Why did the Mormons move from New York to Utah?

Answer 1

People were persecuting them.

The Mormons left Illinois because Brigham Young, the new Mormon leader, heard about a great valley in the Utah desert, which at the time was still owned by Mexico. In 1847, he led a party of Mormons on a long, hazardous journey to the valley of the Great Salt Lake.

The Illinois government asked the Mormons to leave because their presence was causing too much unrest in the state.

Under their new leader Brigham Young the decision to leave Illinois was due directly to the murder of original Mormon Joseph Smith and his brother by a mob that attacked the jail where the two brothers were being held.

Answer 2

The early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly called the "Mormon" church) didn't just move straight from New York to Utah... the move took 14 years! So the reasons vary. Only about a year after the Church was organized, most of it's members moved from New York to Kirtland, Ohio. This is because a large group of people in Kirtland had joined the Church, and it was decided that it would be best for the New York members to move to join these new Ohio members.

Soon after, some groups of Mormons were sent to Missouri to settle what was intended on being Zion, the headquarters of the Church. Unfortunately, those left in Ohio began to face opposition and headed west to escape it. Because persecution was also mounting in Missouri, the Missouri Mormons and the Ohio Mormons both ended up moving to Illinois, where they established the city of Nauvoo. Here they lived in peace for quite some time, until anti-Mormon sentiment built to the extent that the prophet Jospeh Smith was murdered and the state government asked the Mormons to leave. They left they next year and headed toward Utah, but stayed in Nebraska for several months because of the severe winter.

So, some moves were by choice, some moves were to obey the commandment of Church leaders, and some moves were to escape persecution.

Answer 3

The main body of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the "Mormon" church) left New York only a year after the church was officially founded. This was because a large number of people converted in Kirtland, Ohio, and they thought it would be best to keep the church membership together as much as possible. A few stayed behind in New York, but most moved to Ohio.

Years later, they left Ohio for a few reasons. First, the Prophet Joseph Smith had declared that God prepared a place for them in Missouri, so some were asked to go there and prepare a settlement. Second, the persecution and violence against them grew so bad that those left behind in Ohio began to head to Missouri.

Answer 4

In the 1840's, the Mormons were establishing their headquarters in Nauvoo, Illinois. Their neighbors disliked this because so many Mormons were moving into the area. There were so many Mormons that they were starting to influence the culture and politics of the area, and it made those who lived there prior to the arrival of the Mormons feel threatened and like they had been overtaken.

Answer 5

The majority of the Mormon pioneers left Illinois in the spring and summer of 1846.