Relief Society (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
Corporate History
The Relief Society is the women's organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which was initially led by Emma Hale Smith in Nauvoo, IL in 1842. During the group's existance, it has been an organization dedicated to providing lessons, activities, and service opportunities for the women of the Church in both a ward and stake setting.
The Relief Society was established by various women of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sarah M. Kimball's house in Nauvoo, IL in 1842. After giving their constitution to Joseph Smith, they set up various presidencies within their wards/stakes and selected Joseph Smith's wife Emma to serve as the overall president of the Society.
Between Joseph Smith's martyrdom in 1842 and 1866, the Society fell into disarray under Brigham Young's leadership of the Church. While he did allow various female-led societies to assist in the Church's exodus to Utah to assist in midwifrey (The Female Council of Health) and in developing bonds with the Native Americans, the general involvement of the Relief Society in the Church was weak.
From 1866 on, Brigham Young and later leaders of the Church made more of a concerted effort to make sure that the Relief Society would play a more predominant role in the Church. Not only did he call a new General President of the Society to lead the group (starting with Eliza Snow), but he permitted the Society to create magazines, be more actively involved in the ward, etc. Through the group's involvement of the Church, they contributed to the Church's welfare program, strengthen homes during times of war, and became Red Cross units in wartorn nations in World War I and World War II. They also worked to prevent the passage of the Equal Rights Ammendment, established the Women's Research Center at BYU, and so on.
Citation:
The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, via WWW, August 19, 2016 (Relief Society)Found in 6 Collections and/or Records:
Alice Louise Reynolds collection of travel literature, 1898-1937
Contains travel guides, pamphlets, maps, and other literature related to Reynolds's travels in Europe and the Middle East. Materials were published between 1898 and 1937.
Elizabeth Howard diaries and account books
Photocopies of handwritten diaries, memoranda, and lists of financial transactions.
Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History records
Mary A. Porter papers on Relief Society, 2005, 1922-1971
Contains letters, notes, newspaper clippings, publications, and other material related to Porter's service in the Relief Society in Delaware and Pennsylvania. Materials date from between 1922 to 1971, with a single item from 2005.