"What church do you belong to, anyway?"
"LDS"
"Is that a church? I thought it was like, you know..."
"No, that's LSD. I'm a Mormon."
"Oh. How many wives do you have?"

1830

The church was organized in April, in Fayette, New York.

Early 1830's

Joseph Smith jr, married to Emma since 1827, was reputed to have formed relations with a series of young women.

1835

An article on marriage was included in the D&C as section 101. It acknowledged the validity of marriages performed outside the church, and insisted that one man should have one wife.

1843

A revelation on eternal and plural marriage was recorded in July, but "it is evident from the historical records that the doctrines and principles involved in this revelation had been known by the Prophet since 1831." (D&C 132) Joseph was sealed to Emma in May 1843; at least six others had been sealed to him earlier.

1852

The LDS practice of polygamy was publicly announced in August by Orson Pratt.

1862

Lincoln signed the Morrill act, outlawing plural marriage in the territories.

1876

The monogamous Article on Marriage was dropped from the D&C.

1879

The Morrill Act was upheld by the Supreme Court.

1890

The Manifesto, now "Official Declaration 1" of the Doctrine & Covenants was issued by Wilford Woodruff 17 months after he became president of the church; in it he advised the saints "to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by the laws of the land. Woodruff subsequently refused to deal with plural marriages, and referred applicants to his counselor, George Q. Cannon. About 250 plural marriages were sealed in the next 14 years.

1904

The "second manifesto" was accepted in the April conference; it stated that "if any officer or member of the church shall assume to solemnize or enter into any such marriage he will be deemed in transgression against the church, and will be liable to be dealt with according to the rules and regulations thereof and excommunicated therefrom." Apostles Matthias Cowley and John W. Taylor, who had been assigned to seal plural marriages both in Mexico and the U.S. between manifestos, resigned their positions.

1995

The Proclamation on the Family was issued. This again states that marriage should join one man to one woman. It is often cited in contexts that suggest the primary concern is not with numbers, but with the distribution of sexes within the marriage. Section 132 remains in the D&C.