Item Detail
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MSS SC 1060
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James W. Woods Memoirs
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Woods, James Weston
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1882
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Photocopied typescript of an autobiography. In 1882 when Woods was "upwards of eighty years of age" he was interviewed for several weeks probably by Edgar R. Harlan with a stenographer present who wrote down the conversations. These materials were later condensed and pertinent portions were woven into a narrative. As a lawyer in Iowa, Woods was involved in many legal actions of that state. Woods was hired by Joseph Smith (1805-1844) to serve as his counselor when he and his brother Hyrum (1800-1844) were arrested in June of 1844. He tried to negotiate bail for Joseph and Hyrum for their safety. Joseph told Woods "I will never live to see another sun" on the day he and Hyrum were murdered. Woods spoke to the people of Nauvoo, Illinois, to keep them from retaliating, brought the bodies of the two men back to Nauvoo, and delivered the personal effects of Joseph to his widow.