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100-697: Freighting sugar to the Utah Territory from the Missouri River Valley cost between forty cents and one dollar per pound, so the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was interested in the sugar beet industry since 1850 as a cash crop for the Mormon settlers. The First Presidency of the Church even issued a statement in September 1850, calculating the amount of sugar necessary in

200-599: A committee of the church-owned ZCMI reporting such a venture would be a bad idea. By 1889, Arthur Stayner and Elias Morris were able to win over Wilford Woodruff to the idea growing and processing sugar beets, leading to a new enterprise, the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company . Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when

300-517: A direct confrontation with the federal government. On August 29, Brigham Young instructed Daniel H. Wells to draft a second proclamation of martial law." On September 15, the day after Van Vliet left Salt Lake City, Young publicly declared martial law in Utah with a document almost identical to that printed in early August. This second proclamation received wide circulation throughout the Territory and

400-573: A few were down-right reprobates. On the other hand, the Mormons had no patience for the federal domination entailed by territorial status and often showed defiance toward the representatives of the federal government. In addition, the Saints sincerely declared their loyalty to the United States and celebrated the Fourth of July every year with unabashed patriotism, but they were undisguisedly critical of

500-526: A group of local Mormon militia. The Mormon militia responsible for the massacre first claimed that the migrants were killed by Natives but it was proven otherwise. This event was later called the Mountain Meadows Massacre , and the motives behind the incident remain unclear. The Aiken Massacre took place the following month. In October 1857, Mormons arrested six Californians traveling through Utah and charged them with being spies for

600-570: A large body of troops. Van Vliet continued on to Washington, D.C., in company with Dr. John M. Bernhisel , Utah Territory's delegate to Congress. There, Van Vliet reported on the situation in the west and became an advocate for the Latter-day Saints and the end of the Utah War. As early as August 5, Young had decided to declare martial law throughout the Territory, and a document was printed to that effect. However, historians question

700-775: A large portion of the eastern area of the Utah Territory to be separated and added to as part of the newly created adjacent Colorado Territory further east. In 1869 , the territory's legislature (the Territorial Assembly) approved and ratified women's suffrage . This allowed women to vote in all future territorial elections continuing to 1896 with statehood (although both male and female residents in American territories had no voice or vote in Federal elections back East). A total of 46 years elapsed between

800-477: A new territorial capitol building for the government and its assembly and governor's offices for the next four decades and which also continued as the new state capital after statehood in 1896. A massive monumental Utah State Capitol building with landmark dome was later constructed there on the scenic ridge overlooking from the slopes of the surrounding Wasatch Range mountains to the present. During Brigham Young's governorship, he exerted considerable power over

900-624: A paramilitary organization called the Danites . The Danites were formed by a group of Mormons in Missouri in 1838. Most scholars believe that following the end of the Mormon War in the winter of 1838, the unit was partially disbanded. These factors contributed to the popular belief that Mormons "were oppressed by a religious tyranny and kept in submission only by some terroristic arm of the Church ... [However] no Danite band could have restrained

1000-468: A pardon granted to the Mormon settlers for any potential acts of rebellion. This settlement significantly reduced the tensions and allowed for the re-establishment of federal authority over the territory while largely preserving Mormon interests and autonomy. In 1857–1858, President James Buchanan sent U.S. forces to the Utah Territory in what became known as the Utah Expedition. Members of

1100-589: A reconnaissance unit were sent east from Salt Lake City with orders to observe the oncoming American regiments and protect LDS emigrants traveling on the Mormon trail . On July 18, 1857, U.S. Army Captain Stewart Van Vliet , an assistant quartermaster, and a small escort were ordered to proceed directly from Kansas to Salt Lake City, ahead of the main body of troops. Van Vliet carried a letter to Young from General Harney ordering Young to make arrangements for

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1200-427: The 1890 United States census , 25 counties in the Utah Territory reported the following population counts (after seven reported the following counts in the 1850 United States census ): 39°50′N 113°30′W  /  39.833°N 113.500°W  / 39.833; -113.500 Utah War Inconclusive Utah War Peace Commission United States Army The Utah War (1857–1858), also known as

1300-481: The 2nd Dragoons , was kept in Kansas for the same reason. Because of Harney's unavailability, Col. Edmund Alexander was charged with the first detachment of troops headed for Utah. However, the overall command was assigned to Col. Albert Sidney Johnston , who did not leave Kansas until much later. As it was, July was already far into the campaigning season, and the army and their supply train were unprepared for winter in

1400-606: The Latter Day Saint movement . Brigham Young and other LDS Church leaders believed that the isolation of Utah would secure the rights of Mormons and would ensure the free practice of their religion. Although the United States had gained control of the settled parts of Alta California and Nuevo México in 1846 in the early stages of the Mexican–American War , legal transfer of the Mexican Cession to

1500-588: The Mexican–American War .of 1846 - 1848 . The creation of the new Territory of Utah around the Great Basin and the Great Salt Lake was part of the elements of agreements in the political Compromise of 1850 made in the national capital of Washington, D.C. that sought to preserve the balance of power between Southern slave states and free states in the North. With the exception of a small area around

1600-739: The Mormon pioneers moving westward across the Great Plains began settling the Salt Lake Valley around the Great Salt Lake in 1847 and for many years afterward, they relied on existing institutions within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( Mormon church ) or the secular civil governments. The Utah Territory was organized by an Organic Act of the United States Congress , approved by

1700-675: The United Order , also violated the principles of republicanism as well as the philosophy of laissez-faire economics. James Strang , a rival to Brigham Young who also claimed succession to the leadership of the church after Joseph Smith's death, elevated these fears by proclaiming himself a king and resettling his followers on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan , after the main body of the LDS Church had fled to Utah. People also believed that Brigham Young maintained power through

1800-660: The Utah Expedition , the Utah Campaign , Buchanan's Blunder , the Mormon War , or the Mormon Rebellion , was an armed confrontation between Mormon settlers in the Utah Territory and the armed forces of the US government . The confrontation lasted from May 1857 to July 1858. The conflict primarily involved Mormon settlers and federal troops, escalating from tensions over governance and autonomy within

1900-521: The Utah War of 1857, as well as Young's poor ability to handle criticism. The expensive equipment, acquired and shipped to Utah at great cost, was reused in other industries around Utah. These industries included a woolen mill owned by Young, Thomas Howard's paper manufacturing, and book binding at the Deseret News . In the end, the operation was a $ 50,000 loss. The concern of supplying sugar to

2000-543: The federal Territory of Utah, 97–85. The creation of the Territory with no mention at all of the divisive issue of slavery in the documents, was partially the result of a petition sent by the Mormon pioneers under the leadership of Brigham Young (1801–1877, served 1847–1877), the second church president. The petition had asked Congress to allow them to enter the Union as the State of Deseret , (which they had already organized

2100-637: The 31st state (and the first time the American Union jumping across the North American continent to the opposite Pacific Ocean west coast). Plus the original larger New Mexico Territory in the Great Southwest was added and erected from the southern portion of the huge Mexican Cession in 1849 of former Centralist Republic of Mexico lands, (which amounted to the northwestern one-third of their country) following their defeat in

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2200-578: The Army directly, the Mormon strategy was one of hindering and weakening them. Daniel H. Wells , Lieutenant-General of the Nauvoo Legion , instructed Major Joseph Taylor: On ascertaining the locality or route of the troops, proceed at once to annoy them in every possible way. Use every exertion to stampede their animals and set fire to their trains. Burn the whole country before them and on their flanks. Keep them from sleeping by night surprises; blockade

2300-634: The Church and to send with him sufficient military aid to enforce his rule. This account was further supported by Territorial Chief Justice Kinney in reports to Washington, where he recited examples of what he believed to be Brigham Young's perversion of Utah's judicial system and further urged his removal from office and the establishment of a one-regiment U.S. Army garrison in the territory. There were further charges of treason, battery, theft, and fraud made by other officials, including Federal Surveyors and Federal Indian Agents. Furniss states that most federal reports from Utah to Washington "left unclear whether

2400-574: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Mormons or Latter-day Saints, fearful that the large U.S. military force had been sent to annihilate them and having faced persecution in other areas, made preparations for defense. Though bloodshed was to be avoided, and the U.S. government also hoped that its purpose might be attained without the loss of life, both sides prepared for war. The Mormons manufactured or repaired firearms, turned scythes into bayonets, and burnished and sharpened long-unused sabres . Rather than engaging

2500-692: The Democratic principle of popular sovereignty with the party's acceptance of polygamy in Utah and turned this accusation into a formidable political weapon. Popular sovereignty was the theoretical basis of the Compromise of 1850 and the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854. This concept was meant to remove the divisive issue of slavery in the Territories from the national debate, allowing local decision-making and forestalling armed conflict between

2600-581: The Governor of Missouri, who issued the infamous Extermination Order . Mormons' state of mind was further alarmed when they learned in late June 1857 that LDS Apostle Parley P. Pratt had recently been murdered while serving a mission in Arkansas. Fearing the worst, Young ordered residents throughout Utah territory to prepare for evacuation, making plans to burn their homes and property and stockpile food and stock feed. Guns were manufactured, and ammunition

2700-628: The Governor's mansion on July 4th they "...unfurled the territorial flag." The third flag was depicted on a cigarette trading card in the 1880s. The flag was in a squared ratio with blue background and the Utah state coat of arms in the center. There is no evidence that the flag was ever made or flown. In 1850, nine churches with regular services in the Utah Territory were unclassified by historian Edwin Gaustad in his Historical Atlas of Religion in America (1962), but were probably LDS churches. In

2800-454: The Indians (who often differentiated between "Americans" and "Mormons"), acceptance of the common law , the criminal jurisdiction of probate courts , the Mormon use of ecclesiastical courts rather than the federal court system for civil matters, the legitimacy of land titles, water rights, and various other issues. Many of the federal officers were also appalled by the practice of polygamy and

2900-572: The LDS church. The machinery was purchased from Faucett, Preston and Company of Liverpool , leaving on March 6, 1852 and arriving in New Orleans on April 26, 1852 via the Rockaway . The equipment was boated to Leavenworth, Kansas , then by 40 high-end covered wagons to Utah. Troubles with transportation, including heavy snows, caused the company to be nicknamed the "Damn Miserable Company". Some of

3000-582: The Latter-day Saint community and were genuinely mourned for their deaths. Others had severe difficulties adjusting to the Mormon-dominated territorial government and the unique Mormon culture. Historian Norman Furniss writes that although some of these appointees were basically honest and well-meaning, many were highly prejudiced against the Mormons even before they arrived in the territory and woefully unqualified for their positions, while

3100-575: The Mexican capital of Mexico City by Invading American military forces and their surrender with the end of the brief war. The peace treaty later passing in Congress in the upper chamber of the U.S. Senate , (which approves all foreign treaties according to the U.S. Constitution ) and the lower chamber of the House of Representatives voted in the subsequent supplemental legislation in favor of organizing

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3200-409: The Mormon belief system in general and would harangue the Mormons for their "lack of morality" in public addresses. This already tense situation was further exacerbated by a period of intense religious revival starting in late 1856 dubbed the " Mormon Reformation ". Beginning in 1851, a number of federal officers, some claiming that they feared for their physical safety, left their Utah appointments for

3300-467: The Mormon fortifications then being built in Echo Canyon (see below). Upon returning to the main body of the army, Van Vliet reported that the Latter-day Saints would not resort to actual hostilities but would seek to delay the troops in every way possible. He also reported that they were ready to burn their homes and destroy their crops and that the route through Echo Canyon would be a death trap for

3400-463: The Mormon militia, called the Nauvoo Legion , and the U.S. Army involved some destruction of property and a few brief skirmishes in what is today southwestern Wyoming , but no battles occurred between the contending military forces. At the height of the tensions, on September 11, 1857, at least 120 California-bound settlers from Arkansas , Missouri and other states, including unarmed men, women, and children, were killed in remote southwestern Utah by

3500-554: The Mormons but to enter the territory, enforce the laws under the direction of the new governor, and defend themselves if attacked. Although the Utah Expedition had begun to gather as early as May under orders from General Winfield Scott , the first soldiers did not leave Fort Leavenworth , Kansas, until 18 July 1857. The troops were originally led by Gen. William S. Harney . However, affairs in " Bleeding Kansas " forced Harney to remain behind to deal with skirmishes between pro-slavery and free-soiler militants. The Expedition's cavalry,

3600-473: The North and South. But during the campaign, the Republican Party denounced the theory as protecting polygamy. Such leading Democrats as Stephen A. Douglas , formerly an ally of the Latter-day Saints began to denounce Mormonism in order to save the concept of popular sovereignty for issues related to slavery. The Democrats believed that American attitudes toward polygamy had the potential of derailing

3700-559: The President with the advice and consent of the Senate, but without any reference to the will of Utah's population—as was standard for all territorial administration. Some federal officials sent by the President maintained essentially harmonious relationships with the Mormons. For instance, from 1853 to 1855, the territorial supreme court was composed of two non-Mormons and one Mormon. However, both of these non-Mormons were well respected in

3800-402: The President would not wait. Under massive popular and political pressure, President Buchanan decided to take decisive action against the Mormons soon after his inauguration on March 4, 1857. President Buchanan first decided to appoint a new governor in place of Brigham Young. The position was offered to several individuals who refused, and the President finally settled on Alfred Cumming during

3900-562: The Rocky Mountains. The army was not given instructions on how to react in case of resistance. The Mormons' lack of information on the army's mission created apprehension and led to their defensive preparations. While rumors spread during the spring that an army was coming to Utah and Brigham Young had been replaced as governor, this was not confirmed until late July. Mormon mail contractors, including Porter Rockwell and Abraham O. Smoot , received word in Missouri that their contract

4000-457: The Saints raise their hands in a unanimous resolution to guard against any 'invader ' ". Van Vliet found it impossible to persuade resentful Mormon leaders that the Army had peaceful intentions. He quickly recognized that supplies or accommodations for the Army would not be forthcoming. But Young told Van Vliet that the Mormons did not desire war, and "if we can keep the peace for this winter, I do think there will be something turned up that may save

4100-407: The Saints vacillated between all-out war, a more limited confrontation, and retreat. An alliance with the Indians was central to Young's strategy for war, although his relations with them had been strained since the settlers' arrival in 1847. Young had generally adopted a policy of conversion and conciliation towards native tribes. Some Mormon leaders encouraged intermarriage with the Indians so that

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4200-498: The Territorial Legislature, which largely consisted of popularly elected Latter-day Saints. Additionally, LDS Church leaders counseled Latter-day Saints to use ecclesiastical arbitration to resolve disputes among church members before resorting to the more explicit legal system. Both President Buchanan and the U.S. Congress saw these acts as obstructing, if not subverting, the operation of legitimate institutions of

4300-473: The Territory flew in 1851 and consist of 13 red and white stripes, a blue canton with 13 stars and eagle that was positioned above a large 5 pointed star. The flag is preserved in Smithsonian institute. The second flag was raised in 1854 and it similarly contained "...stars, stripes, eagle, and beehive." flag was It was raised up flag pole on temple block to celebrated Pioneer's day. The following year at

4400-402: The Territory, he believed his religious authority was more important among a nearly homogeneous population of Mormons. Young and the Mormon community feared renewed persecution and possibly annihilation by a large body of federal troops. Mormons remembered previous conflicts when they had lived near numerous non-Mormons. In 1838, they were driven from Missouri into Illinois under the direction of

4500-405: The U.S. Army. They were released but were later murdered and robbed of their stock and $ 25,000. Other incidents of violence have also been linked to the Utah War, including a Native American attack on the Mormon mission of Fort Lemhi in eastern Oregon Territory , modern-day Idaho . They killed two Mormons and wounded several others. The historian Brigham Madsen notes, "[T]he responsibility for

4600-558: The U.S. came only with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ending the war in 1848. LDS Church leaders understood that they were not "leaving the political orbit of the United States", nor did they want to. When gold was discovered in California in 1848 at Sutter's Mill , which sparked the famous California Gold Rush , thousands of migrants began moving west on trails that passed directly through territory settled by Mormon pioneers. Although

4700-447: The United States. Numerous newspaper articles continued sensationalizing Mormon beliefs and exaggerated earlier accounts of conflicts with frontier settlers. These stories led many Americans to believe that Mormon leaders were petty tyrants and that Mormons were determined to create a Zionist , polygamous kingdom in the newly acquired territories. Many felt that these sensationalized beliefs, along with early communitarian practices of

4800-452: The Utah Territory under Brigham Young. Young had been appointed territorial Governor by Millard Fillmore. In addition to popular election, many early LDS Church leaders received quasi-political administrative appointments at both the territorial and federal level that coincided with their ecclesiastical roles, including the powerful probate judges . In analogy to the federal procedure, these executive and judicial appointments were confirmed by

4900-576: The [Fort Limhi raid] lay mainly with the Bannock ." David Bigler concludes that the raid was probably caused by members of the Utah Expedition who were trying to replenish their stores of livestock that had been stolen by Mormon raiders. Taking all incidents into account, William MacKinnon estimated that approximately 150 people died as a direct result of the year-long Utah War, including the 120 migrants killed at Mountain Meadows. He points out that this

5000-422: The [Mormons] habitually kicked their dogs; otherwise, their calendar of infamy in Utah was complete". As early as 1852, Dr. John M. Bernhisel , Utah's Mormon delegate to Congress, had suggested that an impartial committee be sent to investigate the actual conditions in the territory. This call for an investigation was renewed during the crisis of 1857 by Bernhisel and even by Senator Stephen A. Douglas . However,

5100-512: The cause of their flight from their previous homes and center back East in Nauvoo, Illinois , in the United States, trekking westward across the continent to the Great Salt Lake basin after being persecuted and forcibly removed from their settlements in several Eastern states. Although the Mormons were now the majority in the Great Salt Lake basin, the western area of the new territory soon began to attract many non-Mormon settlers, especially after

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5200-406: The citizens of Utah to accommodate and supply the troops once they arrived. However, Harney's letter did not mention that Young had been replaced as governor, nor did it detail what the mission of the troops would be once they arrived, and these omissions sparked even greater distrust among the Saints. On his journey, reports reached Van Vliet that his company might be in danger from Mormon raiders on

5300-488: The compromise on slavery . For the Democrats, attacks on Mormonism had the dual purpose of disentangling polygamy from popular sovereignty and distracting the nation from the ongoing battles over slavery. In March 1852, the Utah Territory passed Acts that legalized black slavery and Indian slavery . Many east-coast politicians, such as U.S. President James Buchanan, were alarmed by the semi- theocratic dominance of

5400-641: The conflict in Illinois . The Nauvoo Legion was under the command of Daniel H. Wells and consisted of all able-bodied men between 15 and 60. Young ordered the Legion to take delaying actions, essentially harassing federal troops. He planned to buy time for the Mormon settlements to prepare for either battle or evacuation and create a window for negotiations with the Buchanan Administration. Thus, in mid-August, militia Colonel Robert T. Burton and

5500-471: The damned rascals that administer the government." The Mormons also maintained a governmental and legal regime in "Zion", which they believed was perfectly permissible under the Constitution, but which was fundamentally different from that espoused in the rest of the country. The Latter-day Saints and federal appointees in the Territory faced continual dispute. These conflicts regarded relations with

5600-415: The destruction of the law offices of U.S. Federal Judge Stiles and expressed concern that he (Young) might suffer the same fate as the previous Mormon leader, Joseph Smith, to which Van Vliet replied, "I do not think it is the intention of the government to arrest you," said Van Vliet, "but to install a new governor of the territory". Van Vliet's instructions were to buy provisions for the troops and to inform

5700-528: The discovery of gold at Breckenridge in Utah Territory in 1859 (ten years after the first mineral findings along the American River in California , resulting in the phenomenal California gold rush of 1849-1855 there). So also in that same year of 1861, additional legislative action was taken by the Congress and the new 16th President Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865, served 1861–1865), to take

5800-634: The discovery of silver at the famous Comstock Lode ore deposits in the Virginia City area, east of the Sierra Nevada mountain ranges and Lake Tahoe (of present-day western Nevada ) in 1858 . Only three years later on the eve of the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 , and partly as a result of this, with its importance of the recovered silver bullion for Federal Treasury coffers plus huge growth in population with

5900-494: The east. The stories of these " Runaway Officials " convinced the new President that the Mormons were nearing a state of rebellion against the authority of the United States. According to LDS historians James B. Allen and Glen M. Leonard , the most influential information came from William W. Drummond , an associate justice of the Utah territorial supreme court who began serving in 1854. Drummond's letter of resignation of March 30, 1857, contained charges that Young's power set aside

6000-658: The emigrant wagon trains to keep away from the Territory. Despite Young's efforts, Indians attacked Mormon settlements during the course of the Utah War, including a raid on Fort Limhi on the Salmon River in Oregon Territory in February 1858 and attacks in Tooele County just west of Great Salt Lake City. In early August, Young re-activated the Nauvoo Legion . This was the Mormon militia created during

6100-555: The equipment was abandoned in the Bear River Valley of Utah, and the original Provo factory location was abandoned by late November 1852. Instead, the machinery was set up in Salt Lake City for a test run in an adobe -construction blacksmith shop. The community it was established in is now known as Sugarhouse , and the test factory ready for first processing by December 20, 1852. Brigham Young thought John Taylor

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6200-439: The federal government broke down. During this time period, the leadership of the LDS Church supported polygamy , which Mormons called " plural marriage ". An estimated 20% to 25% of Latter-day Saints were members of polygamous households, with the practice involving approximately one-third of Mormon women who reached marriageable age. The Mormons in territorial Utah viewed plural marriage as religious doctrine until 1890, when it

6300-408: The federal government, which they felt had driven them out from their homes in the east. Like the contemporary abolitionists , Latter-day Saint leaders declared that the judgments of God would be meted out upon the nation for its unrighteousness. Brigham Young echoed the opinion of many Latter-day Saints when he declared "I love the government and the Constitution of the United States, but I do not love

6400-477: The final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah , the 45th state. At its creation, the Territory of Utah included all of the present-day State of Utah, most of the current state of Nevada save for that portion of Southern Nevada (including the metro area of the city of Las Vegas ), much of modern western Colorado , and the extreme southwest corner of present-day Wyoming . When

6500-471: The flight of freedom-loving men from a Territory possessed of many exits; yet a flood of emigrants poured into Utah each year, with only a trickle ... ebbing back." These circumstances were not helped by the relationship between " Gentile " (non-Mormon) federal appointees and the Mormon territorial leadership. The territory's Organic Act held that the governor, federal judges, and other important territorial positions were to be filled by appointees chosen by

6600-515: The headwaters of the upper Colorado River in present-day Colorado , the United States had acquired all the northwestern lands of the territory and former provinces from southern neighbor Mexico after the negotiations and ratification of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo of 1848, following several additional battles along the Gulf of Mexico coast and central heartland, resulting in the occupation of

6700-417: The influx of prospecting miners (and assorted supporting commercial business interests) and with the subsequent intensive deep shaft industrial mining and drilling, the new Nevada Territory was then created out of the western part of the previous Utah Territory of a decade before. Non-Mormons also entered the opposite side in the easternmost part of the territory during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush , resulting in

6800-409: The intent of this proclamation as it was never widely circulated, if at all, and while copies of the document exist, there is no mention of it in any contemporary sources. One commentary opines that "during most of August, the Mormon leaders had not precisely focused on a strategy for dealing with the approaching army; and after the first proclamation was struck off, they likely had second thoughts about

6900-413: The juice of the beet before it could be granulated and made into sugar. This was a fatal mishap and that settled the matter for that season as far as sugar-making was concerned … Mr. Mollenhauer and myself gathered a few bones together and burned them in a charcoal pit, and from the few bones we burned we clarified several bottles of black beet syrup until it was clear as crystal; and satisfied ourselves that

7000-474: The migrants brought opportunities for trade, they also ended the Mormons' short-lived isolation. In 1849, the Mormons proposed that a large part of the territory that they inhabited be incorporated into the United States as the State of Deseret . Their primary concern was to be governed by men of their own choosing rather than "unsympathetic carpetbag appointees", who they believed would be sent from Washington, D.C. if their region were given territorial status, as

7100-399: The nearby Salt Lake Temple . The factory was scheduled for completion in the fall of 1854, but did not start processing sugar beets until February 1, 1855. The factory ran until March 17, 1855, but didn't successfully produce sugar. The operation closed in fall 1856, never having been successful, though the Church still believed it could be made successful. Later research proved the equipment

7200-451: The newly succeeded 13th President Millard Fillmore (1800–1874, served 1850–1853), only two months after the former Vice President acceded to the higher office upon the sudden death in July 1850 of his military general predecessor Zachary Taylor . The Utah Territory bill was approved by him in September 1850 , on the same day that the State of California was admitted to the Union as

7300-425: The only people who had seen a successful sugar operation, left the company after the takeover. Philip DeLaMare later stated: When the plant was started in the fall of 1852 what machinery was used ran alright and filled every reasonable expectation. The beets, however, had been grown on the lowlands, and the juice was filled with mineral and was dark. When we started, the first thing that Mr. Mollenhauer called for were

7400-473: The organization of the Territory, second church president Young was inaugurated as its first territorial Governor of Utah . The first Territorial Capital City and Capitol building was located 1850 to 1856 in the small town of Fillmore, Utah , named for the new 13th President Millard Fillmore , who approved and signed the Congressional organic act and territorial erection bill of September 1850, and

7500-469: The organization of the territory and its admission to the Union in 1896 as the 45th State of Utah , long after the admission of other federal territories created after it. In contrast, the Nevada Territory to the west, although more sparsely populated, was admitted to the Union in 1864 in the midst of the ongoing American Civil War only three years after its territorial formation, and Colorado

7600-530: The peaceful entrance of the U.S. Army into Utah. Mormons began settling in what is now Utah (then part of Alta California in the Centralist Republic of Mexico ) in the summer of 1847. Mormon pioneers began leaving the United States for Utah after a series of severe conflicts with neighboring communities in Missouri and Illinois resulted, in 1844, in the death of Joseph Smith , founder of

7700-578: The people of Utah that the troops would only be employed as a posse comitatus when called on by the civil authority to aid in the execution of the laws. Van Vliet's arrival in Salt Lake City was welcomed cautiously by the Mormon leadership. Van Vliet had been previously known by the Latter-day Saints in Iowa, and they trusted and respected him. However, he found the residents of Utah determined to defend themselves. He interviewed leaders and townspeople and "attended Sunday services, heard emotional speeches, and saw

7800-733: The region and echoing nutritional information that was believed at the time. John Taylor served as a missionary in France , and did research at a sugar beet factory in Pas-de-Calais . In 1851, the LDS Church attempted developing the industry in Utah in an official manner through Brigham Young and John Taylor, establishing the Deseret Manufacturing Company in Spring 1851 between Taylor, John W. Coward, Joseph Russell, and Philip DeLaMare with $ 35,000 in capital from

7900-416: The region was still under discussion. In 1863, Young stated "Importing sugar has been a great drain upon our ... currency. I am satisfied that it is altogether unnecessary to purchase sugar in a foreign market." After years of experimenting with sorghum and deciding sugar beets would work better, Arthur Stayner lobbied the LDS church in 1887, but the church was not interested, due to poor church finances and

8000-479: The retorts, but we soon discovered we had no retorts. That important part of sugar-making machinery had never been ordered as they were not in the plans that were given by the Arras Company to use. Mr. Mollenhauer had supposed all the time they had come along with the machinery … These retorts were the cast iron ovens wherein bones were burned to make the animal charcoal that had to be used to clarify and purify

8100-476: The road by felling trees or destroying the river fords where you can. Watch for opportunities to set fire to the grass on their windward so as, if possible, to envelop their trains. Leave no grass before them that can be burned. Keep your men concealed as much as possible, and guard against surprise. The Mormons blocked the army's entrance into the Salt Lake Valley , and weakened the U.S. Army by hindering them from receiving provisions. The confrontation between

8200-404: The rule of law in the territory, that the Mormons had ignored the laws of Congress and the Constitution, and that male Mormons acknowledged no law but the priesthood. He further charged the Church with murder, destruction of federal court records, harassment of federal officers, and slandering the federal government. He concluded by urging the president to appoint a governor who was not a member of

8300-448: The shedding of blood". However, marking a change from earlier pronouncements, Young declared that under threat from an approaching army, he would not allow the new governor and federal officers to enter Utah. Nevertheless, Van Vliet told Young that he believed that the Mormons "have been lied about the worst of any people I ever saw". He promised to stop the Utah Expedition on his own authority, and on September 14, he returned east through

8400-525: The small local government was set up here including the meetings of the Territorial Assembly, although first Governor and second L.D.S. church president Brigham Young remained mostly in his Beehive House (current historic site) residence in Salt Lake City, but traveling to Fillmore 1850 to 1856, until his death in 1877 . The capital of Utah Territory was relocated that year of 1856 to the major and largest town of Salt Lake City , which built

8500-546: The sugar could be made, and all that was needed was an abundance of animal clarifying matter. Had we secured that, Utah would have made beet sugar twenty years ahead of any other part of the United States. In 1853, a full factory was designed by Truman O. Angell, who was called by Young. A. O. Smoot, the first bishop of the Sugar House ward, directed construction. The project was plagued with delays, in part due to labor and construction materials being needed for construction of

8600-506: The summer. While Young became aware of the change in territorial administration through press reports and other sources, he received no official notification of his replacement until Cumming arrived in the Territory in November 1857. Buchanan also decided to send a force of 2,500 army troops to build a post in Utah and to act as a posse comitatus once the new governor had been installed. They were ordered not to take offensive action against

8700-402: The territory. An example being that in 1873, the territory legislature gave to Governor / President Young the exclusive right to manufacture and distil whiskey . Mormon governance in the territory was regarded as controversial by much of the rest of the nation, partly fed by continuing lurid newspaper depictions of the polygamy marriage practiced by the settlers, which itself had been part of

8800-410: The territory. There were several casualties, predominantly non-Mormon civilians. Although the war featured no significant military battles, it included the Mountain Meadows Massacre , where Mormon militia members disarmed and murdered about 120 settlers traveling to California. The resolution of the Utah War came through negotiations that permitted federal troops to enter Utah Territory in exchange for

8900-446: The trail. The Captain, therefore, left his escort and proceeded alone. Van Vliet arrived in Salt Lake City on September 8. Historian Harold Schindler states that his mission was to contact Governor Young and inform him of the expedition's mission: to escort the new appointees, to act as a posse comitatus and to establish at least two and perhaps three new U.S. Army camps in Utah. Conversing with Van Vliet, Young denied complicity in

9000-647: The two peoples might "unite together" and their "interests become one". Between August 30 and September 1, Young met with Indian delegations and gave them permission to take all of the livestock then on the northern and southern trails into California (the Fancher Party was at that time on the southern trail). This meeting may have been Young's attempt to win Indian support against the United States and refrain from raids against Mormon settlements. In sermons on August 16 and again one month later, Young publicly urged

9100-507: The year before) with its capital as Salt Lake City and with proposed borders that encompassed the entire Great Basin and the watershed of the Colorado River , including all or part of nine current U.S. states in the southwest. The Mormon settlers had drafted a state constitution in 1849 and Deseret had become the de facto government in the Great Basin by the time of the creation of the subsequent Federal Utah Territory. Following

9200-464: Was a poor businessman, declaring he "knew nothing about transacting business." Young, despite no knowledge of sugar beets or sugar, took over the business. The 1852 effort was a failure, partly because the important vacuum pan never worked correctly, and partly because of a lack of knowledge about the industry. The Deseret Manufacturing Company was out of money, and the LDS church assumed the debts in February or March 1853. Taylor, DeLaMare, and Mollenhauer,

9300-546: Was admitted in 1876 during the American Centennial celebration year , fifteen years after first becoming a territory. The Utah state coat of arms appears on the state seal and state flag. The beehive was chosen as the emblem for the provisional State of Deseret in 1848 and represents the state's industrious and hard-working inhabitants, and the virtues of thrift and perseverance. The sego lilies on either side symbolize peace. The first flag to represent

9400-540: Was canceled and that the Army was on the move. The men quickly returned to Salt Lake City and notified Brigham Young that U.S. Army units were marching on the Mormons. Young announced the approach of the army to a large group of Latter-day Saints gathered in Big Cottonwood Canyon for Pioneer Day celebrations on 24 July. Young disagreed with Buchanan's choices for governor of the territory. Although Young's secular position simplified his administration of

9500-552: Was cast. Mormon colonists in small outlying communities in the Carson Valley and San Bernardino, California were ordered to leave their homes to consolidate with the main body of Latter-day Saints in Northern and Central Utah. All LDS missionaries serving in the United States and Europe were recalled. Young also sent George A. Smith to the settlements of southern Utah to prepare them for action. Young's strategies to defend

9600-477: Was close to the number of people killed during the seven-year contemporaneous struggle in " Bleeding Kansas ". In the end, negotiations between the United States and the Latter-day Saints resulted in a full pardon for the Latter-day Saints (except those involved in the Mountain Meadows murders), the transfer of Utah's governorship from church president Brigham Young to non-Mormon Alfred Cumming , and

9700-435: Was customary. They believed that only through a state run by church leadership could they maintain their religious freedom. The U.S. Congress created the Utah Territory as part of the Compromise of 1850 . President Millard Fillmore selected Brigham Young, the LDS Church's president , as the first governor of the Territory. The Mormons were pleased by the appointment, but gradually the amicable relationship between Mormons and

9800-427: Was delivered by messenger to Col. Alexander with the approaching army. The most important provision forbade "all armed forces of every description from coming into this Territory, under any pretense whatsoever". It also commanded that "all the forces in said Territory hold themselves in readiness to march at a moment's notice to repel any and all such invasion." But more important to California and Oregon bound travelers

9900-407: Was manufactured correctly, installed correctly, and similar to later successful factories; the difference was the lack of experienced operators, especially for boiling sugar in the vacuum pan. The two missing steps were an inadequate speed on the vacuum pump, and a missing graining step to produce sugar crystals. The operation was also likely abandoned due to the declining finances of the LDS Church and

10000-491: Was removed as an official practice of the church by Wilford Woodruff . However, the rest of American society rejected polygamy, and some commentators accused the Mormons of gross immorality. During the Presidential election of 1856 a key plank of the newly formed Republican Party 's platform was a pledge "to prohibit in the territories those twin relics of barbarism: polygamy and slavery". The Republicans associated

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