Of Pride and Politics: Brigham Young as Indian Superintendent BY F L O Y D A. o ' N E I L A N D S T A N F O R D J . L A Y T O N
A b o v e : Daguerreotype of Brigham Historical Society collections.
Young,
ca. 1850. Utah
State
W H E N BRIGHAM Y O U N G RECEIVED his appointment as ex officio superintendent of Indian Affairs for U t a h Territory in September 1850, the outlines of Mormon-Indian relations h a d already been defined. T h e Mormons had clearly demonstrated their determination to claim the land they needed for settlement, regardless of Indian resistance, and to protect their foothold in the Great Basin at all costs. Although the rhetoric of Dr. O'Neil is associate director of the American West Center, University of U t a h ; Dr. Layton is managing editor of Utah Historical Quarterly.
