Joseph Smith's Polygamy: The Myth of Fanny Alger

You would think that reporting a bunch of second-hand gossip as if it was fact would be against the historian’s craft. But when it comes to Joseph Smith’s polygamy, it’s their modus operandi. By popular demand, in this episode I look at the sources for the story of Joseph’s relationship with Fanny Alger. Special thanks to Brian Hales, whose great work assembling so many sources makes it much easier to do what he does not: look at them critically.

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Sources:
- Brian Hales on Fanny: https://josephsmithspolygamy.org/plural-wives-overview/fanny-alger/
and: https://josephsmithspolygamy.org/plural-wives-overview/fanny-alger/
- The High Council Trial: https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/minute-book-2/121
- McLellin, Ann Eliza, and Hancock’s stories: https://josephsmithspolygamy.org/common-questions/fanny-alger/
- Joseph Smith Foundation uses Mosiah Hancock’s ludicrous story: https://josephsmithfoundation.org/fanny-alger/
- Eliza statement on only monogamy: https://archive.org/details/TimesAndSeasonsVol3/page/n581/mode/2up
- The Voice of Innocence: https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/19559128-fd44-45f1-9142-3e6b22432d1f/0/2?lang=eng
- Benjamin Johnson’s account: https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/c83c89cc-8436-4478-a4be-fdaec432564b/0/29
o Typed version: https://web.archive.org/web/20141115011639/http://www.boap.org/LDS/Early-Saints/BFJohnson.html