B. Carmon Hardy was born on December 24, 1934, in Vernal, Utah. He graduated from high school in Washington in 1953. On July 31, 1954, Hardy married Kamilia Compton; together, they had four children. Hardy studied history and received a BA from Washington State University in 1957, an MA from Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1959, and a PhD from Wayne State University in 1963.
In 1961, Hardy began teaching as Assistant Professor of the History and Philosophy of Education at BYU. In 1966, he left this position to take a job as Assistant Professor of History at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), where he remained until retiring in 1998 from the role of Professor and Department Chair; he continued to teach part-time as Professor Emeritus until 2016. Throughout his career, Hardy was recognized for his skill and dedication to teaching through numerous awards and honors including California State University's Meritorious Performance Award for Excellence in Teaching (1988) and the History Student's Association Award for Outstanding Mentoring of Students (2002).
Hardy’s historical research included the Third and Fourth Amendments to the United States Constitution and polygamy in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. In addition to numerous articles and textbooks, Hardy authored several monographs including
B. Carmon Hardy died on December 31, 2016.
The B. Carmon Hardy collection consists of 1 box containing 1 cabinet card stamped on the back with G.S. Smith's Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah. The photograph was collected by B. Carmon Hardy during the course of his historical research into polygamy among members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. "Polygamy in Low Life" is written on the front of the photograph.
The collection also includes two copies of the photograph in different formats: 1 8x10 Black and white copy print and one 4x5 black and white copy negative. The copy print includes a handwritten identification note reading: "For controversial photo: 'Polygamy in Low Life' PH 5040 LDS Archives see Utah State Historical Society Newsletter 25:1 (1975), 5. Says it is a pic. of the Ashton family and relatives of Mary Ashton posing in front of Samuel and Mary Ashton's log cabin near Kaysville, Utah, probably in 1880." A copy of the photograph owned by the Utah State Historical Society and
Arranged by subject
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.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the B. Carmon Hardy photograph collection must be obtained from the Special Collections Manuscript Curator.
Donated by Kamillia Hardy in 2017.
Processed by Special Collections staff.
See also the