They have gone by The Daughters of Zion and The Avenging Angel but even by their most well

known name, The Danites remain a deeply hidden and controversial organization. For every piece of evidence revealing their bloody history, contrasting evidence can be found that would indicate that they never existed at all. The scope of this treatise will be to attempt to ascertain if there is any truth to the mythology surrounding this militant arm of the Mormon Church, and if so, to determine how its heritage may be implicated in the modern FLDS sect of said Church. By the year 1838, the fledgling state of Missouri was embroiled in bitter conflict. The Mormon War was an attempt to drive saints of the Mormon Church out of two counties within the state. The citizens had formed into mobs and began attacking Mormon outposts. The state of Missouri itself, held no interest in protecting or defending these alienated victims. The Mormon settlers found themselves in a war of violence and attrition being waged by forces bent on their expulsion and even, if necessary, their extermination1. The Mormons became aware of the need for military action in order to protect their lives and property, and to preserve their way of life. Leaders of the LDS formed militias in the two counties Caldwell and Daviess respectively, and charged them with the active resistance to mob activity. Led by one Dr. Samson Avard, a devout and fundamentalist follower of The Prophet Joseph Smith, one of these militias calling itself The Daughters of Zion is said to have burned the homes of settlers, conducted daring raids on Mobber camps and waged a campaign of terror throughout the state. After several organizational changes as well as changes in the groups official name, they became known as The Danites2. Response to these activities resulted in the passage by then Governor Boggs, of a legislation known as The Extermination Order. This act gave legal authority to the mobs resulting in, among other things, a massacre of Mormons at a settlement known as Hauns Mill3. And after viewing these corpses, we immediately went to the blacksmiths shop where we found nine of our friends, eight of whom were already dead, the other, Mr. Cox of Indiana, struggling in the agonies of death

and soon expired. Additionally, numerous others were dying the women were compelled to bury their husbands by throwing them into a well close to the blacksmiths shop4. Prior to that year, the Mormon community had two population concentrations. The first, and primary center was in Kirtland, Ohio, which was where the church was quartered. The second was a small outpost in northwestern Missouri. Founded by John Whitmer and William Phelps, Far West, was to be the movements salvation. The church owned bank in Ohio was in failure. The new plan for both communities was to insure church solvency through a system known as the Law of Consecration. This was an official church edict that stated that all lands and properties belonging to a Mormon had to be surrendered to the church, and then leased back. A small group of Mormons fought back against this law. They became known as dissenters. Armed dissenters such as Warren Parish began expressing their dissatisfaction in both deed and oratory. They quickly gained control over the Kirtland Temple and forced Joseph Smith and his protg, Stanley Rigdon, to relocate to the Far West Temple. This was a crushing blow to Smith, and resulted in a schism in his newfound church5. Rigdon, in a well known sermon, stated that the dissenters were like salt that has lost its savor, and that they would be trodden under the foot of men6. Dr. Avards militia had all sworn an oath to The Prophet. They would be the perfect soldiers in the attempt at reconciliation amongst the factions. In a letter Avard sent to the dissenters in Kirtland, he stated: "We have solemnly warned you, and that in the most determined manner, that if you do not cease that course of wanton abuse of the citizens of this county, that vengeance would overtake you sooner or later, and that when it did come it would be as furious as the mountain torrent, and as terrible as the beating tempest; but you have affected to despise our warnings, and pass them off with a sneer, or a grin, or a threat, and pursued your former course; and vengeance sleepeth not, neither does it slumber; and unless you heed us this time, and attend to our request, it will overtake you at an hour when you do not

expect, and at a day when you do not look for it; and for you there shall be no escape; for there is but one decree for you, which is depart, depart, or a more fatal calamity shall befall you7." It is difficult to know to which wanton abuse he was referring, but it is certainly not difficult to discern the threatening tone of this letter. Samson Avard later denied writing the letter, and claimed that Sidney Rigdon wrote it8. The letter, however, worked resulting in the dissenters fleeing the Temple, and the schism being quelled. Clearly there must have been a belief in the minds of the dissenters, that the retributions contained therein were more than just idle threats. It should be obvious that these individuals believed in them. When investigating the Danites, one becomes aware of the fact that they served multiple purposes in the LDS community. Primarily, they provided protection for the saints, against the outside world, but it appears that they also acted as an informal police force, enforcing church doctrine amongst the members. More important, however, is the overwhelming body of evidence suggesting that they never existed at all. This kind of thing is not rare when researching secret societies. Among the Irish communities in southern Pennsylvania, one will hear conflicting stories as to the existence or the effectiveness of the Molly McGuires. Likewise of course, no member of the now infamous Skull and Bones would ever admit to his activity in such an organization. It is obviously advantageous for the mainstream Mormon Church to denounce the existence of the Danites, and as far as the FLDS is concerned, this author does not believe any of them could be counted on to relate any history, at all truthfully. One of the bodyguards in the employ of Joseph Smith, and later Brigham Young Orrin Porter Rockwell in a biography by Richard Lloyd Dewey, states, Joseph [Smith Junior] confides in his journal, The Danite system alluded to by Norton* never had any existence. It was a term made use of by some of the brethren in Far West, and grew out of an expression I made use of when the brethren were preparing to defend themselves from the Missouri mob 9. Mr. Rockwell was certainly no stranger to the way of the gun, and although he is credited with a number of violent and even criminal acts, he not only stated that he was never a member

of any organization called The Danites, but that, in fact, no such organization ever existed to his knowledge. On the other hand, however, a Constitution does exist. Whereas, in all bodies laws are necessary for the permanency, safety and well-being of society, we, the members of the society of the Daughter of Zion, do agree to regulate ourselves under such laws as, in righteousness shall be deemed necessary for the preservation of our holy religion, and of our most sacred rights, and the rights of our wives and children. But, to be explicit on the subject, it is especially our object to support and defend the rights conferred on us by our venerable sires, who purchased them with the pledges of their lives and fortunes, and their sacred honors. And now, to prove ourselves worthy of the liberty conferred on us by them, in the providence of God, we do agree to be governed by such laws as shall perpetuate these high privileges, of which we know ourselves to be the rightful possessors, and of which privileges wicked and designing men have tried to deprive us, by all manner of evil, and that purely in consequence of the tenacity we have manifested in the discharge of our duty towards our God, who had given us [those] rights and privileges, and a right in common with others, to dwell on this land. But we, not having the privileges of others allowed unto us, have determined like unto our fathers, to resist tyranny, whether it be in kings or in the people. It is all alike unto us. Our rights we must have, and our rights we shall have, in the name of Israel's God. ART. 1st. All power belongs originally and legitimately to the people, and they have a right to dispose of it as they shall deem fit. But as it is inconvenient and impossible to convince the people in all cases, the legislative powers have been given by them from time to time, into the hands of a representation

composed of delegates from the people themselves. This is and has been the law in both civil and religious bodies, and is the true principle. ART. 2d. The executive power shall be vested in the president of the whole church and his counselors [sp]. ART. 3d. The legislative powers shall reside in the president and his counselors [sp], together with the generals and colonels of the society. By them all laws shall be made regulating the society. ART. 4th. All offices shall be during the life and good behaviour [sp], or to be regulated by the law of God. ART. 5th. The society reserves the power of electing all its officers with the exception of the aides and clerks which the officers may need in the various stations. The nomination to go from the presidency to his second, and from the second to the third in rank, and so down through all the various grades, branch or department retains the power of electing its own particular officers. ART.6th. Punishment shall be administered to the guilty in accordance to the offense, and no member shall be punished without law, or by any others than those appointed by law for that purpose. The Legislature shall have power to make laws regulating punishments as in their judgment shall be wisdom and righteousness. ART. 7th. There shall be a secretary whose business it shall be to keep all the legislative records of the society, and also to keep a register of the names of the members of the society, also the rank of the officers. He shall also communicate the laws to the generals, as directed by laws made for the regulation of such business by the Legislature. ART. 8th. All officers shall be subject to the commands of the Captain General given through the Secretary of War. And so all officers shall be subject to their superiors in rank, according to laws made for that purpose10.

Members were also expected to take an oath of loyalty to the Prophet. In this oath, they swore to never reveal the existence of a secret society known as the Daughters of Zion11. Furthermore, Samson Avard testified in court on November 13th 1838 as to the existence and the activities of the group he is said to have created. "That about four months since, a band called the Daughters of Zion, (since called the Danite band,) was formed of the members of the Mormon church, the original object of which was to drive from the county of Caldwell all those who dissented from the Mormon church; in which they succeeded admirably, and to the satisfaction of all concerned. I consider Joseph Smith, jr., as the prime mover and organizer of this band. The officers of the band, according to their grades, were brought before him, at a school house, together with Hiram Smith and Sidney Rigdon; the three composing the first presidency of the whole church. It was stated by Joseph Smith, jr., that it was necessary this band should be bound together by a covenant, that those who revealed the secrets of the society should be put to death12. However, in her biography of Joseph Smith, Donna Hill asserts that the trial was an injustice, led by an overly zealous judge and rife with paid witnesses and uncorroborated testimony. It is her contention that the testimony of Avard was either coerced or altogether contrived, and that the Danites were actually a fiction created by anti-Mormon forces in Missouri13. There are a number of commonalities between the original Mormon faith, as preached by Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, and 19th century Orthodox Judaism. One of these is the belief in a mythic lost tribe, known as the tribe of Dan. Dan is said to have descended from Jacob and Bilhah. It is said that he and his descendants were excluded from the covenant relationship with the deity, and therefore destined to serve as guardian of the 12 tribes14. In an Interview with Rabbi Moshe Kehane, a Missouri historian and Torah scholar, that relationship is confirmed.

Look at the names they went by, Daughters of Zion, Sword of Gideon, Army of Israel and Sons of Dan. All these names or references can be found in the first 5 books of the Old Testament, or what we call the Torah The very basis of their [Mormon] faith is that Jesus came to the Americas, after the crucifixion, to reestablish the Kingdom of David, the New Jerusalem15. Dewey confirms both the relationship and the above names in his biography of Porter Rockwell. The Mormons finally fled from Missouri, and in what is called the Mormon Exodus, escaped to Illinois, where they built the city of Nauvoo. Here again, they met with discrimination. This time, however, it was more due to their communal nature, which resulted in a powerful voting bloc. Joseph Smith died and the Church separated into two groups. One under Smiths son, Joseph Smith III, and the other under Brigham Young, a self proclaimed Prophet. While the former chose to stay in Nauvoo, the latter left for the west16. Allegedly, Young, upon seeing Utah's vermilion cliffs said, this is the right place [and it] will someday be the head and not the tail of the church [and]...the granaries of the Saints17.'' One of these settlers in the Salt Lake City area was alleged Danite and mass murderer, John D. Lee. Lee is believed to have killed 120 settlers passing through Utah by wagon train. He claimed that he was doing Gods work by killing infidels18. Lee took two wives with him into hiding, and set up a river business called Lees Ferry. Lees Ferry provided transportation, and an area known as The Arizona Strip, became the hiding place of choice for practicing Mormon polygamists. Although, in 1890, the LDS Church had refuted polygamy, these Mormons, under the leadership of a maverick Church President, John Taylor, claimed that God had told them to remain polygamist, and that it was a significant part of his plan for the end of the world19. In 1935, the descendants of the Lees Ferry and Arizona Strip polygamists, after being excommunicated by the mainstream Church, moved to a small community known as Short Creek, on the Utah Arizona border. In 1953, Federal forces raided that community and arrested many polygamists. The town reorganized itself as Colorado City, Arizona, created its own police force,

school system and medical facilities. In short, it became a self-sufficient stronghold for fundamentalists living the principle20. Today, Colorado City, an enclave of 9000 occupants is a town where no newspapers are sold. There are no radios or TVs allowed within city limits. The Prophet, Rulon Jeffs, Uncle Rulon, as he was known by residents, has died, passing the scepter on to his son, Uncle Warren. No medical services can be provided to anyone, including emergency services or ambulances, without written consent from the family patriarch. The police and fire departments are all Church members. All schools are private, and religious in curricula. No one can go to college or attend a public school outside of the city; even the color red is illegal. Students are taught that dinosaurs never existed, and that the only way a female can get into heaven is if her husband will allow her to. Blacks of either gender can never get there21. Richard Abowitz, of the LA times, writing of a drive though Colorado City said. One thing is clear in visiting Colorado City: I can't imagine a sadder place to be a kid than that joyless town22. If Colorado City, and its sister city, Hilldale, Utah are in fact, the reformations of the settlement at Short Creek, and if that settlement was indeed, the outgrowth of the Lees Ferry and Arizona Strip settlements, then the argument can be made that these modern day prison camps are the direct result of John D. Lees lighting in the area. John D. Lee, executed by firing squad on March 23 1877, for the cold-blooded murder of 120 innocent pilgrims, was, at least allegedly, a Danite. While his confessions and trial testimonies are wandering and self-conflicting, he did, himself, on numerous occasions use that term both in reference to himself and to others. The author, having researched both the Danite mythology, and the FLDS is convinced, and can say with reasonable certainty, that there is indeed a link between these murderous gunslingers of the old west, and the modern day white slavers, living and working in towns like Colorado City, spread out all over the western half of the continent.

Notes 1. http://www.jefflindsay.com/LDSFAQ/FQ_Danites.shtml#danites 2. http://churches.net/churches/utmiss/Fundamentalists/Danites%20Research2.htm 3. http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/response/history/danites_eom.htm 4. http://byustudies.byu.edu/shop/pdfsrc/26.2LeSueur.pdf 5. http://www.jefflindsay.com/LDSFAQ/FQ_Missouri.shtml#kangaroo 6. http://churches.net/churches/utmiss/Fundamentalists/Danites%20saltsermon.htm 7. B. H. Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church of Latter Day Saints, Vol.1, p.501. Brigham Young University Press, ISBN 0842502998 8. http://1857massacre.com/MMM/danites_p1.htm 9. R. L. Dewey, Porter Rockwell: A Biography, p.41 Paramount Books N.Y. ISBN 09616024-0-6 10. http://www.ils.unc.edu/~unsworth/mormon/danites.html 11. http://www.ils.unc.edu/~unsworth/mormon/danites.html 12. http://churches.net/churches/utmiss/Fundamentalists/Danites%20avardtest.htm 13. http://www.amazon.com/Joseph-Smith-Mormon-Donna-Hill/dp/156085118X 14. New Oxford Annotated Bible, p. 81 ISBN 978-0-19-528880-3 15. Interview, Rabbi Moshe Kehane, 4/25/08 16. http://www.historyofmormonism.com/ 17. http://www.historyofmormonism.com/Brigham_Young.html 18. http://www.mormonismi.net/bio/john_d_lee.shtml 19. http://www.paklinks.com/gs/showthread.php?t=155642 20. http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/bharris/stories/wfaa050610_am_eldor ado.301015249.html 21. C. Jessop, Escape, p. 323 22. http://vegasblog.latimes.com/vegas/2006/09/visiting_colora.html