Adventures in Mormon History

On 26 June 1858, COL Albert Sidney Johnston ordered his troops forward, marching them towards Salt Lake City. For over a year, they had endured cold, hunger, and grueling marches. Now, as they entered Salt Lake City, they found it abandoned -- other than a few Soldiers of the Nauvoo Legion, who stood ready to set the city ablaze if Johnston's Soldiers began rampaging. How did Johnston's Army feel about this ambiguous end to a year-long campaign?  How did Latter-day Saints deal with uncertainty amid Army patrols and evacuation orders? And how effective were these military measures, when the spirited young men and women of Pioneer Utah wanted to be together? On this episode, we explore: ○  Johnston's Decision to March to Salt Lake City before he could be reinforced -- and all the glory for a successful campaign stolen -- by General William S. Harney.  ○  The Nauvoo Legion's efforts to evacuate the city and prepare it for burning.○  How the young men and women of pioneer Utah creatively defied evacuation orders, armed sentries, and patrols, to be together.  ○  Johnston's march through Salt Lake City, despite the taunting appearance of BG James Ferguson and the Nauvoo Legion Cavalry.  ○  Mixed reactions -- both of disappointment and awe -- at entering Salt Lake City.  ○  Loud complaints of New York Times correspondent James Simonton at the distance that the Latter-day Saint women maintained from both him and the Army -- and one obvious reason why that Simonton seemingly overlooked.  ○  The end of the Utah War and tribute to Thomas L. Kane of Pennsylvania.For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War. It is available on Amazon and Google Books.  Search Terms: Thomas L. Kane, Brigham Young, COL Albert Sidney Johnston, New York Times, James Simonton, James Ferguson,  Governor Alfred Cumming, Utah War, Camp Scott, Fort Bridger, Wyoming History, Utah History, James Buchanan, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, U.S. Army, American West, Romance, Courtship, and Marriage in Pioneer Utah, Polygamy, Monogamy.

In March 1858, Thomas Kane's efforts to end the Utah War had been fruitless.  a week with COL Albert Sidney Johnston and the U.S. Army on the plains of Wyoming. President James Buchanan had sent the Army to Utah, to remove Brigham Young as Governor and replace him with Alfred Cumming. This had led to a months-long armed standoff between the US Army and the Latter-day Saint militia. Sensing that he alone could work out a peace between the two sides, Thomas Kane raced to the Wyoming Wilderness, at personal expense and with no official authority, to throw himself between the Armies and negotiate a peace. But after months of grueling travel, personal danger, and several close calls with death, Thomas Kane had made no progress in convincing COL Johnston or his staff to de-escalate the conflict.     This would change on the night of March 16th, when Kane called on COL Johnston with an usual request. Kane asked for permission to pass through the Army's defensive line to travel to the Latter-day Saint militia and deliver a sealed letter to Brigham Young. As one of the few outsiders that the Latter-day Saints trusted, Kane could cross through the Nauvoo Legion's defenses without trouble, even though they had brought the U.S. Army campaign to a cautious halt.  COL Johnston gave him permission. and so Kane armed himself with two pistols, took his brother's rifle, mounted his horse, and headed west, passing through the Sentry Line and riding towards the Latter-day Saint militia.On this episode, we explore Kane's secret message to Brigham Young, his close call with death as he survived an attempt on his life, his meeting with William Kimball where he proposed an audacious plan - Bring Alfred Cumming alone into Salt Lake City, leaving the Army without a mission or purpose, and set the stage for a lasting peace.  To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War. It is available on Amazon and Google Books.  o   Matthew J. Grow, “I have Given Myself to the Devil: Thomas L. Kane and the Culture of Honor,” 73 Utah Hist. Q. 4 (2005).  o   Richard D. Poll, “Thomas L. Kane and the Utah War,” 61 Utah Hist. Q. 2 (1993). o   Elder Lance B. Wickman, “Thomas L. Kane: Outrider for Zion,” Ensign (September 2003).Search Terms: Thomas L. Kane, Brigham Young, COL Albert Sidney Johnston, CPT Culvier Grover, MAJ Fitz John Porter, Governor Alfred Cumming, Utah War, Camp Scott, Fort Bridger, Wyoming History, Utah History, James Buchanan, Patrick "Pat" Kane, Elizabeth Kane, Echo Canyon, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, U.S. Army, American West. Note: During their lifetimes, a debate came up between Alfred Cumming and Thomas Kane on one side and Major Fitz John Porter on the other as to whether Cumming was heading off into the unknown or whether Brigham Young had invited him into the Salt Lake Valley. It seems clear that Young had not passed any message to Cumming (a good part of Kane's discussion with William Kimball was focused on what to do if Brigham Young did not agree) -- but Kane may have overplayed his hand in assuring Cumming he would be well received.  

On the night of 9 March 1858, Thomas L. Kane was trudging through a heavy snow storm on his self-appointed mission to End the Utah War. He had convinced Brigham Young and Church Leaders to extend an olive branch to the Army Expedition by offering them large quantities of food and supplies.  But now, over 25 feet of snow buried the mountain roads. With temperatures plummeting and winds howling, Kane found himself growing weaker while the storm raged around him. Sensing that he might not survive, the sickly Kane decided to prepare for the worst. He wrote a letter to Alfred Cumming, the incoming Governor of Utah traveling with the Army:  "Dear sir: In case of accident I write this memorandum to apprise you that I am the bearer of overtures for peace from Gov. Brigham Young. Letters from Pres. Buchanan throwing light upon my position will be found upon my person. My other letters and effects I beg may be forwarded to my family at Philadelphia."  But three days later, Kane, insensible and frosted, would ride into the Army Camp. On this episode, we explore Thomas Kane's awkward meeting with COL Johnston, how the Soldiers of the expedition openly grumbled that Kane should be hanged as a "Mormon spy," how Kane's relationship with Johnston soured to the point that he challenged the Commander to a duel, and how his efforts to convince Johnston to reciprocate Brigham Young's olive branch instead gave the impression that the Latter-day Saints were weak, divided, and vulnerable.  We remember how, at the end of his week at the Army Camp, Kane was farther from peace then ever . . . And yet how, when all hope seemed gone, he struck upon an idea that would prove his single greatest contribution to end the Utah War.  To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War. It is available on Amazon and Google Books.  o   Matthew J. Grow, “I have Given Myself to the Devil: Thomas L. Kane and the Culture of Honor,” 73 Utah Hist. Q. 4 (2005).  o   Richard D. Poll, “Thomas L. Kane and the Utah War,” 61 Utah Hist. Q. 2 (1993). o   Elder Lance B. Wickman, “Thomas L. Kane: Outrider for Zion,” Ensign (September 2003).Search Terms: Thomas L. Kane, Brigham Young, COL Albert Sidney Johnston, CPT Culvier Grover, MAJ Fitz John Porter, Orin Porter Rockwell, Governor Alfred Cumming, CPT John W. Phelps, Utah War, Fort Bridger,Camp Scott, Ecklesville, James Buchanan, Patrick "Pat" Kane, Elizabeth Kane, Echo Canyon, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, U.S. Army, American West.The Title of this Episode comes from the report of a French Correspondent with the Army Camp, who reported that Kane "literally fell as a bombshell in the midst of federal officers."  

In February 1858, the Latter-day Saints and the U.S. Army were in an armed standoff on the frozen plains of Wyoming.  The Army, under the command of COL Albert Sidney Johnston, were on half rations, and suffering from a lack of salt. The Latter-day Saints seemed to have the upper hand for the time being, though they faced growing threats from all sides.  In the middle of this stalemate a strange letter arrived in Salt Lake City for Brigham Young.  It had come express from the town of Nephi, about 80 miles to the south.  The note, scrawled in a hurry, contained this cryptic message: “My dear sir, I trust you will recognize my handwriting. That I have made [the journey] in six weeks from New York may persuade you that I am on no fool's errand . . . . I send this to you by express, and urge you to postpone any military movement of importance until we meet and have a serious interview. If you cannot see the expediency of doing so on other grounds, I entreat it as a favor – in requital of the services which I rendered your people in their less prosperous days. I remain their friend, to serve them faithfully, Dr. Osborne.”  Two days later, pale and shaking with illness, the mysterious “Doctor Osborne” arrived in the city – it was none other than their friend, Colonel Thomas Kane, who could now dispense with his pseudonym.   He had indeed made the trip in 6 weeks, traveling night and day to reach Salt Lake City before the Latter-day Saints and the U.S. Army came to battle. But his message to the Saints -- to welcome the Army into the valley, and immediately send them food and supplies, turned out to be a hard sell. Some (like George A. Smith) scoffed at this idea.  How COL Kane managed to (as his wife Elizabeth would later write),  "turn a whole people's will and make them ask for peace in the hour of their triumph.” To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  David L. Bigler, "The Crisis at Fort Limhi 185, 35 Utah Hist. Q. 2 (1967), available at https://issuu.com/utah10/docs/uhq_volume35_1967_number2/s/104099. For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War. It is available on Amazon and Google Books.  Search Terms: Thomas L. Kane, Brigham Young, George A. Smith, Utah War, Fort Bridger, James Buchanan, Patrick "Pat" Kane, Echo Canyon, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, U.S. Army, American West, Fort Limhi, Shashone, Bannock, Attack. 

This episode continues the adventures of Thomas L. Kane, who left his home in February 1858 and set out for Salt Lake City.  His self-imposed mission was to stop the Utah War.  His plan was, as his wife Elizabeth later wrote, was somewhat hazy:  “Tom's plan was to go in disguise to Utah by way of California, winter though it was, and make his unexpected appearance at Brigham Young's very gates, relying upon his own mental force and Young's knowledge of the sincerity of his goodwill to the Mormons. He actually intended to turn a whole people's will and make them ask for peace in the hour of their triumph.”  But before he could get to Brigham Young's gates, he first had to pass through the towns of Los Angeles and San Bernadino. At the time, both these towns were hornet nests of anti-Mormon frenzy.  On this episode, we recount:  o  How Thomas Kane assumed the identity of "Doctor Osborne," and came up with a cover story about needing to get to Utah to collect specimens of western flora. We recount how (somewhat ham-fisted) effort at undercover work.       o  Just how dangerous Los Angeles and San Bernadino were for Latter-day Saints in 1857 - 1858.  For background, we recount the (mis)adventures of William Wall, who passed through San Bernadino on his way home to Provo from a mission to Australia.  He was pursued by a lynch mob, but managed to evade them twice. But he had a final confrontation as he prepared to leave the City.  We recount how, as William Wall was surrounded, he bore a "powerful testimony of the Gospel."  Then, he bore a different kind of testimony with what he called a "splendid double-barreled shotgun" and a "good Bowie knife," impressing upon the mob that some of them would die along with him.     o The Vigilance Committee of San Bernadino's efforts to hunt the mysterious "Doctor Osborne."    o How Kane saved from the violence of the Vigilance Committee by Frances Swan Clark and Colonel Alden Jackson.  To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out these (excellent!) sources:     o  Ardis A. Parshall, "Frances Swan Clark: A Kindness Remembered," essay posted 18 May 2008 and last visited on 6 November 2022, http://www.keepapitchinin.org/2008/05/18/frances-swan-clark-a-kindness-remembered-redux/.  I came across Parshall's essay in MacKinnon, At Sword's Point, Part 2 Chapter 7, n. 34, so thanks to both Parshall and MacKinnon!   o For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War. It is available on Amazon and Google Books.  Search Terms: Frances Swan (Kimball Clark) Clark, Winter Quarters, Thomas L. Kane, Patrick Kane, Utah War, Albert Sidney Johnston, "Doctor Osborne," George Clark, William Wall, William Pickett, Elizabeth Kane, James Buchanan, Brigham Young, Ebenezer Hanks, Los Angeles, San Bernadino, Mississippi River, Mormon Pioneers, Plural Marriage, Polygamy, Secret Identity, Vigilance Committee, Lynch Mobs, Old West, Colonel Alden Jackson,         

At the crisis of the Utah War -- Arguably the most dangerous moment in the history of the Latter-day Saints -- Colonel Thomas Kane set out on a bold plan: He would travel to Utah and Wyoming, in the dead of winter, throw himself between the U.S. Army and the Latter-day Saints, and hammer out a peace agreement. Nobody -- including President James Buchanan and his own father, Judge John Kane -- believed he would succeed. Yet Thomas Kane declared to Buchanan, "I am determined to go, with or without your approbation."  On this episode (Part I of III), we remember Colonel Thomas Kane, the greatest hero of the Utah War.  Thomas Kane was born to wealthy and influential parents. His father, John Kane, was a federal judge and a leading Jacksonian Democrat. The Kane family was driven by a deep need for adventure, exploration, and humanitarian causes. Elisha would become a Navy Officer and an explorer.  When the British expedition of Sir John Franklin disappeared into the Arctic in 1845, Elisha would answer the pleas of Lady Jane Franklin for a rescue mission. He would make two grueling expeditions to the frozen Arctic wastes in an effort to find and rescue the unfortunate crew of the Terror. Thomas was, in some ways, different from his brother Elisha. At 5 and a half feet and 130 pounds, Thomas was frequently laid low with illness. But he shared his brother's deep need for hardship and rugged adventure, which seemed to bring him to life.  His brother John would later write, “Tom is never so well as when exposed to that which would kill most men of his build, and that a hard life in open air—not matter how hard—always agrees with him better than the most tranquil sedentary existence." On this episode, we recount:- Thomas's efforts to follow in his brother's tracks, and lead his own expedition to the frozen Arctic to rescue the unfortunate crews of the H.M.S. Terror and the H.M.S. Erebus.  - Thomas Kane's grief at the death of his friend, LDS Apostle Jedediah M. Grant.- Thomas Kane's need for rugged adventure and open-handed philanthropy- Thomas Kane's hair-trigger sensitivity for anything he viewed as a slight to his honor, and even after suffering a gunshot wound to the face during the 1861 Battle of Dranesville (near present-day Arlington, Virginia), he was determined to move forward and fight a duel against a fellow Union Officer.  - His wife Elizabeth's desperate effort to stop her husband from dueling To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out these (excellent!) sources: o   Matthew J. Grow, “I have Given Myself to the Devil: Thomas L. Kane and the Culture of Honor,” 73 Utah Hist. Q. 4 (2005).  NOTE: In this episode, I state as a fact that Elisha Kent Kane married Margaret Fox.  Matthew Grow's article describes the history of their romance and their love letters.  Margaret Fox claimed they were married; the surviving Kane family strenuously disputed her claim.  o   Richard D. Poll, “Thomas L. Kane and the Utah War,” 61 Utah Hist. Q. 2 (1993) o   Elder Lance B. Wickman, “Thomas L. Kane: Outrider for Zion,” Ensign (September 2003) o For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War.     

Before Lot Smith's raid on the Wagon Supplies, conventional wisdom in the Government and the Nation seemed to be that talk of the Latter-day Saints actually resisting the Army was just that – Talk.   But when news of the raid finally reached the states, it was shocking. Overnight, Johnston's Army lost roughly half its supplies for the campaign. Johnston and his troops would spend a hungry, freezing winter on half-rations in the ashes of what had once been Fort Bridger – which also had been burned by the Nauvoo Legion to deny shelter to Johnston's troops.        But Lot Smith's raid sparked a dangerous escalation of the conflict.  A Grand Jury hastily handed down indictments for treason against Church Leaders, raising the grim prospect of death by hanging.  Army leaders -- Johnston, McClellan, William T. Sherman, Harney -- all longed for a pitched battle against the Mormons.  Latter-day Saints faced danger and new threats from the north (with native tribes turning against them), from the south (with the intrepid Captain Randolph Marcy on the verge of finding a way through Utah's arid red rock desert), and from the west (as California's clamored to raise a force to attack Utah and avenge the murders of the Baker-Francher Wagon Company at Mountain Meadows).    On this episode, we explore what easily could have been the most precarious and dangerous moment the Latter-day Saints have ever faced. For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War.    Search Terms: Utah War, William McClellan, "Little Mac", William Tecumseh Sherman, Albert Sidney Johnston, William Selby "Squaw Killer" Harney, Brigham Young, John Taylor, Poerter Rockwell, Civil War, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, Utah Territory, Polygamy, Plural Marriage, U.S. Army,  Fort Bridger, Lot Smith, Salt Lake City, 2LT James Henry Martineau, George Watts, Echo Canyon, Albert Sidney Johnston, Brigham Young, Charlie Becker, James Ferguson,  Wild Bill Hickman, Nauvoo Legion, International Latter-day Saints, Immigration, Prisoners, Law of War, Law of Armed Conflict, Russia, British Empire, Alaska, British Colombia.

In the 1920s, an elderly and well-respected Oregon Rancher, Charlie Becker, prepared a sketch of his adventurous life, the places he had seen, the adventures he had lived, and the hardships he had overcome. He also disclosed that, as a young man, he had served as a Civilian Teamster accompanying Johnston's Army during the Utah War.  In an unguarded moment, he allowed himself to be captured by a Latter-day Saint Raiding party. He would spend the next months a prisoner in the Utah Territory, where he would be one of the few outsiders to see up close the lives of the Latter-day Saints in their mountain home.  On this episode, we will explore the story of Charlie Becker, a prisoner of the Utah War. This episode covers:- How Charlie Becker was captured by a Mormon raiding party; - His interrogation by Lieutenant General Daniel H. Wells and the General Staff, including the hot-tempered Irishman, Adjutant General James Ferguson;- How Daniel Wells quickly stomped out James Ferguson's suggestion that they find ways of "forcing" Becker to disclose more intelligence ("Tut! Tut! None of that, Mr. Ferguson!");- How Charles Decker brought Charlie Becker to his house, where he met two of Decker's Wives: Lena Young Decker (the daughter of Brigham Young) and  Margaret Jane Maxfield Decker and how, to his shock, the two women "[got] along splendidly, like an older and younger sister."   - How he was confined, with other prisoners, in Salt Lake City during a Christmas celebration, and how the prisoners and the good-natured Danish guard decided to celebrate  with a rousing game of "Blind Man's Bluff" -- and made so much racket they inadvertently summoned the notorious killer, Wild Bill Hickman, who promptly arrested the guards and replaced them with "a monstrous, surely Swede."  - How he was released and returned to COL Albert Sidney Johnston, where he reported how the Mormon people had treated him with great kindness (especially the Decker family, whom he describes as "a most lovable Mormon family").  For the materials and sources in this story, we owe a special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War.    See also Rebecca  Bartholomew & Leonard J. Arrington, Rescue of the 1856 Handcart Companies (1992).Search Terms: Utah War, Mormon History, Latter-day Saints, Utah Territory, Polygamy, Plural Marriage, U.S. Army,  Fort Bridger, Lot Smith, Salt Lake City, Echo Canyon, Albert Sidney Johnston, Brigham Young, Charlie Becker, James Ferguson, Charles Decker, Lena Young Decker, Wild Bill Hickman, Nauvoo Legion, Court-Martial,  Margaret Jane Maxfield Decker, International Latter-day Saints, Immigration, Prisoners, Law of War, Law of Armed Conflict   

In August of 1857, Brigham Young delivered a speech to the saints assembled in the Tabernacle.  As he contemplated the Army force marching closer to the home of the Saints, he bitterly remembered how, over the last he and the Latter-day Saints, over the last 20 years, had been brutally victimized by armed bands, from Ohio to Missouri to Illinois.  He saw the approach of federal troops as simply the latest armed force to set out to destroy them.  But he decided that this time would be different.  He roared from the pulpit: "Let it be treason or not treason . . . .  The Lord God Almighty and the Elders of Israel being our helpers, they shall not come into this territory.  I will fight them and I will fight all hell rather than tamely submit to such outrageous wrong and oppression."  This episode covers: The strategy the Latter-day Saints adopted to resist Johnston's ArmyDaniel H. Well's Council of War on 3 October 1857The, uh, friendship between Captain Porter Rockwell and Major Lot SmithLot Smith's daring raid on the Army's supply wagon trainThe single most memorable line of the Utah War - "For His sake, I'm going to burn them." Special thanks to Utah War historian William "Bill" MacKinnon - His two-volume set, "At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858" is an extraordinary resource for anyone interested in learning more about the Utah War.   Key Words: Brigham Young, Daniel H. Wells, Porter Rockwell, Lot Smith, N.V. Jones, James Parshall Terry, John Dawson, Utah War, Burning Supply Wagons, Raiders, Nauvoo Legion, Scorched Earth, Fort Supply, Fort Bridger.

In 1857, the Buchanan Administration sent an Army Expedition to Utah.  It was sure to be an arduous, difficulty journey, with many ways to suffer and few to win glory.  But who were the Soldiers marching against the Latter-day Saints?  On today's episode, we explore the Soldiers and Teamsters, which included both selfless heroes and hopeless drunks, public servants and fugitive criminals, that made up Johnston's Army.  Discussions include:  A letter from Robert E. Lee warning Albert Sidney Johnston not to take his wife to Utah, as the many wives of Brigham Young would look upon her as a "poor, imposed on sinner."The medical journal of Dr. Robert Bartholomew, Regimental Surgeon to the 10th Infantry Division.  He noted two classes of Soldiers - those who grew stronger through exercise and moderate living, and "worthless recruits" whose only abstained from whiskey when they could procure it.  The lone, dogged Marine, LT Robert Browning, who joined the Army expedition as an observer.  Three years later, the dashing young Marine would be lost in the Pacific Ocean, having gone down with his ship, USS Levant.  The "Thieves, Thugs, and Worthless Characters" that made up the Teamsters and Contractors joining the expedition.  The memoirs of Private Robert Morris Peck, including a description of how the card sharks and sharpers among the Teamsters would have nearly all the Soldiers' money within a few days of pay day, and a colorful description of Charlie Hart, one of the most reckless gamblers to join the expedition.  The desertion of Private Charles Wilcken, his defection to the Latter-day Saints, and his long and fruitful life as a baptized member of the Church.  Wilcken would have three descendants run for the U.S. Presidency - George Romney, Mitt Romney, and Jon Huntsman, Jr.   To learn more about the start of the Utah War, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  William MacKinnon, At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War (Vol. I and II) (2016).  MacKinnon's work on the Utah War is nothing short of phenomenal.  They are available on Google Books to anyone interested.   Also, I drew on the Forward to Volume I written by Will Bagley.  

On July 24, 1857, the Latter-day Saints learned – in the middle of the 10th Anniversary Celebration – that President Buchanan had ordered an Army to the Utah Territory.  Though they did not know what the Army's mission or the intent behind the expedition, they learned that the expedition was to be led by William Selby Harney – and the choice of Harney portended the very worst.  In his council, Brigham Young called for a vote on a rather shocking proposal.  He wrote in his journal, “It was carried unanimously that if Harney crossed the south pass the buzzards should pick his bones.” But who was General Harney?  Why was his appointment as commander so significant?  Why did it provoke such outrage and desperation from Brigham Young and other Church leaders?  We explore that and more on this episode of Adventures in Mormon History.     This episode discusses Harney's history in the Mexican American War, and his heroism during the Battle of Cerro Gordo, the eagerness with which he hanged the deserters and traitors of the Saint Patrick Battalion (or San Patricios), the ruthlessness he showed in the Ash Hollow Massacre, and the depravity with which he murdered the enslaved young woman, Hannah, in Saint Louis in 1835.  By 1857, "Squaw Killer Harney" had become infamous.  The Latter-day Saints reacted to word of his appointment with outrage and shock.  They assumed that, under Harney, they would fare no better than the Saint Patrick deserters in the Mexican War, or the Lakota Sioux at Ash Hollow.  They began making preparations for war.  This episode also includes a recorded rendition of the long-forgotten Latter-day Saint folk song, "Squaw Killer Harney is on the Way."  I realized that it would, in the long run, be less embarrassing to record the song myself than to get someone who could actually sing.  To learn more about the start of the Utah War, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  William MacKinnon, At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War (Vol. I and II) (2016).  MacKinnon's work on the Utah War is nothing short of phenomenal.  They are available on Google Books to anyone interested.   Also, I drew on the Forward to Volume I written by Will Bagley.  Wilford Hill Lecheminant, A Crisis Averted?  General Harney and the Change in Command of the Utah Expedition, 51 Utah Hist. Quarterly 1 (1983).Thomas E. Cheney, Mormon Songs From the Rocky Mountains: A Compilation of Mormon Folksong (1968).David L. Bigler, A Lion in the Path: Genesis of the Utah War, 1857-1858, 76 Utah Hist. Q. 1, 5 (Winter 2008), available at https://issuu.com/utah10/docs/uhq_volume76_2008_number1.In this episode: Brigham Young, George A. Smith, William Selby Harney, Asa Calkin, Jefferson Davis, P. T. G. Beauregard, Mexican American War, Bloody Kansas, Ash Hollow Massacre, Logan Reives, Saint Patrick Battalion, San Patricio Battalion, Battle of Cerro Gordo, Utah Expedition,  the Pig War of 1859.

The Utah War is one of the strangest footnotes in American History, and almost entirely forgotten.  But it was the largest military campaign the United States undertook between the Mexican War and the Civil War.  It took a third of the entire Army (and one lone, dogged Marine) and pitted them against the Latter-day Saint Nauvoo Legion, a force that, according to Historian Bill MacKinnon, was arguably the nation's largest and most experienced militia.  Ultimately, the conflict would destroy Buchanan's reputation and push the United States towards disunion and civil war.  On the other hand, it would forever change the Latter-day Saints, beginning a long and painful process to bring them and the Utah Territory under civil, secular authority.     But what caused the Utah War?  If you had to choose one single reason, it would be “misunderstanding.” This happened most spectacularly in January 1857, when the Utah Territorial Legislature (made up overwhelmingly of Latter-day Saints), began the new year by writing a Petition and Memorial to Congress in Washington D.C.  The request was for Utah to be admitted to the Union as a State.   This petition, however, read in the Capital like a series of wild-eyed threats.   Buchanan, two months later, would send the Army to Utah.Yet, nobody knew what the Army's mission was to be.  A crusade to slaughter the Mormons, with blood and sword and fire?  Or maybe a mere show of force -- a face-saving demonstration of the Administration's willingness to enforce federal law throughout its newly-acquired territories?  Or something in between?  And was its real purpose to distract the Nation from the slavery conflict raging in Kansas, as Robert Tyler advocated?  Or to dole out  lucrative government contracts and kickbacks, as General Winfield Scott alleged?  On this episode, we explore the (somewhat inscrutable) reasons that James Buchanan launched the campaign.  To learn more about the start of the Utah War, please check out these (excellent!) sources:  William MacKinnon, At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War (Vol. I and II) (2016).  MacKinnon's work on the Utah War is nothing short of phenomenal.  They are available on Google Books to anyone interested.   Also, I drew on the Forward to Volume I written by Will Bagley.  David L. Bigler, A Lion in the Path: Genesis of the Utah War, 1857-1858, 76 Utah Hist. Q. 1, 5 (Winter 2008), available at https://issuu.com/utah10/docs/uhq_volume76_2008_number1.   

In 1923, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – the famous author of Sherlock Holmes –  embarked on a worldwide speaking tour.  But this tour was not to sell books of his famous detective.  Instead, it was to win converts to spiritual,ism – the idea that through seances, knocking, and advances in photography, the living could commune with the dead.  With hundreds of millions grieving in the years following the First World War and the Spanish Flu, Sir Arthur felt that the world needed to hear his message, including the Latter-day Saints of the Salt Lake Valley.   When Sir Arthur Conan Doyle arrived in Salt Lake City, it was not exactly his first experience with the Latter-day Saints.  In 1887, he published the mystery, A Study in Scarlet – the first adventure of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson.  The intrepid Sherlock (using the "Science of Deduction") uncovers the horrors of murder, kidnapping, and forced marriages among the Latter-day Saints in the Salt Lake Valley.  Sir Arthur launched the career of his famous detective, as it were, by playing up the most wild stereotypes of the Latter-day Saints.  But his impression of the Latter-day Saints would undergo a profound transformation, and the author of "A Study in Scarlet," who imagined Mormon Women with faces that only showed "the traces of unextinguishable horror" would come to praise the "brave and earnest women" and the "rugged, hard-faced men" among the Latter-day Saint Pioneers.  To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out the following (excellent!) sources: Michael W. Homer, "Recent Psychic Evidence: The Visit of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to Utah in 1923," 52 Utah Historical Quarterly 3 (1984), available at https://issuu.com/utah10/docs/uhq_volume52_1984_number3/s/143282.  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet (1887)Drew Gilpin Faust, This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War (2008)."A. Conan Doyle to Lecture on Psychic Proofs," The Utah Chronicle (9 May 1923), p. 1."Spirit Proofs are Advanced," S. L. Trib. (12 May 1923), 1.  Key Terms: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes, Dr. John Watson, A Study in Scarlet, Brigham Young, Latter-day Saints, Polygamy, Utah Territory, Pioneer Museum, Amasa M. Lyman, John A. Widtsoe, Spiritualism, Seance, Ghosts, Spirits, Cenotaph, World War I, Spanish Flu, American Civil War. 

In February 1858, the United States Senate was debating a new bill from the House.  They knew that the Army, under the command of Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston, was on its way to Utah to put down the reported Mormon rebellion.  Now, James Buchanan was asking Congress to approve a second Army of regular troops to Utah.  While the Republic was quickly unraveling between the North and South, everyone seemed to agree that an Army – maybe two – would teach a salutary lesson to the Mormons, a lesson they would not soon forget. While the speeches proceeded, a lone Senator sat quickly whittling at his desk. He was dressed in a Cherokee Blanket and a Jaguar Pelt, and one observer described him as a “Magnificent Barbarian.”  The Senator was Sam Houston of Texas, the former governor of the Lone Star State and the victor of the Texas War of Independence.  And in February 1858, Sam Houston would take another brave and lonely stand, urging caution, restraint, and a respect for the rights of the nations' Latter-day Saints.  On today's episode, we remember Sam Houston in the Utah War.  We explore his unusual upbringing (as a runaway, he was adopted into the Cherokee Nation), his experience in the Texas War of Independence commanding the Army that defeated the much-larger Mexican Force, and his friendship with both Apostle George A. Smith and Seth M. Blair, who had fought alongside Houston as a Major in the Texas Rangers.  We discuss the different ways Houston tried to derail the Army Bill, and end with the jaw-dropping speech he gave on February 15, 1857--possibly inspired by the bloody aftermath of the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836 --  in which he warned his fellow Senators of what an all-out war against the Latter-day Saints would really look like.  For more on Sam Houston in the Utah War, please see this (excellent!) article by Michael Scott Van Wagenen, "Sam Houston and the Utah War," 76 Utah Historical Quarterly 1 (2008), available at https://issuu.com/utah10/docs/uhq_volume76_2008_number1/s/10214875.        

Of all the people to go down as villains in the history of the Latter-day Saints, perhaps none were as colorful as the infamous W. W. Drummond, Federal Judge of the Utah Territory in 1855.  Arriving with a flamboyant woman whom he introduced as Mrs. Ada Drummond, the Judge immediately set out to cut away at the legal foundations of the Latter-day Saint settlements up and down the Utah territory - their probate courts, their water claims, timber claims, grazing claims, and their right to incorporate cities at all.  In this episode, we will explore how Judge Drummond abandoned his post and made his way  to New Orleans, where he launched an all-out assault against the Latter-day Saints in the press, in lobbying Government officials, and angling to replace Brigham Young as Utah's Governor.  Church Agents George A. Smith, Thomas Kane, John Taylor and William Appleby - noted with alarm that Drummond was fast becoming one of the most popular men in the country, and public opinion was quickly turning against the Mormon People.  Thomas Kane then decided to conduct a gum-shoe investigation into Drummond's past.  Who was the flamboyant woman that accompanied the Judge everywhere he went?  Where did they meet?  Was she really his wife?  This investigation would take LDS Leaders into the seedy streets of Baltimore, where they would make contacts with the Madams of the city's numerous bordellos.  But it was one thing to find the truth, another thing to convince the public it was true, and yet another thing to get the public to care.  On today's episode, we conclude the colorful story of W.W. Drummond -- the Runaway Husband, Runaway Father, and Runaway Judge.  To learn more about the stories in and material in this podcast, please see these (excellent!) sources:Ronald W. Walker, "Proud as a Peacock and Ignorant as a Jackass: William W. Drummond's Unusual Career with the Mormons," 42 J. of Mormon Hist. 3, 1 (July 2016).  At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858, Vol I and II (ed. William MacKinnon), 2008.  *  On a personal note, William ("Bill") MacKinnon was kind enough to correspond with me while I was deployed to Afghanistan in 2019.  An Air Force Veteran himself, he very generously sent me copies of hitherto-unknown primary sources, topics of future interest, and thoughts on a wide array on early aspects and figures in Utah History.  His enormous body of scholarly work on the Utah War is simply incredible.   Key Terms:  William Drummond, Ada Carroll, "Skinny Ada," Brigham Young, John Taylor, John Burnhisel, Federal Judges, Utah Territory, Deseret, William "Wild Bill" Hickman, Levi Abrams, Cato, Posse, Native Tribes, Indian Wars, Jail, Writ, Habeas Corpus, 

Of all the people to go down as villains in the history of the Latter-day Saints, perhaps none were as colorful as the infamous W. W. Drummond, Federal Judge of the Utah Territory in 1855.  Arriving with a flamboyant woman whom he introduced as Mrs. Ada Drummond, the Judge immediately set out to cut away at the legal foundations of the Latter-day Saint settlements up and down the Utah territory - their probate courts, their water claims, timber claims, grazing claims, and their right to incorporate cities at all.  In this episode, we will explore how Judge Drummond earned the contempt of the Latter-day Saints in a number of ways, from his barely-veiled desperation to hang someone--anyone--to his flirting with and mutual teasing with Ada, who sat next to him on the bench (even during death penalty cases), to becoming the first judge to be himself arrested and thrown into jail for assault with intent to commit murder, and finally how--in his bumbling efforts to flex the power of the federal courts, he unintentionally sparked a war with the Native Tribes of Utah, resulting in 8 Latter-day Saints killed and the loss of 150 head of cattle.  To learn more about the stories in and material in this podcast, please see these (excellent!) sources:Ronald W. Walker, "Proud as a Peacock and Ignorant as a Jackass: William W. Drummond's Unusual Career with the Mormons," 42 J. of Mormon Hist. 3, 1 (July 2016).  At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858, Vol I and II (ed. William MacKinnon), 2008.  *  On a personal note, William ("Bill") MacKinnon was kind enough to correspond with me while I was deployed to Afghanistan in 2019.  An Air Force Veteran himself, he very generously sent me copies of hitherto-unknown primary sources, topics of future interest, and thoughts on a wide array on early aspects and figures in Utah History.  His enormous body of scholarly work on the Utah War is simply incredible.   Key Terms:  William Drummond, Ada Carroll, "Skinny Ada," Brigham Young, John Taylor, John Burnhisel, Federal Judges, Utah Territory, Deseret, William "Wild Bill" Hickman, Levi Abrams, Cato, Posse, Native Tribes, Indian Wars, Jail, Writ, Habeas Corpus, 

The 1830s were a time of great religious enthusiasm across the United States and saw scores of ladies take up the call to travel from place to place, preaching faith, repentance, and the coming of judgment.  Among these women was the New Hampshire-born Nancy Towle, who traveled across the United States and the British Isles.  A fiery preacher with a will of iron, she let anyone within earshot hear her message of repentance-- a message that could, at times, sound like harangues, brimstone, and torrents of abuse.  On today's episode, we explore:- Her 1818 call to join the small but determined band of female itinerant preachers;- Her 1829 mission to England and Ireland- Her arrest for obstructing the roads and disturbing the peace and the thrill at the prospect of being jailed "for Christ Jesus' sake" - Her sea voyage on a "floating hell," with a narrow escape from being thrown overboard by a "merciless, accursed crew"  - Her efforts to get into the infamous Newgate Prison and preach to the prisoners under sentence of death- Her observations of three young Englishmen hanged for forgery and housebreaking- Her prophesy against the English Nobility - Her confrontation with early Latter-day Saint Leaders Martin Harris, William W. Phelps, Sidney Rigdon, and Joseph Smith.  For more information on this episode, please check out the following sources: Nancy Towle, "Vicissitudes Illustrated, in the Experience of Nancy Towle, in Europe and America (1832).  Richard Bushman, "Joseph Smith - Rough Stone Rolling: A Cultural Biography of Mormonism's Founder" (2005).  Bailey, Judith Bledsoe, ""Faithful Child of God": Nancy Towle, 1796-1876" (2000). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects; Paper 1539626243.

From the fall of 1838 through the Spring of 1839, Joseph Smith and other Church Leaders were confined in the Liberty Jail.  They had several attorneys defending them, including Peter Burnett, a Missouri lawyer and--incidentally-- one of the Missouri militiamen who had marched against the Latter-day Saints at Far West.  In this episode, we discuss Peter Burnett's account of defending Joseph Smith.  Latter-day Saints are familiar with the harsh conditions of the Liberty Jail, but Burnett's account highlights an aspect of the experience that is less well-known: that Joseph and the other prisoners were in constant danger of being lynched by mobs, and they were particularly vulnerable during court hearings and while being moved to and from the jail.  Burnett's account highlights the heroism of Joseph's team of country lawyers, scratching out a living in a lawless frontier, and taking a stand for the rule of law against the murderous mob.We recount one pre-trial hearing where the prisoners and their attorneys were in imminent danger of being dragged out of the Liberty Courthouse and hanged.  Yet Burnett and Doniphan would not back down.  Burnett recounts how he drew his pistol and told his co-counsel, "Doniphan, let yourself out [i.e., give it all you've got], my good fellow.  I will kill the first man who attacks you."  And Doniphan proceeded to give the one of the most noble, withering arguments, growing bolder as the crowd grew more incensed.    He also describes the stream of curious visitors that came to the Davis County Jail to gawk at the famous Joseph Smith.  These visits led Joseph into theological debates and, memorably, a wrestling match against the best fighter of Davis County.  Burnett also leaves an incredible summation of his client's physical appearance, mannerisms, and character.  While Burnett had much criticism of Joseph's way of speaking, his lack of education, and his awkward way of expressing ideas, "with all these drawbacks," he wrote, "Joseph Smith was much more than an ordinary man."   For more information contained in this episode, please check out:   Peter Hardeman Burnett, Recollections and Opinions of an Old Pioneer (1880), available at https://www.loc.gov/item/01006673/  Search Terms:  Joseph Smith, Peter Burnett, Alexander Doniphan, Mormon War, Missouri Persecution, Clay County, Davis County, Liberty Jail, Lyman Wight, Sidney Rigdon, Samuel Lucas, court-martial,  lynch mobs, Country Lawyers

Latter-day Saints remember the conflict that has come to be known as the "The Mormon War” in Missouri in 1838.  Places like Haun's Mill, Far West, Clay County witnessed violent and savage persecutions against the newly organized Church, and Latter-day Saints have worked hard to preserve the stories and the voices of the saints who lived through them. But what was it like to muster into the Missouri militia and move against Far West?  On this episode, we will explore the Mormon War from the perspective of Peter Hardeman Burnett (1808 - 1895).  A farmer, a clerk, a lawyer and, eventually, a Soldier in the Missouri militia, Burnett describes what led to the conflict and relates his experience serving under Brigadier General Alexander Doniphan (1808-1887).   What may be surprising to modern readers, Burnett does not shy away from candidly describing a fact often left out of such memoirs-- Burnett and the men of his company were terrified of the Mormons.   Even so, Burnett was a believer in the rule of law.  In the critical moment when church leaders Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdeon and others were about to be tried by court-martial and executed, Burnett assured Doniphan that he and the men of Clay County would stand by him in opposing the court-martial, a plan Doniphan denounced as "cold-blooded murder."   To learn more about the materials in this episode, please check out:Peter Hardeman Burnett, Recollections and Opinions of an Old Pioneer (1880), available at https://www.loc.gov/item/01006673/ Search terms:  Peter Hardemen Burnett, Clay County, Mormon War, 1838, Lyman Wight, Missouri Frontier, David Patton, Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Battle of Crooked River, Alexander Doniphan, Samuel Lucas, Samuel Bogard, Davis County, Ray County, Frontier, Court-Martial.   

Latter-day Saints are familiar with the Joseph Smith's account of his First Vision in the year 1820.  Less well known, however, are the remarkable dreams of his father, Joseph Smith Senior.  In the years leading up to his son's first vision, Joseph Smith Senior had seven dreams in which, as he described, a messenger came to him, instructed him, and helped prepare him for what lie ahead.  On today's episode, we will explore Lucy Mac Smith's account of these dreams.  To learn more about the material in this episode, please check out the following sources: Lucy Mac Smith, History of Joseph Smith by His Mother (1853).Richard L. Bushman, Rough Stone Rolling: A Cultural Biography of Mormonism's Enigmatic Founder (2005). Mary Jane Woodger, Ken Alford, and Craig Manscill, "4 Prophetic and Beautiful Dreams from Joseph Smith's Parents," LDS Living (24 August 2019), available at https://www.ldsliving.com/4-prophetic-and-beautiful-dreams-from-joseph-smiths-parents/s/91423  

 This episode draws on the account of Utah and Latter-day Saint voices who did their best to convey what it was like to fight in the Great War.   In this episode, we cover the experience of Arthur Guy Empey, a Utah native and grandson of Latter-day Saint pioneers, who left an indelible firsthand account about the horrors of going "over the top."   Calvin Smith, the son of LDS Church President Joseph F. Smith (and grandson of Hyrum Smith) became known as "Utah's Fighting Chaplain" for his willingness to join his charges in going "over the top."  This episode draws on the experiences of Thomas Neibar (Idaho), Arthur Guy Empey (Utah) Calvin Smith (Utah), Joseph Ransom (Idaho), William Potts (Utah), and  Wilhelm Stoll (Germany), and Joseph Nielson (Utah).   To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out the following (excellent!) sources: Robert Freeman & Andrew Skinner, Saints at War: World War I (2018).James Perry, British Latter-day Saints in the Great War, 1914-1918, 44 J. of Mormon Hist. 70 (July 2018).Arthur Guy Empey, "Over the Top: by an American Soldier who Went" (1917).James L. Mangum, The Influence of the First World War on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU Thesus (23 Jan. 2007), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1839&context=etd.  G.J. Meyer, A World Undone: The Story of the Great War 1914-1918 (2006).Jeffrey L. Anderson, Mormons and Germany, 1914-1933: A History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of Hitler, BYU Thesis and Dissertation (1991), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5475&context=etd.   

Soldiers who were swept up in the First World War faced a shocking level of interpersonal violence.  How did LDS Soldiers deal with fear?  What was it like for them, living under the shadow of death, violence, and suffering?  And how did they deal with the troubling prospect that their duty as soldiers may require them to kill their fellow Latter-day Saints?   We will explore these questions and more on this episode of Latter-day Saints – Fighting in the Great War.  This episode draws on the experiences of Archibald Bennett (Alberta) Hugh B. Brown (Canada), Billy Sibley ( Canada ),  Leslie Bigelow (Canada); Alonso Stanton (Utah), George Balif (Utah); Sterling Russell  (Utah); Rosel Jensen (Utah), Chaplain Herbert Maw (Utah), Harold McKnight (UK),  Isaac Humphrey (UT); Wilhelm Stoll (Germany), Wilhelm Kessler (Germany); William Barth (Germany).  To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out the following (excellent!) sources: Robert Freeman & Andrew Skinner, Saints at War: World War I (2018).James Perry, British Latter-day Saints in the Great War, 1914-1918, 44 J. of Mormon Hist. 70 (July 2018).James L. Mangum, The Influence of the First World War on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU Thesus (23 Jan. 2007), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1839&context=etd.  G.J. Meyer, A World Undone: The Story of the Great War 1914-1918 (2006).Jeffrey L. Anderson, Mormons and Germany, 1914-1933: A History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of Hitler, BYU Thesis and Dissertation (1991), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5475&context=etd.  

This episode continues the story of Latter-day Saints in the Great War, 1914-1918.  Whether Americans, Germans, Canadians or British, Latter-day Saints either volunteered or were conscripted into their nation's Armed Forces.  Then began the long, grueling process of hammering the one-time citizens into Soldiers.This episode explores, from the first-hand accounts of US, UK, Canadian and German Latter-day Saints what it was like to train for war.   Key Words: J. Reuben Clark, Archibald Bennett, Hugh B. Brown, Ivan A. Farnsworth, Lester Hubbard,  Elmer Baddley, William Barth, Arthur Guy Empey.  To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out the following (excellent!) sources: Robert Freeman & Andrew Skinner, Saints at War: World War I (2018).James Perry, British Latter-day Saints in the Great War, 1914-1918, 44 J. of Mormon Hist. 70 (July 2018).James L. Mangum, The Influence of the First World War on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU Thesus (23 Jan. 2007), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1839&context=etd.  G.J. Meyer, A World Undone: The Story of the Great War 1914-1918 (2006).Jeffrey L. Anderson, Mormons and Germany, 1914-1933: A History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of Hitler, BYU Thesis and Dissertation (1991), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5475&context=etd. 

On June 28, 1914, Archduke of Austria-Hungary, Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were shot dead by a Serbian assassin.  At the time, nobody suspected that this murder had lit the fuse to a global conflagration, a cataclysm that would sweep up nations, empires, and peoples. Among those swept up in the First World War were the Latter-day Saints, whose members made up congregations throughout the United States, Canada, Britain, and Germany.  What was it like for Latter-day Saints in the Great War?  What was it like for the Soldiers of the belligerent nations to enlist, to train, to fight?  How did Latter-day Saints fare in the trenches?   What was it like for the Mormon people on the home front?  And for those who survived, how did they make sense of what they lived through?  We will explore that and more in this, our third season. This first episode discusses the causes of the Great War, the desire of Latter-day Saints to prove their loyalty to their countries, and early recruiting efforts in Alberta, Canada among Latter-day Saints, William Kessler's decision to enlist in the German Army and fight for the Kaiser, the early shows of support for Germany from the LDS German community in Salt Lake City.  To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out the following (excellent!) sources: Robert Freeman & Andrew Skinner, Saints at War: World War I (2018).James Perry, British Latter-day Saints in the Great War, 1914-1918, 44 J. of Mormon Hist. 70 (July 2018).James L. Mangum, The Influence of the First World War on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU Thesus (23 Jan. 2007), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1839&context=etd.  G.J. Meyer, A World Undone: The Story of the Great War 1914-1918 (2006).Jeffrey L. Anderson, Mormons and Germany, 1914-1933: A History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Germany and its Relationship With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of With the German Governments from World War I to the Rise of Hitler, BYU Thesis and Dissertation (1991), https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5475&context=etd. 

This episode concludes the story of the cascade of bizarre, unintended consequences coming from Abraham Lincoln's decision to appoint John Dawson as Governor of the Utah Territory in 1861, culminating with the discovery of a massive grave robbing operation within the Salt Lake City Cemetery, and - reportedly – a French Ghost haunting the Great Salt Lake.   Key Words:  Jean Baptiste, Grave Robbery, Ghosts, Haunting, Henry Heath, Albert Dewey, Moses Clawson, Moroni Clawson, George Clawson, Brigham Young, Abraham Lincoln,  John W. Dawson, Utah Territory, #MeToo in Pioneer Utah, Lot Huntington, John P. Smith, Utah War, Deseret News, Orrin Porter Rockwell, Danites.   To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out Harold Schindler, "The Disappearance of John Baptiste: Grave-Robber's Case is a Lost Page of History", S. L. Trib. (Aug. 27, 1995) at J-1.

In 1861, Abraham Lincoln appointed John W. Dawson as the third Territorial Governor of Utah.  Lincoln's decision would lead to a cascade of bizarre, unintended consequences – from Utah's first #MeToo episode involving a governor, to yet another gunfight involving Porter Rockwell, to the discovery of a massive grave robbing operation within Salt Lake City, and - reportedly – a French Ghost haunting the Great Salt Lake.  On today's episode, we will explore the Governor, the Gunfight, and the Ghost of the Great Salt Lake [Part 1].Key Words:  Brigham Young, Abraham Lincoln, Albina Williams, Thomas S. Williams, John W. Dawson, Utah Territory, John M. Bernheisal, #MeToo in Pioneer Utah, Wood Reynolds, Moroni Clawson, Jason Luce, Lot Huntington, John P. Smith, Utah War, Deseret News, Orrin Porter Rockwell, Danites.   To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out Special thanks to the History Archives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for making the primary sources available!  You can find the letter of John M. Bernheisal describing his conversation with Abraham Lincoln here:  Brigham Young office files, 1832-1878 (bulk 1844-1877) > Utah Delegate Files, 1849-1872 > John M. Bernhisel to Brigham Young, 1849- 1866 > 1862 January-March; Call Number CR 1234 1 .You can find the affidavit of Albina Williams here: Brigham Young office files, 1832-1878 (bulk 1844-1877) > Federal and Local Government Files, 1844-1876; Call Number CR 1234 1 .See also the Deseret News , "Departure of the Governor," Deseret News (Jan. 1, 1861).  For more information on the beating of Governor Dawson, check out Salt Lake City Archives, "I Found it in the Archives - 1861 Criminal Case" (Oct. 3, 2012), available at https://slcoarchives.wordpress.com/tag/john-w-dawson/. Harold Schindler, In Another Time: Sketches of Utah History 81-82 (1998).

In 1861, Abraham Lincoln appointed John W. Dawson as the third Territorial Governor of Utah.  Lincoln's decision would lead to a cascade of bizarre, unintended consequences – from Utah's first #MeToo episode involving a governor, to yet another gunfight involving Porter Rockwell, to the discovery of a massive grave robbing operation within Salt Lake City, and - reportedly – a French Ghost haunting the Great Salt Lake.  On today's episode, we will explore the Governor, the Gunfight, and the Ghost of the Great Salt Lake [Part 1].Key Words:  Brigham Young, Abraham Lincoln, Albina Williams, Thomas S. Williams, John W. Dawson, Utah Territory, John M. Bernheisal, #MeToo in Pioneer Utah, Wood Reynolds, Moroni Clawson, Jason Luce, Lot Huntington, John P. Smith, Utah War, Deseret News, Orrin Porter Rockwell, Danites.   To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out Special thanks to the History Archives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for making the primary sources available!  You can find the letter of John M. Bernheisal describing his conversation with Abraham Lincoln here:  Brigham Young office files, 1832-1878 (bulk 1844-1877) > Utah Delegate Files, 1849-1872 > John M. Bernhisel to Brigham Young, 1849- 1866 > 1862 January-March; Call Number CR 1234 1 .You can find the affidavit of Albina Williams here: Brigham Young office files, 1832-1878 (bulk 1844-1877) > Federal and Local Government Files, 1844-1876; Call Number CR 1234 1 .See also the Deseret News , "Departure of the Governor," Deseret News (Jan. 1, 1861).  For more information on the beating of Governor Dawson, check out Salt Lake City Archives, "I Found it in the Archives - 1861 Criminal Case" (Oct. 3, 2012), available at https://slcoarchives.wordpress.com/tag/john-w-dawson/. Harold Schindler, In Another Time: Sketches of Utah History 81-82 (1998).  

In 1861, a Missourian named Orion Clemmons became Secretary to James Nye, Governor of the Nevada Territory.  He traveled by stagecoach, passing through the 14-year old Great Salt Lake City and the Mormon settlements.  He brought along his younger brother, 25-year old Sam Clemmons.  Sam would later become famous, writing under the pen name Mark Twain.  In his 1872 book "Roughing It," Mark Twain gives an account of what it was like to pass through Salt Lake City, including his observations about issues such as polygamy, the literary merits of the Book of Mormon, and how much better the Beehive crest was to the crest of his home state -- the two drunken "dissolute [grizzly] bears" who, for some reason, were depicted precariously balancing an empty whiskey cask  between their paws.  It culminates with the brief meeting Mark Twain had with Brigham Young.To learn more about the information in this episode, Mark Twain's book, "Roughing It" is available free on Google Play.    Key words:  Mark Twain, Brigham Young, Polygamy, The Book of Mormon, Utah, and drunken, dissolute Missouri grizzly  bears.  CORRECTION:  In this episode, I said Brigham Young was the Governor of the Utah Territory.  At the time he met Mark Twain, he was the Former Governor, as he left office in 1858.  

This episode concludes the story of "The Man Who Shot Frank Worrell."On September 16th, 1844, Frank Worrell was a man on a mission.  Flanked by a group of friends, Worrell  galloped out of Carthage, Illinois on the main road to Nauvoo.   Worrell had enough of the Jack Mormon Backenstos (the term meant a person friendly towards the Mormons though not a Mormon himself).  Worrell believed that, if they were ever going to drive the Mormon people from Illinois, Backenstos had to die.  Worrell's mission?  Chase down the sheriff and shoot him dead before he could reach the safety Nauvoo.  On this episode, we discuss the increase of mob violence against non-Mormons who the Anti-Mormons (such as Worrell) viewed as too closely aligned with the Mormon cause.  This began with the assault on Sheriff Minor Deming, who ultimately shot and killed his attacker, Samuel Marshall, on the steps of the Carthage Courthouse.  Deming resigned as sheriff pending his trial, and Jacob Backenstos won election as the Sheriff of Hancock County.  But Backenstos would find himself riding for his life to escape a possee, led by Frank Worrell.  As luck would have it, this 2-mile chase led them both to a small group of Mormon refugees, under the escort of Porter Rockwell.    To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).   

On September 16th, 1844, Frank Worrell was a man on a mission.  Flanked by a group of friends, Worrell  galloped out of Carthage, Illinois on the main road to Nauvoo.   Worrell had enough of the Jack Mormon Backenstos (the term meant a person friendly towards the Mormons though not a Mormon himself).  Worrell believed that, if they were ever going to drive the Mormon people from Illinois, Backenstos had to die.  Worrell's mission?  Chase down the sheriff and shoot him dead before he could reach the safety Nauvoo.  On this episode, we discuss Worrell's background as the commander of the Carthage Greys, the guard force at the Carthage Jail.  We explain Worrell's complicity in the murder and the later cover-up at the trial of the alleged killers.  Then, we review the spree of anti-Mormon burnings that started in September 1845 from the perspective of William Draper, one of the victims of the mob violence. To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).   Key words: Porter Rockwell, Frank Worrell, Mormons, Latter-day Saints, Levi Williams, Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, mobs, Carthage, Warsaw, Nauvoo.

Over the years, many people have commented on the last words of Joseph Smith.  But Hyrum's last words have received little attention.  His final words - "I am a dead man" - would have been significant to Americans in the nineteenth century, Americans who valued the Christian art of dying well.  This concept of the “good death” had long been a core of Christian practice.  Dying was an art and the tradition of ars moriendi had specific rules going back to at least the 15th Century.   On this episode, we'll explore what it meant to die well, especially when death came by violence, leaving no time for the traditions of final words and admonishments.  To learn more about what dying well meant to 19th Century Americans, please check out Drew Gilpin Faust, "This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War (2008).

In his roles as both Church leader and Governor of the Utah Territory, Brigham Young received thousands of letters, and it was not uncommon for him to receive anonymous letters.   Some of these were intended to convey friendly advice or warnings, some were death threats, and some pleaded with him to shut down offensive plays  in Salt Lake City.   In these letters, we get a surprising glimpse into life in Pioneer Utah.   Thank you to the Church History Library for making these letters available!  To learn more about the material in this episode, please visit https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/section/library?lang=eng.  This wraps up Season 1 in Adventures in Mormon History.  Thank you to everyone who has been a part of it!  If you would like us to produce more episodes, please review our podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and let us know in the comments that you would like to see a second season.  Thank you so much! 

This concludes our three-part series on the trial of the accused killers of Joseph and Hyrum Smith.Josiah Lamborn, the prosecutor, was in trouble.  After several days of testimony, none of the witnesses were able -- or willing -- to incriminate any of the five defendants.  Lamborn then called his three star witnesses - William Daniels, Benjamin Brackenbury, and Eliza Jane Graham.  The episode gives an overview of their testimonies, the closing arguments, and the ultimate result.  It then discusses what happened to the people involved with the trial later in their lives.  While some would come to ruin, most of them lived long, prosperous lives.  To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out: Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).

Illinois in 1844 was a dangerous, violent place -- but it was not without law, and the law had its champions.  After Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered in the Carthage Jail on June 27th, Governor Thomas Ford set out on a yearlong crusade (often without allies and wading through considerable political opposition) to bring the killers to justice.  Struggling to find a prosecutor willing to take the case, he finally found an ally in the mercurial, hard-drinking Josiah Lamborn.      This episode covers the first half of the trial -- Lamborn's struggle to get useful evidence from reluctant witnesses.  We discuss how some witnesses were openly hostile, using their testimony to denounce Mormons (one, John Williams, testified that Mormons were "hellhounds" and should all be "exterminated.").  Finally, in desperation, Lamborn called Frank Worrell to the stand, a committed anti-Mormon as any in Hancock County.  We explore that and more on this second episode on the trial of the Carthage killers.To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out:  Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).        

Illinois in 1844 was a dangerous, violent place -- but it was not without law, and the law had its champions.  After Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered in the Carthage Jail on June 27th, Governor Thomas Ford set out on a yearlong crusade (often without allies and wading through considerable political opposition) to bring the killers to justice.  Struggling to find a prosecutor willing to take the case, he finally found an ally in the mercurial, hard-drinking Josiah Lamborn.      But who were the accused killers?  And what were their motives behind the desperate act of daylight murder?  We explore that and more on this first of a three-part series on the trial of the Carthage killers.To learn more about the information in this episode, please check out:  Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).        

Amy B. Loader was one of the survivors of the Martin Handcart Company in 1856.  Too weak to wade across the freezing water, she was carried by one of the rescue party members (probably David P. Kimball).  She was deeply moved by his heroic act of sacrifice, and told him so.  His response, through chattering teeth, was a short burst of profanity that shocked the pious Amy.  It was his way of saying, "You're welcome."   This episode recounts the Martin Handcart Company's final crossing of the Sweetwater River, November 4, 1856,  To learn more about the material in this episode, check out the following resources:Howard A. Christy, "Weather, Disaster and Responsibility: An Essay on the Willie and Martin Handcart Story," 37 BYU Studies 1, 7 (1997-98).Leonard Arrington & Rebecca Bartholomew, Rescue of the 1856 Handcart Companies (1981).Chad M. Orton, The Martin Handcart Company at the Sweetwater: Another Look, 45 BYU Studies Quarterly 1 (2006).David Roberts, Devil's Gate: Brigham Young and the Great Mormon Handcart Tragedy (2008).   

In July 1844, just 10 days after the murder of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Dr. Robert D. Foster came back to Nauvoo, ready to start up in business again.  Foster had been a leading critic of Joseph Smith, and had been instrumental in getting the Smiths locked up in the Carthage Jail (and, it was suspected, of conspiring in the murder).  While many people in Nauvoo were outraged at his brazen return, he defied any man in the city to make him leave.  But Foster forgot an important aspect of life in Nauvoo -- You don't mess with the sisters.  To learn more about the stories in this episode, please check out:Andrew H. Hedges,  Joseph Smith, Robert Foster, and Chauncey and Francis Higbee, 18 Rel. Edu. 89 (2017), available at https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/3753/.  The Journals of William Clayton (ed. George D. Smith) (1995).James B. Allen, No Toil Nor Labor Fear: The Story of William Clayton (2002).Dallin H. Oaks & Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (1979).Deseret News (24 June 1857), re-printing John Taylor's 1844 editorial in the Nauvoo Neighbor railing against mob violence and the attack on Chisolm, a Black resident of the City.  

The second in our two-part series about the incredible life of Jacob Hamblin, this episode covers:1) Jacob's first mission to the Navajo Nation in southern Utah in 1854  (and how he got peer-pressured into fighting for a bride); 2) His near-death experience after falling 30 feet while cutting wood in the summer of 1858; 3) Leading the first Mormon expedition to the Hopi Tribe of southeastern Utah; 4) His attempt to lead another expedition to Oraibi which culminated in a deadly struggle with a party of Navajo warriors; and5) How in February of 1862, Jacob woke up to a flashflood wiping his town (Santa Clara) off the map.To learn more about Jacob Hamblin and the material here, please see Todd M. Compton, In and Through the Roughest Country it has Ever Been My Lot to Travel: Jacob Hamblin's 1858 Expedition Across the Colorado, Utah Historical Quarterly (Winter 2012, Volume 80).

Shortly after he arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, First Lieutenant Jacob Hamblin led Mormon Soldiers against the Native American Tribes near Skull Valley.  His orders were straightforward and grim -- find the Native American raiding parties, chase them down, and kill them all.  But following a series of experiences that he believed were divine guidance to him, Jacob  Hamblin-- far from destroying them -- became the single greatest friend to the Native peoples of Utah.  Time and again, he brokered peace between the Native Tribes, the Mormon pioneers, and Americans heading west.  In this first of a two-part series, we will cover the incredible life of Jacob Hamblin.    To learn more about the stories in this episode, you can check out:James Little, "Jacob Hamblin: A Narrative of His Personal Experience as a Frontiersman, Missionary to the Indians, and Explorer" (1909).Howard A. Christy, "Open Palm and Mailed Fist: Mormon-Indian Relations in Utah, 1847-1852 (Utah Historical Quarterly, Vol. 46: 3 (1978), available at https://collections.lib.utah.edu/details?id=422592.  

On Independence Day, 1839, Parley P. Pratt was a prisoner of the State of Missouri.  Along with other early leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he had been arrested for his actions during the Missouri-Mormon War of 1838 (in Parley's case, the charge was murder).  Convinced he would not get a fair trial, he and his fellow prisoners decided to risk everything on a high-risk jailbreak . . . in the middle of the town's 4th of July Celebration.  This episode explores what it was like to be a locked up in Missouri in the 1830s, the way the guards mistreated both their prisoners and Black women of the town, and how Parley and the others carefully concealed their preparations (and then, in their excitement, almost gave it all away).  Finally, how Parley's fellow prisoner -- Morris Phelps -- tried to evade capture by a posse by pretending to be a "true breed" or "Old Kentucky."  Finally, it ends with the bravest member of the jailbreak team-- Mrs. Laura Phelps.     To learn more about the story, you can check out The Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt (first published in 1873).   To see court records, affidavits and other original sources for the Mormon War of 1838, you can visit the Missouri State Archives Mormon War Digital Collection, available at https://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/resources/mormon.asp.