Joseph Fielding Smith was born 19 July 1876 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States to Joseph Fielding Smith (1838-1918) and Julina Lambson (1849-1936) and died 2 July 1972 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States of unspecified causes. He married Louie Emily Shurtliff (1876-1908) 26 April 1898 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. He married Ethel Georgina Reynolds (1889-1937) 2 November 1908 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. He married Jessie Ella Evans (1902-1971) 12 April 1938 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah.
10th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - (1970-1972)
Vital Statistics
- Son of Joseph F Smith and Julina Lambson
- 1876-Jul-19 : Birth
- 1910-Apr-7 : Set apart as Apostle of the LDS Church (Age 33)
- 1970-Jan-23 : Set apart as President of the LDS Church (Age 93)
- 1972-Jul-2 : Death - Salt Lake City UT
Biography
Just after returning from his mission in 1901, Smith began work in the office of the Church Historian and Recorder. He was the acting recorder of the general conference in 1910 when he was called as an apostle. Prior to his call as a general authority Smith served as the secretary and treasurer of the Utah Genealogical Society. In 1921 Smith assumed the office of Church Historian and Recorder which he held until 1970.
Smith spent most of his time as an apostle living in Salt Lake City. He also was president of the Salt Lake Temple from 1945 to 1949. During this time, Smith was sent on a tour of the Spanish-American Mission of the church. Before his return to Salt Lake he informed the president of the Arizona Temple that he would recommend to the First Presidency that the temple ceremonies be translated into Spanish.
Smith served as president of the Genealogical Society of Utah and its successor the Genealogical Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1934 to 1961. At the time of his release from this position he had already been president of the Quorum of the Twelve for over a decade. During the late 1950s, Smith attempted to reduce staff turnover at the Society by trying to convince the First Presidency that women should be permitted to stay on as employees after they married. However, Smith was only able to get a change to allow them to work six months past marriage.
Profiles
- 1972 LDS Ensign Obiturary -
- A Review of the Administration of Pres. Smith - LDS Ensign 1972
- Teachings of the President of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith
- Joseph Fielding Smith - Grandpa Bill's GA Pages
Family Life
1st Marriage: Shurtliff
Smith married his first wife, Louie Emily "Emyla" Shurtliff (born June 16, 1876) on April 26, 1898. In March 1899, church president Lorenzo Snow called him on a mission to Great Britain, which he completed (May 1899 - July 1901), leaving Louie in Salt Lake City. On May 12, 1899, Smith was set apart as a missionary and ordained a seventy by his father. A small group of missionaries, including Smith and his older brother, Joseph Richards Smith, left the next day for England. After his return from the British mission, Smith and his wife had two daughters, Josephine and Julina. Louie died of complications of a third pregnancy on March 28, 1908.
- Josephine Smith (1902-1995)
- Julina Smith (1906-1997)
2nd Marriage: Reynolds
Smith married Ethel Georgina Reynolds (born October 23, 1889), the daughter of prominent LDS Church leader George Reynolds, on November 2, 1908. They had four girls (Emily, Naomi, Lois, and Amelia) and five boys (Joseph Fielding (often called Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr.), Lewis Warren, George Reynolds, Douglas Allan, and Milton Edmund). Ethel died of a cerebral hemorrhage on August 26, 1937, at age 47.
- Emily Smith (1909-1994)
- Naomi Smith (1910-1979)
- Lois Smith (1912-1981)
- Joseph Fielding Smith (1913-1974)
- Lewis Warren Smith (1918-1944)
- George Reynolds Smith (1921-1982)
- Amelia Smith (1916-2005) - Their youngest daughter, Amelia, married Bruce Redd McConkie (1915-1985), who was named to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shortly after Smith's death.
3rd Marriage: Evans
Ethel had specifically requested that Jessie Ella Evans (1902-1971), an accomplished contra-alto opera singer, sing at her funeral. Evans, born to Jonathan Evans and Janet Buchanan Evans, had joined the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in 1918, was a member of the American Light Opera Company (1923–27), and was the Salt Lake County Recorder. In November 1937 Evans and Smith were engaged to be married.
In April 1938, Smith married Evans in the Salt Lake Temple. The marriage was performed by Heber J. Grant. The couple had no children. Jessie died on August 2, 1971.
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Josephine Smith (1902-1995) | |||
| Julina Smith (1906-1997) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Emily Smith (1909-1994) | |||
| Naomi Smith (1910-1979) | 16 November 1910 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States | 15 October 1979 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States | Hoyt William Brewster (1910-1988) |
| Lois Smith (1912-1981) | |||
| Joseph Fielding Smith (1913-1974) | 18 December 1913 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States | 25 August 1974 North Rim, Coconino County, Arizona, United States | Zella Farr (1914-1996) |
| Lewis Warren Smith (1918-1944) | |||
| George Reynolds Smith (1921-1982) | |||
| Amelia Smith (1916-2005) | 21 June 1916 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah | 22 September 2005 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah | Bruce Redd McConkie (1915-1985) |
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Edward Arthur Smith (1858-1911) | |||
| Mercy Josephine Smith (1867-1870) | |||
| Mary Sophronia Smith (1869-1948) | |||
| Donette Smith (1872-1961) | |||
| Joseph Fielding Smith (1876-1972) | 19 July 1876 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States | 2 July 1972 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States | Louie Emily Shurtliff (1876-1908) Ethel Georgina Reynolds (1889-1937) Jessie Ella Evans (1902-1971) |
| David Asael Smith (1879-1952) | |||
| George Carlos Smith (1881-1931) | |||
| Julina Clarissa Smith (1884-1923) | |||
| Elias Wesley Smith (1886-1970) | |||
| Emily Jane Smith (1888-1982) | |||
| Rachael Smith (1890-1986) | |||
| Edith Eleanor Smith (1894-1987) | |||
| Marjorie Virginia Smith (1906-1994) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Sarah Ellen Smith (1869-1869) | |||
| Leonora Smith (1871-1907) | |||
| Joseph Richards Smith (1873-1954) | |||
| Heber John Smith (1876-1877) | |||
| Rhoda Ann Smith (1878-1879) | |||
| Minerva Smith (1880-1958) | |||
| Alice Smith (1882-1901) | |||
| Willard Richards Smith (1884-1972) | 20 November 1884 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah | 11 September 1972 | Florence Grant (1883-1977) |
| Franklin Richards Smith (1888-1967) | |||
| Jeanetta Smith (1891-1932) | |||
| Asenath Smith (1896-1982) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Hyrum Mack Smith (1872-1918) | 21 March 1872 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah | 23 January 1918 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah | Ida Elizabeth Bowman (1872-1918) |
| Alvin Fielding Smith (1874-1948) | |||
| Alfred Jason Smith (1876-1878) | |||
| Edna Melissa Smith (1879-1958) | |||
| Albert Jesse Smith (1881-1883) | |||
| Robert Smith (1883-1886) | |||
| Emma Smith (1888-1969) | |||
| Zina Smith (1890-1915) | |||
| Ruth Smith (1893-1898) | |||
| Martha Smith (1897-1977) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Charles Coulson Smith (1881-1933) | |||
| Heber Chase Smith (1881-1971) | |||
| Alice May Smith (1877-1920) | |||
| Lucy Mack Smith (1890-1933) | |||
| Andrew Kimball Smith (1893-1951) | |||
| Jesse Kimball Smith (1896-1953) | |||
| Fielding Kimball Smith (1900-1974) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| John Schwartz Smith (1886-1889) | |||
| Calvin Schwartz Smith (1890-1966) | |||
| Samuel Schwartz Smith (1892-1983) | |||
| James Schwartz Smith (1894-1950) | |||
| Agnes Smith (1897-1966) | |||
| Silas Schwartz Smith (1900-1986) | |||
| Royal Grant Smith (1906-1971) | |||
Famous Ancestors
- Joseph Smith Immigrant Ancestors - 64x prominent early Colonial American Immigrants - including Mayflower Pilgrims - Fuller, Lathrop & Howland.
- Joseph F Smith (1838-1918) - Father - 6th President of the LDS Church
- Hyrum Smith - Grandfather and early patriarch of the LDS Church
- Joseph Smith SR - Great Grandfather and first patriarch of the LDS Church
References
- Wikipedia
- LDS Church Presidents Biography
- Joseph Smith Family Ancestry
- Joseph Fielding Smith - Grandpa Bills GA Pages
- Joseph Fielding Smith - Teachings of the Presidents of the Church
- Joseph Fielding Smith at Find A Grave #6272652
- Joseph Fielding Smith
