Smith Family Women

Joseph Smith grew up in a family with strong-willed women. Among those are two who left some notable records of the early Church, particularly Lucy Mack Smith (his mother) and Katharine Smith Salisbury (his sister). Two recent posts at the Latter-day Saint history site From the Desk discuss these two Smith family women and their legacies. What follows here is a co-post to these other two posts.

Joseph Smith’s mother, Lucy Mack Smith, was a powerful woman and held a place of respect in the early Church. As Sharalyn Howcroft explained,

Lucy Mack Smith’s place in the tapestry of Latter-day Saint history is perhaps best expressed in a blessing Wilford Woodruff bestowed upon her following the deaths of her sons Hyrum, Joseph, and Samuel. Calling her “the greatest Mother in Israel,” Woodruff told her she would be held “in honorable remembrance forever in the Congregations of the righteous.”

Lucy Mack Smith also shared her memories of the Latter Day Saint movement’s early days, which became an important historical source:

She partnered with Martha Jane Coray, a “rapid and lucid writer” who had a penchant for preserving notes of sermons from prominent church leaders, to compile a history, entitled, “The History of Joseph Smith by His Mother”.

The history predominantly followed incidences in the life of her son and incorporated selections from Joseph Smith’s history, Smith family correspondence, and documents, with episodic dictations from Lucy about Mack and Smith family members, including key events in Joseph’s life that were recorded nowhere else.

Lucy completed the history by spring 1845 and it became an anchor for Latter-day Saint religious identity for generations to come.

While titled “the History of Joseph Smith”, her record was really a Smith family history. She recorded the experiences of her other children as part of her narrative: 

When typhus fever raged through Lebanon, New Hampshire, in the winter of 1812-1813, all the Smith children in turn succumbed to the illness.

Although most readers of Latter-day Saint history are aware of Joseph’s fever and the gruesome leg operation that shortly followed, the acute illness of his sister, Sophronia, and the undaunted faith Lucy showed during the episode is generally marginalized and forgotten.

Lucy Mack Smith soberly recounted how Sophronia laid motionless exhibiting signs of her encroaching death, while she and her husband Joseph Sr. pled with God to spare Sophronia’s life; they received a testimony that she would recover.

Upon receiving this witness, Lucy tenderly gathered Sophronia in her arms and began pacing the floor. Others in the room protested at how seemingly futile her maternal gestures were. Her child had stopped breathing.

Lucy continued to pace the floor, her sights fixed upon the promise she received from God, until Sophronia sobbed. Lucy laid her on her bed, “completely overpowered” by her intense emotions.

In composing her history, Lucy included stories about family members other than Joseph Smith II.

Of course, for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, one persistent question that is asked is, why did Lucy Mack Smith not come west? Sharalyn Howcroft shared some insights on that question:

She longed to be among the Saints but her ill health and the influence of others had apparently hindered her travel west. As Lucy’s health continued to decline, she moved from the Smith farm on the outskirts of Nauvoo to the Mansion House and became completely bedridden. “She appeared somewhat fearful of death at a little while before he came,” reflected her grandson, Joseph Smith III, “yet appeared resigned afterwards.”

Lucy Mack Smith died on the morning of 14 May 1856 holding his hand.

A variety of circumstances prevented her from making the effort to move west. Prominent among these were that most of her family remained in Illinois and her desire to stay in Nauvoo where her husband and children were buried.

The life of Katharine Smith Salisbury gives further insight into why Lucy and other Smith family members stayed behind. Kyle R. Walker shared a bit about who she was in his discussion at From the Desk:

Katharine Smith Salisbury was the longest-surviving member of the Joseph Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith family, passing away at the age of eighty-six, on February 2, 1900. Her longevity meant that she, unlike her two sisters, had ample opportunity to record her history—including a cache of letters, interviews, and recorded speeches that help document her remarkable life.

She is one of a small cluster of first-generation female members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for whom a full-length biography can be written. Thus, Katharine’s recollections, despite most coming later in life, contribute to our appreciation of women’s lived experience and contributions in the early church, as well as enriching our understanding of the founding family of the Restoration.

Among those recollections are explanations as to why so much of the Smith family remained behind when Brigham Young and his followers moved west:

Katharine’s recollections are also critical in understanding the views of Smith family members as to why they did not follow Brigham Young’s leadership after the year 1846.

William Smith, the only surviving male member of the Smith family after the summer of 1844, had a profound influence on his sisters, including his advocating for lineal succession after his own clash with leaders at Nauvoo in the year 1845. Nowhere is William’s teachings and influence on his siblings more evident than in the surviving writings of Katharine and her posterity.

However, unlike William’s persisting hostility towards the Mountain Saints, Katharine’s attitude towards those in the West softened during the final decades of her life. More so than any of her siblings, Katharine maintained positive exchanges with church leaders in Salt Lake Valley—as well as with her Smith nephews as they crisscrossed through Illinois during their missionary travels.

Those documented interactions fill important gaps in the historical record, resulting in a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between surviving Smith family members in the Midwest and church leaders in the West during the second half of the nineteenth century.

Katharine would go on to participate in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and “was afforded privileges that were denied other women of her day, including speaking at the Church’s general conference and sitting on the stand at RLDS district meeting.”

Both Joseph Smith’s sister Katharine and Joseph Smith’s mother Lucy are notable for their matriarchal roles in the early Church and the extensive records they left behind of the founding of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. For more on each of these remarkable women, head on over to the Latter-day Saint history blog From the Desk to read more.