Isaac Morley

1786–1865

Sealed to Brigham Young as a son Jan-Feb 1846, Nauvoo temple.

An adoption, not a marriage — an adult sealed into a priesthood lineage running back to Adam. What the law of adoption was.

Nauvoo temple, 1846

Who he was to Brigham Young

Ritual son AND, simultaneously, an adoptive father to three men of his own - so he was Young's child and another family's parent at the same time. The clearest single illustration that adoption built a hierarchy rather than a pair bond. Managed the Winter Quarters family farm with John D. Lee.

His wife Lucy Gunn, sealed alongside him.

How it ended

Quietly, like most of them. Morley stayed in good standing, presided over the settlement at Sanpete, and died in Utah in 1865. No cancellation is recorded; the relationship simply stopped being load-bearing once the family companies dissolved.

lapsed

The record

Born: 1786
Died: 1865
Adoption sealing: Jan-Feb 1846
Place: Nauvoo temple
Sealed alongside: His wife Lucy Gunn, sealed alongside him.
Outcome: lapsed

Source: Jonathan A. Stapley, 'Adoptive Sealing Ritual in Mormonism', Journal of Mormon History 37:3 (Summer 2011): 53-117, Table 1 (p. 66 of the print run) Table 1 n. 1; Turner, Brigham Young: Pioneer Prophet (2012) p. 160

Six of the thirty-four men adopted to Brigham Young can be named from the published sources — about 18 per cent. Why the roster is partial.