Lewis Crum Bidamon (January 16, 1806 – February 11, 1891) was a leader in the Illinois militia that assisted Latter Day Saints in the 1846 "Battle of Nauvoo". In 1847, Bidamon married Emma Smith, the widow of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement; from this time, Bidamon was the stepfather of Joseph Smith III and the other surviving children of Joseph and Emma Smith.
Bidamon was born in Smithfield, Virginia.[2] When he was fourteen years old, his family moved to Highland County, Ohio. He later relocated to Canton, Illinois. In 1846, just as the Latter Day Saints were beginning to depart Nauvoo, Illinois, Bidamon moved to Nauvoo. He was a lieutenant colonel of the 32nd Regiment of the Illinois militia, and he helped control the violence being perpetuated against the Latter Day Saints. Because of his position in the Illinois militia, he was often referred to as "Major" Bidamon.
Bidamon married Nancy Sebree in 1827, with whom he had four children. During this first marriage, he also fathered a child with another woman. After Nancy Bidamon died, Lewis Bidamon married Mary Ann Douglas in 1842, but the marriage only lasted six months. He moved to Nauvoo after he was divorced from his second wife.
Unlike the majority of Latter Day Saints, Emma Smith did not follow Brigham Young's suggestion that the Latter Day Saints leave Nauvoo and settle in the Salt Lake Valley in present-day Utah. Her husband Joseph Smith had been killed in 1844, and after his death Emma Smith decided to remain in Nauvoo. On 23 December 1847, which would have been Joseph's 42nd birthday, Bidamon and Smith were married in Nauvoo by a Methodistcircuit rider.[3] At the time of the marriage, Bidamon was the father of two daughters (his two sons had died) and Emma was the mother of five surviving children. Bidamon was not a Latter Day Saint; he believed that Joseph Smith was an honest man but that Smith had somehow been deceived into believing he was a prophet. Bidamon had been raised as a Lutheran, and he had helped establish a Congregational church in Canton, Illinois, but in general he did not consider himself to be religious.
Bidamon traveled to California during the gold rush and during the American Civil War he was a major and colonel in the Illinois militia. He lived in Nauvoo until his death, and on numerous occasions was elected a justice of the peace and a police magistrate for the city. He was also a businessman and ran a number of ventures in Illinois and on the Mississippi River. The Bidamons lived in the Mansion House, which Joseph Smith had begun constructing prior to his death in 1844. In 1871, they moved to the Nauvoo House, which Bidamon converted into a smaller structure they called Riverside Mansion. Emma and Lewis Bidamon both lived in the Nauvoo House until their deaths.
In 1864, during his seventeenth year of marriage to Emma, Bidamon fathered the child of Nancy Abercrombie, a widow who had recently moved to Nauvoo. After Emma died in 1879, Lewis Bidamon married Abercrombie. He was married to her until his death. Bidamon was buried at the Smith Family Cemetery in Nauvoo.[4]
Inventory of the Lewis Crum Bidamon Collection, 1837–1962: Huntington Library
May 01, 2024
lewis, bidamon, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, september, . This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Lewis C Bidamon news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2016 Learn how and when to remove this message Lewis Crum Bidamon January 16 1806 February 11 1891 was a leader in the Illinois militia that assisted Latter Day Saints in the 1846 Battle of Nauvoo In 1847 Bidamon married Emma Smith the widow of Joseph Smith the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement from this time Bidamon was the stepfather of Joseph Smith III and the other surviving children of Joseph and Emma Smith Lewis Crum BidamonBorn 1806 01 16 January 16 1806 1 Smithfield Virginia 2 DiedFebruary 11 1891 1891 02 11 aged 85 Nauvoo House Nauvoo IllinoisResting placeSmith Family Cemetery Nauvoo Illinois United States40 32 25 98 N 91 23 31 06 W 40 5405500 N 91 3919611 W 40 5405500 91 3919611 Smith Family Cemetery SpousesNancy Sebree 1827 Mary Ann Douglas 1842 Emma Smith 1847 1879 Nancy Abercrombie 1880 1891 Children5 6 1 Personal life editBidamon was born in Smithfield Virginia 2 When he was fourteen years old his family moved to Highland County Ohio He later relocated to Canton Illinois In 1846 just as the Latter Day Saints were beginning to depart Nauvoo Illinois Bidamon moved to Nauvoo He was a lieutenant colonel of the 32nd Regiment of the Illinois militia and he helped control the violence being perpetuated against the Latter Day Saints Because of his position in the Illinois militia he was often referred to as Major Bidamon Bidamon married Nancy Sebree in 1827 with whom he had four children During this first marriage he also fathered a child with another woman After Nancy Bidamon died Lewis Bidamon married Mary Ann Douglas in 1842 but the marriage only lasted six months He moved to Nauvoo after he was divorced from his second wife Unlike the majority of Latter Day Saints Emma Smith did not follow Brigham Young s suggestion that the Latter Day Saints leave Nauvoo and settle in the Salt Lake Valley in present day Utah Her husband Joseph Smith had been killed in 1844 and after his death Emma Smith decided to remain in Nauvoo On 23 December 1847 which would have been Joseph s 42nd birthday Bidamon and Smith were married in Nauvoo by a Methodist circuit rider 3 At the time of the marriage Bidamon was the father of two daughters his two sons had died and Emma was the mother of five surviving children Bidamon was not a Latter Day Saint he believed that Joseph Smith was an honest man but that Smith had somehow been deceived into believing he was a prophet Bidamon had been raised as a Lutheran and he had helped establish a Congregational church in Canton Illinois but in general he did not consider himself to be religious Bidamon traveled to California during the gold rush and during the American Civil War he was a major and colonel in the Illinois militia He lived in Nauvoo until his death and on numerous occasions was elected a justice of the peace and a police magistrate for the city He was also a businessman and ran a number of ventures in Illinois and on the Mississippi River The Bidamons lived in the Mansion House which Joseph Smith had begun constructing prior to his death in 1844 In 1871 they moved to the Nauvoo House which Bidamon converted into a smaller structure they called Riverside Mansion Emma and Lewis Bidamon both lived in the Nauvoo House until their deaths In 1864 during his seventeenth year of marriage to Emma Bidamon fathered the child of Nancy Abercrombie a widow who had recently moved to Nauvoo After Emma died in 1879 Lewis Bidamon married Abercrombie He was married to her until his death Bidamon was buried at the Smith Family Cemetery in Nauvoo 4 Bidamon s papers are held by the Huntington Library in San Marino California References edit a b Archived copy PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2011 04 09 Retrieved 2011 04 08 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link a b Avery Valeen Tippetts Newell Linda King 1972 Lewis C Bidamon Stepchild of Mormondom BYU Studies 19 3 Retrieved 2016 07 04 Emma s Marriage to Lewis Crum Bidamon Archived from the original on 2012 03 22 Retrieved 2011 04 08 Maj Lewis Crum Bidamon findagrave com External links editInventory of the Lewis Crum Bidamon Collection 1837 1962 Huntington Library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Lewis C Bidamon amp oldid 1194041862, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
