Phebe Chase, Charter Member of the Nauvoo Relief Society

It is March and the LDS Relief Society women always celebrate the birthday of the "Female Relief Society" around March 17th.  Having attended many of these events, I thought to share with the family the involvement of the Chase family women as "charter members" of the Society.

March 17 is still celebrated as the birthday of the Latter-day Saint Relief Society.

On March 17, 1842, 18 (or 20) of the women of Nauvoo gathered to organize a kind of "benevolent society" to assist the workmen who were building the Nauvoo Temple.

Phebe Chase-Charter Member of the Female Relief Society

It appears that Phebe Chase was formally inducted into the Female Relief Society in the fourth meeting on Thursday, April 14, 1842.  (See transcript of document below.  The original is found at the josephsmithpapers.org site.)

Original page 26 from the 1852 Nauvoo Female Relief Society minute book.

14 April 1842 • Thursday

Minutes of the Proceedings

of the

Fourth Meeting of the Society.

[1 line blank]

Lodge Room, April 14,th 1842.

Meeting opened with singing “How pleasant ’tis to see” &c.

Prayer by Prest. Emma Smith— after which Councillor  [Sarah Kingsley] Cleveland arose and address’d the meeting, informing them  that the case of Clarissa M. had been satisfactorily settled  she having testified in her own hand writing that she had said  no wrong &c. Mrs. C. continued by cautioning the Society  against speaking evil of Prest. J. Smith and his companion — that it would not be a light thing in the sight of God — that they had prov’d themselves; and the case of C. M. should  be a warning, how we hear and how we speak— express’d  her fears that the Lord would cut off those who will not  take counsel &c.

Motioned by Councillor Cleveland, seconded by  Councillor [Elizabeth Ann Smith] Whitney, that the following persons be received  into this Society—— passed unanimously,

Clarissa Wilcox	Lydia Anderson
Phebe Knights	Catharine Mellon
[blank] Wight	Hannah Pierce
Lydia Huntington	Betsey Roundy
Phebe Miller	Phebe Chase
Phebe Angell	Nancy H. Rockwood
Drusilla Hendricks	Nancy Winchester
Polly [Knight] Stringham	Martha Peck
Asenath Sherman	Cornelia J. Fisher
Lydia Anderson	Electa E. Whiteside
Charlotte Hawes

Prest. E. Smith arose and address’d the  meeting by saying that the disagreeable busines of searchi ng out those that were iniquitous, seem’d to fall on her— [p. 26]

Transcription of page 26 of the 1842 Relief Society Minute Book.  (See JosephSmithPapers.org)

About two weeks later, Joseph Smith addressed a large assembly of women in the April 28, 1842 meeting where Phebe and her daughters, Sylvia Van Fleet and Desdemona Gleason, were likely in attendance.  The Prophet said:

"I now turn the key in your behalf in the name of the Lord, and this Society shall rejoice, and henceforth; this is the beginning of better days to the poor and needy, who shall be made to rejoice and pour forth blessings on your heads."  (See HC 4:606-607)

Phebe Ogden Chase

Phebe was a "compassionate service" volunteer and looked after the needs of the temple workmen.  She provided meals, mended clothing, and acted as a nurse for workmen who were injured on the job.  Also she assisted the families of the workmen and was especially helpful and kind when there was illness or the death of a family member.

According to a note found in the personal papers of her daughter, Phebe was among those ordained and set apart to administer and visit and bless the sick.  The handwritten note says:

"...ordained and set apart to administer to and visit and bless the sick of Nauvoo were Emma Smith, E. R. Snow, Zina Young, Mary Ann Whitney, Phebe Chase, and Pricinda Kimball."
(See LDS microfilm MS#9489, Personal Collection of Harriet Louisa Chase McLaughlin, by Phebe McLaughlin Welling.)

Phebe was ordained by the Prophet Joseph Smith

Women are not ordained now, but apparently Phebe was set apart and ordained by the Prophet Joseph Smith to administer to the sick.  "She had the gift of healing sealed upon her.  She was very faithful in this calling and many seemingly miraculous healings resulted.  At one time, her husband Isaac, was so ill his life was despaired of  She went out under the trees alone and prayed for him and in a few moments he began to get better and soon recovered."  (See LDS microfilm MS#2050, Reel 17, 25:3:7, History of Isaac Chase, by Phebe M. Welling.)

There were seventeen meetings of the LDS Relief Society during the first year of its existence and Phebe was in attendance at most of these meetings.  By May 1842, the membership was large enough that the 1,341 members held meetings in the four different LDS wards of Nauvoo. 

Thirty-four meetings of the Relief Society were held in Nauvoo and the Chase family was represented at most of these meetings.   The final meeting was held on Saturday, March 16, 1844.  It wasn't until the group immigrated to Utah Territory that they again organized.

Here are some other interesting facts:
(See  http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/relief-society-history)

Nauvoo Relief Society Minute Book — As a part of the comprehensive works entitled the Joseph Smith Papers project, the detailed minutes of the 34 Relief Society meetings held in Nauvoo, Illinois, are now available online. The records document the organization of the group in March of 1842, the six doctrinal sermons Joseph Smith presented and other details about the efforts to assist the poor, to contribute to the Nauvoo Temple construction and to describe the rising tensions or persecutions faced by the residents.

Daughters in My Kingdom — A volume, published in 2011, that describes the history and the work of Relief Society, the adult women’s organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in scriptural, anecdotal and biographical accounts. The record describes the “heritage of Relief Society, not just the women who lived in the past; but also about women all over the world today who make and keep covenants within the Church.”

One interesting fact was that the Nauvoo Lodge of Free Masons was organized a few months before the women's Relief Society.  Isaac Chase petitioned to join the Masons on May 19, 1842 and was accepted into the Nauvoo Lodge on June 2, 1842.  He was 50 years old at the time.  Large numbers of Nauvoo citizens were inducted into the fraternity.  Their "Rising Sun Lodge" became the largest in the state of Illinois.  (See Ivan J. Barrett, Joseph Smith and the Restoration, page 510.)