E102: Ladies of the Battalion

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:16)
Last episode, we took you on the arduous journey of the Mormon Battalion. Are you all rested from it?
Did you listen from the comfort of your air-conditioned lodging and your feather beds?
Did you eat fancy store-bought ice cream and bathe yourselves in expensive skin creams afterwards? Good, because that's what the ancestors would have wanted, I think. Yes, last episode was the tale of the stalwart Mormon men faithfully serving their God and their country to help the United States in their war with Mexico. It was a pioneer story for the ages, full of drama, heartache, sacrifice, faith and violence. What more do you need?

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:56)
How about a little more context?

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:58)
Well, does context cost money? Because our last 40 cents are going toward dried beef rations in this episode.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:06)
Luckily for you, it comes from the co-op store, so you can have all the context you want. This time, the context comes in the form of the least talked about part of Mormon history, Mormon women.
We mentioned last time we talked about the women that went with the battalion. The Mormon Battalion was an unusual case when it came to military regiments because it was the only time the US government built an entire regiment from a religious group. It was also incredibly rare because it allowed women and children to attend their soldier husbands.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:33)
That's right. Today, we're going to talk about those women and children highlighting some of the stories, and get ready, buckle up, and put your fancy ice cream away for a more appropriate time. You are about to relive my experience of sitting at the feet of my DUP grandmother, hearing about the buckets and heaps of persecution our people went through so we could live the gospel today. If you don't leave this episode with loads of gratitude and a song in your heart, so help me I'll wash your selfish little mouth out with soap.
Hi, this is Lindsay Hansen Park.

**Bryan Buchanan** (2:09)
And this is Bryan Buchanan.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (2:11)
Bringing you the story of Mormonism from the shadow of the Everlasting Hills straight out of Zion, this isn't your grandpa's Mormon history.

**Bryan Buchanan** (2:38)
This is the tale of Mormon saints and sinners from our roots until present day.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (2:43)
Gird your loins, lock your hearts, and pay your tithing, because we're bringing you the story of Mormonism in all its paradisiacal glory.

**Bryan Buchanan** (2:51)
It's the Sunstone History Podcast.
Determining the number of women in the Mormon battalion is like determining the number of Joseph Smith's wives. There were 33-ish women by most accounts. Did I say Joseph Smith's wives? Maybe 33 is too low.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (3:24)
Should have gone with Heber.

**Bryan Buchanan** (3:25)
Should have gone with Heber. Or the age of Jesus when he was crucified?

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (3:29)
Ouch, too soon.

**Bryan Buchanan** (3:31)
Sorry.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (3:31)
Part of the issue in accurate numbers is that there are sort of two categories of women lumped together. There are the women that traveled with the enlisted battalion members. And of course, those women get split up into three detachments within the battalion. And then there are the women who stayed behind in winter quarters while their husbands marched off to California.

**Bryan Buchanan** (3:50)
The good news is we're going to be talking about all of them today. The women who marched with the battalion and the ones that got left behind. But first, a word from our sponsor Signature Books.
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