Susa Gates ( Young, formerly Dunford; March 18, 1856 – May 27, 1933) was an American writer, periodical editor, president of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, and women's rights advocate. She was a daughter of LDS Church president Brigham Young. Throughout her life, Gates wrote many articles, poems, short stories, novels, and other literary works. According to R. Paul Cracroft's thesis, Gates wrote more than other Mormon writers. Gates was also actively involved in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) where, among other things, she wrote the lesson manuals, was a member of the Relief Society general board, lead genealogical efforts, and served as a missionary.

Early life Gates was born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, to Lucy Bigelow, Brigham Young's twenty-second wife. Gates was named Susanna, but went by Susa for most of her life. She was Brigham's forty-second child and the second child to be born to Lucy Bigelow and Brigham Young. Gates grew up in the Lion House. Her home life was very structured because of the large size of her father's family. Her days consisted of scheduled meals, prayers, schooling, family devotionals, and sleep time. According to Gates, her childhood was very happy and she enjoyed growing up in the Young family. However, Gates also recorded some memories of family difficulties. While Gates reported that she had a close relationship with some of her father's wives, she did not enjoy spending time with all of them. She also rejected any speculation that there was fighting amongst Brigham's wives, while other family members claimed there was tension.

When Gates was born, her father was the president of the LDS Church, the Governor of Utah, and the Superintendent of Indian Affairs. Due to a series of natural disasters, Utah experienced a food shortage and the people living in Utah were required to live off food rations. Gates was also a child during the Utah War which also contributed to the hardship that her family experienced. As a result of the war, Gates moved south temporarily with some of her family to what is now known as Provo.

As was customary in Utah during the time, Gates was trained in drama and dance. She was seven years old when she began to perform in local theaters. Gates thrived in her school and as a result, she entered the University of Deseret at age 13, and by age 14, she had become the editor of the student newspaper, College Lantern. However, her father withdrew her from school and moved her (along with two of his wives and their children) to St. George, Utah. In St. George, Gates continued pursuing an education, but struggled to get along with her new teacher and peers.

Education As a child, Gates received an education at a private school owned by Brigham Young across the street from the Lion House. Due to her father's political and religious position and her love of reading, Gates received more education than most children her age. Gates also reports that the education of herself and her siblings was very important to Brigham Young. According to multiple articles she wrote, Gates greatly enjoyed school. Gates wrote that she had opportunities to study music and theatre. She mentioned that her family also regularly participated in minstrel shows as a family activity, often encouraged and led by Brigham Young. During the 19th century, minstrel shows were incredibly popular in Utah.

When Gates was fourteen, she became the associate editor of "The College Lantern," a literary magazine published by the University of Deseret where she was a student. "The College Lantern" was one of the first campus publication in the west. According to Cracroft's thesis, Gates was one of the first people in Utah to learn shorthand. Following her divorce from Dunford, Gates petitioned church leaders to help her continue her education. She was offered a scholarship to the University of Deseret (now known as the University of Utah), but decided to instead attend Brigham Young Academy (now known as Brigham Young University). As a divorced mother, Gates stood out among the other students, however, she was dedicated to her education and worked hard in her courses. While at BYA, Gates taught music lessons. Following the end of her first year at BYA, Gates decided to leave Utah to accompany one of Brigham's other wives to Hawaii.

Gates also attended summer school at Harvard University, but she was not an enrolled, full-time student. At Harvard, she took courses in literature and physical health. This type of summer schooling was common for women during Gates' time. During her time at Harvard, Gates was a student of Maud Babcock, another prominent female member of the church and future fellow member on the board of the Young Women's Mutual Improvement Association.

Career

Academic

Gates was involved in different educational institutions in Utah. Gates entered Brigham Young Academy in Provo, Utah, in 1878 where she taught music lessons and founded the music department. In the 1890s, Gates returned to BYU and acted as a board member. While there, Gates created the home economics department and taught a physiology and genealogy class. She was appointed as a member of the board of trustees of the Agricultural College of Utah in Logan, Utah. At the same college, she was also a member on a committee on home economics and art.

Founding organizations

Throughout her life, Gates founded many organizations. She was one of eight co-founders of the Utah Women's Press Club. She also helped to organize the National Household Economic Association. On May 27, 1870, Gates became the secretary of the Young Ladies Retrenchment Association. The Association was created as a way for young LDS women to support each other and connect with each other. Gates was a primary organizer of the Utah chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, and the National Woman's Press Club. Gates was also a member of the Board of Regents of BYU from 1891 to 1933, and Utah State Agricultural College from 1906 to 1912.

Political work

Gates was involved in political and feminist causes throughout her life. Gates was a member of the National Council of Women (NCW) and she attended multiple NCW conferences. She also served as the chair of the US National Council of Women Press Committee. In 1892, Gates traveled to London to attend a convention of the International Council of Women. Gates was also involved in the Woman Suffrage movement. In the early 1900s, Gates was nominated as the sole delegate from the United States to attend another convention of the International Council of Women in Copenhagen.

Gates was an outspoken proponent of women's suffrage. In 1880, Gates organized a class in St. George which was called "Civil Government." In 1882, Gates was elected as an alternate delegate for a convention of the People's Party, a political group greatly influenced by the church. Throughout her life, Gates was active in promoting women's rights and women's suffrage. She was a founding organizer of the National Household Economics Organization, served as a delegate and speaker to five congresses of the International Council of Women and was a delegate and officer of the National Council of Women. Gates was also elected as an alternate delegate of the Republican National Convention in Chicago in 1908. She attended several Republican National Conventions. Gates was active in politics until 1916, when she retired from her political activism with a few exceptions. Throughout her whole life, Gates was a staunch Republican and espoused conservative ideology.

During some of Gates' career, there was a strong anti-Mormon sentiment in the United States, largely due to the church's practice of polygamy. This caused some disruption in Gates' career as some women did not want to associate with a Utahan or a Mormon. An example of this is when Susan B. Anthony refused to work with Gates anymore because she had not left the religion which practiced polygamy. Throughout her career, Gates defended her religion and contended to be accepted.

LDS church positions Gates was involved in many different positions in the LDS church. Some of her positions include:

Member of the Relief Society general board Secretary of the Relief Society general board Corresponding secretary and editor of the Relief Society Magazine Chair of the Genealogical Committee of the Relief Society Teachers Committee of the Relief Society general board Member of the general board of the Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association Missionary in Hawaii and the "United States"

While not an official assignment in the church, Gates wrote the first lesson manual for Sunday school lessons. As a prominent member of the church, Gates enjoyed close relationships with church leaders and was able to be influential in some church policies and decisions. Throughout her life, Gates was close friends with Joseph F. Smith, the sixth president of the church. In one letter to Gates, Smith refers to her and her husband as being among his "best and truest friends."

Throughout her career, Gates worked to counteract the commonly held, negative stereotypes surrounding Mormon women. Together, Gates and Leah wrote "Women of the 'Mormon' Church" which has published in 1926. The book focuses on Gates' ideas of the importance of obedience to God and the church and support for women's rights. To promote her book, Gates sent thousands of copies to multiple institutions and newspapers.

Genealogy

Gates was also active in genealogy and LDS Church temple work. She researched her father's and mothers family history in depth. She managed the genealogy departments in the Deseret News and Inter Mountain Republican, and edited and wrote columns for both papers in 1906. She later became the head of the Research Department and Library of the Genealogical Society of Utah in 1923. Gates was the chair of the Genealogical Committee of the Relief Society. In this position she created monthly lessons on genealogy for other women of the Relief Society. Gates had started to create materials to teach others how to do genealogy before she was in this official position. Gates also published a book called "Surname Book and Racial History" that alphabetically listed common surnames in Utah and the history and original nationality of the name.

In their paper, James B. Allen and Jessie L. Embry write that Gates quickly became a leader in genealogy in Utah, which had recently become quite popular in Utah and in the United States. In the St. George temple, Gates worked as "official stenographer" and was the first woman to be baptized in the temple on behalf of someone who was deceased. Genealogy work was popular among the Mormons because they were able to perform spiritual ordinances on behalf of people who had previously died. Later, Gates was also "official stenographer" at Mormon temples in Logan, Salt Lake City, and Cardston. Part of Gates' genealogical work included creating a thirteen-volume collection that followed the Young family genealogy. The volume contained 20,000 names. After Gates became involved in genealogical work, she donated an additional 10% of her income to the Church for genealogical purposes.

Writings