Paul Dayton Bailey
Encyclopedia
Paul Dayton Bailey was the owner/publisher of Westernlore Press and a writer of many books himself that focused on the Western American experience and, in particular, Latter-day Saint history.
, Utah
until the age of 13 when his father went to Grant's Pass
, Oregon
to take part in the building of a new sugar beet
-processing factory
for the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company
. As Eli helped build the factory, he sent letters and money home, finally persuading his family to join him.
The family did not stay in Oregon long. Utah-Idaho failed to persuade local farmers to pick up the new crop and, two summers later, Eli was put in charge of dismantling the factory and loading it upon rail cars for reassembly in Yakima Valley
, Washington. The family, which had always been poor, grew more impoverished with each move, and the Yakima venture did not pull them out.
The factory was not reassembled in time for the first year's (bumper) crop, and before the second year's crop could be processed, World War I
ended, dropping sugar prices to what Bailey would later describe as "catastrophic lows". The lowered prices were accompanied by a disease called "curly top
" which reduced the previously enormous Washington yields to industry-killing scarcity.
The Bailey family responded to the death of sugar with a disastrous attempt at potato farming in Washington, after which young Bailey ran away, back home to American Fork, where he set up residence with his maternal grandfather Joseph Barlow Forbes
and his first wife
--Bailey's grandmother--Nancy. Living with them meant Bailey was not allowed to drop out of school and work as he had intended.
A year after his return to American Fork, his mother and his siblings also returned. Elie moved to Idaho Falls, Idaho
to be foreman at a UISC factory there. Although Eli sent checks to his family, Bailey finally did drop out of school to help support his mother, who would soon divorce Eli, at which point Bailey left home for good with a move to Salt Lake City.
Supporting himself with odd jobs, Bailey put himself through Henager's Business College
and LDS Business College
. While working at the county hospital
as a night orderly
, Bailey met Evelyn Robison. Shortly after impulsively kissing her and getting slapped in return, he moved to California
and she returned to her hometown
due to illness.
, Bailey began work as an apprentice typographer. While working in newspapers, he remet Robison, who was working again at becoming a registered nurse
. They were soon married, which resulted in her expulsion from General Hospital's School of Nursing. It was the eve of the Great Depression
.
Evelyn undertook secretarial training at Metropolitan College. Bailey's typographic work kept him busy and well employed throughout the Depression. However, he had developed a desire to write. He fed that need initially with fact-based, usually historical articles, including a serialized study of Samuel Brannon, published in the LDS periodicals Era
and Millennial Star
, and, later, with much success, in book form. This began a string of successes with Church-owned publications, such as his novel This Is My Glory; about the Mormon Battalion
. His books were popular in Utah and even used as Sunday School texts.
Meanwhile, he had taken reporting jobs at the Los Angeles Record and Hollywood Citizen, followed by a sudden opportunity to purchase the Eagle Rock Advertiser, one of two newspapers in Eagle Rock
, a small town outside of Los Angeles. The paper was on the verge of collapse, but since he had both editorial and typographical preparation, Bailey was able to keep costs down and eventually turn the Advertiser into Eagle Rock's premier paper. Evelyn, for her part, drummed up additional advertising revenue.
brought on serious paper-rationing with smaller newspapers were powerless to work around. While larger LA-area papers were able to purchase Canadian pulp mills to keep in paper, smaller papers were forced to print fewer pages less frequently. The Baileys were particularly frustrated because during those boom years, the advertising available was much more than they had paper to print upon.
To supplement income, Bailey took a job reorganizing and running the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's Lockheed Star, printing five separate editions for the five separate factories in the Burbank
area.
Also during the war years, Bailey started Westernlore Press to reprint classic texts on the Western United States, whose rarity prevented most interested libraries from purchasing copies. To his surprise, this venture was eased by the War Production Board
's far less stringent requirements for acquiring book paper. The books published by Westernlore--on the same presses used by the 'Advertiser'--were immediate successes and every edition sold out.
During this time, Bailey also found time to write three new books. The first, a fictionalized version of his Samuel Brannon biography, and the second (also a novel) were "enthusiastically received by the Saints." The third, Jacob Hamblin, Buckskin Apostle, became a source of controversy. Bailey received angry responses from LDS leadership and the Hamblin
family--in large part because his book dealt with Hamblin's marriages to two Indian
women and two white women, and the Mountain Meadows massacre
. In later years however, Buckskin Apostle would experience a renaissance in LDS circles--even being published by Church-owned publication.
The end of the war saw larger corporations buying up impoverished smaller papers and forcing the others out of business. The 'Advertiser' was one of the few, hardy small papers that survived the war rationing, only to be forced out of business by larger corporation shortly thereafter.
. During the years he ran it, Westernlore continued to publish books focused on the Western United States that were highly regarded by libraries and well purchased. Westernlore published some of Bailey's own work, but his better known books were published by larger companies.
Many of his later books proved, to his and his publishers' surprise, to be controversial. For instance, For Time and All Eternity--a book about the anti-polygamy crusade in the 1890s--caused a small uproar among the Utah faithful, as did his book on Zion's Camp
, the Missouri Contingent, the Nauvoo Legion
and the Mormon Battalion, The Armies of God. Bailey believed the book was "a warm, honest appraisal of Mormon heroism in conquering the West" and his publisher had arranged for numerous interviews and signings in Utah; however, in the end the book was never so much as reviewed in the State.
Although estranged in many ways from Mormonism, Bailey always embraced that part of his heritage.
Evelyn died in 1981. Bailey never remarried; he died in 1987.
Many of his papers are held by the University of California, Los Angeles
.
Early years
Bailey was the son of Eli and Olive Bailey and raised in American ForkAmerican Fork, Utah
American Fork is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, at the foot of Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Range, north of Utah Lake. It is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 26,263 at the 2010 census, nearly a 20% growth since the 2000 census...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
until the age of 13 when his father went to Grant's Pass
Grants Pass, Oregon
-Rogue River:The Rogue River runs through Grants Pass.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 23,003 people, 9,376 households, and 5,925 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 9,885 housing units at an average density of 1,303.3 per square mile . By 2008,...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
to take part in the building of a new sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
-processing factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
for the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company
Amalgamated Sugar Company
The Amalgamated Sugar Company is a sugar beet refining company run on a cooperative basis. It was founded in 1897 in Logan, Utah, and is now located in Nampa, Idaho, United States. The company markets its sugar under the White Satin brand.-Founding:...
. As Eli helped build the factory, he sent letters and money home, finally persuading his family to join him.
The family did not stay in Oregon long. Utah-Idaho failed to persuade local farmers to pick up the new crop and, two summers later, Eli was put in charge of dismantling the factory and loading it upon rail cars for reassembly in Yakima Valley
Yakima Valley
Yakima Valley may refer to:*Yakima River Valley in southeastern Washington*Yakima Valley AVA...
, Washington. The family, which had always been poor, grew more impoverished with each move, and the Yakima venture did not pull them out.
The factory was not reassembled in time for the first year's (bumper) crop, and before the second year's crop could be processed, World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
ended, dropping sugar prices to what Bailey would later describe as "catastrophic lows". The lowered prices were accompanied by a disease called "curly top
Curly top
Curly top is a disease, first noted in the United States in 1898, which strikes various types of plants, including tomato, chili pepper, eggplant, potatoes, and others, causing them to stop growing or producing fruit, often eventually dying...
" which reduced the previously enormous Washington yields to industry-killing scarcity.
The Bailey family responded to the death of sugar with a disastrous attempt at potato farming in Washington, after which young Bailey ran away, back home to American Fork, where he set up residence with his maternal grandfather Joseph Barlow Forbes
Joseph Barlow Forbes
Joseph Barlow Forbes was a member of the Forbes family and a pioneering educator in early Utah history.-Early years:...
and his first wife
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
--Bailey's grandmother--Nancy. Living with them meant Bailey was not allowed to drop out of school and work as he had intended.
A year after his return to American Fork, his mother and his siblings also returned. Elie moved to Idaho Falls, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
to be foreman at a UISC factory there. Although Eli sent checks to his family, Bailey finally did drop out of school to help support his mother, who would soon divorce Eli, at which point Bailey left home for good with a move to Salt Lake City.
Supporting himself with odd jobs, Bailey put himself through Henager's Business College
Stevens-Henager College
Stevens–Henager College, headquartered in Ogden, Utah, United States, North America, is a private, for-profit, coeducational college, owned by CollegeAmerica. Established in 1891, the college has five campuses in Idaho and Utah. It offers online and on-campus programs in varied educational spectra...
and LDS Business College
LDS Business College
LDS Business College is a two-year college in Salt Lake City, Utah, focused on training students in business and industry. The college is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and operates under the Church Educational System and is associated with the Brigham Young University...
. While working at the county hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
as a night orderly
Orderly
A medical orderly , is a hospital attendant whose job consists of assisting medical and/or nursing staff with various nursing and/or medical interventions. These duties are classified as routine tasks involving no risk for the patient.- Job details :Orderlies are often utilized in various hospital...
, Bailey met Evelyn Robison. Shortly after impulsively kissing her and getting slapped in return, he moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and she returned to her hometown
Fillmore, Utah
Fillmore is a city in Millard County, Utah, United States. The population was 2,253 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Millard County. It is named for the thirteenth US President Millard Fillmore....
due to illness.
Early writing career
Shortly after arriving in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Bailey began work as an apprentice typographer. While working in newspapers, he remet Robison, who was working again at becoming a registered nurse
Registered nurse
A registered nurse is a nurse who has graduated from a nursing program at a university or college and has passed a national licensing exam. A registered nurse helps individuals, families, and groups to achieve health and prevent disease...
. They were soon married, which resulted in her expulsion from General Hospital's School of Nursing. It was the eve of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
Evelyn undertook secretarial training at Metropolitan College. Bailey's typographic work kept him busy and well employed throughout the Depression. However, he had developed a desire to write. He fed that need initially with fact-based, usually historical articles, including a serialized study of Samuel Brannon, published in the LDS periodicals Era
Improvement Era
The Improvement Era was an official magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1897 and 1970....
and Millennial Star
Millennial Star
The Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star was the longest continuously published periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, being printed from 1840 until 1970....
, and, later, with much success, in book form. This began a string of successes with Church-owned publications, such as his novel This Is My Glory; about the Mormon Battalion
Mormon Battalion
The Mormon Battalion was the only religiously based unit in United States military history, and it served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War. The battalion was a volunteer unit of between 534 and 559 Latter-day Saints men led by Mormon company officers, commanded by regular...
. His books were popular in Utah and even used as Sunday School texts.
Meanwhile, he had taken reporting jobs at the Los Angeles Record and Hollywood Citizen, followed by a sudden opportunity to purchase the Eagle Rock Advertiser, one of two newspapers in Eagle Rock
Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, California
In 1909, Hill Avenue, now Hill Drive, was one of Eagle Rock's most beautiful streets. Other streets were Royal Drive , Acacia Street , Kenilworth Avenue , Highland Avenue , and Fairmont Avenue...
, a small town outside of Los Angeles. The paper was on the verge of collapse, but since he had both editorial and typographical preparation, Bailey was able to keep costs down and eventually turn the Advertiser into Eagle Rock's premier paper. Evelyn, for her part, drummed up additional advertising revenue.
World War II
World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
brought on serious paper-rationing with smaller newspapers were powerless to work around. While larger LA-area papers were able to purchase Canadian pulp mills to keep in paper, smaller papers were forced to print fewer pages less frequently. The Baileys were particularly frustrated because during those boom years, the advertising available was much more than they had paper to print upon.
To supplement income, Bailey took a job reorganizing and running the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's Lockheed Star, printing five separate editions for the five separate factories in the Burbank
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
area.
Also during the war years, Bailey started Westernlore Press to reprint classic texts on the Western United States, whose rarity prevented most interested libraries from purchasing copies. To his surprise, this venture was eased by the War Production Board
War Production Board
The War Production Board was established as a government agency on January 16, 1942 by executive order of Franklin D. Roosevelt.The purpose of the board was to regulate the production and allocation of materials and fuel during World War II in the United States...
's far less stringent requirements for acquiring book paper. The books published by Westernlore--on the same presses used by the 'Advertiser'--were immediate successes and every edition sold out.
During this time, Bailey also found time to write three new books. The first, a fictionalized version of his Samuel Brannon biography, and the second (also a novel) were "enthusiastically received by the Saints." The third, Jacob Hamblin, Buckskin Apostle, became a source of controversy. Bailey received angry responses from LDS leadership and the Hamblin
Jacob Hamblin
Jacob Vernon Hamblin was a Western pioneer, Mormon missionary, and diplomat to various Native American Tribes of the Southwest and Great Basin. During his life, he helped settle large areas of southern Utah and northern Arizona where he was seen as an honest broker between Mormon settlers and the...
family--in large part because his book dealt with Hamblin's marriages to two Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
women and two white women, and 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...
. In later years however, Buckskin Apostle would experience a renaissance in LDS circles--even being published by Church-owned publication.
The end of the war saw larger corporations buying up impoverished smaller papers and forcing the others out of business. The 'Advertiser' was one of the few, hardy small papers that survived the war rationing, only to be forced out of business by larger corporation shortly thereafter.
Later Work
Bailey ran Westernlore until 1973, when its inventory was lost in a fire and his son Lynn moved the company to Tucson, ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. During the years he ran it, Westernlore continued to publish books focused on the Western United States that were highly regarded by libraries and well purchased. Westernlore published some of Bailey's own work, but his better known books were published by larger companies.
Many of his later books proved, to his and his publishers' surprise, to be controversial. For instance, For Time and All Eternity--a book about the anti-polygamy crusade in the 1890s--caused a small uproar among the Utah faithful, as did his book on Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp
Zion's Camp was a paramilitary expedition of Latter Day Saints, led by Joseph Smith, Jr., from Kirtland, Ohio to Clay County, Missouri during May and June 1834 in an unsuccessful attempt to regain land from which the Saints had been expelled by non-Mormon settlers...
, the Missouri Contingent, the Nauvoo Legion
Nauvoo Legion
The Nauvoo Legion was a militia originally organized by the Latter Day Saints to defend the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, . To curry political favor with the ambiguously-political Saints, the Illinois state legislature granted Nauvoo a liberal city charter that gave the Nauvoo Legion extraordinary...
and the Mormon Battalion, The Armies of God. Bailey believed the book was "a warm, honest appraisal of Mormon heroism in conquering the West" and his publisher had arranged for numerous interviews and signings in Utah; however, in the end the book was never so much as reviewed in the State.
Although estranged in many ways from Mormonism, Bailey always embraced that part of his heritage.
Evelyn died in 1981. Bailey never remarried; he died in 1987.
Many of his papers are held by the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
.