Prescindia Lathrop Huntington Buell

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Prescindia Lathrop Huntington Buell

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Prescindia Lathrop Huntington Buell

Summary: Prescindia Lathrop Huntington Buell and her husband Norman joined the Church in 1836. By 1839, Norman had left the Church, and Prescindia noted that "the Lord gave me strength to Stand alone & keep the faith amid heavy persecution.” “[I]n 1841 I entered into the New Everlasting Covenant," said Prescindia, "[I] was sealed to Joseph Smith the Prophet and Seer, and to the best of my ability I have honored plural marriage, never speaking one word against the principle… Never in my life, in this kingdom, which is 44 years, have I doubted the truth of this great work.”

Prescindia Lathrop Huntington Buell as a polyandrous wife of Joseph Smith

Claimed children fathered by Joseph ruled out by DNA evidence

Summary: The case of Oliver Buell is an interesting one, since author Fawn Brodie was insistent that he was Joseph's son. She based part of this argument on a photograph of Buell, which revealed a face which she claimed was "overwhelmingly on the side of Joseph's paternity." A conception on this date would make Oliver two to three weeks overdue at birth, which makes Brodie's theory less plausible. Furthermore, prior the DNA results, Bachman and Compton pointed out that Brodie's timeline poses serious problems for her theory—Oliver's conception would have had to occurred between 16 April 1839 (when Joseph was allowed to escape during a transfer from Liberty Jail)and 18 April, when the Huntingtons left Far West. Brodie would have Joseph travel west from his escape near Gallatin, Davies County, Missouri, to Far West in order to meet Prescindia, and then on to Illinois to the east. This route would require Joseph and his companions to backtrack, while fleeing from custody in the face of an active state extermination order in force. Travel to Far West would also require them to travel near the virulently anti-Mormon area of Haun's Mill, along Shoal Creek. Yet, by 22 April Joseph was in Illinois, having been slowed by travel "off from the main road as much as possible" "both by night and by day." This seems an implausible time for Joseph to be meeting a woman, much less conceiving a child.

Did Prescindia Buell not know who was the father of her son?

Summary: A notoriously inaccurate anti-Mormon work claimed that Buell confessed to not knowing her son's paternity. The account contains multiple of others, is implausible, requires proponents to overcome severe historical timeline and geographic problems, and has been refuted by DNA evidence. It is not convincing.

Joseph Smith's Polygamy: "Joseph Smith’s Pre-Nauvoo Reputation--Presendia Huntington Buell", by Brian C. Hales

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Joseph Smith's Polygamy: "Were There Other Polygamous Marriages Prior to Nauvoo?—Presendia Huntington Buell", by Brian C. Hales

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Joseph Smith's Polygamy: "{{{subject}}}", by Brian C. Hales

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