What did the Mormons hope to find in the West in 1830?

Joseph Smith founded the Mormon Church, often called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in 1830 in Fayette, New York. The Mormons were looking for converts and a place to worship in peace after they formed. The Mormons had some different religious practices, including polygamy, which often created tensions with other people and with other religious groups. Thus, the Mormons looked to move westward in the 1830s.

The Mormons did move westward during this time. The settled in Ohio, Missouri, and Illinois. However, they weren’t able to find long-term freedom from religious persecution. People continued to be concerned about their religious practices. There was some concern about the voting patterns of the Mormons. They tended to vote in a united bloc. There also was some economic competition between the Mormons and other groups. After Joseph Smith was killed in Illinois in 1844, the Mormons, in 1846, moved even further west, and they eventually settled in Utah under the leadership of Brigham Young.