Footnotes

1. [1]

   The exact timing and sequence of events related to Oliver Cowdery’s relationship with the Smith family are not clear. According to David Whitmer, Cowdery said he was “acquainted with the Smith family” when Whitmer and Cowdery first met, but Whitmer offered no dates (other than the year 1828) and said nothing about Cowdery’s staying with the Smiths. Lucy Mack Smith, on the other hand, indicated that Cowdery began boarding with the Smith family right after he accepted a teaching position in the Manchester, New York, district late in the fall of 1828, but she said nothing about Cowdery’s meeting Whitmer and likewise gave no specific dates. (“Mormonism,” Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881, 1; Lucy Mack Smith, History, 1844–1845, bk. 7, [12].)

   Kansas City Daily Journal. Kansas City, MO. 1878–1891.

2. [2]

   “Mormonism,” Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881, 1. Whitmer had conversations with “several young men” who claimed that they knew JS had the plates and that they had seen “the plates [place] in the hill that he took them out of.” (“A Few Corrections,” Kansas City Daily Journal, 19 June 1881, 4.)

   Kansas City Daily Journal. Kansas City, MO. 1878–1891.

3. [3]

   “Mormonism,” Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881, 1. Though Cowdery may have written Whitmer a letter, he likely told Whitmer about his plans during another visit by Whitmer to Palmyra.

   Kansas City Daily Journal. Kansas City, MO. 1878–1891.

4. [4]

   “Mormonism,” Kansas City Daily Journal, 5 June 1881, 1. For descriptions of the early relationship between Cowdery and Whitmer, see Stevenson, Journal, 23 Dec. 1877; and Edward Stevenson, Richmond, MO, to Orson Pratt, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, 23 Dec. 1877, in Historical Department, Journal History of the Church, 23 Dec. 1877. JS stated that Whitmer arrived “in the beginning of the month of June.” Whitmer also recalled that he met JS in June and stated that the journey between Fayette and Harmony took two and a half days. For further details of the move to Fayette, see JS History, vol. A-1, 21; and “Report of Elders Orson Pratt and Joseph F. Smith,” Deseret News (Salt Lake City), 27 Nov. 1878, 674–675; for other David Whitmer interviews, see “The Last Man,” Times (Chicago), 17 Oct. 1881, 5; and Stevenson, Journal, 22–23 Dec. 1877.

   Kansas City Daily Journal. Kansas City, MO. 1878–1891.

   Stevenson, Edward. Journals, 1852–1896. Edward Stevenson, Collection, 1849–1922. CHL. MS 4806, boxes 1–4.

   Historical Department. Journal History of the Church, 1896–. CHL. CR 100 137.

   Deseret News. Salt Lake City. 1850–.

   Times. Chicago. 1854–1895.

5. [5]

   Joseph F. Smith, New York City, NY, to John Taylor et al., [Salt Lake City, Utah Territory], 17 Sept. 1878, draft, Joseph F. Smith, Papers, CHL; Stevenson, Journal, 23 Dec. 1877, 9 Feb. 1886, and 2 Jan. 1887. While the Joseph F. Smith account did not identify the person transporting the plates, Stevenson’s accounts variously identified him as “one of the Nephites” and “one of the 3 Nephites.” (See also [Andrew Jenson], “Eight Witnesses,” Historical Record, Oct. 1888, 621.)

   Smith, Joseph F. Papers, 1854–1918. CHL. MS 1325.

   Stevenson, Edward. Journals, 1852–1896. Edward Stevenson, Collection, 1849–1922. CHL. MS 4806, boxes 1–4.

   The Historical Record, a Monthly Periodical, Devoted Exclusively to Historical, Biographical, Chronological and Statistical Matters. Salt Lake City. 1882–1890.

6. [6]

   JS History, vol. A-1, 22. For the revelations dictated for John Whitmer and Peter Whitmer Jr., respectively, see Revelation, June 1829–C [D&C 15]; and Revelation, June 1829–D [D&C 16]. JS’s history noted that David Whitmer and Peter Whitmer Jr. were baptized “in this same month of June.” Edward Stevenson reported that David Whitmer said it was in the “middle” of June. The wording of this revelation suggests that David Whitmer’s baptism occurred before the revelation. (JS History, vol. A-1, 23; Stevenson, Journal, 2 Jan. 1887.)

   Stevenson, Edward. Journals, 1852–1896. Edward Stevenson, Collection, 1849–1922. CHL. MS 4806, boxes 1–4.

7. [7]

   Revelation Book 1, p. [207].