Mountain Meadows massacre

The most tragic and disturbing event in Mormon history took place on 11 September, 1857, when approximately 120 men, women and children, travelling through Utah to California were massacred by a force consisting of Mormons and Southern Paiute Indians. The Mountain Meadow Massacre, as it is known, has remained a topic of interest and controversy as Latter-day Saints and historians struggle to understand this event, and the Church's detractors seek to exploit it for polemical purposes.

Setting the stage

(Will briefly discuss the settlement of Utah.) On July 24th, 1847, the first party of Mormon pioneers entered the Salt Lake valley. Over the next two years, the bulk of the Church members who had been driven from Nauvoo, Ill. reached the valley. Great Salt Lake City was built, and under Brigham Young's direction, satellite settlements were established north, south and west of the city. The sites for these settlements were often chosen because of proximity to an important natural resource; one such resource was the iron ore deposits found in Iron County.

At the time of its first settlement, the region still belonged to Mexico, but was ceded to the United States in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, following the Mexican-American War. The Mormon Battalion, a volunteer force raised to fight in that war, marched to the Pacific coast and some of its members were involved in the discovery of gold in California.

(Will briefly discuss the Utah War.)

(Will briefly discuss overland travel conditions in the West in the 1850's.)

The main participants

(Introduce Lee, Klingensmith, Haight and Dame, and set out the composition of the Fancher party.)

The massacre

(The battle, the surrender, the murders.)

The aftermath: investigations and trial

(Look at official inaction, the eventual trial and execution of Lee.)

Polemical accounts

(Look at accusations that Brigham Young ordered the massacre, and other attempts to explain the massacre in terms of Mormon doctrine and culture. Examime claims that the Indian participants were white Mormons in fancy dress. Look into the "cover-up" allegations.)