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Title Page of Book of Mormon, circa Early June 1829

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Title Page of Book of Mormon, circa Early June 1829

Source Note

Northern District of , Title Page of Book of Mormon, likely printed in , NY, [ca. early June 1829], filed 11 June 1829, likely Utica, NY; one page; Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, . Transcription from digital color image made of the original in 2012.
Single leaf measuring 7¾ × 6⅛ inches (20 × 16 cm). On the verso is a docket written in graphite in unidentified handwriting. The custodial history of the item is not known.

Historical Introduction

The following document, a copy of the title page of the Book of Mormon, is the first printed JS document. JS submitted it to the District Court for the Northern District of as part of his application for a federal copyright. Conforming with copyright law, he submitted a printed copy of the full title page, which he later explained was from the . The clerk of the court, , filed this title page in Utica, New York, on 11 June 1829, suggesting that it was printed no later than the first few days of June 1829. Lansing completed an official copyright form that same day and included a handwritten copy of the title page that he likely copied from the document featured below.
This title page was apparently typeset for the purposes of obtaining a copyright. The printer may have been , who eventually printed the Book of Mormon. began printing negotiations with Grandin in early June, and Grandin included a differently formatted version of the title page in his newspaper, the Wayne Sentinel, in , New York, on 26 June 1829. The type does not match fonts known to be in use in Grandin’s shop at the time, however, and JS or Harris may have had another printer create this document. On 11 August, another newspaper, the Palmyra Freeman, printed a copy of the title page, most likely reproduced from the Sentinel.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Copyright for the Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829; see also An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by Securing Copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the Authors and Proprietors of Such Copies during the Times Therein Mentioned [31 May 1790], Public Statutes at Large, 1st Cong., 2nd Sess., chap. 15, p. 125, sec. 3; and Wadsworth, “Copyright Laws and the 1830 Book of Mormon,” 81–83.

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

    Wadsworth, Nathaniel Hinckley. “Copyright Laws and the 1830 Book of Mormon.” BYU Studies 45, no. 3 (2006): 77–99.

  2. [2]

    JS’s history stated that the title page was “taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated.” This may indicate that the title page was recorded as the last page of the plates that constituted the Book of Mormon. (JS History, vol. A-1, 34.)

  3. [3]

    It is unknown if JS or one of his associates submitted the copyright in person or mailed it to Utica. Traveling from Palmyra to Utica (approximately 120 miles one way) would have taken several days but was a possibility, especially if funds were available to travel by stage. (See Ehat, “‘Securing’ the Prophet’s Copyright,” 17–18; see also Historical Introduction to Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829.)

    Ehat, Stephen Kent. “‘Securing’ the Prophet’s Copyright in the Book of Mormon: Historical and Legal Context for the So-Called Canadian Copyright Revelation.” BYU Studies 50, no. 2 (2011): 4–70.

  4. [4]

    Lansing’s copyright form included a preprinted paragraph at the top of the page and another at the bottom, leaving the center for Lansing to write the title of the book. The handwritten title of the Book of Mormon included the statement that JS was the “author and proprietor,” a phrase used in the copyright statute and also found in the printed portion of the copyright form. The form resides in the Library of Congress in a large book with other copyright forms that were submitted during the same period. (Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829, clerk’s copy, New York North District, Copyright Book, vol. 116, p. 107, Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, Washington DC; An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by Securing Copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the Authors and Proprietors of Such Copies during the Times Therein Mentioned [31 May 1790], Public Statutes at Large, 1st Cong., 2nd Sess., chap. 15, pp. 124–126; see also Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829.)

    Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829. Clerk’s copy. New York North District, Copyright Book, vol. 116, p. 107. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, Washington DC.

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

  5. [5]

    John H. Gilbert, Memorandum, 8 Sept. 1892, photocopy, CHL.

    Gilbert, John H. Memorandum, 8 Sept. 1892. Photocopy. CHL. MS 9223.

  6. [6]

    For contemporary versions of the title page in addition to the one presented here, see News item, Wayne Sentinel (Palmyra, NY), 26 June 1829, [3]; “Golden Bible,” Palmyra (NY) Freeman, 11 Aug. 1829, [2]; Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., [i]; “The Book of Mormon,” Wayne Sentinel (Palmyra, NY), 26 Mar. 1830, [3]; and Book of Mormon, Printer’s Manuscript, [i].

    Wayne Sentinel. Palmyra, NY. 1823–1852, 1860–1861.

    Palmyra Freeman. Palmyra, NY. 1828–1829.

    Book of Mormon, Printer’s Manuscript, 1829–1830. CHL.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation.
*Title Page of Book of Mormon, circa Early June 1829
Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829, Clerk’s Copy Copyright for Book of Mormon, 11 June 1829 Title Page of Book of Mormon, circa Early June 1829, as Published in Wayne Sentinel Printer’s Manuscript of the Book of Mormon, circa August 1829–circa January 1830 Book of Mormon, 1830 Book of Mormon, 1830 Book of Mormon, 1837 History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834] Book of Mormon, 1840 Book of Mormon, 1841 History, circa 1841, draft [Draft 3] History, circa 1841, fair copy “History of Joseph Smith”

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THE
BOOK OF MORMON,
AN ACCOUNT
WRITTEN BY THE HAND OF MORMON UPON TAKEN FROM THE PLATES OF NEPHI:
Wherefore it is an abridgment of the record of the , and also of the , written to the Lamanites, which are a remnant of the ; and also to Jew and , written by way of commandment; and also by the spirit of prophesy and of revelation, written and sealed and hid up unto the Lord, that they might not be destroyed, to come forth by the gift and power of God unto the interpretation thereof— sealed up by the hand of Moroni, and hid up unto the Lord, to come forth in due time by the way of Gentile, the interpretation thereof by the gift of God: an abridgment taken from the book of Ether.
Also, which is a record of the , which were scattered at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people, when they were building a tower to get to heaven; which is to shew unto the remnant of the house of Israel how great things the Lord hath done for their fathers; and that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off for ever: And also to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations. And now, if there be fault, it be the mistake of men: wherefore condemn not the things of God, that ye may be found spotless at the Judgment seat of Christ.
By Joseph Smith, Junior,
AUTHOR AND PROPRIETOR. [p. [1]]
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Source Note

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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Title Page of Book of Mormon, circa Early June 1829
ID #
4197
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D1:63–65
Handwriting on This Page
  • Printed text

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    According to the narrative in the Book of Mormon, the prophet Mormon abridged the “large plates,” including the Book of Lehi (the translation of which Martin Harris lost in July 1828) and the books of Mosiah, Alma, Helaman, Nephi (the third and fourth books under the name of Nephi), and Mormon. He also wrote the “Words of Mormon,” and his son, Moroni, later copied two of his epistles into the final pages of the Book of Mormon. Mormon also included the “small plates,” unabridged, in his compilation of records. (See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 151–152, 581–585 [Words of Mormon 1:3–6; Moroni 8–9].)

  2. [2]

    The text explains that the majority of the Book of Mormon was drawn from two sources: the large plates of Nephi (as abridged by Mormon) and the small plates of Nephi. (See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 21, 123, 151–152 [1 Nephi 9:3–5; Words of Mormon 1:3–6; Jacob 1:1–4].)

  3. [3]

    See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 7, 151–152, 527 [1 Nephi 1:17; Words of Mormon 1:3–6; Mormon 5:9].

    The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon, upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi. Palmyra, NY: E. B. Grandin, 1830.

  4. [4]

    See, for example, Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 50 [1 Nephi 19:1–3].

  5. [5]

    That is, buried. (See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 532–533 [Mormon 8:14]; JS History, vol. A-1, 7.)

  6. [6]

    On the translation of the Book of Mormon, see “Joseph Smith Documents Dating through June 1831.”

  7. [7]

    The Book of Mormon describes Moroni, the son of Mormon, as the last prophet to write in the Book of Mormon and the person who eventually “hid up” the plates. (Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 531–532 [Mormon 8:1, 4, 14].)

  8. [8]

    Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 172, 538–539 [Mosiah 8:8–9; Ether 1:1–6].

  9. [9]

    See Genesis 11:1–9.

  10. [10]

    See the similar declaration of the book’s purpose found in Revelation, July 1828 [D&C 3:19–20].

  11. [11]

    See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 107 [2 Nephi 26:12–13].

  12. [12]

    See Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 533 [Mormon 8:17]; see also 538, 564 [Mormon 9:31; Ether 12:23–26].

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