American West 3 - THE MORMONS

Another group of people to cross the Plains were the Mormons
1. The faith was started by Joseph Smith, who claimed to have seen a vision of an angel
  1. He claimed the angel told him to find some engraved gold plates hidden on a hillside. Smith found these plates and translated them; the translations were published in the Book of Mormon in 1830
    1. The Book of Mormon told how Jesus had visited America after the Resurrection, and also how the lost tribes of Israel had come to America, from which the Indians were descended
religious beliefs of the Mormons
1. practised polygamy – where a Mormon mad could marry more than one wife
  1. Thought there were Gods chosen people and were therefore superior to the non-Mormons
    1. They believed in racial equality – they treated black people and Indians as equals
      1. They were against drinking and gambling. 
        They believed that they had to make God’s kingdom on earth
2. The Mormons were often persecuted for their religion
  1. The non-Mormons thought polygamy was immoral and were worried it’d lead to more Mormons
    1. Their efforts to convert people raised fears of expansion and annoyed gentiles
      1. Some Mormons (the Danites) attacked and robbed gentiles
        Claims to be the chosen ones of God made the Mormons seem arrogant
        People were afraid of the large and growing numbers of the Mormons, they feared them taking over
Why did the Mormons have to keep moving in the east?
1. Kirtland, Ohio
  1. The Mormons were hardworking and successful. They founded a bank in Kirtland. Many non-Mormons invested in the bank for religious reasons
  2. In a financial crisis the bank went bankrupt and everyone lost the money they had invested. The Mormons were blamed and driven out of Kirtland. Joseph Smith was tarred and feathered by locals
2. Missouri
  1. The Mormons were mixing with blacks and encouraging them to join the church on an equal basis
  2. The gentiles were jealous of their hard work and thought they were superior. They feared they would be swamped by growing numbers of the Mormons and they would take over the government
  3. The government issued an extermination order.
3. Nauvoo, Illinois
  1. The Mormons rebuilt the town of Commerce and called it Nauvoo, the town grew rapidly
  2. They gained a charter, which enabled them to run Nauvoo as an independent state
  3. Joseph Smith said he had a revelation from God and he introduced polygamy in 1844. Non-Mormons thought polygamy was wrong and feared Mormon overpopulation.
  4. Some Mormons thought polygamy was wrong too, and they criticised Smith in a Mormon newspaper
  5. He replied by destroying the printing presses of the newspaper, making him look like a dictator
  6. Smith also announced his intention to stand for president of the United States
  7. Joseph Smith was thrown into jail and killed when an angry mob attacked him
Remembering the movements of the Mormons
1. Kirtland Kind Missouri Monsters Nauvoo Never Salt Lake City Scare Lively Children
Brigham Young and deciding to go west
1. After the death of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young (new Mormon leader) had to decide what to do next
2. Knew they could live in the east and thought that they needed somewhere isolated to live
3. Brigham Young knew about the Oregon Trail and that the most isolated area in the west was by the Great Salt Lake. This part of the Rockies also still belonged to Mexico, so if the Mormons moved there they would be outside the control of the US government
4. In 1845 Brigham Young decided that the Mormons would leave Nauvoo and go west across the Plains
Mormon journey west across the Great Plains
1. Brigham Young was a brilliant organiser. He was practical and more down-to-earth than Smith. He was also a determined man and very considerate too
  1. Preparations went on all winter. This included the building of wagons, collecting of equipment and gathering food supplies
    1. Pioneer bands left first to set up camps along the way. They planted crops and marked out the routes for the rest of the Mormons to follow
      1. The rest of the Mormons had to begin their journey before they were properly prepared because mobs began looting their homes
        Each group of was split into 10 wagon groups, each with a leader to keep them in line
        Everybody stopped, ate and slept at the same time. Bugles were sounded so people knew what to do.
        They built Winter Quarters where the Mormons would spend the winter
Problems faced when the Mormons arrived at the Great Salt Lake
1. The Mormons had to develop irrigation schemes, using snow water from the mountains
  1. There was a lack of building materials, so the Mormons had to make houses from mud bricks
    1. There were not enough people for community to be self-sufficient – so Young called Mormons from all over the world to come to the Salt Lake. As a result, many Mormons migrated to Salt Lake City
      1. There was no private ownership of land. The Church assigned farm land according to people’s needs
Reaching a political settlement with the US government
1. In 1848 Salt Lake Valley was handed over by Mexico and became Utah, a territory of the USA. It had no access to the sea and no independence, but Brigham Young became governor
  1. The Mormons ignored US laws. The Danites suppressed opposition and attacked US officials
    1. In 1857 the US appointed a non-Mormon governor, who arrived with 2500 US troops.
      1. Later that year 140 non-Mormon settlers were massacred at Mountain Meadows.
        The Mormons blamed the Indians, but others suspected the Mormons.
        The modern Mormon Church believes that local Mormons carried out the attack without Brigham Young’s knowledge
  2. Utah wasn’t allowed to become a state while it still practised polygamy. Young died in 1866 and the Mormons finally abandoned the practise in 1890. Utah was made a state in 1896.
Who contributed more to the success of the Mormons
1. Brigham Young
  1. Made decision and organised the journey west
  2. Organised the community at the Great Salt Lake
  3. Encouraged converts from Europe
  4. Although…  Acted like a dictator, his word was law in the Great Salt Lake
2. Joseph Smith
  1. Founded the Mormon Church 
  2. Charismatic personality attracted new Mormons
  3.  Organised the movements in the East
  4. Although…  Polygamy made the Mormons unpopular  Running for US president increased gentile fear  Acted like a dictator when he destroyed the printing presses of a Mormon newspaper

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