Alleged Sexual Impropriety between Joseph Smith and

“One single woman”

Source:

Sarah Pratt alleged that Joseph Smith would visit a house of “bad reputation.”

Accusation:

Next door to my house was a house of bad reputation. One single woman lived there, not very attractive. She used to be visited by people from Carthage whenever they came to Nauvoo. Joseph used to come on horseback, ride up to the house and tie his horse to a tree, many of which stood before the house. Then he would enter the house of the woman from the back. I have seen him do this repeatedly.[1]

Discussion:

Joseph Smith’s described shameless openness in this account is surprising. Learning that he would openly “ride up to the house [of bad reputation] and tie his horse to a tree,” then freely enter in order to participate in its illicit activities contrast the extreme secrecy he tried to maintain in dealing with his genuine plural wives.

Also surprising is that Sarah Pratt is the only witness even though he reportedly did this “repeatedly.” It seems likely that such egregious behavior would also have been noticed by other Nauvooans. Almost any Church member might have seen such unconcealed activities and started a rumor that would not have been easy to stifle. Believers would have been disillusioned at his double standard and enemies would have undoubtedly exploited the reports in many ways.

That the Prophet would need to ride his horse to the house is also puzzling. Sarah’s house was not far distant from Joseph Smith’s.[2] At that time, traveling by horseback required the rider to take the horse from the stable and saddle it before riding. That Joseph would have bothered in order to ride a short few blocks seems unlikely. Perplexing also is the description that he would “tie his horse to a tree, many of which stood before the house,” where anyone could see it. Joseph’s horse was known to many Church members and leaving it in plain sight would have sent a message to all passersby that he was inside the house. Also, Pratt’s assertion that, Joseph would tie his horse up in the front of the dwelling by a row of trees, then “enter the house of the woman from the back” makes little sense.

Summary

Sarah Pratt as a witness is problematic in that she made demonstrably false accusations against Joseph Smith. Readers are left to decided if this accusation should be classed similarly.

A number of weaknesses can be identified in the allegation. Multiple internal inconsistencies diminish believability. Significantly, the lack of even one additional witness to the described “repeated” offense is puzzling. Several plausibility problems with Joseph Smith’s described brazen behavior are also striking. Reliable evidences demonstrate that the Prophet implemented strict secrecy when dealing with plural marriage.

[1] Wyl, W., pseud. [Wilhelm Ritter von Wymetal]. Mormon Portraits, or the Truth About Mormon Leaders From 1830 to 1886. Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publishing Co., 1886, 60

[2] Records show that Orson Pratt owned several properties in Nauvoo (Nauvoo block 135, lot 4, Kimball survey, block 13, lot 4, Wells survey block 8, lot 1 and block 9, lot 2; available at http://earlylds.com/index.html, accessed July 30, 2009). Sarah roomed with other families as well in the 1840-1841 period. I have not identified the precise house “next door” to Sarah’s house. However, it could be argued that in light Nauvoo’s small geographic size, (the lower section less than a mile square and the upper section perhaps a third that size) a horse might not have been required to traverse the entire width or length.