Helen Mar Kimball (August 22, 1828 – November 13, 1896) was one of 30 to 40 plural wives of
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...
, founder of the
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...
. She was
sealed in marriage to him when she was 14 years old. After
his death when she was 16, she married Horace Whitney "for time"; Whitney was the brother of another of Smith's wives. She bore eleven children with Whitney, the first three of whom died at, or soon after, birth. Their son,
Orson F. Whitney
Orson Ferguson Whitney (1 July 1855 – 16 May 1931), born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1906 until his death.
Early life ...
, became an
apostle
An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
in
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
(LDS Church).
Biography
Early life
Kimball was born in
Mendon, New York
Mendon is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Monroe County, New York, United States, and has been ranked as the most affluent suburb of the Rochester, New York, city of Rochester. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 United S ...
, as the third of nine children born to
Heber C. Kimball
Heber Chase Kimball (June 14, 1801 – June 22, 1868) was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. He served as one of the original twelve apostles in the early Church of the Latter Day Saints, and as first counselor to Brigham Young ...
and Vilate Murray. She was the only daughter to survive, and grew up being very close to her younger brother, William. As the only daughter, she was somewhat pampered by her parents . Kimball was three years old when her parents were baptized into the
Latter Day Saint church in 1832. Kimball's family moved from Mendon to the church headquarters at
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and is the site of the movement's first t ...
, in the fall of 1833. When her father was called to be a church
apostle
An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
in 1835, he was required to travel on missions and be away from home for significant lengths of time .
Kimball was baptized by
Brigham Young
Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...
in the
Chagrin River
The Chagrin River is located in Northeast Ohio. The river has two branches, the Aurora Branch and East Branch. Of three hypotheses as to the origin of the name, the most probable is that it is a corruption of the name of a Frenchman, Sieur de Seg ...
during the winter when the river was frozen over. In order for her to be baptized, her father had to cut a hole in the ice. Kimball later wrote that she was not bothered by the cold water because she had "longed for this privilege" and that she "felt no cold or inconvenience from it" .
In 1838, the Kimball family moved from Kirtland to
Far West, Missouri
Far West was a settlement of the Latter Day Saint movement in Caldwell County, Missouri, United States, during the late 1830s. It is recognized as a historic site by the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, added to the register in 1970. It ...
, to join church members moving there. Their arrival in Far West occurred soon after the
Battle of Crooked River
The Battle of Crooked River was a skirmish between Latter Day Saints forces and a Missouri state militia unit from southeast of Elmira, Missouri, in Ray County; the militia was under the command of Samuel Bogart. The battle was one of the prin ...
, and tensions between the
Mormons
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
and Missouri residents were beginning to reach a peak.
In early 1839, the family was forced to leave Missouri as a result of the
Extermination Order issued by Governor
Lilburn Boggs. As they left during the middle of winter, Kimball remembered how they had to keep walking in order to avoid freezing . The family eventually arrived in the town of Commerce, Illinois, which later was renamed as the city of
Nauvoo. Kimball's father eventually built a house in Nauvoo near the
temple lot
The Temple Lot, located in Independence, Missouri, is the first site to be dedicated for the construction of a temple in the Latter Day Saint movement. The area was dedicated on August 3, 1831, by the movement's founder, Joseph Smith Jr., and p ...
. Her father enjoyed rising importance within church leadership and became a very close associate of Smith.
Marriage to Joseph Smith
According to Kimball, her father wanted to improve his standing by making a link between his family and the family of Joseph Smith .
Scholar
Todd Compton
Todd Merlin Compton (born 1952) is an American historian in the fields of Mormon history and classics. Compton is a respected authority on the plural wives of the LDS Church founder, Joseph Smith.
Biographical background
Compton is a member of ...
has described the reason for the marriage as follows:
The prophet's marriage to her seems to have been largely dynastic—a union arranged by Joseph and Heber to seal the Kimball family to a seer, church president, and presiding patriarchal figure of the dispensation of the fullness of times .
In the spring of 1843, when Helen was 14 years old, her father described the doctrine of
plural marriage
Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more tha ...
to her. He asked if she would consent to be "sealed to Joseph" . Helen described her reaction to this proposition:
My father was the first to introduce it to me, which had a similar effect to a sudden shock of a small earthquake. When he found (after the first outburst of displeasure for supposed injury) that I received it meekly, he took the first opportunity to introduce Sarah Ann hitneyto me as Joseph's wife" .
Smith gave Helen 24 hours to respond to this request. The girl consented only after Smith explained to her that it would ensure her eternal salvation, along with that of her family. Helen was sealed to Smith in May 1843 when she was 14 and he was 37. The marriage was kept secret, and Helen continued to live with her parents .
Initially, Helen despised the concept of polygamy, stating that, "seeing the trials of my mother, felt to rebel. I hated polygamy with my heart." Later in her life, however, she became a vigorous defender of the practice and wrote a number of publications praising it (; ). With regard to her feelings about Smith's implementation of the practice, Kimball wrote,
It was a strange doctrine, and very dangerous too, to be introduced at such a time, when in the midst of the greatest trouble Joseph had ever encountered. The Missourians and Illinoisans were ready and determined to destroy him. They could but take his life, and that he considered a small thing when compared with the eternal punishment which he was doomed to suffer if he did not teach and obey this principle. No earthly inducement could be held forth to the women who entered this order. It was to be a life sacrifice for the sake of an everlasting glory and exaltation .
During the time that Helen lived in Nauvoo, she and
Sarah Ann Whitney
Joseph Smith (1805–1844), founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, taught and practiced polygamy during his ministry, and married multiple women during his lifetime. Smith and some of the leading quorums of the church he founded publicly de ...
, who was also one of Smith's plural wives, became very close friends. According to Helen, she and Sarah were like "the two halves of one soul." Sarah's brother, Horace Whitney, married Helen "for time" after Smith's death in 1844 ().
Marriage to Horace Whitney
After Smith was killed in 1844, Kimball was 16 and had formed a relationship with 22-year-old Horace Whitney, a brother of another of Smith's wives. After a period of courtship, the two decided to be "married for time" on February 3, 1846 . Shortly before the exodus from Nauvoo, in the
Nauvoo Temple
The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.''Manuscript History of the Church'', LDS Church Archives, book A-1, p. 37; reproduced in Dean C. Jessee (comp.) (1989). ''The Papers of Jose ...
, Kimball was married to Whitney "for time" and again sealed to Smith (deceased) "for eternity," with Whitney standing in as proxy for Smith. The following day, Whitney was sealed to Elizabeth Sykes (deceased) for eternity, with Kimball standing in as proxy for Sykes (;).
The Whitneys began the journey across the plains during the exodus from Nauvoo. They reached
Winter Quarters, Nebraska
Winter Quarters was an encampment formed by approximately 2,500 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as they waited during the winter of 1846–47 for better conditions for their trek westward. It followed a preliminary ten ...
in June 1846. Nineteen-year-old Helen bore her first child in May 1847 while her husband was away on an expedition to the
Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, and West Valley City; its total po ...
. The child was stillborn . In August 1848, while on the plains during the journey west, Helen had another child, who died shortly after birth. This birth resulted in complications to Helen's health, which almost resulted in her death. Following a long battle to regain her health, Helen bore her third child, who was born and died in September 1849 . She eventually bore a total of eleven children with Whitney . They were married for 38 years before his death. Their son, Orson F. Whitney became an LDS Church apostle.
Helen became a journalist, writing articles for the ''
Deseret News
The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...
'' and the ''
Woman's Exponent
The ''Woman's Exponent'' was a semi-official publication of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that began in 1872. It published articles advocating for women's suffrage and plural marriage, in addition to poetry and other writings. ...
''. She also wrote the pamphlets "Plural Marriage as Taught by the Prophet Joseph" and "Why We Practice Plural Marriage", which defended the truthfulness and uprightness of this practice.
In 1896, Helen Kimball Whitney died at the age of 68 in
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
.
Controversy regarding Helen's marriage to Joseph Smith
The marriage of Helen Mar Kimball and Joseph Smith has long been a subject of controversy, most often with regard to her age at the time of the marriage.
Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer (born April 12, 1954) is an American writer and mountaineer. He is the author of bestselling non-fiction books—'' Into the Wild''; ''Into Thin Air''; ''Under the Banner of Heaven''; and '' Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat ...
, in his book ''
Under the Banner of Heaven
''Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith'' is a nonfiction book by author Jon Krakauer, first published in July 2003. He investigated and juxtaposed two histories: the origin and evolution of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
'' (2003), says that of the women married to Smith: "Several were still pubescent girls, such as fourteen-year-old Helen Mar Kimball" . During a 2003 interview, Krakauer said in 2003: "They will not like the fact that I point out that Joseph Smith told 14-year-old girls 'God says you should marry me, you and your family will be exalted to heaven.' His way of getting laid doesn't reflect well on him."
Responding to Krakauer's characterization of Kimball's marriage to Smith,
Mormon
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
author Craig Foster states,
Falling into the same trap as many people and even some historians, he places his own modern values onto another place and time and, when their marriage patterns do not conform to his worldview, he looks upon it and writes about it with an open-mouthed, suitably shocked, and offended approach .
Foster cited examples of women marrying at a young age in colonial America, arguing that it was a common practice at the time. .
[Foster cites: Michael Gordon, ed., ''The American Family in Social-Historical Perspective,'' 3rd ed. (New York: St. Martin's, 1983), 16, and Fischer, '']Albion's Seed
''Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America'' is a 1989 book by David Hackett Fischer that details the folkways of four groups of people who moved from distinct regions of Great Britain ( Albion) to the United States. The argument is that ...
'', pp. 674–75.
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*Jeni Broberg Holzapfel and
Richard N. Holzapfel, eds., ''A Woman's View: Helen Mar Whitney's Reminiscences of Early Church History''. Provo: Religious Studies Center, BYU, 1997.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kimball, Helen Mar
1828 births
1896 deaths
Latter Day Saints from New York (state)
Latter Day Saints from Ohio
Latter Day Saints from Illinois
Latter Day Saints from Utah
Burials at Salt Lake City Cemetery
Mormon pioneers
Mormonism and polygamy
People from Mendon, New York
American pamphleteers
American women journalists
Child marriage in the United States
Wives of Joseph Smith