For my research proposal, I wish to discuss the involvement of the LDS church, known as the Mormon Church, within the Indian removal that took place during the 1830’s. The Indian Removal Act was passed approximately one month after the initial organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The founder of the LDS church, Joseph Smith, received a revelation that he was to preach his gospel in Indian Territory. In September of 1830, roughly 6 months after the founding of the church, he gave a mission calling to one of his church members who held the Mormon priesthood, his name was Oliver Cowdery. This calling was given to Oliver Cowdery in New York State where he then commenced his mission in October of 1830. The interesting part of Oliver Cowdery’s missionary calling was that he was supposed to proceed on a 1,500 trek across the known country in Western Indian territory where he to then preach to the Indians. Instead of simply teaching to a local tribe, the order was given to preach in the same area where at nearly the same time, southern Indian tribes would also be relocating to as a result of the Indian Removal Act. Oliver Cowdery and his companions began their mission in October and the first Indians they were able to teach were the Cattaraugus Indians in Buffalo, New York who accepted two copies of their Book of Mormon.
My central focus for this research essay will be to find the extent of Mormon involvement with the tribes that were forced to relocate due to the Indian Removal Act. I still do not have a complete idea about narrowing my topic down but as I begin my research I want to find information on a broader context of involved the Mormons were. However, what I hope to be able to focus on is the relation...
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...1,” in Mormon Thoroughfare: A History of the Church in Illinois, 1830–39 (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2006), 1–11.
2. Joseph Smith, History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ed. B. H. Roberts, 2nd ed. rev. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 1:120.
3. See Eleanor Atkinson, “The Winter of the Deep Snow,” Transactions of the Illinois State Historical Society 14 (1909), The title was changed from “The Winter of the Deep Snow” to “The Year of the Deep Snow.” The Prairie State: A Documentary History of Illinois, Colonial Years to 1860, ed. Roberts P. Sutton (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1976)
4. See Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual (Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2001), 66-67.
5. The Heavens Resound: A History of the Latter-Day Saints in Ohio, 1830-1838, by Milton V. Backman, Jr.
It had previously been the policy of the American government to remove and relocate Indians further and further west as the American population grew, but there was only so much...
This event changed the role of American religion during the early nineteenth century. Non-traditional religions such as Mormonism resulted from this religious revival movement as well. The religious revivals that emphasized individual choice of humans over predestination of God continuously shook New England Calvinism. The “cult of Matthias” was unlike any other religious groups during the time period.
113 Encyclopedia Britanica. Chicago, IL. Chicago, 1965. Bitton, Davis & Beecher, Maureen U. New Views of Mormon History. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1987.
Eibling, Harold H., et al., eds. History of Our United States. 2nd edition. River Forest, Ill: Laidlaw Brothers, 1968.
In order to understand the lack of morality on the part of the United States, the actions taken by the group in favor of removing the Indians and their opponents needs examining. The seeds of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 are rooted in colonial times and continued to grow during the early years of the American republic. To comprehend this momentous tragedy we must first examine the historical background of the Indian '"'problem'"' and seek rationale for the American government"'"s actions. This includes looking at the men who politically justified the expulsion of the Cherokee nation and those who argued against it.
Tobler, Douglas F., and Nelson B. Wadsworth. The History of the Mormons. New York, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989. Print.
Giles, Thomas S. "How did Native Americans Respond to Christianity?" Christian History, 1992, Volume 11, Issue 3, p20.
The article analyses the effect of the Indian Removal Act, which was approved by Jackson, on various native tribes. “The Cherokee, on the other hand, were tricked into an illegitimate treaty. In 1833, a small faction agreed to sign a removal agreement: the Treaty of New Echota. The leaders of this group were not the recognized leaders of the Cherokee nation, and over 15,000 Cherokees -- led by Chief John Ross -- signed a petition in protest. The Supreme Court ignored their demands and ratified the treaty in 1836.
"The Effects of Removal on American Indian Tribes, Native Americans and the Land, Nature Transformed, TeacherServe, National Humanities Center." The Effects of Removal on American Indian Tribes, Native Americans and the Land, Nature Transformed, TeacherServe, National Humanities Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. .
The removal of Indian tribes was one of the tragic times in America’s history. Native Americans endured hard times when immigrants came to the New World. Their land was stolen, people were treated poorly, tricked, harassed, bullied, and much more. The mistreatment was caused mostly by the white settlers, who wanted the Indians land. The Indians removal was pushed to benefit the settlers, which in turn, caused the Indians to be treated as less than a person and pushed off of their lands. MOREEE
"Growth of the Church - LDS Newsroom." LDS News | Mormon News - Official Newsroom of the Church. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2011. .
The history of the relationship between Indigenous Peoples of the North America and European settlers represents a doubtlessly tragic succession of events, which resulted in a drastic decline in Indigenous population leading to the complete annihilation of some Native groups, and bringing others to the brink of extinction. This disastrous development left the Indigenous community devastated, shaking their society to its very pillars. From the 1492 Incident and up to the 19th century the European invasion to the North America heavily impacted the social development of the Indigenous civilization: apart from contributing to their physical extermination by waging incessant war on the Indian tribes, Anglo-Americans irreversibly changed the Native lifestyle discrediting their entire set of moral guidelines. Using the most disreputable inventions of the European diplomacy, the colonizers and later the United States’ government not only turned separate Indigenous tribes against each other but have also sown discord among the members of the same tribe. One of the most vivid examples of the Anglo-American detrimental influence on the Native groups is the history of the Cherokee Nation and the U.S. Indian Removal Policy. The Cherokee removal from Georgia (along with many other Indian nations) was definitely an on-going conflict that did not start at any moment in time, but developed in layers of history between the Native Americans, settlers of various cultures, and the early U.S. government. This rich and intricate history does not allow for easy and quick judgments as to who was responsible for the near demise of the Cherokee Nation. In 1838, eight thousand Cherokees perished on a forced march out of Georgia, which came to be called the T...
The Oatman’s adventure began as a result of their decision to join a new sect of the Mormon faith. This particular belief, whose followers were named Brewsterites, had its roots in Kirtland, Ohio around 1836. A young boy, about ten years old, named Colin Brewster, showed promise in the eyes of Joseph Smith, the great Mormon prophet. Many had already noticed the boy’s “gift for seeing in vision distant objects not seen by the natural eye” (McGinty 40). Eventually, Brewster’s vision of a round table lead to his acceptance as “a prophet, a seer, a revelator and translator” (McGinty 31), by Joseph Smith Sr. and two other church elders, one of which was referred to as Lord.
Terry Tempest Williams is fully aware that she is contradicting the church when she writes “women have no outward authority,” yet she still chooses to take part in a ritual of healing that can only be performed by the men. Williams, however, does so in privacy and in the “secrecy of the sisterhood.” The word secrecy hints at the idea of doing something which is not accepted and against certain beliefs of today’s church. She was born and raised in a home of devout Mormons who follow the traditional beliefs of their faith. She acknowledges that the Mormon Church places great importance on obedience. In college she began to question her faith and today would not consider herself an “orthodox Mormon,” although Mormonism still has an impact in her life and work. In her writing, Williams continually contradicts the values of the Mormons.
Irwin, Lee, ed. Native American Spirituality. Nebraska: The University of Nebraska Press, 2000. Kehoe, Alice Beck.