In 1855 the Mormons established a mission at the foot of famous
Lemhi Pass near Salmon River, where the Lewis and Clark Corps of
Discovery first crossed the Continental Divide and Sacagawea was
reunited with her brother. Fort Limhi was, at first, part of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' outreach to the
Indians throughout the West. But the mission soon assumed a
critical role in Brigham Young's plans for the Saints as they faced
the imminent confrontation with the U.S. government which came to
be known as the Utah War.
"Fort Limhi: The Mormon Adventure in Oregon Territory" is an
innovative account of a fascinating but forgotten story.
Journals, diaries, letters and recollections of the men and
women who served at the mission during the three years of its
existence provide a wealth of information about native history and
culture in eastern Idaho. The Mormon missionaries intentionally
selected a spot that put them at the crossroads of ancient trails
used by Nez Perce, Shoshone, Bannock, and Flathead bands as they
battled each other and pursued their annual pilgrimages to trade,
harvest salmon, and hunt buffalo. The sources also cast important
light on little-known trails followed by Indians, traders, and
emigrants.
Ordinary western folk who survived an extraordinary exploit tell
their stories in their own words, and these narratives are
dramatic, compelling, ironic, enlightening, and downright fun. With
its astonishing fish stories, desperate Indian battles,
life-threatening chases, and heroic rides to rescue a terrified and
helpless outpost, this work has all the elements of a great
frontier novel. It even tells of the star-crossed love of Lewis
Shurtliff and Louisa Moore, whose romance, like the story of Fort
Limhi, came to a tragic ending.
Historians often seemed baffled by Brigham Young's visit to Fort
Limhi in 1857 while the fires of the Mormon Reformation burned in
Utah and the territory's relationship with the federal government
was collapsing. Young's trip was far more than a vacation for his
family and advisors. As award-winning author David Bigler reveals,
the Salmon River Indian Mission played a pivotal role in the
resolution of the Utah War of 1857-1858. The catastrophe that ended
the colony at Fort Limhi brought Utah back from the very brink of
war with the United States.
"Fort Limhi" provides new material on the obscure fur-trade
veterans and misfits who called themselves "mountaineers" (the
contemporary term for that "majority of scoundrels" now known as
the fearless "Mountain Men") and sheds light on their contentious
relations with their Mormon neighbors.
The story of Fort Limhi has long deserved a larger role in the
history of Idaho and Montana. It provides new insights into the
role of Mormons in the West and their Indian relations, and
explains some long-standing puzzles about the Utah War of
1857-1858.
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