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Letter from Thomas Ward and Hiram Clark, 1 March 1843

Source Note

and , Letter, , Lancashire, England, to the (including JS) and , , Hancock Co., IL, 1 Mar. 1843; handwriting of ; signatures of and ; three pages; Brigham Young Office Files, CHL. Includes address, postal notation, postal stamps, and dockets.
Bifolium measuring 10 × 8 inches (25 × 20 cm). The document was trifolded twice in letter style for mailing, addressed, sealed with a red adhesive wafer, and postmarked.
The letter was docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from December 1841 until JS’s death in June 1844 and served as church historian from December 1842 until his own death in March 1854. Richards was also clerk of the since at least 1841. , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865, also docketed the document. The document was listed in an inventory that was produced by the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) circa 1904. By 1994 the document had been included in the Brigham Young Office Files at the Church Historical Department (now CHL). The document’s early dockets by Richards and Bullock, its listing in a circa 1904 inventory, and its later inclusion in the Brigham Young Office Files suggest continuous institutional custody.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 13 Dec. 1841 and 21 Dec. 1842; Orson Spencer, “Death of Our Beloved Brother Willard Richards,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 16 Mar. 1854, [2].

    Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

  2. [2]

    See Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 31 Aug. 1841; and Council of Fifty, “Record,” 10 Mar. 1844.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

  3. [3]

    Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  4. [4]

    “Letters to and from the Prophet,” ca. 1904, [2], Historian’s Office, Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904, CHL.

    Historian’s Office. Catalogs and Inventories, 1846–1904. CHL. CR 100 130.

  5. [5]

    See the full bibliographic entry for Brigham Young Office Files, 1832–1878, in the CHL catalog.

Historical Introduction

On 1 March 1843, and wrote a letter from , England, to the and the in , Illinois. The letter addressed instructions the two had received to suspend the ’s publication efforts in . It also expressed concern about , one of the church’s in England. In early 1841, the Quorum had appointed Fielding “as the of the church, to superintend the fitting out of the saints from Liverpool to America.” Under that assignment, Fielding led a group of Saints from England to Nauvoo in spring 1842. In June, the apostles appointed Clark to oversee emigration and instructed Fielding to relocate to Nauvoo with his family. After Fielding returned to England in 1842, perhaps to retrieve his family, he remained there and was apparently still trying to act as the emigration overseer.
In October 1842, , one of the apostles who was presiding over the church in Europe, departed for , leaving in charge of the church and of the Millennial Star, the church’s newspaper in . Before Pratt reached Nauvoo, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles met in November and “decided by unanimous acclamation that the printing of the Millenial Star & all other publications in England, relating to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, be suspended on the departu[r]e of Elder Pratt from that count[r]y until further instruction from the Quorum.” The minutes of the quorum’s meeting provide no explanation for the suspension. The quorum communicated its decision in a January 1843 letter to Ward and , which they received on 17 February. This letter is apparently no longer extant.
In their 1 March response, the two men conveyed their willingness to abide by the decision but explained that a few items, including a new hymnbook, a pamphlet, and the March 1843 issue of the Millennial Star, were already at the press. In addition to relating the items about and the printing business, and expressed their gladness about the favorable outcome of JS’s extradition hearing in , Illinois, in January 1843.
wrote and signed the letter, after which also signed it. Ward then added a postscript and addressed the letter to , president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in . It was mailed from on 3 March, arrived in by late March, and reached Nauvoo by 23 May, when it was read in a meeting of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. JS presumably read the letter around the same time. At the May meeting of the apostles, they voted “that the printing in be stopped, &, Elders Ward & come to this place.” However, that decision was apparently not communicated to Ward and Fielding until arrived in England in September 1843. Fielding returned to Nauvoo after Hedlock’s arrival, and Ward remained in England and continued to serve as the editor of the Millennial Star.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Brigham Young et al., “An Epistle of the Twelve,” Times and Seasons, 1 Sept. 1842, 3:896.

  2. [2]

    Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 13 Mar. 1842; “Emigration,” Millennial Star, Mar. 1842, 2:176.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  3. [3]

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 14 June 1842.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

  4. [4]

    Hiram Clark, Letter to the Editor, Times and Seasons, 1 June 1844, 5:558.

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

  5. [5]

    Editorial, Millennial Star, Feb. 1843, 3:175; “Farewell Address to Our Readers and Patrons,” Millennial Star, Oct. 1842, 3:109–110; Parley P. Pratt, “To the Saints in Europe,” Millennial Star, Oct. 1842, 3:110.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  6. [6]

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 21 Nov. 1842.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

  7. [7]

    See “Part 1: March 1843.”

  8. [8]

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 23 May 1843.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

  9. [9]

    Reuben Hedlock, Liverpool, England, to the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Nauvoo, IL, 4 Oct. 1843, JS Collection, CHL.

  10. [10]

    See Reuben Hedlock, Liverpool, England, to the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Nauvoo, IL, 4 Oct. 1843, JS Collection, CHL; Masthead, Millennial Star, Sept. 1844, 5:64.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

Page [2]

With regard to the manner in which the Star has been conducted since the Editorial work fell into my hands, I trust that the various numbers sent up by the different Ships’ companys will give satisfaction. I rejoice to say that the work is extending generally in those Islands, and the demand for the Star is increasing.—
What would be the consequences of suppressing its publication amongst the Churches I could scarcely tell.—
We trust that on the our beloved brethren , , , & , will be able to state clearly the condition of the English Churches, with regard to their Presidency, and the confidence they have in us, as to our efficiency to fulfil the situation in which we are placed. At the same we should rejoice to have the presence of any whom you may see fit to send to this country in order to superintend the work generally—
Our beloved left many small accounts in my hands to collect from different Agents, with orders also to discharge certain accounts owing, as well as to dispose of certain publications yet unsold— Our brethren will there fore perceive the difficult situation in which I should be placed, by putting a Stop to the circulation of the Star— Notwithstanding I am desirous of abiding by your counsel— and I fully see the propriety of the measure you have taken, inasmuch as the Editorial department is one that might be much abused, and might in a measure be the means of injuring greatly if not [p. [2]]
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Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Letter from Thomas Ward and Hiram Clark, 1 March 1843
ID #
14375
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D12:6–11
Handwriting on This Page
  • Thomas Ward

Footnotes

  1. [7]

    Ward reported in the February 1843 issue of the Millennial Star that he had received requests “from different quarters to publish the star after the manner of the Times and Seasons, twice a month, instead of once.” (Editorial, Millennial Star, Feb. 1843, 3:175, emphasis in original.)

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  2. [8]

    Ward did temporarily suspend publication of the Millennial Star for “about four months.” (Thomas Ward and Hiram Clark, Liverpool, England, to the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Nauvoo, IL, 3 Oct. 1843, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL; Editorial, Millennial Star, May 1843, 4:13.)

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

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

  3. [9]

    Pratt, Richards, Hyde, Snider, and Snow had all recently departed England for Nauvoo. Richards, Hyde, and Snider left in September 1842, Pratt departed in October, and Snow left in January 1843. Pratt described Ward as “one who has a willing heart and a ready pen” and recommended him to the Saints as his successor as both editor of the Millennial Star and president of the church in Europe. (Sonne, Ships, Saints, and Mariners, 67, 95, 141, 181, 185; Pratt, Autobiography, 361; “Farewell Address to Our Readers and Patrons,” Millennial Star, Oct. 1842, 3:109–110; Parley P. Pratt, “To the Saints in Europe,” Millennial Star, Oct. 1842, 3:110.)

    Sonne, Conway B. Ships, Saints, and Mariners: A Maritime Encyclopedia of Mormon Migration, 1830–1890. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1987.

    Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.

    Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

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