My ancestors and
polygamy
I have 26 ancestor couples who were married and Mormon
during the polygamous era of Mormonism, roughly 1840-1890. 20 of the couples
were monogamous; 6 were polygamous, though not all inside the specific marriage
of my ancestors. While none of the 26 couples’ lives were without difficulties
in pioneer Utah and Idaho, it’s noteworthy that none of the 20 separated or
divorced, while half of the 6 did. Here is a very brief summary of the 6.
Alvah (1799-1890) and
Phoebe Houston Alexander (1804-1861) were married in 1822, joined the
church in Vermont, and ended up settling Mill Creek, Utah. They entered
polygamy in 1857 when Alvah married a widow, Caroline Limpert (born 1821).
After Phoebe’s death, Alvah married two additional widows: Sarah Brentlinger
(born 1807) in 1862 and Cathrina Nilsson (born 1835) in 1866.
William (1825-1905)and
Ellen Close Butler (1839-1872) were married in 1857. She was his third
wife. William (from Ireland) had joined the church in Salt Lake City, Ellen in
England. They settled in Marriott, Utah. About 1868, Ellen separated from
William. In 1869, she was severely wounded by a worker on the transcontinental
railroad. William came to her aid. After her recovery, they lived amicably
together until her death in 1872.
Simmons P. (1818-1880) and Emmeline Buchanan Curtis
(1820-1899) married in 1840, had joined the church with their parents in
the US, and settled Springville, Utah. Simmons entered a polygamous marriage
with a woman named Elizabeth that ended in divorce in 1861. In 1870 he
married Asenath Lawrence (born 1840).
Emmeline and Simmons separated in 1873. She eventually moved to live with a son
in Woodside, Utah.
Jeremiah (1823-1903)
and Louisa Poole Alexander Hatch (1825-1869) married in 1842, had joined
the church in Vermont, and settled several places in Utah. After Louisa’s
death, Jeremiah married two women,
Aurilla Hadlock (born 1852) in 1870, and Henrietta Clark (born 1862) in
1877. They settled Vernal, Utah.
Robert (1825-1891)
and Mary Ross Henderson (1823-1896) were married in Scotland in 1846. They
joined the church in 1848, and settled in Logan, Utah. Robert married a widow,
Christina Andersen (born 1830) in 1863. According to family history, Brigham
Young asked Robert to marry Christina. She then lived near Robert and Mary in
Logan, and is buried next to them.
William Marks
(1828-1897) and Martha Jane Curtis Miles (1841-1904) married in 1859. She
had earlier entered a polygamous marriage in the spring of 1857 with Cornelius
van Leuven (1805), but had left it after a few weeks, and a divorce was granted
in October 1858. William had been married to Orpha Alexander, who died in 1858.
William and Martha eventually settled Orangeville, Utah and had nine children.
Note: Several of these people are closely related.
·
Alvah and Phoebe Alexander are Louisa Poole’s
parents.
·
Simmons and Emmeline Curtis are Martha Jane’s
parents.
·
William Miles’ first wife Orpha was also a
daughter of Alvah and Phoebe.
Mark Steele
August 2014
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