Minutes and Discourses, 6–8 April 1842
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Source Note
Special conference of the church, Minutes, and JS, Discourses, , Hancock Co., IL, 6–8 Apr. 1842. Featured version published in “Conference Minutes,” Times and Seasons, 15 Apr. 1842, vol. 3, no. 12, 761–763. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Isaac Galland, 22 Mar. 1839.
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Historical Introduction
From 6 to 8 April 1842, a “Special of the ” was held in , Illinois; JS presided and gave discourses, and conference clerk took minutes. In previous years the April conference was labeled a “general conference,” but JS decreed on 3 October 1841 that no further general conferences would be held until the Nauvoo was completed. A general notice about the conference, published in the Times and Seasons, suggests all church members were expected to attend. On 6 April 1842, before the conference started, JS met with members of the to provide “instructions how to organize & adjourn the special conference.” JS did not attend the first day of the conference because of illness.The most pressing business of the conference was ’s report on why he had not yet joined on their mission to Europe and Palestine. Hyde and Page had mostly remained together from April 1840—when they were appointed to serve a mission—to the end of summer 1840, raising money for their voyage. Hyde then left Page in and traveled to and to obtain additional funds. In early 1841 Hyde and Page were chastised in the church newspaper for delaying their mission, and in response Hyde departed across the Atlantic. Page intended to eventually meet Hyde in , but church leaders instructed him to return to . At JS’s request Page reported on his travels, attributing his delay primarily to Hyde’s appropriation of their shared funds and the difficulty of raising additional money. JS censured Page but stated that the church would retain him in full fellowship. Those at the conference ratified this decision and voted to send Page to , where he had recently proselytized.Other conference business included instruction by , , and , who emphasized the importance of a well-organized and disciplined . , Hyrum Smith, , , , and preached additional discourses. JS also preached multiple times, seeking to quell rumors regarding polygamy and providing instruction on the use of the baptismal font.On the final day of the conference, individuals were for the dead and for health in the temple font. Additionally, , , , , , , and 275 men as . Woodruff commented that “more Elders were ordain[ed] on this occasion than were ever ordained in the Church of Latter Day Saints in one day before.” JS closed the conference with a benediction.’s minutes of the conference were published in the 15 April 1842 issue of the Times and Seasons.
Footnotes
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2
“Conference Notice,” Times and Seasons, 15 Mar. 1842, 3:734.
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3
JS, Journal, 6 Apr. 1842, underlining in original.
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5
Notice, Times and Seasons, 15 Jan. 1841, 2:287; Letter from John E. Page, 1 Sept. 1841.
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6
The decision was likely influenced by a letter and a petition from residents in Pittsburgh, both of which reported favorably on Page’s work there. (Letter from Levick Sturges et al., 30 Jan. 1842; Petition from Richard Savary et al., ca. 2 Feb. 1842.)
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7
Woodruff, Journal, 8 Apr. 1842.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
Document Transcript
Footnotes
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1
As recorded later in the minutes, JS’s second counselor, William Law, was in attendance, as were “Pres’t.” Hyrum Smith and assistant president pro tempore John C. Bennett. JS and first counselor Sidney Rigdon were absent.
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2
While there were no formal charges against him, Page answered allegations that he had neglected his responsibility to accompany Orson Hyde on their mission to Europe and Palestine.
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3
During the April 1841 general conference, Bennett “was presented with the First Presidency as assistant president, until Pres’t. Rigdon’s health should be restored.” (Minutes, 7–11 Apr. 1841.)
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4
Bennett held the rank of major general in the Nauvoo Legion, while both Law and Hyrum Smith held the rank of brevet major general. (See Report of Nauvoo Legion General Court Martial, 30 Nov. 1841.)
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5
The Nauvoo Legion was officially organized on 4 February 1841. On 7 May 1842 Woodruff described the Nauvoo Legion while on parade as making “a splended appearance . . . mostly well dressed in uniform.” An article about the same event noted that the legion had “very much improved both in good discipline and uniform, since last year.” (Minutes, 4 Feb. 1841; Woodruff, Journal, 7 May 1842; News Item, Times and Seasons, 16 May 1842, 3:790.)
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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6
This refers to the Nauvoo temple and the Nauvoo House, both of which a 19 January 1841 revelation commanded to be constructed. (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:31, 60].)
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7
JS and Sidney Rigdon were tarred and feathered in 1832. Bishop Edward Partridge and Charles Allen were tarred and feathered in 1833. (JS History, vol. A-1, 205–208; Minute Book 2, 10 Dec. 1838, 163–164; Edward Partridge, Affidavit, Quincy, IL, 15 May 1839, Record Group 233, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives, National Archives, Washington DC.)
Record Group 233, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives / Petitions and Memorials, Resolutions of State Legislatures, and Related Documents Which Were Referred to the Committee on Judiciary during the 27th Congress. Committee on the Judiciary, Petitions and Memorials, 1813–1968. Record Group 233, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives, 1789–2015. National Archives, Washington DC. The LDS records cited herein are housed in National Archives boxes 40 and 41 of Library of Congress boxes 139–144 in HR27A-G10.1.
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8
Hyde departed Nauvoo on 15 April 1840; Page departed the following day. (Orson Hyde and John E. Page, Quincy, IL, 28 Apr. 1840, Letter to the Editor, Times and Seasons, June 1840, 1:116–117.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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9
On 22 November 1841 Hyde wrote that when he arrived in Jerusalem, it appeared “precisely according to the vision which I had. I saw no one with me in the vision; and although Elder Page was appointed to accompany me there, yet I found myself there alone.” (Orson Hyde to Parley P. Pratt, 22 Nov. 1841, in Times and Seasons, 1 Apr. 1842, 3:739.)
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10
Knight was a Latter-day Saint physician living in Indiana. (Heber C. Kimball, Pleasant Garden, IN, to Vilate Murray Kimball, 24 Oct. 1839, photocopy, Heber C. and Vilate Murray Kimball, Letters, CHL; Cady, Indiana Annual Register, 136.)
Kimball, Heber C., and Vilate Murray Kimball. Letters, 1837–1847. Heber C. Kimball, Correspondence and Memorandum Book, 1837–1864. Photocopy. CHL.
Cady, C. W. The Indiana Annual Register and Pocket Manual, Revised and Corrected for the Year 1846. . . . Indianapolis: Samuel Turner, 1846.
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11
Hyde and Page arrived in Dayton, Ohio, toward the end of June 1840. The next month, Hyde reported that while there they had “preached in the court house to crowded congregations; and also in the grove” but had baptized only five people. (Letter from William W. Phelps, with Appended Letter from Orson Hyde and John E. Page, 29 June 1840; Orson Hyde, Franklin, OH, 7 July 1840, Letter to the Editor, Times and Seasons, Aug. 1840, 1:156.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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12
The place “16 miles off” was likely Milton, Ohio. According to a July 1840 letter from Page (as summarized in the Times and Seasons), “he was then in Milton, preaching and baptizing, he had baptized six in that place” and had scheduled six more baptisms for 15 July 1840. (Ebenezer Robinson, Cincinnati, OH, 16 July 1840, in Times and Seasons, Aug. 1840, 1:156.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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13
Sidney Rigdon, An Appeal to the American People: Being an Account of the Persecutions of the Church of Latter Day Saints; and of the Barbarities Inflicted on Them by the Inhabitants of the State of Missouri, 2nd ed. (Cincinnati: Shepard and Stearns, 1840); see also Crawley, Descriptive Bibliography, 1:124–125.
Crawley, Peter. A Descriptive Bibliography of the Mormon Church. 3 vols. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1997–2012.
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14
On 1 September 1841 Page estimated that Hyde left him fourteen or fifteen hundred copies. (Letter from John E. Page, 1 Sept. 1841.)
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15
On 1 September 1841 Page recalled that he remained in Cincinnati until the “last of Oct” but came to believe “that Elder Hyde had gon ahead and suplyed the market with the sale of the ‘Appeal’ so I thought best in order to sell my Books I would go back to Dayton Milton &c.” (Letter from John E. Page, 1 Sept. 1841.)
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16
Page might have intended to travel from Dayton to Pittsburgh on the Great Miami River, a tributary of the Ohio River. He likely expected the river to close sometime in December. According to an early American steamboat directory, the Ohio River froze for “six or eight weeks,” and then the ice broke up in February, rendering the river “open for navigation.” In March 1838 the chief engineer of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reported that “the navigation of the Ohio River opens always by the 1st of March, and generally by the middle of February.” (Lloyd, Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory, 50–51; Documents Submitted by the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road Company, 12; see also Roberts, Practical Views on the Proposed Improvement of the Ohio River, 48–49.)
Lloyd, James T. Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory, and Disasters on the Western Waters, Containing the History of the First Application of Steam, as a Motive Power. . . . Cincinnati: James T. Lloyd, 1856.
Documents Submitted by the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road Company, in Behalf of Their Application to the Legislature of Virginia. Richmond, VA: Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company, 1838.
Roberts, W. Milnor. Practical Views on the Proposed Improvement of the Ohio River. Philadelphia: Journal of the Franklin Institute, 1857.
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18
Page was in Philadelphia in September 1841, but his arrival date is unknown. He may have traveled there in early spring 1841, as originally planned. (Letter from John E. Page, 1 Sept. 1841.)
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19
JS and Brigham Young, Notice, Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1841, 2:582.
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20
In an 18 September 1841 letter to JS, Benjamin Winchester accused Page of being in no hurry to cross the Atlantic and join Hyde. (Letter from Benjamin Winchester, 18 Sept. 1841.)
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21
According to JS’s journal, Page explained that “the cause of his Seperation from Elder Hyde. in his mission to Jerusalem. [was] first a covenant to communicate to each other all secrets.” (JS, Journal, 7 Apr. 1842.)
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22
The term grannyism has not been located in any contemporary dictionaries. A nineteenth-century Presbyterian source used the term to describe youth who “yield to a tame helplessness and inertness of character . . . [and] seem to think it a great hardship to be thrown on their own resources, and often evince great reluctance to make any effort to help themselves along in their education.” (Smith, Old Redstone, 126.)
Smith, Joseph (1796–1858). Old Redstone; or, Historical Sketches of Western Presbyterianism, Its Early Ministers, Its Perilous Times, and Its First Records. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1854.
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23
See 2 Kings 2:1–11.
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24
JS’s reference to Page as a scapegoat seems to refer to the fact that while Page was never able to make the journey, Hyde obtained sufficient funds partly based on the promise of Page’s oratory skills. (Letter from John E. Page, 1 Sept. 1841.)
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25
Page proselytized in Pittsburgh from late December 1841 to sometime in March 1842 on his return journey to Nauvoo. Nearly thirty Pittsburgh residents, only a handful of whom were members of the church, wrote to church leaders in Nauvoo requesting that Page be allowed to remain there or to return after reporting to Nauvoo. (Letter from George Gee, 30 Dec. 1841; Letter from Levick Sturges et al., 30 Jan. 1842; Petition from Richard Savary et al., ca. 2 Feb. 1842.)
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26
This possibly refers to the ordination of seventies and apostles in February and March 1835; many of these men served missions later in the year. The House of the Lord in Kirtland was dedicated on 27 March 1836. Washing and anointing ceremonies were performed before the dedication, from 21 January to 6 February, and another ceremony, the washing of feet, was performed afterward, on 30 and 31 March. (Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 14–15 Feb. 1835; Minutes and Blessings, 21 Feb. 1835; Minutes and Blessings, 28 Feb.–1 Mar. 1835; Minutes, Discourse, and Blessings, 1 Mar. 1835; JS, Journal, 27 Mar. 1836; JS, Journal, 21–22 and 28 Jan. 1836; 6 Feb. 1836; 30–31 Mar. 1836.)
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27
According to a January 1831 revelation, the Saints would “be endowed with power from on high” to prepare them to serve missions. John Corrill reported that JS informed those who received the washing and anointing ceremonies in the Kirtland House of the Lord that “they were now endowed with power to go forth and build up the Kingdom.” (Revelation, 2 Jan. 1831 [D&C 38:32]; Corrill, Brief History, 26.)
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28
On 13 July 1842 Martha Brotherton, a recent British immigrant, wrote an affidavit stating that Young proposed to her in JS’s office in the upper floor of JS’s store. (Martha Brotherton, St. Louis, MO, to John C. Bennett, 13 July 1842, in Quincy [IL] Whig, 6 Aug. 1842, [2].)
Quincy Whig. Quincy, IL. 1838–1856.
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29
According to the travel account of Frederick Marryat, Mississippi River steamboats were “crowded” with gamblers, violent criminals, and confidence men. (Marryat, Second Series of a Diary in America, 88.)
Marryat, Frederick. Second Series of a Diary in America, with Remarks on Its Institutions. Philadelphia: T. K. and P. G. Collins, 1840.
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30
Sharp printed several editorials and articles criticizing JS and the Saints. (See, for example, “The Mormons,” Warsaw [IL] Signal, 19 May 1841, [2]; Editorial, Warsaw Signal, 28 July 1841, [2]; and “Jo Smith’s Proclamation,” Warsaw Signal, 26 Jan. 1842, [2].)
Warsaw Signal. Warsaw, IL. 1841–1853.
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31
Latter-day Saints began to perform baptisms for healing in November 1841. (Woodruff, Journal, 21 Nov. 1841; see also Stapley and Wright, “‘They Shall Be Made Whole’: A History of Baptism for Health,” 69–112.)
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
Stapley, Jonathan A., and Kristine Wright. “‘They Shall Be Made Whole’: A History of Baptism for Health.” Journal of Mormon History 34, no. 4 (Fall 2008): 69–112.
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32
The first baptisms for the dead were performed in September 1840 in the Mississippi River. A January 1841 revelation clarified that baptisms for the dead could be performed outside the House of the Lord only “in the days of your poverty, wherein ye are not able to build a house unto me.” In November 1841, when a wooden font was completed in the temple basement, baptisms for the dead began to be performed there. (Jane Harper Neyman and Vienna Jaques, Statement, 29 Nov. 1854, Historian’s Office, JS History Documents, ca. 1839–1860, CHL; Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:30]; Woodruff, Journal, 21 Nov. 1841.)
Historian’s Office. Joseph Smith History Documents, 1839–1860. CHL. CR 100 396.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.