John Hamilton Morgan papers, 1845-1986

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Morgan, John Hamilton, 1842-1894
Title
John Hamilton Morgan papers
Dates
1845-1986 (inclusive)
Quantity
3 linear feet
Collection Number
ACCN 1465
Summary
The John Hamilton Morgan papers (1845-1986) detail the personal, professional, and religious activities of John Morgan (1842-1894), a noted Utah educator and Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) leader. Click here to view the digitized collection.
Repository
University of Utah Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library
University of Utah
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City, UT
84112-0860

Telephone: 8015818863
special@library.utah.edu
Access Restrictions

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Languages
English

Historical NoteReturn to Top

John Hamilton Morgan, born in Greensburg, Indiana in 1842, moved to Illinois in 1855. In 1862, he enlisted in the Union Army where he obtained the rank of Color Sergeant and served until June, 1865. After the war, he attended Eastman Commercial College in Poughkeepsie, New York, and became interested in a career in education. On a business trip to Salt Lake City in 1867 he founded Morgan's Commercial College. In Salt Lake City he learned about and joined the LDS Church and began a notable career of church participation. He served, first, as part of the Sunday School Superintendency; then as a missionary and mission president; and finally, as a member of the First Council of Seventy. As part of his missionary endeavors in the Southern States Mission, he lead a large group of immigrating converts to San Luis Valley, Colorado, where they established a Mormon colony in 1878. Interspersed with his church activity, Morgan became involved with the territorial government in Utah and became particularly engaged with issues of education, the formation of the Republican Party in Utah, and the push for statehood. During his political career, Morgan was elected as Engrossing Clerk of the Utah Legislature in 1882 and as a member of the Utah Territorial Legislature in 1883 (where he was appointed chairman of the House Committee on Education). He served as a Regent of the University of Deseret in 1884. In 1883 he also organized the first Salt Lake County School Teachers Association. On August 14, 1894, Morgan died at the age of 52 in Preston, Idaho.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The John Hamilton Morgan papers (1845-1986) detail the personal, professional, and religious activities of John Morgan (1842-1894), a noted Utah educator and Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) leader. The collection includes letters (1875-1894) and journals (1875-1892) written while Morgan served as a Union soldier in the Civil War; while he conducted LDS Church business as a missionary leader and a ranking member of the LDS Church hierarchy; and while he acted on political issues. Official papers concerning LDS Church affairs and Morgan's government involvement, as well as biographical and religious articles written by and about John Morgan, also appear in the collection. Much of the collection's information concerns the settlement of the San Luis Valley, Colorado, where many LDS converts settled after arriving there (under Morgan's leadership) from the newly-formed Southern States Mission. While most of the material originated in Morgan's lifetime, collections of his inspirational stories, tributes to his memory, and a biography were produced posthumously.

Click here to view the digitized collection.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library's Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Preferred Citation

Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Organized in three series: I. Writings of John Morgan; II. Professional Papers; and III. Biography Research.

Separated Materials

Photographs transferred to the Multimedia Division of Special Collections (P0605).

Acquisition Information

Gift of Marjorie Morgan Wagstaff in 1994-1995.

Processing Note

Processed by Tad Davies in 1995.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Journals and lettersReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
1 1 November 15, 1875 to March 29, 1878
1 2 March 9, 1878, to September 18, 1879
1 3 September 18, 1879, to October 8, 1879, and January 1, 1881, to January 29, 1882
1 4 February 3, 1882 to March 5, 1883
1 5 March 6, 1883, to January 4, 1884
1 6 January 4, 1884, to September 27, 1884
1 7 September 27, 1884 to July 4, 1885
1 8 July 4, 1885, to May 17, 1886
1 9 May 18, 1886, to December 22, 1886
1 10 December 23, 1886, to November 19, 1887
1 11 November 20, 1887, to October 5, 1888
1 12 October 5, 1888, to September 4, 1889
1 13 September 5, 1889, to August 17, 1890
1 14 August 18, 1890, to July 13, 1891
1 15 July 13, 1891, to May 1, 1892
1 16 May 3, 1892, to November 20, 1892
1 17 1874-1888
1 18
Volume
1 1
"Volume 1, Letters and Articles on the Missionary Labors of Pres. John Morgan"
1872-1879
1 2
"Volume 2, Letters and Articles on the Missionary Labors of Pres. John Morgan"
1879-1894

Missionary and government workReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
3 1
3 2 1875-1888
3 3 1876
3 4 1878-1880
3 5 1882
3 6
Gospel messages
References and quotations for use in missionary work
3 7
3 8 October 1875 to December 1904
3 9 October 1875 to December 1904
3 10
3 11
3 12
3 13
3 14
3 15
3 16
3 17
Articles concerning the San Luis Valley settlements
"The Founding of Mormon Settlements in the San Luis Valley, Colorado," by Andrew Jenson; "The San Luis Valley, Colorado. The Beginning of its Early Colonization by Mormons," by D. H. Christensen.
3 18
San Luis Valley, Colorado
Items contain geographic and demographic information along with information on families living in Manass.
1878-1888
3 19
3 20 1884; 1886
3 21 1881-1894
3 22
Historical monument dedications and corporation beginnings
Organizations and monuments included within folders 22-25 are Salt Lake Theater Company, Bowery, Pioneer Park, Liberty Park, Fort Douglas, Salt Lake schools, the Old and New Tabernacle, Utah Affair, Zion's Corporation Mercantile Institution, Union Academy, and others.
1848-1898
3 23 1848-1898
3 24 1848-1898
3 25 1848-1898
3 26
3 27 1867-1887
3 28 1867-1887
3 29 1867-1887
3 30 1867-1887
3 31 1867-1887
3 32 1867-1887
3 33 1867-1887
3 34 1867-1887
3 35 1867-1887
3 36 1867-1887
3 37 1867-1887
3 38 1867-1887
3 39 1867-1887
3 40 1867-1887
3 41 1867-1887
3 42 1867-1887

Research materialReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
4 1 1875-1892
4 2 1875-1892
4 3 1875-1892
4 4 1875-1892
4 5 1875-1892
4 6 1875-1892
4 7 1875-1892
4 8 1875-1892
4 9 1875-1892
4 10 1875-1892
4 11 1875-1892
4 12 1875-1892
4 13 1875-1892
4 14 1875-1892
4 15 1875-1892
4 16 1875-1892
4 17 1875-1892
4 18 1875-1892
4 19 1875-1892
4 20 1875-1892
4 21 1875-1892
4 22 1875-1892
4 23 1875-1892
4 24 1875-1892
4 25 1875-1892
4 26 1875-1892
4 27 1875-1892
4 28 1875-1892
4 29 1875-1892
4 30 1875-1892
4 31 1875-1892
4 32 1875-1892
4 33
5 1
5 2
5 3
5 4
5 5
5 6
5 7
5 8
5 9
5 10
5 11
5 12
5 13
5 14
5 15
5 16
5 17
5 18 1845-1914
5 19 1982
5 20
5 21
5 22 1964
5 23
5 24
5 25
5 26 1877-1910
5 27 1877-1910
5 28 1970-1986
5 29
5 30 1947-1959
6 1 1894
6 2
6 3
6 4
6 5 1877-1882
6 6 1877-1882
6 7
6 8 1876-1877
6 9
6 10
6 11 1944
6 12
"Louis M. Peterson in Connection with Hans Jensen Mission"
This article was taken from "Histories of the Old Council House of Manti" (1935), and this copy was made July 10, 1947.
6 13

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Latter Day Saint churches--Mission--Southern States
  • Latter Day Saint churches--Utah--History
  • Latter Day Saints--Biography
  • Latter Day Saints--Diaries
  • Latter Day Saints--Missionary experiences--Southern States

Personal Names

  • Morgan, John Hamilton, 1842-1894--Archives

Geographical Names

  • San Luis Valley (Colo. and N.M.)--Colonization
  • Utah--History

Form or Genre Terms

  • Articles
  • Biographies
  • Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
  • Correspondence
  • Diaries