Dudley Leavitt
Encyclopedia
Dudley Leavitt was an early patriarch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon pioneer
and an early settler in southern Utah
.
, Lower Canada
.
Leavitt crossed the Great Plains
on the Mormon trail
as a young man. He was a member of the 1850 Milo Andrus
Company, which left the outfitting post at Kanesville, Iowa (present day Council Bluffs
) on the 3rd of June and arrived in Salt Lake Valley
on August 30, 1850. He is credited as one of the founders of settlements in Washington County, Utah
.
While he is cited in Jon Krakauer
's bestseller, Under the Banner of Heaven as a participant in the Mountain Meadows massacre
of 1857, Leavitt is said to have never discussed the massacre, except to have remarked later in life, "I thank God that these old hands have never been stained by human blood." Leavitt's granddaughter Juanita Brooks
later investigated the Massacre, writing the seminal The Mountain Meadows Massacre. On the role of her grandfather, Brooks seemed ambivalent. "We can only wonder as to Dudley's relation to the Massacre," Brooks wrote of him. Brooks also devoted a book to her ancestor entitled On the Ragged Edge: The Life and Times of Dudley Leavitt.
Later in his life, the pioneer Dudley Leavitt became pivotal in dealing with the Indian tribes of Southern Utah on behalf of the Mormon settlers. Leavitt was credited by Brooks for having intervened with the Indians in southern Utah, preventing an attack on non-Mormon settlers. Leavitt married several wives, and spent a decade hiding from federal officers seeking to apprehend polygamists.
Although born in Canada, Leavitt came from a long line of early New Englanders. Leavitt was named for his ancestor Thomas Dudley
, the founder of Cambridge, Massachusetts
, and second colonial governor of Massachusetts. His ancestor John Leavitt
, an early Massachusetts Puritan, was deacon of Old Ship Church
in Hingham, Massachusetts
, when it was built in the 17th century.
Dudley Leavitt died in Bunkerville, Nevada
, near Mesquite
, in 1908. Although polygamy had been outlawed, Leavitt never abandoned his several families, according to historians.
Mormon Pioneer
The Mormon pioneers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as Latter-day Saints, who migrated across the United States from the Midwest to the Salt Lake Valley in what is today the U.S. state of Utah...
and an early settler in southern Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
.
Biography
Leavitt was born in StansteadStanstead, Quebec
Stanstead is a town of about 3,000 people, part of the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Estrie region of Québec. Stanstead is located on the Canada-United States border across from Derby Line, Vermont....
, Lower Canada
Lower Canada
The Province of Lower Canada was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...
.
Leavitt crossed the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
on the Mormon trail
Mormon Trail
The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
as a young man. He was a member of the 1850 Milo Andrus
Milo Andrus
Milo Andrus was an early leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Andrus was born in Wilmington, New York to Ruluf Andress and Azuba Smith....
Company, which left the outfitting post at Kanesville, Iowa (present day Council Bluffs
Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs, known until 1852 as Kanesville, Iowathe historic starting point of the Mormon Trail and eventual northernmost anchor town of the other emigrant trailsis a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States and is on the east bank of the Missouri River across...
) on the 3rd of June and arrived in Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably West Valley City, Murray, Sandy, and West Jordan; its total population is 1,029,655 as of 2010...
on August 30, 1850. He is credited as one of the founders of settlements in Washington County, Utah
Washington County, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 90,354 people, 29,939 households, and 23,442 families residing in the county. The population density was 37 people per square mile . There were 36,478 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...
.
While he is cited in Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer is an American writer and mountaineer, primarily known for his writing about the outdoors and mountain-climbing...
's bestseller, Under the Banner of Heaven as a participant in the Mountain Meadows massacre
Mountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
of 1857, Leavitt is said to have never discussed the massacre, except to have remarked later in life, "I thank God that these old hands have never been stained by human blood." Leavitt's granddaughter Juanita Brooks
Juanita Brooks
Juanita Pulsipher Brooks was an American historian and author, specializing in the American West and Mormon history, including books related to the Mountain Meadows massacre, to which her ancestor Dudley Leavitt was sometimes linked.-Biography:Born Juanita Leone Leavitt, Brooks was born and raised...
later investigated the Massacre, writing the seminal The Mountain Meadows Massacre. On the role of her grandfather, Brooks seemed ambivalent. "We can only wonder as to Dudley's relation to the Massacre," Brooks wrote of him. Brooks also devoted a book to her ancestor entitled On the Ragged Edge: The Life and Times of Dudley Leavitt.
Later in his life, the pioneer Dudley Leavitt became pivotal in dealing with the Indian tribes of Southern Utah on behalf of the Mormon settlers. Leavitt was credited by Brooks for having intervened with the Indians in southern Utah, preventing an attack on non-Mormon settlers. Leavitt married several wives, and spent a decade hiding from federal officers seeking to apprehend polygamists.
Although born in Canada, Leavitt came from a long line of early New Englanders. Leavitt was named for his ancestor Thomas Dudley
Thomas Dudley
Thomas Dudley was a colonial magistrate who served several terms as governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Dudley was the chief founder of Newtowne, later Cambridge, Massachusetts, and built the town's first home...
, the founder of Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, and second colonial governor of Massachusetts. His ancestor John Leavitt
John Leavitt
Deacon John Leavitt was a tailor, public officeholder, and founding deacon of Old Ship Church in Hingham, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, the only remaining 17th-century Puritan meeting house in America and the oldest church in continuous ecclesiastical use in the United States...
, an early Massachusetts Puritan, was deacon of Old Ship Church
Old Ship Church
The Old Ship Church was built in 1681 in Hingham, Massachusetts in the United States. It is the oldest church in continuous ecclesiastical use in the United States. It is the only remaining 17th century Puritan meetinghouse in America...
in Hingham, Massachusetts
Hingham, Massachusetts
Hingham is a town in northern Plymouth County on the South Shore of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and suburb in Greater Boston. The United States Census Bureau 2008 estimated population was 22,561...
, when it was built in the 17th century.
Dudley Leavitt died in Bunkerville, Nevada
Bunkerville, Nevada
Bunkerville is an unincorporated town in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 1,014 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the census-designated place of Bunkerville has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is...
, near Mesquite
Mesquite, Nevada
Mesquite is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the Arizona state line and northeast of Las Vegas. As of the 2010 United States Census, it had a population of 15,277. The city is located in the Virgin River Valley...
, in 1908. Although polygamy had been outlawed, Leavitt never abandoned his several families, according to historians.