“He may be delivered from prisons, from the power of his enemies, and from the adversary of all righteousness.” — Oliver Cowdery¹

Parley P. Pratt, while on a mission to New York, wrote "A Voice of Warning," the 19th century's most important Latter-day Saint missionary tract.² In April 1838, he moved to Far West, Missouri, where he faced severe persecution.³ After a skirmish at Crooked River, he was captured and imprisoned in Independence, Richmond, and Columbia, enduring harsh conditions. In April 1839 some of the Twelve Apostles met and finished consecrating the foundation of the Far West temple.⁴ Later, Pratt orchestrated a daring escape in July 1839.⁵

Parley Parker Pratt served as a recruiting officer in Zion’s Camp and was ordained an apostle in 1835.² While on a mission to New York, he wrote “A Voice of Warning,” the most important Latter-day Saint missionary tract of the nineteenth century.³ In 1838, he returned to Missouri, where he faced severe persecution. After the battle of Crooked River, he was captured and imprisoned in Richmond and Columbia. Pratt orchestrated a daring escape from his imprisonment in July 1839.

1. Blessing to Parley P. Pratt, 21 February 1835, josephsmithpapers.org

2. “Pratt, Parley Parker,” josephsmithpapers.org

3. “A Voice of Warning (1837),” churchofjesuschrist.org

5. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 29, 343; Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 30, 357-358; Alexander L. Baugh, "Parley P. Pratt's Missouri Imprisonment," Pioneer Magazine, Fall 2015, archive.org; The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, 271-289, archive.org