13 Facts About Mormon Battalion

Mormon Battalion was the only religious unit in United States military history in federal service, recruited solely from one religious body and having a religious title as the unit designation.

Veterans of the Mormon Battalion played significant roles in America's westward expansion in California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and other parts of the West.

Mormon Battalion carried President Polk's request for a battalion of 500 volunteers to fight in the Mexican War.

Mormon Battalion saw several possible advantages to the Saints in the proposed federal service.

The Mormon Battalion was mustered into volunteer service on July 16,1846 as part of the Army of the West under General Kearny, a seasoned veteran.

Related searches

Mormon Battalion's units included two regiments of Missouri volunteers, a regiment of New York volunteers who traveled by ships to California to meet him there, artillery and infantry battalions, Kearny's own 1st US Dragoons, and the battalion of Mormons.

The Mormon Battalion men were not accustomed to the austere military standards of the day nor to the medical treatments imposed by Dr Sanderson, including the use of feeding mercury compounds to the sick, which were standard for the time.

The Mormon Battalion reached this area in December 1846, and their presence aroused curiosity among these animals.

Mormon Battalion soldiers learned irrigation methods from these native inhabitants and employed the techniques later as pioneers in Utah and other areas.

Mormon Battalion arrived in San Diego on January 29,1847, after a march of some 2,080 miles from Iowa.

The most significant service the Mormon Battalion provided in California was as a reliable unit under Cooke to reinforce General Kearny's one company of army dragoons.

Some 22 Mormon Battalion men died from disease or other natural causes during their service.

Resurgence of interest in the Mormon Battalion is linked to the 175th anniversary of the Mormon Battalion's service.