Cornelia Paddock (1840–1898, aged 57) was a leader of the anti-polygamy movement in

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

. She was a founding member of the Utah Ladies' Anti-Polygamy Society.

Life

Paddock was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

in 1840 and moved to the

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 sta ...

with her husband Alonzo in 1870, at which point she became involved in political movements that opposed

plural marriage Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more th ...

Involvement in the anti-polygamist movement

In 1878, Paddock formed the Ladies Anti-Polygamy Society, along with Sarah Ann Cooke and Jennie Anderson Froseith. Paddock's writing frequently appeared in the ''Anti-Polygamy Standard'' from 1880 to 1883. She also published two novels with

anti-Mormon Anti-Mormonism is discrimination, persecution, hostility or prejudice directed against the Latter Day Saint movement, particularly the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The term is often used to describe people or liter ...

themes, titled ''The Fate of Madame La Tour'' and ''In the Toil''s''; or, Martyrs of the Latter Days'' (1879). In 1884, Paddock signed a petition against

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to gran ...

, in conjunction with Angie Newman and the

Women's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international Temperance movement, temperance organization, originating among women in the United States Prohibition movement. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social ref ...

. Some historians theorize that Paddock may have influenced the strict anti-polygamist policies of

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the so ...

politician

Algernon Paddock Algernon Sidney Paddock (November 9, 1830October 17, 1897) was an American politician who was a Republican secretary of Nebraska Territory and U.S. Senator from Nebraska after statehood. Biography Paddock was born in Glens Falls, New York. His ...

, who was her husband's cousin.

Woman's Home Association

In October 1894, she was elected president of the Woman's Home Association of Salt Lake City (WHA), an organization formed with the mission of providing employment training for

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work i ...

s. The WHA was disbanded in 1901, three years after Paddock's death. In 1884, Paddock signed a petition against

, in conjunction with Angie Newman and the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paddock, Cornelia 1840s births 1898 deaths Activists from Utah People from New York City Utah Territory