The Mormon Polygamous Wife (ep. 9.8)
From the 21st century it is hard to grasp just how big an issue polygamy was in 19th century America. From this distance, slavery was the big moral issue. But at the time, slavery and polygamy were linked. The very first Republican party platform, written in 1856, declared their prime objective: “it is both the right and the imperative duty of Congress to prohibit in the Territories those twin relics of barbarism—polygamy and slavery.”
This episode explores how Mormons began polygamy, how it evolved, why so many women defended it, and how it (mostly) came to an end, with stories and quotes…
The skinny
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