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130-711: The 1890 Manifesto (also known as the Woodruff Manifesto , the Anti-polygamy Manifesto , or simply " the Manifesto ") is a statement which officially advised against any future plural marriage in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Issued by Church President Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a response to mounting anti-polygamy pressure from

260-642: A News extra would be published, if there were important news or a sermon that could not wait for the regular publication date. During a turbulent time period, later known as the Utah War , the News presses and equipment were moved to the central and southern parts of the state. As armed forces of the United States camped just outside the state at Fort Bridger , George Q. Cannon was assigned to take some presses and equipment to Fillmore while Henry McEwan

390-583: A joint operating agreement (JOA), where each published separate editorial material while sharing printing, advertising and circulation costs. This JOA was the brainchild of Tribune Publisher John F. Fitzpatrick who helped LDS President David O. McKay ensure the continuation of the Deseret News . As its architect, Fitzpatrick knew that this NAC arrangement would also benefit the Tribune . The Deseret News stopped Sunday publication; subscribers received

520-524: A lawsuit requesting that the US Supreme Court withhold the certified vote count from four states following the 2020 presidential election . In 2021, Utah's Senator Mike Lee demanded a retraction after a statement attributed to him (regarding a phone call held during the January 6 United States Capitol attack ), and published in the Deseret News on January 7, 2021, was brought up during

650-614: A " Second Manifesto ", calling for all polygamous marriages in the church to cease, and established excommunication as the consequence for those who disobeyed. Several small "fundamentalist" groups, seeking to continue the practice, split from the LDS Church, including the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB) and the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS Church). Meanwhile,

780-444: A Mormon immigrant from England, and a paper-maker, approached Brigham Young about using some machinery—originally meant for producing sugar—to make their own paper; Young agreed to the plan. The publishers asked everyone to donate old paper and cloth to the venture. In the summer of 1854 the first issues of the News were published on "homemade paper" that was very thick, and grayish in color. Even with paper shortages, occasionally

910-413: A Sunday Tribune instead. The Deseret News also purchased the afternoon Salt Lake Telegram from the Tribune . The Telegram was discontinued, and into the mid-1960s, the paper's nameplate read: The Deseret News and Salt Lake Telegram . The 30-year agreement between the two papers was renewed in 1982, with some changes. The Newspaper Agency Corporation was renamed to MediaOne of Utah in 2007. In 1968

1040-405: A case. Under LDS Church policy, a man whose sealed wife has died does not have to request any permission beyond having a current temple recommend and an interview with his bishop to get final permission for a living ordinance, to be married in the temple and sealed to another woman, unless the new wife's circumstance requires a cancellation of sealing. However, a woman whose sealed husband has died

1170-437: A course that seemed to be agonizingly more and more clear. As he explained to church members a year later, the choice was between, on the one hand, continuing to practice polygamy and thereby losing the temples , "stopping all the ordinances therein" and, on the other, ceasing to practice polygamy in order to continue performing the essential ordinances for the living and the dead. Woodruff hastened to add that he had acted only as

1300-403: A deathbed affidavit telling her she was Smith's daughter. LDS Church president Brigham Young had 51 wives, and 56 children by 16 of those wives. LDS Church apostle Heber C. Kimball had 43 wives, and had 65 children by 17 of those wives. Mormons responded to polygamy with mixed emotions. One historian notes that Mormon women often struggled with the practice and a belief in the divinity of

1430-417: A divine revelation. Approximately one year after he declared the Manifesto, Woodruff began to claim that he had received instructions from Jesus Christ that formed the basis of what he wrote in the text of the Manifesto. These instructions were reportedly accompanied by a vision of what would occur if the Manifesto were not issued. Following Woodruff's death in 1898, other church leaders began to teach that

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1560-780: A geneticist with the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation stated that they had shown "with 99.9 percent accuracy" that five of these individuals were in fact not Smith descendants: Mosiah Hancock (son of Clarissa Reed Hancock), Oliver Buell (son of Prescindia Huntington Buell), Moroni Llewellyn Pratt (son of Mary Ann Frost Pratt), Zebulon Jacobs (son of Zina Diantha Huntington Jacobs Smith ), and Orrison Smith (son of Fanny Alger ). The remaining seven have yet to be conclusively tested, including Josephine Lyon, for whom current DNA testing using mitochondrial DNA cannot provide conclusive evidence either way. Lyon's mother, Sylvia Sessions Lyon, left her daughter

1690-532: A legal entity as the lessor. Two children of former News editor George Q. Cannon would play prominent roles during this period, with John Q. Cannon as editor and Abraham H. Cannon as business manager. The leasing had occurred due to financial troubles, and the Cannon family hoped to make the business profitable. This did not happen and the paper's assets and property were transferred back to The Deseret News Company on September 7, 1898; after almost six years under

1820-569: A majority abstained." Some members, including apostle Moses Thatcher , only reluctantly supported the Manifesto and interpreted it as a sign that the Second Coming of Jesus was imminent, after which plural marriage would be reinstated. The Manifesto was the end of official church authorization for the creation of new plural marriages that violated local laws. It had no effect on the status of already existing plural marriages, and plural marriages continued to be performed in locations where it

1950-407: A marriage ceremony had taken place (only that a couple had lived together), was a misdemeanor punishable by a $ 300 fine and six months imprisonment. It also revoked the right of polygamists to vote or hold office and allowed them to be punished without due process. Even if people did not practice polygamy, they would have their rights revoked if they confessed a belief in it. In August, Rudger Clawson

2080-504: A new farm, home, and garden section. The Sunday edition would continue into the 1950s, when an agreement with The Salt Lake Tribune would cease publication. After World War II the Deseret News , The Salt Lake Tribune and the Salt Lake Telegram were all struggling financially, but no more than the Deseret News . In September 1952, the owners of the News (LDS Church) and Tribune ( Thomas Kearns Family) entered into

2210-533: A newly appointed territorial governor to replace Brigham Young, dispatched 2,500 federal troops to Utah to seat the new governor, thus setting in motion a series of misunderstandings in which the Mormons felt threatened. In 1862, the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act became law. The Act criminalized the practice of polygamy, unincorporated the church, and limited the church's real estate holdings. The Act

2340-548: A prominent leader in the church, was denied a non-voting seat in the U.S. House of Representatives due to his polygamous relations. This revived the issue of polygamy in national politics. One month later, the Edmunds Act was passed by Congress, amending the Morrill Act and made polygamy a felony punishable by a $ 500 fine and five years in prison. "Unlawful cohabitation", in which the prosecution did not need to prove that

2470-434: A second wife. A deceased woman may also be sealed to multiple men, but only through vicarious sealing if they are also deceased. In the case where a man's first wife dies, and the man remarries, and both of the marriages involve a sealing , LDS authorities teach that in the afterlife, the man will enter a polygamous relationship with both wives. Current apostles Russell M. Nelson and Dallin H. Oaks are examples of such

2600-571: Is published twice weekly. The Deseret News National Edition is a national weekly print paper concentrating its reporting and feature articles on areas including family, faith, education, and other values core to the LDS faith. It is available for delivery throughout the United States. The Deseret News launched its monthly magazine in 2021, which publishes ten times a year with a double issue in July/August and January/February. The magazine covers

2730-402: Is still bound by the original sealing and must request a cancellation of sealing to be sealed to another man (see next paragraph for exception to this after she dies). In some cases, women in this situation who wish to remarry choose to be married to a subsequent husband and are not sealed to them, leaving them sealed to their first husband for eternity. Deseret News On January 1, 2021,

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2860-611: Is the most moral form of marriage. Polygamy was sometimes explained as a way to prevent men from falling into sexual temptation, while monogamy was immoral and increased the likelihood of sexual temptation. Some who practiced polygamy defended it as a religious practice that was taught in the Bible. Top leaders used the examples of the polygamy of God the Father and Jesus Christ in defense of it and these teachings on God and Jesus' polygamy were widely accepted among Latter-day Saints by

2990-590: The Associated Press . During the 1920s the paper's circulation nearly doubled, reaching almost 40,000. On November 20, 1920, the News began airing nightly wireless news flashes, called the Deseret News -International News Service bulletins. The paper had also formed The Deseret News Wireless Club, with members across the Western United States who would transcribe the radio bulletins and post them in their communities. In April 1922

3120-425: The Deseret News appeared January 16, 1983, and the paper has published a Sunday edition ever since. The newspaper moved into its newly constructed headquarters on Regent Street downtown Salt Lake City in 1997. As the twentieth century ended, the Deseret News found itself embroiled in a contentious and often public battle with The Salt Lake Tribune , centered around the terms of their joint operating agreement,

3250-422: The Deseret News once again moved, this time into a new building on Regent Street. The joint operating agreement with the Tribune in 1952 had ended the paper's Sunday edition, but when the 30-year-old agreement was up for renewal, it was changed to allow the Deseret News to publish a Sunday morning edition and change its Saturday publication from an evening to morning paper. The first Sunday morning edition of

3380-699: The News began looking for a location to build a new paper mill, as the Sugar House paper plant was inadequate. A new granite plant was constructed near the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon , 13 miles south of the paper's offices. The mill began producing paper in April 1883, and was known as the Cottonwood Paper Mill . The News would sell the paper mill in 1892 to the Granite Paper Mills Company. The mill caught fire and

3510-758: The News digitally through their dial-up service; digital-only subscriptions were also created. Installation of the Crossroads software—which was mailed on floppy disk to each subscriber beginning in February 1995—was required on each user's computer. The network also allowed users to access the paper's complete text along with archives back to April 1988, the Church News and the LDS Church Almanac. The software allowed subscribers to communicate with each other through an email-like system. Eventually

3640-484: The News has often been called grandmother, granny, or The Mormon Hand Organ. Since its first publication, the News had been owned directly by the LDS Church, but as worries about property confiscation increased due to the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act and Poland Act , the paper's ownership was transferred to The Deseret News Company following incorporation on September 3, 1880. About this same time

3770-660: The News moved out from its longtime home in the Deseret Store, kitty-corner to a newly constructed building. This was the first time the paper had a building constructed expressly for it. It was designed by Richard K.A. Kletting and built with stone from Mount Nebo in Central Utah. While the building was under construction, a fire destroyed the Oregon Short Line building in Salt Lake City, and

3900-407: The News to begin normal operations. The soldiers who had marched to Utah during the war would remain at the newly constructed Camp Floyd . Their need for a newspaper, one not published by the LDS Church, was satisfied with Kirk Anderson's Valley Tan , the area's second newspaper (and first competitor to the News ); published November 6, 1858. During the 1850s through 1860s, numerous articles in

4030-634: The News were printed in the Deseret Alphabet . The coming of the Pony Express to Utah in 1860 would bring changes to the paper, allowing news from the East to arrive in the Territory much faster. Even so, the paper remained a weekly, with News extras being published with more frequency and temporary renamed The Pony Dispatch . Yet, paper problems still plagued the publishers; paper

1890 Manifesto - Misplaced Pages Continue

4160-541: The Relief Society , encouraged by its president, Emma Smith , also wrote their experiences that disproved Bennett's statements. They also began a petition in support of Joseph Smith's character which they delivered to the Governor of Illinois. Mormon polygamy was one of the leading moral issues of the 19th Century in the United States, perhaps second only to slavery in importance. Spurred by popular indignation,

4290-653: The Republican platform even referred to polygamy and slavery as "the twin relics of barbarism." " " Joseph Smith , founder of the Latter-day Saint movement, first introduced polygamy privately in the 1830s. Later, in 1852, Orson Pratt , , a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles , publicly announced and defended the practice at the request of then-church president Brigham Young . Throughout

4420-577: The Smoot hearings made it clear that polygamy had not been completely extinguished. The ambiguity was ended in the General Conference of April 1904, when Smith issued the " Second Manifesto ", an emphatic declaration that prohibited new polygamous marriages and proclaimed that offenders would be subject to church discipline . It declared that any who participated in additional plural marriages, and those officiating, would be excommunicated from

4550-524: The United States Congress , which by 1890 had disincorporated the church, escheated its assets to the U.S. federal government , and imprisoned many prominent polygamist Mormons. Upon its issuance, the LDS Church in conference accepted Woodruff's Manifesto as "authoritative and binding." The Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the history of the LDS Church . It advised church members against entering into any marriage prohibited by

4680-501: The general authorities and placed the hand-written draft on a table. George Reynolds would later recount that he, Charles W. Penrose , and John R. Winder modified Woodruff's draft into the current language accepted by the general authorities and presented to the church as a whole. Woodruff announced the Manifesto on September 25 by publishing it in the church-owned Deseret Weekly in Salt Lake City . On October 6, 1890, it

4810-578: The second impeachment trial of Donald Trump . The paper's first website, DesNews.com, was launched on September 27, 1995. The domain was later changed to DeseretNews.com, and changed again in August 2019 to Deseret.com. The Deseret News launched native iOS apps in December 2011. An Android version of the app was later released for the Google Play Store. The Deseret News Local Edition

4940-505: The 1940s and 1950s. In 1943, the First Presidency learned that apostle Richard R. Lyman was cohabitating with a woman other than his legal wife. As it turned out, in 1925 Lyman had begun a relationship which he defined as a polygamous marriage. Unable to trust anyone else to officiate, Lyman and the woman exchanged vows secretly. By 1943, both were in their seventies. Lyman was excommunicated on November 12, 1943. The Quorum of

5070-509: The 19th and early 20th centuries, the LDS Church and the United States remained at odds over the issue. The church defended polygamy as a matter of religious freedom, while the federal government, in line with prevailing public opinion, sought to eradicate it. Polygamy likely played a role in the Utah War of 1857–1858, as Republican critics portrayed Democratic President James Buchanan as weak in opposing both polygamy and slavery. In 1862,

5200-451: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States in May 1890. In April 1889, Woodruff, the president of the church, began privately refusing the permission that was required to contract new plural marriages. In October 1889, Woodruff publicly admitted that he was no longer approving new polygamous marriages, and in answer to a reporter's question of what the LDS Church's attitude

5330-603: The Crossroads Information Network was shut down and its features were moved to DesNews.com, which itself was replaced with DeseretNews.com. The paper's first website, DesNews.com, was launched on September 27, 1995. This allowed News content to be accessed through an internet website, rather than the software required by Crossroads. The website was meant for those outside the Salt Lake area, who had to pay long-distance calling charges when dialed into

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5460-593: The Crossroads network. On April 13, 2008, Joseph A. Cannon announced in a front page editor's note that the name of the newspaper had been changed back to the Deseret News , although the News would continue to be published in the morning. In 2010, the Deseret News moved its offices out of the Deseret News Building to the broadcast house in the Triad Center , so they could integrate with KSL 's newsroom. In November 2016, Doug Wilks became

5590-623: The Deseret News Publishing Company formed in 1892 by the Cannon family to lease ownership of the paper, and dissolved when the lease was over). Its articles of incorporation, filed with the Salt Lake County Clerk, provided for 500 shares of stock, all retained by the Church (with the exception of the qualifying directors' shares). On May 16, 1948, the Deseret News would deliver its first Sunday paper. The first Sunday edition contained 154 pages with

5720-542: The Doctrine and Covenants." Similarly, another writer has stated bluntly that "contemporary Latter-day Saints regard the Manifesto as a revelation." The Manifesto is currently published as "Official Declaration 1" in the Doctrine and Covenants. Plural marriage Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy )

5850-503: The FLDS Church) continues to practice polygamy. Although the LDS Church has abandoned the practice of plural marriage, it has not abandoned the underlying doctrines of polygamy. It is still the practice of monogamous Mormon couples to be sealed to one another. However, in some circumstances, men and women may be sealed to multiple spouses. Most commonly, a man may be sealed to multiple wives: if his first wife dies, he may be sealed to

5980-565: The LDS Church continues its policy of excommunicating members found practicing polygamy, and today actively seeks to distance itself from fundamentalist groups that continue the practice. On its website, the church states that "the standard doctrine of the church is monogamy" and that polygamy was a temporary exception to the rule. Adherents of various churches and groups from the larger Latter Day Saint movement continue to practice polygamy. Historian Richard van Wagoner reports that Smith developed an interest in polygamy after studying parts of

6110-436: The LDS Church gradually died by attrition during the early-to-mid 20th century. The Manifesto was canonized in the LDS Church standard works as Official Declaration 1 and is considered by mainstream Mormons to have been prompted by divine revelation (although not a revelation itself), in which Woodruff was shown that the church would be thrown into turmoil if they did not comply with it. Some Mormon fundamentalists rejected

6240-473: The LDS Church officially acknowledges that although the Manifesto "officially ceased" the practice of plural marriage in the church, "the ending of the practice after the Manifesto was ... gradual." Rumors of post-Manifesto marriages surfaced and began to be examined by Congress in the Reed Smoot hearings . In response, church president Joseph F. Smith issued a " Second Manifesto " in 1904 which reaffirmed

6370-521: The LDS Church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles authorized William W. Phelps to "go east and procure a printing press" to be taken to the future Mormon settlement in the Great Basin . Phelps left Winter Quarters sometime in May, and went to Boston by way of the former Mormon settlement of Nauvoo, Illinois . In Boston, with the help of William I. Appleby, the president of the Church's Eastern States Mission, and Church member Alexander Badlam, Phelps

6500-516: The LDS Church. The cessation of plural marriage within LDS Church gave rise to the Mormon fundamentalist movement. The Manifesto has been canonized by the LDS Church, and its text appears in the Doctrine and Covenants , one of the church's books of scripture . However, when the Manifesto was issued, it was not apparent that Woodruff or the other leaders of the LDS Church viewed it as the result of

6630-467: The LDS Church: eternity-only and time-and-eternity. Eternity-only polygamous marriages applied only in the afterlife and time-and-eternity marriages applied both in mortal life and in the afterlife. Smith had sexual relations with some of his wives; others, he had no sexual relations with. Polygamy was taught as being essential for salvation . Polygamy was seen as "more important than baptism" and

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6760-670: The Latter-day Saints at the General Conference and unanimously approved. While many church leaders in 1890 regarded the Manifesto as inspired, there were differences among them about its scope and permanence. Contemporary opinions include the contention that the manifesto was more related to an effort to achieve statehood for the Utah territory. Some leaders were reluctant to terminate a long-standing practice that

6890-415: The Latter-day Saints is to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by the law of the land. Wilford Woodruff [signed] President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Less than a month after the Manifesto was issued, the LDS Church used the procedure of common consent to make it binding upon church members. At a general conference of the church in Salt Lake City on October 6, 1890,

7020-660: The Lord directed. In 1879, the Supreme Court ruled that a defendant cannot claim a religious obligation as a valid defense to a crime and upheld the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act in Reynolds v. United States . The Court said that while holding a religious belief was protected under the First Amendment right of freedom of religion, practicing a religious belief that broke the law was not. Reynolds vs. United States

7150-519: The Manifesto was read, after which Lorenzo Snow , the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles , made the following motion: I move that, recognizing Wilford Woodruff as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the only man on the earth at the present time who holds the keys of the sealing ordinances, we consider him fully authorized by virtue of his position to issue

7280-503: The Manifesto was the result of a revelation of God. Since that time, church leaders have consistently taught that the Manifesto was inspired of God. In 1908, the Manifesto was printed in the LDS Church's Doctrine and Covenants for the first time, and it has been included in every edition since. A non-Mormon observer of the church has stated that "[t]here is no question that, from a doctrinal standpoint, President Woodruff's Manifesto now has comparable status with [Joseph Smith's] revelations in

7410-415: The Manifesto which has been read in our hearing, and which is dated September 1890, and that as a Church in General Conference assembled, we accept his declaration concerning plural marriages as authoritative and binding. The conference proceedings recorded that "the vote to sustain the foregoing motion was unanimous." However, a modern author reports that "at least some voted against the Manifesto and perhaps

7540-480: The Manifesto. This practice was especially prevalent in Mexico and Canada because of an erroneous belief that such marriages were legal in those jurisdictions. However, a significant minority were performed in Utah and other western American states and territories. The estimates of the number of post-Manifesto plural marriages performed range from scores to thousands, with the actual figure probably close to 250. Today,

7670-540: The Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act for refusing to stop practicing polygamy. The act stripped away some of Utah's powers and gave the federal government greater control over the territory. Among other powers, the act gave US district courts jurisdiction in the Utah Territory for all court cases. The Poland Act was a significant threat to Mormons practicing polygamy as it allowed for men who had multiple wives to be criminally indicted . In February 1882, George Q. Cannon ,

7800-618: The Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act in Reynolds v. United States . The Wade, Cragin, and Cullom Bills were anti-bigamy legislation that failed to pass in the US Congress. The bills were all intended to enforce the Morrill Act's prohibition on polygamy with more punitive measures. The Wade Bill of 1866 had the power to dismantle local government in Utah. Three years after the Wade Bill failed, the Cragin Bill, which would have eliminated

7930-560: The Old Testament in which prophets had more than one wife. In the 1830s or early 1840s, Latter Day Saint movement founder Joseph Smith secretly initiated a practice of religious polygamy among select members of the Church of Christ he founded. In Nauvoo, Illinois, Smith introduced ecclesiastical leaders to the practice of polygamy, and he married several plural wives. On July 12, 1843, Smith dictated and had recorded what he said

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8060-529: The Pony Express obsolete, and bringing news to the Territory almost instantly. The News extras, now sometimes called telegraphic dispatches, were printed with even more frequency. In March 1862, the News and its staff moved from the Council House to the Deseret Store, and in 1864 a steam-powered printing press arrived; it was placed in the basement the building. The set type was lowered from

8190-535: The Twelve provided the newspapers with a one-sentence announcement, stating that the ground for excommunication was violation of the law of chastity . Over time, many of those who rejected the LDS Church's relinquishment of polygamy formed small, close-knit communities in areas of the Rocky Mountains. These groups continue to practice "the Principle". In the 1940s, LDS Church apostle Mark E. Petersen coined

8320-588: The U.S. Congress passed the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act , prohibiting polygamous marriage in the territories. Despite the law, many Latter-day Saints continued to practice polygamy, believing it was protected by the First Amendment . However, in 1879, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Morrill Act’s constitutionality in Reynolds v. United States , asserting that while laws could not interfere with religious belief, they could regulate religious practices. In 1890, when it became clear that Utah would not be admitted to

8450-449: The U.S. government took a number of steps against polygamy; these were of varying effectiveness. Anti-polygamy laws began to be passed ten years after the church publicly announced the practice of polygamy. The first legislative attempt to discourage polygamy in Utah was presented in the 33rd Congress. The bill was debated in May 1854. The bill included the provision that any man who had more than one wife would not be able to own land in

8580-635: The Union while polygamy was still practiced, church president Wilford Woodruff issued the 1890 Manifesto , officially terminating the practice of polygamy within the LDS Church. Although this manifesto did not dissolve existing polygamous marriages, relations with the United States markedly improved after 1890, such that Utah was admitted as a U.S. state in 1896. After the manifesto, some church members continued to enter into polygamous marriages, but these eventually stopped in 1904 when church president Joseph F. Smith disavowed polygamy before Congress and issued

8710-610: The Utah Territory. This bill was defeated in the House of Representatives after multiple representatives argued that the federal government did not have the authority to legislate morals in the states. As the church settled in what became the Utah Territory, it eventually was subjected to the power and opinion of the United States. Friction first began to show in the James Buchanan administration and federal troops arrived (see Utah War ). Buchanan, anticipating Mormon opposition to

8840-431: The agreement, both publications were free to contract printing needs with third parties and chart their futures independent of each other. After the dissolution became apparent, the Deseret News made the decision to end its daily print edition beginning January 1, 2021 (after just over 153 years of daily publication). The daily print edition was replaced with a new weekly local edition and the company would continue to print

8970-401: The beginning, paper shortages were a problem for the News staff. Starting with the October 19, 1850, issue—only four months after publication began—the paper had to be changed to a bi-weekly publication. Even so, many times in the 1850s there were several periods when the News could not be published for lack of paper; one period lasted three months during the fall of 1851. Thomas Howard,

9100-443: The breadth of beliefs across the United States, including but not limited to the LDS Church. Previously, content under the "Faith" section included only news unrelated to the LDS Church, with news related to the LDS Church covered by Mormon Times . The Deseret News also publishes a weekly compact-sized insert, the Church News . The Church News includes news of the LDS Church and has been published since 1931. From 1974 to 2013,

9230-473: The church publicly opposed the Cullom Bill. Op-eds in church-owned newspapers declared the bill as unjust and dangerous to Mormons. The introduction of the Cullom Bill led to protests by Mormons, particularly Mormon women. Women organized indignation meetings to voice their disapproval of the bill. The strong reaction of Mormon women surprised many onlookers and politicians. Outside of the church, Mormon women were seen as weak and oppressed by their husbands and

9360-545: The church were opposed to polygamy as they saw the practice as a violation of American values and morals. Opponents of polygamy believed that polygamy forced wives into submission to their husbands and some described polygamy as a form of slavery. The overall opposition to polygamy led the Republican Party's platform to refer to it as one of the "relics of barbarianism". Sensational and often violent novels provided fictional stories about polygamy which fueled

9490-447: The church's opposition to the creation of new plural marriages and threatened excommunication for Latter-day Saints who continued to enter into or solemnize new plural marriages. Apostles John W. Taylor and Matthias F. Cowley both resigned from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles due to disagreement with the church's position on plural marriage. Plural marriage in violation of local law continues to be grounds for excommunication from

9620-798: The church's website states that early Mormons believed that they would receive blessings from God by obeying the commandment of polygamy. Among historians, there is disagreement as to the precise number of wives Smith married. D. Michael Quinn reports 46, George D. Smith 38, Todd M. Compton 33 (plus eight "possible wives"), and Stewart Davenport 37. It is unclear how many of the wives Smith had sexual relations with. Some contemporary accounts from Smith's time indicate that he engaged in sexual relations with some of his wives. As of 2007 , there were at least twelve early Latter Day Saints who, based on historical documents and circumstantial evidence, had been identified as potential Smith offspring stemming from polygamous marriages. In 2005 and 2007 studies,

9750-488: The church, Orson Pratt, defended polygamy by arguing that the practice was a result of divine revelation and that it was protected under the US Constitution as a religious freedom. Following the public announcement of polygamy, members of the church published pamphlets and literature defending the practice. Mormon missionaries were also directed to defend polygamy. The majority of Americans who were not members of

9880-536: The church. Those disagreeing with the Second Manifesto included apostles Matthias F. Cowley and John W. Taylor , who both resigned from the Quorum of the Twelve . Cowley retained his membership in the church, but Taylor was later excommunicated. Although the Second Manifesto ended the official practice of new polygamous marriages, existing ones were not automatically dissolved. Many Mormons, including prominent church leaders, maintained their polygamy into

10010-423: The control of the Cannon family. The family's Deseret News Publishing Company was dissolved after the lease was gone, and within a few months The Deseret News Company was also dissolved and ownership of the paper was returned directly to the LDS Church. When the LDS Church regained direct control over the News , Horace G. Whitney was appointed business manager and Charles W. Penrose returned as editor. Immediately

10140-521: The court of last resort, I hearby declare my intention to submit to those laws, to use my influence with the members of the Church over which I preside to have them do likewise. There is nothing in my teachings to the Church or in those of my associates, during the time specified, which can be reasonably construed to inculcate or encourage polygamy; and when any Elder of the Church has used language which appeared to convey such teaching, he has been promptly reproved. And I now publicly declare that my advice to

10270-502: The desire of the Deseret News to switch from afternoon to morning publication, and ownership changes at the Tribune . The battle was resolved with the 2000 sale of the Tribune and with the Deseret News switching to morning publication and changing its name on June 9, 2003, to the Deseret Morning News . On January 26, 1995, the Deseret News launched the Crossroads Information Network, allowing subscribers to access

10400-575: The eastern United States as he lectured about the church. In his lectures, Bennett included claims of sexual misconduct among church leaders, secret rituals, and violence. In 1842, Bennett published a book entitled The History of the Saints: Or, An Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism which includes alleged stories of sexual misconduct by Smith and other church leaders. The church responded to Bennett's claims about Smith by gathering affidavits and printing contradictory evidence in newspapers. The women of

10530-402: The editor of the Deseret News . In October 2016, breaking an 80-year tradition of staying out of U.S. presidential politics, the Deseret News editorial board urged its readers not to vote for Donald Trump . In October 2020, the Deseret News and The Salt Lake Tribune announced the dissolution of their decades-long Joint Operating Agreement to share printing facilities. With the end of

10660-601: The effect that the Utah Commission, in their recent report to the Secretary of the Interior, allege that plural marriages have been contracted in Utah since last June or during the past year, also that in public discourses the leaders of the Church have taught, encouraged and urged the continuance of the practice of polygamy— I, therefore, as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, do hereby, in

10790-501: The global operating company, Deseret Management Corporation , which also owns Bonneville International , Deseret Book Company , and Deseret Media Company, among other organizations. The Deseret News had been under the direct ownership of the Church since 1898, when The Deseret News Company was dissolved. On December 29, 1931, the Deseret News Publishing Company was incorporated (not to be confused with

10920-625: The late 1850s. In 1853, Jedediah M. Grant —who later become a member of the First Presidency —stated that the top reason behind the persecution of Christ and his disciples was due to their practice of polygamy. Two months later, apostle Orson Pratt taught in a church periodical that "We have now clearly shown that God the Father had a plurality of wives", and that after her death, Mary (the mother of Jesus) may have become another eternal polygamous wife of God. He also stated that Christ had multiple wives— Mary of Bethany , Martha , and Mary Magdalene —as further evidence in defense of polygamy. In

11050-400: The law of the land, and made it easier for Utah to become a U.S. state . Nevertheless, even after the Manifesto, the church quietly continued to perform a small number of plural marriages in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, thus necessitating a Second Manifesto during U.S. congressional hearings in 1904. Though neither Manifesto dissolved existing plural marriages, plural marriage in

11180-500: The majority of Mormon polygamists continued to cohabit with their plural wives in violation of the Edmunds Act . Within six years of the announcement of the Manifesto, Utah had become a state and federal prosecution of Mormon polygamists subsided. However, Congress still refused to seat representatives-elect who were polygamists, including B. H. Roberts . D. Michael Quinn and other Mormon historians have documented that some church apostles covertly sanctioned plural marriages after

11310-586: The manifesto. The Manifesto was issued in response to the anti-polygamy policies of the federal government of the United States , and most especially the Edmunds–Tucker Act of 1887. This law disincorporated the LDS Church and authorized the federal government to seize all of the church's assets. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the provisions of the Edmunds–Tucker Act in Late Corporation of

11440-613: The men of the church. The political activism in support of polygamy of Mormon women was unexpected from a group that had been portrayed as powerless. Following the failure of the Wade, Cragin, and Collum Bills, the Poland Act was an anti-bigamy prosecution act that was successfully enacted by the 43rd United States Congress . The Poland Act, named after its sponsor in the US House of Representatives , attempted to prosecute Utah under

11570-404: The most solemn manner, declare that these charges are false. We are not teaching polygamy or plural marriage, nor permitting any person to enter into its practice, and I deny that either forty or any other number of plural marriages have during that period been solemnized in our Temples or in any other place in the Territory. One case has been reported, in which the parties allege that the marriage

11700-536: The necessary documents (such as laws, records, and forms) used in setting up the provisional State of Deseret . The first issue of the Deseret News was published June 15, 1850, and was eight pages long. This first issue included the paper's prospectus , written by the editor Willard Richards , along with news from the United States Congress , and a report on the San Francisco 1849 Christmas Eve fire; an event which had occurred six months prior. Because it

11830-468: The necessity of practicing polygamy in order to receive salvation. Members of the church in St George, Utah report being taught in the late 1800s that there is no "exaltation" without polygamy. In a church-owned newspaper, an article speculates that men and women who refuse to practice polygamy will have a lesser station in the afterlife. Polygamy was also explained as being a commandment of God that

11960-577: The newspaper switched from a daily to a weekly print format while continuing to publish daily on the website and Deseret News app. As of 2024, Deseret News develops daily content for its website and apps, in addition to twice weekly print editions of the Deseret News Local Edition and a weekly edition of the Church News and Deseret News National Edition. The company also publishes 10 editions of Deseret Magazine per year. On March 31, 1847, while at Winter Quarters , Nebraska ,

12090-476: The next two years the apostle Orson Hyde also stated during two general conference addresses that Jesus practiced polygamy and repeated this in an 1857 address. In a teaching manual published by the church in 2015, the practice of polygamy is described as a "test of faith" that brought Latter-day Saints closer to God. Other recent church documents point to an increase in children as being why Mormons believe God commanded them to practice polygamy. An article on

12220-404: The night with the Lord regarding the path that should be pursued. The result was a 510-word handwritten manuscript which stated his intentions to comply with the law and denied that the church continued to solemnize or condone polygamous marriages. The document was later edited by George Q. Cannon of the First Presidency and others to its present 356 words. On October 6, 1890, it was presented to

12350-402: The offices in the building's upper floor to the basement, through holes in each floor. Later an addition was constructed to the east of this building, and the presses were moved into that building. On October 8, 1865, the News launched its semi-weekly edition, this allowed news to get out more quickly and allowed for more advertisements. The weekly edition would continue and contained much of

12480-595: The paper received a license to officially operate a radio station, with call letters KZN (later changed to KSL ). The station's first regular broadcast aired on May 6, 1922, in the form of a talk by then-LDS Church president Heber J. Grant . In 1924 the station was sold to John Cope and his father, F.W. Cope, who formed the Radio Service Corporation of Utah. The LDS Church would later purchase this corporation and go on to create KSL-TV . The News , KSL Radio, and KSL Television remain closely linked via

12610-662: The paper's weekly edition, The Deseret Weekly , was discontinued; its last issue was published December 10, 1898. On October 1, 1900, the George Q. Cannon & Sons bookstore was sold to the LDS Church, and renamed the Deseret News Bookstore. In 1920 the Deseret Sunday School Union Bookstore was also consolidated into the Deseret News Bookstore, and eventually the bookstore would become its own company, Deseret Book . In 1903

12740-853: The people and culture of the Deseret region (from the Sierras to the Rockies, from the border of Mexico to the Pacific Northwest) and its intersection with the broader world. It includes essays on politics, culture, and faith from local and national thought leaders as well as other narratives and profiles. In addition to coverage of Utah and the broader region, the Deseret News also publishes content under its "Faith" section that features stories related to religion, churches and places of worship, and topics that intersect with faith such as Supreme Court rulings and religious education. These topics cover

12870-434: The polygamy commandment was often necessary in accepting it. Records indicate that future church leaders, such as Brigham Young, John Taylor , and Heber C. Kimball , greatly opposed polygamy initially. Documents left by Mormon women describe personal spiritual experiences that led them to accept polygamy. Another historian notes that some Mormon women expressed appreciation for polygamy and its effects. An early leader of

13000-520: The practice of polygamy is to increase the Mormon population by childbirth. In the Millennial Star , a church owned and operated newspaper, an article teaches that monogamous marriages result in offspring that are physically and mentally lesser than offspring of polygamous marriages. An early church leader argued that polygamy has historically been the main form of marriage and that polygamy

13130-429: The practice of polygamy was required before the Second Coming of Christ . Brigham Young said that any male member of the church who was commanded to practice polygamy and refused would be damned. Other leaders of the church taught that men who refused to have multiple wives were not obeying God's commandments and that they should step down from their priesthood callings. Church president Joseph F. Smith also spoke about

13260-682: The press and other church property was loaded onto ox drawn wagons, and traveled with the Howard Egan Company along the Mormon Trail . The wagon company, with the press, arrived in the Salt Lake Valley August 7, 1849. The press was moved into a small adobe building (just east of the present site of the Hotel Utah ) that also served as a coin mint for the settlers. The press was at first used to print

13390-576: The public's dislike for the practice and Mormons. However, some non-Mormons held more positive views of polygamy. For example, after surveying the Utah Territory, Captain Howard Stansbury concluded that most polygamous marriages were successful and there were good feelings between families. John C. Bennett was a member of the church and close friend of Joseph Smith who was disfellowshipped and later excommunicated for adultery. Following his excommunication, Bennett began to travel around

13520-569: The railroad wanted to rent space in the new building. As a result, the News constructed an annex to the west of the new building for more space. This new home was at the site of the former Council House ; presently the Beneficial Tower (Gateway Tower West) sits at this location. The daily, called the Deseret Evening News, was renamed to the Deseret News on June 15, 1920; the paper's 70th anniversary. The semi-weekly

13650-468: The right to a jury for bigamy trials, was introduced but not passed. After that, the Cullom Bill was introduced. One of the most concerning parts of the Cullom Bill for polygamists was that, if passed, anyone who practiced any type of non-monogamous relationship would not be able to become a citizen of the United States, vote in elections, or receive the benefits of the homestead laws. The leadership of

13780-402: The same content as the semi-weekly, but editorials were different. In November 1867, George Q. Cannon became the editor, and on the 21st of that month, the News published its first daily edition, which was printed in the evening, and as such was named The Deseret Evening News . Most of what was published in the daily edition, was also published in the weekly and semi-weekly, as the daily

13910-487: The teachings and practiced polygamy. The number of members aware of polygamy grew until the church started openly practicing polygamy in early 1852, eight years after Smith's death. According to some historians and then-contemporary accounts, by this time, polygamy was openly taught and practiced. The doctrine authorizing polygamy was canonized and first published in the 1876 version of the church's Doctrine and Covenants . There were two types of polygamous marriages in

14040-467: The term " Mormon fundamentalist " to describe such people. Fundamentalists either practice as individuals, as families, or as part of organized denominations. Today, the LDS Church objects to the use of the term "Mormon fundamentalists" and suggests using the term "polygamist sects" to avoid confusion about whether the main body of Mormon believers teach or practice polygamy. The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (also referred to as

14170-593: The territorial government, and many members and leaders were being actively pursued as fugitives. Without being able to appear publicly, the leadership was left to navigate "underground". Following the passage of the Edmunds–Tucker Act, the church found it difficult to operate as a viable institution. After visiting priesthood leaders in many settlements, church president Wilford Woodruff left for San Francisco on September 3, 1890, to meet with prominent businessmen and politicians. He returned to Salt Lake City on September 21, determined to obtain divine confirmation to pursue

14300-488: The territory collecting rags that would then be turned into paper, and was able to supply enough to keep the News in production. Other problems such as ice and drought on the stream, running out of Parley's Canyon , that ran the paper mill caused the paper to have short lapses in publication. In October 1861 the lines of the First Transcontinental Telegraph met in Salt Lake City, making

14430-471: The weekly national edition, Church News , and introduce the Deseret Magazine . Starting March 23, 2022, the Deseret News began publication of the semiweekly local edition, bringing print publication of their local edition to twice weekly. In December 2020, the Deseret News editorial board again broke political neutrality by denouncing Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes 's decision to support

14560-468: Was a revelation from God describing the theology and purpose of polygamy, relating it to biblical portrayals of polygamous marriage by Old Testament patriarchs such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When he dictated the document, Smith said he already "knew the revelation perfectly from beginning to end". At the time, the practice was kept secret from most people, both adherents and not. The church publicly denounced polygamy, and only some membership knew about

14690-535: Was able to procure a wrought iron Ramage hand-press , type , and other required equipment. He returned to Winter Quarters on November 12, 1847, with the press. Due partly to its size and weight, the press and equipment would not be taken to Salt Lake City until 1849. By that time many of the Mormon pioneers had left Winter Quarters and the press was moved across the Missouri River to another temporary Mormon settlement, Kanesville, Iowa . In April 1849

14820-463: Was believed to be legal. As Woodruff explained at the general conference where the Manifesto was accepted by the church, "[t]his Manifesto only refers to future marriages, and does not affect past conditions. I did not, I could not, and would not promise that you would desert your wives and children. This you cannot do in honor." Despite Woodruff's explanation, some church leaders and members who were polygamous did begin to live with only one wife. However,

14950-421: Was constitutional. That decision left the Mormons no further legal recourse to their current marriage practices and made it unlikely that without change Utah Territory would be granted statehood. Woodruff later said that on the night of September 23, 1890, he received a revelation from Jesus Christ that the church should cease the practice of plural marriage. The following morning, he reported this to some of

15080-579: Was destroyed April 1, 1893. On October 1, 1892, The Deseret News Company leased the News along with all the company's printing, bookbinding, and merchandising to the Cannon family . The family was, at that time, operating the George Q. Cannon & Sons bookstore in downtown Salt Lake City. When the lease began the family formed the Deseret News Printing Company, which was to be the lessee, while The Deseret News Company would remain

15210-585: Was discontinued on June 22, 1922, leaving the daily as the only news publication. Two days later the News announced it had purchased the Utah Farmer , a weekly agricultural paper; which it would eventually sell. In 1926 the News once again moved into a new building, this time on Richard's Street (just south of the present Deseret Book store in City Creek Center .) This same year, the News began using teletype technology to receive news from

15340-544: Was formally accepted by the church membership, though many held reservations or abstained from voting. Utah ratified its constitution in November 1895 and was granted statehood on January 4, 1896. One of the conditions for granting Utah statehood was that a ban on polygamy be written into its state constitution. The Manifesto states: To Whom It May Concern: Press dispatches having been sent for political purposes, from Salt Lake City, which have been widely published, to

15470-478: Was imprisoned for continuing to cohabit with wives that he married before the 1862 Morrill Act. In 1887, the Edmunds–Tucker Act allowed the disincorporation of the LDS Church and the seizure of church property; it also further extended the punishments of the Edmunds Act. On July 31 of the same year, U.S. Attorney General George Peters filed suit to seize all church assets. The church was losing control of

15600-565: Was largely understood to be unconstitutional and was only enforced in rare cases. While, the Act outlawed bigamy in the US territories, it was seen to be largely weak and infective at preventing people from practicing polygamy. However, due to the continuous threat of legislation targeting polygamy and the church, Brigham Young pretended to comply. On January 6, 1879, the Supreme Court upheld

15730-608: Was meant for city readers and the weekly and semi-weekly for those living in the more rural areas of the territory. Until December 1898 all three editions—the weekly, semi-weekly, and daily—were published concurrently. In 1870, the Mormon Tribune , later named The Salt Lake Tribune , was first printed, adding a new newspaper rival to the Salt Lake area. Since its founding the Tribune and News have often been involved in "newspaper battles", times when they could not agree on anything, even secular items. During these battles

15860-628: Was meant to be the voice of the State of Deseret, it was called the Deseret News, and its motto was "Truth and Liberty". It was at first a weekly Saturday publication, and published in "pamphlet form" in hopes that readers would have the papers bound into volumes. Subscription rate was $ 2.50 for six months. A jobs press, usually called the Deseret News Press, was also set up so the News could print books, booklets, handbills, broadsides, etc., for paying customers and other publishers. From

15990-625: Was performed in the Endowment House , in Salt Lake City, in the Spring of 1889, but I have not been able to learn who performed the ceremony; whatever was done in this matter was without my knowledge. In consequence of this alleged occurrence the Endowment House was, by my instructions, taken down without delay. Inasmuch as laws have been enacted by Congress forbidding plural marriages, which laws have been pronounced constitutional by

16120-463: Was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890 by between 20 and 30 percent of Latter-day Saint families. Polygamy among Latter-day Saints has been controversial, both in Western society and within the LDS Church itself. Many U.S. politicians were strongly opposed to the practice;

16250-420: Was received by divine revelation and that polygamy was a part of God's plan. Latter-day Saints believed that a woman could secure her place in heaven by being sealed to a righteous man who held the priesthood. Some women embraced polygamy because of this teaching and their desire to receive divine blessings. The salvation of women was understood to be dependent on their status as wives. One reason given for

16380-462: Was regarded as divinely mandated. As a result, over 200 polygamous marriages were performed between 1890 and 1904. It was not until 1904, under the leadership of church president Joseph F. Smith , that the church completely banned new polygamous marriages worldwide. Not surprisingly, rumors persisted of marriages performed after the 1890 Manifesto, and beginning in January 1904, testimony given in

16510-473: Was the Supreme Court's first case in which a party used the right of freedom of religion as a defense. The ruling concluded that Mormons could be charged with committing bigamy despite their religious beliefs. The final element in Woodruff's revelatory experience came on the evening of September 23, 1890. The following morning, he reported to some of the general authorities that he had struggled throughout

16640-619: Was to take the remainder to Parowan . On May 5, 1858, the first issue of the News with Fillmore City as the publication place appeared; issues would continue to be printed in both Fillmore and Parowan until September 1858 While in Fillmore, the press was kept in the basement of the Utah Territorial Statehouse . That fall the presses were brought back to Salt Lake City and placed in the Council House , allowing

16770-597: Was toward the law against polygamy, Woodruff stated, "We mean to obey it. We have no thought of evading it or ignoring it." Because it had been Mormon practice for over 25 years to either evade or ignore anti-polygamy laws, Woodruff's statement was a signal that a change in church policy was developing. In February 1890, the Supreme Court ruled in Davis v. Beason that a law in Idaho Territory which disenfranchised individuals who practiced or believed in plural marriage

16900-501: Was very expensive to haul from California or the East, and attempts at making paper in the valley were still, for the most part, futile. In 1860 a paper-making machine had been purchased, and set-up in the Deseret Manufacturing Company sugar house factory, but lack of available materials meant a lack of paper. As a result, Brigham Young called George Goddard on a rag-gathering mission. Goddard traveled through

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