Introduction

The first of these was a six-page autobiographical narrative intended to be a history of his life and “an account of the rise of the Church,” but it was abruptly discontinued evidently when a new plan for the history was conceived. It was written most probably between February and November 1832 on three leaves that were later cut from the ledger book that contained them. This 1832 narrative contains the earliest known account of Joseph‘s First Vision and the only account in his own handwriting. In the transcription that follows, the bold-faced type indicates the portions of the document written in the Prophet’s handwriting. The remainder is in the handwriting of his secretary, Frederick G. Williams. Underlining is reproduced from the original document. Editorial marks include angle brackets < > to indicate above-the-line insertions. Strikeouts are show by strike-outs. Brackets [ ] indicate editorial comments.