From the day of its organization in 1830 the Church grew with surprising rapidity; and from that time to the present every year has witnessed an increase in membership and an expansion of propaganda. A temporary gath ering centre was established at Kirtland, Ohio, where the first temple was reared. This build ing, an imposing structure as judged by the standard of the time, was dedicated in 1836. As early as 1831, however, the Mormons had begun to establish themselves in Jackson County, Mo., which region they still regard as the central place of the land of Zion. Persecu tion was waged against the Church from its beginning. Both in Ohio and Missouri the peo ple met violent opposition. In 1833 they were driven from Jackson County, under cover of a charge that they were abolitionists. They sought refuge in Clay County, but their sojourn there was brief. In 1838 Gov. Lilburn W. Boggs of Missouri issued an exterminating or der against all Latter-day Saints, and they were forcibly expelled from the State. In sorry plight the people turned again eastward and settled in Illinois, making the little village of Commerce in Hancock County their headquar ters. There they founded the city of Nauvoo, the phenomenal growth of which attested at once the industry and skill of the people and the vitality of their organization. Nauvoo was chartered by the State with liberal provision for local government. A university and a mili tary organization were provided for, and both institutions were successfully established. The city flourished and in time numbered 20,000 in habitants. A temple was reared, in proportions and beauty of architecture far surpassing the earlier structure in Kirtland. In 1844 a few apostates from the Church started a newspaper at Nauvoo with the avowed purpose of assail ing the prophet and exposing alleged misdeeds. Only one issue of the paper was published. The city council of Nauvoo promptly declared the printing establishment a nuisance and ordered its immediate abatement. In the seizure by of ficers of the law the printing plant was wrecked. Smith was blamed for this by his enemies and they secured the issuance of a warrant for his arrest. As he was the officially recognized com mander of the Nauvoo Legion, a duly consti tuted unit of the militia, the imminence of a military clash was exploited and public opinion in the State became intensely antagonistic. The governor of Illinois induced Smith to sur render himself under assurance of safeguard against mobocratic violence. The prophet was imprisoned at Carthage, where on 27 June 1844 a mob broke into the jail and shot to death Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum, and wounded John Taylor, one of the prophet's party.
Even this outrage failed to bring about the end of Mormonism. Joseph Smith was suc ceeded in the leadership of the Church by Brigham Young (see YOUNG, BRIGHAM), who, early in 1846, was impelled through the vio lence of persistent persecution to leave Nau voo with his people. They set out for the West. A party numbering 143, led by Young, started in the spring of 1847, and on 24 July arrived in the vaney of the Great Salt Lake, which region the leader declared to be the land of promise to the Saints. To ordinary view the promise was most uninviting. The pio neer band placed a dam across the little stream later known as City Creek and flooded a small area of the hard-baked soil. After the plant ing' the land was again watered. Thus was in augurated the system of modern irrigation in America. The first crop raised by the colonists was small and the next was partly destroyed by an invasion of crickets; but the people pushed out into the remoter parts of the val ley and beyond; and within a few years the wilderness — a part of the Great American Desert — was blossoming as a flower garden. The site of the present Salt Lake City was sur veyed, streets laid out, the Temple block was marked by boundaries and other reservations for community use were made. Brigham Young returned to Council Bluffs, Iowa, where the main body of his people had established temporary headquarters. The migrating hosts
followed the route of the pioneer band, travel ing in well-organized companies; and people still living in the smiling vales of Utah and contiguous States relate their experiences of having crossed the plains afoot, guiding ox teams or pushing handcarts by dint of strenu ous effort. Great Salt Lake City, as the new settlement was first called, became at once im portant on account of its position on the route of wagon trains between the Missouri River and California; and as within two years from the time of the pioneer arrival, the gold fever was raging, travel was heavy. As a result of the wonderful genius for organization, man agement and well-disciplined activity exhibited by the Mormon colonists, and owing to their success in irrigation, the soil, inherently fertile lacking only water and skilled cultivation, yielded abundantly and the city became the chief source of supply to the transcontinental travel ers. When settled by the Mormons the region was under Mexican sovereignty. After its ces sion to the United States in 1848, under the Treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo, the settlers pe titioned for admission to the Union as a State; the request wqs denied, but in 1850 the Terri tory of Utah was formally established. Brig ham Young was appointed governor and Con gress made appropriations to the new Terri tory for public buildings and a library. In 1857 Alfred Cumming was appointed to succeed Brigham Young as governor, and Cumming with other Federal appointees was sent to the West along with *Johnston's army,* a military expedition authorized by President James Bu chanan, and sent ostensibly to suppress a "Mor mon rebellion* that had no existence except as a popular opinion based on false reports. The expedition met with difficulties on account of the inclement season, and through determined opposition on the part of the Utah settlers to having an armed and hostile force sent against them in time of peace, when, as they claimed, they were guiltless of any overt act against the United States government. A peace commis sion was sent to Utah in 1858 and the people, who had already begun to move away from their homes (which they had prepared to burn it the invading soldiery attempted any depreda tions) were induced to return. Brigham Young, though no longer governor, exercised great in fluence in the Commonwealth. Many mission aries were sent out by the Church and the mem bership increased with great rapidity. Brig ham Young died in 1877 and John Taylor suc ceeded him in the presidency of the Church. Taylor had been with the Smiths at the time of the assassination in Carthage jail and he him self had been shot and dangerously wounded by the mob. John Taylor died in 1887; and, after an interval, Wilford Woodruff became presi dent of the Church. He was a remarkable man, 82 years old when made president, and he retained his physical and mental vigor until his death, which occurred in his 92d year. In 1890 President Woodruff issued his famous manifesto, which placed a definite injunction against plural or polygamous marriage, which practice had been inaugurated under prescribed regulation by Joseph Smith at Nauvoo. In 1896 Utah became a State, and in the following year the 50th anniversary of the entrance of the pio neers into Salt Lake Valley was impressively celebrated. Lorenzo Snow became president of the Church following the death of President Woodruff in 1898. He was in his 85th year at the time and died three years later. He was succeeded by Joseph Fielding Smith, a nephew of Joseph Smith, the martyred prophet, and son of Hyrum Smith, who had met death with his brother Joseph. After an administration covering 17 years and marked by unprecedented expansion in all phases of Church activity, Jo seph F. Smith died on 19 Nov. 1918, a few days after his 80th birthday. On 23 Nov. 1918 Heber J. Grant, the senior member of the apos tolic body, was made president of the Church on the second day of his 63d year.