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Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory

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Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Theses and Dissertations 2010-03-17 Violence across the Land: Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory Scott K. Thomas Brigham Young University - Provo Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd Part of the History Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Thomas, Scott K., "Violence across the Land: Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory" (2010). Theses and Dissertations. 2485. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/2485 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Violence across the Land: Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory Scott K. Thomas A thesis submitted to the faculty of Brigham Young University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Brian Q. Cannon, Chair Thomas G. Alexander Grant R. Underwood Department of History Brigham Young University April 2010 Copyright © 2010 Scott K. Thomas All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT Violence across the Land: Vigilantism and Extralegal Justice in the Utah Territory Scott K. Thomas Department of History Master of Arts For years historians of the American West have overlooked Utah when dealing with the subject of extrajudicial violence, while researchers of Mormonism have misread the existence of such violence in territorial Utah. The former asserts that Utah was free from extrajudicial proceedings and that such violence was nearly nonexistent within the contours of the Mormon kingdom. The latter maintains that any violence that existed in Utah was directly connected to the religious fanaticism of the Mormon populace in the region. The reality is that much of the extralegal violence in Utah was a result of the frontier, not the religion of the Mormons. Although episodes of bloodshed have been routinely categorized as religious zealotry, the evidence suggests that they are more properly catalogued within the context of western vigilantism —a practice well-documented and accepted among historians of the West. Utahans did employ extralegal means, like most other locales, for maintaining the existing social structure. Numerous factors led to conflicts of interests and, as was common during this time, violence became a part of life for early Utahans. It is the purpose of this examination to demonstrate how residents, leaders, and visitors in Utah justified the use of extrajudicial proceedings during the territorial period. Examining the violence that occurred in nineteenth-century Utah within the framework of the western extralegal culture provides a more nuanced understanding of the people of the region and demonstrates how their actions were not as aberrant as previous scholars have claimed. During the territorial period, Utahans experienced a significant amount of extralegal justice. The unique confluence of ethnic, religious, and political ideals led to clashes on the western frontier. There was no shortage of outlaws in Utah, nor of citizens and authorities capable and willing to go beyond the bounds of legal authority to maintain order within the territory. This thesis aims to properly place the Utah Territory in the broader framework of extralegal violence in the West and expand the historical understanding of summary justice in pre-statehood Utah. Keywords: American West, Utah Territory, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mormons, vigilantism, vigilante, extralegal, extrajudicial, violence, crime, Danites, Blood Atonement, law ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Words cannot express the appreciation I feel and the debt that I owe my wife and children for their unwavering support and sacrifice over the years of researching and writing this thesis. Thank you Deon, Bronx, and Bo for your patience and understanding; this would have been impossible without you. My parents, Cynthia-Mar and Veston Thomas, rendered much support to me over the years, and I am indebted to their generosity and love. Along with my wife, they have been imperative to my quest for knowledge and truth. Each of my siblings has afforded me much consolation as they listened to my findings and aided with my family, both crucial in the time and effort necessary for completing this thesis. Special thanks to Uncle Chad, for his countless hours spent with my boys while I was researching and writing. Confidant and comrade, Dr. Jonathan Moyer played a pivotal role in the scholarly development of my thesis in too many ways to be enumerated here. His mentorship has been invaluable and friendship central to my understanding of Mormon history. Many professors at Brigham Young University and the University of Utah have assisted me greatly over the years. While I was never a student of the latter university, Dr. Robert Goldberg was kind enough to critique an early draft and provide helpful comments at the Western History Association conference in Oklahoma. It was there that I benefited from the scholarship and amity of Dr. Paul Reeve. I was fortunate to learn from some great professors and friends at BYU during my graduate education. Dr. Grant Underwood’s classes impelled me to understand the history of Mormonism on a much deeper level. His insight as a committee member has been greatly appreciated. The lectures and writings of Dr. Thomas Alexander imbued me with a desire to research broader connections within the history of the Latter-day Saints. As a committee member his probing insights and perceptive critique impacted the end result. The tutelage of Dr. Brian Cannon honed my academic skills and aided greatly in my academic development. His constant advisement and aid has greatly benefited this work. My good friend Dr. D. Morgan Davis provided timely assistance and my work has profited from his keen eye and profound grasp of the English language. More importantly, his friendship and camaraderie has shaped my grasp of religious history and doctrine. My research brought me in contact with many institutions that facilitated my study and research greatly. The History Department provided numerous fellowships, grants, and other awards that relieved much of the financial burden of graduate school and allowed me to focus on my studies. I am indebted to Dr. Mary S. Richards who assisted with formatting and final presentation of this work. The department’s administrative assistant, Julie Radle, was key in helping me navigate graduate school and I thank her for her dedication to the history program and its students. The staff at the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at the Harold B. Lee Library at BYU and the Marriott Library at the University of Utah always did their best to help me with my research needs. A grant from the Charles Redd Center for Western Studies facilitated an extremely important research trip to the Bancroft Library at the University of California at Berkeley. I am indebted to Ronald Barney of the Church History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for sharing his knowledge of violence in Mormon history, encouraging my research, and helping me procure important sources. My thanks goes to my good friend, neighbor, and Associate Director of Information Technology at the Howard W. Hunter Law Library, David Armond, who went well beyond his prescribed role to help me locate and understand Utah’s early laws. Many others provided encouragement, support, and assistance as I researched and wrote this thesis. My close friend Jared Rossean provided timely assistance with his computer knowledge. Many other close friends graciously shared their knowledge and insights; these conversations greatly enhanced my thinking and writing. My in-laws spent much time discussing family history, this aided in my overall understanding of my topic. Special thanks to my father- in-law Bernell Lancaster for sharing his knowledge of Hyrum and Abraham Nelson, familial ancestors and early Danites. I must also recognize the financial assistance rendered me from the Graduate Studies office through numerous Research Presentation Awards and the William J. Snow Scholarship funding from the History Department. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................................ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..............................................................................................................iii Chapter 1. AN INTRODUCTION TO EXTRAJUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS IN EARLY UTAH.......................................................................................................... 1 2. AN AMERICAN TRADITION: THE HISTORIOGRAPHY OF EXTRALEGAL VIOLENCE IN THE UNITED STATES .....................................................................19 3. FRONTIERS OF JUSTICE: EXTRALEGAL PUNISHMENT IN THE UTAH BORDERLANDS ........................................................................................................42 4. LAWLESS FRINGE: PUNISHMENT AND JUSTICE AT THE CENTER OF THE MORMON STRONGHOLD .......................................................................................56 5. PROTECTING THE BOUNDARIES: DANITES AND MOBILE TAX STATIONS ..........................................................................................................84 6. DRAWING THE LINE: BLOOD ATONEMENT AND VIGILANTE VIOLENCE IN TERRITORIAL UTAH........................................................................................
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