The Joseph Smith Papers project will soon publish a new volume documenting extensive evidence of the LDS Church founder's practice of plural marriage. Historians working on the project say the volume will include primary-source documents showing Smith married between 30 and 40 women during his lifetime, including several who were already married to other men.

The forthcoming publication represents years of archival research and will make available historical records that have existed in church archives but have not been widely accessible to the public. The volume is part of the ongoing Joseph Smith Papers series, which has been publishing annotated historical documents since 2008.

Church historians say the new volume provides the most comprehensive documentary evidence to date of Smith's polygamous relationships, including marriage dates, sealings, and contemporary accounts from participants. The publication continues the project's mission to make the founder's complete historical record available to scholars and the public.