Early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often called Mormons, endured severe hardships including violent attacks, forced displacement, and extreme poverty in the 19th century. The persecution arose from religious and cultural differences, economic competition, and fears over their political influence.
Mob violence and forced removal
- Tarring and feathering: Even in the church's early days, leaders faced mob violence. In Ohio in 1832, a mob dragged Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon from their beds, beat them, and tarred and feathered them.
- Jackson County expulsion (Missouri): Tensions in Jackson County, Missouri, culminated in mob attacks in 1833. Mobs destroyed a Mormon newspaper press, ransacked homes, and whipped and intimidated early Latter-day Saint leaders. Mormons were ultimately forced to flee the county and seek refuge across the Missouri River, leaving their property behind.
- The Mormon War (Missouri): After settling in new Missouri counties, disputes over land and political control led to the 1838 Mormon War. Non-Mormons formed vigilante groups, and Mormon paramilitary groups, including a short-lived group called the Danites, formed in retaliation. This cycle of violence was followed by one of the most tragic events for early Mormons.
- Haun's Mill Massacre: On October 30, 1838, a Missouri militia attacked a Mormon settlement at Haun's Mill, resulting in the slaughter of 17 Mormon men and boys. The victims were shot and their bodies were thrown into an unfinished well. This happened just days after Missouri's governor issued the "Extermination Order".
Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith
Following the violence in Missouri, Mormons fled to Illinois and founded the city of Nauvoo. Peace was temporary, however, and tensions continued to escalate.
- Mob attack in Carthage: In 1844, following increased friction with their neighbors, Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were arrested and held in a jail in Carthage, Illinois.
- Murder in jail: On June 27, 1844, a mob stormed the jail and murdered Joseph and Hyrum Smith. Their deaths convinced many Latter-day Saints that they would never find peace in the United States.
The Mormon Exodus
Driven out of Illinois, the Latter-day Saints undertook a massive migration westward.
- Nauvoo expulsion: Mobs drove the remaining Saints out of Nauvoo in 1846, forcing them to cross the Mississippi River into Iowa.
- Winter camps: The exodus began in the dead of winter, and thousands of Latter-day Saints were forced to live in temporary camps in Iowa and Nebraska. Due to a lack of shelter and food and the freezing conditions, an estimated one in twelve Saints died during the first year.
- Handcart tragedies: In the mid-1850s, several groups of Mormon emigrants from Europe traversed the plains using handcarts. Two companies, the Willie and Martin companies, were caught in early winter storms in Wyoming, resulting in hundreds of deaths from exposure and starvation.
Hardships in Utah
Even after settling in the desolate Utah Territory in 1847, the early Mormons faced ongoing hardships.
- Plague of crickets: The pioneers struggled to make the desert land productive. In 1848, an invasion of crickets threatened their crops, but a flock of seagulls arrived and consumed the insects in what many called a miracle.
- Mountain Meadows Massacre: In one of the most violent episodes involving early Mormons, a group of Latter-day Saints, allied with some American Indians, attacked and massacred a wagon train of emigrants in 1857. More than 100 people were killed, including women and children, in a gruesome attack that shocked the nation. The perpetrators later attempted to cover up their crime by blaming it entirely on the Paiute Indians.
- Conflicts with the federal government: The Utah War began in 1857 after U.S. President James Buchanan sent troops to Utah to put down a rumored Mormon rebellion. Though large-scale fighting was avoided, the conflict created an environment of heightened tension and suspicion.
They were also slaughtered by indians, hit hard by weather, diseases, and lack of food and water.
Quick dumbed down version of early mormons And some of the things they went through.