Mormons Moving to Salt Lake City

Mormons Moving to Salt Lake City

During the nineteenth century there were many different types of

people moving west over America. One of these groups was the religious

group, the Mormons. The religion was originally founded by Joseph

Smith in the early nineteenth century. He first started of with very

few followers but quickly many people started to come round to Smiths

way of thinking. After developing the religion in Palmyra, Joseph

Smith and his followers moved to Kirtland.

In Kirtland the Mormons were going from strength to strength and by

1831 Mormonism had over 1000 members. However the growing number of

businesses of the Mormons was also growing and soon the non-Mormons

began to grow envious of the Mormons success. As the Mormon society

grew bigger they soon out-numbered the non-Mormons, the gentiles (as

the Mormons called them) were waiting for an opportunity to get rid of

the new religious group. The people soon got their wish, as in, 1837

the banks collapsed and there was a huge financial crisis. The people

blamed the Mormons and chased Joseph Smith and his people out of Ohio.

This was to be the first of many reasons why the Mormons moved

westward.

Still under Joseph Smiths leadership the Mormons settled in

Independence, Missouri. Here the Mormons hoped they could worship in

their own way. They were proved wrong. They were constantly attacked

by mobs who believed the Mormons were fraudsters and just after money.

Many of their people were murdered and day after day they had to live

with the fear of what would happen next. The Mormons believed that the

'gentiles' were Sabbath-breakers and that they would pay for their...

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...were persecuted for

being, 'different'. The truth is that they were misunderstood by the

non-Mormans and that although he was a strong leader Joseph Smith made

some fatal mistakes as a leader. He made statements about his religion

which was prejudice against some Mormons. And after his statement on

polygamy the 'gentiles' felt mistrusted on how the Mormons had kept

this way of life to themselves; thus resulting in more trouble and

hate.

The main reason why the Mormons moved to Salt Lake City was the fact

that they had no other choice. They had tried living in four different

states and they were forced out of each one. The suffered extreme

prejudice and torment. They had no other choice but to move to Salt

Lake City. It was not really out of choice that they moved but in

order for them to have safety and security.