Letter of Introduction from John Howden, 27 October 1838
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Source Note
, Letter of Introduction, , Geauga Co., OH, for , agent of JS and , 27 Oct. 1838. Featured version copied [between 29 May and 30 Oct. 1839] in JS Letterbook 2, p. 41; handwriting of ; JS Collection, CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for JS Letterbook 2.
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Historical Introduction
On 27 October 1838, wrote a letter of introduction attesting to JS’s and ’s honorable character and to ’s satisfactory settlement of debts JS and Rigdon owed to Howden. While living in , Ohio, JS, Rigdon, and other church members had purchased goods on credit from Howden, a merchant in , Ohio, and the debts were left unpaid as the moved to throughout 1838. Because JS and Rigdon abruptly departed in January 1838, some people evidently thought the two men were attempting to defraud Howden and other creditors. JS and Rigdon repaid several creditors and avoided litigation on outstanding debts by appointing Granger, , and others to settle these matters. Granger began acting as an for JS and Rigdon in Ohio in 1837. He traveled to Missouri in 1838 and was in on 8 July when JS dictated a revelation concerning the church’s finances in Ohio. This revelation directed Marks and to move to Missouri; when they did so, the responsibility for settling Ohio debts shifted solely to Granger.In his role as an agent, settled debts owed to and other creditors. On 19 October, merchants Thomas Griffith and John Seymour gave Granger a letter of introduction stating that his efforts “in settling the claims, accounts &c against the former Citizens of ” had “done much credit to himself, and all others that committed to him the cares of adjusting their business with this community.” On 26 October, —a Painesville resident and disaffected member of the church—wrote a letter commending Granger’s “management in the arrangement of the unfinished business” of church members. Kingsbury also stated that Granger’s work in “redeeming their [church members’] pledges and thereby sustaining their integrity” had “entitled him to my highest esteem, and ever grateful recollection.” Howden’s letter of introduction written on 27 October contained similar praise for Granger and by extension for JS and the church. The letter from Howden is representative of the letters from Kingsbury and from Griffith and Seymour. All three letters were written in mid- or late October and were probably solicited by Granger, perhaps in response to direction from JS, to verify the credibility of JS, , and Granger.On 27 October, the same day produced the letter of introduction, governor ordered the state militia to expel the Saints from the state. Within a matter of days, JS was arrested in , Missouri. It is unlikely that JS received this and the other letters of introduction during his nearly six-month incarceration. probably kept the letters and gave them to JS at a later point, possibly when both men were in in spring 1839. The original letter Howden wrote is severely damaged, with sections on the left side and at the top of the document missing. JS’s scribe, , copied the letter into JS Letterbook 2 sometime between 29 May and 30 October 1839. Because that copy is complete, it is featured here.
Footnotes
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1
See Statement of Account from John Howden, 29 Mar. 1838. Howden operated a dry goods store on Main Street in Painesville in 1836 and 1837. It is not clear whether the store was still functioning in 1838. (See Advertisement, Painesville [OH] Telegraph, 4 Nov. 1836, [3]; Advertisement, Painesville [OH] Republican, 1 Dec. 1836, [4]; and Advertisement, Painesville Republican, 2 Feb. 1837, [4].)
Painesville Telegraph. Painesville, OH. 1822–1986.
Painesville Republican. Painesville, OH. 1836–1841.
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2
Painesville merchants Thomas Griffith and John Seymour later stated that Granger’s actions confirmed “there was no intention on their [JS and Rigdon’s] part of defrauding their Creditors,” suggesting that some people previously suspected JS and Rigdon of fraud. (Thomas Griffith and John Seymour, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 19 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40.)
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3
See Pay Order to Edward Partridge for William Smith, 21 Feb. 1838.
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4
See Historical Introduction to Notice, ca. Late Aug. 1837.
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5
See Revelation, 8 July 1838–E [D&C 117].
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7
Thomas Griffith and John Seymour, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 19 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40. Griffith and Seymour operated a dry goods store in Painesville in 1836 and 1837. In October 1837, JS and Rigdon were brought to court for not paying four promissory notes (totaling $147) they had given to Griffith and Seymour. (Advertisement, Painesville [OH] Republican, 12 Jan. 1837, [4]; Transcript of Proceedings, 24 Oct. 1837, Seymour and Griffith v. JS and Rigdon [Geauga Co. C.P. 1837], Final Record Book U, p. 383, microfilm 20,279, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)
Painesville Republican. Painesville, OH. 1836–1841.
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8
Kingsbury apparently became disaffected from the church in 1837. It is unclear what business Granger settled with Kingsbury by October 1838, but it may have related to land transactions or Kingsbury’s involvement with the Kirtland Safety Society. (JS History, vol. B-1, 767; Vilate Murray Kimball, Kirtland, OH, to Heber C. Kimball, Preston, England, ca. 10–12 Sept. 1837, Heber C. Kimball, Collection, CHL; Historical Introduction to Kirtland Safety Society Notes, 4 Jan.–9 Mar. 1837.)
Kimball, Heber C. Collection, 1837–1898. CHL. MS 12476.
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9
Horace Kingsbury, Letter of Introduction, Painesville, OH, for Oliver Granger, 26 Oct. 1838, in JS Letterbook 2, p. 40.
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10
JS’s history characterized the letters of recommendation for Granger as evidence that JS was not attempting to defraud creditors. (JS History, vol. B-1, 837.)
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11
See Lilburn W. Boggs, Jefferson City, MO, to John B. Clark, Fayette, MO, 27 Oct. 1838, copy, Mormon War Papers, MSA; and Introduction to Part 3: 4 Nov. 1838–16 Apr. 1839.
Mormon War Papers, 1838–1841. MSA.
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14
Mulholland copied his own 29 May 1839 letter to Edward Partridge on page 15 of JS Letterbook 2, making that the earliest likely copying date for documents he subsequently copied but that had dates preceding 29 May. The latest that Mulholland could have copied the letter was 3 November 1839, the day he died, though the latest likely copying date is 30 October, after which illness presumably precluded scribal duties. (Emma Smith, Nauvoo, IL, to JS, Washington DC, 6 Dec. 1839, Charles Aldrich Autograph Collection, State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines; Obituary for James Mulholland, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:32.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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