Jane Elizabeth Manning James
Jane Elizabeth Manning James ( September 22, 1822 - April 16, 1908 ) was an early black convert of the Mormons .
Life
She lived in Nauvoo for some time with Joseph Smith and his family . She was the first African American woman known to have come to Utah as a Mormon pioneer . She had eight children with her husband, Isaac James. Their daughter, Mary Ann, was the first black child born in Utah . When she left her husband, Isaac, in 1869, she asked the First Presidency several times to endow and seal her children with Walker Lewis, a prominent African-American Mormon elder. Lewis, who died in 1856, was like the first black Mormon elder, Elijah Abelordained priest by Joseph Smith. Jane assumed Lewis was available for temple ceremonies. But their requests were always ignored or denied. After Isaac died in 1891, she asked if she could be sealed under the law of adoption. In her correspondence with church leaders, the reason given was that Emma Smith had offered to seal her with the Smith family as a child.
Your request was rejected again. Instead, the First Presidency decided that she should be adopted as the servant of the Smith. This was done in a specially prepared ceremony on May 18, 1894, with Joseph F. Smith serving as Joseph Smith's alternate .
The Mormon Genesis Group founded by President Joseph Fielding Smith has built a monument to their life's work in the Salt Lake City Cemetery .
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | James, Jane Elizabeth Manning |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | early black Mormon convert |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 22, 1822 |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 16, 1908 |