Hyrum was born in Tunbridge, Vermont, the second son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith. Smith received a limited education, and established himself as a farmer. Smith attended Dartmouth College in his teens. This may have been one of the factors behind Dr. Nathan Smith treating Smith's brother Joseph's leg.
Church service
Smith was a close advisor and confidant to his brother Joseph as the latter produced the Book of Mormon and established the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. In June 1829, Smith was baptized in Seneca Lake, New York. He was one of the Eight Witnesses who swore to the reality of a set of golden plates inscribed with the Book of Mormon. He also said he saw the angel Moroni. When the Church of Christ was organized on April 6, 1830, six men signed their names as charter members; at the age of 30, Hyrum Smith was the oldest of the six. Smith served as presiding officer of a church branch in Colesville, New York and was one of the first Latter Day Saint missionaries in the surrounding area. As the church headquarters and membership moved west, Smith and his family relocated. In 1831, he established a home in Kirtland, Ohio. During his residence there, he served as foreman of the quarry providing stone for the Kirtland Temple. Between 1831 and 1833, he served proselyting missions to Missouri and Ohio. In 1834, under the direction of Joseph Smith, he recruited members for a militia, Zion's Camp, and traveled with the group to the aid of the Latter Day Saints in Missouri. He was appointed Second Counselor in the church's First Presidency in November 1837. In 1838 and 1839, Hyrum, Joseph and three other church leaders shared a jail cell in Liberty, Missouri while awaiting trial. After relocating to Nauvoo, Illinois, Smith became the church's Presiding Patriarch, a position first held by his father, Joseph Smith Sr. He also replaced Oliver Cowdery as Assistant President of the Church; in this capacity, Smith acted as President of the Church in Joseph's absence and was designated to be Joseph's successor if he were killed or incapacitated. Although Hyrum Smith was never explicitly ordained to the priesthood office of apostle, "his appointment as assistant president may have included such authority". When warned of possible danger, Joseph urged Smith and his family to flee to Cincinnati, Ohio. Smith refused and, in 1844, traveled with Joseph to Carthage, Illinois, where both were charged with riot and treason. Joseph, Hyrum, John Taylor and Willard Richards were held awaiting trial in a jail in Carthage. On June 27, 1844, the building was attacked by a mob of between sixty and two hundred men. While attempting to barricade the door to prevent the mob from entering, Smith was shot in the face on the left side of the nose. After staggering back, another ball fired through the window struck him in the back, passed through his body, and struck his watch in his vest pocket. As Smith fell to the floor, he exclaimed, "I am a dead man," as he died. Taylor was struck by several bullets but survived with the help of Richards. Joseph was hit by at least two shots, exclaimed "O Lord, My God," and fell through a second-story window to the ground where he was shot again. Because of his position as Assistant President of the Church, it is likely that Smith would have succeeded Joseph and become the next president of the church had he outlived his brother.
On 2 November 1826, in Manchester, New York, he married Jerusha Barden. They had six children together.
Lovina Smith, who married Lorin Walker
Mary Smith
John Smith
Hyrum Smith
Jerusha Smith
Sarah Smith, who married Charles Emerson Griffin
On 24 December 1837, in Kirtland, Ohio, he married Mary Fielding Smith. They had two children.
Joseph F. Smith
Martha Ann Smith
In August 1843, he married two plural wives: Mercy Fielding Thompson, widow of Robert B. Thompson and sister to Hyrum's wife Mary; and Catherine Phillips.
Descendants
Smith's descendants have played significant roles in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Joseph F. Smith, his son by Mary Fielding Smith, served as president of the LDS Church from 1901 to 1918. His grandson, Joseph Fielding Smith also served as president of the church from 1970 to 1972. His eldest son, John Smith, served as the church's Presiding Patriarch from 1855 to 1911. John Smith's descendants held this post from 1912 to 1932 and from 1942 to 1979, when the office was effectively discontinued and the incumbent, Eldred G. Smith, was given the title patriarch emeritus. M. Russell Ballard, the current Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church, is also a direct descendant of Smith. In 1918, Smith's descendants erected a monument to him in the Salt Lake City Cemetery. A commemoration for the 175th anniversary of his death was held June 2019 in Carthage, Illinois.
