until his death. Clayton also worked as treasurer of the Deseret Telegraph Company and as secretary of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution (ZCMI), a church based cooperative business enterprise. Private ventures included collecting debts, filing land claims, acting as a legal advocate, lending money, merchandising, farming, and mining speculation. Clayton was active in cultural activities in the Salt Lake Valley, particularly those associated with music. He died in Salt Lake City on December 4, 1879. He was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery. Journal and personal records Clayton recorded his daily activities in a series of personal journals. His first journal starts on January 1, 1840 and recounts his experiences as a missionary in Manchester and his migration to America. George Smith, a compiler of Clayton's journals, called it Clayton's "England and Emigration" journal. It is possible that Clayton was inspired by Heber C. Kimball's daily record-keeping. He stopped keeping a personal journal on February 19, 1842, when he started to help with bookkeeping for the Nauvoo temple's construction. Clayton's Nauvoo journals start on November 27, 1842. As Joseph Smith's personal secretary and friend, he attended most meetings, where he often took minutes. Clayton's Nauvoo journals describe how Joseph Smith and others practiced plural marriage before 1843. On July 12, 1843, Joseph Smith dictated his revelation on plural marriage to William Clayton. The journals also describe how Nauvoo functioned independently from the state of Illinois. Clayton recorded activities related to the temple in Heber C. Kimball's journal beginning on December 10, 1845. While Clayton adopted the voice of Kimball in the journal, Smith argued that it should be considered one of Clayton's journals, as it contains his "distinctive style." James B. Allen, Clayton's biographer, argued that this journal should not be considered one of Clayton's journals, on the basis that scribes were frequently employed to keep the journals of church leaders. Clayton's handwriting is not identified in Joseph Smith's History of the Church. However, about 50 entries in the History of the Church use Clayton's diaries as a source, according to Allen. George A. Smith reported using Clayton's notes on Smith's sermons to fill out the text of the sermons, which was difficult because the notes typically only had two or three words per sentence of sermon. Section 129 in the Doctrine and Covenants, on using a handshake to determine the nature of a being claiming to be sent by God,