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A Lithograph (photo) of Ann Eliza Young from possibly 1869 to 1875
Ann Eliza Young (née
Webb) (1844 – date unknown) was one of
Brigham Young's fifty-five wives and later a critic of
polygamy and an
American Mormon dissident.
[1] She spoke out against the suppression of women and was an advocate for women's rights during the Nineteenth Century.
[2]
Webb married Brigham Young, the second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), when he was 67 years old and she was a 24-year-old divorcée with two children.[3] Although she later called herself Young's "wife no. 19", and others have referred to her as his "27th wife", she was in fact the 52nd woman to marry Young.[4] She filed for divorce from Young in January 1873, an act which attracted much attention. Her bill for divorce alleged neglect, cruel treatment, and desertion, and claimed that her husband had property worth $8,000,000 and an income exceeding $40,000 a month. (Young countered that he owned less than $600,000 in property and that his income was less than $6000 per month.)[5] She was excommunicated from the LDS Church on 10 October 1874.[4] The divorce was granted in January 1875 and Brigham Young was ordered to pay a $500 per month allowance and $3000 in court fees.[4] When Young initially refused, he was found in contempt of court and sentenced to a day in prison and a $25 fine.[4] The alimony award was later set aside on the grounds that a polygamous marriage was legally invalid.[4]
Evidently, other polygamous wives were not happy either. This was reported by Apostle J. M. Grant on September 21, 1856 in a church sermon. He called for personal blood atonement and rebuked wives for complaining about polygamy. “I would ask how many covenant breakers there are in this city and in this kingdom. I believe that there are a great many and if they are covenant breakers we need a place designated, where we can shed their blood... And we have women here who like anything but the celestial law of God; and if they could break asunder the cable of the Church of Christ, there is scarcely a mother in Israel but would do it this day. And they talk it to their husbands, to their daughters, and to their neighbors, and say they have not seen a week's happiness since they became acquainted with that law [plural marriage], or since their husbands took a second wife. ...Journal of Discourses, vol.4, pp.49-51).[6]
Historically six of Brigham Young’s fifty-five wives were still married to other living husbands, while six other wives were separated or divorced from their husbands. Twenty-one wives had never been married and sixteen were widows. No marital information is available for six other wives. Ten of these wives divorced Brigham Young. For historical preservation and clarification regarding the wives' ages and that the majority (62%) of Brigham's wives were young; their ages at the time of marriage have been broken down: Thirty four ranged from the ages of sixteen (three of them) to twenty-nine, nine ranged from the ages of thirty to forty-four, five from the ages of forty-eight to fifty-nine, and seven wives ranged from the ages of sixty-two to seventy.[7]
Why did Ann Eliza Young write in 1876 a witnessed account of her life as a polygamous wife? She testified that she had “a desire to impress upon the world what Mormonism really is; to show the pitiable condition of its women, held in a system of bondage that is more cruel than African slavery ever was, since it claims to hold body and soul alike…” She also stated “I intend to give a truthful picture of Mormon life…”. A very important point that Young asserts is that the Mormon Church in the beginning, had a beautiful simplicity built upon good principles and the people felt the Spirit of God in their lives. They were happy and enthusiastic. This was before polygamy and Masonry were introduced.[8]
Award-winning LDS historian, D. Michael Quinn presents evidence to confirm the writings of Ann Eliza Young with a historical account that Joseph Smith repented of polygamy and masonry:
D. Michael Quinn’s historical research into the early years of the church found that Joseph Smith repented of polygamy weeks prior to his assassination by burning the original polygamy manuscript with his first wife Emma and telling the Quorum to burn their Masonic temple garments and to stop practicing polygamy. June 10, 1844: “Hyrum (Joseph’s brother) tells Nauvoo City Council that the 1843 revelation pertains to ancient polygamy, not to modern times…” June 20, 1844: “Smith writes the apostles to return to Nauvoo immediately and probably on this occasion, instructs them to destroy their endowment undergarments.” June 23, 1844: “…Joseph and Emma Smith burn the original manuscript of the 1843 polygamy revelation, presumably on this evening…” (Quinn, pg 645 ¶ 6, ¶ 12, pg 646 ¶ 1).
Ann Eliza Young subsequently traveled the United States and spoke out against polygamy, Mormonism, and Brigham Young himself.[9] She testified before the U.S. Congress in 1875; these remarks were credited with contributing to the passage of the Poland Act which reorganized the judicial system of Utah Territory and made it easier for the federal government to prosecute polygamists.[10] In 1876, she published a popular autobiography entitled Wife No. 19.
After her divorce from Young, she married non-Mormon Moses R. Deming.[4] She became estranged from her family, including her children (a grandson told biographer Irving Wallace that neither of her sons had contact with her after they reached early adulthood), and faded into obscurity. An "apostate" from the Mormon church is often separated from family due to threats to church membership for the remaining members. A 1907 article on the 30th anniversary of Young's death updated the public on his then surviving widows and stated that Ann Eliza was divorced again and living in Lansing, Michigan. In 1908, she published a revised version of Wife No. 19 entitled Life in Mormon Bondage. The book received little notice (citation needed), and after its publication, she disappeared from the public eye and the historical record. Neither the date nor the location of her death or her burial place are known.
Her witnessed account was the basis of Irving Wallace's 1962 biography, The Twenty-Seventh Wife, and of David Ebershoff's novel, The 19th Wife, which was published by Random House in August 2008.
Publications
http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781400063970
References
- ^ "Brigham Young's Wives and His Divorce From Ann Eliza Webb". Accessed March 10, 2007.
- ^ Jack B. Cullen. "Ann Eliza Young: A Nineteenth Century Champion of Women's Rights." February 1983.
- ^ "Brigham Young's Wives and His Divorce From Ann Eliza Webb". Accessed March 10, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f Jeffrey Odgen Johnson, “Determining and Defining ‘Wife’ — The Brigham Young Households”, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, vol. 20, no. 3 (Fall 1987) pp. 57-70.
- ^ William Alexander Linn. The Story of the Mormons from the Date of their Origin to the Year 1901. Book VI. Chapter 21: "The Last Years of Brigham Young"
- ^ "Brigham Young's Wives and His Divorce From Ann Eliza Webb". Accessed March 10, 2007.
- ^ "Brigham Young's Wives and His Divorce From Ann Eliza Webb". Accessed March 10, 2007.
- ^ Jack B. Cullen. "Ann Eliza Young: A Nineteenth Century Champion of Women's Rights." February 1983.
- ^ Troy Taylor. Forest Farm House at Old Deseret Salt Lake City, Utah. Accessed March 10, 2007.
- ^ Jack B. Cullen. "Ann Eliza Young: A Nineteenth Century Champion of Women's Rights." February 1983.
- ^ D. Michael Quinn. "The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power" Salt Lake City: Signature Books. 1994.
