YATES, Vida Elizabeth (SMITH) SMITH

SMITH, YATES, HAL, KENDALL, WIGHT, BENTON, INSLEE, BADHAM, ANDERSON, MADISON, FOSTER

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 1/26/2016 at 02:07:28

Biography ~ Vida Elizabeth (Smith) Smith Yates
January 16, 1865 ~ January 03, 1945

Vida Elizabeth (Smith) Smith Yates was born January 16, 1865, Nauvoo, Illinois, the granddaughter of Joseph and Emma (Hale) Smith and daughter of Elizabeth Agnes (Kendall) and Alexander Hale Smith, presiding patriarch of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Vida pioneered activities for women students as Graceland entered its second quarter century.

Vida was married June 2, 1886, Independence, Missouri, to long-time church Historian and RLDS Quorum of Twelve Apostles Heman Conoman Smith (1850-1919), son of Spencer and Anna Christiana (Wight) Smith and grandson of Apostle Col. Lyman Wight and Harriet (Benton) Wight. They were the parents of four children, all born at San Bernardino, California: Heman Hale, born April 28, 1887, died March 11, 1962, Midway City, California; Vida Inez, born January 16, 1889, married James W. Davis of Honolulu, Hawaii, died October, 1954; Anna Earlita, born November 28, 1890, married Evan E. Inslee of Seattle, Washington, died June 5, 1975, San Clemente, California; and, Lois Elizabeth, born November 3, 1892 and died March 27, 1914, wife of Walter G. Badham of Lamoni.

The Smiths moved to Lamoni from San Bernadino, California. Heman died in 1919 and was interred at Rose Hill Cemetery, Lamoni, Iowa. Two years after Heman's death, Vida became Graceland's dean of women (1921) and oversaw Bide-A-Wee women's dormitory which was located on the top floor of Briggs Hall. Vida's longest-standing contribution to the college came in 1922 when she organized the Crescents, a service club symbolic of "womanly womanhood" and became an honorary member herself. A year later, Vida wrote the college song, Graceland.

Dedicated to their Church, Vida taught primary Sunday School class at the Old Brick Church in Lamoni, Iowa, and also served on a committee which was preparing a hymnbook for the church Sunday Schools.

One hot Sabbath morning in 1903, Vida was inspired to write on the flyleaf of her quarterly the following which later became the lyrics for the hymn "The Old, Old Path" [Keuffer, Carlyle F. "Stories of Our Hymns." p. 136. Herald Publishing House. Independence Mo. 1938.]

There’s an old, old path
Where the sun shines thro’
Life’s dark storm clouds
From its home of blue.

Refrain:
In this old, old path
Made strangely sweet
By the touch divine,
Of His blessed feet.

Find the old, old path,
‘Twill be ever new,
For the Savior walks
All the way with you.

In this old, old path
Are my friends most dear,
And I walk with them,
With the angels near.

‘Tis an old, old path,
Shadowed vales between,
Yet I fearless walk
With the Nazarene.

Later that evening, Vida showed the poem to her cousin, Audentia (Smith) Anderson. [Audenita was the granddaughter of Joseph and Emma Smith and the daughter of Joseph III and Bertha (Madison) Smith.] Audenita, who had many talents, had been a student of piano, organ, voice, harmony and music composition. She set Vida's words to music and the hymn, titled "The Old, Old Path," was assigned number 207 and was included in the first edition of Zion's Praises.

The Old Brick Church burned to the ground in 1931. As the flames engulfed the church, the old bell began to ring one last time before it plunged into the burning inferno. This bell, when conditions were clear and winds favorable, could be heard as far as five miles away.

After World War II a new church was constructed on the site of the Old Brick Church.

"Aunt Vida" left her role as women's dean in 1925.

Vida married second on October 2, 1926 to James Elmer Yates [born March 12, 1874, Johnsonville, Ohio, died April 8, 1954, Sedona, Arizona]. James was a missionary and the sone of Amos Teeter and Harriet Anna (Foster) Yates. James was interred at Sedona Community Cemetery, Sedona, Arizona.

During her post-Graceland years, Vida wrote an extended biography of her father and sketches of pioneer women in the church. She also wrote One Day When Fell the Spirit's Whisper: Young People's History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Volume 1 (1914) and Volume 2 (1918).

Vida wrote the lyrics for the following hyms:

I Have Heard the Sweetest Story

I Hear, I Hear from Far Above

I Will Sing a Song for My Lord to Hear

The Old, Old Path

One Day When Fell the Spirit’s Whisper

Beautiful Songs Let Us Offer Songs

’Twas So Long, and Long Ago

When I Open My Eyes at Morning

When I Wake Up in the Morning

Vida died January 3, 1945, Los Angeles, California, and was interred at Rose Hill Cemetery, Lamoni, Iowa.

SOURCE:
Price, Pamela. "God's Gift of Song to the Saints."

Edwards, Paul M. "The Hilltop Where. . . An Informal History of Graceland College." p. 75. Venture Foundation. Lamoni IA. 1972.

Goehner, David. "The Graceland College Book of Knowledge: From A To Z." p. 441. Herald House. Independence MO. 1997.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, January of 2016

Decatur Biographies maintained by Constance McDaniel Hall.
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