The Mountain Meadows Massacre, Sept. 7-11, 1857

Not only were the elements of survival there for settlers to deal with as they traveled by wagon trains across the vast western spaces, there were political and religious and cultural conflicts between the different peoples.

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 On September 7, 1857 the Mountain Meadows Massacre began when Mormon settlers slaughtered most members of a peaceful, emigrant wagon train. The massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker-Fancher emigrant wagon train in southern Utah. The massacre culminated September 11, 1857 resulting in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by members of the Utah Territorial Militia from the Iron County district and purportedly aided by Native American allies, though this is widely disputed.

The militia was composed of southern Utah’s Mormon settlers who intended to leave no witnesses and thus prevent reprisals – thus they killed all the adults and older children – some 120 men, women and children in total sparing but 17 children – all younger than seven. The wagon train was mostly families from Arkansas bound for California. (In 2007 the 150th anniversary of the massacre was commemorated at the meadows with some 400 people, including many descendants of the slain, in attendance. In 2011 the site of the slaughter was designated a National Historic Landmark.

Posted by Erika Quesenbery Sturgill on FaceBook Sept. 7, 2026

 

Commentor Jon Tanner said:

 "There were hard feelings for the way people of Missouri-Arkansas had treated the Mormons when they lived in Missouri. Gov Bogs of Missouri had issued an Extermination Order. Mobs had killed members; homes and Farms were taken. The Mormons had been chased out of the area."
Slaughter by members of the Utah Territorial Militia from the Iron County district.

Commenter Ken Russell said:

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"That is John Lee on the left, the only attacker held responsible for the massacre, sitting on his coffin waiting to be executed by firing squad."

Commenter Skip Myers said:

 
"John D. Lee's execution and the only one caught and brought to court. The other 8 were never caught and they changed their names and were gone into oblivion."

The monument to the victims in southwest Utah.

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A lot more information can be found on Wikipedia. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Meadows_Massacre

Survivor Nancy Saphrona Huff (4) was taken away along with her family's possessions by John Willis to reside at his house until she was returned to relatives in Arkansas two years later.

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Sharing with Sepia Saturday. 

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I'll be back tomorrow with more stories that are a bit less gruesome!