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Biography:
Brigham Young (1801-1877) was an early leader of the Mormon church who took control after
Joseph Smith died. Originally a Methodist, Young was converted to Mormonism in New York
by Smith's brother, Hyrum. He rose quickly in the church hierarchy due to his speaking and
evangelizing abilities. Smith himself was so impressed personally that he sent Young on
missionary trips to surrounding states, Canada and England.
Eventually, Young's power became second only to Smiths, and when Smith formed the Council of Twelve Apostles in 1835, Young became a member and, in 1836, he was elected president of the Council. In 1844, while doing missionary work in England, he arranged for more than 70,000 Mormon converts to emigrate from Europe to the United States.
After the death of Joseph Smith there was conflict among those who wanted to take control of the Mormon church, but the majority ended up following Young. Between 1846 and 1847, he led an initial group of 5,000 Mormons West. On July 24, the arrived at the Great Salt Lake, where they founded Salt Lake City. This date is commemorated today as Pioneer Day.
On December 5, 1847, he was formally elected head of the Mormon church and under his leadership the church and the surrounding Mormon communities thrived. In 1850 the region was organized into the territory of Utah and Young was made the territorial governor. Unfortunately, he public declaration in support of polygamy in 1852 brought him into conflict with politicians back east and, in 1857, President James Buchanan appointed a new, non-Mormon governor.
Neither Young nor the rest of the Mormon population were interested in such a change, however. Young was the spiritual leader of their church and, so, he was regarded as the proper temporal authority of the territory. The President was compelled to send federal troops to Utah to accompany the governor and quell a growing Mormon uprising. Eventually Young compromised and gave up his position, but he of course retained religious authority.
In addition to preaching the sacred duty of polygamy, he also practiced it. He is believed to have had at least 27 wives total, 17 of whom survived him after his death in 1877. He is also believed to have had at least 57 children.
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