The life and times of John Steele : Mormon kingdom-builder / Kerry William Bate

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bate, Kerry William, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Steele, John, 1821-1903.

Steele, John.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--Biography.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Latter Day Saints--Biography.

Latter Day Saints.

Genre:

Biographies

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City : The University of Utah Press, [2025]

Summary:

"From radical reformer to Mormon pioneer and mystic Among the founders of Salt Lake City, Parowan, and Las Vegas, and an explorer of Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon, John Steele's legacy is etched across the American West. The Life and Times of John Steele follows the remarkable journey of this Irish-born convert to Mormonism from his birth into scarcity through his final days in Kanarraville, Utah. A fervent believer in utopian ideals, Steele sought to build an egalitarian Kingdom of Christ in the last days, becoming a key figure in early Utah history. His multifaceted roles—missionary, city founder, militia major, justice of the peace, and self-taught doctor using folk medicine, charms, and the occult—make his story unique. This meticulously researched biography offers new insights into pivotal events such as the Mountain Meadows Massacre and the communal economics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, drawing from Steele’s extensive personal diaries and papers to bring his complex, colorful life and times to light"-- JSTOR

Contents:

Ireland

Scotland

Nauvoo

Mormon Battalion

Great Salt Lake City

Parowan

Explorations and Native Americans

Las Vegas

Interesting times: Mountain Meadows

Hopis, Paiutes, and Navajos

Practicing all trades

A British tramp

Signs of the times

Mad interlude

Leechdoms, wortcunning, starcraft, and fate

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index

Online resource; title from PDF title page (JSTOR, viewed April 1, 2026)

Other Format:

Print version: Bate, Kerry William Life and times of John Steele

ISBN:

9781647692209

1647692202

OCLC:

1550437245