Joseph Smith’s Alleged Sexual Involvement with Non-Wives

Several writers have accused Joseph Smith of sexual involvement with women to whom he was not married. By the Prophet’s own teachings, such relations would have been considered to be adulterous unions (D&C 42:22-24, 63:14-19, 132:43).

1. The twenty-four accusations are from thirteen different reporters. Their statements published elsewhere establish them as possessing anti-Mormon biases.[1]

Such observations do not categorically eliminate the possibility that they were telling the truth, which is why none of their claims has been ignored. Every allegation I have been able to identify in the historical record has been included. It is curious that more objective manuscript sources are not available to corroborate at least a few of the allegations.

2. All twenty-four allegations are from published accounts, rather than from private journals, diaries, or letters from alleged victims or their immediate families. That is, none exist as part of a confidential communication between a victim and her family or her friends or as a diary reference. It appears that each accusation came to light purposefully, in order to disparage Joseph Smith.

3. None of the accusers provide a second witness, even though many of the charges reportedly involved multiple alleged indiscretions that could have easily been witnessed by other interested parties.

4. Joseph Smith’s reported brazenness in many of the account contradicts known behaviors. Available historical accounts suggest that when dealing with his polygamous wives, he always emphasized and maintained confidentiality. To his plural wife Sarah Whitney and her parents, he stressed the need for secrecy: “Only be careful to escape observation, as much as possible. I know it is a heroic undertaking… Burn this letter as soon as you read it; keep all locked up in your breasts, my life depends upon it.”[2] After teaching Joseph B. Noble of plural marriage, Joseph said: “In revealing this to you, I have placed my life in your hands.”[3] To Mary Elizabeth Rollins he asked if she “was going to be a traitor?”[4] Emily Dow Partridge remember that regarding plural marriage in Nauvoo: “Everything was so secret.”[5]

In all known research documents, caution and secrecy were maintained and appear to have guided his personal interactions that dealt with marriage and sexuality.

5. In summary, I have yet to identify any convincing evidence in historical record that Joseph Smith was sexually involved with a non-wife.

Click the woman's name for an analysis of the accusation.

	*Woman or Women reportedly involved*	*Year of alleged incident*	*Accuser*	*Year allegation was first published*
1	Eliza Winters	1827-1829	Levi Lewis allegedly quoting Martin Harris	1834
2	Josiah Stowell Daughters	1830	Dan Vogel	2002
3	“a certain woman”	1829-30	William Bond	1890
4	Marinda Nancy Johnson	1832	Clark Braden	1884
5	Vienna Jacques	1833	Nancy Smith Alexander	1886?
6	Athalia and Nancy Rigdon	1837	Richard Van Wagoner	1994
7	Lucinda Pendleton Harris	1838	Sarah Pratt via Wilhelm Wyl	1885
8	Presendia Huntington Buell	1839	Mary Ettie Coray Smith	1860
9	Marinda Nancy Johnson (again)	1839	William Hall	1852
10	Clarissa Reed Hancock	1840	Fawn Brodie	1945
11	“Miss Smith”	1840	Benjamin Winchester	1900
12	Mrs. Fuller	1842	John C. Bennett	1842
13	Melissa Schindle and Widow Fuller
14	Emeline White
15	Widow Miller
16	Jane Law	1842	William Hall	1851
17	Julia Murdock (Joseph and Emma’s adopted daughter)	1884	Clark Braden	1884
18	“girl name of Knight”	1884	Clark Braden	1884
19	“Mrs. Edward Blossom”	1886	Wilhelm Wyl	1886
20	“Mrs. Ford”
21	an unidentified woman
22	“One single woman”		Sarah Pratt via Wilhelm Wyl
23	Elizabeth Ann Whitney
24	Mrs. White

[1] It is possible that I have missed specific allegations of sexual involvement of Joseph Smith with women to whom he was not married. Should any additional accounts come to light, they will be included in any further editions.

[2] Joseph Smith, Jr., to Newel K. Whitney, Elizabeth Ann Whitney, etc., 18 August 1842, copy of holograph in possession of the author. The text and the signature of this document are in the handwriting of Joseph Smith, Jr. This document has been reproduced in Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Co., 1984), pp. 539-40.

[3] Joseph B. Noble in Joseph F. Smith Affidavit Books, 1:38, 1869, CA MS 3423 fd 5.

[4] Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner, Address given at BYU, April 14, 1905, HBLL, BYU.

[5] Emily D. P. Young “Incidents of the life of a Mormon Girl,” n.d. MS d 5220 fd 2, CA. Sometime after the Prophet’s assassination, his plural wives became aware of each other, forming personal friendships that probably did not exist in Nauvoo because of the clandestine nature of polygamy practiced there. On April 28, 1886, Emily wrote to fellow plural wife Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner: “Of course you heard of my sister Eliza’s death. Also sister Marinda Hyde’s death, Desdamony Fulmer has passed away also, all went pretty near together. It seems as if Joseph was calling his family home.” (Emily Dow Partridge Young to Mary Elizabeth Lightner, April 28, 1886, copy of holograph in LKNC, Marriott Library, University of Utah.)