Wilford Woodruff
Encyclopedia
Wilford Woodruff, Sr. (March 1, 1807 – September 2, 1898) was the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1889 until his death. Woodruff's large collection of diaries
provides an important record of Latter Day Saint history, and his decision to formally end the practice of plural marriage
among the members of the LDS Church in 1890 brought to a close one of the most difficult periods of church history.
Woodruff was one of nine children born to Aphek Woodruff, a miller
working in Farmington
, Connecticut
. Wilford's mother Beulah died of "spotted fever" in 1808 at the age of 26, when Wilford was just fifteen months old. As a young man, Wilford worked at a sawmill and a flour mill owned by his father.
Woodruff joined the Latter Day Saint church on December 31, 1833. At that time, the church numbered only a few thousand believers clustered around Kirtland
, Ohio
. On January 13, 1835, Woodruff left Kirtland on his first full-time mission
, preaching without "purse or scrip" in Arkansas
and Tennessee
.
Woodruff was always known as a conservative religious man, but was also enthusiastically involved in the social and economic life of his community. He was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying fishing
and hunting
. Woodruff learned to fly fish
in England, and his 1847 journal account of his fishing in the East Fork River
is the earliest known account of fly fishing in North America that occurred west of the Mississippi River
. As an adult, Woodruff was a farmer
, horticulturist and stockman by trade and wrote extensively for church periodicals.
. He was married to five (possibly six) women; however, not all of these marriages were concurrent. His wives were:
Woodruff's wives bore him a total of thirty-three children, with thirteen preceding him in death.
Woodruff met his first wife, Phoebe Carter, in Kirtland
shortly after his return from his first mission through Southern Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky. Woodruff came to Kirtland on November 25, 1836, along with Abraham O. Smoot
. He was introduced to Phoebe by Milton Holmes on January 28, 1837. She was a native of Maine and had joined the LDS Church in 1834. Wilford and Phoebe were married on April 13, 1837, with the ceremony performed by Frederick G. Williams
. Their marriage was later sealed in Nauvoo by Hyrum Smith
. Phoebe was later numbered among the "leading ladies" who helped organize the Relief Society
in Utah from 186?-1880.
During his time as president of the LDS Church, Woodruff had his wife Emma Smith Woodruff accompany him to public functions, and she was the only wife he lived with after 1885. She was a niece of Abraham O. Smoot
. Although she married Woodruff when she was 15, she did not have the first of her eight children until she was 20. Emma was involved in the Relief Society, serving as both a ward and stake president for that organization. She also served as a member of the Relief Society General Board from 1892 to 1910.
Among Woodruff's children was the LDS Church apostle Abraham O. Woodruff
. His daughter Phoebe was a wife of Lorenzo Snow
(Snow succeeded Woodruff, his father-in-law, as president of the LDS Church).
Woodruff served as a member of the 1862 Utah Constitutional Convention and as a member of the committee that drafted the appeal to the U.S. Congress to approve the constitution and grant statehood for Utah. This attempt to join the Union failed.
Woodruff served as a member of the Provo
City Council in 1868 and 1869.
, New York
. Other members of the Woodruff family, including Wilford's father, joined the church in 1839.
Shortly after his baptism, Woodruff accompanied Joseph Smith, Jr., and his brother Hyrum
on a journey from Kirtland, Ohio, to the Missouri
as a member of Zion's Camp
. Woodruff remained in Clay County, Missouri, until January 1835, when he was sent to preach in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky by Edward Partridge
. Woodruff originally had Harry Brown, who later went to be with his family in Kirtland, as a companion. Most of the mission was spent preaching in small towns and villages in western Kentucky and Tennessee.
On May 30, 1837, a month after his marriage to Phoebe, Woodruff left Kirtland along with Jonathan Hale and Milton Holmes to serve a mission in New England. The main places they preached were The Fox Islands, Litchfield County, Connecticut
and York County, Maine
, according to their accounts. Phoebe joined Wilford in Farmington, Connecticut
, on July 16. In that city he baptized some of his relatives. Although Phoebe did not accompany him on all of his journeys over the next year and a half, she stayed at various locations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, locations that he to some extent made his base of operations. In 1838, Woodruff led a party of fifty-three members in wagons from the Maine
coast to Nauvoo
, Illinois
.
In 1839, at the age of 32, Wilford Woodruff became a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. He became a member of the Nauvoo city council and served as chaplain for the Nauvoo Legion
, a local militia. Woodruff was also a member of the Anointed Quorum
and Council of Fifty
and received his Endowment
from Smith in the Red Brick Store
prior to the completion of the Nauvoo Temple
. Woodruff and Phoebe were sealed by Hyrum Smith in Nauvoo but, due to a loss of records, this ordinance was later repeated by Heber C. Kimball
in Salt Lake City. After the death of Joseph Smith, Woodruff was an active participant in the westward progression of the LDS Church. He was a member of the first pioneer company of Latter-day Saints to arrive in Utah's Great Basin
in 1847.
In 1856, Woodruff began serving as church historian
and served in this position for thirty-three years. A religious conservative, he offered charismatic sermons during the period of Mormon Reformation
in 1856 to 1858.
s. The church sent him to Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky (1835–1836) and to the Fox Islands
, Maine
(1837). As a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, he was assigned to England
as a missionary (1839), to England as president
of the church's Europe
an Mission
(1844), and finally to the eastern United States (1848).
Woodruff's greatest missionary success resulted from his work among the 600 members of the United Brethren
in Herefordshire
and Worcestershire
. By his own estimate, they baptized "all the United Brethren save one." He also baptized clergy from other churches and even a constable who was sent to arrest him.
On missionary work, Woodruff wrote:
of the St. George Temple. This was the first temple in which the Endowment and sealings were performed for the dead as well as for the living. Under the direction of Brigham Young
, Woodruff was key in not only implementing this program in the temple but also in giving various sermons in which he encouraged a broader understanding of the program. Woodruff's main aide in this endeavor was John D. T. McAllister
, who served as first counselor in the St. George Temple Presidency and then succeeded Woodruff as Temple President in 1884.
During his time as the temple president, Woodruff was baptized
on behalf of the signers of the Declaration of Independence
and other Founding Fathers
. He stated in a September 16, 1877 discourse that he had been visited by the departed spirits of these men:
Woodruff was also directed by Brigham Young to standardize temple ceremonies.
in 1887, Wilford Woodruff assumed leadership of the church as the senior member
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Woodruff spent years as an apostle evading territorial marshals on the Mormon "underground," escaping prosecution for polygamy, and was unable even to publicly attend his first wife's funeral. On behalf of the church, Woodruff courted the favor of prominent Republicans
Leland Stanford
and Isaac Trumbo
.
Woodruff was in Sanpete County, Utah
, in hiding from federal agents seeking him on anti-polygamy warrants when he learned of Taylor's death. He returned to Salt Lake City in secret to take charge of the church but was not seen in any public meetings. Two years later, when he was 82 years old, Woodruff was ordained as president of the church. Woodruff had never expected to become president, as Taylor was the younger man.
During his tenure, the church faced a number of legal battles with the United States
, primarily over the practice of plural marriage
. The church faced a real possibility of being destroyed as a viable legal entity, as it was faced with disfranchisement and federal confiscation of its property, including temples.
Under great political and financial pressure, Woodruff issued the 1890 Manifesto
which ended the church's official support of plural marriage
in the territory of the United States
and directed Latter-day Saints to enter only into marriages recognized by the laws in the areas in which they resided. He wrote in his diary, "I have arrived at the point in the history of my life as the president of the Church ... where I am under the necessity of acting for the temporal salvation of the Church". Some historians consider the 1890 Manifesto to be Woodruff's most important contribution to the church. Other historians like B.H. Roberts never seemed to come to terms with it.
Despite the Manifesto, historians D. Michael Quinn
, B. Carmon Hardy, and Richard S. Van Wagoner
have asserted that Woodruff continued to secretly encourage, or at least allow, new plural marriages to be performed in Mexico
, Canada
, and upon the high seas. The church would not fully renounce the practice of plural marriage until Joseph F. Smith's
Second Manifesto
of 1904.
During his tenure, Woodruff announced a specific policy of sealing individuals only to their direct ancestors. It had been a previous practice to have members sealed to church leaders by adoption
. This change was closely connected with Woodruff's founding of the Genealogical Society of Utah
and is a contributing factor to the modern family history
program of the LDS Church.
The church faced severe financial difficulties during Woodruff's tenure, some of which were related to the legal problems over plural marriage
. Although he instituted a number of sound financial practices, he was unable to completely solve these difficulties during his time as president. However, the church completed and dedicated the Manti
and Salt Lake Temple
s during his tenure. Woodruff also established Bannock Academy in Rexburg, Idaho
, which later evolved into Brigham Young University–Idaho
.
Woodruff died in San Francisco, California
, and was succeeded as church president by his son-in-law Lorenzo Snow
. Woodruff was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery
. During his life, Woodruff had observed significant growth in the church, and at his death, he was the leader of more than 250,000 adherents.
, editor of his published journals, observed that Woodruff was ...perhaps, the best chronicler of events in all the history of the Church. These meticulous records provide insights into not only church doctrines and the daily actions of church leaders, but also into the social and cultural aspects of early Mormonism
. Several significant actions and speeches of early church leaders are known only through these diaries.
Some recollections were recorded in his journal years after the events, which have caused some historians to question the complete reliability of certain events, as they were not recorded contemporaneously. However, in his Comprehensive History of the Church
, B. H. Roberts wrote:
Woodruff was an Assistant Church Historian between 1856 and 1883 and was the church's eleventh official Church Historian between 1883 and 1889.
Diary
A diary is a record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. A personal diary may include a person's experiences, and/or thoughts or feelings, including comment on current events outside the writer's direct experience. Someone...
provides an important record of Latter Day Saint history, and his decision to formally end the practice of plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
among the members of the LDS Church in 1890 brought to a close one of the most difficult periods of church history.
Woodruff was one of nine children born to Aphek Woodruff, a miller
Miller
A miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world...
working in Farmington
Farmington, Connecticut
Farmington is a town located in Hartford County in the Farmington Valley area of central Connecticut in the United States. The population was 25,340 at the 2010 census. It is home to the world headquarters of several large corporations including Carrier Corporation, Otis Elevator Company, and Carvel...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. Wilford's mother Beulah died of "spotted fever" in 1808 at the age of 26, when Wilford was just fifteen months old. As a young man, Wilford worked at a sawmill and a flour mill owned by his father.
Woodruff joined the Latter Day Saint church on December 31, 1833. At that time, the church numbered only a few thousand believers clustered around Kirtland
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. On January 13, 1835, Woodruff left Kirtland on his first full-time mission
Mormon missionary
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...
, preaching without "purse or scrip" in Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
and Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
Woodruff was always known as a conservative religious man, but was also enthusiastically involved in the social and economic life of his community. He was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
and hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
. Woodruff learned to fly fish
Fly fishing
Fly fishing is an angling method in which an artificial 'fly' is used to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. Casting a nearly weightless fly or 'lure' requires casting techniques significantly different from other forms of casting...
in England, and his 1847 journal account of his fishing in the East Fork River
East Fork River
East Fork Little River is a river in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia. It originates near LaFayette, Georgia and discharges into the Little River near Fort Payne, Alabama....
is the earliest known account of fly fishing in North America that occurred west of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. As an adult, Woodruff was a farmer
Farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...
, horticulturist and stockman by trade and wrote extensively for church periodicals.
Marriage and family
Like many early Latter Day Saints, Woodruff practiced plural marriagePlural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
. He was married to five (possibly six) women; however, not all of these marriages were concurrent. His wives were:
- Phoebe Whittemore Carter (born March 8, 1807 – died 1885), m. 13 April 1837
- Mary Ann Jackson, m. 15 April 1846 (later divorced)
- Emma Smoot Smith (1838–1911), m. 13 March 1853
- Sarah Brown (1834–1909), m. 13 March 1853
- Sarah Delight Stocking (1838–1907), m. 1857
Woodruff's wives bore him a total of thirty-three children, with thirteen preceding him in death.
Woodruff met his first wife, Phoebe Carter, in Kirtland
Kirtland, Ohio
Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Origins of Kirtland:...
shortly after his return from his first mission through Southern Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky. Woodruff came to Kirtland on November 25, 1836, along with Abraham O. Smoot
Abraham O. Smoot
Abraham Owen Smoot was a Mormon pioneer, the second mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah, mayor of Provo, Utah, and an early supporter of Brigham Young Academy .-Early life:...
. He was introduced to Phoebe by Milton Holmes on January 28, 1837. She was a native of Maine and had joined the LDS Church in 1834. Wilford and Phoebe were married on April 13, 1837, with the ceremony performed by Frederick G. Williams
Frederick G. Williams
Frederick Granger Williams was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement and served in the First Presidency as Second Counselor to church president Joseph Smith, Jr. from 1833 to 1837...
. Their marriage was later sealed in Nauvoo by Hyrum Smith
Hyrum Smith
Hyrum Smith was an American religious leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the original church of the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the older brother of the movement's founder, Joseph Smith, Jr....
. Phoebe was later numbered among the "leading ladies" who helped organize the Relief Society
Relief Society
The Relief Society is a philanthropic and educational women's organization and an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It was founded in 1842 in Nauvoo, Illinois, USA and has approximately 6 million members in over 170 countries and territories...
in Utah from 186?-1880.
During his time as president of the LDS Church, Woodruff had his wife Emma Smith Woodruff accompany him to public functions, and she was the only wife he lived with after 1885. She was a niece of Abraham O. Smoot
Abraham O. Smoot
Abraham Owen Smoot was a Mormon pioneer, the second mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah, mayor of Provo, Utah, and an early supporter of Brigham Young Academy .-Early life:...
. Although she married Woodruff when she was 15, she did not have the first of her eight children until she was 20. Emma was involved in the Relief Society, serving as both a ward and stake president for that organization. She also served as a member of the Relief Society General Board from 1892 to 1910.
Among Woodruff's children was the LDS Church apostle Abraham O. Woodruff
Abraham O. Woodruff
Abraham Owen Woodruff , 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 . He was also the son of LDS Church president Wilford Woodruff...
. His daughter Phoebe was a wife of Lorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow was the fifth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1898 to his death. Snow was the last president of the LDS Church in the nineteenth century.-Family:...
(Snow succeeded Woodruff, his father-in-law, as president of the LDS Church).
Farmer
Woodruff operated a farm and orchards in Salt Lake City. He also had extensive livestock herds. On multiple occasions his products won prizes at the Utah Territorial Fair.Political offices
Woodruff served multiple terms in the Utah territorial legislature. He was a member of the legislative house from its formation in 1851 until 1854, and then served in the legislative council from 1854 until 1876.Woodruff served as a member of the 1862 Utah Constitutional Convention and as a member of the committee that drafted the appeal to the U.S. Congress to approve the constitution and grant statehood for Utah. This attempt to join the Union failed.
Woodruff served as a member of the Provo
Provo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
City Council in 1868 and 1869.
Church service
Woodruff and his brother Azmon were baptized by missionaries of the Church of Christ on 31 December 1833 in RichlandRichland, New York
Richland is a town in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 5,824 at the 2000 census.The Town of Richland is in the northeast part of Oswego County.- History :The town was first settled around 1801....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Other members of the Woodruff family, including Wilford's father, joined the church in 1839.
Shortly after his baptism, Woodruff accompanied Joseph Smith, Jr., and his brother Hyrum
Hyrum Smith
Hyrum Smith was an American religious leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the original church of the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the older brother of the movement's founder, Joseph Smith, Jr....
on a journey from Kirtland, Ohio, to the Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
as a member of Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp was a paramilitary expedition of Latter Day Saints, led by Joseph Smith, Jr., from Kirtland, Ohio to Clay County, Missouri during May and June 1834 in an unsuccessful attempt to regain land from which the Saints had been expelled by non-Mormon settlers...
. Woodruff remained in Clay County, Missouri, until January 1835, when he was sent to preach in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky by Edward Partridge
Edward Partridge
Edward Partridge was the grandson of Massachusetts Congressman Oliver Partridge, Esq., and a member of a family noted for commercial, social, political, and military leadership in Western Massachusetts. One of the first converts to the Latter Day Saint movement, he was baptized in or near Seneca...
. Woodruff originally had Harry Brown, who later went to be with his family in Kirtland, as a companion. Most of the mission was spent preaching in small towns and villages in western Kentucky and Tennessee.
On May 30, 1837, a month after his marriage to Phoebe, Woodruff left Kirtland along with Jonathan Hale and Milton Holmes to serve a mission in New England. The main places they preached were The Fox Islands, Litchfield County, Connecticut
Litchfield County, Connecticut
Litchfield County is a county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. Litchfield County has the lowest population density of any county in Connecticut but is geographically the state's largest county. As of 2010 the population was 189,927...
and York County, Maine
York County, Maine
York County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. In 2010, the population was 197,131. Its county seat is Alfred.Founded in 1636, it is the oldest county in Maine and one of the oldest in the United States....
, according to their accounts. Phoebe joined Wilford in Farmington, Connecticut
Farmington, Connecticut
Farmington is a town located in Hartford County in the Farmington Valley area of central Connecticut in the United States. The population was 25,340 at the 2010 census. It is home to the world headquarters of several large corporations including Carrier Corporation, Otis Elevator Company, and Carvel...
, on July 16. In that city he baptized some of his relatives. Although Phoebe did not accompany him on all of his journeys over the next year and a half, she stayed at various locations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, locations that he to some extent made his base of operations. In 1838, Woodruff led a party of fifty-three members in wagons from the Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
coast to Nauvoo
Nauvoo, Illinois
Nauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the population was just 1,063 at the 2000 census, and despite being difficult to reach due to its location in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
In 1839, at the age of 32, Wilford Woodruff became a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. He became a member of the Nauvoo city council and served as chaplain for the Nauvoo Legion
Nauvoo Legion
The Nauvoo Legion was a militia originally organized by the Latter Day Saints to defend the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, . To curry political favor with the ambiguously-political Saints, the Illinois state legislature granted Nauvoo a liberal city charter that gave the Nauvoo Legion extraordinary...
, a local militia. Woodruff was also a member of the Anointed Quorum
Anointed Quorum
The Anointed Quorum, also known as the Quorum of the Anointed, or the Holy Order, was a select body of men and women who Joseph Smith, Jr. initiated into Mormon temple ordinances at Nauvoo, Illinois, which gave them special standing in the early Latter Day Saint movement...
and Council of Fifty
Council of Fifty
The Council of Fifty was a Latter Day Saint organization established by Joseph Smith, Jr...
and received his Endowment
Endowment (Latter Day Saints)
In the theology of the Latter Day Saint movement, an endowment refers to a gift of "power from on high", typically associated with Latter Day Saint temples. The purpose and meaning of the endowment varied during the life of movement founder Joseph Smith, Jr...
from Smith in the Red Brick Store
Red Brick Store
The Red Brick Store in Nauvoo, Illinois, was a building that was constructed and owned by Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Original building:...
prior to the completion of the Nauvoo Temple
Nauvoo Temple
The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons. The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio, United States in 1836. When the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo, Illinois in the...
. Woodruff and Phoebe were sealed by Hyrum Smith in Nauvoo but, due to a loss of records, this ordinance was later repeated by Heber C. Kimball
Heber C. Kimball
Heber Chase Kimball was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. He served as one of the original twelve apostles in the early Latter Day Saint church, and as first counselor to Brigham Young in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his...
in Salt Lake City. After the death of Joseph Smith, Woodruff was an active participant in the westward progression of the LDS Church. He was a member of the first pioneer company of Latter-day Saints to arrive in Utah's Great Basin
Great Basin
The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...
in 1847.
In 1856, Woodruff began serving as church historian
Church Historian and Recorder
Church Historian and Recorder is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The role of the Church Historian and Recorder is to keep an accurate and comprehensive record of the church and its activities...
and served in this position for thirty-three years. A religious conservative, he offered charismatic sermons during the period of Mormon Reformation
Mormon Reformation
The Mormon Reformation was a period of renewed emphasis on spirituality within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It took place in 1856 and 1857 and was under the direction of President of the Church Brigham Young. During the Reformation, Young sent his counselor Jedediah M...
in 1856 to 1858.
Missionary service
Woodruff became noted for his success as a missionary, completing several missions during his lifetime. As a missionary, Woodruff baptized thousands of convertConvert
The convert or try, in American football known as "point after", and Canadian football "Point after touchdown", is a one-scrimmage down played immediately after a touchdown during which the scoring team is allowed to attempt to score an extra one point by kicking the ball through the uprights , or...
s. The church sent him to Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky (1835–1836) and to the Fox Islands
North Haven, Maine
North Haven is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States, in Penobscot Bay. The town is both a year-round island community and a prominent summer colony. The population was 381 at the 2000 census...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
(1837). As a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, he was assigned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
as a missionary (1839), to England as president
Mission president
Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...
of the church's Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an Mission
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
(1844), and finally to the eastern United States (1848).
Woodruff's greatest missionary success resulted from his work among the 600 members of the United Brethren
United Brethren (England)
The United Brethren were a group of former Primitive Methodists in Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire, England that converted en masse to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1840....
in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
and Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
. By his own estimate, they baptized "all the United Brethren save one." He also baptized clergy from other churches and even a constable who was sent to arrest him.
On missionary work, Woodruff wrote:
St. George Temple President
Beginning in 1877, Woodruff was the first presidentTemple President
Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....
of the St. George Temple. This was the first temple in which the Endowment and sealings were performed for the dead as well as for the living. Under the direction of Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
, Woodruff was key in not only implementing this program in the temple but also in giving various sermons in which he encouraged a broader understanding of the program. Woodruff's main aide in this endeavor was John D. T. McAllister
John D. T. McAllister
John Daniel Thompson McAllister was a 19th century regional leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He is possibly most notable for having written the "Hand Cart Song".-Biography:...
, who served as first counselor in the St. George Temple Presidency and then succeeded Woodruff as Temple President in 1884.
During his time as the temple president, Woodruff was baptized
Baptism for the dead
Baptism for the dead, vicarious baptism or proxy baptism is the religious practice of baptizing a living person on behalf of one who is dead, with the living person acting as the deceased person's proxy...
on behalf of the signers of the Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
and other Founding Fathers
Founding Fathers of the United States
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...
. He stated in a September 16, 1877 discourse that he had been visited by the departed spirits of these men:
Woodruff was also directed by Brigham Young to standardize temple ceremonies.
Actions as church president
With the death of John TaylorJohn Taylor (1808-1887)
John Taylor was the third president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1880 to 1887. He is the only president of the LDS Church to have been born outside of the United States....
in 1887, Wilford Woodruff assumed leadership of the church as the senior member
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Woodruff spent years as an apostle evading territorial marshals on the Mormon "underground," escaping prosecution for polygamy, and was unable even to publicly attend his first wife's funeral. On behalf of the church, Woodruff courted the favor of prominent Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Leland Stanford
Leland Stanford
Amasa Leland Stanford was an American tycoon, industrialist, robber baron, politician and founder of Stanford University.-Early years:...
and Isaac Trumbo
Isaac Trumbo
Isaac Trumbo was a prominent California businessman and a colonel in the California national guard. He was born in Nevada but grew up in Salt Lake City. Although not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints himself, his mother was a Mormon, and he had good relationships with...
.
Woodruff was in Sanpete County, Utah
Sanpete County, Utah
Sanpete County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. The population according to the 2010 U.S. Census was 27,822. It was possibly named for a Ute Indian chief named Sanpitch, which was corrupted to Sanpete. Its county seat is Manti and its largest city is Ephraim.-Geography:According to...
, in hiding from federal agents seeking him on anti-polygamy warrants when he learned of Taylor's death. He returned to Salt Lake City in secret to take charge of the church but was not seen in any public meetings. Two years later, when he was 82 years old, Woodruff was ordained as president of the church. Woodruff had never expected to become president, as Taylor was the younger man.
During his tenure, the church faced a number of legal battles with the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, primarily over the practice of plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
. The church faced a real possibility of being destroyed as a viable legal entity, as it was faced with disfranchisement and federal confiscation of its property, including temples.
Under great political and financial pressure, Woodruff issued the 1890 Manifesto
1890 Manifesto
The "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially disavowed the continuing practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
which ended the church's official support of plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
in the territory of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and directed Latter-day Saints to enter only into marriages recognized by the laws in the areas in which they resided. He wrote in his diary, "I have arrived at the point in the history of my life as the president of the Church ... where I am under the necessity of acting for the temporal salvation of the Church". Some historians consider the 1890 Manifesto to be Woodruff's most important contribution to the church. Other historians like B.H. Roberts never seemed to come to terms with it.
Despite the Manifesto, historians D. Michael Quinn
D. Michael Quinn
Dennis Michael Quinn is a historian who has focused on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was a professor at Brigham Young University from 1976 until his resignation in 1988. At the time, his work concerned church involvement with plural marriage after the 1890 Manifesto, in which...
, B. Carmon Hardy, and Richard S. Van Wagoner
Richard S. Van Wagoner
Richard S. Van Wagoner was an amateur historian who published works on the history of Utah and the history of the Latter Day Saint movement....
have asserted that Woodruff continued to secretly encourage, or at least allow, new plural marriages to be performed in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and upon the high seas. The church would not fully renounce the practice of plural marriage until Joseph F. Smith's
Joseph F. Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
Second Manifesto
Second Manifesto
The "Second Manifesto" was a 1904 declaration made by Joseph F. Smith, the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , in which Smith stated the church was no longer sanctioning marriages that violated the laws of the land and set down the principle that those entering into or...
of 1904.
During his tenure, Woodruff announced a specific policy of sealing individuals only to their direct ancestors. It had been a previous practice to have members sealed to church leaders by adoption
Law of adoption
The law of adoption was a ritual practiced in Latter Day Saint temples between 1846 and 1894 in which men who held the priesthood were sealed in a father–son relationship to other men who were not part of nor even distantly related to their immediate nuclear family.-Practice:Some younger men who...
. This change was closely connected with Woodruff's founding of the Genealogical Society of Utah
Genealogical Society of Utah
The Genealogical Society of Utah , established in 1894, does business as FamilySearch International, which is the genealogical arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
and is a contributing factor to the modern family history
Family history
Family history is the systematic narrative and research of past events relating to a specific family, or specific families.- Introduction :...
program of the LDS Church.
The church faced severe financial difficulties during Woodruff's tenure, some of which were related to the legal problems over plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
. Although he instituted a number of sound financial practices, he was unable to completely solve these difficulties during his time as president. However, the church completed and dedicated the Manti
Manti Utah Temple
The Manti Utah Temple is the fifth constructed temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Located in the city of Manti, Utah, it was the third LDS temple built west of the Mississippi River after the Mormons' great trek westward. The Manti Utah Temple (formerly the Manti Temple)...
and Salt Lake Temple
Salt Lake Temple
The Salt Lake Temple is the largest and best-known of more than 130 temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the sixth temple built by the church, requiring 40 years to complete, and the fourth operating temple built since the Mormon exodus from Nauvoo,...
s during his tenure. Woodruff also established Bannock Academy in Rexburg, Idaho
Rexburg, Idaho
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 17,257 people, 4,274 households, and 2,393 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,534.4 people per square mile . There were 4,533 housing units at an average density of 928.4 per square mile...
, which later evolved into Brigham Young University–Idaho
Brigham Young University–Idaho
Brigham Young University–Idaho is a private university located in Rexburg, Idaho. Founded in 1888, the university is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and transitioned from a junior college to a four-year institution in 2001, known for the greater part of its...
.
Woodruff died in San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and was succeeded as church president by his son-in-law Lorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow was the fifth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1898 to his death. Snow was the last president of the LDS Church in the nineteenth century.-Family:...
. Woodruff was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery
Salt Lake City Cemetery
thumb|The northern section of the cemetery at night, looking towards Salt Lake CityThe Salt Lake City Cemetery is in The Avenues neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah. Approximately 120,000 persons are buried in the cemetery. Many religious leaders and politicians, particularly many leaders of The...
. During his life, Woodruff had observed significant growth in the church, and at his death, he was the leader of more than 250,000 adherents.
Diarist and historian
Many historians consider Woodruff's journals his most important contribution to LDS Church history. He kept a daily record of his life and activities within the LDS Church, beginning with his baptism in 1833. Matthias F. CowleyMatthias F. Cowley
Matthias Foss Cowley , 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 from 1897 until 1905. The town of Cowley in Wyoming is named after him. He was the father of Apostle Matthew Cowley by Abbie Hyde. ...
, editor of his published journals, observed that Woodruff was ...perhaps, the best chronicler of events in all the history of the Church. These meticulous records provide insights into not only church doctrines and the daily actions of church leaders, but also into the social and cultural aspects of early Mormonism
Mormonism
Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...
. Several significant actions and speeches of early church leaders are known only through these diaries.
Some recollections were recorded in his journal years after the events, which have caused some historians to question the complete reliability of certain events, as they were not recorded contemporaneously. However, in his Comprehensive History of the Church
Comprehensive History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
A Comprehensive History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Century I is a six-volume history published in 1930 by B.H. Roberts, a general authority and Assistant Church Historian of the LDS Church...
, B. H. Roberts wrote:
Woodruff was an Assistant Church Historian between 1856 and 1883 and was the church's eleventh official Church Historian between 1883 and 1889.
Historical summary
- 1807, March 1; Wilford Woodruff is born in Farmington Hartford County, Connecticut, to Beulah Thompson Woodruff and Aphek Woodruff
- 1808; June 11; His mother dies at age 26.
- 1821; Begins work as a miller.
- 1832; Moves with his brother Azmon and Azmon’s wife to Richland, Oswego County, New York, where they purchase a farm.
- 1833; Baptized and confirmed by Zera PulsipherZera PulsipherZera Pulsipher a First Seven Presidents of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....
. - 1835; Leaves Missouri for his first full-time mission, preaching the gospel in Arkansas and Tennessee.
- 1837, May 31; Leaves Kirtland, Ohio, to serve a mission in the Fox Islands, off the coast of the state of Maine.
- 1839, August 8; Leaves for a mission in England.
- 1847, participated in Vanguard company's exploration of the Mormon TrailMormon TrailThe Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
to the Salt Lake Valley. - 1887, assumed leadership of the Church as the senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles upon the death of President John Taylor.
- 1889, ordained as President of the Church.
- 1890, October 6; Members of the Church attending general conference unanimously sustain the revelation President Woodruff received regarding plural marriage.
- 1894, November 13; Oversees the establishment of the Genealogical Society of Utah.
- 1898, September 2; Dies in San Francisco, California, after a brief illness.
Works
LDS Church publication number 36315.External links
- Grampa Bill's G.A. Pages: Wilford Woodruff
- Homes of Wilford Woodruff Pictures of some of Wilford Woodruff's houses.