Louisa Free
Born 9 Aug. 1824 in St. Clair Co., Illinois.[1] Daughter of Absalom P. Free and Betsy Strait.[2] Married John Doyle Lee, 19 Apr. 1844/1845; one child.[3] Divorced 1 Jan. 1849.[4] Married Daniel H. Wells, 15 Feb. 1849; seven children.[5] Sister wife of EBW.[6] Teacher.[7] Served a mission to England with Daniel H. Wells, Mar.–Oct. 1885.[8] Died 18 June 1886 in Salt Lake City.[9]
[1] “Sealings and Adoptions of the Living, 1846–1857; Index, 1846–1857,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nauvoo Temple, vol. A, p. 374, John Doyle Lee and Louisa Free, 20 Jan. 1846, microfilm 183374 (restricted access), FHL. Junius F. Wells, “The Wells Family Genealogy,” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine 6, no. 1 (Jan. 1895): 10. “Family Tree,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org, accessed 8 July 2019), Louisa Free (LKVY-N3X).
[2] Junius F. Wells, “The Wells Family Genealogy,” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine 6, no. 1 (Jan. 1895): 10. Kate B. Carter, Our Pioneer Heritage, vol. 8 (Salt Lake City: Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 1959), 184. Junius F. Wells, Reunion of the Descendants of Absalom Pennington Free (Salt Lake City: Free Family Organization, 1908). EBW, “In Memoriam,” Woman’s Exponent, 1 July 1886, 2.
[3] John D. Lee, Journal, p. 60, MS 1253 (restricted), CHL. “Sealings and Adoptions of the Living, 1846–1857; Index, 1846–1857,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nauvoo Temple, vol. A, p. 374, John Doyle Lee and Louisa Free, 20 Jan. 1846, microfilm 183374 (restricted access), FHL. Carol Cornwall Madsen, Emmeline B. Wells: An Intimate History (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2017), 105. Juanita Brooks, John Doyle Lee: Zealot, Pioneer Builder, Scapegoat (Salt Lake City: Howe Brothers, 1984), 65, 66.
[4] Brigham Young Office Files, 1847–1849, CR 1234 1 box 67 folder 1 (restricted access), CHL.
[5] “Sealings of the Living, 1846–1854,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nauvoo Temple, vol. A, p. 779, line 5, Daniel Hanmer Wells and Louisa Free, 15 Feb. 1849, microfilm 183374, DGS 5265582 (restricted access), FHL. Carol Cornwall Madsen, Emmeline B. Wells: An Intimate History (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2017), 105. Junius F. Wells, “The Wells Family Genealogy,” Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine 6, no. 1 (Jan. 1895): 10, 11. EBW, “In Memoriam,” Woman’s Exponent, 1 July 1886, 2.
[6] Carol Cornwall Madsen, Emmeline B. Wells: An Intimate History (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2017), 504.
[7] Kate B. Carter, Our Pioneer Heritage, vol. 8 (Salt Lake City: Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 1959), 184–188.
[8] “Death of Sister Louisa F. Wells,” Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star, 28 June 1886, 410–412. Kate B. Carter, Our Pioneer Heritage, vol. 8 (Salt Lake City: Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 1959), 184–188. Louisa F. Wells to John Taylor, Salt Lake City, UT, CR 1 168, CHL.
[9] “Utah Death Registers, 1847–1966,” p. 332 (1883), Louisa F. Wells; citing series 21866, from Utah Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City. “Death of Sister Louisa F. Wells,” Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star, 28 June 1886, 410–412. EBW, Diary, 9 Aug. 1900.