State of Deseret: Difference between revisions
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The '''State of Deseret''' was a provisional state of the [[United States]], proposed in [[1849]] by [[Mormon]] settlers in [[Salt Lake City]]. |
The '''State of Deseret''' was a provisional state of the [[United States]], proposed in [[1849]] by [[Mormon]] settlers in [[Salt Lake City]]. |
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The constitution was drafted in March 1849 under the leadership of [[Brigham Young]]. The name derives from the word for "honeybee" in the [[Book of Mormon]] (''see |
The constitution was drafted in March 1849 under the leadership of [[Brigham Young]]. The name derives from the word for "honeybee" in the [[Book of Mormon]] (''see''[[Deseret]]). |
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The provisional state was a bold proposal, encompassing most of the territory that had been acquired from [[Mexico]] the previous year, as the [[Mexican Cession]]. |
The provisional state was a bold proposal, encompassing most of the territory that had been acquired from [[Mexico]] the previous year, as the [[Mexican Cession]]. |
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It comprised roughly all the lands between the [[Sierra Nevada Mountains]] and the [[Rocky Mountains|Rockies]]. and between the border with Mexico northward to include parts of the [[Oregon Territory]], as well as the coast of [[California]] south of the [[Santa Monica Mountains]] (including the existing settlements of [[Los Angeles]] and [[San Diego]]). It included the entire |
It comprised roughly all the lands between the [[Sierra Nevada Mountains]] and the [[Rocky Mountains|Rockies]]. and between the border with Mexico northward to include parts of the [[Oregon Territory]], as well as the coast of [[California]] south of the [[Santa Monica Mountains]] (including the existing settlements of [[Los Angeles]] and [[San Diego]]). It included the entire watershed of the [[Colorado River (U.S.)|Colorado River]] (excluding the lands south of the border with Mexico), as well as the entire area of the [[Great Basin]]. |
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The proposal encompassed most nearly all of present-day [[Utah]] and [[Nevada]], large portions of [[California]] and [[Arizona]], and parts of [[Colorado]], [[New Mexico]], [[Wyoming]], [[Idaho]], and [[Oregon]]. |
The proposal encompassed most nearly all of present-day [[Utah]] and [[Nevada]], large portions of [[California]] and [[Arizona]], and parts of [[Colorado]], [[New Mexico]], [[Wyoming]], [[Idaho]], and [[Oregon]]. |
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Revision as of 21:33, 31 January 2004
| The boundaries of provisional State of Deseret (shown in orange) as proposed in 1849. The area of the eventual Utah Territory is shown shaded in red. |
The State of Deseret was a provisional state of the United States, proposed in 1849 by Mormon settlers in Salt Lake City.
The constitution was drafted in March 1849 under the leadership of Brigham Young. The name derives from the word for "honeybee" in the Book of Mormon (seeDeseret).
The provisional state was a bold proposal, encompassing most of the territory that had been acquired from Mexico the previous year, as the Mexican Cession.
It comprised roughly all the lands between the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Rockies. and between the border with Mexico northward to include parts of the Oregon Territory, as well as the coast of California south of the Santa Monica Mountains (including the existing settlements of Los Angeles and San Diego). It included the entire watershed of the Colorado River (excluding the lands south of the border with Mexico), as well as the entire area of the Great Basin.
The proposal encompassed most nearly all of present-day Utah and Nevada, large portions of California and Arizona, and parts of Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon.
The proposal for the state was crafted specifically to avoid disputes that might arise from existing settlement. At the time of its proposal, the existing population of the area, including Southern California, was sparse, since most of the California settlement had been in the northern gold rush areas not included in the provisional state. Likewise the border with New Mexico did not reach to the Rio Grande, in order to avoid becoming entangled in the existing disputes of the western border of Texas.
Moreover, the proposal encompassed lands largely known to be inhospitable for cultivation, thus avoiding conflict over the issue of the expansion of slavery.
The proposal for the state was largely considered too ambitious to succeed in Congress, even despite the controversy over Mormon practices such as polygamy. Nevertheless, in 1849 President Zachary Taylor, eager to avoid disputes as much as possible, sent his agent John Wilson westward with a proposal to combine California and Deseret as a single state, which would have the desirable effect of decreasing the number of free states entered into the Union, and thus preserving the balance of power in the Senate.