Over six million Americans are Mormons, and there are more than fifteen million believers worldwide. Joseph Smith is credited with founding the religion in the 19th century. Brigham Young led the church after Smith’s death and was instrumental in its expansion. Both men were larger than life and were also controversial figures.
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith was born in Vermont in 1804. He and his family moved to western New York in 1817. When he was 24, Smith published the “Book of Mormon,” which is the foundation for the religion. It was based on visions Smith had, including those of two people who were presumed to be God and Jesus Christ. Smith is credited with many other writings on topics such as the nature of God, family structure and cosmology. Believers view Smith as a prophet comparable in stature to Moses.
Smith and his followers moved west to Ohio in 1831. They later established an enclave in Missouri. After a series of violent conflicts with non-Mormons, they were expelled from Missouri and relocated to Nauvoo, Illinois in 1839.
Shortly thereafter, Smith obtained a city charter for Nauvoo. By 1844, differences in opinion had developed between Smith and some of his most trusted associates, including disputes over finances and the practice of polygamy, which Smith supported. He excommunicated the dissidents and they formed a competing congregation. The group published articles in an edition of their local newspaper, the Nauvoo Expeditor, which attacked Smith and a number of his beliefs and called for Nauvoo’s city charter to be repealed.
The Nauvoo City Council, which was controlled by Mormons, ordered the Nauvoo Legion to destroy the press to prevent the publication of any more inflammatory articles. Smith supported the action. Ultimately, the governor of Illinois, Thomas Ford, became involved in the dispute and demanded that Smith surrender, which he did. Smith was imprisoned and charged with treason. A mob stormed the jail where he was being held and shot and killed him. Smith was 38 when he died.
Brigham Young
Brigham Young became the president of the Mormon Church several years after Joseph Smith’s death. He decided to relocate followers to Utah due to repeated tension with anti-Mormons. Young founded Salt Lake City and was appointed the governor of the Utah Territory by President Millard Fillmore. As governor and president of the Mormon Church, he oversaw both economic and religious affairs. Credited with helping to establish the American West, Young was responsible for founding many towns throughout Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, southern Colorado and northern Mexico. Mormons built roads, bridges, forts and irrigation systems under his direction. Smith also formed what is now the University of Utah and Brigham Young University.
Young’s tenures as governor and president of the Mormon Church were not without controversy. He was an advocate of polygamy and thought to have as many as 50 wives. Young had a forceful leadership style that conflicted with the views of a number of federal judges in the area. U.S. President James Buchanan decided to supplant him with a non-Mormon governor that he sent to Utah accompanied by U.S. Army troops. Young heard about the plan, sent his own militia to ambush the soldiers, and successfully kept them out of Utah for several months. The federal troops rallied and Smith threatened to burn Salt Lake City and relocate his followers to Mexico. He changed his mind in the end and agreed to step down as governor in 1858. Young then focused his efforts on running the Mormon Church, which he led for another 19 years.
Famous Mormons
- Mitt Romney
Former Republican nominee for President of the United States
- Harry Reid
U.S. Senator from Nevada and Senate minority leader
- Marie Osmond
Singer, actress and member of the Osmond show business family
- Stephenie Meyer
Author of the blockbuster “Twilight” series
The Mormon Church has a complex and colorful history with Joseph Smith and Brigham Young as founding fathers.