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Show . . . . the second floor, of the parlor and several living rooms . the third floor, of the sleeping rooms of the home. Life in the pioneer home revolved around the parlor . the large room on the second floor opening off the hall to the left as you enter. Here the families held their daily prayers, and met together to receive counsel and advice from the head of the family. You were received today in this historic room, an accurate replica in every detail of the room that was used by Brigham Young, with all the furniture an exact copy of the original. The third or top floor was orginally divided into 20 rooms - about 12 feet by 16 feet in size - each under a gable roof, plainly seen from the outside of the building. These served as bedrooms for the large family. But not all of Brigham Young's family lived in this house. Never more than 12 wives lived in the Lion House at one time. But they did live together in peace and harmony, because they were motivated by a deep religious belief which included the practice of plural marriage. This was practiced in Utah . . . then called Deseret . . . from 1847 to 1890. Those who were permitted to live it numbered about 3% of the male population. It was abolished as a practice within the church in 1890 and has never been sanctioned since that time. The Lion House is at present managed by the Young Women's Mutual Improvement Association, an auxiliary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This association was founded in the Lion House by President Brigham Young. He called his daughters together in the front parlor on November 28, 1869 and said.: "I have long had it in my mind to organize the young ladies of Zion into an association so that they might assist the older members of the Church, the fathers and mothers, in propagating, teaching, and practising the principles I |
