Ashwin Lewis
Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, is thought to have had between 30 and 40 wives, some as young as 14. While it was not unheard of for 14-year-old girls to marry in the 19th century, Smith was in his late 30s when he married Helen Mar Kimball, who is thought to have been his youngest bride.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of wives | Between 30 and 40 |
| Number of teenage wives | 6 |
| Number of 14-year-old wives | 2: Helen Mar Kimball and Nancy Winchester |
| Age difference with teenage wives | On average, 6.6 years older |
| Consummation of marriage with Helen Mar Kimball | Unclear |
| Normal for 14-year-olds to marry in the 1840s | No |
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What You'll Learn
Joseph Smith married 30-40 wives, some as young as 14
Joseph Smith (1805–1844), the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, taught and practised religious polygamy, termed "plural marriage". He is estimated to have married between 30 and 40 women throughout his lifetime. Smith and some of the top leaders of the church he founded publicly denied that he taught or practised polygamy. However, in 1852, leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) publicly acknowledged that Smith had practised plural marriage and produced a statement from Smith, claiming it was a revelation from God authorising its practice.
Smith's first plural wife was Fanny Alger, whom he met in 1833 when she stayed at the Smith home as a house assistant. Smith's other wives included Louisa Beaman and several women who were already married. Smith's lawful widow, Emma Smith, his son Joseph Smith III, and most members of the Community of Christ attempted to refute the evidence of plural marriages, pointing to Smith's public statements opposing polygamy.
Smith's wives also included teenage girls as young as 14 years old. One of them was Helen Mar Kimball, the daughter of LDS apostle Heber C. Kimball. Helen wrote about how her marriage to Smith was orchestrated by her father:
> "Having a great desire to be connected with the Prophet, Joseph, he (my father) offered me to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet's own mouth. My father had but one Ewe Lamb, but willingly laid her upon the altar: how cruel this seemed to my mother whose heartstrings were already stretched until they were ready to snap asunder, for she had already taken Sarah Noon to wife and she thought she had made sufficient sacrifice but the Lord required more."
Helen Mar Kimball was 14 when she was married to Smith, and she is reported to have said that she had sex with him. However, historian Todd Compton criticised Jerald and Sandra Tanner for using his book to argue for sexual relations, stating that there is no evidence of sexuality in the marriage. Compton suggested that, following the later practice in Utah, there may not have been any sexuality in the marriage.
Another of Smith's wives, Maria Winchester, was either 14 or 15 years old. While there is little information about Winchester, some have concluded that Smith had sexual relations with his teenage brides, as this would have been considered proper given that they were married with their consent and the consent of their parents.
While Smith's plural marriages may seem shocking today, such age differences were not typically an obstacle to marriage in his time. The information we have on Smith's plural marriages is limited, as few official records were kept due to the fear of misunderstanding and persecution. Most of what we know comes from journals and accounts of those involved.
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Helen Mar Kimball was 14 when she married Smith
Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, was a polygamist, with estimates of his number of wives ranging from 30 to 40. One of these wives was Helen Mar Kimball, who was 14 years old when she married Smith. Kimball was born in 1828 and was 14 when she was sealed to the 37-year-old Smith in May 1843. Her father, Heber C. Kimball, an LDS apostle, officiated the wedding.
Kimball's marriage to Smith has been a subject of controversy, particularly regarding her age. In her later years, Kimball became a vigorous defender of polygamy and wrote several pamphlets praising the practice. However, she initially despised the concept, stating that she "hated polygamy with [her] heart." Kimball's father, a close friend of Smith's, also played a role in arranging the marriage, which he claimed would link their families in heaven. Kimball wrote about her father's motivations:
> "Having a great desire to be connected with the Prophet, Joseph, he (my father) offered me to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet's own mouth. My father had but one Ewe Lamb, but willingly laid her upon the altar: how cruel this seemed to my mother whose heartstrings were already stretched until they were ready to snap asunder, for she had already taken Sarah Noon to wife and she thought she had made a sufficient sacrifice but the Lord required more."
While some sources suggest that Smith and Kimball had sexual relations, historian Todd Compton argues that there is no evidence of this. Compton suggests that, following later practices in Utah, there may have been no sexuality in the marriage.
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Was it normal to marry 14-year-olds in the 1800s?
Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, is said to have married an estimated 30 to 40 women throughout his lifetime. One of his wives, Helen Mar Kimball, was 14 years old when they married. Helen was the youngest of Smith's wives, and according to her, they did have sexual relations.
While it is difficult to ascertain the exact age of people at marriage in the 1800s due to limited records, it is suggested that marriage in the early to mid-teens was rare but not unheard of. For instance, Lady Margaret Beaufort, the mother of Henry VII, was either 12 or 14 when she married Edmund Tudor. Additionally, in the 1850 census, a 1% random sample of individuals showed that 41.7% of women married as teenagers, with a mean age of 22.5 years.
In the second half of the 19th century, Scottish women were, on average, about half a year older at marriage than English and Welsh women. In North America, the median age at menarche (first menstruation) was 12.5 years in 1888, and girls typically entered puberty between the ages of 8 and 13. However, it is important to note that the age of puberty and menarche does not necessarily indicate the age at which marriage or sexual activity was considered normal or acceptable.
While marriage at a young age was not unheard of, it is important to consider the cultural and societal norms of the time. For example, Laura Ingalls Wilder, born in 1867, expressed shock at hearing about the marriage of a 13-year-old girl, implying that it was not considered acceptable within her community. Similarly, her parents asked her to wait until she was 18 to marry, even though she got engaged at 17.
In conclusion, while there were instances of teenagers marrying in the 1800s, it is challenging to determine whether it was "normal" due to limited records and varying cultural norms. However, it appears that marriage at a young age was not the norm, and the majority of women married after the age of 20.
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Was Joseph Smith a paedophile?
Joseph Smith (1805–1844), the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, practised religious polygamy, termed "plural marriage", marrying an estimated 30 to 40 wives throughout his lifetime. Some sources place the number of wives at 49. Smith and some of the top leaders of the church he founded publicly denied he taught or practised polygamy. However, in 1852, leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) publicly acknowledged that Smith had practised plural marriage.
Smith's wives included several teenagers, two of whom were 14: Helen Mar Kimball and Nancy Winchester. Helen Mar Kimball was the daughter of LDS apostle Heber C. Kimball, who officiated the wedding of his underage daughter to Smith. Helen was the youngest of Smith's brides. According to Helen, he had sex with her. In her journal, she wrote about how her marriage to Smith was orchestrated by her father:
> "Having a great desire to be connected with the Prophet, Joseph, he (my father) offered me to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet's own mouth. My father had but one Ewe Lamb, but willingly laid her upon the altar: how cruel this seemed to my mother whose heartstrings were already stretched until they were ready to snap asunder, for she had already taken Sarah Noon to wife and she thought she had made sufficient sacrifice but the Lord required more."
Some have argued that it was normal for girls as young as 14 to be married in the 19th century. For example, in Romeo and Juliet, Juliet is only 13 when she marries Romeo. In medieval and early modern European societies, the age of marriage was even lower, with documented cases of brides as young as seven years old. However, others have disputed this claim, arguing that census data shows that girls getting married at 16 or younger was extremely rare, and that marriage between older men and teenage girls was not common in America during this time.
While it is clear that Smith married underage girls, there is no evidence that he had sex with pre-pubescent children. Therefore, it is unclear whether he meets the definition of a paedophile.
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Were the marriages consummated?
Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, is known to have practiced polygamy, marrying an estimated 30 to 40 women throughout his lifetime. Two of these wives, Helen Mar Kimball and Nancy Winchester, were 14 years old at the time of their marriages. While it is unclear whether Smith consummated these marriages, Helen Mar Kimball wrote that Smith had sex with her. In her journal, Kimball recounted how her father offered her to Smith, and how her mother had already taken another of Smith's wives and thought she had made a sufficient sacrifice.
The question of whether Smith consummated his marriages to underage girls is a highly controversial one. Some critics argue that Smith's marriages to young girls were improper and reflect negatively on his character. Others, such as historian Todd Compton, argue that there is no evidence of sexuality in these marriages and suggest that they may have followed the later Utah practice of not including sexuality.
It is important to consider the cultural and historical context of Smith's marriages. While it was not unheard of for 14-year-old girls to marry in the 19th century, it was rare for them to marry men in their late 30s, as Smith was. Census data from the time shows that girls marrying under the age of 16 was extremely rare, and such marriages would likely have been considered scandalous. However, it is worth noting that the cultural norms and attitudes towards marriage and sexuality have changed significantly since the 1800s.
The lack of official records from the time due to the fear of misunderstanding and persecution makes it difficult to definitively determine whether Smith's marriages to 14-year-old girls were consummated. The information we have today is primarily based on journals and personal accounts, which may be biased or incomplete. As such, the question of consummation remains a matter of ongoing debate and speculation.
In conclusion, while it is known that Joseph Smith married multiple underage girls, including 14-year-olds Helen Mar Kimball and Nancy Winchester, there is no conclusive evidence to determine whether these marriages were consummated. The historical and cultural context, as well as the limited records from the time, contribute to the ongoing debate surrounding this controversial aspect of Smith's life.
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Frequently asked questions
It is unclear whether Joseph Smith had sexual relations with 14-year-old girls. One source claims that Smith had sexual relations with Helen Mar Kimball, who was 14 at the time of their marriage, while historian Todd Compton refutes this claim, stating that there is no evidence of any sexuality in the marriage.
Joseph Smith is estimated to have had between 30 and 40 wives, with some sources placing the number at 34 or 49.
While teen marriage was not uncommon in the 19th century, census data shows that girls getting married at 16 years old or younger was extremely rare. It was also rare for a man over 35 to marry someone so young.
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