William Reed Smith (August 11, 1826 – January 15, 1894, middle name also spelled "Read" and "Reid" in some sources) was a Utah territorial politician, judge, and a leader of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

(LDS Church) in Utah.

Early life

Smith was born in Yonge Township,

Leeds County Leeds County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario. The county was first surveyed in 1792 as one of the nineteen counties created by Sir John Graves Simcoe in preparation for the United Empire Loyalists to settle here. The coun ...

, Upper Canada, as the youngest of nine children born to Peter Smyth (who always spelled his surname with a ''y'', although William R. Smith always spelled his surname with an ''i''). and Mary Read (''Read'' being her maiden surname, which she spelled ''Read'', although William R. Smith usually spelled his middle name ''Reed''). Both of his parents died when he was very young, so at the age of two years and ten months he was taken in by neighbors, Samuel and Fanny Parrish, who raised him to adulthood. The Parrishes raised Smith in the Quaker religion. In 1837, the Parrishes and Smith moved to

Stark County, Illinois Stark County is in Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 5,994. Its county seat is Toulon. Stark County is part of the Peoria, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Stark County was formed in 1839 out of Knox a ...

. In the late 1830s, as Latter Day Saints began gathering in nearby Nauvoo, the Parishes and Smith became interested in

Mormonism Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of ...

. Smith was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1841, on his 15th birthday.

LDS Church leadership in Utah

In 1849, Smith traveled to the Salt Lake Valley as a

Mormon pioneer The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter Day Saints, who migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the Midwest to the S ...

. In

Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th state ...

, Smith settled in Centerville. In 1855, Smith was appointed as the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of the LDS Church's Centerville

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

, and served in this position until 1877. During his time as bishop, Smith was involved in the

Mormon Reformation The Mormon Reformation was a period of renewed emphasis on spirituality within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and a centrally-directed movement, which called for a spiritual reawakening among church members. It took p ...

, and accompanied Jedediah M. Grant in a tour of Utah in which the merits of

rebaptism Rebaptism in Christianity is the baptism of a person who has previously been baptized, usually in association with a denomination that does not recognize the validity of the previous baptism. When a denomination rebaptizes members of another denomi ...

were presented. Smith himself was rebaptized on September 29, 1856.

Political career

In 1860, Smith was elected to represent Centerville in the Territorial Council of

(the upper house of the Utah Territorial Legislative Assembly). He was elected to finish the unexpired term of Charles C. Rich, who had resigned so that he could travel to Europe as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

for the LDS Church. Smith was subsequently elected to one-year terms in the House of Representatives in 1863 and again in 1870. From 1874 to 1883, Smith was a

probate judge A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as Orphans' Courts o ...

Davis County, Utah Davis County is a county in northern Utah, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 306,479, making it Utah's third-most populous county. Its county seat is Farmington, and its largest city is Layton. Davis Count ...

Later LDS Church leadership

From 1865 to 1867, Smith was a

for the LDS Church in England, Ireland, and Scotland. While traveling to and from Europe, he visited relatives in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. In 1874, Smith was appointed the president of the Centerville branch of the

United Order In the Latter Day Saint movement, the United Order (also called the United Order of Enoch) was one of several 19th-century church collectivist programs. Early versions of the Order beginning in 1831 attempted to fully implement the law of consecr ...

. In 1877, Smith became the first

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the newly organized Davis Stake of the LDS Church, and he served in this position until his death. During his tenure, the first Primary of the LDS Church was organized in his stake boundaries by Aurelia Spencer Rogers. In 1880, Smith became a member of the LDS Church's

Council of Fifty "The Council of Fifty" (also known as "the Living Constitution", "the Kingdom of God", or its name by revelation, "The Kingdom of God and His Laws with the Keys and Power thereof, and Judgment in the Hands of His Servants, Ahman Christ") was a La ...

, a body which advised the church on political, economic, and social issues affecting Latter-day Saints. In 1885, Smith and two other men traveled to western Canada to examine the possibility of establishing Mormon colonies in the area. On this trip, the men investigated a number of potential settlement locations in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

south of Lethbridge. Smith purchased a tract of land, which was later settled as Spring Coulee, Alberta. Smith's investigations led to the establishment of

Cardston Cardston is a town in Alberta, Canada. It was first settled in 1887 by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) who travelled from Utah, via the Macleod-Benton Trail, to present-day Alberta in one of the century' ...

Charles Ora Card __NOTOC__ Charles Ora Card (November 5, 1839 – September 9, 1906) was the American founder of Cardston, Alberta, the first Mormon settlement in Canada. He has been referred to as "Canada's Brigham Young". Richard E. Bennett"Canada: From Strugglin ...

in 1887.

Bigamy conviction and pardon

Like many 19th-century members of the LDS Church, Smith practiced plural marriage, and had five wives simultaneously. In July 1887, Smith was arrested for violating the 1862

Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act The Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act (37th United States Congress, Sess. 2., ch. 126, ) was a federal enactment of the United States Congress that was signed into law on July 1, 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln. Sponsored by Justin Smith Morrill of Vermo ...

(a U.S. federal law). He pleaded guilty, and on March 31, 1888, was sentenced to six months' imprisonment and a $300 fine. Smith was imprisoned until July 20, 1888, when he was pardoned by

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

Death

Smith died in Centerville of "stricture of the bowels"—which today would probably have been identified as colorectal cancer. He had five wives and 30 children, of whom 11 died at birth or pre-deceased him during childhood.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, William R. 1826 births 1894 deaths 19th-century American politicians 19th-century Mormon missionaries American Mormon missionaries in England American Mormon missionaries in Ireland American Mormon missionaries in Scotland American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints American people convicted of bigamy American prisoners and detainees Canadian Latter Day Saints Canadian Mormon missionaries Canadian leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Converts to Mormonism from Quakerism Deaths from cancer in Utah Deaths from colorectal cancer in the United States Latter Day Saints from Illinois Latter Day Saints from Utah Members of the Utah Territorial Legislature Mormon pioneers People from Centerville, Utah People from Stark County, Illinois Emigrants from pre-Confederation Ontario to the United States Primary (LDS Church) people Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Recipients of American presidential pardons Utah politicians convicted of crimes