Account of Meeting and Discourse, 18 June 1842
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Source Note
Account of Meeting, and JS, Discourse, , Hancock Co., IL, 18 June 1842. Featured version copied [ca. 18 June 1842] in Wilford Woodruff, Journal, vol. 4, Jan. 1841–Dec. 1842, p. [154]; handwriting of ; Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898, CHL.Wilford Woodruff, Journal, vol. 4, Jan. 1841–Dec. 1842; handwriting of ; 183 pages; Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, CHL. Includes charts, drawings, redactions, and use marks.This account appears in ’s fourth journal, which measures 6¼ × 4 × ⅞ inches (16 × 10 × 2 cm), with brown leather binding. The volume contains 124 leaves (248 pages) measuring 6 × 3¾ inches (15 × 10 cm), with an additional loose leaf of yellow paper that was folded and placed at the end of the journal. The outer edges of the leaves have a shell pattern with blue and red bodies and white veins. The front and back covers contain the remnants of a brass clasp that was presumably used to hold the book closed. Toward the top of the spine, the inscriptions “WW” and “1841–2” are written in black ink. A fragment of an old Church Historian’s Office sticker inscribed “184[1]” and “18[42]” remains near the bottom of the spine.On an unknown date, the inside of the front cover of the journal was labeled by an unidentified scribe: “3 | January 1st 1841, | to | December 31, 1842,”. inscribed his journal in two parts on the first 182 pages, leaving two pages blank between the parts. The remainder of the volume is blank, except for three pages that Woodruff later used to record baptisms for the dead that he and his wife, Phebe Carter Woodruff, participated in during 1842 and 1844.It is unclear when Woodruff donated the volume to the Church Historian’s Office (now CHL). and his assistants drew upon the volume for information as he wrote volume C-1 of the multivolume manuscript history of the church during 1845. and the Church Historian’s Office staff similarly drew upon the journals in writing an addendum for volume C-1 during 1854. Woodruff’s “Private Papers” were listed in a catalog record that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office in March 1858. A July 1858 inventory clarified that these papers included Woodruff’s journals. The journals likewise appeared in an inventory produced circa 1878. The volume’s inclusion in these inventories suggests continuous institutional custody.
Footnotes
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1
See JS History, vol. C-1, 1232, 1242, 1244; and Woodruff, Journal, 6 and 29 Oct. 1841; 14 Nov. 1841.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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2
See JS History, vol. C-1 Addenda Book, 19–20, 44–45; and Woodruff, Journal, 7 and 21 Nov. 1841.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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3
“Historian’s Office Catalogue Book March 1858,” [25], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.
Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.
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4
“Contents of the Historian and Recorder’s Office. G. S. L. City July 1858,” 9, Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.
Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.
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5
“Index of Records and Journals in the Historian’s Office 1878,” [14], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.
Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.
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Historical Introduction
On 18 June 1842, JS addressed a large audience at a general assembly near the construction site in , Illinois. The meeting was convened not long after leaders took disciplinary actions against and at a time when the city continued to expand to accommodate the influx of immigrants from Great Britain and the eastern .In his remarks, JS spoke out publicly for the first time against ’s lies and immoral actions. The had withdrawn fellowship from Bennett in May, charging him with seducing women while claiming the church sanctioned such adulterous behavior, but that decision was not published until the 15 June issue of the Times and Seasons. Three days later, JS took the opportunity afforded by a large meeting to publicly expose Bennett and condemn his misconduct.The citizens of also faced the problem of dealing with the city’s growing population of poor immigrants. At the 18 June meeting, JS admonished the city’s wealthy to give aid to the poor, and attendees made plans to further develop the Nauvoo Agricultural and Manufacturing Association, which was intended to promote farming, milling, and other basic economic endeavors that would help the poor. JS also directed , , and to form a committee to better manage the problems of immigration by actively helping immigrants as they arrived in the city.In his journal, reported that “many thousands” were in attendance. If he followed his normal pattern of inscription, Woodruff likely first recorded notes during the meeting in a daybook, which is no longer extant, and then later copied them into his journal.
Footnotes
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1
JS and the rest of the First Presidency had written a notice to withdraw fellowship from Bennett on 11 May 1842, based on charges of sexual misconduct and lying. Bennett had pleaded that the decision be kept private, which likely contributed to JS’s delayed public denunciation of Bennett. (See Historical Introduction to Letter to the Church and Others, 23 June 1842; Notice, 11 May 1842; JS, Journal, 26 May 1842; and “Notice,” Times and Seasons, 15 June 1842, 3:830.)
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2
Bennett later claimed that he was excommunicated from the church at this 18 June meeting. However, his excommunication had apparently occurred earlier, in May 1842. Within days of this June meeting, he left Nauvoo for Springfield, Illinois. (Letter to James Sloan, 17 May 1842; John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal [Springfield, IL], 8 July 1842, [2]; [Nauvoo Masonic Lodge], Nauvoo, IL, to Abraham Jonas, [Columbus, IL], 21 June 1842, Letters pertaining to Freemasonry in Nauvoo, CHL.)
Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.
Letters pertaining to Freemasonry in Nauvoo, 1842. CHL.
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3
Woodruff’s account is the only extant description of the meeting. Due to illness, JS’s recorder, Willard Richards, was unable to attend that day.
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