Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith

On September 6, 1857, the Fancher party, a collection of migrants from Arkansas following the Old Spanish Trail toward California, settled down for breakfast near the Great Basin. The group was made up of mostly non-Mormons, although a few apostates desperate to leave the Mormon settlement in Utah joined the party. Suddenly, the party was attacked, and a rain of bullets fell upon them. Many attributed the attack to the Paiute tribe, as many of the attackers were dark-skinned. Later, it was determined that, while the attackers did include some from the Paiute tribe, the majority were Latter-Day Saints who had painted their faces.

After learning that the federal government intended to invade his Mormon settlement, Young tried to elicit help from the native tribes surrounding his city. While the Paiute tribe was not keen on assisting Young or the Mormons—who believed that Native Americans were Lamanites and, therefore, their ultimate enemies—they were willing to help if the outcome was advantageous. Meanwhile, Brigham stirred up the Mormons, reminding them of the many atrocities committed against them while in Missouri and Illinois.

The Fancher party presented a ripe opportunity. Many Mormons were succumbing to starvation at the time of the arrival of the Fancher wagons, and the wagon train boasted “a thousand head of cattle and two hundred horses” (211). Mormons were also riled up by word that a murder of a Mormon leader had occurred in Arkansas near the Fancher party. Brigham met with Paiute leaders and promised them cattle from the Fancher wagons.

The Fancher party was well-armed. Although their situation was dire, they continued to fight back against the attacks. LDS leaders were ordered to attack the train. After suffering casualties, and frustrated by the Mormon attackers’ lack of organization, most of the Paiute abandoned the siege. More Mormons were recruited to finish the job, killing approximately 120 men, women, and children. The Mormons looted the remains of the wagons, leaving little to nothing for the Paiute people, and vowed that they would lay the blame for the massacre on the Paiute tribe. 

One year after the massacre of the Fancher party, Young stepped down as the governor of Utah territory and allowed the federal government to replace him. Rumors of what the Mormons had done to the Fancher party continued to trickle out of Utah. However, Young was pleased with his replacement and found him easy to manipulate. Buchanan had left the presidential office, and the spot was filled by Abraham Lincoln who had promised to leave Brigham alone so long as the Mormons did not interfere with federal matters. The outbreak of the Civil War left Young in good spirits, believing that Smith’s prophesy that the United States government would self-destruct was coming true.

However, Young’s good mood soon soured when Lincoln set out to ensure that civil unrest would not occur in Utah. Lincoln established troops in Utah and kept a close eye on Young. He also enacted a law that vehemently punished the practice of polygamy. More trouble came for Young as the territories surrounding him were explored and settled. One group of men traversing the Colorado River was said to have been attacked by Native Americans. For years, this was the assumed truth until 1980 when a Southern Utah University former dean discovered a letter that contradicted the story. This letter indicated that the group of explorers was likely killed by LDS leaders. Krakauer explains that by the point the explorers arrived near the Mormon settlement, fear of retaliation by the government for the Fancher party massacre was strong. Mormon leaders might have believed the explorers were a group of mercenaries sent by the U.S. government. Although most historians continue to believe that the death of the explorers came at the hand of the Shivwits, Krakauer encourages caution about tales told by those highly influenced by the LDS church.

As President Ulysses S. Grant continued to pursue the guilty parties for the Fancher party massacre, Young named one of his closest Mormon allies and adopted son, John D. Lee, as the sole culprit, and he was later executed for the crime.

Young died five months after Lee, an occurrence that was prophesized by Lee before he was executed. The conflict between Mormons and non-Mormons continued to grow worse, and each new president placed greater restrictions and pressure on Mormons. John Taylor, Young’s successor, emphasized polygamy and other principles of the Mormon faith that non-Mormons found abhorrent. When Taylor died, Wilford Woodruff became the community’s leader. After praying about the increased violence and pressure from the U.S. government, Woodruff shared with his followers that God had told him that they must abandon the sacred principle of plural marriage.

Woodruff’s announcement sent shockwaves through the church. Many continued to practice polygamy in secret, and the LDS church conducted and sanctioned many plural marriages after telling the U.S. government that it no longer supported polygamy. Mormon fundamentalists believed that Woodruff was wrong in his declaration and touted John Taylor’s words that God would never turn his back on the sacred principle. Those who had attended Taylor at the time described Taylor’s revelation in detail, including Taylor’s glowing face after speaking with the long-deceased Joseph Smith in his bedroom. Taylor also emphasized Smith’s words that God would send “one mighty and strong” to establish order in the LDS church (257).