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Basic Works on Mormon HistoryMost written history of the Mormons can be classed as either sympathetic
or critical. Since the mid-20th 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 Arrington, Leonard J., and Davis Bitton. The Mormon Experience:
A History of the Latter-Day Saints. (Urbana: University of Illinois
Press, 1992). 2nd ed. JFE 92-6705. A good basic work,
written by men who are both Mormons and scholars. Intended for a general
audience. 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. 2nd 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. |