by Norma Baldwin Ricketts
Paperback - 400 pages (October 1996)
Utah State University Press
Midwest Book Review: From the Mexican War to the discovery of gold in California, there were few major events in the history of the Far West from 1846 to 1849 that did not involve the Mormon Battalion. Norma Rickett's The Mormon Battalion: U. S. Army Of The West, 1846-1848 is the first complete history of this wide-ranging, but heretofore almost forgotten, army unit, restoring it to its uniquely central place in the history of the American West. Several informative appendices are also featured including an analysis of movement within the Mormon Battalion, an alphabetically reconstructed roster of the Mormon volunteers, military documents, the Mormon Battalion in music and poetry, and much more. A useful bibliography and a subject index further enhance the value of this benchmark publication. Norma Ricketts' The Mormon Battalion combines the scrupulousness of an historical scholar with a born story-teller's ability to showcase history for contemporary readers. The Mormon Battalion is an immensely valuable contribution to Mormon studies and Western American history reading lists.