The Massacre (September 7, 1857)
As the emigrant party left Cedar City, town leaders discussed what to do with the group since the community was left in an uproar. A letter was sent to William Dame in Parowan asking for advice “stating they could hardly keep people from collisions with them [the emigrants] on account of their violent language and threats.” Haight also needed Dame’s permission to use the Cedar City militia against the emigrant train. Dame refused Haight, but Haight moved forward with plans to take action against the emigrants and “arm the Indians [a local Paiute band], give them provisions and ammunition, and send them after the emigrants.” Haight turned to John D. Lee for help convincing the southern Paiutes to join their plan to attack the emigrants. Haight believed that unless the emigrants were stopped, they would carry out their threats regarding taking supplies by force.
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Lee and Haight planned from the beginning that no blame would fall on the settlers: “no whites were to be known in the matter, it was to be all done by the Indians, so that it could be laid to them, if any questions were ever asked about it.” Plans swiftly moved forward and instructions were given to the Paiutes by local residents who were acting under the authority of their religious, civil, and military leaders. Lee and the Native Americans, mostly Paiutes who were primarily from the Coal Creek and Ash Creek Bands were ready to take action. It is debated how many Native Americans participated in the Massacre, with some scholars estimating as few as 30 and some estimating as many 300. The actual number of Native Americans involved was most likely closer to the 50-100 mark.
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Meanwhile, Haight was in Cedar City gathering support from prominent residents to attack the emigrant train. Residents were reminded “there was an emigrant train that had passed down along to near Mountain Meadows, and that they made their threats in regard to us as a people--signifying they would stay there and destroy every damn Mormon.” The threat was taken seriously because it was believed that “there was an army coming on the south and one on the north.” When residents learned that Dame had refused Haight’s plan, a few insisted that a letter be sent to Brigham Young for advice. All present agreed to send word to Young, although it would take about a week to send and receive letters between Cedar and Salt Lake City. This letter was either lost or destroyed, leaving no record of the content of the letter.
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Either unaware or uncaring of the result of the Cedar City meeting, Lee decided to attack the emigrant train at Mountain Meadows. Several emigrants were killed in this first attack, before they began to fire back and were able to establish a defensive wagon circle. Here, the emigrants would try to wait out their attackers. Lee and the Paiutes took whatever cattle or goods were outside of the circle, splitting it amongst themselves. Lee realized that if he wished to continue an assault on the now-aware emigrants, he needed reinforcements. The Paiutes were getting restless and some left for home.
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When Haight learned of Lee’s attack the next day, he sent Lee a message telling him to back down. In the meantime, the emigrants had recognized Lee “as a white man and sent two little boys” to meet with him. With Lee outed, the attack could no longer be blamed on the Paiutes. Haight now realized that there would be two options for the conspirators: either let the emigrants go and risk the group telling others about the attack, which would put Utah in further danger with federal troops already on their way or they could kill the emigrants with Dame’s militia, only leaving those alive who were not old enough to “tell tales.”
While the settlers came to a decision, the situation at Mountain Meadows remained tense. It had been two days since Lee’s first attack and the emigrants were still trapped in their wagon circle with dwindling supplies.
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After a tense meeting with their counselors, Dame and Haight met privately. The two men afterward never offered a clear picture of what was exactly agreed upon, but Haight came away with “the final order to destroy the entire company” from Dame. As one of the perpetrators explained, “It seemed to become necessary to kill all to silence the rest.” The militia moved out later that afternoon. It is estimated that about 65 militia members were involved in the Massacre, although it is debated who actually participated. Once all the conspirators had met up with Lee, they decided on a plan. It was “decided to send a man with a flag of truce and request that the emigrants send out a delegation to arrange terms upon which they would leave their camp.” The emigrants would be informed that “the Indians were determined on their destruction” and that the settlers “dare not oppose the Indians.” The emigrants would then place their faith and lives in the settlers’ hands and follow the settlers out of the canyon. When John Higbee, Haight’s first counselor and a military commander of the Iron district, gave the signal of “Halt,” the militia was to kill the emigrant men and older boys and the remaining Paiutes were to “dispatch the women and larger children.”
The ambush went almost exactly as planned and was over quickly. Some militia members lost their nerve and were not able to dispatch of their intended target, so others dispatched their targets. Around 120 men, women, and children were killed. The surviving children were taken in and adopted by local families. Militia members rifled through and distributed the remainder of the emigrants’ property.
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Two days after the massacre, Brigham Young’s response and instructions were received in Cedar City. Young had instructed the leaders in Cedar City to “not interfere with them untill they are first notified to keep away. You must not meddle with them. The Indians we expect will do as they please but you should try and preserve good feelings with them.” When Isaac Haight read Young’s words he broke down in sobs, only to choke out “Too late, too late.”
1. Martineau to Susan, May 3, 1876, Martineau Collection.
2. William W. Bishop, ed., Mormonism Unveiled; or The Life and Confessions of the Late Mormon Bishop, John D. Lee; (Written by Himself) (St. Louis: Bryan, Brand & Co., 1877),, 219; Ellott Willden, Andrew Jenson interviews.
3. Leonard, Turley, Walker, Massacre at Mountain Meadows: An American Tragedy, 143.
4. William W. Bishop, ed., Mormonism Unveiled, 220. See also “Lee’s Confession”; “Lee’s Last Confession.”
5. William W. Bishop, ed., Mormonism Unveiled, 226. Mary S. Campbell, Andrew Jenson interviews.
6. Leonard, Turley, Walker’s book, Massacre at Mountain Meadows: An American Tragedy, contains the most complete list of Native Americans suspected to be involved in the Massacre. See Appendix D in that work for the complete list as well as their sources.
7. Laban Morrill, United States v. John D. Lee, Second Trial, Boreman Transcript 1:3-4, 6.
8. Laban Morrill, United States v. John D. Lee, Second Trial, Patterson Shorthand Notes 2:16-18.
9. “Lee’s Confession,” New York Herald, Mar. 22, 1877.
10. “Lee’s Confession”; “Lee’s Last Confession.”
11. Ibid.
12. Ibid.
13. Macfarlane, Andrew Jenson interviews, Jan. and Feb. 1892, Mountain Meadows file, Andrew Jenson, Collection, Church History Library.
14. Willden, Andrew Jenson interviews, Jan. and Feb. 1892, Mountain Meadows file, Andrew Jenson, Collection, Church History Library.
15. Leonard, Turley, and Walker’s book, Massacre at Mountain Meadows: An American Tragedy, has perhaps the most complete list of militia members linked to the Massacre as well as the likelihood of their actual involvement. See Appendix C of that work, also available at https://mountainmeadowsmassacre.com/massacre/appendices/appendix-c-the-militiamen.
16. “Lee’s Confession”; “Lee’s Last Confession.”
17. William W. Bishop, ed., Mormonism Unveiled, 237.
18. Brigham Young to Isaac C. Haight, Sept. 10, 1857, Letterpress Copybook 3:827–28, Brigham Young Office Files, Church Archives.
19. James H. Haslam, interview by S. A. Kenner, reported by Josiah Rogerson, Dec. 4, 1884, typescript, 11, in Josiah Rogerson, Transcripts and Notes of John D. Lee Trials, Church Archives.
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Figure 1. Walker, Turley, and Leonard, Massacre at Mountain Meadows: An American Tragedy, 188. Map by Sheryl Dickert Smith and Tom Child; photo by Wally Barrus.