Emma Smith to Emma Pilgrim

A letter that Emma Smith Bidamon wrote to Emma Pilgrim in 1870 is often quoted to support the "stone-in-the-hat" (SITH) narrative. In this letter she writes that her husband translated "the first part" "by the use of the Urim and Thummim, and that was the part that Martin Harris lost. after that he used a small stone, not exactly black, but was rather a dark color."

Her claim in this letter contradicts accounts from Joseph Smith, his mother Lucy Mack Smith, Oliver Cowdery (a scribe), Martin Harris (a scribe), David Whitmer (until he changed his story), Joseph's brother Samuel (a scribe), and John Whitmer (another scribe), all of whom said that Joseph used the Urim and Thummim.

Nauvoo March 27 1870

Ms Pilgrim

I acknowledge the receit of a letter from you a long time ago, and will now try to answer it. I should have done so immediately if I had not been called away from home by Joseph, his oldest daughter was very sick with the lung fever, and she was so anxious to see me that her father sent for me when I got there. Emma was better, her fever was checked but she was very weak, but I found my son Alexanders wife just taken with the same fever the day before I got there, and she grew worse for seven days before the fever abated, she was so very bad that Joseph telegraphed to Alexander who was then in Sanfrancisco Cal to come home, and he brought my son David home with him who had been quite sick before they started for home, and I had to stay at Plano a week longer before Alex wife was well enough for me to leave her or David well enough to go home with me, but through God the sick all recovered, through the prayer of faith and the administrations of the ordinances, and good nursing, without being under the painful necessity of calling on a physician. When health was sufficiently restored, I started for my home in Nauvoo bringing David and Emma home with me. 

Now I would not trouble you with this long extent of events, but I feel it is due to you, that you should know what was the cause of my long delay, and also that you may 

know that it has not been willfull neglect or a wicked indifference to the subject of you inquiry as I always feel a peculiar satisfaction in giving all the information on that subject that I can Now the first part that my husband translated was translated by the use of the Urim and Thummim, and that was the part that Martin Harris lost. after that he used a small stone, not exactly black, but was rather a dark color. I can not tell whether that account in the Times and Seasons is correct or not because some one stole all my books and I have none to refer to at present. If I can find one that has that account I will tell you what is true and what is not.

Now you will allow me to call you sister Pilgrim as Joseph called you so, and please write to me again and let me knowhow you will get along and how Mr. Hedrich and Mr. McLelland manages with regard to the Church, do they have any regular Church organisation, or not, and what their moral and religious influence is among the people there.

May God bless you in the [unclear] of your sister in the gospel.

Emma Bidamon

Note: William E. McLellin associated with Granville Hedrick (often misspelled as "Hedrich") during the 1860s and 1870s, though the nature and extent of their association evolved over time. Granville Hedrick was a leader of a small faction within the Latter Day Saint movement, known as the Church of Christ (Temple Lot) or the "Hedrickites," based in Independence, Missouri. McLellin, a former apostle in the early Latter Day Saint church who had been excommunicated in 1838, became involved with various splinter groups after his departure from Joseph Smith’s church, including a brief formal affiliation with Hedrick’s group.

Historical records indicate that McLellin joined Hedrick’s Church of Christ in 1869, though his official membership was short-lived, lasting only about a year or two. Despite this brief formal connection, McLellin maintained a longer, informal association with the Hedrickites into the 1870s. During this period, he lived in Independence, Missouri, where the Hedrickites were centered, and he reportedly acted as an enthusiastic supporter of their efforts to acquire the Temple Lot—a significant piece of land designated by Joseph Smith for a future temple. Media reports from the 1870s describe McLellin as an unofficial "tour guide" for the Temple Lot property, which the Hedrickites purchased between 1867 and 1877, suggesting he was actively engaged with their cause, even if not always as a formal member.

McLellin’s involvement with Hedrick’s group aligns with his broader pattern of seeking a religious community that reflected his continued belief in the Book of Mormon while rejecting many later developments in the church under Joseph Smith and his successors. His association with Hedrick in the 1860s and 1870s, particularly around the Temple Lot, reflects a shared interest in reclaiming early Latter Day Saint ideals, though McLellin’s independent streak and theological differences likely limited the depth of his commitment to Hedrick’s organization. By the time of his death in 1883, McLellin was still in Independence, living near the Hedrickite community, further indicating a sustained, if informal, connection during this timeframe.