Blood of the Prophets - by Will Bagley (Paperback)

About the Book

Bagley presents an authoritative investigation of Brigham Young and events surrounding the infamous Mountain Meadows Massacre. Includes maps and 36 b&w illustrations.

Book Synopsis

The massacre at Mountain Meadows on September 11, 1857, was the single most violent attack on a wagon train in the thirty-year history of the Oregon and California trails. Yet it has been all but forgotten. Will Bagley's Blood of the Prophets is an award-winning, riveting account of the attack on the Baker-Fancher wagon train by Mormons in the local militia and a few Paiute Indians. Based on extensive investigation of the events surrounding the murder of over 120 men, women, and children, and drawing from a wealth of primary sources, Bagley explains how the murders occurred, reveals the involvement of territorial governor Brigham Young, and explores the subsequent suppression and distortion of events related to the massacre by the Mormon Church and others.

Review Quotes

"A major contribution to western American history."--Robert M. Utley

"A new standard work on the massacre."--Library Journal

"A reflective and well-researched history of Mormonism's darkest hour."--Publishers Weekly

"An exhaustive, meticulously documented, highly readable history that captures the events and atmosphere that gave rise to the massacre, as well as its long, tortuous aftermath."--The New York Review of Books


"While the word 'definitive' is often overused, this account of the killings merits that distinction. Bagley's book ranks as a Mormon historical classic."--Brigham D. Madsen, Western Historical Quarterly