Edward Tullidge facts for kids
Edward Wheelock Tullidge (born September 30, 1829 – died May 21, 1894) was an important writer, newspaper editor, and historian in the early days of Utah Territory. He was also a playwright, meaning he wrote plays. During his life, he was part of different groups within the Latter Day Saint movement. These included the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the New Movement (Godbeite) group, and the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church). He helped start a well-known newspaper called Salt Lake Tribune.
Later in his life, people in the LDS Church respected Tullidge for writing fair histories. He strongly supported women's suffrage, which means women's right to vote. A historian named Claudia Bushman said that Tullidge was a "Mormon feminist historian" long before the women's rights movement became popular in the 1970s.
Contents
Edward Tullidge's Life Story
Growing Up in England
Edward Tullidge was born in Weymouth, Dorset, England. His full birth name was Edward William Tullidge. He came from a middle-class Methodist family. As a young man, he learned how to build and paint coaches. His father, John E. Tullidge, later became a famous musician in Utah.
When he was 17, Edward joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He spent 12 years working as a missionary for his church in Great Britain. To earn money, he mended shoes. He also wrote articles for a church newspaper called the Millennial Star. During this time, he often walked to church with Emily Hill Woodmansee, who later became a well-known Latter-day Saint poet.
In 1856, the church leader in England, Franklin D. Richards, noticed Tullidge's writing. He asked Tullidge to stop missionary work and instead write for the Millennial Star in Liverpool. While working there, Tullidge felt a strong desire to move to Utah. He wanted to write a book about the life of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement.
Moving to Utah Territory
Tullidge moved to Utah Territory in 1861. He was excited to share his ideas for improving writing and literature in Utah with Brigham Young, the church president. However, he did not receive much support from Young. He then asked Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith if he could use their personal journals for his planned book about Joseph Smith. They agreed.
In November 1862, Tullidge was called to be a leader in a church group called the Sixty-fifth Quorum of the Seventy.
In October 1864, he started a literary magazine with his friend Elias L. T. Harrison. It was called Peep O'Day and was the first magazine published west of the Missouri River. Tullidge hoped the magazine would help create a new culture in Utah. However, Brigham Young did not like some of Tullidge's articles. This made Tullidge feel more unhappy with Young's leadership style. The magazine did not last long, only publishing five issues.
After his magazine failed, Tullidge became very ill. He felt much better after receiving blessings from Wilford Woodruff. In 1866, he traveled east and wrote for a New York magazine called Galaxy for two years. His articles often talked about Mormonism in a positive way. He tried to help people in the United States understand Mormons better.
In 1868, on his way back to Utah, he visited Emma Smith, who was Joseph Smith's widow. He promised himself he would always write about her with respect.
The Godbeite Movement
When Tullidge returned to Utah, he became friends with future leaders of the Godbeite movement, like William S. Godbe. Tullidge and Elias Harrison started a new magazine called the Utah Magazine. Godbe and Harrison later felt that the LDS Church under Brigham Young was focusing too much on worldly things.
Tullidge had supported some of Young's economic ideas and was friendly with him. However, he joined his friends in their disagreement with Young. When seven writers from the Utah Magazine faced church discipline, Young personally dropped the charges against Tullidge. At the trial of Godbe and Harrison, Tullidge asked them to make up with the church. He said he felt a strong connection to Young, calling him "the great man who has so long been to us in the position of a father."
Godbe and Harrison did not make up and were removed from the church. Tullidge then resigned his membership to support them. He wrote that he believed in a government led by the people, not a church. The Utah Magazine became a newspaper called The Mormon Tribune, which later changed its name to The Salt Lake Tribune. Tullidge became an important supporter of this "New Movement." The Godbeites formed a new church called the "Church of Zion." In this church, Tullidge became a leader. Years later, Tullidge apologized to Brigham Young for some of the things he had written about him.
By the early 1870s, Tullidge became less involved with the New Movement. He did not agree with some of Godbe and Harrison's new ideas. Tullidge then focused on other projects, including a play about Oliver Cromwell. In 1871, he returned to Utah and became an editor for the Salt Lake Tribune. Tullidge still hoped the different church groups could get along. However, as the Tribune became more against the LDS Church, Tullidge lost his editor job in 1873.
Tullidge then began writing a series of biographies. His first was about Brigham Young. Even though Tullidge had left the church, he became friendly with it again. Brigham Young allowed him to use historical documents. His book, "Life of Brigham Young: or, Utah and Her Founders," was published in 1876. In 1877, he published "Women of Mormondom," which told the stories of important Mormon women and supported women's right to vote.
Joining the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
In 1878, Tullidge published "The Life of Joseph the Prophet." Brigham Young had died in 1877, and the new church leader, John Taylor, was not as supportive of Tullidge. Taylor thought Tullidge's book was trying to trick people into thinking the LDS Church approved of it. Taylor told church members not to buy the book.
Joseph Smith III, the leader of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church) and son of Joseph Smith, liked Tullidge's book. Tullidge traveled to Missouri and joined the RLDS Church in late 1879. He became a church leader and the RLDS Historian. He updated his book about Joseph Smith, adding parts that supported the RLDS Church's history. This updated book became the official history for the RLDS Church at that time.
Returning to Utah
The RLDS Church sent Tullidge on a mission to Utah in October 1879. To his surprise, people in Utah welcomed him back. His strong connection to the RLDS Church became weaker. Important members of the LDS Church asked him to write a "History of Salt Lake City." He also started a new magazine called "Tullidge's Quarterly Magazine." In 1889, he wrote a history of the intermountain west.
Utah was going through a difficult time, and many of his projects did not make enough money. He faced losing his home. He wrote to Wilford Woodruff, asking for help. The LDS Church responded by buying many copies of his history books, which helped him financially.
Family Life
Edward Tullidge married Susannah Ferguson. They had ten children together, and five of them lived past infancy.
See also
- Phrenology and the Latter Day Saint Movement
Books and Plays by Edward Tullidge
Books
- The History of Salt Lake City and Its Founders (also published as The History of Salt Lake City)
- Life of Brigham Young: or, Utah and Her Founders (1876)
- Women of Mormondom (1877)
- The Life of Joseph the Prophet (1878)
- History of the Intermountain West (1889)
Plays
- Ben Israel: or, From Under the Curse (1887 edition by Star Printing Company)
