| In January 1882, seventy-six-year old Addison
Everett wrote two letters to Joseph F. Smith recalling a conversation between
himself and Joseph Smith nearly forty years earlier indicating that Joseph
and Oliver received the apostleship and keys of the dispensation of the
fullness of times from Peter, James, and John in 1830. Digital images of
these letters are available on Selected
Collections 1:27. |
| Addison also wrote Oliver B. Huntington to the
same effect about the same time. Oliver copied the letter he received into
his diary between the entries of February 18 and 24, 1882. He introduces
the text as follows: "I
copy the following portion of a letter that I received from Brother Adison
Evette [Everett] giving me information upon the circumstances connected
with Joseph Smith ordination to the Apostleship by "Peter, James and
John," in
front of the Nauvoo Mansion House a few days before Joseph was martyred." |
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Letter to Joseph F. Smith |
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Letter to Oliver B. Huntington |
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No 1
Jan 16th 1882
St George Utah U T
Ca[-] |
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To Joseph F. Smith: JFS papers
To Oliver B. Huntington: O Huntington 3:202–203.
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Dearly Beloved Brother J F Smith |
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| Per your request |
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I hasten to give you all the Information I am in possysun of on the subject
you call for |
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| Joseph
and Hyrum at Mansion House |
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A few days Before Br Joseph & Hiram ware calld to Carthage
By Gov. Ford I was passing the Manshion House I observed Br Joseph &
Hiram & some five or six Brethren in earnest conversation, Before the
Door of the House I opened the gate and steped in |
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| William Law rejected plurality
of gods |
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The first words I heard was Brother Hiram said Wm Law told
the Mob at Carthage that the Reason He renounced Mormonism was Joseph Believed
in a plurality of Gods, & He could Never Believe that Doctrine. |
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Brother Hyrum was telling Brother Joseph what
William Law said was the cause of his (Laws) apostacy. He said that Brother
Joseph believed in a plurality of Gods? |
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| Joseph didn't teach it to William |
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Brother Joseph replied who told Him I Believed in a plurality
of gods I Never told Him Why the poor fool the Holy Ghost told Him.
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I never did nor no other person on the earth.
Who told him? Why the Holy Ghost hold him. The poor fool. (Then Joseph
said to those standing around) |
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| Joseph to teache plurality of gods |
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Now Brethren fit Up our Meting plan & I will Preach you a sermon
on the subject of a plurality of the gods & I will give you my Text |
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Now brethren prepare a plenty of seats at the
stand (in the grove) and I will preach a sermon on the plurality of Gods; |
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| Revelation
1:5–6 |
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No 2
In advanc. You will find it in the <first chapter> of Revelation
of St John fifth & sixth verses. Unto Him that Hath loved us And was[h]ed
us from our sins in His Own Blood & Hath Made us <Kings and preasts> unto
our God <unto our> and His Father. |
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and you will find my text in the first chapter
of Revelations 5th and 6th verses.” |
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Joseph went to [202] Carthage before the time
came to preach this sermon. |
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| Oliver Cowdery testimony |
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At this Moment an{d} Elder came in through the gate Having
Just returned from a Preaching Mis{h}sion & Brother Joseph receavd him
verry cordealy & He related to Brother Joseph some items of his Mission
and Said He had seen Br Oliver Cowdry and had a long convorsation and He
Brother Oliver Bore a faithful Testimony to the gospel & to the Book
of Mormon and Said god Bore witness to Him out of Heaven that the Book of
Mormon was translated correctly. |
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Just at this time an Elder came up to where
we were standing and told having seen Oliver Cowdery and said that Oliver
still claimed that his testimony concerning the book of Mormon was true.
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| Susquehannah conditions |
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Br Joseph Ex[p]resed Greate simpathy for Br Oliver saying
poor Boy poor Boy Casting his eyes the ground, And then Said as they Ware
Tran[s]lating the Book of Mormon at His Father In Laws in Susquhanah |
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Brother Joseph seemed thoughtful and sad a
few moments and then said “poor boy, poor boy,” and then went
on to say that a spirit of persecution raged at Susquehannah, |
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Mob
threats
Knight invites Joseph to Coleville |
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No 3
County penny T[h]ey Ware thretned By a Mob And in the same time Father Kng<i>hts
came Down from Colevill Broom County New York and Desired them go home with
him and preach <to> them in his Neighbourhood and on Account of the Mob
spirit prevailing they concluded to goe. |
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and father Knights came from Coleville and
wanted them to go home with him, which they did. |
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Taken
to court
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And [as] they ware teaching and preaching
the Gospele they ware taken with <a> writ and Before a Judge as
fals prophets, |
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(Joseph went on to say) that while
they were teaching the people at Coleville he was prosecuted, and arrested
for being a false prophet and deceiving the people. |
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| Question: first miracle? |
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and the prossicuting atorny had conceived in his own Mind That A feu
simple qustions would Convince the Court By the Answers Br Joseph would
giv <to> [them] that <the> charge was Correct So he calls out
Jo which was the first Mirical Jesus raught |
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In court he was asked, what was the first
miracle Jesus Christ wrought here on the earth?
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| Created world |
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Why <said Br Jos[e]ph> we read He Created the Worlds And what He
done previous to that I have not as yet Learned. |
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He answered “that he created the worlds
and what He had done before that, he (Joseph) had not yet learned. |
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| Prosecutor confounded |
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This answer [so] Completly Confounded prossicuting atorny that he requested
the Judge to Dismis the case, and went out |
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Organizes mob outside |
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No 4
To organ<ize>the Mob that was on the Out Side |
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Smith
lawer
Joseph and Oliver escape
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At about this time a lawyer By the Name of
Reede I think was His name Came in to the court and Stated He was the
Smiths atorny and wished to see him <in> a private room And was <put>
in to <a> Back room and when in He hoisted a window and told Br
Joseph
& Oliver to flee in to the forest which was close at hand |
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His attorney John Reide arrived
about this time and told the Court that he wished to see Mr. Smith in a
private room for a few minutes, as he was Mr. Smiths attorney and when
in the private room Mr. Reide told brother Joseph and Oliver that a mob
was outside in front of the house preparing to mob them, and so he hoisted
the window in the back of the house, |
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John
S. Reid was the Prophet's attorney. |
| Swamp |
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and they wandered in a dense Forest all Night and often times
in Mud and water up to thare Knees. |
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and in a few rods, they entered
the woods, they traveled all night in a dense forest, some of the time
deep mud and water, |
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| Oliver gives out |
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And Brother Oliver got quite Exausted in the After part of
the Night and Brother Joseph had to put his arm arround him and allmost
carry him. And Just as the day broke in the East Brother Oliver gave out
Entirely and he Br Joseph leaned him against an Oake tree Just out side
a field fenc Br Oliver crying out hou long O Lord O hou Long Br Joseph
have we got to suffer these things. |
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and in the afterpart of the night
Oliver became exhausted, and he (Joseph) had to almost carry him. Just
at the break of day Oliver gave out and exclaimed “how long O’ Lord?
How long brother Joseph have we got to endure this thing? “There, “said
brother Joseph” |
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Just this |
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at that very |
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| Peter, James, John bestow apostleship, keys |
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No 5
Moment Peter James & John came to us and ordained
to us <to> the Holy Apostelship and gave <unto> us the
Keys of the Disp<e>nsation
of fullness of time. |
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time Peter, James and John came
to us and ordained us to the Apostleship”. |
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¶
December 18, 1833 |
| Oliver rejuvinated |
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And we had some 16 or 17 miles to go to reach our place
of residence and Brother Oliver could travel as well as I could <after
the Endowment>. |
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They had 16 or 17 miles to travel
to get back to his father-in-laws, Mr. Hales, but Oliver did not complain
any more of fatigue." |
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Susquehanna River banks
Late August?
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Now as to time and Place, I heard the Name
of the Banks of the Susquehanah river spoken <of> But whare it was
pla[c]ed I cannot till. No doubt the Oake tree and the field fence was
ajacent to the river. As to time I cannot Be verry Expli[c]it, But as the
Mob spirit had not abated when they returned they had to remove to Father
Whitmores <at fayet Seneca co> to finish the Translation I should
it <Jud[g]e> to <Be> the Latter part of August. |
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The trial
ended July 1, 1830. Origins, 24–30,
287n120. |
| This is what I
heard |
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Now Beloved Brother I am Not Writing as wone of the
Lords Historians But as your friend reproduc<i>ng the last words
I heard our Beloved and Gods Holy Prophet Speake Before his depart Into
the Eternal Heavens to Dwell with the Holy & Eternal gods forever & Ever! |
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Now brother O. B. I have given
you brother Josephs words as near as I can recollect, and I have thought
of them a great deal as they were almost the last words I ever heard him
speak. |
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Visitations
from Joseph and Hyrum |
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No 6
I had in My power to Befriend Br Joseph Just Before he was slain and he
has Befrinded Me & Visited Me five times since His Death & Brother
Hiram was with him twice. The last time But one was in this Temple in St
George and Brother Hiram was with him |
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Saw
Joseph in 1823
Spent a day with in 1839 |
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I saw Br Joseph fore the first time in Genvia in 1823 and
If you ware here so I could talke to you in <stead> of writing I would give
you the particulairs of what he said I saw him Next in philadelphia in 39
and spent one day with him and other Brethren. His works Declare him to
be a Great prophet. But the Testimony of the Holy Ghost giv of us the
brightest Testimony of all else Beside. |
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World lies
Judgment soon |
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Well Beloved Brother the world is filled with wicked lying
and all Maner of wicked abominations But the time is short And god has
shown Me the Judgements that will sweepe them off of this Earth |
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| Failing eyesight |
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Well Br pleas Excuse sight poor ha[n]d unsteady tharefore
pleas Except. |
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Your humble servant, |
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| Millennial
expectations |
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A Everett |
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A. Everett. |
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Followup to Joseph F.
Smith |
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St George
Jan 24, 1882 |
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Sidney alienated Joseph from
Oliver
Oliver misses the church |
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Dear Brother Smith I did not tell you what caused
the gerate symphathy Which Brother Joseph Expressd for Br Oliver. This
Br I aluded too Said Br Oliver Drove His carrage under the shade of A tree
by the side of the roade and held a lenthy conversation with him |
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Margin note in Joseph F. Smith
hand: Recd Jan. 28, 1882 |
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And among Other things He said Sidny Rigdon weaned the Affections of Br Joseph from
Him And the Church had cast him off And he seemed verry sorrowful on that
Account. |
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World
in an awful state
Judgments will destroy the wicked
Everett saw Gentiles burn |
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Well Brother Joseph It is a sorrowful
Sight to Behold the Situation of this world In its awful state of Blindness
and a Bominable wickedness and to Behold the Terrible Judgement of god
about to sweepe them off the face tharof. I have seen some of gods greate
and Terrible Judgements which will Distroy the wicked off this Earth.
I saw a greate army of the Gentiles that came against the Saints Burnt
up By the fires of Heaven. It was in a Moment of time Six columes came
strait Down from heaven |
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| Temple
work |
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{2} The work goes on finely
in the House of the Lord in this Place from 85 to 120 a day. Some feu
of the Saints in this Place hav colds. Otherwise it is a general time
of health
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| Nation arrayed against the Saints |
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The Declaration of Singleton On the floor of
Congress that the Mormons Have not too friends in Congress, and the fact <that> priests
and Editors, and the People Generely hav arrained themseles against the
church of the Living God is a good testimony that thare Iniqity is quite
full. |
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| Nothing to fear |
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Well the saints hav Nothing to fear But to do
the will of god <then> All will Be well with us. |
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| Glory to God |
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Well Br As to my own feelings If
all the vocabliaryes of the Languages of the whull Earth ware Ex[.]aserted Exercise in ascribing Honor power and glory to god and the Lamb It would
not Begin <to>render
to them all that is Due Amen! |
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Well Dear Brothe[r] If you get more than you
asked for Do not complain Your Humbl[e] ser[vant] |
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J F Smith |
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A Everett |
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