Ep 212 – Emma Smith, Linda Newell, and Valeen Avery

On this episode, Joseph and Hyrum Smith are locked up in Carthage Jail and they aren't going anywhere. We take a little time to catch up with other prominent figures in Nauvoo history; this week begins with Emma Hale Smith. We discuss her role in the Relief Society, unwillingly policing polygamy rumors, running land speculation and deals while her husband is occupied, and fighting with her sister wives. Then we focus on her role in the two week period of June 12-25 1844 and her actions which have been construed by the SLC leadership to lead to Jo's death. Is she responsible? Or, are those myths fabricated by the SLC propaganda machine which have been debunked by historians? This episode interweaves Emma's story with the story of her seminal biographers, Valeen Tippets Avery and Linda King Newell on their journey writing Emma's biography through the 1970s-80s. Links: Check out Writing Mormon History; Historians and their Books http://www.signaturebooks.com/product/writing-mormon-history/ Also pick up a copy of Mormon Enigma; Emma Hale Smith https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/mormon-enigma-emma-hale-smith_linda-king-newell/302792/#isbn=0252062914&idiq=9621239 Relief Society Minutes https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/nauvoo-relief-society-minute-book/1#full-transcript Emma Biography JSP https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/person/emma-hale-smith SUNSTONE!!! https://www.sunstonemagazine.com/2020symposium/ Show links: Website http://nakedmormonismpodcast.com Twitter @NakedMormonism Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Naked-Mormonism/370003839816311 Patreon http://patreon.com/nakedmormonism Music by Jason Comeau http://aloststateofmind.com/ Show Artwork http://weirdmormonshit.com/ Legal Counsel http://patorrez.com/