William Law (Latter Day Saints)
| William Law | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Second Counselor in the First Presidency | |
| January 24, 1841 – April 18, 1844 | |
| Called by | Joseph Smith |
| Predecessor | Frederick G. Williams |
| Successor | Disputed, possibly: Willard Richards David H. Smith |
| End reason | Excommunicated for apostasy |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
September 8, 1809 County Tyrone, Ireland, United Kingdom |
| Died | January 19, 1892 (aged 87) Shullsburg, Wisconsin, United States |
| Resting place | Evergreen Cemetery 42°34′07″N 90°13′44″W / 42.5686°N 90.2289°W |
| Spouse(s) | Jane Silverthorn |
| Parents | Richard Law Ann Hunter |
William Law (September 8, 1809 – January 19, 1892) was an important figure in the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement, holding a position in the early church's First Presidency under Joseph Smith. Law was later excommunicated from the church and was the founder of the short-lived True Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. In this capacity, he published a single edition of the Nauvoo Expositor, the destruction of which set in motion a chain of events that eventually led to Smith's assassination.
Law was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, to Richard Law and Ann Hunter as the youngest of five children. His older brother was Wilson Law. The Law family moved to the United States around 1820, and he eventually ended up in Upper Canada. At the age of 24 he married Jane Silverthorn, who was 19 years old.
Law and his wife joined the Church of the Latter Day Saints in 1836, through the efforts of John Taylor and Almon W. Babbitt. He led a group of Canadian saints to Nauvoo, Illinois, in 1839 and in 1841, Joseph Smith chose him to be a member of the First Presidency.
As time progressed, Law became troubled by certain practices of Smith. He felt the prophet was uniting church and state in Nauvoo, Illinois, by evading extradition to be tried for crimes in Missouri. He also thought Smith used his church authority to sway political outcomes. However, it was Smith's covert practice of polygamy that caused Law to completely separate himself. Rumors circulated that Smith had made several proposals to Law's wife Jane, under the premise that Jane Law would enter a polyandrous marriage with Smith. Law and his wife confirmed that these rumors were true. However, according to Alexander Neibaur, he was told a rumor that Jane Law had actually asked to be sealed to Smith after Smith had refused to seal her to her husband. According to the rumor, Smith had denied the couple because he thought William Law was guilty of adultery, though he did not tell Jane Law his reasons. However, years later, according to Ann Eliza Young (wife #19 to Brigham Young), Jane claimed that Smith visited her at night when he knew William would not be home and propositioned her, suggesting to her that it was God's will that she enter into a polyandrous marriage with Smith. Young's account states that Jane Law described Smith's proposals, saying that Smith had "asked her to give him half her love; she was at liberty to keep the other half for her husband." She refused Smith's request to marry him as a polyandrous plural wife. Law still believed Mormonism to be true, but he viewed Smith as a fallen prophet.
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