Juanita Brooks
Encyclopedia
Juanita Pulsipher Brooks (January 15, 1898 – August 26, 1989) was an American historian
and author, specializing in the American West and Mormon
history, including books related to the Mountain Meadows massacre
, to which her ancestor Dudley Leavitt
was sometimes linked.
. In 1919 she married Ernest Pulsipher, who died of cancer little more than a year later, leaving her with an infant son. She earned her bachelor's degree from BYU
and a master's degree from Columbia University
. Settling in St. George, Utah
, she became an instructor of English and dean of women at the LDS-backed, Dixie Junior College. In 1933, the same year the state of Utah discontinued funding for parochial Mormon secondary education, she resigned from the college to marry a widower, Will Brooks. She became stepmother to his four sons. Within five years the couple added a daughter, Willa Nita, and three sons to their family.
For many years she served on the Board of the Utah Historical Society where she devoted herself to unearthing diaries and records of early settlers and organized a Utah library of Mormon history. The diary-collecting project was begun under the Works Progress Administration
during the Depression of the 1930s; the project's transcripts were eventually catalogued at the Library of Congress
.
But more importantly, the study of diaries and other personal journals enlivened Brooks's historiography, and her subsequent works reflected her scrutiny of such sources. Brooks went on to write numerous historical articles as well as a variety of family narratives, including a biography of her pioneer grandfather Dudley Leavitt as well as a biography of her sheriff husband, Uncle Will Tells His Story.
Brooks' notable books on Mormon history include The Mountain Meadows Massacre (1950), John D. Lee: Zealot, Pioneer Builder, Scapegoat (1961); she also edited Hosea Stout
's diaries. Brooks' book on the Mountain Meadows Massacre
broke new ground. It was the first comprehensive account of the incident using modern historical methods.
Living near the area in southern Utah where the Massacre occurred, Brooks investigated the events thoroughly but found no evidence of direct involvement by Brigham Young. But she did charge him with obstructing the investigation and with provoking the attack through his incendiary rhetoric, calling him "an accessory after the fact." Mormon leader Young, wrote Brooks, became so fearful of federal invasion that he created a hothouse atmosphere where the militia saw threats everywhere.
Brooks was a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although Mormon authorities at church headquarters discouraged Brooks from pursuing her study of the Mountain Meadows massacre
, her book on the Mountain Meadows Massacre
and many of her other studies received critical acclaim. No official disciplinary action was taken, but Brooks said she initially felt ostracized from both her local congregation and church officials for her investigations into Mormon history.
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
and author, specializing in the American West and Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
history, including books related to the Mountain Meadows massacre
Mountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
, to which her ancestor Dudley Leavitt
Dudley Leavitt
Dudley Leavitt was an early patriarch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon pioneer and an early settler in southern Utah.-Biography:Leavitt was born in Stanstead, Lower Canada....
was sometimes linked.
Biography
Born Juanita Leone Leavitt, Brooks was born and raised in Bunkerville, NevadaBunkerville, Nevada
Bunkerville is an unincorporated town in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 1,014 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the census-designated place of Bunkerville has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is...
. In 1919 she married Ernest Pulsipher, who died of cancer little more than a year later, leaving her with an infant son. She earned her bachelor's degree from BYU
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
and a master's degree from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. Settling in St. George, Utah
St. George, Utah
St. George is a city located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Utah, and the county seat of Washington County, Utah. It is the principal city of and is included in the St. George, Utah, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is 119 miles northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, and 303 miles ...
, she became an instructor of English and dean of women at the LDS-backed, Dixie Junior College. In 1933, the same year the state of Utah discontinued funding for parochial Mormon secondary education, she resigned from the college to marry a widower, Will Brooks. She became stepmother to his four sons. Within five years the couple added a daughter, Willa Nita, and three sons to their family.
For many years she served on the Board of the Utah Historical Society where she devoted herself to unearthing diaries and records of early settlers and organized a Utah library of Mormon history. The diary-collecting project was begun under the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
during the Depression of the 1930s; the project's transcripts were eventually catalogued at the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
.
But more importantly, the study of diaries and other personal journals enlivened Brooks's historiography, and her subsequent works reflected her scrutiny of such sources. Brooks went on to write numerous historical articles as well as a variety of family narratives, including a biography of her pioneer grandfather Dudley Leavitt as well as a biography of her sheriff husband, Uncle Will Tells His Story.
Brooks' notable books on Mormon history include The Mountain Meadows Massacre (1950), John D. Lee: Zealot, Pioneer Builder, Scapegoat (1961); she also edited Hosea Stout
Hosea Stout
Hosea Stout was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement, a Mormon pioneer, and a lawyer and politician in Utah Territory....
's diaries. Brooks' book on the Mountain Meadows Massacre
Mountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
broke new ground. It was the first comprehensive account of the incident using modern historical methods.
Living near the area in southern Utah where the Massacre occurred, Brooks investigated the events thoroughly but found no evidence of direct involvement by Brigham Young. But she did charge him with obstructing the investigation and with provoking the attack through his incendiary rhetoric, calling him "an accessory after the fact." Mormon leader Young, wrote Brooks, became so fearful of federal invasion that he created a hothouse atmosphere where the militia saw threats everywhere.
Brooks was a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although Mormon authorities at church headquarters discouraged Brooks from pursuing her study of the Mountain Meadows massacre
Mountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
, her book on the Mountain Meadows Massacre
Mountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
and many of her other studies received critical acclaim. No official disciplinary action was taken, but Brooks said she initially felt ostracized from both her local congregation and church officials for her investigations into Mormon history.
External links
- Photograph (from article linked to below)
- "Writer blazed trail for massacre research", Salt Lake Tribune, September 9, 2007
- Grave of Juanita Leone Leavitt, St. George, Utah, Find-A-Grave
- The Juanita Brooks Papers, University of Utah Marriott Library Special Collections, library.utah.edu