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The historic Clawson polygamy case...
The historic Clawson polygamy case...
Item # 693118
October 20, 1884
ST. LOUIS GLOBE-DEMOCRAT, Oct. 20, 1884
* Rudger Clawson polygamy trial
* Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
* Mormons - Mormonism
Page 2 has: "The Clawson Polygamy Case" being a report from Salt Lake, Utah, on the rather case of Rudger Clawson with some detailed coverage of the trial.
Clawson was the first practicing polygamist to be convicted and serve a sentence after the passage of the Edmunds Act, a federal statute signed into law in 1882 declaring polygamy a felony in federal territories.
Clawson was sentenced to the maximum possible penalty—31⁄2 years in prison and a $1,500 fine. For his final words before being sent to prison, Clawson defended his right to practice his religion and challenged the court's ability to enforce a law aimed at destroying a particular establishment of religion in violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution.
Twelve pages, very nice condition.
AI notes: The Clawson polygamy case of 1883 involved Rudger Clawson, a prominent Mormon leader, who was arrested and later convicted under the Edmunds Act for both polygamy and unlawful cohabitation. Refusing to renounce his plural marriage or comply with federal demands, Clawson was sentenced in 1884 to three and a half years in prison and fined $500. His case became a landmark in the U.S. government's campaign against Mormon polygamy, symbolizing the growing conflict between federal authority and the LDS Church. Clawson’s imprisonment drew national attention, and he later rose to become an Apostle in the church.
Category: Post-Civil War
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