HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Florence Smith Jacobsen (April 7, 1913 – March 5, 2017) was an American religious leader associated with
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 Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
(LDS Church) who served as the sixth General President of the Young Women's Mutual Improvement Association (YWMIA) from 1961 to 1972.


Early years

Born in
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
,
Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
, to Willard Richards Smith and Florence Grant Smith, Florence Smith was the granddaughter of two LDS Church presidents:
Joseph F. Smith Joseph Fielding Smith Sr. (November 13, 1838 – November 19, 1918) was an American religious leader who served as the sixth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was a nephew of Joseph Smith, founder of ...
and Heber J. Grant. Smith attended the
University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...
and graduated in 1934. While at the university she was part of the
Chi Omega Chi Omega (, also known as ChiO) is an American women's collegiate fraternity. It was established in 1895 at the University of Arkansas. Chi Omega has 181 active collegiate chapters and approximately 240 alumnae chapters. Since its founding in 18 ...
sorority. She married Ted Jacobsen in the
Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a Temple (LDS Church), temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the Comparison of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Sa ...
in 1935.


LDS Church service

In 1955, Ted Jacobsen was called as
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: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
of the church's Eastern States
Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...
of the church, and the family moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. In October 1961, Florence Jacobsen succeeded Bertha S. Reeder as general president of the church's YWMIA. Her aunt, Lucy Grant Cannon, had held the same position from 1937 to 1948. Jacobsen held this position until 1972, when she was released and succeeded by Ruth H. Funk. During her tenure, the
Beehive House A beehive house is a building made from a circle of stones topped with a domed roof. The name comes from the similarity in shape to a straw beehive. Occurrences The ancient Bantu used this type of house, which was made with mud, poles, and c ...
and Lion House—which were operated by the YWMIA—were restored and opened to the public. In 1969, the YWMIA celebrated its centennial and in 1971, Jacobsen oversaw the launch of the '' New Era'', the church's new magazine for youth. In 1973, church president
Harold B. Lee Harold Bingham Lee (March 28, 1899 – December 26, 1973) was an American religious leader and educator who served as the List of presidents of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 11th President of the Church (LDS Church), president o ...
asked Jacobsen if she would become the LDS Church
curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...
. Jacobsen accepted and became a key figure in the construction of the
Museum of Church History and Art The Church History Museum, formerly the Museum of Church History and Art, is the premier museum operated by the Church History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It is located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and ...
. As a church curator, Jacobsen supervised the restoration of many church buildings, including the Promised Valley Playhouse in Salt Lake City; the E. B. Grandin building in
Palmyra, New York Palmyra () is a town in southwestern Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 7,975 at the 2010 census. The town is named after the ancient city Palmyra in Syria. The town contains a village also named Palmyra. The town is ab ...
; the
Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
home in
St. George, Utah St. George or Saint George is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Utah, United States. Located in southwestern Utah on the Arizona border, it is the principal city of the St. George metropolitan statistical area (MSA). The cit ...
; the
Jacob Hamblin Jacob Hamblin (April 2, 1819 – August 31, 1886) was a Western pioneer, a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and a diplomat to various Native American tribes of the Southwest and Great Basin. He a ...
home in
Santa Clara, Utah Santa Clara is a town / city in Washington County, in southwestern Utah, (Western United States) and is a part of the St. George Metropolitan Area. The population has grown considerably in the last three decades, and was at 7,553 counted in th ...
; the Newell K. Whitney store in
Kirtland, Ohio Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and the site of ...
; and the interior of the
Manti Utah Temple The Manti Utah Temple (formerly the Manti Temple) is the fifth constructed Temple (LDS Church), temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The temple construction was completed in 1888. Located in the city of Manti, Utah, it was ...
. On April 21, 2010, Jacobsen was awarded the Junius F. Wells Award by the
Mormon Historic Sites Foundation The Ensign Peak Foundation (formerly the Mormon Historic Sites Foundation) is an independent organization that seeks to contribute to the memorialization of sites important to the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The o ...
. At that time, church president
Thomas S. Monson Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). As president, he was considered by adherents of the rel ...
and
Boyd K. Packer Boyd Kenneth Packer (September 10, 1924 – July 3, 2015) was an American religious leader and educator who served as president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 2008 until h ...
,
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles President of the Quorum of the Twelve (also President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, President of the Council of Twelve Apostles, and President of the Twelve) is a leadership position that exists in some of the churches of the Latter Day Sa ...
, both spoke of Jacobsen's leadership in preserving historical sites for the LDS Church and her leadership in the Young Women organization. In regards to her leadership of the Young Women organization, Monson stated, "You lifted them to a higher plane, and anyone who's been lifted to a plane of excellence is never again content with mediocrity. That's not a word you have in your vocabulary—mediocrity. You've never known it, and you never will."R. Scott Lloyd
"Life of building: Florence S. Jacobsen honored for preserving Church sites"
''
Church News The ''Church News'' (formerly ''LDS Church News'') is a multi-platform supplement and subdivision of the ''Deseret News'', a Salt Lake City, Utah newspaper owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (informally, the LDS Church). ...
'', 2010-05-01.
Jacobsen was named an Honorary Life Member of the
Utah State Historical Society The Utah State Historical Society, founded in 1897, encourages the research, study, and publication of Utah history. From its modest beginnings, the Utah Historical Society has grown to several hundred members, developed a research collection ...
.


Personal life

Jacobsen and her husband were the parents of three sons. She
turned 100 A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...
in April 2013 and died in March 2017 at the age of 103. In 1998, the Jacobsen family established the Florence Smith Jacobsen Scholarship at the College of Social Work at the University of Utah. The scholarship is awarded based on "academically based community scholarship and service that focuses on issues of concern to women, with particular emphasis on strengthening families."College of Social Work: Financial Aid and Scholarships
.


See also

*Janet Peterson and LaRene Gaunt (1993). ''Keepers of the Flame: General Presidents of the Young Women'' (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book) * Lavina Fielding
"Florence Smith Jacobsen: In Love with Excellence,"
''
Ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...
'', June 1977, pp. 25–26


References


External links


Florence Smith Jacobsen Profile

Preserving the Legacy of Latter-day Saints: Florence S. Jacobsen
Video Profile {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobsen, Florence S. 1913 births 2017 deaths 20th-century Mormon missionaries American women centenarians American curators American women curators American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints American Mormon missionaries in the United States Female Mormon missionaries General presidents of the Young Women (organization) Religious leaders from Salt Lake City Smith family (Latter Day Saints) University of Utah alumni Latter Day Saints from Utah