President Frederick G. Williams was privileged to see many visions of his own and receive numerous revelations from the Lord, most often through the Prophet Joseph Smith. I have documented some in this history, including the vision of the completed Kirtland Temple before construction had begun and the vision of an angel (who some reported was actually the Savior) at the temple’s dedication. Below is a list of thirty-three documented spiritual manifestations involving Frederick G. Williams, including eleven visions and twenty-two revelations, many of which have been published in the Doctrine and Covenants and referenced in History of the Church.
Eleven Visions
1. December 27, 1832, Kirtland, Ohio
Today’s section 88 of the Doctrine and Covenants, designated the “Olive Leaf,” was given in answer to prayer to Joseph Smith and nine other assembled high priests, including Frederick G. Williams, who was also the clerk for the conference and the scribe for the revelation. The manuscript copy begins, “A revelation given to the first Elders of this Church of Christ in the last days Dec 27th 1832 given by Joseph the seer,” and ends, “written by F. G. Williams assistant scribe and counselor to said Joseph.” The published version begins, “Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you who have assembled yourselves together to receive his will concerning you.”1
2. March 18, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
God the Father, Jesus Christ, and angels appeared at an assembly of leaders at the School of the Prophets presided over by the First Presidency; Frederick G. Williams was also the clerk for the proceedings.
This spiritual manifestation, coming as it did with the organization of the First Presidency in the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times, has many Mount of Transfiguration–like similarities. On that occasion, Christ, with Peter, James, and John (considered by Latter-day Saints the presidency of the Church after the Savior’s Resurrection), ushered in the Dispensation of the Meridian of Time.2
3. June 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
The completed Kirtland Temple was seen in vision (both the interior and the exterior) by Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and Frederick G. Williams before construction of the edifice was begun.3
4. December 18, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
A vision was given when Joseph Smith Jr., Sidney Rigdon, and Frederick G. Williams ordained Joseph Smith Sr. as patriarch; Joseph Smith Jr. and possibly his counselors saw Jehovah appear to Adam at Adam-ondi-Ahman.4
5. June 3, 1834, Zion’s Camp, Missouri
Joseph Smith saw Zelph, a Lamanite warrior, in vision, in company with his counselor and camp historian, Frederick G. Williams, as well as other members of Zion’s Camp. Frederick G. Williams’s future son-in-law, Burr Riggs, kept the arrowhead that was taken from between the ribs of the found skeleton.5
6. January 21, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
God the Father, Jesus Christ, and angels appeared to Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Frederick G. Williams, and other leaders of the Church at the prededication endowment.6
7. January 22, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
Angels appeared to the First Presidency, to the Twelve, and to the Seventy at the continuation of the prededication endowment.7
8. January 28, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
Angels appeared to the leaders of the Church in the temple; some saw the Savior.8
9. March 27, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
Angels and even the Savior appeared at the dedication services of the Kirtland Temple. Frederick G. Williams described the appearance of a heavenly guest and said that during the opening prayer, the guest sat between himself and Joseph Smith Sr.9
10. March 27, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
Written characters from the Book of Mormon were shown to Frederick G. Williams during the dedication services at the Kirtland Temple. These were written down by him, along with other important texts, including a statement regarding Lehi’s travels from Jerusalem to his family’s landing in the promised land, in Chile.10
11. March 30, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
Jesus Christ and angels appeared to the First Presidency, the Twelve, the Seventy, the Kirtland high council, the bishopric, and hundreds more at a solemn assembly in the Kirtland Temple.11
Twenty-Two Revelations
Generally, only revelations addressed to Frederick G. Williams and about him are included in this count. The number increases dramatically if we include those revelations in which Frederick G. Williams participated, often acting as scribe, such as those found in connection with the translation of the Bible, in several sections in the Doctrine and Covenants (such as sections 84, 87, 88, 89, and 91), and in certain uncanonized revelations found in the Kirtland Revelation Book.
1. May 1831, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation given in May 1831 in Kirtland concerning the farm owned by Frederick G. Williams and also concerning Joseph Smith Sr. and Ezra Thayre.12
2. September 11, 1831, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord commands him not to sell his farm so that he can retain a stronghold in Kirtland for five years.13
3. March 1832, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord calls him to be a counselor to Joseph Smith.14
4. January 5, 1833,15 Kirtland, Ohio
Frederick G. Williams had sought the Lord to know what would be of most worth for him to do in the kingdom. The Lord answered that Frederick was to be the Prophet’s counselor and scribe and that he should consecrate his farm. This revelation was considered for inclusion by the publication committee, headed up by Apostle Orson Pratt, as a new section for the 1876 Salt Lake City edition of the Doctrine and Covenants. It was divided into verses and columns by the committee.16
5. January 23, 1833
Frederick G. Williams, moved upon by the Holy Ghost, washed the Prophet’s feet at the School of the Prophets, in token of his covenant to stand by him. This experience came at the close of a conference where many spoke in tongues. Joseph Smith gave this description of the conference: “Great and glorious were the divine manifestations of the Holy Spirit.”17
6. February 23, 1833
“Song by the Gift of Tongues & Translated” was recorded by Frederick G. Williams in the Kirtland Revelation Book. See Chapter 10, “Singing the Word of God: Five Hymns by President Frederick G. Williams.”18
7. March 8, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord declares that he and Sidney Rigdon have had their sins forgiven them and that they are to be accounted equal with Joseph Smith Jr. in holding the keys of this last kingdom.19
8. March 8, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation to the Prophet instructing him that a place needs to be provided for the family of Frederick G. Williams, his counselor and scribe, and that the presidency’s mission in life is to set in order the churches and to study and learn and become acquainted with all good books, languages, and tongues.20
9. March 15, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams; he is to become a member of the United Firm.21
10. May 6, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord revealed the cause of his affliction (Satan), censured him for not having taught his children light and truth, and instructed him that in order to be delivered, he must set his house in order by teaching his family.22
11. May 6, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord instructed him and Joseph Smith to serve a mission together, to hasten to finish the translation of the Bible, and to obtain a knowledge of history, countries, kingdoms, and the laws of God and man.23
12. June 4, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
When a conference of high priests could not decide how the French farm should be disposed of, it was decided to inquire of the Lord. “Accordingly we received a revelation,” which, together with the minutes of the proceedings, was recorded by Frederick G. Williams, acting as clerk pro tempore.24
13. November 19, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation to Joseph Smith Jr. in which he prophesied that Frederick G. Williams would never want a friend, and that his generation after him shall flourish. This passage was considered for inclusion by the publication committee, headed up by Apostle Orson Pratt, as a new section for the 1876 Salt Lake City edition of the Doctrine and Covenants. It was divided into verses and columns by the committee.25
14. February 17, 1834, Kirtland, Ohio
Minutes of a meeting in which the Lord called Frederick G. Williams and the other members of the First Presidency to be presidents of the high council of the Kirtland Stake of Zion, an action that had been called for earlier by revelation.26
15. February 24, 1834, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord directed that he should join with Hyrum Smith on a missionary journey.27
16. April 23, 1834, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation for Frederick G. Williams in which the Lord instructed that he should have the place upon which he then dwelt and that he and Oliver Cowdery were to have the printing office and all things that pertain unto it as part of the distribution of the assets of the dissolved United Firm.28
17. October 27, 1835
Revelation to the Prophet in which the Lord declared that he would give wisdom to Doctor Frederick G. Williams to deal prudently with Samuel Smith’s wife in childbirth and that both mother and child would be spared.29
18. November 2, 1835, Kirtland, Ohio
Revelation instructing Frederick G. Williams not to go to New York City to make arrangements concerning a book bindery but to visit his relatives instead and warn them. This revelation was considered for inclusion by the publication committee, headed up by Apostle Orson Pratt, as a new section for the 1876 Salt Lake City edition of the Doctrine and Covenants. It was divided into verses and columns by the committee.30
19. March 27, 1836 (?), Kirtland, Ohio
Chapter 21 in this biography addresses this topic in greater detail. The essential facts are that the statement on Lehi’s travels from Jerusalem to Chile—in the handwriting of Frederick G. Williams and found among his papers—is considered by the Williams family to be a revelation he received during the time of the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, March 27, 1836. This statement, together with other papers belonging to Frederick G. Williams, were kept by his widow, Rebecca, until her death on September 25, 1861, in Smithfield, Utah. Soon thereafter, their son Ezra Granger Williams lent this and other documents to the Church Historian’s Office in Salt Lake City. In 1882, the statement was published by James A. Little and Franklin D. Richards in A Compendium of the Doctrines of the Gospel (Salt Lake City: Deseret, 1882), 289, and there identified as a revelation given to Joseph Smith Jr. Since that time, it has often been listed among the uncanonized revelations received by the Prophet.31
20. March 29, 1836, Kirtland, Ohio
The First Presidency, made up of “Joseph Smith, Jun., Frederick G. Williams, Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith, and Oliver Cowdery, met in the most holy place in the Lord’s House, and sought for a revelation” concerning several important matters. Their prayers were answered with a revelation.32
21. [1836], Kirtland, Ohio
Some months after the dedication of the temple on March 27, 1836, several well-wishers gathered at Rebecca and Frederick G. Williams’s home, where Frederick blessed their eldest daughter, Lovina Susan Williams, and her husband, Burr Riggs, prior to their departure to Missouri. The Prophet, who was present, saw in vision that their wagon would overturn on the journey.
It was a general time of rejoicing for several months [after the temple dedication] among the Saints. They frequently met from house, to house, to break bread, and drink wine and administer to the poor and afflicted. We also would attend a blessing at Dr Frederick G Williams. His eldest daughter had been lately married, and was about to leave for Missouri: he therefore blest her family previous to their leaving. He laid his hands upon each of their heads, and the scribe wrote them [the blessings]. The prophet Joseph was present, and had a vision of their journey, saw their wagon turn over, but no one was injured. It came to pass even as he said.33
22. July 8, 1838, Far West, Missouri
Revelation given on July 8, 1838, making known the duty of William W. Phelps and Frederick G. Williams. The Lord explained that transgression was the reason they lost their standing; they were to be ordained elders and to preach the gospel.34
Prophecies by and about Frederick G. Williams
1. November 29, 1832, Kirtland, Ohio
The first documented prophecy by Frederick G. Williams was recorded by Joseph Smith in his own hand, on the second page of his small Ohio Journal, 1832–1834. The Prophet wrote that Frederick had made a prophecy regarding him.
29 November 1832 Thursday
this day road from Kirtland to Chardon to see my Sister Sop[h]ronia and also ca[lled] to see my Sister Catherine [and fou]nd them [well]
this Evening Brother Frederic [G. Williams] Prophecyed that next spring I should go to the city of PittsBurg to establish a Bishopwrick and within one year I should go to the City of New York the Lord spare the life of thy servent Amen.35
Joseph recorded in this same journal that less than a year later, during the month of October 1833, he and Sidney Rigdon preached at several locations in Pennsylvania and New York while en route to their mission to Canada, but there is no mention of Pittsburg or New York City. This mission to Canada, notes historian Dean C. Jessee, is probably the only time a Latter-day Saint prophet has engaged in proselyting work after his appointment as president of the Church.36
2. January 23, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Frederick G. Williams prophesized, under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, that he would be continually on Joseph’s right hand, in this life and the next. Joseph accepted him in the name of the Lord. “At the close of the scene, Brother Frederick G. Williams, being moved upon by the Holy Ghost, washed my feet in token of his fixed determination to be with me in suffering, or in journeying, in life or in death, and to be continually on my right hand; in which I accepted him in the name of the Lord.”37
3. November 19, 1833, Kirtland, Ohio
Joseph Smith wrote character sketches of his counselors in the First Presidency, beginning with Sidney Rigdon. In the case of Frederick, Joseph also prophesied regarding his future and that of his family after him.
Brother Frederick G. Williams is one of those men in whom I place the greatest confidence and trust, for I have found him ever full of love and brotherly kindness. He is not a man of many words, but is ever winning, because of his constant mind. He shall ever have place in my heart, and is ever entitled to my confidence. He is perfectly honest and upright, and seeks with all his heart to magnify his Presidency in the Church of Christ, but fails in many instances, in consequence of a want of confidence in himself. God grant that he may overcome all evil.
Blessed be Brother Frederick, for he shall never want a friend, and his generation after him shall flourish. The Lord hath appointed him an inheritance upon the land of Zion: yea, and his head shall blossom, and he shall be as an olive branch that is bowed down with fruit. Even so. Amen.38
4. March 1, 1835, Kirtland, Ohio
Frederick G. Williams received a blessing, most likely under the hands of the Prophet, at the time the members of the newly called Seventy received theirs. It contains much prophetic language.
Thou art blessed. Thou shalt stand before the great men of the earth. Thy mind shall expand and thou shalt be enabled to waft thyself as upon the wings of the wind. Thou shalt stand according to thy desires and see the face of thy Redeemer. Thy blessings are confirmed upon thee. The heavenly hosts are rejoicing over thee. Twice thou hast been to the land of Zion. The Lord has sustained thee for a wise purpose. Thy mind and thy [heart] shall be enlarged, and thou shalt make known the gospel to the great ones of the earth and shall yet lead them to Zion. If thou desirest thou shalt rise upon the wings of the morning and not be an inhabitant of the grave. Thou shalt be one who shall preside over Zion. All these blessings we seal and confirm upon thee. Amen.39
5. December 13, 1835, Kirtland, Ohio
One Sunday, President Williams gave a sermon in which he may have prophesied. Since we do not have either the contents or the approach President Williams used, it is not possible to affirm that his sermon contained prophecy, but the Prophet’s words suggest that it did.
Sunday, 13.—At the usual hour, ten a.m., attended meeting at the school house on the flats. Elder Jesse Hickcock preached a very feeling discourse.
In the afternoon, Elder Peter Whitmer related his experience; after which, President Frederick G. Williams related his also. They both spoke of many things connected with the rise and progress of this Church, wich were interesting.40
1. Kirtland Revelation Book, 33–46, published in Robin Scott Jensen, Robert J. Woodford, and Steven C. Harper, eds., Manuscript Revelation Books, facsimile edition, first volume of the Revelations and Translations series of The Joseph Smith Papers, ed. Dean C. Jessee, Ronald K. Esplin, and Richard Lyman Bushman (Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2009), 478–505. See also Joseph Smith Jr., History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ed. B. H. Roberts, 2d ed., rev., 7 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1971), 1:302 (cited hereafter as History of the Church) and Doctrine and Covenants 88.
2. Kirtland Council Minute Book, 10, Church History Library, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, published in Fred C. Collier and William S. Harwell, eds., Kirtland Council Minute Book (Salt Lake City: Collier’s Publishing, 1996, 2002), 6; History of the Church, 1:334–35; John Murdock, Journal, typescript, 14–15, in L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah; Zebedee Coltrin, in Minutes, Salt Lake School of the Prophets (October 3, 1883), 56–57, Perry Special Collections. Also quoted in Milton V. Backman Jr., The Heavens Resound: A History of the Latter-day Saints in Ohio, 1830–1838 (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1983), 257; “House of Revelation,” Ensign 23 (January 1993): 37; Alexander L. Baugh, “Parting the Veil: Joseph Smith’s Seventy-six Documented Visionary Experiences,” in Opening the Heavens: Accounts of Divine Manifestations, 1820–1844, ed. John W. Welch with Erick B. Carlson (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005), 322 n. 39.
3. See “Truman Osborn Angell (1810–1887) Autobiography,” 14–15, Church History Library. Also published in Archie Leon Brown with Charlene L. Hathaway, 141 Years of Mormon Heritage, Rawsons, Browns, Angells—Pioneers (Oakland: By the author, 1973), 124.
4. Oliver Cowdery, in Patriarchal Blessings, Book 1, 8–9, cited in Brian Q. Cannon and BYU Studies Staff, “Seventy Contemporaneous Priesthood Restoration Documents,” in Welch, Opening the Heavens, 243, 260 n. 25.
5. History of the Church, 2:79–80.
6. History of the Church, 2:379–83.
7. History of the Church, 2:382–83.
8. History of the Church, 2:386-87.
9. History of the Church, 2:247.
10. Ezra G. Williams statement, April 11, 1864, found in the LDS Church Archives (now housed in the Church History Library), Salt Lake City.
11. History of the Church, 3:430–32.
12. Kirtland Revelation Book, 91–92; see Jensen, Woodford, and Harper, Manuscript Revelation Books, facsimile edition, 598–601.
13. Doctrine and Covenants 64:21.
14. Doctrine and Covenants 81. The revelation was originally for Jesse Gause, but when he fell away from the Church, the call was transferred to Frederick G. Williams. See heading to Doctrine and Covenants 81.
15. The revelation written in the hand of Frederick G. Williams (and so certified on the back by his son Ezra Granger Williams) appears to be dated January 5, 1834. The contents, however, leave no doubt that the revelation was received in 1833, and therefore if the number was meant to be 1834, it is a scribal mistake. Frederick had written on the back “Revelation for Farm.” Found in the Frederick G. Williams papers at the Church History Library.
16. “Revelation for Farm,” Church History Library.
17. History of the Church, 1:323.
18. Chapter 10 was published as an article in BYU Studies 48, no. 1 (2009): 57–88.
19. Doctrine and Covenants 90:6.
20. Doctrine and Covenants 90:15–16, 19.
21. Doctrine and Covenants 92. In addition to being recorded by Frederick G. Williams in the Kirtland Revelation Book, 55, he wrote out a copy for himself (so certified on the back by his son Ezra Granger Williams), which was found among Frederick’s papers at the Church History Library.
22. Doctrine and Covenants 93:40–43.
23. Doctrine and Covenants 93:52–53.
24. Collier and Harwell, Kirtland Council Minute Book, 15. With the June 4, 1833, revelation, Frederick G. Williams had already received nine revelations during 1833, most through the Prophet. But on October 10, 1833, writing on behalf of the First Presidency, Williams wrote: “We have not received any revelation for a long time (which has been written), and none concerning the present situation of Zion.” Going from June to October without a revelation was considered “a long time” for Williams, which gives us a good idea of the frequency with which the First Presidency had been receiving heavenly direction. Williams’s letter to the Saints in Missouri is found in History of the Church, 1:417–19.
25. History of the Church, 1:444.
26. Doctrine and Covenants 102:3.
27. Doctrine and Covenants 103:39.
28. Doctrine and Covenants 107:27–29.
29. History of the Church, 2:292–93.
30. History of the Church, 2:300.
31. See, for example, Lyndon W. Cook, Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith: A Historical and Biographical Commentary of the Doctrine and Covenants (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1989), 362.
32. History of the Church, 2:429.
33. Caroline Barnes Crosby, cited in Kenneth W. Godfrey, Audrey M. Godfrey, and Jill Mulvay Derr, eds., Women’s Voices: An Untold History of the Latter-day Saints, 1830–1900 (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1982), 51.
Lovina S. Williams and Burr Riggs were married on November 19, 1834, in Kirtland by J. C. Dowen, justice of the peace. They purchased their first forty acres of property on December 7, 1836, in the newly created Caldwell County, Township of Mirabile (no. 11), which is where Far West was established. See Clark V. Johnson and Ronald E. Romig, An Index to Early Caldwell County, Missouri, Land Records, rev. ed. (Independence, Mo.: Missouri Mormon Frontier Foundation, 2002), 151.
34. History of the Church, 3:46.
35. Dean C. Jessee, ed., The Papers of Joseph Smith, 2 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1989–92), 2:2, 4.
36. Jessee, Papers of Joseph Smith, 2:1.
37. History of the Church, 1:323.
38. History of the Church, 1:444. Of the original First Presidency, including the Prophet, only Frederick’s descendants remained in the Church. They number in the hundreds, and they have served as missionaries, Relief Society presidents, bishops and bishop counselors. One has been a stake president, another a counselor in a stake presidency, five have been mission presidents, one has served as temple president, another as temple matron, two have been patriarchs, and one was called as a Regional Representative of the Twelve.
39. Collier and Harwell, Kirtland Council Minute Book, 101.
40. History of the Church, 2:330.
