THE WIVES OF BRIGHAM YOUNG:—THEIR HISTORY AND THEIR DAILY LIFE.  
The wives of Brigham Young have always been subjects of interest to Gentiles who visited Zion; and having spoken of their husband, I think it is only fair that I should say a few words about them.
For many years I have known personally all the Prophet’s wives who reside in Salt Lake City, and I wish to speak of them with kindness and respect. They are women whom any one would esteem—conscientious, good, earnest women; faithful, true-hearted wives, who have devoted their lives to the carrying out of what they believe is the revealed will of God.
When I first knew Brother Brigham, poor man, he had only sixteen living with him in Salt Lake City; and even now he has no more than nineteen! Perhaps I ought to say eighteen, since Eliza-Ann has run away from him, and left the poor old gentleman desolate and forlorn. The three whom he took after I came to Utah, were Amelia Folsom, Mary Van Cott Cobb, and Eliza-Ann. But the reader will perhaps be interested in hearing about them all, and so I will state the names and order of the ladies as they at present stand—according to the date of their marriage; making mention of the proxy wives last of all, for the sake of convenience and without reference to date. Of course Brother Brigham has had many more than nineteen wives, but the following are the living ladies; others are dead or have strayed away, no one knew whither, and perhaps, as Brother Heber once said to me, nobody cared.
 
AMELIA FOLSOM YOUNG, BRIGHAM’S FAVORITE WIFE.
 
“ELIZA ANN,” BRIGHAM’S NINETEENTH WIFE.
 
BROTHER BRIGHAM’S LAST BABY.
 
MISS ELIZA R. SNOW, MORMON POETESS AND HIGH PRIESTESS.
 
MRS. JOHN W. YOUNG, WIFE OF BRIGHAM’S APOSTATE SON.
 
To face p. 168.
 
Allow me to introduce the Mrs. Young.
MRS. MARY ANN ANGELL YOUNG.
[Number One.]
 
First in order is Mrs. Mary Ann Angell Young, but she is[169] not the first wife that Brother Brigham ever had. Once upon a time, Brother Brigham was a Methodist; but after listening to the preaching of the Mormon Missionaries he became a vile apostate—as he loves to call those who leave his present faith—and he forsook Methodism. In those days, before he apostatised, and long before he ever dreamed of Polygamy, he had but one wife—one only! It must seem strange to the Prophet to look back to that period of solitary existence. His second wife was Mrs. Angell Young; and I call her his first wife because she is the first of those living now. As she was married to him after the death of his first wife, she is, of course, his legal wife, and would be recognized as such in any civilized country. She is a very fine-looking old lady and very much devoted to her unfaithful lord and master, firmly believing in his divine mission. She lives by herself and is seldom troubled with a visit from her affectionate spouse. Once in a while Brigham brings her out to a party when he has invited any Gentiles, just for appearance sake. Quite a number of persons in Utah believe that she is dead, so very little is seen and known of her. She lives in the White House—Brigham’s first residence in Salt Lake City—and is much thought of by those who do know her. Her children are greatly attached to her, and show her a great deal of attention, making up in this way, to a certain extent, for her husband’s neglect; her three sons, Joseph A. Brigham—who it is expected will succeed his father as President of the Church—and John W., as well as her two daughters, Alice and Luna, are all in Polygamy. Each of the sons has three wives; and each of the daughters has a half-sister as a partner in her husband’s affections. Brigham has not the slightest objection to giving two of his daughters to the same husband.
LUCY DECKER SEELY YOUNG.
[Number Two.]
 
Lucy Decker Seely Young was his first wife in Polygamy. Her former husband was a Mr. Seely. She is short and stout, a very excellent mother and a devoted wife.
CLARA DECKER YOUNG.
[Number Three.]
 
Clara Decker Young is the third wife. She is a sister of Lucy Seely, and like her is short and stout, but otherwise good-looking. She is more than twenty years younger than her lord, with whom she was once quite a favourite, but like[170] many others, she has “had her day”—to use Brigham’s own expression—and is now, as a matter of course, neglected.
HARRIET COOK YOUNG.
[Number Four.]
 
Harriet Cook Young is tall, with light hair and blue eyes, and is an intelligent but not at all a refined woman. She is said to have given a great deal of trouble to Brother Brigham, of whom she has frequently said very hard things. In times past she had the reputation of being a good deal more than a match for her husband when she had any cause of offence against him, but in her quiet moments she is a very sincere Mormon. She has only one son—Oscar Young—now about twenty-five years of age. When he was born, Brigham kindly announced to her that because she was not obedient she should have no more children, and during more than a quarter of a century he has kept his word. Why she has remained with him so long is a mystery, for she makes no secret of her feelings towards him.
LUCY BIGELOW YOUNG.
[Number Five.]
 
Lucy Bigelow Young is quite a fine-looking woman—tall and fair, and still quite young. She has three pretty daughters. Brigham has recently sent her to live in southern Utah.
MRS. TWISS YOUNG.
[Number Six.]
 
Mrs. Twiss Young has no children, but she is a very good housewife, and Brigham appreciates her accordingly, and has given her the position of housekeeper in the Lion House. Women have two great privileges in the Mormon Church—they may ask a man to marry them, if they chance to fancy him, and if they don’t like him afterwards they are able to obtain a divorce for the moderate sum of ten dollars, which sum the husband is expected to pay. Mrs. Twiss exercised the first privilege in reference to Brother Brigham, but has not yet availed herself of the last. There are other ladies who thought it would be a great honour to be called the wives of the Prophet, and they have requested him to allow them to be called by his name. This he has done, but he has never troubled them with his society.
[171]
MARTHA BOWKER YOUNG.
[Number Seven.]
 
Martha Bowker Young is a quiet little body, with piercing dark eyes, and very retiring. Brother Brigham acts towards her as if he had quite forgotten that he had ever married her, and she lives in all the loneliness of married spinsterhood.
HARRIET BARNEY SEAGERS YOUNG.
[Number Eight.]
 
Harriet Barney Seagers Young, the eighth wife, is a tall, fine-looking woman. She was another man’s wife when Brigham made love to her. It is not supposed to be the correct thing for a Saint to court his neighbour’s wife, but the Prophet did so in the case of Harriet Barney, and in several other cases too. Harriet was married to a respectable young Mormon gentleman, but after she had lived with him some time and had borne three children to him, the Prophet persuaded her to join his ranks, and she did so, believing that the word of the Prophet was the revelation of the Lord to her, but she has since had bitter cause to repent of her folly. To a Gentile mind such an infatuation must appear very strange, but the Mormon people personally understand the powerful influence which their religion exercises over them, and to them there is nothing very singular in all this.
ELIZA BURGESS YOUNG.
[Number Nine.]
 
Eliza Burgess Young is the only English wife that Brigham has. She fell in love with the Prophet, wanted him to marry her, and even offered to wait, like Jacob, for seven years if she might be his at last. So she served in the family of her lord for the appointed time, and he finally took her to wife as a recompense for her faithfulness. She has added one son to the Prophet’s kingdom.
SUSAN SNIVELY YOUNG.
[Number Ten.]
 
The tenth wife on my list is Susan Snively Young. She is a German woman—smart, active, and industrious. She has no children, but has been quite a help-meet to her husband in making butter and cheese, in which she excels. Smart Mormons[172] have always had an eye to business, and while living up to their privileges have not invariably sought for wives who were only fair and pleasant to look upon, but have frequently taken them for their own intrinsic worth: one as a good dairymaid, another as a good cook, a third as a good laundress, and a fourth as a lady to grace the parlour—perhaps even two or three of this last kind, if the Saint were wealthy. There is a good deal of practical wisdom in this. Brother Brigham has gathered of all sorts into his net, and has then sorted them out, placing each lady in the position where he considered she would be most useful and profitable to himself.
MARGARET PIERCE YOUNG.
[Number Eleven.]
 
Margaret Pierce Young is very lady-like, tall, and genteel. She has the appearance of being very unhappy, and it is certain that she has been very much neglected, but not more so than many of the other wives. She has one son.
EMMELINE FREE YOUNG.
[Number Twelve.]
 
When first I went to Utah, Emmeline Free Young was the reigning favourite, and she was really the handsomest of Brigham’s wives—tall and graceful, with curling hair, beautiful eyes, and fair complexion. Brigham was as fond of her, at the time, as a man of his nature, with such a low estimate of woman, could be. But a younger, though not a handsomer, rival soon captivated his fickle heart, and he left poor Emmeline to mourn in sorrow. She has never been herself since then, and probably never will be—she is a broken-hearted woman. She is the mother of quite a numerous family, and doubtless, as she had been the favourite for so long a time, she had come to believe that her husband would never seek another love. But, if this was so, she sadly miscalculated Brigham, for when his licentious fancy was attracted to another object of affection he cast off Emmeline as ruthlessly as he would an old garment. What decent person could refrain from loathing such a man! How often has my heart gone out in sympathy towards that poor, wrecked woman whom he had forsaken; what a pity I deemed it that so much love should be wasted upon a creature who could never understand or appreciate it. And yet Emmeline’s fate has been no worse than that of the others; but I was more with her, and saw how keenly she suffered,[173] and I sympathized with her when her sorrows brought her nearly to the point of death.
AMELIA FOLSOM YOUNG.
[Number Thirteen.]
 
Amelia Folsom Young is now the favourite, and it is supposed that she will continue to be so, for at last poor Brother Brigham has found a woman of whom he stands in dread. It is doubtful whether he loves her, but nobody in Zion doubts that he fears her. It is said that the Prophet has confided so many of his secrets to Amelia that he is obliged to submit to her tyranny, for fear of her leaving him, and exposing some of his little ways which would not bear the light. Be that as it may, it is generally believed that after all ............