Martha Bowker

1822–1890

Sealed to Brigham Young 21 Jan 1846 — she was 24, he was 45.

This was a sealing, not a marriage in law — plural marriage had no legal standing. What that meant.

Nauvoo temple, January-February 1846

Who she was, and what happened

Came west, lived in Brigham's household, died childless in 1890 at 68. Recorded in the Nauvoo temple register as sealed to him on 21 January 1846, the same day as sixteen-year-old Ellen Rockwood. One of the substantial number of wives who lived a long life inside the family and left almost no personal record.

Key dates

1846 Sealed to him 21 Jan 1846 A sealing, not a marriage in law: plural marriage had no legal standing.
1890 Died c. 26 Sept 1890

Nothing here is inferred. Johnson's Table 1 has one date column, so where an event is documented but undated it is shown as "no date" rather than given a spurious one — the missing date is itself a fact about how these records were kept. Only two of the fifty-five have a civil marriage date; for the other fifty-three the single date records a sealing, because plural marriage had no standing in law.

What survives in her own words

Nothing from her, and no life of her written by anyone else.

None known. Ward record and obituary.

Obituary, Deseret Evening News, 26 Sept 1890

15 of the fifty-five left words of their own. The rest are known only through other people's papers. What that silence means.

The record

Born: 1822
Died: c. 26 Sept 1890
Died at: Salt Lake City
Outlived Brigham Young?: Yes
Marriage or sealing: 21 Jan 1846
Her age at the marriage: 24
His age at the marriage: 45
Age gap: 21 years
Phase of his life: Nauvoo temple (Jan-Feb 1846)
Type of sealing: Not recorded ?
Already married to another man?: No ?
Her other husbands: -
Widow of Joseph Smith?: No
Sexual relationship?: Not documented here
Children by Brigham Young: 0
Lived with him?: Yes - household
Divorce or separation: None recorded
Named in his will?: Not applicable or not recorded
Sealed to him as an adopted daughter first?: No ?
Kin tie to him or another wife: None recorded
Left the church?: Remained LDS (documented)
Remarried after Brigham Young?: No
Her later husband(s): None recorded

Source and confidence: Johnson Table 1 n. 25; Brown, Nauvoo Sealings

A blank or “not established here” means the fact was not documented in the sources behind this table. It does not mean zero, and it does not mean no. We leave it empty rather than guessing, because inventing a detail of her life would be another way of not listening to her. The size of that gap is the argument for the book she never got.