“The repeal of our city charter has left us without police and men are taking advantage... and are coming here for the purpose of stealing.” — George A. Smith¹

The Whistling and Whittling Brigade in Nauvoo was a group of young boys who used simple tactics to protect the community after the Nauvoo Charter was revoked in 1845. Hosea Stout, the former Chief of Police in Nauvoo, is reported to have conceived the idea for the Whistling and Whittling Brigade. Armed with knives, the brigade would surround strangers, especially those deemed suspicious, and follow them while whistling and whittling. This passive yet intimidating strategy aimed to encourage outsiders to leave the city without confrontation. The brigade became an informal method of maintaining order during a period when Nauvoo lacked formal law enforcement.^2,3

1. Memoirs of George A. Smith, circa 1860-1882, MS 1322, Church History Library

2. Thurmon Dean Moody, “Nauvoo's Whistling and Whittling Brigade,” BYU Studies, Vol. 15, No. 4

3. Susan McCloud, “Whistlers and whittlers — boys of Nauvoo organized to protect the Prophet Joseph,” Deseret News, May 30, 2015