Pioneer Day 1870

DESCRIPTION: "Dear friends, I pray just lend an ear Whilst I relate a song, I do not mean disloyalty Or anything that's wrong... Uncle Sam has been unkind In denying us a state. The singer tells of all the troubles the Saints faced at the hands of the United States
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1960 (Cheney-MormonSongs)
KEYWORDS: hardtimes | Mormon statehood Utah
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
1857 - Mounting of the Mormon Expedition/Mormon War/Utah War, in which Federal forces were commanded by Albert Sydney Johnston
Jan 4, 1896 - Utah admitted to the Union as a state
FOUND IN: US(Ro)
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Cheney-MormonSongs, pp. 105-108, "Pioneer Day 1870" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #10848
NOTES [78 words]: Figuring out who the people in this song are proved quite a challenge. "Bracchus" was apparently a judge in Utah around 1850 who found himself in conflict with Brigham Young. 1857 was the time of the Utah War. "Jim Buchanan" is James Buchanan, president from 1857 to 1861 and hence the president responsible for the war. The "old battalion boys" apparently refers to the Mormon Battalion of the Mexican War, for which see the notes to "Mormon Battalion Song (I)." - RBW
Last updated in version 6.6
File: ChMS105

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