, IL, 25 Sept. 1841, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL; Letter from Almon Babbitt, 19 Oct. 1841.)

    Brigham Young Office Files, 1832–1878. CHL. CR 1234 1.

  4. [4]

    Henry Miller and William Allred, Receipt, Nauvoo, IL, to Nauvoo House Association, 10 Apr. 1841, Nauvoo House Association, Records, CHL.

    Nauvoo House Association. Records, 1841–1846. CHL. MS 2375.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Revelation, 20 March 1841
*The Book of the Law of the Lord History, 1838–1856, volume C-1 [2 November 1838–31 July 1842] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 15

City of March [blank] 1841
Brother , of the at , and also Brother of the Stake at Freedom, desire Joseph Smith to enquire of the Lord, his will concerning them.
City of March 20th. 1841
Let my servants , and have an for the selling of stock for the , and assist my servants , , and in building said , and let my servants and take stock in the , that the poor of my people may have employment, and that accomodations may be made for the strangers who shall come to visit this place, and for this purpose let them devote all their properties saith the Lord. [p. 15]
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Source Note

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Page 15

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Revelation, 20 March 1841
ID #
4668
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
JSP, D8:76–77
Handwriting on This Page
  • Robert B. Thompson

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    During the October 1839 general church conference in Nauvoo, William Draper informed JS about the growth of church membership in Pike County, Illinois. JS encouraged Draper to continue his preaching efforts there, indicating that when the membership reached one hundred, JS would authorize the creation of a stake. In the following weeks, JS sent Hyrum Smith and George Miller to organize a stake in Pleasent Vale, Illinois, appointing Draper as president and William Allred as bishop. (Draper, Autobiography, 20–22.)

    Draper, William. Autobiography, 1881. CHL. MS 819.

  2. [2]

    In an October 1840 general conference meeting, Miller requested the creation of a stake in Adams County, Illinois, where he resided. According to the minutes of that conference, “An opportunity was given to the brethren who had any remarks to make suitable locations for stakes. Elder H. Miller stated that it was the desire of a number of the brethren residing in Adams county to have a stake appointed at Mount Ephraim in that county, and stated the advantages of the place for agricultural purposes &c. On motion. Resolved, that a stake be appointed at Mount Ephraim in Adams county.” On 27 October 1840, Miller was appointed president of the newly created Freedom stake, near Payson in Adams County. (Minutes and Discourse, 3–5 Oct. 1840; JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda Book, 1.)

  3. [3]

    A revelation dictated by JS two months earlier appointed Wight, Haws, Miller, and Snider to a “quorum” in charge of building the Nauvoo House and instructed them to “form a constitution whereby they may receive stock, for the building of that house.” (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:62–63].)

  4. [4]

    Many of those living in and coming to Nauvoo were poor, including hundreds of people immigrating to the city from England. (Vinson Knight, “Proclamation,” Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1841, 2:341; see also Letter to Quorum of the Twelve, 15 Dec. 1840; and Historical Introduction to Letter to Vilate Murray Kimball, 2 Mar. 1841.)

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

  5. [5]

    A January 1841 revelation called for the Nauvoo House to be built for the “boarding of strangers.” (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:23, 56].)

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