The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo

by B. H. Roberts

MEANTIME Commerce had become Nauvoo. The city of Nauvoo was incorporated by act of the legislature of Illinois, on the fourteenth of December, 1840. The charter granted on that date described the boundaries of the city, but gave to the citizens—whom it erected a body corporate and politic—the right to extend the area of the city whenever any tract of land adjoining should have been laid out into town lots and recorded according to law. The city council was to consist of a mayor, four aldermen and nine councilors to be elected by the qualified voters of the city. The first Monday in February was appointed for the first election of officers.

The charter granted to the citizens of Nauvoo the most plenary powers in the management of their local affairs. Indeed, about the only limit placed upon their powers was, that they do nothing inconsistent with the constitution of the United States, and the State constitution of Illinois. But inside of those lines they were all powerful to make and execute such ordinances as in the wisdom of the city council were necessary for the peace, good order, and general welfare of the city. It afterwards became a question in the State as to whether or not powers too great had not been granted the city government—but of that I shall have occasion to speak further on.

The leading men of the State appeared not only willing but anxious to grant the privileges of this city government to the Saints. S. H. Little, of the upper house of the State legislature, especially stood by the Saints, and pleaded for their rights; together with Messrs. Snyder, Ralston, Moore, Ross and Stapp; while Mr. John F. Charles, the representative to the lower house from the district in which Nauvoo was located, manfully discharged his duties to the Nauvoo portion of his constituents, by using all his energy to secure them their city government.

An incident connecting Abraham Lincoln with the passage of this charter may not be without interest. The State of Illinois was at that time divided into two political parties, Whigs and Democrats. Both parties were friendly to the Saints, who considered themselves equally bound to both parties for acts of kindness. Lincoln was a Whig, and in the November election his name was on the State electoral ticket as a Whig candidate for the State legislature. But many of the people of Nauvoo, wishing to divide their vote, and to show a kindness to the Democrats, erased the name of Lincoln, and substituted that of Ralston, a Democrat. It was with no ill feeling, however, towards Mr. Lincoln that this was done, and when the vote was called on the final passage of the Nauvoo charter, he had the magnanimity to vote for it; and congratulated John C. Bennett on his success in securing its enactment.

The Saints rejoiced in the prospects of liberty secured to them by their city government, and of it Joseph said:

I concocted it for the salvation of The Church, and on principles so broad, that every honest man might dwell secure under its protecting influences, without distinction of sect or party.

An inspection of the charter will bear out this opinion of it, for while it was "concocted for the salvation of The Church," it by no means secured that salvation by trespassing upon the rights of others, but by recognizing the rights of the Saints to be equal to the rights of other citizens. Nor was it intended that Nauvoo should be an exclusive city for people of the Mormon faith; on the contrary, all worthy people were invited to come and assist to build it up and partake of its liberty and anticipated prosperity. An official proclamation, issued over the signatures of Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon and Hyrum Smith, who then constituted the First Presidency of The Church, contains the following passage:

We wish it likewise to be distinctly understood, that we claim no privileges but what we feel cheerfully disposed to share with our fellow-citizens of every denomination, and every sentiment of religion; and therefore say, that so far from being restricted to our own faith, let all those who desire to locate in this place (Nauvoo) or the vicinity, come, and we will hail them as citizens and friends, and shall feel it not only a duty, but a privilege to reciprocate the kindness we have received from the benevolent and kind-hearted citizens of the State of Illinois.

And as an earnest of the intention, so far as the Saints were concerned, of carrying out in practice these liberal sentiments and extending equal rights to people of all religious persuasions, among the first acts of the city council was the passage of the following ordinance, introduced by Joseph Smith:

SECTION I. Be it ordained by the city council of the city of Nauvoo that the Catholics, Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists, Latter-day Saints, Quakers, Episcopalians, Universalists, Unitarians, Mohammedans, and all other religious sects and denominations, whatever, shall have free toleration and equal privileges in this city; and should any person be guilty of ridiculing and abusing, or otherwise deprecating another, in consequence of his religion, or of disturbing or interrupting any religious meeting within the limits of this city, he shall, on conviction before the mayor or municipal court, be considered a disturber of the public peace, and fined in any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars, or imprisoned not exceeding six months, or both, at the discretion of said mayor and court.