Wilford Woodruff

1807–1898 (91 years)

Hometown: Farmington, Connecticut

Biography

Wilford Woodruff was the fourth President of the LDS Church, serving from 1889 until his death in 1898. A native of Connecticut, Woodruff converted to Mormonism in 1833 and became known as one of the most prolific missionaries and journal keepers in church history. His detailed journals spanning over 60 years remain invaluable historical records.

Woodruff served numerous missions, baptizing thousands of converts, particularly during his famous mission to England where he converted nearly 2,000 people. He was ordained an apostle in 1839. A practicing polygamist with nine wives, Woodruff faced the most consequential decision of any church president: whether to continue polygamy in defiance of federal law or abandon the practice.

In 1890, facing the imminent seizure of all church property and the imprisonment of church leaders, Woodruff issued Official Declaration 1, known as “The Manifesto,” which officially ended the church’s sanction of new plural marriages. He later claimed to have received a revelation instructing him to issue the Manifesto, though critics note that considerable legal and political pressure preceded it. This decision marked a turning point that eventually allowed Utah to achieve statehood in 1896.

His presidency also saw the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple in 1893, completing a project begun 40 years earlier.

Served Under

Church presidents during this leader's apostolic service:

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith 1805–1844 (38 years) Brigham Young Brigham Young 1801–1877 (76 years) John Taylor John Taylor 1808–1887 (78 years)

Apostles Who Served During This Presidency

John F. Boynton John F. Boynton William Smith William Smith Lorenzo Snow Lorenzo Snow Franklin D. Richards Franklin D. Richards John Willard Young John Willard Young Daniel H. Wells Daniel H. Wells George Q. Cannon George Q. Cannon Brigham Young Jr. Brigham Young Jr. Joseph F. Smith Joseph F. Smith Albert Carrington Albert Carrington Moses Thatcher Moses Thatcher Francis M. Lyman Francis M. Lyman John Henry Smith John Henry Smith Heber J. Grant Heber J. Grant George Teasdale George Teasdale

View all church leaders →

Wives (10)

Wilford Woodruff was a polygamist with 10 marriages. 4 of these wives were teenagers at the time of marriage.

Marriage Age Comparison

10 wives · Ages at marriage

Her age His age Teenage bride (<18)
#NameMarriage DateHer AgeHis AgeAge DiffChildren
1 Phebe Whittemore Carter Apr 13, 1837 3030—9
2 Mary Ann Jackson Aug 2, 1846 2839111
3 Mary Caroline Barton ⚠ Aug 2, 1846 1739220
4 Sarah Elinor Brown Aug 2, 1846 1939200
5 Mary Meek Giles Mar 28, 1852 494540
6 Clarissa Harriman Hardy ⚠ Apr 20, 1852 1745280
7 Emma Smith ⚠ Mar 13, 1853 1446324
8 Sarah Brown Mar 13, 1853 1846288
9 Sarah Delight Stocking ⚠ Jul 31, 1857 1750337
10 Eudora Lovina Young Mar 10, 1877 2470461

Children (30)

With Phebe Whittemore Carter (9 children)

  1. Sarah Emma Woodruff (b. Jul 14, 1838)
  2. Wilford Woodruff Jr. (b. Mar 22, 1840)
  3. Phebe Amelia Woodruff (b. Mar 4, 1842)
  4. Susan Cornelia Woodruff (b. Jul 25, 1843)
  5. Joseph Carter Woodruff (b. Jul 18, 1845)
  6. Ezra Carter Woodruff (b. Dec 8, 1846)
  7. Shuah Carter Woodruff (b. Oct 28, 1847)
  8. Beulah Augusta Woodruff (b. Jul 19, 1851)
  9. Aphek Woodruff (b. Jan 26, 1853)

With Mary Ann Jackson (1 child)

  1. James Jackson Woodruff (b. May 25, 1847)

With Emma Smith (4 children)

  1. Hyrum Smith Woodruff (b. Oct 4, 1857)
  2. Emma Manella Woodruff (b. Jul 4, 1860)
  3. Asahel Hart Woodruff (b. Feb 3, 1863)
  4. Ann Thompson Woodruff (b. Apr 10, 1867)

With Sarah Brown (8 children)

  1. David Patten Woodruff (b. Apr 4, 1854)
  2. Brigham Young Woodruff (b. Jan 18, 1857)
  3. Phoebe Arabella Woodruff (b. May 30, 1859)
  4. Sylvia Melvina Woodruff (b. Jan 14, 1862)
  5. Newton Woodruff (b. Nov 3, 1863)
  6. Mary Woodruff (b. Oct 26, 1867)
  7. Charles Henry Woodruff (b. Dec 5, 1870)
  8. Edward Randolph Woodruff (b. Feb 2, 1873)

With Sarah Delight Stocking (7 children)

  1. Marion Woodruff (b. Jun 1, 1861)
  2. Emeline Woodruff (b. Jul 25, 1863)
  3. Ensign Woodruff (b. Dec 23, 1865)
  4. Jeremiah Woodruff (b. Aug 29, 1868)
  5. Rosannah Woodruff (b. Apr 17, 1871)
  6. John Jay Woodruff (b. Aug 14, 1873)
  7. Julia Delight Stocking Woodruff (b. Jun 28, 1878)

With Eudora Lovina Young (1 child)

  1. Infant son Woodruff (b. Apr 1, 1878)

Related Posts (26)

Related Images

The statements emphasized that the Church practiced no marital law other than monogamy while implicitly leaving open the possibility that individuals, under direction of God’s living prophet, might do so. [Footnote: See, for example, “On Marriage,” Times and Seasons, Oct. 1, 1842, 939–40; and Wilford Woodruff journal, Nov. 25, 1843, Church History Library, Salt Lake City; Parley P. Pratt, “This Number Closes the First Volume of the ‘Prophet,’” The Prophet, May 24, 1845, 2. George A. Smith explained, “Any one who will read carefully the denials, as they are termed, of plurality of wives in connection with the circumstances will see clearly that they denounce adultery, fornication, brutal lust and the teaching of plurality of wives by those who were not commanded to do so” (George A. Smith letter to Joseph Smith III, Oct. 9, 1869, in Journal History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Oct. 9, 1869, Church History Library, Salt Lake City).] LDS Church Website, Gospel Topics Essays: Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo | wasmormon.org “Press dispatches... allege that plural marriages are still being solemnized ... 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 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.” - Wilford Woodruff, 1890 Manifesto - D&C Official Declaration 1 | wasmormon.org "We are not going to stop the practice of plural marriage until the coming of the Son of Man." - Wilford Woodruff, LDS Apostle, Manti Temple dedication, May 17, 1888 | wasmormon.org “I have arrived at a point in the History of my life as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints where I am under the necessity of acting for the Temporal Salvation of the Church. The United State Government has taken a stand & passed Laws to destroy the Latter day Saints upon the subject of polygamy or Patriarchal order of Marriage. And after praying to the Lord & feeling inspired by his spirit I have issued the following Proclamation...” - Wilford Woodruff, LDS Church President, Journal, September 25, 1890 | wasmormon.org Church leaders prayerfully sought guidance from the Lord and struggled to understand what they should do. Both President John Taylor and President Wilford Woodruff felt the Lord directing them to stay the course and not renounce plural marriage. This inspiration came when paths for legal redress were still open. The last of the paths closed in May 1890... President Woodruff saw that the Church’s temples and its ordinances were now at risk. Burdened by this threat, he prayed intensely over the matter. “The Lord showed me by vision and revelation,” he later said, “exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice,” referring to plural marriage. “All the temples [would] go out of our hands.” God “has told me exactly what to do, and what the result would be if we did not do it.” - LDS Church Website > Gospel Topics Essay > The Manifesto and the End of Plural Marriage | wasmormon.org “Antipolygamy laws enacted by the United States federal government in the 1870s and 1880s targeted Church-sponsored enterprises and the Church as a corporation and eventually threatened to disenfranchise the Church and confiscate its properties. President Wilford Woodruff worked with lawmakers and court officials to comply with new laws, discontinue the practice of plural marriage, and transition Church- affiliated enterprises into private business entities.” - LDS Church Website > Church History Topics > Church Incorporation | wasmormon.org “Black Jane wanted to know if I would not let her have her Endowments in the Temple. This I could not do as it was against the Law of God. As Cain killed Abel. All the seed of Cain would have to wait for Redemption until all the seed that Abel would have had that may come through other men can be redeemed.” - LDS Church President, Wilford Woodruff's journal, October 16, 1894 | wasmormon.org "Hi, I'm Jacob! I'm a lover of geography, tokusatsu, Deadpool, and music. I'm 19, I love traveling and learning about other cultures. I was born into the church, with ancestry from Wilford Woodruff and dozens of people on the Utah Expedition. Pretty much everyone on my mom's side of the family was and is an active and practicing Mormon. I was baptized when I was 8, I attended seminary, and I did my best to keep the commandments and to keep the sabbath day holy. Growing up, I was a very firm believer in the church. I was a Mormon." - Jacob's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bakiraka01/ "In 1890, the Lord told Wilford Woodruff, the President of the Church, that men should not marry more than one wife anymore. The leaders of the Church shared this commandment with the Saints. This is still the Lord’s commandment today—a man should be married to only one wife." - LDS Scripture Stories, Doctrine and Covenants: 1831–1890 Plural Marriage Faith to obey a law from the Lord even when it's hard | wasmormon.org "The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so He will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty." Official Declaration 1, Excerpts from three addresses by President Wilford Woodruff regarding the Manifesto | wasmormon.org