Joseph Smith

Second edition of Joseph Smith's Book of Doctrine, the seminal religious text of the Mormon religion.

• Joseph Smith (American).
• Cincinnati: The Publishing Committee of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1864.
• (iv) 335 pages., complete, with the original blank endleaves.
• Bound in full contemporary red leather, elaborate gilt paneled covers and spine, all edges gilt.

Exceedingly scarce. RBH and ABPC records only one very worn copy appearing at auction in 2008. The first edition was published by the Reorganized Church, a division of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints protesting against the doctrine of polygamy adopted by the Utah Church in 1852, and organized in April, 1860, when Joseph Smith, son of the prophet, was called to the presidency. The publication was authorized by the General Conference held in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, October 6–9, 1863, and copyrighted in the Southern District of Ohio by Joseph Smith and Israel L. Rogers in 1864. The revelations in this edition were rearranged in a more exact order of date, 1828–1842, the exceptions being the preface and appendix, both of 1831. A table of contents in the order of this edition is followed by an index in the order of the former publications, pp. iii–vi. The Lectures on Faith come first, pp. 1–62; then follow the revelations in 110 numbered sections, two of which are additions; and the volume closes with the three articles, one on marriage, one on governments and laws in general, and the last an account of the martyrdom of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum in 1844, numbered as sections 111, 112, 113, the latter ending on p. 335, the reverse blank. The additions are section 22, Revelation to Joseph Smith, Jr., given June, 1830, being the words of God which he spake unto Moses, pp. 105–108; and section 36, Extract from the prophecy of Enoch, pp. 127–134.

This edition served the Reorganized Church for many years, until new plates were made in 1897. The Cincinnati stereotype plates were stored in the office of the “Saints’ Herald” at Plano, which was removed to Lamoni in October, 1881, and whenever the stock of books ran low, more were printed from the old plates. New title pages were occasionally substituted, (1) Plano, 1880; (2) Lamoni, 1880, so dated, but really printed in or after 1882; and (3) Lamoni, 1894. Supplementary pages of later revelations as described below, were added in 1880, 1882 or later, 1887, 1890 and 1894, and bound with the books issued subsequently to those dates. These new pages were also printed separately and sent to subscribers of the “Saints’ Herald,” and by request to others, for pasting in their copies of the book.