Basic Works on Mormon History

Most written history of the Mormons can be classed as either sympathetic or critical. Since the mid-20^th century, the number of balanced, scholarly treatments has increased considerably. The following list focuses on works dealing with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Utah) and covers other movements only incidentally. For specific treatment of individual Mormon Churches and dissenting factions, see Dale Morgan's and Steven Shield's bibliographies (above).

Best Single-Volume Treatments
Multi-Volume Studies
Classic Works in Mormon History

Best Single-Volume Treatments

Allen, James B., and Glen N. Leonard, eds. The Story of the Latter-day Saints. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1976). 2^nd ed., rev. and enl. JFE 94-1841. This was the first and perhaps the finest scholarly one-volume history of the Church to be published. It is a good introductory work and is basically intended for a Mormon audience.

Arrington, Leonard J., and Davis Bitton. The Mormon Experience: A History of the Latter-Day Saints. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1992). 2^nd ed. JFE 92-6705. A good basic work, written by men who are both Mormons and scholars. Intended for a general audience.

Multi-Volume Studies

Ludlow, Daniel H., ed. Encyclopedia of Mormonism: the History, Scripture, Doctrine, and Procedure of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 5 v. (New York: Macmillan, 1992). *R-ZZM 92-8962.

Smith, Joseph, Jr. History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Edited and with an introduction and notes by B.H. Roberts. 7 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1902-1932). ZZMD (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. History…) Sometimes referred to as the "Documentary History of the Church," this work has a complex authorship. For an understanding of how this history was written, see Dean C. Jesse's articles "The Writing of Joseph Smith's History," Brigham Young University Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439-73 and "The Reliability of Joseph Smith's History," Journal of Mormon History 3 (1976): 23-46.

Smith, Joseph, II, Henry C. Smith, and F. Henry Edwards, editors. The History of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 7 vols. (Independence, Mo.: Herald House Publishers, 1967). ZZMD (Smith, Joseph, and Smith, HC The History…)

Roberts, Brigham Henry. A Comprehensive History of the Church. 6 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1930). ZZMD. Originally published serially in Americana (June 1909-July 1915), this text was revised, updated, and published for the Centennial anniversary of the Mormon Church.

Classic Works in Mormon History

Arrington, Leonard J. Great Basin Kingdom: An Economic History of the Latter-day Saints, 1930-1900. (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1958). TAH. Focuses on the Utah period.

Backman, Milton V., Jr. American Religions and the Rise of Mormonism. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1965). AE-10 775.

Barlow, Philip L. Mormons and the Bible: the Place of the Latter-day Saints in American Religion. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1991). JFD 91-9197.

Brodie, Fawn M. No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith. 2^nd ed. (New York: Knopf, 1971). JFD 72-1237. Important and controversial biography of Joseph Smith, first published in 1945.

Brown, S. Kent, Donald Q. Cannon, and Richard H. Jackson, eds. Historical Atlas of Mormonism (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994). JFG 95-596.

Bushman, Richard L. Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1984). JFE 85-908. Focuses on Smith's life up to 1831, accepting the documents of Mormon history at face value.

Cornwall, Marie, Tim B. Heaton, and Lawrence A. Young, eds. Contemporary Mormonism: Social Science Perspectives. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994). JFE 94-14170.

Flanders, Robert B. Nauvoo: Kingdom on the Mississippi. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1965). IVF (Nauvoo). The finest treatment of the Nauvoo period.

Hansen, Klaus J. Quest for Empire: The Political Kingdom of God and the Council of Fifty in Mormon History. ([East Lansing]: Michigan State University, 1967). AD-10 1340.

Hill, Donna. Joseph Smith: The First Mormon. (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1977). *R-AN (Smith, J.) 77-3082. This comprehensive, sympathetic biography benefits from material unavailable for earlier biographical treatments of Joseph Smith.

Linn, William A. The Story of the Mormons. (New York: Macmillan, 1902; reprinted 1923). *RR-ZZMD for the reprint; ZZMD for the original. Portrays Mormonism as a threat to American institutions.

Mulder, William, and A. Russell Mortensen, eds. Among the Mormons: Historic Accounts by Contemporary Observers. (New York: Knopf, 1958). E-10 5699. A compilation of 100 contemporary accounts of the Mormons. Arranged chronologically in five chapters.

O'Dea, Thomas F. The Mormons. (Chicago.: University of Chicago Press, 1957). AE 10-71. A classic sociological treatment of the subject.

Shipps, Jan. Mormonism: The Story of a New Religious Tradition. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1985). JXE 85-84.