Nauvoo, Illinois. George W. Taggart, later a musician in the Mormon Battalion, described the Prophet Joseph Smith as one of the warmest patriots and friends to his country and laws. (1)
[Joseph Smith Diary] Sunday, September 10th 1843 Cold and considerable rain. Kindled a fire in the office for the first time this fall. This is the first rain of any consequence since the first of June. There has been occasional, say 3 or 4 slight showers, but not enough to wet the potato hills and the vegetables in the gardens have generally stopped growing on account of the drouth [drought]. Even [the] corn is seriously injured and much is injured by a worm in the ear. Early potatoes scarce[ly] worth digging. (2)
-- Sep 10, 1843, Sunday
[William Clayton Writings] Sunday 10th. ... In the evening I went to sister Booths (3)
-- Sep 11, 1843
[Anointed Quorum] "in my private room" at the Mansion House a special prayer circle "of the quorum" for William Law's daughter and Emma Smith. Circle participants were Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, William Law, Newel K. Whitney, and Willard Richards . (4)
[Joseph Smith Diary] Monday, September 11th 1843 Early in the morning a petition was presented [to] Lieut[enant] Gen[eral Joseph Smith] to devise means to get the public arms of the state for the Legion. Election for Probate Justice. Weather cold. People cold. Greenleaff received most of the votes in Nauvoo, say 700 votes. Before noon L[i]eut[enant] General granted the petition and appointed W[illiam] W. Phelps, Henry Miller, and Hosea Stout a committee to wait on Governor Ford.
6 P.M. Joseph, Hyrum, W[illia]m Law, N[ewel] K. Whitney and Willard had a season of prayer in Joseph's east room New House for Laws little daughter who was sick and Emma who was some better. Woodworth very humble 3 or 4 days &c. (2)
Nauvoo, Illinois. Joseph Smith appointed William W. Phelps, Henry Miller, and Hosea Stout to wait on Thomas Ford, governor of Illinois, to obtain public firearms for the Nauvoo Legion. (5)
[Lucy Mack Smith] Joseph and his associates pray for Emma's health. (6)
[Polygamy] The endowed quorum meets for prayer. (7)
-- Sep 12, 1843
[Apostle Wilford Woodruff Journal] Sept 12th I left Boston at 5 oclock in the express train of cars for Portland and about 10 oclock while passing through the Chesterwoods 6 miles south of Kennebunk the engine was thrown from the track in consequence of a rail being raised 8 inches by some designing miscrant. The force was such that It drove the engine about 5 rods ahead and smashed it to peaces with the Baggage cars piled [on] top of it & the first passengers cars followed in its train & mounted the pile and instantly killed /about 8 feet high throwing the passen[gers?] [--]/.
One Lady was brused but not dangerous, another was slightly injured. The lives of many were in danger, & it seemed a mystery that so little injury comparatively was done. Four cars were filled with passengers & had not the force been broaken by the baggage cars many lives would have been lost. The Baggage car soon was on fire which was with difficulty extinguished. The fireman was thrown about 3 rods & escaped with a slight injury. But the engineer Mr Adams from Portland was buried beneath the pile & instantly Killed. The ruins had to be removed before the body of the enigneer could be obtained. He has left a wife & one child to mourn his loss. No blame Could possibly be attached to him as the rail was raised in such a manner that no warning was given untill the engine & Baggage car was a pile of ruins.
Mr Thomas Hall opened his house for the reception of the passengers & much praise is due to the whol household for the attention that was paid them. I spent most of the night here in the woods & got chilled through. They sent to Portland for another engine, which arived in time to take us to portland in the morning. (8)
Wilford Woodruff writes that on a train "after dark, and while going at full speed, we struck one of the rails which some persons had raised by rolling a log under it, and landed in a pile; three cars were filled with passengers, and their lives were saved by having a long train of freight between the passenger cars and the engine; all of them were mashed to pieces; the engineer was killed, some of the passengers had bones broken; I escaped unhurt." (9)
Footnotes:
1 - BYU Studies Journal, volume 46, no. 4: A Chronology of the Life of Joseph Smith, http://byustudies.byu.edu
2 - Faulring, Scott (ed.), An American Prophet's Record: The Diaries and Journals of Joseph Smith: Joseph Smith Diary, 1843-44, http://amzn.to/jsdiaries
3 - Fillerup, Robert C., compiler; William Clayton Nauvoo Diaries and Personal Writings, A chronological compilation of the personal writings of William Clayton while he was a resident of Nauvoo, Illinois. http://www.boap.org/LDS/Early-Saints/clayton-diaries
4 - Quinn, D. Michael, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, Signature Books, 1994, Appendex: Meetings and Initiations of the Anointed Quorum, 1842-45, http://amzn.to/originsofpower
5 - Joseph Smith Resource Center: Daily Events in the Life of Joseph Smith, http://josephsmith.net/josephsmith/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=e581001cfb340010VgnVCM1000001f5e340aRCRDlocale=0
6 - Anderson, Lavina Fielding, Editor, Lucy's Book: A Critical Edition of Lucy Mack Smith's Family Memoir
, 2001, Signature Books, http://bit.ly/lucys-book7 - Hales, Brian C., Joseph Smith's Polygamy: History and Theology, 2 vols., Salt Lake City: Greg Kofford Books, 2011 (www.JosephSmithsPolygamy.com)
8 - Wilford Woodruff's Journal: 1833-1898 Typescript, Volumes 1-9, Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books 1993, http://bit.ly/wwjournal
9 - On This Day in Mormon History, http://onthisdayinmormonhistory.blogspot.com
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