Media coverage of the Mountain Meadows Massacre
Although the
In historical fiction, the massacre inspired a genre of frontier crime fiction in the 19th century. The massacre has been portrayed in several plays, and in a 2007 motion picture,
Early depictions
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Mormonism_Unveiled.jpg/220px-Mormonism_Unveiled.jpg)
One of the earliest depictions of the massacre was written by a massacre participant, John D. Lee, and was entitled Mormonism Unveiled; or the Life and Confessions of the Late Mormon Bishop, John D. Lee . This Confession was published in 1877, and expressed Lee's opinion that George A. Smith was sent to southern Utah by Brigham Young to direct the massacre.[2]
In 1872, Mark Twain commented on the massacre through the lens of contemporary American public opinion in an appendix[3] to his semi-autobiographical travel book Roughing It.
In 1910, the massacre was the subject of a short book by Josiah F. Gibbs, who also attributed responsibility for the massacre to Brigham Young and George A. Smith.[4]
The trial of John D. Lee, which was highly publicized at the time, put an idea of an out-of-control theocracy into the public imagination. And, beginning in the late nineteenth century, the tragedy found place in a whole genre of historical treatments, novels—even two silent films. While the historical works among these critiqued (often in polemic fashion) early Utah's religious teachings and rhetoric, a caricature drawn from out of their criticisms came to find its place, in stereotype form, in popular fiction and entertainment.
Academic treatment
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/01/MMM-Harpersw8-13-1859.jpg/250px-MMM-Harpersw8-13-1859.jpg)
In the 1890s, Assistant
The first historical work to discuss the massacre in any depth was an 1873 work by
The first detailed and comprehensive work using modern historical methods was
Two of the most significant works after Brooks include the books Blood of the Prophets by Will Bagley in 2002[8] and American Massacre by Sally Denton in 2003.[9] Bagley pointed to what he said was strong circumstantial evidence of Young's involvement through Smith, and through his early September 1857 meeting with Paiute Indian leaders Tutsegabit and Youngwids.[citation needed] Denton also suggested involvement by Young through Smith, but argued against involvement by Paiute leaders.[citation needed]
The most current work on the massacre,
Several film documentaries have focused on the massacre including,
Historical fiction and portrayals
- The book The Star Rover (1915) by Jack London has a section of the book that describes the massacre from the viewpoint of a young boy from the Fancher Party
- The play Fire In The Bones (1978) by Thomas F. Rogers is a depiction of the massacre from the perspective of John D. Lee, and is based heavily on Juanita Brooks' research.
- The play Two-Headed (2000) by Julie Jensen depicts two middle-aged Latter-day Saint women reflecting on the massacre that occurred when they were children.
- The novel Red Water (2002) by Judith Freeman depicts John D. Lee's role in the massacre from the perspective of three of his nineteen wives.
- The film September Dawn (2007), released August 24, 2007,[13] directed by Christopher Cain, is described by a press release as portraying the "point of view held [by] direct descendants ... that the iconic Brigham Young had complicity in the massacre, a view denied by the Mormon Church."[14] The film uses a love story to tell the story of the massacre.[15]
- The Netflix series Godless(2017), features a main antagonist who is a survivor of the massacre.
See also
- Anti-Mormonism
- Portrayals of Mormons in popular media
Notes
- ^ "Los Angeles Star". 1857-10-03.
- ^ a b Lee 1877
- ^ Appendix B[permanent dead link]
- ^ Gibbs 1910.
- ^ "BYU Studies - Mountain Meadows Massacre: The Andrew Jensen and David H. Morris Collections". Archived from the original on 2010-06-27. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
- ^ Stenhouse 1873.
- ^ Stenhouse 1873, title page.
- ^ Bagley 2002
- ^ Denton 2003.
- ^ "History Book Club Description". History Book Club. Retrieved 2010-05-01.[permanent dead link]
- ^ (Walker, Turley & Leonard 2008, p. xi)
- ^ (Walker, Turley & Leonard 2008, p. xiii–xiv)
- ^ MacDonald, G. Jeffrey (April 28, 2007). "Debating History: Did Brigham Young Order a Massacre?". Washington Post. pp. B09. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
- ^ Press release (2007-03-26).
- ^ See Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, or Politico.com.
References
- ISBN 0-8061-3426-7.
- ).
- ISBN 0-8061-2318-4.
- Denton, Sally (2003), American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, New York: Washington Post review and Letter to the editorin response to the review.
- Gibbs, Josiah F. (1910), The Mountain Meadows Massacre, Salt Lake City: LCCN 37010372, LCC F826 .G532.
- Klingensmith, Philip (September 24, 1872), "Mountain Meadows Massacre", Corinne Daily Reporter, p. 1 – via Utah Digital Newspapers.
- ISBN 9780608380445.
- Stenhouse, T.B.H. (1873), The Rocky Mountain Saints: a Full and Complete History of the Mormons, from the First Vision of Joseph Smith to the Last Courtship of Brigham Young, New York: D. Appleton, LCC BX8611 .S8 1873.
- Twain, Mark (1873), Roughing It, Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing.
- ISBN 978-0-19-516034-5.
External links
- “‘Horrible Massacre of Emigrants!!’: The Mountain Meadows Massacre in Public Discourse” by Douglas Seefeldt, a professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln