Sometimes one and sometimes another,” an oft-quoted but rarely attributed statement associated with Zion’s Camp, was one of several phrases spoken by Frederick G. Williams in reply to the inquiries raised by three visitors to the camp. He spoke these words on Tuesday, May 20, 1834, when the company was camped near Greenfield, Indiana, after having sloshed through twenty-five miles of mud, which often reached above the tops of the Prophet’s boots. Joseph recorded the suspicious encounter with three spies, which was met by this memorable response from his counselor.
While we were eating dinner three gentlemen came riding up on very fine looking horses and commenced their inquiries of various ones concerning our traveling in so large a body, asking where we were from, and where we were going. The reply was as usual—some from the state of Maine; another would say, “I am from York state;” some from Massachusetts; some from Ohio; and some replied, “we are from the East, and as soon as we have done eating dinner we shall be going to the West again.” They then addressed themselves to Dr. Frederick G. Williams to see if they could find out who the leader of the camp was. The doctor replied, “We have no one in particular.” They asked if we had not a general to take the lead of the company. The reply was, “No one in particular.” “But,” said they, “is there not some one among you whom you call your captain, or leader, or who is superior to the rest?” He answered, “Sometimes one and sometimes another takes charge of the company, so as not to throw the burden upon any one in particular.” These spies, who had come from the west, passed us several times that same day and the next.1
Historian of Zion’s Camp
It should be pointed out that much of the narrative on Zion’s Camp found in the History of the Church by Joseph Smith, including the above quote, is based on the memoirs of George A. Smith written ten years later. Frederick G. Williams was assigned the responsibility of recording a history of the expedition and writing weekly letters to Oliver Cowdery back in Kirtland, detailing the events. We know that Williams wrote some of the letters, and he may have kept a journal, but these have been lost, according to George A. Smith. Using the diary of his cousin Jesse J. Smith as a guide, which was written at the time, George A. Smith recalled the events from memory, and wrote a narrative on Zion’s Camp, which he provided to Dr. Willard Richards, who helped compile Joseph Smith’s History of the Church.
The journal of F. G. Williams, Historian of the Camp, also the list of the names of the Camp were lost & a very brief account of the journey was published in the history of Joseph Smith. I afterwards furnished Dr. Willard Richards, the church historian, with a series of notes from memory, ten years after the events happened. I could not write all the time & consequently kept no journal. I have now given the substance of the notes with additions in my narrative.2
The purpose for Zion’s Camp’s is recorded in the History of the Church as follows:
May 5 [1834].—Having gathered and prepared clothing and other necessaries to carry to our brethren and sisters, who had been robbed and plundered of nearly all their effects; and having provided for ourselves horses, and wagons, and firearms, and all sorts of munitions of war of the most portable kind for self-defense—as our enemies are thick on every hand—I started with the remainder of the company from Kirtland for Missouri.3
George A. Smith adds the following regarding his personal effects for the journey:
I was selected by President Joseph Smith, Jr. to accompany him to Missouri in fulfillment of the Revelation given in Kirtland February 1834 being then in my 17th year. My father furnished me with a musket, generally known as a Queen’s Arm, a pair of pantaloons made of bed ticking, a pair of common cotton shirts, a straw hat, cloth coat and vest, a blanket, a pair of new boots, & an extra shirt & pair of pantaloons which my mother packed in a knapsack made of apron check. In this fit out [on Monday] May 5, 1834, I started with my Brethren in the company called Zion’s Camp.4
The days leading up to the departure of Zion’s Camp saw some important business transacted. On Saturday, May 3, 1834, at a conference of the elders of the Church of Christ, as it had been called since its organization, there was a unanimous vote to change the name of the Church. Joseph Smith was chosen moderator, while Frederick G. Williams and Oliver Cowdery were appointed clerks. “After prayer the Conference proceeded to discuss the subject of names and appellations, when a motion was made by SIDNEY RIGDON, and seconded by NEWEL K. WHITNEY, that this church be known hereafter by the name of THE CHURCH OF THE LATTER DAY SAINTS. Appropriate remarks were delivered by some of the members, after which the motion was put by the Moderator, and passed by unanimous voice.”5
On Monday, May 5, 1834, Frederick G. Williams and his wife, Rebecca Swain Williams, deeded (or “indentured,” the term used in the sale) one and a half acres of their farm property to Joseph Smith Jr. for $177.70. Previous to this sale, the Williamses had given the Prophet the use of their farm for two years, free of charge. Also, on May 5, 1834, the very day the Prophet and his party left Kirtland for Missouri, Frederick and Rebecca sold the remaining 103 acres of their farm to Joseph Smith Jr. for $2,200.6 Frederick also gave the Prophet $27 in cash for the march of Zion’s Camp to Missouri and a silver watch.
From the time I first became acquainted with Js Smith I frequently assisted him let him have the use of my farm in Kirtland two years for which I recd no compensation though he frequently promised me & had given me Several notes for oxen farming utentials, wagon & ox-Sled &c, for the use of the farm I never took any note neither rec[eiv]ed any thing for it. . . . I also Let him have 27 dollars when he went to Missouri with the camp I also bought a patent Lever Silver watch for which he agreed to pay $50.7
Paymaster
President Williams played a significant role in the overall operation of Zion’s Camp. He could have declined the invitation to make the strenuous march and thus would have avoided the heat, mosquitoes, and general discomfort associated with the potentially dangerous undertaking. He could have used his age as an excuse, or his many responsibilities, but he did not. It is possible that the Prophet may have requested that his counselor come because of his medical experience, and indeed Dr. Williams’s skills were put to good use with the terrible outbreak of cholera that the camp encountered. But President Williams did more than offer medical support. Early on he was assigned to be the camp’s paymaster, which involved all the financial transactions of the more than one hundred and thirty young men in the Prophet’s initial group, and which eventually swelled to over two hundred people. The History of the Church records:
On the 7th [of May 1834] we made preparations for traveling [from New Portage, Ohio], gathered all the moneys of every individual of the company, and appointed Frederick G. Williams paymaster to disburse the funds thus collected; and Zerubbabel Snow was chosen commissary general. The whole company now consisted of more than one hundred and thirty men, accompanied by twenty baggage wagons. We left but few men in Kirtland, viz.: Elders Sidney Rigdon, Oliver Cowdery, a few working on the Temple, and the aged.8
As already alluded to, Frederick was called as the historian for the company, which is confirmed by the Prophet in a letter to his wife Emma, written in part by Frederick on May 18, 1834, near Richmond, Indiana.
I hope you will continue to communicate to me by your own hand for this is a consolation to me to convirse <with> you in this way in my lonely moments which is not easily discribed I will indeavour to write every Su[n]day if I can and let you know how I am <and> Brother Fredrick will write to Oliver and give him the names of the places we pass through and a history of our jou[rn]ey from time to time so that it <will> not be nessary for me to endevou[r] to write it but feel a satisfaction to write a few lines with my own hand in this way I can have the privelege to communicate some of my feelings.9
Commander in Sham Battle
President Williams needed to be in good physical shape to undertake the rigors of the journey. One interesting episode that demonstrates that the doctor was healthy and strong involves his active role as one of three military commanders in a mock training battle held on Thursday, May 29, 1834, not far from Decatur, Illinois. Williams was the leader of one of the division that charged from the woods and attacked the camp defended by Joseph Smith’s division.
I then proposed for a diversion that we divide the camp into three parts and have a sham battle, which was agreed to. Brother Roger Orton led one division, Frederick G. Williams another division, while I remained in the camp with the third division. They retired to the woods with their divisions, and soon attacked the camp, which we defended by various maneuvers for some time. Many of our captains showed considerable tact and more acquaintance with military matters than I had expected. Everything passed off with good feelings, although Captain Heber C. Kimball, in receiving a charge, grasped Captain Lewis Zobriski’s sword, and in endeavoring to take it from him, had the skin cut from the palm of his hand. After the sham battle was over, I called the camp together and cautioned the men to be careful in the future and control their spirits in such circumstances so as never to injure each other.10
Scout and Spy
As the camp drew closer to its destination and feared potential violence from the Missourians, Dr. Williams, rather than remain safe with the group, was often sent ahead by Joseph as a scout or spy. Perhaps his age and his medical profession were useful in hiding his identity and purpose. One assignment came to President Williams on May 30, 1834, near Springfield, Illinois. “We traveled across the prairie and encamped in a strip of timber. When we stopped to dine, I wrote a letter to the brethren in Missouri, dated ‘Camp of Israel,’ requesting some of them to meet us as soon as possible and give me information of the state of things in Upper Missouri, and sent the letter to Springfield post office by Dr. Frederick G. Williams.”11 Disguises were donned by Williams and his companion for their journey into Springfield. “Frederick G. Williams and Almon W. Babbitt went ahead of the camp into Springfield in disguise, to learn the feeling of the people and procure some powder. We passed through Springfield; our appearance excited considerable curiosity, and a great many questions were asked. The spies who had followed us so long pursued us very closely, changing their dress and horses several times a day.”12
Williams and Babbitt returned to camp that night with the powder they had procured and reported on the intelligence they had gathered: “We encamped about three miles from Springfield on Spring Creek. Frederick G. Williams and Almon W. Babbitt returned to the camp with two kegs of powder, and reported that the people were somewhat excited, more however from a curiosity to know where we were going than from a desire to hinder us.”13
Pawpaw Bush
On Saturday, May 31, Williams again proceeded ahead of the company to scout for a good place for the Camp of Israel to spend the night.
Near night we arrived at a small stream of water about one mile from Jacksonville, where we found a pawpaw bush in the road, which had been dropped by Dr. Frederick G. Williams as a signal for us to camp. I had sent Dr. Williams forward in the morning on horseback to select a camp ground and watch the movements of our enemies. We pitched our tents in the place he had selected. . . . Dr. Williams had gone on to Jacksonville with his pill bags to spend the night.14
Doctor Williams’s reason for using a disguise and spending the night at a hotel in Jacksonville becomes clear from George A. Smith’s memoirs. Although the History of the Church describes the success the brethren of Zion’s Camp had in attracting a large number of nonmembers to their sacrament meeting, held just outside of Jacksonville on Sunday, June 1, 1834, and even affirms that the talks were excellent,15 the account does not indicate how the townspeople came to be at the camp or what their reaction to the meeting was. George A. Smith, however, provides those details.
At the close of the meeting, Sacrament was administered & all professing Christians of every denomination present were invited to partake. Dr. Williams came down from Jacksonville with the people, attended the meeting & returned with them in the evening. No one in the Camp appeared to recognize him. After supper he left Jacksonville, returned to the Camp & reported that the people universally who had visited the Camp expressed the highest satisfaction at their treatment & the good order that prevailed in our midst; that one Gent. said “I have visited the Camp & believe I have questioned one hundred of the men, but could not ascertain who they were, where they were going, or what was their business, and & believe them to be a fine set of fellows, or a pack of damned knaves, & I can’t tell for my life which.” Another intelligent Gent. remarked “I do not believe there is a College in the United States that could turn out such an eloquent set of speakers as I have heard this day in the Camp.” Dr. Williams said he had heard hundreds of such remarks at Jacksonville, & the most perfect good humor prevailed throughout the Town.16
Frederick’s Letter to Rebecca
Meanwhile, back in Kirtland, Frederick’s wife, Rebecca, was taking in boarders and washing clothing for those left behind, principally those asked to work on the temple. “The sisters and children were kept busy gathering blue bottles which were crushed and mixed with the mortar as the Temple was built of bluish sandstone. Rebecca described the whole as being ‘a beautiful bluish topaz in color as it glistened in the sunlight.’ She took in boarders, made and washed clothing for the workers to help with finances.”17
We learn from Joseph’s second letter to Emma that he and Frederick were sending money back to their wives as well. The letter, written from the banks of the Mississippi River on June 4, 1834, has the following postscript: “N.B. The enclosed bill we could not get changed and is of no use to us now, and we send [it] to you & sister Williams to be divided between you, that you may be able to procure such necessaries as you need &c.”18
What is remarkable (as well as serendipitous) is that appended to the letter from Joseph to his wife, Emma, is preserved a letter from Frederick to his wife, Rebecca. As far as I can ascertain, this is the only private letter written by President Williams that has survived. Although Frederick tells Rebecca he has nothing of importance to communicate, the letter does provide us with a rare glimpse into their loving relationship, their mutual concern for the children, and their trust in God.
I embrace this opportunity to fill up this sheet to you, my beloved companion, not that I have anything important to communicate, but remembering your request to write to you while on the road, but as I write every week to brother Oliver, you will know all the particulars of our journey. In consequence of my being away from the encampment last Sunday (the cause you will see in my next to Oliver) [I] didn’t write to him as usual but shall now embrace the first opportunity to bring up any journal which you will find some what more interesting than any previous to it.
I want you to make use of the money I send you in wisdom, for such things as you need, and make yourselves as comfortable and contented as you can and continue to pray to the Lord to hasten the day when we shall be permitted to behold each other’s face again and enjoy the blessings of the family circle in peace and in righteousness, and be prepared to meet every event that awaits us in life.
Tell the children to remember that passage of scripture which says, “children obey your parents in all things”, for this is right, and God will bless them. I can truly say, we have been treated with respect by the people while on the road, have met with no insult except now and then [as in] instance[s] when the spies have seen our brethren away from the Camp. For want of room I must stop writing, but in due time after I arrive to my place of destination will take an opportunity to write more fully. Be assured that I always remember you to my heavenly Father and hope you will do the same for your
In addition to furnishing us a glimpse into their marriage and their faith in God, Frederick’s letter also confirms that he had written nearly every week to Oliver Cowdery with a history of Zion’s Camp. Although the letters have been lost to us, the episode of his being a “plant” to invite his fellow hotel guests and encourage the townspeople of Jacksonville to come hear the gospel preached at camp—or as he puts it, of “being away from the encampment last Sunday (the cause you will see in my next to Oliver)”—has been preserved for us by the diligence of George A. Smith. Judging by Frederick’s comment to Rebecca, it was the right episode to have preserved, for it was “some what more interesting than any previous to it.” The letter also suggests that Frederick was not necessarily recording the history in a physical journal, but rather, he had been sending journal entries to Oliver by mail.20
Rebecca’s Written Testimony to Her Father
Coincidently, on the very same day, June 4, 1834, Rebecca wrote a letter to her father, Isaac Swain (1759–1838), living in Youngstown, New York. Inasmuch as this letter is the only writing by Rebecca to have survived, it is fortunate for us that it contains her personal testimony, borne to her father and family. Although incomplete, the letter allows us to feel the depth of her faith and commitment to the gospel.
From her remarks, it is clear that Rebecca is responding to her father’s negative feelings about the Church and the Book of Mormon, which he had expressed in a letter to her dated May 23, 1834. He evidently also took umbrage at the things written in The Evening and the Morning Star, which Rebecca must have sent to him. Perhaps Mr. Swain had recently heard some anti-Mormon teachings or had read about the Mormon troubles in Missouri (each issue of the Star, including the May 1834 issue, carried such news). In any event, Rebecca expressed her love and the honor due her father, but bore a strong testimony of the restored gospel, of Joseph Smith, and of the Book of Mormon, which to her was more precious than familial ties. By quoting a modern scripture revealed to Joseph Smith,21 she also warned her family of possible negative consequences if they did not repent. Her forthright manner gives the reader an insight into the depth of her devotion to the cause. The first page or pages of the letter are missing.
. . . he got on [h]is jo<ur>ney, I have been reading over your letter of May the 23 which I have read over again and again its gives me pain to here that your mind is so much disturbed about the Book of Mormon and the Star I feal <a>fraid my Father is in some degree gitting into the same Spirit you charge the Editor with, as it regards the origen of the Book of Mormon there is no disagreement in the Book betwin the Author and witnesses the Book plan[l]y shoes for it self Pa 547 and 548 and unto three shall [page torn] be shown by the power of God there is no con[tra]diction. the plaits was found in the same manner that the Auther sayes they was in the town of Manchestor Ontario County I have heard the same storry from several of the family and from the three witnesses them selves I heard them declair in publick meeting that they saw an Holly Angel come down from heaven and brought the plaits and laid them before their eyes and told them that those was the plaits that Joseph Smith was translation the Book of Mormon from they are men of good character and their word is believed ware they are acquainted in any thing excep[t] when they declair to this unbeliveng Generation that they have seen an angel of God and conversed with him my Father I hardly know what to say to you did you and Mother know the Circumstances as we do in relation to this work I am persuaded you would believe it, my heart morns for my relation according to the flesh but all that I can do is to commend them to God praying that he would enliten your minds in the way of truth, there is one of our Breathern who expets to go to Canada soon I have talked with him22 about going to see you if he does I hope you will have a plesant visit with him as he is a man of information capable of teaching the Gosple as it is in Jesus my Dear Father do you belive that all the Churches are of the Lord the Lord has said by the mouth of [h]is Serva<n>t Joseph that this is the only Church upon the face of the whole earth with which the Lord was well pleased with, speaking unto the Churches collectively and not individually for I the Lord can not look upon sin with the least degree of allowance nevertheless he that repenteth and doeth the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven and he that repenteth not from him shall be taken even the light which he hath received for my Spirit shall not always strive with man saith the Lord of hosts, <so> than we see all that are pure in heart the Lord will bless I want my Brothers to write to me I pray the Lord to comfort you in your last day witth his holy Spirit and may they be your best days my Children join me in love to you I must close my letter to ever remember the instruction <that> I have received from my beloved Father yours <in love> Re Williado write to us soon, I hope your mind will be composed concerning this work, be asureard that we feal firm in the cause knowing that the Lord is at the helm and will turn and over turn tell all things shall be brought <to> pass and Iseral shall again rejoice in the Lord.
The above letter was sent to Nancy C. Williams on September 17, 1935, from Youngstown, New York, by Sarah Sabrina Swain, the granddaughter of Isaac Swain. In addition to the letter, Miss Swain furnished other valuable documents and information. She reported that it was Frederick G. Williams who had provided her grandfather, Isaac Swain, with a copy of the Book of Mormon, as recorded by Nancy C. Williams. “Another interesting find in the attic of the Cobblestone house, was a copy of the Book of Mormon, printed in 1830. This was found by Dwight Simpson, a nephew of Miss Swain, in removing his grandfather’s library to his home in Boston. ‘Possibly one of the first editions. It was given to Isaac Swain by Frederick Williams, as I remember the inscription,’ wrote Miss Swain. ‘If it is a first edition it must have some monetary value. We wonder if your church would like to possess it? I feel that it should belong to your family.’”24
Rebuke for Inaction While on Guard Duty
On June 13, 1834, Frederick G. Williams and Roger Orton, having been on guard duty, received a rebuke from the Prophet for failure to properly care for the horses of Heber C. Kimball.
Friday 13.—Elder Kimball’s horses, through the negligence of the guards, got loose and went back ten miles with others. He pursued them and returned with them to camp. Frederick G. Williams and Roger Orton received a very severe chastisement for neglect of orders in not taking care of the teams when in charge of the guard. The reproof given to Roger Orton was more particularly for suffering Elder Kimball to go back after the horses, and he was one of my life guards, and it belonged to Orton to see that the team was attended to.25
The episode of Heber C. Kimball’s horses getting loose is recounted by George A. Smith, but no mention is made of the rebuke. That this is added information is confirmed by B. H. Roberts in a note that reads, “Paragraph is from notes in the ‘Addenda’ of the manuscript History.”26
On June 21, 1834, Frederick G. Williams was one of six Mormon signatories of the “Propositions of the Mormons,” a document requested by Sheriff Cornelius Gillium of Clay County, respecting their intentions. It was published in the Clay County (Mo.) Enquirer on July 1, 1834.
Being called upon by the above-named gentlemen, at our camp in Clay county, to ascertain from the leaders of our men our intentions, views, and designs, in approaching this county in the manner we have, we therefore the more cheerfully comply with their request. . . .
In the first place, it is not our intention to commit hostilities against any man, or set of men; it is not our intention to injure any man’s person or property, except in defending ourselves.27
Camp Physician
Joseph had prophesied that a scourge would visit the camp if the members did not repent of their disobedient spirit and rebellious conduct. That scourge came in the form of cholera, which was first mentioned in the History of the Church on June 21, 1834.
Brother Ezra Thayre and Joseph Hancock are sick with the cholera. Thomas Heyes was taken today. Previous to crossing the Mississippi river I had called the camp together and told them that in consequence of the disobedience of some who had been unwilling to listen to my words, but had rebelled, God had decreed that sickness should come upon the camp, and if they did not repent and humble themselves before God they should die like sheep with the rot; that I was sorry, but could not help it. The scourge must come; repentance and humility may mitigate the chastisement, but cannot altogether avert it.28
On June 24, 1834, some five miles before Zion’s Camp reached its destination of Liberty, Clay County, Missouri, the full force of cholera broke out among its members. Joseph writes of this terrible ordeal, which also afflicted him.
June 24.—This night the cholera burst forth among us, and about midnight it was manifested in its most virulent form. Our ears were saluted with cries and moanings, and lamentations on every hand; even those on guard fell to the earth with their guns in their hands, so sudden and powerful was the attack of this terrible disease. At the commencement, I attempted to lay on hands for their recovery, but I quickly learned by painful experience, that when the great Jehovah decrees destruction upon any people, and makes known His determination, man must not attempt to stay His hand. The moment I attempted to rebuke the disease I was attacked, and had I not desisted in my attempt to save the life of a brother, I would have sacrificed my own. The disease seized upon me like the talons of a hawk, and I said to the brethren: “If my work were done, you would have to put me in the ground without a coffin.”29
As was referenced in greater detail in the chapter on his medical practice, Dr. Williams had his hands full with the sick and dying of cholera; the dreaded disease afflicted many Saints and members of Zion’s Camp.
About sixty-eight of the Saints suffered from this disease, of which number fourteen died. . . .
I sent Hiram Page with instructions to bring Jesse J. Smith and George A. Smith to me at all hazards to the west part of the county, having had intimations that they were sick. He found that Jesse had been severely racked with the cholera all day, George A. Smith had taken care of him for upwards of thirty hours. Dr. Frederick G. Williams decided that the cholera had left him [Jesse J. Smith], and he would recover if not moved. On the morning of the 28th [of June], George A. Smith was attacked and was immediately mounted on a hard-riding horse, rode fifteen miles, and came to me.
The last days of June I spent with my old Jackson county friends, in the western part of Clay county.
George A. Smith’s account includes additional information.
On the morning of the 28th Dr. Williams pronounced Jesse out of danger. Joseph had sent Hiram Page with his horse with instructions to bring Jesse J. & George A. to where he was if he had to bring them on a Bob Sled. Dr. Williams decided it was not [expedient] for Jesse to go but wait a day or 2 when he would be able, but (he and) I went although I had the cramps so bad I could scarcely get on to the horse which was a very rough traveler.31
Discharge From Zion’s Camp
At the beginning of July, Joseph Smith authorized General Lyman Wight “to give a discharge to every man of the Camp who had proved himself faithful, certifying that fact and giving him leave to return home.”32 Frederick’s discharge paper is dated July 1, 1834, from Liberty, Clay County, Missouri, and signed by Lyman Wight and Sylvester Smith Jr. Reference is made to Williams having faithfully discharged his duties as “council to the commander in Chief of the Army of the Lord’s house, & also the duties of quarter Master & many others to which he was appointed,” which, as we have seen, included paymaster, spy, historian, scout, physician, and commander of a third of the forces in a mock battle.
We hereby certify that bro. Frederick Williams has truly & faithfully discharged the duties of his calling as council to the commander in Chief of the Army of the Lord’s house, & also the duties of quarter Master & many others to which he was appointed & as his garments are cl[e]ar of the blood of all with whom he has associated in this region, & he has important duties to do in the East in filling the appointments which the Lord hath appointed unto him in that region we are satisfied it is his duty to return to the East, & he is therefore honorably discharged from this Camp of the Latter day Saints with the thanks of the same for his services, & we recommend him to the love & fellowship of all Saints where he may journey—by appointment in
On July 3, 1834, having recovered their health sufficiently, the brethren met in Clay County to organize the first high council in Missouri; Frederick G. Williams served as clerk of that meeting, and for a second one on July 7.34
Discharge of Frederick G. Williams from Zion's Camp, signed by Lyman Wight and Sylvester Smith Jr.
Return Trip to Ohio with the Prophet
Joseph records that on July 9, 1834, “I started for Kirtland, in company with my brother Hyrum, Frederick G. Williams, William E. M’Lellin and others, in a wagon.”35 It was William E. McLellin (not M’Lellin) who accompanied the Prophet, and McLellin recorded that there were nineteen brethren in the party.36 George A. Smith records the names of eighteen: “On the 9th I started for Kirtland—Joseph, Hyrum & William Smith, F. G. Williams, Orson Hyde, Wm E. McLellin, Ezra Thayer, Lorenzo Booth, Martin Harris, [Lyman] Johnson, (and his son) Wilbur Denton, Jedediah M. Grant, Jenkins Salisbury, Almon W. Babbit, Seth Johnson, Cyrus Smalling, Harvey Stanley & myself were in the company. We had 2 2-team horse wagons, a one-horse buggy and 2 extra horses.”37
History of the Church records very little about the return trip to Kirtland, indicating simply that Joseph arrived in Kirtland around August 1, 1834, and that those with whom he had commenced the journey had split off at various points along the way. “About this time I arrived in Kirtland, after a tedious journey from the midst of enemies; mobs, cholera, and excessively hot weather, having parted from those whom I started with on the 9th ultimo, at different points of the journey.”38
Life-Saving Buttermilk
George A. Smith provides some interesting details, such as the fact that from Liberty, Missouri, to Louisville, Indiana, “three-fourth of the way had been traveled on foot by the whole party, as our teams were not able to admit of our riding,”39 and that they soon ran out of food and water after leaving Liberty. Ezra Thayer was so weak from the oppressive heat and the lack of nourishment, that he decided he could walk no further, preferring to lie down and await death.
I supposed that I was behind the whole company but on looking back observed Ezra Thayer—I waited for him, when he came up he laid down on the prairie, being overcome with the heat & said he could travel no further, being resolved to die there. I continued to urge him on for 3 miles. We found a little cabin owned by [McSyna] where we asked for water, we were told they had none & that there was none nearer than 3 miles. We asked for milk, vinegar or whisky, but they had none—Ezra Thayer then said Madam have you anything in the [cabin] that is wet—She thought a moment & replied, I believe I have a little Buttermilk, though my cow has not been home for 3 months. She then brought out a surely old coffee pot & poured from it about a quart of buttermilk, which was blue & as sour as vinegar. We both partook of it & I believe it saved Ezra’s life. We then walked 3 miles to the well. E. Thayer laid down on the ground a short distance from the well & I carried him several small cups full of water which had been standing in the bucket & got warm. When he drank several he said it was not cold enough & I then drew some from the well, which he acknowledged was much better. I feared if I had given him the cold water at first it would (kill) injure him, as it was it took him several hours to allay his thirst. We camped on the Embarrass River (in an island of timer) & refreshed our horses. Dr. F. G. Williams drank a gallon of Buttermilk within an hour after he got to Camp.40
William E. McLellin reports in his journal that he took sick with a fever in Illinois and could not continue the journey with the main party.
Tuesday the 22nd [of July 1834] I took breakfast with Mr J. Jones in Paris Illinois, thenc[e] onward for Clinton but about 10 O’clock my fever rose again and I traveled in much pain until noon, when I told the brethren that I was so sick that I could not travel on. They offered to have some one stay with me but I thought it not best so they passed on and left me and also one of their horses that was foundered with me at Mr McCown. Dr [Frederick G.] Williams also left some medicine with me to take if I should continue sick. Mr & Mrs McCown used me very well and next morning would charge me nothing for their trouble and the[y] asked if I would not return when I recovered and preach in the neighbourhood.41
Joseph Smith wrote a letter to the brethren in Zion after his return to Kirtland, in which he mentioned McLellin’s illness, together with news of the cholera they found rampant on their way home.
The brethren, up to now, have generally arrived from Clay county in health, notwithstanding the warm season. . . .
I was obliged to leave the consecrated horn in Illinois, also Brother William E. M’Lellin [McLellin], who was sick. We expect when he recovers that he will come to Kirtland. He was very humble, and I entertain no doubt as to his standing while he continues so. We have a desire to hear concerning the cholera, and whether Sister Bunnel is yet alive. Inform us as to all deaths, and give the names and standing of all those who are called away.
The cholera is raging in Detroit, Cleveland, Fairport, Buffalo, and other places. We found it in Chariton as we came through and almost every other place. It is an awful and solemn day, but this is only the foreshadowing of what is to come.42
When Joseph’s group arrived in Little Louisville, Indiana, four of their members—Joseph and his two brothers, Hyrum and William, and Frederick G. Williams—decided to part company and take a stage coach the rest of the way home, a distance of some 320 miles. George A. Smith recounted that Joseph gave him and each of those who were left behind with the wagons a dollar to cover their expenses. The larger group arrived in Richmond, Indiana, that evening.43
Expense Sheet
Dr. Williams, perhaps still used to acting in his former capacity as paymaster, wrote out and kept the receipt for the expenses each of the four owed the Company for the trip from Liberty to Little Louisville ($4.25 each), plus the amount the four brethren incurred going by stage from Little Louisville, Indiana, to Cleveland, Ohio ($73.16), which was accordingly divided among them, each owing a total of $22.54. Dr. Williams would stay in Cleveland a few days to see how his family and friends were coping with the cholera epidemic, before continuing on to Kirtland.
Dr. Williams arrived in Kirtland from Cleveland on August 21, 1834, and gave a report on the cholera plague in that city. After a heartfelt prayer with Joseph and Oliver, Frederick returned to administer to the needs of the sick and dying. “Doctor Frederick G. Williams returned from Cleveland and told us concerning the plague, and after much consultation, we agreed that Dr. Williams should go to Cleveland and commence administering to the sick, for the purpose of obtaining blessings for them, and for the glory of the Lord. Accordingly, we (Joseph, Frederick, and Oliver,) united in prayer before the Lord for this thing. Now, O Lord, grant us these blessings in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.”45
Williams stayed in the Cleveland area less than a week before returning home, for we find him in attendance at a council meeting in Kirtland on August 27, 1834, where he spoke on two occasions at the trial of Sylvester Smith, the same person who had signed his discharge certificate from Zion’s Camp.46
Dr. Williams returned again to Cleveland on October 8, 1834, as we learn from William E. McLellin’s journal.
Wednesday 8th [October 1834] This morning brother Joseph told that it was my duty to go to the Florence church and fill a promise that he had made for to go himself—Accordingly I prepared & started with F[rederick] G. Williams who was going to Cleveland in a Derbon. We reached Cleveland in the afternoon which gave me sufficient time to visit the Lake shores and to view the scenery of the place—&c.47
But Williams was back in Kirtland by October 16, 1834, in order to accompany the Prophet and four other brethren on a mission to Michigan.48
The last significant event connected with Zion’s Camp came four months later, on February 14, 1835, when several of its members were blessed and honored at a special gathering in Kirtland. Toward the end of the meeting, Frederick G. Williams, as a member of the First Presidency, oversaw and participated in the calling and ordination of the first members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles chosen in this dispensation.49
Notes
1. 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), 2:69–70 (hereafter cited as History of the Church).
2. “History of George Albert Smith by Himself,” ms. copy in Selected Collections from the Archives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ed. Richard E. Turley Jr., 2 vols. (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press, 2002), vol. 1, DVD 32, p. 31. I will continue to quote from the History of the Church, however, rather than George A. Smith’s memoirs, because the History of the Church is more easily accessible to readers.
5. “Communicated,” The Evening and the Morning Star 2 (May 1834): 160; History of the Church, 2:62–63.
6. Statement by Frederick G. Williams, Frederick G. Williams Collection, Church History Library, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City. Both deeds are recorded in the Geauga County, Ohio, Deed Book 18, 477–78, 480–81.
7. Statement by Williams (no date), found in the Frederick G. Williams Collection.
9. Dean C. Jessee, comp. and ed., The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, rev. ed. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book; Provo: BYU Press, 2002), 322. It may be that Joseph intended Oliver to eventually publish the account of their journey in the Evening and Morning Star, which was edited by Oliver Cowdery and published by F. G. Williams and Co. The newspaper had moved its operation to Kirtland subsequent to the destruction of the press in Missouri. However, only one report published in the Star has a connection with Zion’s Camp, and that is the notice that reports the outbreak of cholera in Clay County in June and lists those who died from it, which included Camp participants. See “Propositions, &c. of the ‘Mormons,’” Evening and Morning Star 2 (July 1834): 176.
10.History of the Church, 2:74–75. Although the wording of this passage is nearly identical, in George A. Smith’s memoirs, he has Heber C. Kimball making the charge, rather than receiving it. See “History of George Albert Smith by Himself,” 17.
11.History of the Church, 2:75; “History of George Albert Smith,” 17.
12.History of the Church, 2:76; “History of George Albert Smith,” 17.
13.History of the Church, 2:76–77; “History of George Albert Smith,” 18.
14.History of the Church, 2:77–78; see also “History of George Albert Smith,” 18, where the author adds that Williams spent the night at a “hotel.”
15. See especially Heber C. Kimball’s account found in History of the Church, 2:78–79 footnote.
16. “History of George Albert Smith,” 19–20. It is evident that Dr. Williams was a “plant,” pretending not to be a Mormon or a part of Zion’s Camp, but rather a trustworthy and respectable doctor staying at a Jacksonville hotel. By voicing his interest in and good reports about the camp, Dr. Williams was successful at encouraging the townspeople to join him in visiting the Sunday services.
17. Nancy Clement Williams, After 100 Years (Independence, Mo.: Zion’s Printing and Publishing, 1951), 82–83. Nancy C. Williams does not disclose the source of Rebecca’s quote.
18. Jessee, Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, 325.
19. Copied by James Mulholland into Joseph Smith’s Letterbook 2, in Selected Collections, vol. 1, DVD 20, pp. 58–59. I am indebted to Dean Jessee for identifying Mulholland as the scribe, and grateful to him for having noted the appended letter from Frederick to Rebecca in Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, 676 n. 7.
20. The term journal has many meanings. One is the recording of events that occur on a journey. Those experiences are often contained in a letter that is subsequently published. This is evidently the meaning given by Oliver Cowdery when he reports news of Parley P. Pratt’s 1834 mission to the East, and quotes a paragraph of his journal in the Evening and Morning Star. “From brother P. Pratt’s journal we learn of the increase of the work in some parts of the state of New-York. Brother Pratt left this place the first of March. . . . While traveling east, he informs us, that he baptized a young man in the town of Freedom.” For the complete text, see “Progress of the Church of the Latter Day Saints,” Evening and Morning Star 2 (May 1834): 157.
22. We do not know the identity of the brother Rebecca was hoping would visit her father. However, it would seem that Joseph Smith himself had visited Isaac Swain earlier, but without success. In the letter President Williams wrote to the brethren in Zion on behalf of the First Presidency, dated October 10, 1833, he indicated that Joseph was then traveling in the vicinity of Niagara, which is near Youngstown. “Presidents Smith and Rigdon are absent on a mission, and we do not expect their return until some time in November. They have gone down the lake to Niagara, from thence they expect to go into Upper Canada, as far as Long Point, and preach in all the most noted places on their way.” History of the Church, 1:418. It may have been on this 1833 trip to Canada that the Prophet visited the Swain family. However, according to Nancy C. Williams, the message of the restored gospel was not received. “They had rejected her testimony and that of her husband and that of the Prophet who, together with other elders on their way to Canada had called at the home of her family upon her request, but had had the door closed to them.” Williams, After 100 Years, 88.
23. The letter is in the Church History Library in Salt Lake City. First published in Williams’s After 100 Years, 200–201, the letter has also been transcribed by Janiece Johnson in her article “‘Give Up All and Follow Your Lord’: Testimony and Exhortation in Early Mormon Women’s Letters, 1831–1839,” BYU Studies 41, no. 1 (2002): 97–102.
33. On the back of the discharge certificate is written “Sylvester Smith Recommend to me Camp of the Saints July 1, 1834,” suggesting perhaps that it was Sylvester Smith who wrote the discharge. The document is found in the Church History Library.
36. Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, Utah: BYU Studies; Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1994), 131.
43. July 28, 1834, “History of George Albert Smith,” 34.
44. Receipt found in the Williams Collection at the Church History Library. On the back of the sheet is written “Expenses from Missouri 1833,” which is evidently a mistake, for on the front side of the note, the final number is clearly a four, “Louisville 28 July 1834,” which date and place coincide exactly with the information found in George A. Smith’s memoirs, quoted above.
47. Shipps and Welch, Journals of William E. McLellin, 140. The editors posit that Williams was returning to Cleveland to check on the cholera victims. “Dearborn Wagon, a light, four-wheeled vehicle with a top and sometimes side curtains, usually pulled by one horse. Long-standing tradition, dating back to 1821, attributes its design to General Henry Dearborn. It usually had one seat but sometimes as many as two or three, and they often rested on wooden springs. The station wagon of its day, from 1819 to 1850 it was in almost universal use in the United States by truck farmers, peddlers, emigrants, and people traveling for pleasure. Those who traveled by it appreciated its respectable appearance and affordability.” “Dearborn Wagon,” Answers.com (Encyclopedia of American History, Answers Corporation, 2006), http://www.answers.com/topic/dearborn-wagon.
