Mormon War (1838)

Mormon War (1838), also known as the Missouri Mormon War, was an armed conflict between members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other settlers in northwestern Missouri. The violence culminated in the issuance of Missouri Executive Order 44, an extermination order by Governor Lilburn Boggs, and the forced expulsion of thousands of Latter-day Saints from the state. The war marked a pivotal and tragic chapter in the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement and the American frontier.

Background and causes

Tensions between Latter-day Saint settlers and earlier Missouri residents had been escalating since the Saints began gathering in Jackson County, Missouri in the early 1830s, leading to their violent expulsion in 1833. After relocating to Clay County and then being pushed further north, the Missouri legislature created Caldwell County in 1836 as a designated settlement area for the Saints. However, rapid Mormon immigration, their bloc voting, and their perceived economic and political cohesion, fueled by teachings like the United Order, alarmed their neighbors. Anti-Mormon sentiment was further inflamed by public sermons from leaders like Sidney Rigdon, who in July 1838 gave the militant "Salt Sermon" and helped form a paramilitary group known as the Danites. Disputes over property and elections in adjacent Davies County finally ignited open hostilities in August 1838.

Course of the conflict

The conflict began with a brawl during a local election in Gallatin on August 6, 1838. In response, the Danites and other Mormons, under leaders like Lyman Wight, conducted raids to intimidate opponents and reclaim property. The Missouri militia was mobilized, and a series of skirmishes occurred, including the Battle of Crooked River on October 25, where a state militia captain was killed. This engagement, exaggerated in reports to Governor Lilburn Boggs, prompted the infamous Missouri Executive Order 44 on October 27, which stated Mormons must be "exterminated or driven from the state." State militia forces, including units under General Samuel D. Lucas, then besieged the Mormon settlement at Far West. Outnumbered and outgunned, Mormon leaders including Joseph Smith surrendered on November 1, 1838.

Haun's Mill massacre

The most notorious atrocity of the war occurred on October 30, 1838, at Haun's Mill, a small Mormon settlement in Caldwell County. A mounted militia unit from Livingston County, ignoring a plea for peace, attacked the settlement without warning. They killed approximately 17 Mormon men and boys, shooting some who attempted to surrender or hide in a blacksmith shop. The massacre, which occurred just days after Governor Boggs's extermination order, exemplified the extreme violence and fear that characterized the conflict.

Aftermath and consequences

Following the surrender at Far West, Joseph Smith and other leaders were imprisoned in Liberty Jail, facing charges of treason. Under pressure from state officials like General John B. Clark, the remaining Latter-day Saints agreed to forfeit property and leave Missouri. This began a harsh winter exodus, with thousands of refugees crossing the Mississippi River into Illinois, where they established Nauvoo. The conflict resulted in the deaths of at least 22 Mormons and one non-Mormon, and the loss of virtually all Mormon-owned property in Missouri. The events solidified a deep sense of persecution within the Latter-day Saint community.

Legacy and historical assessment

The Mormon War (1838) remains a significant event in studies of American religious violence and frontier history. The Missouri Executive Order 44 was not formally rescinded until 1976 by Governor Kit Bond. The war directly led to the Mormon migration to Nauvoo and influenced subsequent conflicts, including the Illinois Mormon War and the assassination of Joseph Smith. Historians debate the roles of Mormon militancy, Missouri mobocracy, and governmental failure, with the conflict often seen as a tragic collision of two incompatible communities on the expanding American frontier.

Category:1838 in the United States Category:History of Missouri Category:Mormon–Missouri conflict Category:Religious wars in the United States