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The children of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, and his wife Emma Smith, are historically significant because of their roles in establishing and leading the Latter Day Saint Movement, which includes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church, since 2001 called Community of Christ), The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite), the Church of Christ (Temple Lot) and several other sects. Some Latter Day Saint sects, including the RLDS, believed that leadership of the church would follow lineal succession of Smith's descendants. In 1860, Joseph Smith III became the prophet and president of the RLDS Church, succeeded by his sons. The Community of Christ no longer holds to this practice. The larger LDS Church did not follow the practice, and it was led after Joseph Smith's death by Brigham Young.

Joseph Smith taught the doctrine of plural marriage as found in the Old Testament but also publicly condemned polygamy not under the laws of God.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] There is evidence that Smith both taught and practiced it, and had a number of wives sealed to him. Several women later testified^{[clarification needed]} that they were wives in the full sense of the word. Emily D. P. Partidge said she "roomed" with him, and Melissa Lott Willes testified that she was his wife "in very deed".^[5] Though there were allegations of paternity in some of these polygamous marriages, ongoing genetic research of descendants of these plural marriages has been negative. These are the nine biological children of Emma and Joseph Smith, four of whom survived to adulthood, and the two children they adopted:^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9]

Joseph and Emma Hale Smith family

Child	Lifespan	Notes
Alvin Smith	June 15, 1828 – June 15, 1828	Born with un-described birth defects^[10]
Thaddeus Smith	April 30, 1831	Twin of Louisa, premature, died within a few hours of their birth^[10]
Louisa Smith	April 30, 1831	Twin of Thaddeus, premature, died within a few hours of their birth^[10]
Joseph Murdock Smith*	April 30, 1831 – March 29, 1832 (age 10 months)	*Adopted. Twin of Julia, birth son of Julia Clapp Murdock and John Murdock who upon his wife's death in childbirth gave the infants to the Smiths for adoption. Died from exposure (many accounts say pneumonia) following a mob attack on the Smith home on the night of March 24, 1832.^[11]
Julia Murdock Smith*	(1831-04-30)April 30, 1831 – September 12, 1880(1880-09-12) (aged 49)	*Adopted. Twin of Joseph, birth daughter of Julia Clapp Murdock and John Murdock
Joseph Smith III	(1832-11-06)November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914(1914-12-10) (aged 82)	Prophet-President of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), opponent of polygamy
Frederick Granger Williams Smith	(1836-06-20)June 20, 1836 – April 13, 1862(1862-04-13) (aged 25)	Frederick married Anna Marie Jones on November 13, 1857. On November 27, 1858, a daughter, Alice Fredericka Smith, was born in Nauvoo. Alice never had any children.^[12]
Alexander Hale Smith	(1838-06-02)June 2, 1838 – August 12, 1909(1909-08-12) (aged 71)	Senior leader of the RLDS Church, opponent of polygamy
Don Carlos Smith	June 13, 1840 – September 15, 1841 (age 14 months)
Unnamed Son Smith	February 6, 1842	Stillborn
David Hyrum Smith	(1844-11-17)November 17, 1844 – August 29, 1904(1904-08-29) (aged 59)	born after Smith's death, active in the RLDS Church, opponent of polygamy

Notes

^ Whitmer, David (1887), An Address to All Believers in Christ By A Witness to the Divine Authenticity of the Book of Mormon, Richmond, Missouri: David Whitmer
^ Times and Seasons, Volume 5, page 474
^ Times and Seasons, Volume 5, page 423
^ The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star 4 [January 1844]: 144
^ Notarized statement in possession of Myrtle Willes Bailey [granddaughter of Malissa Lott Smith Willes]. Typescript sent to Raymond Bailey on December 11, 1949. Quoted in Raymond T. Bailey,. “Emma Hale: Wife of the Prophet Joseph Smith,” (master’s thesis, Brigham Young University, 1952), 99–100.
^ Ugo A. Perego, Natalie M. Myers, and Scott R. Woodward, “Reconstructing the Y-Chromosome of Joseph Smith Jr.: Genealogical Applications, Journal of Mormon History Vol. 32, No. 2 (Summer 2005) 70-88.
^ "Research focuses on Smith family". Deseret News. 2005-05-28. Archived from the original on May 30, 2005.
^ "DNA tests rule out 2 as Smith descendants: Scientific advances prove no genetic link". Deseret News. 2007-11-10. Archived from the original on November 13, 2007.
^ Moore, C. DNA tests rules out 2 as Smith descendants, Mormon Times, November 12, 2007
^ ^a ^b ^c Jones, Gracia (June 10, 2009). "Emma's Lost Infants". The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society. Archived from the original on April 3, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
^ Newell, Linda King; Avery, Valeen Tippetts (1984), Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Prophet's Wife, "Elect Lady," Polygamy's Foe, Garden City, NY: Doubleday, ISBN 0-252-02399-4
^ Jones, Gracia (December 11, 2009). "Children of Joseph and Emma: Frederick Granger Williams Smith". The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society. Retrieved October 3, 2011.

[1] Whitmer, David (1887), An Address to All Believers in Christ By A Witness to the Divine Authenticity of the Book of Mormon, Richmond, Missouri: David Whitmer

[2] Times and Seasons, Volume 5, page 474

[3] Times and Seasons, Volume 5, page 423

[4] The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star 4 [January 1844]: 144

[5] Notarized statement in possession of Myrtle Willes Bailey [granddaughter of Malissa Lott Smith Willes]. Typescript sent to Raymond Bailey on December 11, 1949. Quoted in Raymond T. Bailey,. “Emma Hale: Wife of the Prophet Joseph Smith,” (master’s thesis, Brigham Young University, 1952), 99–100.

[6] Ugo A. Perego, Natalie M. Myers, and Scott R. Woodward, “Reconstructing the Y-Chromosome of Joseph Smith Jr.: Genealogical Applications, Journal of Mormon History Vol. 32, No. 2 (Summer 2005) 70-88.

[7] "Research focuses on Smith family". Deseret News. 2005-05-28. Archived from the original on May 30, 2005.

[8] "DNA tests rule out 2 as Smith descendants: Scientific advances prove no genetic link". Deseret News. 2007-11-10. Archived from the original on November 13, 2007.

[9] Moore, C. DNA tests rules out 2 as Smith descendants, Mormon Times, November 12, 2007

[Jones-10] Jones, Gracia (June 10, 2009). "Emma's Lost Infants". The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society. Archived from the original on April 3, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2012.

[11] Newell, Linda King; Avery, Valeen Tippetts (1984), Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Prophet's Wife, "Elect Lady," Polygamy's Foe, Garden City, NY: Doubleday, ISBN 0-252-02399-4

[12] Jones, Gracia (December 11, 2009). "Children of Joseph and Emma: Frederick Granger Williams Smith". The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society. Retrieved October 3, 2011.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|none}}
 __FORCETOC__
 {{Joseph Smith, Jr.}}
-The children of [[Joseph Smith|Joseph Smith Jr.]], the founder of the [[Latter Day Saint movement]], and his wife [[Emma Smith]], are historically significant because of their roles in establishing and leading the [[Latter Day Saint Movement]], which includes [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church), the [[Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] (RLDS Church, now called [[Community of Christ]]), [[The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)|The Church of Jesus Christ]] (Bickertonite), the [[Church of Christ (Temple Lot)|Church of Christ]] (Temple Lot) and [[List of sects in the Latter Day Saint movement|several other sects]].  Several Latter Day Saint sects, including the RLDS, believed that leadership of the church would flow through Smith's descendants, ([[Lineal succession (Latter Day Saints)|Lineal succession]]).  In 1860, [[Joseph Smith III]] became its prophet and president of the RLDS Church. The larger LDS Church was led following Joseph's death by Brigham Young.
+The children of [[Joseph Smith|Joseph Smith Jr.]], the founder of the [[Latter Day Saint movement]], and his wife [[Emma Smith]], are historically significant because of their roles in establishing and leading the [[Latter Day Saint Movement]], which includes [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church), the [[Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] (RLDS Church, since 2001 called [[Community of Christ]]), [[The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)|The Church of Jesus Christ]] (Bickertonite), the [[Church of Christ (Temple Lot)|Church of Christ]] (Temple Lot) and [[List of sects in the Latter Day Saint movement|several other sects]].  Some Latter Day Saint sects, including the RLDS, believed that leadership of the church would follow [[Lineal succession (Latter Day Saints)|lineal succession]] of Smith's descendants. In 1860, [[Joseph Smith III]] became the prophet and president of the RLDS Church, succeeded by his sons. The Community of Christ no longer holds to this practice. The larger LDS Church did not follow the practice, and it was led after Joseph Smith's death by [[Brigham Young]].
-Joseph Smith publicly condemned [[polygamy]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Whitmer|1887}}</ref><ref>[http://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v5n06.htm ''Times and Seasons'', Volume 5, page 474]</ref><ref>[http://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v5n03.htm ''Times and Seasons'', Volume 5, page 423]</ref><ref>''The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star'' 4 [January 1844]: 144</ref> but there is ample evidence that Smith both taught in its favor and practiced it, and had a number of wives sealed to him. "The number of Smith's polygamous offspring is a bit of a mystery."{{cn}} Several women later testified{{clarify}}<!-- in a court or what?--> that they were wives in the full sense of the word.  Emily D. P. Partidge said she 'roomed' with him, and Melissa Lott Willes testified that she was his wife 'in very deed.'{{cn}} Though there were allegations of paternity in some of these polygamous marriages, no children have ever been proven to be Smith's. There is ongoing genetic research to determine if any descendants of alleged children have Smith's genetic markers, and so far all tests have been negative, so this list only contains the nine biological children they had and the two children they  adopted. <ref>{{Harvnb|Perego|Myers|Woodward|2005}}</ref><ref>{{ cite news | title =  Research focuses on Smith family | date = 2005-05-28 | work = [[Deseret News]] | url = http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600137517,00.html }}</ref><ref>{{ cite news | title = DNA tests rule out 2 as Smith descendants: Scientific advances prove no genetic link | date = 2007-11-10 | work = [[Deseret News]] | url = http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695226318,00.html }}</ref><ref>[http://mormontimes.com/ME_familyhistory.php?id=471 Moore, C. ''DNA tests rules out 2 as Smith descendants'', Mormon Times, November 12, 2007]</ref>
+Joseph Smith taught the doctrine of plural marriage as found in the Old Testament but also publicly condemned [[polygamy]] not under the laws of God.<ref>{{Citation| last=Whitmer | first=David | author-link=David Whitmer | title=An Address to All Believers in Christ By A Witness to the Divine Authenticity of the Book of Mormon | place=Richmond, Missouri | publisher=David Whitmer | year=1887 | url=http://www.utlm.org/onlinebooks/address1.htm }}</ref><ref>[http://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v5n06.htm ''Times and Seasons'', Volume 5, page 474]</ref><ref>[http://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v5n03.htm ''Times and Seasons'', Volume 5, page 423]</ref><ref>''The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star'' 4 [January 1844]: 144</ref> There is evidence that Smith both taught and practiced it, and had a number of wives sealed to him. Several women later testified{{clarify|date=February 2019}}<!-- in a court or what?--> that they were wives in the full sense of the word.  Emily D. P.  Partidge said she "roomed" with him, and Melissa Lott Willes testified that she was his wife "in very deed".<ref>Notarized statement in possession of Myrtle Willes Bailey [granddaughter of Malissa Lott Smith Willes]. Typescript sent to Raymond Bailey on December 11, 1949. Quoted in Raymond T. Bailey,. “Emma Hale: Wife of the Prophet Joseph Smith,” (master’s thesis, Brigham Young University, 1952), 99–100.</ref> Though there were allegations of paternity in some of these polygamous marriages, ongoing genetic research of descendants of these plural marriages has been negative. These are the nine biological children of Emma and Joseph Smith, four of whom survived to adulthood, and the two children they adopted:<ref>Ugo A. Perego, Natalie M. Myers, and Scott R. Woodward, “Reconstructing the Y-Chromosome of Joseph Smith Jr.: Genealogical Applications, Journal of Mormon History Vol. 32, No. 2 (Summer 2005) 70-88.</ref><ref>{{ cite news | title =  Research focuses on Smith family | date = 2005-05-28 | work = [[Deseret News]] | url = http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600137517,00.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050530235220/http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600137517,00.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = May 30, 2005 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite news | title = DNA tests rule out 2 as Smith descendants: Scientific advances prove no genetic link | date = 2007-11-10 | work = [[Deseret News]] | url = http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695226318,00.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071113034023/http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695226318,00.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = November 13, 2007 }}</ref><ref>[http://mormontimes.com/ME_familyhistory.php?id=471 Moore, C. ''DNA tests rules out 2 as Smith descendants'', Mormon Times, November 12, 2007]</ref>
 ==Joseph and Emma Hale Smith family==
@@ Line 14: / Line 15: @@
 ! valign="bottom" width="500px" style="text-align:left; " | Notes
 |-
-| || Alvin Smith || June 15, 1828 – June 15, 1828 || Born with un-described birth defects<ref name="Jones">{{Cite web
+| || Alvin Smith || June 15, 1828 – June 15, 1828 || Born with un-described birth defects<ref name="Jones">{{Cite web | last = Jones | first = Gracia | title = Emma's Lost Infants | publisher = The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society | date = June 10, 2009 | url = https://www.josephsmithjr.org/index.php/history/children/84-emmas-lost-infants | accessdate = January 3, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130403062038/http://www.josephsmithjr.org/index.php/history/children/84-emmas-lost-infants | archive-date = April 3, 2013 | url-status = dead }}</ref>
- | last = Jones | first = Gracia | title = Emma’s Lost Infants | publisher = The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society | date = June 10, 2009 | url = https://www.josephsmithjr.org/index.php/history/children/84-emmas-lost-infants | accessdate = January 3, 2012}}</ref>
 |-
-| || Thaddeus Smith || April 30, 1831 – April 30, 1831  || Twin of Louisa, premature, died within a few hours of their birth<ref name="Jones"/>
+| || Thaddeus Smith || April 30, 1831  || Twin of Louisa, premature, died within a few hours of their birth<ref name="Jones"/>
 |-
-| || Louisa Smith || April 30, 1831 – April 30, 1831 || Twin of Thaddeus, premature, died within a few hours of their birth<ref name="Jones"/>
+| || Louisa Smith || April 30, 1831 || Twin of Thaddeus, premature, died within a few hours of their birth<ref name="Jones"/>
 |-
-| || Joseph Smith Murdock* || April 30, 1831 – March 29, 1832 (age 10 months) || *Adopted. Twin of [[Julia Murdock Smith|Julia]], birth son of Julia Clapp Murdock and [[John Murdock (Mormon)|John Murdock]] who upon his wife's death in childbirth gave the infants to the Smiths for adoption.  Died from exposure (many accounts say [[pneumonia]]) following a mob attack on the Smith home on the night of March 24, 1832.<ref>{{Citation| last=Newell| first=Linda King| author-link = Linda King Newell| last2=Avery| first2=Valeen Tippetts| author2-link=Valeen Tippetts Avery| title=[[Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Prophet's Wife, "Elect Lady," Polygamy's Foe]]| publisher=[[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]| location=Garden City, NY| year=1984| isbn=0-252-02399-4}}</ref>
+| || Joseph Murdock Smith* || April 30, 1831 – March 29, 1832 (age 10 months) || *Adopted. Twin of [[Julia Murdock Smith|Julia]], birth son of Julia Clapp Murdock and [[John Murdock (Mormon)|John Murdock]] who upon his wife's death in childbirth gave the infants to the Smiths for adoption.  Died from exposure (many accounts say [[pneumonia]]) following a mob attack on the Smith home on the night of March 24, 1832.<ref>{{Citation| last1=Newell| first1=Linda King| author-link = Linda King Newell| last2=Avery| first2=Valeen Tippetts| author2-link=Valeen Tippetts Avery| title=[[Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Prophet's Wife, "Elect Lady," Polygamy's Foe]]| publisher=[[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]| location=Garden City, NY| year=1984| isbn=0-252-02399-4}}</ref>
 |-
-| <center>[[File:Julia Murdock Smith.jpg|frameless|75px]]</center> || [[Julia Murdock Smith]]* || {{Birth date|1831|04|30|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1880|09|12|1831|04|30|mf=yes}} || *Adopted. Twin of Joseph, birth daughter of Julia Clapp Murdock and [[John Murdock (Mormon)|John Murdock]]
+| [[File:Julia Murdock Smith.jpg|frameless|75px|center]] || [[Julia Murdock Smith]]* || {{Birth date|1831|04|30|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1880|09|12|1831|04|30|mf=yes}} || *Adopted. Twin of Joseph, birth daughter of Julia Clapp Murdock and [[John Murdock (Mormon)|John Murdock]]
 |-
-| <center>[[File:JosephSmith3.jpg|frameless|75px]]</center> || [[Joseph Smith III]] || {{Birth date|1832|11|6|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1914|12|10|1832|11|6|mf=yes}} || Prophet-President of the [[Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] ([[Community of Christ|RLDS]]), opponent of polygamy
+| [[File:JosephSmith3.jpg|frameless|75px|center]] || [[Joseph Smith III]] || {{Birth date|1832|11|6|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1914|12|10|1832|11|6|mf=yes}} || Prophet-President of the [[Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] ([[Community of Christ|RLDS]]), opponent of polygamy
 |-
-| <center>[[File:Frederick G. W. Smith.jpg|frameless|75px]]</center> || Frederick Granger Williams Smith ||  {{Birth date|1836|06|20|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1862|04|13|1836|06|20|mf=yes}} || Frederick married Anna Marie Jones on November 13, 1857. On November 27, 1858, a daughter, Alice Fredericka Smith, was born in Nauvoo. Alice never had any children.<ref>{{Cite web
+| [[File:Frederick G. W. Smith.jpg|frameless|75px|center]] || Frederick Granger Williams Smith ||  {{Birth date|1836|06|20|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1862|04|13|1836|06|20|mf=yes}} || Frederick married Anna Marie Jones on November 13, 1857. On November 27, 1858, a daughter, Alice Fredericka Smith, was born in Nauvoo. Alice never had any children.<ref>{{Cite web
  | last = Jones | first = Gracia | title =  Children of Joseph and Emma: Frederick Granger Williams Smith | publisher = The Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society | date = December 11, 2009 | url = http://www.josephsmithjr.org/history/children | accessdate = October 3, 2011}}</ref>
 |-
-| <center>[[File:Alexander Hale Smith.jpg|frameless|75px]]</center> || [[Alexander Hale Smith]] || {{Birth date|1838|06|02|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1909|08|12|1838|06|02|mf=yes}} || Senior leader of the [[RLDS Church]], opponent of polygamy
+| [[File:Alexander Hale Smith.jpg|frameless|75px|center]] || [[Alexander Hale Smith]] || {{Birth date|1838|06|02|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1909|08|12|1838|06|02|mf=yes}} || Senior leader of the [[RLDS Church]], opponent of polygamy
 |-
 | || Don Carlos Smith || June 13, 1840 – September 15, 1841 (age 14 months) ||
 |-
-| || Male child || February 6, 1842 – February 6, 1842 || Stillborn
+| || Unnamed Son Smith|| February 6, 1842 || Stillborn
 |-
-| <center>[[File:David Hyrum Smith.jpg|frameless|75px]]||[[David Hyrum Smith]]</center> || {{Birth date|1844|11|17|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1904|08|29|1844|11|17|mf=yes}} || born after Smith's death, active in the [[RLDS Church]], opponent of polygamy
+|[[File:David Hyrum Smith.jpg|frameless|75px|center]]||[[David Hyrum Smith]] || {{Birth date|1844|11|17|mf=yes}}  – {{Death date and age|1904|08|29|1844|11|17|mf=yes}} || born after Smith's death, active in the [[RLDS Church]], opponent of polygamy
 |}
 == See also ==
+* [[List of Joseph Smith's wives#Allegations of children born to polygamous wives]]
-{{Wikipedia books|Joseph Smith}}
-* [[List of Joseph Smith's wives]]
 * [[Community of Christ]]
+* [[:Category:Lists of children by person]]
-* [[List of Joseph Smith's wives#Allegations of children born to alleged polygamous wives|Allegations of children born to Smith's alleged polygamous wives]]
 ==Notes==
-{{Reflist|30em}}
+{{Reflist}}
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Joseph}}
+[[Category:Children of Joseph Smith| ]]
 [[Category:Joseph Smith]]
-[[Category:Latter Day Saint movement lists|Smith, children]]
+[[Category:Latter Day Saint movement lists]]
 [[Category:Mormonism-related controversies]]
 [[Category:Mormonism and polygamy]]
-[[Category:Smith family (Latter Day Saints)|*Children]]
+[[Category:Smith family (Latter Day Saints)|Children]]
-[[Category:Children by person|Smith, Joseph]]
-[[Category:Lists of children|Smith, Joseph]]