“Full of Courage”

89

“Full of Courage”Thomas L. Kane, the Utah War, and BYU’s Kane Collection as Lodestone

William P. MacKinnon

This young man KANE . . . now gratuitously and voluntarily asks tobe heard by the present Administration before his bosom friend, andmild,meek,andhumbleChristiancompanionBRIGHAMYOUNGisremovedfromtheofficeofGovernorofUtah....AssoonashelecturesthePresidentonhisdutiesonMormonism,Imayrefertohimagain,buttrustthenecessitywillnotexist.

—“Verastus”toEditor,New York Daily Times,May24,18571

Col.Kanefromhis longassociationwiththatpeople,hasmuchinflu-encewiththeMormons,andespeciallywiththeirchief.HethinkshecandomuchtoaccomplishanamicablepeacebetweenthemandtheUnitedStates....Heisfullofcourage,andifhisjudgmentiscorrect,hemaybeabletoavertawarofexterminationagainstapoordeludedrace.

—JamesC.Van DyketoPresidentJamesBuchanan,December9,18572

IamherenotonlybecauseofmyinterestintheThomasL.KanepapersbutalsooutofrespectandaffectionforDavidJ.Whittaker.AstheCura-

torofNineteenth-CenturyWesternandMormonAmericana,Whittakerhas not only acquired and organized one of the great concentrations ofmaterialsbearingonthissubject,hehaspublishedathree-volumeregisterof these Kane materials that is itself a remarkable scholarly work.3 Thisstudyisacollector’s item,andafterahalf-centuryofresearchandwrit-inginthisfield,IthinkIknowamasterofhisdisciplinewhenIseeone.4Accordingly, IcongratulatebothBYUand itsHaroldB.LeeLibrary forsupportingnotonlyWhittakerbutalsohiseffortstoacquireoutstandingsourcematerials.

Foracomprehensiveunderstandingofthecomplicated—evendaunt-ing—subject of Thomas L. Kane’s Utah War involvement, one needs to

90 v Colonel Thomas L. Kane and the Mormons

plunge into theworkofKane’sfirstbiographer,AlbertL.Zobell Jr.; theUtahWaranalysesofmyformercollaborator,thelateRichardD.Poll;myownbooktitledAt Sword’s Point;and,aboveallelse,MatthewJ.Grow’ssplendidnewbiography,“Liberty to the Downtrodden.”5

This article, however, is not meant to be a complete explication ofKane’s Utah War involvement but rather has a more limited focus. InadditiontohonoringDavidWhittakerandrememberingThomasL.Kane,I willexplorethesignificanceofKane’sroleinhelpingtoresolvepeacefullytheUtahWarof1857–58byexploringfivequestions:

•WhatwastheUtahWar?•WhenandhowdidThomasL.Kanebecomeinvolvedinit?•Whatwerehismotives?•WasKaneaLatter-daySaint?•Whatwasthesignificanceofhisefforts?Indealingwiththesefivequestions,IwilldiscusstheKanecollection

atBrighamYoungUniversityandshowhowitisanindispensabletoolforpursuing this subject. I view this collectionnotonlyas theEldoradoofKaneprimarysources,butalsoasasortofbasiccompassessentialtonavi-gatingKane’sverycomplexpsycheashe,inturn,maneuveredthroughamurkyandstillpoorlyunderstoodfederal-territorialconflict.

The Utah War: What Was It?

Inone sense, theUtahWarwasPresident JamesBuchanan’s (fig. 1)1857efforttoreplaceBrighamYoungasgovernorofUtahTerritoryandtoinstallhissuccessorwithanarmyescortoftwenty-fivehundredtroops.6ItwasachangethatYoungresistedwithguerrillatacticsuntilacontroversialbutpeacefulsettlementwasreachedayearlater,largelythroughtheunof-ficialmediatingeffortsofThomasL.Kane,whoshuttledbetweenSaltLakeCityandFortBridgerforthatpurpose.

ThewardidnotjustwellupsoonafterPresidentBuchanan’sinaugu-rationbecauseofasinglecriticalincident.Instead,theconfrontationwasnearlytenyearsinthemaking,withMormon-federalrelations—alreadypoorinMissouriandIllinoisbeforethe1847arrivalofMormonsintheSaltLakeValley—steadilydeterioratingimmediatelythereafter.ByBuchanan’sinaugurationonMarch4,1857,virtuallyeveryinterfacebetweentheter-ritorialandfederalgovernmentshadbecomeabattleground.

Therewereconflictsovertheselectionandperformanceofmailcon-tractors; relations with Utah’s Indian tribes; matters of land ownershipand theaccuracyof federal surveys;financial stewardshipofcongressio-nal appropriations for the territory; the administration of Utah’s federalcourts and criminal justice system; and, perhaps most important, thebackground, competence, and behavior of appointees to federal office

V 91Thomas L. Kane and the Utah War

in Utah. In addition to these adminis-trative pinch points, there were highlypublic,event-drivenupsetsoverthe1852polygamy announcement; the uneventreatment of emigrants passing throughUtah to the Pacific Coast; responsibil-ityforaseriesofuninvestigated,unpros-ecuted murders; repeated congressionalrejectionofstatehoodforDeseret;andarelated controversy over whether YoungwasseekingMormonindependenceout-sidetheUnion.

Attheheartoftheseclasheswasthedisconnectimplicitinconflictingphilos-ophies of governance: Young’s vision ofUtahasamillenniallyorientedtheocracyoperatingunderhisautocraticleadership;and the U.S. government’s view of Utahas a federal territory functioning underrepublican principles as a congressionalward through a federally sworn gover-nor.WhatGovernorYoungperceivedasaformofintolerablecolonialism,thefed-

eralestablishmentviewedasthenormalpathtostatehoodestablishedbytheNorthwestOrdinanceof1787.7

Inasense,theconflictwasthearmedconfrontationoverpowerandauthority during 1857–58 between the civil-religious leadership of UtahTerritory,ledbyGovernorYoung,andthefederalleadershipofPresidentJamesBuchanan—acontestthatpittedperhapsthenation’slargest,mostexperiencedterritorialmilitia(NauvooLegion)againstanexpeditionaryforcethatultimatelygrewtoinvolvealmostone-thirdoftheU.S.Army.Itwasthenation’smostextensiveandexpensivemilitaryundertakingdur-ingtheperiodbetweentheMexicanandCivilwars.Inmyview,itwasnotareligiouscrusadeagainstMormonismtoeradicatepolygamy,aneffortthatcameonlyaftertheCivilWar.8NeitherwasitacampaigntosuppressaMormon“rebellion,”atermthatBuchananusedwarilyasdoI,althoughatthepointinfall1857whenGovernorYoungdeclaredmartiallaw,forbadefree travelwithinandacrossUtah(fig.2),and issuedorders tokillU.S.Armyofficersandtheirmountaineerguides,itbecomesmoredifficulttoavoidthe“R”word.

When I entered this field of study in 1958, I used the term “UtahExpedition”fornotonlytheUnitedStatesArmybrigadecommandedby

Fig. 1. James Buchanan, c. 1857.FifteenthpresidentoftheUnitedStates, Buchanan squared offagainst Brigham Young dur-ing the Utah War. Library ofCongress.

Fig. 2.ProclamationbytheGovernor,September15,1857.AstheU.S.ArmyapproachedUtah’snortheastern frontier,Governor Brigham Youngproclaimedmartial law, forbid-ding entrance to Utah without permission from him or other territorial officers. Thisextraordinarydecree,aimedatthearmy’sUtahExpedition,shockedthecountryandsoonresultedinYoung’sindictmentfortreasonbyafederalgrandjuryatFortBridger(droppedwithouttrialin1859).L.TomPerrySpecialCollections, HaroldB.LeeLibrary,BrighamYoungUniversity.


AlbertSidneyJohnston(fig.3)butalso for the broader conflict itself.DecadeslaterprofessorRichardD.Pollledmetounderstandthatthelabel Utah Expedition overlooksthefactthattherewasalargegroupofpeopleengagedontheothersidewho had nothing to do with thearmy, specifically Utah Territory’sMormon population. Since then Ihave used the term “Utah War,”and have reserved “Utah Expedi-tion”solelyfortheuniformedfed-eralsandcampfollowersinvolved.

Theflipsideofthisparochial-ismistheterm“Johnston’sArmy,”anethnocentriclabelusedinUtahand few other places. To me it isanunderstandablebutunfortunateterm that trivializes the war bypersonalizingit inmuchthesamewaythat“Seward’sFolly”wasonceused to ridicule the federal gov-ernment’spurchaseofAlaska.9Thetermisespecially inappropriate inmyviewsinceJohnstonwasnottheexpedition’sinitialcommanderand,onceappointed, therewereeffortson twooccasions to supersedehim.10IwassurprisedtolearnthroughresearcherArdisParshallthatthewar’sparticipants did not even use the term Johnston’s Army. The label tookrootinMormonUtahonlydecadeslaterforpoliticalandculturalreasons,andtheterm“Buchanan’sBlunder”alsocameintovogue.11ElderBoydK.PackerusedthelatterlabelatthesemiannualgeneralconferenceinOcto-ber2008,sooldwaysaresometimesenduring.12

While on the subject of terminology, I would note that within theinstitutional army there is an aversion to using the term “war” for thisconflict.Themilitarypreferstocall itacampaignoranexpedition.Thearmy’s logic is that therewasneitheracongressionaldeclarationofwarnorpitchedbattlesbetweenmassedtroopsandwholesalebloodlettingonthescaleofCivilWarbattles.Quitetrue,butIcontinuetothinkthat“war”is anappropriate, common-sense term—aswith thewaywediscuss the“IndianWars.”Consider thefollowingpoints: (1) foryearsCampFloyd,Utah,nearSaltLakeCity,wasthenation’slargestarmygarrison;(2)theconfrontationwassocostlythatitvirtuallybankruptedtheU.S.Treasury

Fig. 3. Albert Sidney Johnston, com-mander of the U.S. Army’s UtahExpedition. Johnston was a key figureduringKane’sinvolvementinthisarmedMormon-federal confrontation. In themidstofthecampaign,Johnstonwaspro-moted from colonel to brevet brigadiergeneral. He died at the battle of ShilohinApril1862astheConfederacy’sseniorgeneralinthefield.LibraryofCongress.


and devastated Utah’s economy;(3) theconflict’sfinancingforcedtheresignation of the secretary of war,JohnB.Floyd(fig.4);(4)thecitizens’move south—an effort to flee theapproachingarmy—putthirtythou-sandMormonrefugeesontheroadfrom northern Utah to Provo andperhapsbeyond;(5) BrighamYoungand scores of others were indictedbya federalgrandjuryfortreason;and (6) the Mountain Meadowsmassacrealone,theconflict’sgreat-est atrocity, was one of the worstincidents of organized mass mur-deragainstunarmedciviliansinthenation’shistory.Forme“UtahWar”isanappropriateterm.

Kane’s Involvement: When and How?

My guess is that most peoplewhoareawareofThomasL.Kane’sfamousUtahWarinvolvementthinkofthisasanactivitythatbeganmid-waythroughtheconflictwithhisJanuary4,1858,departurefromPhiladel-phiaforSaltLakeCityviaPanamaandCalifornia.How,aswellaswhen,allthiscameaboutisnotwellunderstood.ThefactisthatKaneenteredthe picture in March 1857 even before the conflict started. He did so inresponsetoaletterwrittenbyYoungonJanuary7,1857,askingforhishelpinlobbyingtheincomingpresidentwhosenameYounghadjustlearnedafter a two-month postelection communications lag. Young wanted toensurethathekepthisgubernatorialappointment,thetermofwhichhadexpiredin1854.13

AfterreadingRichardE.Bennett’sarticle,readersmightnotfindthisrequestbyYoungastrangeoneinviewofKane’searliersubstantialservicetotheChurch,especially throughhis1846triptoIowaand1850 lectureonMormonisminPhiladelphia.But,surprisingly,therearetelltalesignsthatMessrs.YoungandKanehadnotcommunicatedwithoneanotherforquitesometime—perhapsaslongasayearormore.14Younghadbeenbusywith,ifnotdistractedby,ahostofchurch,political,andmedicalproblems.Kane,inturn,hadbeenpreoccupiedwithillnessaswellasdauntingper-sonalandfamilyresponsibilities—eventragedies.15

Fig. 4.SecretaryofWarJohnB.Floyd.Floyd resigned from Buchanan’s cabi-net in December 1860 for Utah Warfinancial irregularities, an imbrogliothat resulted in his indictment (laterquashed) formalfeasance inoffice.Hesubsequently became an unsuccess-ful Confederate brigadier. Library ofCongress.


WhatdroveYoungtoreestablishcontactwithKanebyletterinearlyJanuary 1857 were two factors: the realization that his hold on Utah’sgovernorship was extremely precarious, given President Pierce’s refusaltoreappointhim;andtheimminentinaugurationofPierce’ssuccessor—Buchanan—would undoubtedly churn the federal patronage, includingthepositionsofterritorialappointees.WiththeMarch4inaugurationfastapproachingandseveretimelagsinwintermailservicebetweenSaltLakeCityandtheAtlanticCoast,Youngrealizedthathehadaverynarrowwin-dow of opportunity during which to influence the incoming president’sappointmentdecisions.ToKanehewrote:

AgaindoIventuretobreakthesilenceofinterveningmonths,anddrawuponyourtimeandperhapspatiencelongenoughtoreadalineortwofromyourold friend.Well,we in themountainsarestillalive. . . . Inregardtoothermatters,throughtheProvidenceofGodanddoubtlesstheinfluenceandfavorofkind friendsIamstillGovernorofUtah.Inthis I shall ever appreciate the kindness of Col. Kane and shall holdmyselfinreadinesstoreciprocatewheneveropportunityshalloccur.16

Young closed this long letter with another, even more convolutedsummationabouthisgubernatorialrole,“Wethusrecommendourselvestoyouhonestlybelievingthatweareaswillingtoserveourcountry(thispart of it) as we are to have anybody else to serve it for us, and betteracquaintedwiththemeritsandconditionsofthepeople,bettercapableofdoing itcorrectly.”17OnJanuary31,concernedthatweathermightdelaythisletter’seastboundpassage,ananxiousYoungwroteafollow-upmes-sagetoKane.Youngcommented,“WearesatisfiedwiththeappointmentofBuchananasfuturepresident,webelievehewillbeafriendtothegood,Pres.Fillmorewasourfriend,butBuchananwillnotbeawhitbehind.”18

WhenhereceivedYoung’sfirstletterinlateMarch,Kaneswungintoaction,doing soata timewhen thenewpresidentandhis cabinetwereexhaustedandbeleaguered—workingfeverishlynightanddaytofillthou-sandsoffederalappointmentsrangingfromthoseforcountrypostmastersto territorial governors. Kane’s first overture came through a March 21letter to Buchanan pleading that he retain Young as Utah’s governor.Kane proposed that Buchanan do so not by reappointing him—an actthatwouldhavetriggeredacontroversialconfirmationprocessintheU.S.Senate—butratherbythetechnicalgambitoftakingnoactiontoremoveorreplacehim.19OnApril1,oneofYoung’sagentsinNewYorkreportedtohim,

I had a long talk with Col. Kane yesterday; he informed me that hereceivedaletterfromyouashorttimesince.HehaswrittentothePresi-dentandalsotoJudgeBlackAttorneyGeneraloftheU.S.inrelationtoUtah,andthe[negative]reports,urgingyourreappointment,howit willterminate [turn out] he says he cannot at present determine, but he


will dohisbest,andusehisutmostendeavorsandinfluenceforyouandtheWelfareofUtah.Hisfeelingsaregood.20

TwoweekslaterElderJohnTaylor,alsoinNewYork,addedthefol-lowingnews:

Col.Kanehasbeenusingallhisinfluencewiththeadministration;heisatruefriend.InaninterviewthatIhadwithhimlately,heinformedmethathehadreceivedaletterfromyou&wasdesiroustocarryoutyourrequestasfaraspossible,hedidnotthinkitprudent,howevertorecom-mendall[yournominees];butseemedmoredesiroustofirstsecurethegovernorship.21

KanehimselfreportedtoYoungthat,there exists where there shd. not be a spirit of determined hostilityto your interests. The best thing that can be done at present, as I amadvised,istoobtaindelay—atanyprice.IhaveaccordinglyprocuredaninfluentialfriendtorepresenttoMr.BuchananhowcomplicatedaswellasembarrassingthewholeUtahquestionwastobeconsidered....Thisisaboutthedriftofmyownletter....Mr.Buchananisatimorousman,aswellasjustnowanoverworkedone.22

NotwithstandingKane’supbeatinteractionswithMormonleadersontheAtlanticCoast,hislobbyingeffortsonYoung’sbehalftookplacedur-ingaperiodofgreatpersonalturbulence.KanewasbesetbyacontinuedgriefovertherecentdeathofhisolderbrotherElisha,aninternationallyfamousexplorer;thefinancialandemotioncollapseofhisfather-in-law;his own prolonged illness; and plans for an expedition to the ArcticinspiredbyElishathathisfamilyconsideredandrejectedonMarch27.23Although Thomas was neither the Democratic Party stalwart nor theBuchananintimatethathisfatherwas,theyoungerKanehadgoodreasontoassumethepresidentwouldgivehisletterandoffertovisittheWhiteHousecarefulthoughtasthecabinetfocusedonUtahaffairs.

WhenhisoverturestoWashingtonweremetwithsilence,Kaneinter-pretedthisasanembarrassing,offensiverebuffcompoundedbywhatheperceivedasindiscreethandlingofhiscorrespondencebytheadministra-tion.Thelatterresultedinhumiliatingpublicridiculebythevenomous,debauchedJudgeW.W.DrummondthroughpseudonymouslettersaboutKanewrittentovariousnewspapers.Afterattemptingtobuildabackfireagainst Drummond by collecting and forwarding to the administrationmaterial damaging to the judge’s reputation collected by Elders JohnTaylorandGeorgeA.Smith,KanenotifiedBrighamYoungofthefailuretoinfluenceBuchanan.24KanethenwithdrewfromMormonaffairs,andretreated with his family from Philadelphia to Pennsylvania’s moun-tains.WhatKaneandYoungdidnotknowwasthatonMarch19and 20


Buchanan and his cabinet hadalreadyreceivedthreenewbatchesofmaterialsfromUtahthat—trueor not—destroyed any remain-ing vestiges of Young’s politicalviability. These were inputs thatone Buchanan cabinet secretaryinformed Utah Territorial Dele-gateJohnM.Bernhiselwereinter-preted as a Mormon “declarationof war.” What followed in shortorder was the administration’sdecisiontoappointanewgovernorandtoprovidehimwithsomesortofsubstantialmilitaryescort.25

In May, a few weeks beforeGeneral Winfield Scott (fig. 5)issued orders to the army launch-ing the Utah Expedition, KanereceivedYoung’ssecondletter—theonewrittenat theendof January.OnMay21,inwhatalmostsoundslikeavaledictory letter,he repliedtoYounginfatalisticfashion:

I am still without good news tocommunicate. We can place noreliance upon the President: hesuccumbs inmore respects thanone tooutsidepressure.Youcan seefromthepapershowclamorousitisforinterferencewithUtahaffairs.NowMr.BuchananhasnotheartenoughtosavehisfriendsfrombeingthrownovertostopthemouthsofapackofYankeeeditors....Ithankyou for writing to me. I am growing old enough to prize the friendswhomTimehasleftme....Yetthiswriting,myfriendYoung;—doesitkeepdownthemilesofwastewhichseemtobegrowingupbetweenuseveryyear?IwishIhadyourhandtograsp.Iwritemyself,anditseemsbutform.26

Several years later, after Kane had criticized Bernhisel for alsowithdrawing from Washington during spring 1857—thereby creating alamentablevacuuminMormonlobbyingcapabilitiesatacrucialtime27—Bernhisel countered with a polite criticism of his own communicatedtooneofBuchanan’sclosestpolitical confidantes.Thatadvisor, in turn,reportedBernhisel’scommentstoKane:

Fig. 5.BrevetLieutenantGeneralWin-field Scott, the army’s general in chiefat mid-century. In 1857 he unsuccess-fullyopposedamoveonUtahuntil1858andwasunawareofKane’sinvolvementuntilreportsfromFortBridgerreachedhim in early summer 1858. From the1862classalbum,UnitedStatesMilitaryAcademyLibrary,WestPoint.


[He] expressed great regret that you had not thought of going out [toUtah]atanearlierdate;andhehadnodoubtthathadyougonethereduringthelatterpartofthesummer[of1857]andgiventhemassurancesoftheprosecutionofoffendersandofthepardonfromthePresidentofsuch persons as they might desire, his belief was that you could haveexertedapowerfulinfluenceinpersuadinghispeopletoreturntotheirallegiancetotheU.S.28

This, then,washowKanefirst came tobecome involvedwithwhatsoon unfolded as the Utah War. This is not the place to describe theequally complex story of how Kane spent summer 1857, how and whyYoungreachedouttohimagaininAugustandSeptember1857,andhowKaneultimatelyreturnedtothefrayofMormonaffairswithtwotripstotheWhiteHouseonNovember10andDecember26,1857,thegenesisofhis1858mediatingmissiontoUtah.29Itisrelevant,though,toplumbthedepthsofhismotivationsinundertakingsuchatask.

Kane’s Motives: The “Why” Question

Why,attheendofDecember1857,wouldKanereturnfromtheWhiteHousetoPhiladelphia,quithisjobasclerkofhisfather’sU.S.districtcourt,and—totheaccompanimentofJudgeKane’sdisapprovalandpredictionsoffailure—convincehiswifeofhisneedtohurryoffatagethirty-fiveinthedeadofwintertoUtahinpursuitofadangeroushumanitarianmissionofuncertaincharacterand indeterminate lengthamongapeoplewhosereligionhedidnotshare?AllthiswastobedonewhileleavingElizabethandtheirtwochildrenasvirtuallydestituteboardersinhisparents’home.Inhisessay,RichardBennettdescribesthemotivationsbehindThomas’ssomewhatsimilar 1846visit to themigratingMormons inwesternIowaand the reasons for his attachment to the Mormons in terms of suchdriversasempathyforandbondingwithasickly,beleagueredpeople.IdonotchallengetheaccuracyofanyoftheseearlyfactorsintherelationshipKanehadwith theMormonsbutwouldaddthat in1846KanewasalsostronglyinterestedinthefancifulpossibilitythatifhereachedthePacificCoastwithYoung’spioneerparty,hemightsomehowbecomegovernorofCalifornia.BeforereachingIowa,Kanehadwrittentoabrother:

Atonetimeorotheragovernmentrepresentativemaybewanting[inCalifornia].WhosofitforoneasI?—aboveallifonthejourneyIshallhave ingratiated myself with the disaffected Mormon army before itdescends upon the plains—and according to the promptings of occa-sion,beorbenotthefirstGovernorofthenewterritoryofCalifornia.30

If one accepts the assumption that most of these same motivationswerestillpresent inKane’smindduring late 1857, it is important toask


whethertherewereanyotherfactorsinfluencinghisdecisiontointerveneinUtah. Inmyview therewere severalnewdrivers tobeconsidered inassessingKane’sUtahWarrole.

ChiefamongthesefactorswasthedevastatingimpactofElishaKentKane’s death in February 1857 during a fruitless attempt to recover hislong-deteriorating health in Havana. Thomas was in Cuba with Elishaduringhisbrother’sfinalillness—theverytimewhenBrighamYoungwasreachingouttohim.HeaccompaniedthebodyhometoPhiladelphiaandimmediatelyplungedintonotonlydeepgriefbutalsothecomplexroleofElisha’slegalandliteraryexecutoraswellasthekeeperofhisreputationalflame. Because of Elisha’s notoriety as a naval surgeon, Arctic explorer,would-be rescuer of Sir John Franklin’s fatal British expedition to thatregion,andbest-sellingauthor,hisfuneralcortegethroughNewOrleans,Louisville, Cincinnati, Pittsburg, and other cities produced an eventunmatchedinAmericanmourningduringtheperiodbetweenthe funer-alsofPresidentsWashingtonandLincoln.31Thisexampleand theknowl-edgethatduringtheMexicanWarElishahadundertakenaconfidential,dangerous government mission to carry dispatches to General WinfieldScottinthefieldashehaddoneearlierinadiplomaticmissiontoChina,provided a powerful motivator for Thomas to emulate, if not match,his brother’s accomplishments. Hence Thomas’s quixotic, unsuccessfulattempttomountanArcticexpeditionofhisownduringlateMarch1857,shortlyafterElisha’sdeathandonlyafewweeksafterhisMarch12burialandThomas’sMarch21letteronbehalfofYoungtoBuchanan.Bytheendof theyear, theprospectof substantialbloodshed inUtahprovidedstillanother opportunity for a dramatic adventure—one made all the morecompelling,ifnotappealing,bythedauntingnatureandthebluntskepti-cismofhisprominent,overshadowingfather.32

Having at least introduced the subject of Thomas L. Kane’s famousolderbrotherandwidelyrespectedfather,Iamnotgoingtowadedeeperintothemurkydiagnosticwatersofpsychohistory.WhatIcando,though,isdiscussKane’smediatingmissiontoUtahintermsoftheobservationsofthoseincloseproximitytohimaswellashisownexplanation.

Inthatconnection,itisimportanttounderstandthatonDecember 9,1857, James C. Van Dyke, the president’s shadowy political confidante,wrotetoBuchanantobriefhimonKane’smoodandthinking.ThistookplacesoonafternewsoftheNauvooLegion’ssuccessfulraidontheUtahExpedition’ssupplytrainsreachedWashingtonandthedayafterthepresi-dentsenthisfirstannualmessagetoCongress,butbeforeKane’sfatefulChristmasvisittotheWhiteHouse.AlthoughatapproximatelythesametimeterritorialdelegateBernhiselhaddescribedvisitingKaneina“sick


room” in which he was beset by personal “anxieties and troubles,” VanDykereportedadifferentviewtoBuchanan:

Col.Kanefromhis longassociationwiththatpeople,hasmuchinflu-encewiththeMormons,andespeciallywiththeirchief.HethinkshecandomuchtoaccomplishanamicablepeacebetweenthemandtheUnited States. He is willing to make an expedition to Salt Lake thiswinter,evenathisownexpense,ifhostilitieshavenotadvancedtosuchapointaswouldrenderuselessanyeffortsonhispart.Hehasconversedwithmemuch,onthissubject,andmyconclusionfromallhehassaidhasbeen,thatitwouldnotbeanunprofitablethingifyouwouldhaveaconsultationwithhim,andhearhisviews....Heisfullofcourage,andifhisjudgmentiscorrect,hemaybeabletoavertawarofexterminationagainstapoordeludedrace.33

Buchanan,ofcourse,didmeetwithKaneonDecember26,andKanelaterrecordedthathehadexplainedhismotivationstothePresidentbysaying,“IwillnotbeadisappointedmanunlessIfailtoprovemyself.”34AsKanewasconfidingthisdrivertoBuchanan,Kane’swiferecordedinherdiarythenewsthat,

Godhasmercifullybroughtoutofthem[ouradversities]onegreatbless-ingalready,inunitingTomandmeinthebondsofacommon[Chris-tian]faith.TomthinkshemaybeofservicetoHimbybringingaboutapeacebetweenUtah&theU.S.andwenttoWashingtonlastnighttoseethePresidentaboutit.MayGodgivehimwisdomtodoright,andmayHispeacebewithhim.Andoh,mayHeguidePapa.35

AfterhereturnedfromUtahinJune1858,Kanetoldterritorialdele-gate Bernhisel that “he would have the world know that he m[a]de hisjourneyathisownexpense,intheinterestofthewholeUnitedStates,andofhumanityaswellasthefriendshelovesinUtah.”36

Thelongest,mostinterestingassessmentofThomasL.Kane’smotivescame fromhisyoungerbrother, John,whowas studying inParis at thetimeofThomas’sdecisiontogotoUtah.OnJanuary21,1858,withaware-nessthathisolderbrotherhadindeedleftfortheWest,Johnwrotetohissiblingsandparents:

I am glad the family did not make him unhappy by useless remon-strances...[andunlikefather]Iammoreovernotsosureofanunsuc-cessfulterminationtotheaffair.IhavegreatconfidenceinTom’slongheadandunboundedenergyandhoweverimpossibleathingmayseemIregardthefactofTom’shavingundertakenitasmorethanhalfasuc-cess.ThentoowhenIreflectthatTomisneversowellaswhenexposedtowhatwouldkillmostmenofhisbuild,andthathardlifeinopenair(nomatterhowhard)alwaysagreeswithhimbetterthanthemosttran-quilofsedentaryexistence....AthomeTom’sbigsoulwaspreyingonhisbody.ThelossofdearElish.andthecrushingblowwhichthisfinan-


cialcrisisgavetohishopesoforganizinganew[Arctic]expeditionwerekillinghimbyinches.Heistoogreatamantooccupyhimselfwithtri-fles....NowhehasgotanobjectlargeenoughandnobleenoughtodrawhisthoughtsawayfromthepoorselfonwhichtheywerefadingandIcant help hoping that his physical man will improve in consequence.Howeverbetheresultofwhatitmaytheobjectisgrandand nobleanddoeshimandthefamilyhonorandIforonesayGodblessandspeedhimwithallmyheart.37

Suchwasthecombinationofdriversthatpropelledasickly,overshad-owed,ambitious,restless,andreligiouslystrugglingThomasL.KanefromthecomfortsandboredomofPhiladelphiatothewildernessperilsoftheAmericanWest.Herewasanunconventionalmissiononbehalfofabelea-guered Mormon people whom both President Buchanan and territorialdelegateBernhiselfearedmightkillKaneinsouthernUtah,sceneoftheMountainMeadowsmassacrelessthanthreemonthsearlier.38

Was Kane a Latter-day Saint?

In spring 1858, when it became known on the Atlantic Coast thatThomasKanewasinUtahandsomehowengagedinthewar,therewasagreatdealofspeculationastowhetherthisunclearinvolvementstemmedfrom membership in the Latter-day Saint church. Was Thomas a closetSaint? Many newspaper commentators as well as troops at Fort Bridgerthought so, but the fact is that he was not. The clearest, most conciseassessmentof thatquestionappears inanarticlebyDavidJ.Whittaker.Heexplainsthat,althoughThomashadbeenbaptizedin1846forhealthwhilevisitingtheMormonsinIowa,thiswasnotareligiouscommitmentoraffiliation—justanactofmercyextendedtowhatappearedtohavebeenavisitordyingofmalaria.AsWhittakeralsonotes,ElizabethKane’sdiaryatBYUmakesclear that the relevantquestion for theUtahWarperiodwasnotwhetherThomaswasaMormonbutratherwhetherhewasevenaChristian.39

Inhisessay,RichardBennettcomments thatat the timeofThomasKane’s 1846 mission to Iowa “he embraced no one particular Christianfaith.” Twelve years later, just before Kane was to leave Utah to returnhome, Brigham Young made a highly tactful attempt to invite Kane toinvestigateMormonism(fig.6)bywriting,“Foryourowneye”:

Though our acquaintance from its commencement, which nowdates from many years past, has ever been marked by that frankinterchangeofviewsand feelingswhich shouldever characterize thecommunications of those who have the welfare of mankind at heart,irrespectiveofsectorparty,asIamwellassuredbyalongandintimate

Fig. 6. Letter from Brigham Young to Thomas L. Kane, May 8, 1858. During Kane’sinvolvementasamediatorbetweentheMormonsandthefederalgovernmentfollowingtheUtahWar,therewasmuchspeculationaboutwhetherKanehadbeensecretlybap-tizedasaMormon.Inthisletter,YounginvitedKanetolearnmoreaboutthebeliefsanddoctrinesofthepeopleKanehadsoardentlydefended,somethingYoungwouldnothavedoneifKanehadalreadybeenbaptized.L.TomPerrySpecialCollections,HaroldB.LeeLibrary,BrighamYoungUniversity.


acquaintance,isafeelingsignallysharedbyyourselfincommonwithyourbestfriends;yet,sofarasIcancalltomind,Idonotremembertohaveever,eitherincorrespondence,orinfamiliarconversation,except,perhaps,byacasualandunpursuedremark,alludedtomattersofreli-gious belief, as entertained by myself and others who are commonlycalled“Mormons”;nordoIrememberthatyouhaveeveroversteppedthemostguardedreserveonthissubject inallyourcommunicationswithme.Soinvariablyandpersistentlyhasthispeculiaritymarkedourfriendlyandfreeinterchangeofviewsuponpolicyandgeneraltopics,thatIhaveattimesimagined,andstillampronetoimagine,thatyouare more or less inclined to scepticism even upon many points com-monlyreceivedbythereligiousworld. ThefaithembracedbytheLatterDaySaintsissonaturallyphilo-sophical, and so consistent with and enforcive of every valuable andtrueprinciplethatshouldgovernineverydepartmentoflife,thatIamstrongly of opinion that a plain, candid exposition of the faith of theeverlastinggospel,whichIhavesomuchatheart,cannot,probably,failtoatleastinterestapersonofyourreflectiveturnofmind.Suchbeingmyconviction,yourpermissiontometoconversefamiliarlywithyouuponasubjectofsomuchimport,previoustoyourdepartureforyourhome,ortowritetoyouuponyourreturntothesocietyofyourfamilyandfriends,willconferahighlyesteemedfavorupon,[me].

MatthewJ.Grow,Kane’slatestbiographer,arguesthat“KanerejectedYoung’sovertures;forhimMormonismwouldalwaysremainintherealmofreformnotpersonalbelief.”40

While Kane was in Utah, even President Buchanan waded into thefrayofcontroversyoverThomas’sreligiousaffiliation,doingso,inhistypi-calindirectfashion,throughhisparty’spoliticalorgan,theWashington, D.C.,Union.OnMay20or21,1858,Kane’sbrotherPatvisitedthepresidentto complain of the Union’s lack of support for Thomas’s humanitarianmissiontoUtah.ElizabethKanerecordedthatatthatsessionBuchanan“withhisownhandwroteanoticetotheUnion,sayingthatTomwasnoMormon,butaworthybrotherofElisha’s,anobleenterprise—etc.etc.”AnunsignededitorialinthesewordsappearedintheUnion’sMay21issue.41

Kane arrived home on June 19, 1858, and, before departing forWashingtontwodays later toseeBuchanan,hedevastatedElizabethbyannouncingthathehadlostthenewfoundreligiouscommitmentthathadsoenrapturedheratthetimeofhisdeparturesixmonthsearlier.Inherjournalsherecorded:

TomandIhadagooddealoftalktogether.Isaidinmydiarythat“Iwasso happy and unhappy”. What made me unhappy was this. Tom toldme thefirstmomentwewerealone, likemydearhonestdarling, thatthehopethathaddawnedonhimofbeingaChristianwasgone.—NowwhatdistressesmeisnotthesametroubleasIusedtohave,becauseIam


sureitisonlyacloudveilingthesun.Iknowthatmyprayerswon’tfalltotheground,IknowthathewillbeaChristian,andifIexultedintheanswertomyprayertoosoon,Icanwaitpatiently.Lateorsoonitshallbeanswered.Notallthemenonearth,norallthefiendsinhellcouldpersuademeagainstChrist’swords“Askandyeshallreceive”.IknowthatIaskaprayerthatisarightone,andtheanswerIwillhave.TrueitisthatforsixyearsIhaveprayeddailyforthisonething,butsometimesithasbeenmorehabit,not always the “strong crying and tears”withwhich I prayed last night. I need no special revelation, no messengerfromheaventotellmewhatIfeelinthedepthofmysoulthatmySaviorhears,andismyadvocate.Iknowmyprayerwillbegranted.Mygriefisthattheonlycomfortinhistroubleisnothisnow.Allmylettersdweltonthatcomfort.Whatcanhedo?AndhowharditwillbetoshutupinmyownbreastagainallthesympathiesthatwentouttomybrotherChristian.Hewassomuchnearerme!Idon’tknowhowtotalktohim,formythoughtshavesomouldedthemselvesaroundthathopethatI–OhdearpoorTom!IthinkImustnotshowyoumydiary.Itwouldpainyounow.IamgladIdidnotknowhehadlosthisstafftillnow.Icouldnothavebornehisabsence.42

In1859, JamesC.VanDyke,Buchanan’spoliticaladvisor, related toKane a conversation he had with Delegate Bernhisel during Kane’s lateDecember1857visittotheWhiteHouse:

His[Bernhisel’s]remarksuponyourinfluencewiththeMormonsweresopointedan[d]decidedthatIfeltsomecuriositytoknowhowitwasthat you had ingratiated yourself into the affections of this strangepeople.Iremarkedtohim,“HowisitthatCol.Kanehassuchinfluencewith your people?” I said jocosely, “He is no Mormon, and does not,I believe,approveof thosepeculiarities in theirreligionwhichappeartobetheprincipalobstacletoacordialaffiliationbetweenyouandtherestoftheU.S.”Hesaid,“Ohno!heisnoMormon,andoflateyearshastreatedusverycoldly;wethinkonaccountofourreligionwhichweallverymuchregret;butourfriendshipforandconfidenceinhimisofadifferentnature.”43

Kane’s Mediating Mission: Significance and Impact

ThelastofmyfivequestionsinvestigatesthesignificanceandimpactofThomasL.Kane’sUtahmission.Diditmakeadifference?Wasitimpor-tant?Atonepoint,soonafterKane’slate-FebruaryarrivalintheSaltLakeValley, Elder George A. Smith wrote to one of the prime movers in theMountain Meadows massacre to describe sarcastically Kane’s plea forMormonleaderstonegotiatewithratherthanfightthearmy:

ItturnsoutthatColTho.Kane’smessageisanunofficialone,hedesigns[intends]ourgood&isawarmfriend,buthewantsustosparethelivesofthepoorsoldierscampingaboutBridger.Mr.Buchananwouldlikeus


tofeedthem,andnotdestroythemuntilhecangetsufficientreinforce-mentstothemtodestroyus?ThisisasnearIcanlearnthedesignofthePresidentoftheUnitedStates.

Smithsummarizedhisassessmentwiththesingleword“Bah!”44

But when the smoke cleared, President Buchanan felt that Kane’sefforthadindeedbeenbeneficial,althoughconsistentwithhisconvolutedstylehecouldbarelybringhimselftosaysopublicly.Attheendof1857,BuchananhadcraftedtwolettersofintroductionforThomasKanetotakewestasanexpressionofgoodwillandameansofintroducinghimtoanyfederalofficerswhomheencountered.GiventhecriticismofhisUtahpol-icythendevelopinginCongress,whatBuchananhadwrittenforThomasin his cautious, lawyerly, and secretive fashion was a model of what intoday’spresidentialpoliticsandintelligenceworkwouldbecalledplausibledeniability.TheletterswereameansofdistancingBuchananfromThomasif his secret mission should become known, controversial, or a failurewhileprovidingsignsthatonatleastapersonalbasishehadwishedKanewell—thin gruel and cold comfort. From the distance of Philadelphia,GeorgePlittandJohnW.Forney—jaundicedformerfriendsofthepresi-dent—andPatKaneimmediatelyrecognizedthelettersassuch.ElizabethKanerecordedtheirreactionsandcommented:“[They]thinkMr.B.hasbehavedbadly.Hisexceedinglynoncommital lettersare, theysay, ‘Buckallover,sothatifMr.K.succeeds,hemayapprovehim,ifhefailsdisavowhim.’”45Whenacontroversyindeedaroseinsummer1858overKane’sroleandauthority,BuchananagainturnedtotheWashingtonUniontomakehiscasewhileprotectinghisanonymity:

Dr.Kane,[was]amereprivatecitizenwithoutpowerorauthorityofanysort....HewasapersonalacquaintanceofthePresidentandpossessedhisesteem,andhence,webelieve,tookwithhimlettersofintroductionto officers of the army from Mr. Buchanan as from an [private] indi-vidual.ButhewentneitherasagentofthePresidentnorasofficerofthegovernment;neitherassecretagentnoraspublicofficer;butsimplyonanindividual,self-imposedmission,asaprivatecitizen,philanthropist,well-wisheroftheMormons,orwhatyouwill.HetooknomessagefromthePresident,otherthanthePresidenthadpubliclyannounced[inhis1857annualmessage],inregardtotheMormons.46

Old Buck’s only recorded public utterance appreciation came in asingle,mutedsentenceburiedinhisDecember1858secondannualmes-sagetoCongress:“Icannot,inthisconnection,refrainfrommentioningthevaluable servicesofColonelThomasL.Kane,who, frommotivesofpurebenevolence,andwithoutanyofficialcharacterorpecuniarycom-pensation,visitedUtahduringthelastinclementwinterforthepurposeofcontributingtothepacificationoftheTerritory.”47


MyviewisthatKane’sinterventionmadeanindispensabledifferencein theoutcomeof thisconfrontationand thatBuchanan,although fun-damentallysilentinpublic,wasvastlyrelieved.AbsentKane’sgratuitousintervention,theresultcouldwellhavebeensubstantialbloodshedbeyondwhathadalreadytakenplaceinUtahduringfall1857—acarnageroughlyequivalent to what prompted for Utah’s eastern neighbor the enduringlabel“BleedingKansas.”48

Although Kane’s March 21 letter to Buchanan and his Novemberand December visits to Washington appeared to have had little or noovertinfluenceonthePresident’sthinking,KanedidhaveanimpactonBrighamYoung’sdecisionmakingatacrucialjunctureinthewar.AtfirstitappearsthatKane’slate-February/early-MarchdiscussionswithYoungandhiscounselors inSaltLakeCitywerefruitless.ElderSmith’s“Bah!”reactionmaynothavebeenuniqueamongtheviewsofseniorMormonleaders.However,asdiscussedbelow,Ibelievethat,beneaththesurface,Kane’sargumentsforapeacefulresolutionofthearmedstandoffpreparedtheway for themarkedchange inYoung’s thenconfrontationalposturethattookplaceimmediatelyafterKaneleftforCampScottonMarch8.49

AsKanewasdepartingSaltLakeCity,exhaustedmessengersarrivedtoinformYoungofasurpriseattackontheChurch’sSalmonRiverMissioninsouthernOregonTerritory(FortLimhi)bytwohundredBannockandNorthernShoshonewarriors.Mormonlosseshadbeentwokilled andfivewounded, togetherwithhundredsofcattleandhorses.Kaneapparentlytooklittlenoteoftheincident,preoccupiedashewaswithhisdepartureonadaunting,lonelytrektoFortBridgeracross113milesofmountainousterraininbadweather.ButYoungunderstoodimmediatelythe implica-tionsofthebadnewsfromFortLimhi.ItmeanthisinabilitytocountonLamanite allies in any coming fight with the Utah Expedition and thelossofsafeaccesstoanorthernescaperoutetoMontana’sBitterrootVal-leyorperhapseventothePacificCoast.Withthenorthclosedtohimbythis catastrophe, the army approaching from his east, California to thewestinflamedovertheMountainMeadowsmassacre,andthearmy’sIvesExpeditionascendingtheColoradoRiverfromthesouth,Youngrealizedhewastrapped.50

Heimmediatelydidtwohighlyunexpectedthings.First,hesentoneofhissonsgallopingeasttointerceptKaneonthetrailtodeliveranoteofferingtodonateorselllargequantitiesofflourtothearmyasagoodwillgesture.51ThenhebegantoconsiderplansforamassMormonexodusfromnorthernUtahthatbyMarch21wouldberefinedintowhatbecameknownas“theMoveSouth.”WithoutKane’sfoundationalargumentsinSaltLakeCityandhisimmediatelysubsequentpresenceonthetrailtoFortBridger,


it isunlikelythatYoungwouldorcouldhaveundertakentosendtheconciliatory flour signal to AlbertSidneyJohnstonashedid.Iwouldargue that there is also a likeli-hoodthatKane’sdeterminationinDecembertobroachthenotionofaMormonexodustoYoungwhenhereachedhiminFebruaryhadareal but unclear influence on thatleader’s March decision to launchtheMoveSouth.52

Even more consequential totheoutcomeofthewarwasKane’spivotal role during April in per-suading Alfred Cumming (fig. 7),Young’s gubernatorial succes-sor, to change his hostile attitudetowardtheMormons.Asaresult,Cumming agreed to Kane’s pro-posal that he travel from FortBridger to Salt Lake City to takeup his office unescorted by thearmy and accompanied only byKaneand twoservants. Itwasahighlysymbolic,unthreateninggesturethatpermittedYoungtoyieldthegovernorshipwithsomesemblanceofdignity while allowing Cumming, in turn, to declare to the Buchananadministration that federal authority had indeed returned peacefully toSaltLakeCity.53

Finally,IwouldnotethatbytravelingtotheWhiteHouseinJune1858whiledeathlyilltobriefBuchananinpersononconditionsinUtahandtodosoevenbeforethepresident’sownofficialpeacecommissionershadreturnedfromtheWest,KaneprovidedBuchananwiththewherewithaltodosomethinghehadcontemplatedforsometime—todeclarevictoryinUtah,haltthemassivemilitaryreinforcementsalreadyonthemarchtotheterritoryfromKansas,andbegintowinddownanenormouslyexpensiveandembarrassingarmedconfrontation.Buchanandeclared“theMormonproblem”hadbeenresolvedtohissatisfaction,apositionthatpermittedhimtoturnattentionfromhisthen-controversialandexpensivemilitaryintervention in Utah to other issues such as statehood for Kansas andIndianconflictsinboththePacificNorthwestandSouthwest.54

Fig. 7. Alfred Cumming, governor ofUtah Territory, 1857–61. Coinciden-tally (and confusingly), Cumming’snephewofthesamenamewasacaptainintheUtahExpedition’s10thInfantry.ChurchHistoryLibrary.


Nooneelsecouldhavedoneallthis,especiallyundersuchdauntingcir-cumstances.Kane’saccomplishmentswerethoseofapersonuniquelywillingtochampiontheMormoncausewithanunmistakableidealismabettedbyahiddenmanipulativenessthatmatchedJamesBuchanan’sownsuchbehavior.AlthoughhedidnotknowthehalfofwhatKanehaddone,itwasaperfor-mancethatpromptedoneNewYorkwarcorrespondenttowriteadispatchfromUtahthat,inturn,promptedhisdistanteditortoarguethatthenationowedasubstantialdebtofgratitudetoalargelyunknownColonelKane:

WearenotyetapprisedoftheprecisenatureandextentofCol.KANE’snegotiationswiththeMormonleaders,buttheywerecertainlyfollowedby an invitation to Governor Cumming to visit Salt Lake City—aninvitationwhichtheGovernorimmediatelyaccepted. . .Withoutdoubtthey[Mormonleaders]havebeengreatlyinfluencedbythecounselsofCol. KANE.

AnothernewspaperdubbedKanethe“PeaceMaker”andattributedtohim“thecloseoftheMormonwar”withenormouscostsavingstothefederalgovernment(fig.8).55

Attheendof1857,BuchananlackedaplanforresolvingtheUtahWarexcept for the application of more force. Small wonder that when KanereturnedinJune1858tomeetforfivedayswithBuchananandhiscabi-net, thepresidentwasvastlyrelievedandgrateful. AsKane laterrelatedthe scene to Elizabeth,upon first seeing him the president immediatelyushered out Pennsylvania’s politically powerful Senator William Bigler,exclaimed“ColonelKane!”andtookhishandwith“effusion.”WhenKaneasked, “Well, Sir, Have I beenas goodas myword?” Buchanangushed,“Better—Morethanasgoodasyourword,”followingwhichKanereported“moreeffusionandwordsofthanks.”56

BYU’s Kane Collection: Observations and Lessons Learned

InthinkingaboutlessonstobelearnedfromBYU’sKanecollection—oratleastthoseIhavederivedfromusingthesematerials—fourprincipalobservationscometomind:

Importance of the Collection.Iwanttore-emphasizetheimportanceof these materials. Although there are ten or more concentrations ofThomas L.Kane’spapersinvariousrepositoriesacrosstheUnitedStates,BYU’s collection is enormously important and clearly the most vital tounderstanding his role in the Utah War. I have found BYU’s holdingsessentialtograspingnotonlycrucialaspectsofwhathappenedbutalsothereasonseventstookplace.

I will mention just one example. Richard Bennett’s article touchedon Thomas’s 1846 Iowa visit in terms of Kane’s illnesses and certain


distinctivebehaviorssuchashisuseoffamilymembersasintermediarieswith the White House; attempted exercise of presidential authority andpower;andextremesecretiveness,includingtheuseofcodesandciphers.TobeawareofthisKaneseanstyleduringtheMexicanWarbringsmean-ingtoitsreappearancetwelveyearslaterintheKanedocumentsgeneratedduringtheUtahWar.Ineffect,allofthispermitshistoriansandbiogra-pherstodiscernadistinctpatternofoperation.

Necessity of Looking beyond Kane’s Papers.MysecondpointisthattounderstandThomas’sroleintheUtahWaritisimportanttoconsultnotonlyhispapersatBYUbutalso those inProvogeneratedbyhis spouseandsiblings.Forexample,Elizabeth’sdiaryisanindispensablesourcebywhichtounderstandthedepthoffamilysacrificesimplicitinKane’straveltoUtah.ItisalsothesolemeansbywhichonecangraspThomas’sfragilereligiosityandthefamily’sdeepambivalenceaboutPresidentBuchanan’sdealingswithhim.57ThomasL.Kane’spapersalonearenotenough;theyarenecessary,butnotsufficient, toprovidearoundedunderstandingoftheman.(WouldthatPresidentBuchananoroneofhiscabinetmembershadkeptadiaryasElizabethKanedid!)

BYU’s Holdings—Only Part of the Puzzle.Insomewhatthesamevein,mythirdpointisthat,asimportantasBYU’sKanecollectionis,research-ersseekingaroundedpictureofthemanandhisUtahinvolvementwillneed toventurebeyond theHaroldB.LeeLibrary.Nosingle repositoryhasholdingssufficientlybroadtopermitafullunderstandingofsuchanextremelycomplexman.Amongthehigh-yieldcollections thatcanandshouldbeconsultedinadditiontoBYU’sarethoseat:

•TheAmericanPhilosophicalSociety(Philadelphia,Penn.)•ChurchHistoryLibrary,TheChurchof JesusChristofLatter-day

Saints(SaltLakeCity,Utah)• Yale’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library (New Haven,

Conn.)• The University of Michigan’s William L. Clements Library (Ann

Arbor,Mich.)•StanfordUniversityLibraries(Stanford,Calif.)•PennsylvaniaStateArchives(Harrisburg,Penn.)•TheHuntingtonLibrary(SanMarino,Calif.)•Privatecollections(variouslocations)Iwillmentionjustoneexampleoftheextenttowhichmaterialstobe

foundoutsideofProvoshedimportantlightonKane.Untilquiterecently,his crucial interactionswithPresidentBuchananduringDecember 1857were almost wholly unknown. Until BYU acquired Elizabeth’s diary,historianswerenotsureofhowandwhentheytookplaceandcertainlywere unaware of what Kane told his family upon returning home from

“To Col. Thomas L. Kane”

MuchHonor’dSir, I’dfainaddressmypenToyou,aloverofyourfellowmen.Idarepresume;butbegyou’llpardon,Sir:Itrustyouwill,ifI,presuming,err.

Youpleadtherightsofman—youfainwouldseeAllmenenjoythesweetsofliberty.Goodnessisgreatness—knowledge—pow’r;andthouPerchanceartgreatestofyournationnow.Andwhilethatnationsinksbeneathitsblight;You,likeaconstellation,cheerthenight.

Ifyoucanquelltheragingocean’swave,Youmay,perhaps,yourfallencountrysave.Ifyoucancleansecorruption’sgrowingstream,Hopeon,yournation’shonor,toredeem—Givebackourmartyr’dProphet’slifeagainAndfromth’escutcheon,wipethatdreadfulstain.

Yourcivilpow’rs—yourOfficersofState,Onfreedom’sshoulders,throwadeadlyweight;Withsuicidalacts,they’vetrampleddown,OurCharter’dRights,andGodAlmighty’sfrownIsrestingonthem;andthebittercupThey’vedealt,they’lldrink;anddrinkitwhollyup. Thoughforawhileyoumayaverttheblow,Thedeedisdone,whichsealstheiroverthrow—Thepois’nouscanker-wormisgnawingwhereNoskill—nomed’cinecanthebreachrepair.

Whathavetheydone?Oblush,humanity!Whataretheydoing?Alltheworldcansee.

WhereistheBannerwhichyournationboasts?Say,Isitwavingo’erthegentilehosts?WherearetheStatesmenthathaveneverswerv’d?BywhomtheConstitution’sRightspreserv’d?

Hereinthemountains,’neaththewesternsky,Columbia’sBannerproudlywavesonhigh.Andherearemenwithsouls—menjustandtrue—Menworthyofournoblesiresandyou:Theyhavepreserv’doursacredConstitution’Midstfearfuloddsandcruelpersecution.

Yournoble,gen’rousheart,withpureintent,Wouldscreentheguiltyfromjustpunishment.ButGodisatthehelm—th’Almightyrules—He,inwhosehandthenationsarebuttools:Hiskingdom,Danielsaid,wouldbesetup:’Tishere:’twillswallowotherkingdomsup.Theseedsofwickedness,thenationsgrowWithinthemselves,willworktheiroverthrow;Thoughforaseason,mercystaysitshand,Justicewillhaveitsown,itsfulldemand.

We’vesuedforpeaceandforourrights,invain;Againwe’vesoughtforjustice—andagain—We’veclaim’dprotection’neaththatloftyspireColumbiaboasts:—’twasplantedbyoursires.

Butnowweasknoodds,athumanhand:InGodAlmighty’sstrengthalone,westand:Honor,andJustice,Truth,andLibertyAreours:—we’reFreemen,andhenceforthwe’refree.

composed by Eliza R. Snow March 6, 1858 published inDeseretNews, April10, 1861

Fig. 8.Openinglinesof“ToCol.ThomasL.Kane,”apoembyElizaR.Snow,pluralwifeof JosephSmithand laterBrighamYoungandpoet laureateofMormonism.Snowmixesmultiplemessageshere:gratitudelacedwithskepticismforKane’sefforts;alitanyofMor-mongrievances;defiance;aveileddeclarationofMormon“independence”;andhintsofthebroader national civil conflict to come. A typescript of the complete poem precedes thisdetailofSnow’soriginalhandwrittenversion.L.TomPerrySpecialCollections,Harold B.Lee Library, Brigham Young University. For another published text and analysis, see JillMulvayDerrandKarenLynnDavidson,eds.,Eliza R. Snow: The Complete Poetry(ProvoandSaltLakeCity:BrighamYoungUniversityPressandUniversityofUtahPress,2009),571–74.


Washington. Supplementing this important behind-the-scenes glimpseprovidedbyElizabethareastonishingpiecesofthepuzzletobefoundineachoftherepositorieslistedabove.Perhapsthemostarcaneinformationabout the December Buchanan-Kane meeting, though, comes from anindirectsource,aletterwrittentothepresidentbyJudgeKaneonDecem-ber31tothankhimforseeinghissonandtocommentonwhatThomastoldhimoftheirWhiteHouseconversation.ThisdocumentisnowinaprivatecollectioninCalifornia.HereJudgeKanecommentedmatter-of-factlythat, inthecourseofhispresidential interview,ThomasindicatedhisintenttodiscusswithBrighamYoungwhatcouldbeinterpretedasaMormonmassexodusfromUtah.58Withthispieceofthepuzzleathand,itisnowpossibletounderstand—oratleasttospeculateabout—anenig-matic,crypticsentencethatlaterappearedintwolettersthatYoungwroteto agents in Washington and Liverpool during Kane’s visit to Salt LakeCity.Thesentencewas,“WecontinuetokeepoureyesontheRussianpos-sessions[Alaska].”59

And the Lost Shall Be Found—More to Come. My fourth and finalobservationistherearefarmoreKanedocumentsthatwillindeedbe dis-covered in the years to come. My confidence that wonderful additionaldiscoveries await us is the reason that my September 2008 ArringtonLectureatUtahStateUniversityonthefutureofUtahWarstudieswasanoptimistictalk.60

OneofthemissingdocumentsthatIexpecttosurfaceisthetextofalectureonUtahthatKanedeliveredattheNew-YorkHistoricalSocietyinMarch1859.Inmanyrespects,theveryfactofKane’sNewYorklecturereflectsthecomplexityofhischaracterandpersonalitywhiledemonstrat-ing theneed toconsultmultiple sources tounderstand them.With thislecture, Kane rendered Governor Cumming an enormous service, andhe did so by traveling to Manhattan in the dead of winter while strug-glingwithanotherofhisepisodiclife-threateningillnesses.61KanedidsobecausehebelievedthatretentionofCummingasgovernorwasessentialtothewell-beingoftheLatter-daySaintsandtothetranquilityofUtah.Yet Kane was hardly an admirer of Cumming, a four-hundred-poundalcoholicoflimitedtalentwhohadsuccessfullyalienatednotonlyAlbertSidney Johnston, his military protector, but former colleague Isaac I.Stevens,governorofWashingtonTerritory.

Kane’spersonaldisdainforCummingandcynicismabouthissuscep-tibilitytomanipulationweresuchthatinApril1858,whenhefirstintro-duced the new governor to Brigham Young, George A. Smith recordedthat “Col. Kane visited Gov. Young [and] told him that he had caughtthefish,nowyoucancookitas[youhave]hehadamindto.”OnMay1,


GeneralD.H.WellsreportedtoYoungonarecentdiscussionwithKanein which Cumming was described as “the poor old man” and “the OldMan,”adescriptorthatWellsusedinsuchawaythatitappearstohavebeenKane’saswellashisownwayofspeakingaboutthenewgovernor.KaneandYoungfrequentlyexchangedcommentsaboutGovernorCum-ming’sdrinkingproblem,yetKaneinMarch1859waswillingtoleavewhatterritorialdelegateBernhiselhadoncecalledhis“sickroom”inPhiladel-phiaandtraveltoManhattantolecturetheworldonAlfredCumming’scourage.62

Itwasagambit thatgeneratedsuchextensivepublicity that itmadeitvirtuallyimpossibleforPresidentBuchanan—aleaderwhomKanehadonce described to Young as “a timorous man”—to remove Cumming.This was Kanesean wire-working on an even grander scale than Kane’sMay 1858 arrangement for dispatches to Albert Sidney Johnston to bedeliveredonlybyuncommunicativeMormoncouriers,asystemthatKanedevisedbecauseheknewitwouldenragethecoloneland“tendtoaddfueltothefirebetweenCummingandJohns[t]on.”63Hereoneseesthecombi-nationofnobilityandmanipulationthathadpermittedayoungerKanetoplanamissionofcompassiontoIowain1846whilesimultaneouslydream-ingofbecominggovernorofCaliforniawiththearmedmightofhisnew,hopefullyingratiatedMormonfriendsbehindhim.64

AndsoIbelievestronglythatthestufffromwhichwillcomeanevenbetterunderstandingofaverycomplexThomasL.KaneandhisimportantUtahWarcontributionsawaitsourdiscovery.All that isneeded tofindsuchmaterialisenergy,imagination,support,andpersistenceofthetypethathavecreatedinsuchwonderfulfashionBYU’sKanecollection.

William P. MacKinnon ([email protected]) earned a BA degree magnacumlaudefromYaleUniversityandanMBAfromHarvardGraduateSchoolofBusiness Administration. As an independent historian, MacKinnon’s articles,essays, and book reviews on the American West have appeared in more thanthirty journals and encyclopedias. He was honored with the Mormon HistoryAssociation’s Thomas L. Kane Award in 2008, and he is president-elect of theMormonHistoryAssociationfor2009–2010.

1.“Verastus”(pseud.)toEditor,May24,1857,“Col.ThomasL.KaneonMor-monism,”New York Daily Times,May26,1857,1.SomeMormoncontemporariesandhistoriansbelievedthat“Verastus”wasformerUtahjudgeW.W.Drummond.

2.JamesC.VanDyketoJamesBuchanan,December9,1857,JamesBuchananPapers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Van Dyke was U.S.attorney in Philadelphia and was the president’s closest political advisor there.Kane’smilitarytitlesprangfromhisbriefappointmentin1846asamilitialieuten-antcolonelonthestaffofPennsylvania’sgovernor.


3. David J. Whittaker with Darcee Barnes, Patrick Mason, David Paoule,SterlingFluharty,andMichelleStockman,comp.,Register to the Thomas L. Kane and Elizabeth W. Kane Collection, Vault MSS 792,2vols. (Provo,Utah:L.TomPerry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University,Provo, Utah, 2001). A third volume describes additional Kane materials (VaultMSS3190)acquiredin2003.

4. William P. MacKinnon, “Loose in the Stacks: A Half-Century with theUtahWarandItsLegacy,”Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought40 (Spring2007):43–81;WilliamP.MacKinnon,“StrangerinaStrangeLand:MyForty-FiveYears with the Utah War and What I Have Learned,” Yale University Library Gazette 80 (October 2005): 17–22. The author is a long-serving member of theboardoftheYaleLibraryAssociatesandwasitschairmanduring2000–2004;hehasalsobeenamemberoftheboardofgovernorsoftheClarkeHistoricalLibrary,CentralMichiganUniversity,Mt.Pleasant,Mich.

5.AlbertL.ZobellJr.,Sentinel in the East: A Biography of Thomas L. Kane(Salt Lake City: Nicholas G. Morgan, 1965); Richard D. Poll, “Thomas L. KaneandtheUtahWar,”Utah Historical Quarterly61(Spring1993):112–35;William P.MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1: A Documentary History of the Utah War to 1858(Norman,Okla.:ArthurH.ClarkCo.,2008);WilliamP.MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 2: A Documentary History of the Utah War, 1858 and After(forthcoming);MatthewJ.Grow,“Liberty to the Downtrodden”: Thomas L. Kane, Romantic Reformer(NewHaven,Conn.:YaleUniversityPress,2009);Richard E.Bennett, “‘He Is Our Friend’—Thomas L. Kane and the Mormons in Exodus1846–1850,”Lecture,PerrySpecialCollections,October8,2008,copyinauthor’spossession.

6.Whiletwenty-fivehundredmenisthesizeoftheUtahExpeditionmostfrequentlycitedbyhistorians(andwas itsoriginally intendedstrength),by thetimetheexpeditionhadreachedFortBridger inNovember1857massivedeser-tions had reduced it to slightly under fifteen hundred. By early 1858, a total ofmore than five thousand troops were under orders for Utah. See MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,221n.52;RogerB.Nielsen,Roll Call at Old Camp Floyd, Utah Territory: Soldiers of Johnston’s Army at the Upper Camp July 8 to September 1858(Springville,Utah:n.p.,2006),iii;CurtisE.AllentoWilliamP.MacKinnon,January18,2009,copyinauthor’spossession.

7.ForareviewofthenearlytenyearsofdeterioratingMormon-federalrela-tionsleadinguptotheUtahWar,seeDavidL.Bigler,“ALioninthePath:Genesisof theUtahWar, 1857–1858,”Utah Historical Quarterly 76 (Winter2008):4–21;WilliamP.MacKinnon,“AndtheWarCame:JamesBuchanan,theUtahExpedi-tion,andtheDecisiontoIntervene,”Utah Historical Quarterly76(Winter2008):24–25;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,41–82.FormoreonUtah’squestforstatehood,seeThomasAlexander’sessayherein.

8.Althoughnotasuccessfulexecutive,JamesBuchananwasacompetentlawyerandwascarefultojustifytheUtahExpeditionasameasuretomaintainfederalauthorityratherthantoconfrontMormonUtahonreligiousgrounds.In1859,hereprimandedUtah’schiefjusticeDelanaR.Eckels,hisownappointee,forchargingafederalgrandjuryonthesubjectofpolygamy,apracticeagainstwhichtherewasnofederalprohibitionuntilenactmentoftheMorrillActin1862duringtheLincolnadministration.


9.ForareviewofthisUtah-centriclabel’suseandimplications,seeGeneA.Sessions,“TheLegendof ‘Johnston’sArmy’:MythandRealityamongtheMor-mons,”paperpresentedatMormonHistoryAssociationannualconference,SaltLakeCity,May26,2007.

10.WilliamP.MacKinnon,“‘Who’sinChargeHere?’:UtahExpeditionCom-mand Ambiguity,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 42 (Spring 2009):30–64.

11.Therehavebeentwointerrelatedfactorsdestructivetoanypositiveassess-ment of Buchanan’s handling of “the Mormon problem.” First came a largelysuccessful campaign—begun by Mormon leaders during the Civil War—toportray the entire Utah War as a blunder brought on by ineptness as well asproto-Confederates among Buchanan’s cabinet officers covertly plotting dis-unionasearlyas1857.ImplicitinthedepictionoftheUtahWaras“Buchanan’sBlunder”—alabelstillusedbyMormoncommentators—wasthenotionthattheentireconfrontation,includingtheremovalofBrighamYoungasgovernor,wasunnecessaryaswellashorriblyexpensive.(Ihavelikenedthisimagecampaignby Mormon leaders to that by which, after the Civil War, former ConfederategeneralscreatedtheMythoftheLostCausetojustifyaWarBetweentheStatesindefenseofachivalric,agrariansocietyratherthantoperpetuatechattelslav-ery.SeeWilliamP.MacKinnon,“EpiloguetotheUtahWar:ImpactandLegacy,”Journal of Mormon History29[Fall2003]:217.AnexampleofthenegativeeffectonJamesBuchanan’simageisthetitleofRichardD.PollandRalphW.Hansen,“‘Buchanan’sBlunder’:TheUtahWar, 1857–1858,”Military Affairs25 [Fall 1961]:121–31.) Accompanying this thrust was a second factor—widespread revulsionovertheCivilWar’scarnagethatbrokeoverBuchanan’sreputationindiscrimi-natelyandwithsuchcorrosiveforcethatnomemorialwouldbeerectedtohiminWashingtonuntilasrecentlyasHerbertHoover’sadministration.Theimpactofthesetwinforcesoverthepast150yearshasbeenthedegradationofBuchanan’shistoriographicalimageintooneblendingacartoonishbumbleronbarelyunder-stoodUtahmatterswithapassive,ifnotpro-Southern,chiefexecutivepresidingoverthenationalslideintodisunion.

12.BoydK.Packer,“TheTest,”Ensign38(November2008):91.Foranassess-ment of Buchanan’s presidential performance in dealing with “the Mormonproblem,”includingdiscussionofthe“blunder”label,seeWilliamP.MacKinnon,“PrecursortoArmageddon:JamesBuchanan,BrighamYoungandaPresident’sInitiationtoBloodshed,”inDisrupted Democracy: James Buchanan and the Com-ing of the Civil War,ed.MichaelJ.BirknerandJohnQuist(Gainesville:UniversityofFloridaPress,forthcoming).

13. Brigham Young to Thomas L. Kane, January 7, 1857, Church HistoryLibrary,TheChurchofJesusChristofLatter-daySaints,SaltLakeCity.BecausePresidentPierceappointednosuccessorwhoacceptedthepositionafterYoung’stermexpired,Youngremainedgovernoronadefactobasisunderacontinuance,an ambiguity left to Buchanan to resolve. See MacKinnon, At Sword’s Point,Part 1,223.

14.Thesomewhatawkwardopeningphraseof the January7 letter impliesnoncommunication.OnApril 14, 1856, thegovernorhadwritten toKaneseek-ing political counsel but with no apparent response to that letter or to ElderGeorgeA.Smith’sunsuccessful follow-upvisit toPhiladelphiawhileKanewasabsent.Forthatmatter, there isnoindicationthatKanewrotetoYoungatany


timeduring1856,althoughElderTaylorvisitedKaneathisPhiladelphiahomeonMarch 8, 1856,andundoubtedlydiscussedthestatehood(Deseret) thrust. JohnTaylortoBrighamYoung,April16,1856,ChurchHistoryLibrary.

15.AsummarydescriptionofthesedistractionsappearsinMacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,61–63.

16.YoungtoKane,January7,1857.ThetextofmuchofthisletterappearsinMacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,74–76.

17.YoungtoKane,January7,1857.18. Brigham Young to Thomas L. Kane, January 31, 1857, Church History

Library.Fillmore,uponKane’s recommendation,hadappointedYoung inSep-tember1850.

19. Thomas L. Kane to James Buchanan, March 21, 1857, Kane Collection,PerrySpecialCollections;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,114–15.

20. William I. Appleby to Brigham Young, April 1, 1857, Church HistoryLibrary.

21.JohnTaylortoBrighamYoung,April18,1857,ChurchHistoryLibrary.22.ThomasL.KanetoBrighamYoung,ca.lateMarch1857,ThomasL.Kane

Papers,StanfordUniversityLibraries,Stanford,Calif.23.MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,112,406.24.ForJudgeDrummond’snewspaperattackonKaneandKane’scampaign,

inleaguewithEldersSmithandTaylor,todiscreditDrummond,seeMacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,119–20.

25.MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,99–111;MacKinnon,“AndtheWarCame,”23–31.

26.ThomasL.KanetoBrighamYoung,May21,1857,ThomasL.KanePapers,Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and ManuscriptLibrary, Yale University, New Haven, Conn.; MacKinnon, At Sword’s Point,Part 1,135.

27.ThomasL.KanetoU.S.AttorneyGeneralJeremiahS.Black,April27,1857,BlackPapers,Library ofCongress,Washington;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,119–21.

28. James C. Van Dyke, Memorandum for Thomas L. Kane, March 28,1859, Kane Collection, Pennsylvania State Archives, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,121n.41,496–99.

29. MacKinnon, At Sword’s Point, Part 1, 283–85, 405–11, 480–81, 485–87,494–509.

30.ThomasL.KanetoElishaK.Kane,May17,1846,ThomasL.KanePapers,AmericanPhilosophicalSociety,Philadelphia,transcriptioncourtesyofMatthew J.Grow. Kane’s 1846 letters to his family from Iowa at the William L. ClementsLibrary,UniversityofMichigan,AnnArbor,alsoshedlightonthispoliticalmotive.

31. David Chapin, “‘Science Weeps, Humanity Weeps, the World Weeps’:AmericaMournsElishaKentKane,”Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biog-raphy123(October1999):275–301.

32.JudgeJohnK.KanetoThomasL.Kane,January4,1858,KaneCollection,PerrySpecialCollections;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,510–11.

33.JamesC.VanDyketoJamesBuchanan,December9,1857,HistoricalSoci-etyofPennsylvania;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,485–87.

34.ThomasL.KanetoJamesBuchanan,January3,1858,HistoricalSocietyofPennsylvania.


35.ElizabethW.Kane,Journal,December26,1857,PerrySpecialCollections.“Papa”referredtoThomas,nottoherfather.

36.JohnM.BernhiseltoBrighamYoung,December11,1858,ChurchHistoryLibrary.

37. John K. Kane Jr. to family, January 21, 1858, John K. Kane Collection,AmericanPhilosophicalSociety,Philadelphia.

38.VanDyke,MemorandumforKane.BasedontheseconcernsandKane’ssecretive behavior while passing through southern Utah and even once in SaltLakeCity,itappearsthathisuseofthenom de guerre“Dr.Osborne”wasintendedasmuchtoprotecthimfromapprehensiveLatter-daySaintsasfromangry,anti-MormonCalifornians.

39.DavidJ.Whittaker,“NewSourcesonOldFriends:TheThomasL.KaneandElizabethW.KaneCollection,”Journal of Mormon History27(Spring2001):67–94.

40.BrighamYoungtoThomasL.Kane,May8,1858,ChurchHistoryLibrary;Grow,“Liberty to the Downtrodden,”190.

41.ElizabethW.Kane,Journal,May21,1858;“Col.ThomasL.Kane,”Edito-rial,WashingtonUnion,May21,1858,2.PatKane’scomplainttoBuchananabouttheUnion’streatmentofThomasandBuchanan’simmediatecommunicationwiththenewspapermayhavebeenpromptedbytheUnion’spublicationofaletterafewdaysearlierasserting,“Mr.KANE,ofPhiladelphia,is a Mormon, and not sent out by the President, or any authority of the Government.”Union(pseud.)toWashing-ton Union,May15,1858,reprintedinNew York Times,May21,1858,1.

42.ElizabethW.Kane,Journal,June20,1858;Grow,“Liberty to the Down-trodden,”193–94.

43.VanDyke,MemorandumforKane.44. George A. Smith to Col. William H. Dame, February [March] 3, 1858,

ChurchHistoryLibrary,transcriptioncourtesyofWillBagley.45.TheassessmentsbyMessrs.Plitt,Forney,andPatKanewererecordedin

ElizabethW.Kane,Journal,April16,1858.ForadiscussionofBuchanan’sletters,seeMacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,503–6.

46.“RebellionComplaintsofBadFaith,”Editorial,WashingtonUnion,July 8,1858,2.ThisdisavowalofanyofficialroleforKanewasfollowedbythesamenews-paper’sdenigrationofKane’sinfluenceoverCumming’sdecisionmakinganditsassertionthatreportsofKane’seffectivenessinmotivatingCummingtotraveltoSaltLakewithoutthearmywere“untrueineveryparticular.Col.Kaneadmittedhis mission was a failure.” “Truth” (pseud.) to editor, July 2, 1858, Washington Union,August1,1858,3.

47.JamesBuchanan,“SecondAnnualMessageofthePresident,”December6,1858,inThe Works of James Buchanan, Comprising His Speeches, State Papers, and Private Correspondence,12vols.,ed.JohnBassettMoore(NewYork:AntiquarianPress,1960),10:245.ThissentencelaterappearedinJamesBuchanan,Mr. Buchan-an’s Administration on the Eve of the Rebellion(NewYork:D.Appleton,1866),238.

48.MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,295–328.49.ThedateofKane’sdeparture forFortBridgercanbedetermined from

BrighamYoungtoThomasL.Kane,March9,1858,PerrySpecialCollections.50. David L. Bigler, “Mormon Missionaries, the Utah War, and the 1858

Bannock Raid on Fort Limhi,” Montana: The Magazine of Western History 53


(Autumn 2003): 30–53; David L. Bigler, Fort Limhi: The Mormon Adventure in Oregon Territory, 1855–1858(Spokane,Wash.:ArthurH.ClarkCo.,1998);MacKin-non,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,423–27.

51.BrighamYoungtoThomasL.Kane,March9,1858,PerrySpecialCollections.52.ForKane’svirtuallyunknownpredepartureintenttodiscussanexodus

withYoung,seeMacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,501–3.53.AlfredCummingtoHouseSpeakerJamesL.Orr,May12,1858,Histori-

cal SocietyofPennsylvania;JamesL.OrrtoJamesBuchanan,June21,1858,His-toricalSocietyofPennsylvania.

54.WilliamP.MacKinnon,“EpiloguetotheUtahWar:ImpactandLegacy,”Journal of Mormon History 29 (Fall 2003): 244–45; MacKinnon, “Precursor toArmageddon.”

55.“TheNewsfromUtah,”editorial,New York Times,May24,1858,4;“TheUtahQuestion,”editorial,Washington,D.C.National Era,July1,1858,102.

56.TheBuchanan-KaneexchangewasreportedinElizabethW.Kane,Jour-nal,June20,1858.

57.AnexampleofthemixedfeelingsaboutBuchanan’smotivesandthereli-abilityofhissupportforKaneappearsinElizabethW.Kane,Journal,April16,1858.Incontrast,JudgeKanefoundBuchanantobeextremelyhelpfultohissonandwasgratefultothepresident.JudgeJohnK.KanetoJamesBuchanan,Janu-ary 2,1858,HistoricalSocietyofPennsylvania.

58. Judge John K. Kane to James Buchanan, December 31, 1857, copy inauthor’spossession,courtesyofitsowner,thelateMs.AnneRichardsHorton,SanMarino,Calif.;MacKinnon,At Sword’s Point, Part 1,501–3.

59. Brigham Young to John M. Bernhisel, March 5, 1858, Church HistoryLibrary;BrighamYoungtoAsaCalkin,March5,1858,ChurchHistoryLibrary.

60. William P. MacKinnon, “Predicting the Past:The Utah War’s Twenty-First-Century Future,” Leonard J. Arrington Mormon History Lecture Seriesno. 14,UtahStateUniversity,Logan,Utah,September25,2008.

OfallthepotentialdiscoveriesofKane-relateddocumentsthatImostantici-pate,fiveitemsimmediatelycometomind:

•ThelongmemoofinstructionsthatWilfordWoodruffdraftedonMarch 4,1858 to prepare Kane for his visit to the army at Fort Bridger. Is there anyonewhowouldnotliketoknowwhatApostleWoodruffwroteonsixpages“givingareasonofourhopeandfaithandthecauseofourdefendingourselves”?WilfordWoodruff,MemorandumforThomasL.Kane,described inWilfordWoodruff, Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 1833–1898, Typescript, ed. Scott G. Kenney, 9 vols.(Midvale,Utah:SignatureBooks,1983–84),5:173(March4,1858).

•ThedaguerreotypethatElizabethKanetookatherhomeinJune1858tocapture the handsome face of Maj. Howard Egan, the Mormon frontiersman,bodyguard, and executioner who mesmerized her while awaiting completionofaKanememotocarrybacktoBrighamYoung.ElizabethW.Kane, Journal,July 17, 1858.

• The 1857–58 letters home of Lafayette Shaw (Fay) Worthen, the youngKimball relative from Illinois who accompanied Kane and Egan during theirlong journey east in May 1858. Fay Worthen’s father, Amos Henry Worthen,wasIllinoisstategeologist.AsadistantrelativeofLDSfirstcounselorHeberC.Kimball,courierbetweenSaltLakeCityandFortBridgerduringthelatewinter


of1857–1858,informalaidetoGov.Cumming,andlong-distanceescortforKane,Worthen’smissingpapersarepotentiallyrichsourcesaboutthewar,especiallyitslaterstages.

•ThepapersofCapt.JohnClevelandRobinson,FifthU.S.Infantry,theUtahExpeditionofficerwhocarriedanexhausted,frozenKanetothewarmthofhisown tent upon his nocturnal arrival at Fort Bridger on March 12, 1858. Kanedescribed Capt. Robinson’s compassion and overnight hospitality to the presi-dentinThomasL.KanetoJamesBuchanan,ca.March15,1858,KaneCollection,PerrySpecialCollections.LongafterreceivingtheMedalofHonorandlosingalegasaCivilWarmajorgeneralandservingasNewYork’slieutenantgovernor,RobinsonwroteabriefaccountoftheUtahWar.JohnClevelandRobinson,“TheUtahExpedition,”Magazine of American History11(January–June1884):335–41.ThisstudyignoredKaneandmostoftheauthor’spersonalexperiencesinUtahasacompanycommander.AnysurvivingRobinsonpaperscontemporarytotheUtahWarwouldpotentiallyshedlightonKane’sdramaticarrivalatFortBridger,includingtheirovernightdiscussionsinRobinson’squarters,aswellaslifewithinthehistoriographically“silent”FifthInfantry,aregimentfromwhichvirtuallynoinsideraccountshavesurfaced.

•ThetextofthelecturethatKanedeliveredattheNew-YorkHistoricalSoci-etyinMarch1859todescribethebeneficialimpactofGovernorCumming’sApril1858journeyfromFortBridgertoSaltLakeCityonthesmoothnesswithwhichheassumedhisgubernatorialrole.ItwasasupportivelecturethathelpedtopreserveCumming’spositionatacrucialjuncturewhenBuchananwasconsideringremov-inghim.Wehavepressaccountsbutnotthetextofthisimportantspeech.“TheExecutiveofUtah,LecturebyCol.ThomasJ.[sic]Kane,”New York Times,March23,1859,2. Theauthor’sbeliefisthatthetextofthislectureismissingfromtheotherwisevoluminousfilesofKaneandtheNew-YorkHistoricalSocietybecausehemayhavegiventhismaterialtoT.B.H.StenhouseorApostleGeorge Q.Can-non.BothMormonswerepresentatthetalksoastoobtainnationalpublicityforKane’sremarksbyimmediatelyvisitingtheeditorsofNewYorknewspapersandtheManhattanheadquartersoftheAssociatedPress.

61.Grow,“Liberty to the Downtrodden,”198–99.62. For Kane’s “fish” metaphor, see George A. Smith, “Historian’s Office

Journal,”entryca.April13,1858,ChurchHistoryLibrary.InthisentrySmithalsonoted:“G.A.S.’sfirstimpressionwhenhesawCummingwasthathewasa toper[drinker],butonexamininghimwithhisglassesheconcludedhewasamoder-atedrinkerandaheartyeater.”DanielH.WellstoBrighamYoung,May1,1858,ChurchHistoryLibrary.OthercommentsonCumming’salcoholconsumptionappear in Thomas L. Kane to Brigham Young, July 24, 1859, Church HistoryLibrary;andBrighamYoungtoThomasL.Kane,December15,1859,ChurchHis-toryLibrary.

63.KanetoYoung,c.lateMarch1857,StanfordUniversityLibraries;WellstoYoung,May1,1858.

64.Seep.98above.

“Full of Courage”

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