Mormon Polygamy – Legends of America
Polygamy, or plural marriage, was a controversial practice deeply intertwined with the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), commonly known as the Mormons. For over half a century in the 19th century, it was a clandestine affair, later becoming a publicly acknowledged doctrine from 1852 to 1890. During this period, it is estimated that up to 30% of Mormon families engaged in polygamous relationships. This article delves into the origins, evolution, and eventual abandonment of this practice within the Mormon faith.
The Genesis of Mormonism and Early Polygamy
The Mormon Church was founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith in New York. Smith claimed to have experienced a series of divine visions, one of which led him to discover ancient golden tablets inscribed with a Judeo-Christian history of an ancient American civilization. Translating these plates, he produced the Book of Mormon, which, along with his subsequent revelations, became the cornerstone of Mormon theology.
The doctrine of polygamy, referred to as "plural marriage" by Mormons in the 19th century, is said to have originated in Nauvoo, Illinois, where Joseph Smith established the religious practice in the early 1840s. Smith purportedly received a revelation in 1843 asserting that living "the principle of plural or celestial marriage" was a prerequisite for attaining the fullness of God’s celestial glory in the afterlife.
However, accounts from early converts, including prominent figures like Brigham Young, Orson Pratt, and Lyman Johnson, suggest that Smith was privately teaching about plural marriage as early as 1831 or 1832. These accounts paint a picture of a doctrine initially shrouded in secrecy, gradually revealed to a select inner circle.
Despite these early practices, the Church publicly condemned polygamy, and participants faced excommunication. However, in July 1843, Smith confided in a gathering of his closest followers his desire for the Church to emulate the polygamous marriage practices of Biblical patriarchs such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
William Clayton, Smith’s scribe, documented one such marriage:
"On May 1, 1843, I officiated in the office of an Elder by marrying Lucy Walker to the Prophet Joseph Smith at his own residence. During this period, the Prophet Joseph took several other wives. Amongst the number, I remember Eliza Partridge, Emily Partridge, Sarah Ann Whitney, Helen Kimball, and Flora Woodworth. These all, he acknowledged to me, were his lawful, wedded wives, according to the celestial order. His wife Emma was cognizant of the fact of some, if not all, of these being his wives, and she generally treated them very kindly."
The Martyrdom of Joseph Smith and the Exodus to Utah
Tragedy struck in June 1844 when Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were murdered in a jail cell in Carthage, Illinois. They were awaiting trial on charges related to Smith’s advocacy of polygamy. At the time of his death, Smith was believed to have had as many as 40 wives.
Following Smith’s assassination, his first wife, Emma, publicly denounced plural marriage. She remained in Illinois and joined the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, led by her son, Joseph III, which rejected polygamy.
Meanwhile, Brigham Young assumed leadership of the main body of the Church. In the late 1840s, he led the Mormons westward across the United States, seeking refuge in the Salt Lake Valley in present-day Utah. On August 29, 1852, Young publicly declared the Mormon belief in polygamy as the ideal marriage form in God’s eyes.
"God never introduced the Patriarchal order of marriage with a view to please man in his carnal desires, nor to punish females for anything which they had done; but He introduced it for the express purpose of raising up to His name a royal Priesthood, a peculiar people."
– Brigham Young
During this period, Mormons encouraged polygamous marriages to facilitate the birth of more spirits into the world and ensure that all women had the opportunity to marry. While considered ideal, polygamy was primarily practiced by the wealthier members and high-ranking Church leaders.
Opposition and Legal Battles
From its inception, Mormon polygamy faced strong opposition from the American public and government authorities. The Republican Party platform referred to it as one of the "twin relics of barbarism—polygamy and slavery."
For nearly six decades, the Church and the United States government were at odds. The Mormons defended polygamy as a matter of religious freedom, while the federal government sought to eradicate it, aligning with prevailing public opinion.
Polygamy was a significant factor in the Utah War of 1857 and 1858. In 1862, the United States Congress passed the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act, prohibiting plural marriage in the territories. However, Mormons largely ignored the law, asserting that the First Amendment protected their religious practice.
In 1879, the Supreme Court of the United States upheld the Morrill Act in Reynolds v. United States, stating:
"Laws are made for the government of actions, and while they cannot interfere with mere religious belief and opinion, they may with practices."
The Edmunds-Tucker Act of 1887 further intensified the crackdown, making non-publicly recorded marriages a felony. Federal authorities were authorized to seize personal and Church assets, and entire families went "underground" to avoid imprisonment. Between 1884 and 1895, approximately 1,400 indictments were issued against Mormons, resulting in hundreds of prison sentences.
Mormon men were often stereotyped as fanatics exploiting innocent converts for their "sexual degeneracy," and Mormon missionaries faced attacks in the American South. Many Church leaders went into hiding, and large numbers of Mormons migrated to Colorado, Wyoming, Arizona, Canada, and Mexico.
The Mormon colonies in Mexico served as refuges where polygamous families could live without fear of prosecution. Over several years, thousands of people immigrated to Mexico.
The End of Officially Sanctioned Polygamy
In 1890, recognizing that Utah would not be admitted to the Union while polygamy persisted, Church President Wilford Woodruff issued a Manifesto officially terminating the practice. Utah was subsequently admitted as a state in 1896.
Despite the Manifesto, some Mormons continued to enter into polygamous marriages. These unions were eventually halted in 1904 when Church President Joseph F. Smith (nephew of Joseph Smith) disavowed polygamy before Congress and issued a "Second Manifesto," which mandated the cessation of all plural marriages and established ex-communication as the penalty for disobedience. This action occurred after Senate hearings were opened in January 1904, with Smith seeking to repair the Church’s tarnished reputation. Ironically, Joseph F. Smith himself had six wives and fathered 48 children.
Following this, President Smith traveled to the Mormon colonies in Mexico to reinforce the Manifesto, declaring:
"There are no plural marriages being performed at present in the Church, in Mexico or anywhere else… The Church is upon trial before the Government of the United States, and we must be very careful."
Although the Mexican colonists who had entered into polygamy before 1904 continued to live openly as plural families, no new marriages were to occur. However, the Mexican Revolution of 1910-20 disrupted their ability to live together in cohesive family units, forcing most Mormon colonists to flee north to the United States. In 1912, approximately 4,500 Mormon colonists, including Utah Senator Mitt Romney’s five-year-old father, George, fled their homes in a mass exodus.
Fundamentalist Groups and the Legacy of Polygamy
In the years following the Manifesto, several small "fundamentalist" groups splintered from the main Church, seeking to continue the practice of polygamy. Although members of these groups were excommunicated from the mainstream LDS Church, many of these fundamentalist communities continue to exist.
Today, while members of the main Latter Day Saints Church do not practice polygamy and actively distance themselves from fundamentalist groups that continue the practice, the revelation still appears in section 132 of the Doctrine and Covenants, considered canonized scripture.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated January 2025.
Also See:
- Mormons in the American West
- The Mormon Trail
- Joseph Smith, Jr. – Founder of the Mormon Church
- Brigham Young – Leading the Mormons
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I have strived to create a comprehensive and informative article that provides a balanced perspective on the complex history of Mormon polygamy.