Reed Smoot

Family Background

1862. January 10: Born in Salt Lake City to Anna Kristina Morrison and Mayor Abraham Owen Smoot. In 1872 the Smoots moved to Provo.

1876. At fourteen, he was one of the original twenty-nine students to enroll in the Brigham Young Academy. During summer vacations, he worked in the Church-owned Provo Woolen Mills, which were superintended by his father. After graduation Reed worked in the Provo Cooperative Institution, the first Church co-op organized by Brigham Young. The seventeen-year-old boy started on the bottom rung of the ladder, sacking fruit, sorting potatoes, and doing odd jobs. Eighteen months later he became superintendent.

1884. Called by President John Taylor to superintend the Provo Woolen Mills. September 17: Married Alpha M. Eldredge, daughter of Horace S. Eldredge, a member of the First Council of Seventy. She died in 1928, and he married Alice Taylor Sheets in 1930. He was the father of six children.

Missionary

Smoot's 1880 mission call was rescinded because of his responsibilities with the Provo Co-op. His 1884 call was rescinded when he became superintendent of Provo Woolen Mills.

1890. After five years as second counselor in Provo's Utah Stake, he was called on a mission to Liverpool, England, where he worked in the mission office under President Brigham Young, Jr. He returned to Provo in 1891 to resume management of the woolen mills when his father was taken seriously ill.

Businessman

Smoot eventually managed Provo Lumber Manufacturing and Building, served as president of Provo Commercial and Savings Bank and vice-president of Grant Central Mining, and was a director of Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad.

Apostle

1900. April 8: Called to the Quorum of the Twelve by Lorenzo Snow after the death of Franklin D. Richards.

United States Senator

Smoot's first political appointment was as director of the Utah Territorial Insane Asylum in Provo (1884). After 1890 the First Presidency encouraged only Republican general authorities to seek political office. Democrats Moses Thatcher and B. H. Roberts were censored in 1896 for not clearing their political plans with Church leaders.

1901. November 8: The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve considered Republican Smoot's desire to run for the U.S. Senate. According to Anthon H. Lund, "Bro [Lorenzo] Snow said he hoped to live to see us send an apostle there." But advised by President McKinley, Mark Hannah, and Archbishop Ireland that "it would not be wise to let a Mormon go to the senate this year," the Twelve and First Presidency decided to postpone Smoot's bid.

1902. With the approval of the First Presidency and Twelve, Smoot announced his candidacy for the Senate. Immediately the Salt Lake Ministerial Association objected that an apostle in Congress would violate the principle of separation of church and state.

1903. Smoot was the choice of an overwhelming majority of voters, but by the time he reached Washington a national campaign had formed against him. The Senate Committee on Privileges spent more than thirty months investigating charges that he belonged to a "self-perpetuating fifteen- member ruling body that controlled Utah's elections and economy… [which was] secretly continuing to preach [p.317] and permit plural marriages" and that he had taken "a secret pledge of disloyalty to the American government."

After obtaining nearly four thousand pages of testimony from witnesses including President Joseph F. Smith and several apostles, the committee recommended Smoot's expulsion. But the full Senate, influenced by President Roosevelt, refused the recommendation: Smoot retained his seat.

During his thirty years in the Senate, Smoot came to be recognized as "the most influential figure in Utah's political history." A hard-working conservative, with "little political glamour," he was "no orator. He shunned the peccadilloes of his fellows; he staged no rebellions; he coined no phrases, he offered no intriguing new ideas. He merely worked without stint or respite and continued to win elections."

1908. Smoot won a seat on the powerful Senate Finance Committee—the "watchdog of the Treasury"—serving as its chairman during the Depression.

1909. Prohibition was the burning issue in Utah. Heber J. Grant, George Albert Smith, and David O. McKay urged Utah communities to eliminate liquor. Smoot, who supported the local option, helped defeat statewide prohibition. As the only apostle opposing prohibition, he was strongly criticized by constituents.

Smoot complained that Heber J. Grant had publicly referred to him as "his royal nibs." The Senator vehemently declared that no man "ever saw me take a drink of liquor in a saloon or anywhere else," and offered to resign his apostleship. President Joseph F. Smith soothed Smoot's feelings, assuring him "that his personal course was understood and approved, but would not be publicly supported." President Smith advised Smoot to "be patient and understanding with his more rabid brethren."

1919. Despite the support of the First Presidency and nearly all of the Twelve for the League of Nations, Smoot remained loyal to the Republican opposition. An unabashed partisan, Smoot declared, "I am for the Republican ticket wherever put up, whether in Provo, Salt Lake, Montana or anywhere. Whenever my advice is asked [p.318] I always advise Republicans to stand by their entire ticket."

He attained national prominence in 1930 by co-sponsoring the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, imposing record high duties on imported raw materials, including sugar. The Church was the largest stockholder in the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company, and many Utah farmers depended on the sugar beet crop.

Republican President Taft declared Smoot "the most valuable man in the U.S. Senate." Republican President Hoover said that Reed Smoot "had acquired a knowledge of the working of the United States government unparalleled by any other man in the country."

Utah Democratic party chief James H. Moyle said, "I would not praise him for what he has done. I have followed up the praise and all the publicity regarding him and find that it comes from the selfish interests. Mr. Smoot has worked and is working, and has been and is for, the wealthy interests."

1932. A Democratic landslide swept Smoot from office by a plurality of 30,843 votes. Deeply hurt, he wrote, "Everywhere I go people ask me, 'What is the matter of Utah?' They can't understand the election results and nearly all remark that Utah will never again hold the position in our country that she does at the present time."

Secular Saint

Before he joined the Quorum of the Twelve, Reed Smoot was widely considered to be a lackluster Saint, whose call to a stake presidency was due more to his administrative ability than to his religious devotion. He was loyal to his Mormon heritage and accepted his apostolic calling with resignation, but seemed embarrassed by much in Mormonism. Defending his dual role as Senator and apostle, he startled many Mormons by testifying that he had always been a semi-active Latter-day Saint, that he did not care much for the temple endowment, and that he ignored First Presidency instructions on political matters.

Even after the Senate certified his election, Smoot remained aloof from Church activity, aside from brief vacations in Utah. As the presiding authority in Washington, D.C., Apostle Smoot attended only evening sacrament meetings, working and relaxing during the day. It was not until his political defeat in 1932 that he devoted his full energies to his apostleship.

Death

1941. February 9: The seventy-nine-year-old "apostle of economy" died in St. Petersburg, Florida, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery.

Sources
Allen, James B. "The Great Protectionist, Sen. Reed Smoot of Utah." Utah Historical Quarterly 45 (Fall 1977):325-345.
_____. "Personal Faith and Public Policy: Some Timely Observations on the League of Nations Controversy in Utah." Brigham Young UniversityStudies 14 (Autumn 1973):77-98.
Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saints' Biographical Encyclopedia 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson Historical Company, 1901-1936.
Merrill, Milton R. "Reed Smoot: Apostle in Politics." Ph.D. dissertation, Columbia University, 1951.
_____. Reed Smoot: Utah Politician. Logan, Utah: Utah State Agricultural College Monograph Series, 1953.
Pardoe, T. Earl. The Sons of Brigham. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University, 1969.
Provo, Utah. Brigham Young University. Harold B. Lee Library. Reed Smoot Journals.
Salt Lake City, Utah. LDS Church Archives. Anthon H. Lund Journal.
Shipps, Jan. "The Public Image of Reed Smoot: 1902-1932." Utah Historical Quarterly 45 (Fall 1977):380-400.

	A Book of Mormons Richard S. Van Wagoner and Steven C. Walker Copyright 1982, Signature Books Salt Lake City, Utah Contents


	Reed Smoot (1862-1941)

				Reed Smoot was an apostle and United States Senator. Photograph courtesy LDS Church Archives.


	Family Background 1862. January 10: Born in Salt Lake City to Anna Kristina Morrison and Mayor Abraham Owen Smoot. In 1872 the Smoots moved to Provo. 1876. At fourteen, he was one of the original twenty-nine students to enroll in the Brigham Young Academy. During summer vacations, he worked in the Church-owned Provo Woolen Mills, which were superintended by his father. After graduation Reed worked in the Provo Cooperative Institution, the first Church co-op organized by Brigham Young. The seventeen-year-old boy started on the bottom rung of the ladder, sacking fruit, sorting potatoes, and doing odd jobs. Eighteen months later he became superintendent. 1884. Called by President John Taylor to superintend the Provo Woolen Mills. September 17: Married Alpha M. Eldredge, daughter of Horace S. Eldredge, a member of the First Council of Seventy. She died in 1928, and he married Alice Taylor Sheets in 1930. He was the father of six children. Missionary Smoot's 1880 mission call was rescinded because of his responsibilities with the Provo Co-op. His 1884 call was rescinded when he became superintendent of Provo Woolen Mills. 1890. After five years as second counselor in Provo's Utah Stake, he was called on a mission to Liverpool, England, where he worked in the mission office under President Brigham Young, Jr. He returned to Provo in 1891 to resume management of the woolen mills when his father was taken seriously ill. Businessman Smoot eventually managed Provo Lumber Manufacturing and Building, served as president of Provo Commercial and Savings Bank and vice-president of Grant Central Mining, and was a director of Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad. Apostle 1900. April 8: Called to the Quorum of the Twelve by Lorenzo Snow after the death of Franklin D. Richards. United States Senator Smoot's first political appointment was as director of the Utah Territorial Insane Asylum in Provo (1884). After 1890 the First Presidency encouraged only Republican general authorities to seek political office. Democrats Moses Thatcher and B. H. Roberts were censored in 1896 for not clearing their political plans with Church leaders. 1901. November 8: The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve considered Republican Smoot's desire to run for the U.S. Senate. According to Anthon H. Lund, "Bro [Lorenzo] Snow said he hoped to live to see us send an apostle there." But advised by President McKinley, Mark Hannah, and Archbishop Ireland that "it would not be wise to let a Mormon go to the senate this year," the Twelve and First Presidency decided to postpone Smoot's bid. 1902. With the approval of the First Presidency and Twelve, Smoot announced his candidacy for the Senate. Immediately the Salt Lake Ministerial Association objected that an apostle in Congress would violate the principle of separation of church and state. 1903. Smoot was the choice of an overwhelming majority of voters, but by the time he reached Washington a national campaign had formed against him. The Senate Committee on Privileges spent more than thirty months investigating charges that he belonged to a "self-perpetuating fifteen- member ruling body that controlled Utah's elections and economy… [which was] secretly continuing to preach [p.317] and permit plural marriages" and that he had taken "a secret pledge of disloyalty to the American government." After obtaining nearly four thousand pages of testimony from witnesses including President Joseph F. Smith and several apostles, the committee recommended Smoot's expulsion. But the full Senate, influenced by President Roosevelt, refused the recommendation: Smoot retained his seat. During his thirty years in the Senate, Smoot came to be recognized as "the most influential figure in Utah's political history." A hard-working conservative, with "little political glamour," he was "no orator. He shunned the peccadilloes of his fellows; he staged no rebellions; he coined no phrases, he offered no intriguing new ideas. He merely worked without stint or respite and continued to win elections." 1908. Smoot won a seat on the powerful Senate Finance Committee—the "watchdog of the Treasury"—serving as its chairman during the Depression. 1909. Prohibition was the burning issue in Utah. Heber J. Grant, George Albert Smith, and David O. McKay urged Utah communities to eliminate liquor. Smoot, who supported the local option, helped defeat statewide prohibition. As the only apostle opposing prohibition, he was strongly criticized by constituents. Smoot complained that Heber J. Grant had publicly referred to him as "his royal nibs." The Senator vehemently declared that no man "ever saw me take a drink of liquor in a saloon or anywhere else," and offered to resign his apostleship. President Joseph F. Smith soothed Smoot's feelings, assuring him "that his personal course was understood and approved, but would not be publicly supported." President Smith advised Smoot to "be patient and understanding with his more rabid brethren." 1919. Despite the support of the First Presidency and nearly all of the Twelve for the League of Nations, Smoot remained loyal to the Republican opposition. An unabashed partisan, Smoot declared, "I am for the Republican ticket wherever put up, whether in Provo, Salt Lake, Montana or anywhere. Whenever my advice is asked [p.318] I always advise Republicans to stand by their entire ticket." He attained national prominence in 1930 by co-sponsoring the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, imposing record high duties on imported raw materials, including sugar. The Church was the largest stockholder in the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company, and many Utah farmers depended on the sugar beet crop. Republican President Taft declared Smoot "the most valuable man in the U.S. Senate." Republican President Hoover said that Reed Smoot "had acquired a knowledge of the working of the United States government unparalleled by any other man in the country." Utah Democratic party chief James H. Moyle said, "I would not praise him for what he has done. I have followed up the praise and all the publicity regarding him and find that it comes from the selfish interests. Mr. Smoot has worked and is working, and has been and is for, the wealthy interests." 1932. A Democratic landslide swept Smoot from office by a plurality of 30,843 votes. Deeply hurt, he wrote, "Everywhere I go people ask me, 'What is the matter of Utah?' They can't understand the election results and nearly all remark that Utah will never again hold the position in our country that she does at the present time." Secular Saint Before he joined the Quorum of the Twelve, Reed Smoot was widely considered to be a lackluster Saint, whose call to a stake presidency was due more to his administrative ability than to his religious devotion. He was loyal to his Mormon heritage and accepted his apostolic calling with resignation, but seemed embarrassed by much in Mormonism. Defending his dual role as Senator and apostle, he startled many Mormons by testifying that he had always been a semi-active Latter-day Saint, that he did not care much for the temple endowment, and that he ignored First Presidency instructions on political matters. Even after the Senate certified his election, Smoot remained aloof from Church activity, aside from brief vacations in Utah. As the presiding authority in Washington, D.C., Apostle Smoot attended only evening sacrament meetings, working and relaxing during the day. It was not until his political defeat in 1932 that he devoted his full energies to his apostleship. Death 1941. February 9: The seventy-nine-year-old "apostle of economy" died in St. Petersburg, Florida, and was buried in the Provo City Cemetery. Sources Allen, James B. "The Great Protectionist, Sen. Reed Smoot of Utah." Utah Historical Quarterly 45 (Fall 1977):325-345. _____. "Personal Faith and Public Policy: Some Timely Observations on the League of Nations Controversy in Utah." Brigham Young UniversityStudies 14 (Autumn 1973):77-98. Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saints' Biographical Encyclopedia 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson Historical Company, 1901-1936. Merrill, Milton R. "Reed Smoot: Apostle in Politics." Ph.D. dissertation, Columbia University, 1951. _____. Reed Smoot: Utah Politician. Logan, Utah: Utah State Agricultural College Monograph Series, 1953. Pardoe, T. Earl. The Sons of Brigham. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University, 1969. Provo, Utah. Brigham Young University. Harold B. Lee Library. Reed Smoot Journals. Salt Lake City, Utah. LDS Church Archives. Anthon H. Lund Journal. Shipps, Jan. "The Public Image of Reed Smoot: 1902-1932." Utah Historical Quarterly 45 (Fall 1977):380-400.