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{{Short description|American LDS leader and mass murderer (1812–1877)}}
{{Other people|John Lee}}
{{Infobox Latter Day Saint biography
 | name                = John D. Lee
 | image               = John D. Lee.jpg
 | birth_name          = John Doyle Lee
 | birth_date          = {{birth date|1812|9|6}}
 | birth_place         = [[Illinois Territory]], U.S.
 | death_date          = {{death date and age|1877|3|23|1812|9|12}}
 | death_place         = [[Mountain Meadows, Utah|Mountain Meadows]], [[Utah Territory]], U.S.
 | resting_place       = Panguitch City Cemetery
 | resting_place_coordinates = {{Coord|37|48|57.96|N|112|24|56.88|W|type:landmark|display=inline|name=Panguitch City Cemetery}}
 | spouse              = Agatha Ann Woolsey<br>Nancy Bean<br>Louisa Free<br>Sarah Caroline Williams <br>Rachel Andora Woolsey<br>Polly Ann Workman<br>Martha Elizabeth Berry<br>Delethia Morris<br>Nancy Ann Vance<br>Emoline Vaughn Woolsey<br>Nancy Gibbons <br>Mary Vance Young<br>Lavina Young<br>Mary Leah Groves<br>Mary Ann Williams<br>[[Emma Lee French|Emma Louise Batchelor]]<br>Terressa Morse<br>Ann Gordge
 | list_notes          = Was executed for his role in the [[Mountain Meadows massacre]].
 | children            = 56
 | position_or_quorum1 = Member of the [[Council of Fifty]]<ref name = "Quinn">{{Cite journal | last = Quinn | first = D. Michael | author-link = D. Michael Quinn | title = The Council of Fifty and Its Members, 1844 to 1945 | journal = [[BYU Studies]] | pages = 22–26 | format = .pdf | publisher = Brigham Young University | location = Provo, UT | date = 1980 | url = https://byustudies.byu.edu/content/council-fifty-and-its-members-1844-1945 | access-date = 21 September 2017}}</ref>
 | called_by1          = [[Brigham Young]] 14 March and 11 April 1844.
 | start_date1         = 1844
 | end_date1           = {{end date|1877|3|23}}
 | end_reason1         = Death<ref name = "Quinn"/>
 | political_office1   = Member of the [[Utah Territory|Utah Territorial Legislature]]
 | term_start1         = 1858
 | term_end1           =
 | president           =
 | office_predecessor1 =
 | office_successor1   =
 | portals             = LDS
|death_cause=[[Execution by firing squad]]}}
'''John Doyle Lee''' (September 6, 1812 – March 23, 1877) was an American pioneer, and prominent early member of the [[Latter Day Saint Movement]] in [[Utah]]. Lee was later [[Excommunication|excommunicated]] from the Church  and convicted of [[mass murder]] for his complicity in the 1857 [[Mountain Meadows Massacre]]. He was sentenced to death and, in 1877, was [[Execution by firing squad|executed by firing squad]] at the site of the massacre.

==Early Mormon leader==
Lee was born on September 6, 1812, in [[Kaskaskia, Illinois|Kaskaskia]], [[Illinois Territory]], and joined the [[Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)|Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] in 1838. He was a friend of [[Joseph Smith]], founder of the church, and was the adopted son of [[Brigham Young]] under the early Latter Day Saint [[Law of adoption (Mormonism)|law of adoption]] doctrine. In 1839, Lee served as a [[Missionary (LDS Church)|missionary]] with his boyhood friend, Levi Stewart. Together they preached in Illinois, [[Ohio]], [[Kentucky]], and [[Tennessee]]. During this period Lee converted and baptized [["Wild Bill" Hickman]]. Lee practiced [[plural marriage]] and had 19 wives (at least eleven of whom eventually left him) along with 56 children.

Lee was a member of the [[Danites]], a fraternal vigilante organization. The Danites were first organized in [[Caldwell County, Missouri]], during the [[1838 Mormon War|Mormon War]]. Lee was also an official scribe for the [[Council of Fifty]], a group of men who provided guidance in practical matters to the church, specifically concerning the move westward out of the established areas United States in the east to the [[Rocky Mountains]]. After Smith's death, Lee went with Brigham Young and other Latter Day Saints to what is now [[Utah]], and worked towards establishing several new communities there. Some of those communities included [[Lee's Ferry and Lonely Dell Ranch]], located near [[Page, Arizona]]. A successful and resourceful [[farmer]] and [[rancher]], in 1856, Lee became a United States [[Indian Agent]] in the [[Iron County, Utah]], area, where he was assigned to help [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] establish farms.<ref>{{Citation | last = Haymond | first = Jay M. | title = Utah History Encyclopedia | publisher = University of Utah Press | year = 1994 | chapter = Lee, John D. | chapter-url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/l/LEE_JOHN.shtml | url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221103115751/https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/l/LEE_JOHN.shtml | archive-date = November 3, 2022 | isbn =9780874804256 | access-date = June 19, 2024 | quote = In January 1856 Lee was appointed U.S. government Indian Agent in the Iron County environs. His job was to distribute tools, seed, and supplies, and to assist the Indians with farming methods.}}</ref><ref>"[Lee] became the local bishop and the Indian agent to the nearby Paiute Indians." [https://archive.today/20120629144500/http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/i_r/lee.htm PBS.org, ''John Doyle Lee (1812–1877)'']</ref> In 1858, Lee served a term as a member of the [[Utah Territorial Legislative Assembly|Utah Territorial Legislature]], and following church orders in 1872, Lee moved from Iron County and established a heavily used [[ferry]] crossing on the [[Colorado River (U.S.)|Colorado River]], where the site is still called [[Lee's Ferry]]. The nearby ranch was named the [[Lee's Ferry and Lonely Dell Ranch|Lonely Dell Ranch]] and is now listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]], together with the ferry site.

== Mountain Meadows massacre ==
{{main|Mountain Meadows massacre}}

=== Massacre ===
In September 1857, the [[Baker–Fancher party]], an emigrant group from [[Arkansas]], camped at [[Mountain Meadow, Utah|Mountain Meadows]], a staging area in southern Utah used to prepare for the long crossing of the [[Mojave Desert]] by groups travelling westward to [[California]].<ref>{{Citation |last= Parker |first= B.G. |title= Recollections of the Mountain Meadow Massacre |location= Plano, CA |year= 1901 }} [http://mtn-meadows-massacre-descendants.com/WT_History/BG_Parker/BG_Parker.pdf Digital reprint (pdf)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714125809/http://mtn-meadows-massacre-descendants.com/WT_History/BG_Parker/BG_Parker.pdf |date=2011-07-14 }} by the Mountain Meadows Massacre organization</ref> They were attacked by a combined group of Native Americans and [[Mormon militia]] men dressed as Native Americans. There were multiple motives for the conflict, including a general atmosphere of rising tensions between the US Federal government and Mormon settlers (see [[Utah War]] of 1857–1858) and a rumor that the Baker–Fancher party included those who had murdered Mormons at the 1838 event known as [[Haun's Mill massacre]].<ref name="DentonPage155">{{cite book|last1=Denton|first1=Sally|title=American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, September 1857|date=2007|publisher=Knopf Doubleday|page=155|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YPyDmKq0t34C&pg=PA155|access-date=August 17, 2016|quote=[[Isaac C. Haight|Haight]] had used his pulpit to begin a defamation campaign against the Fancher Train. The slander was carefully crafted, well placed, oft-repeated, the claims exaggerated with each retelling. [...] Word spread from settlement to settlement. Some on the train, it was said, had participated in the [[Haun's Mill massacre]]...|isbn=9780307424723}}</ref>

On the third day of the siege, Lee (not dressed as a Native American) approached the Baker–Fancher encirclement under cover of a white flag and convinced the emigrants to surrender their weapons and property to the Mormons in return for safe conduct to nearby [[Cedar City, Utah|Cedar City]]. The emigrants accepted the offer and surrendered, however approximately 120 of the Baker–Fancher party were then killed by Mormon militia and [[Southern Paiute|Paiute Indians]], leaving only about 17 small children as survivors.<ref>{{Citation |last= Denton |first= Sally |title= American Massacre |location= New York |publisher= [[Random House]] |year= 2003 |page= xxi }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Walker; Turley, Jr.; Leonard|first1=Ronald W.; Richard E.; Glen M.|title=Massacre at Mountain Meadows|date=2008|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=New York|isbn=978-0195160345}}</ref> William Ashworth notes in his autobiography that after the massacre, the "leaders among the white men had bound themselves under the most binding oaths to never reveal their part in it." Lee told Brigham Young that the Indians had been solely responsible, that "no white men were mixed up in it."<ref>{{Harvnb|Ashworth|1934|p=37}}</ref> 

Lee later maintained that he had acted under orders from his militia leaders, under protest, and remained active in Mormonism and local government for several years afterwards. Lee was excommunicated in 1870 under mounting federal attention to the massacre.

=== Arrest and execution ===
[[Image:John D. Lee pre-execution photo.png|thumb|Photograph of Lee (seated on his coffin) just prior to his execution.]]

In 1874, Lee was arrested and tried for leading the massacre. The first trial ended inconclusively with a [[hung jury]], seemingly because of the prosecution's attempt to portray Brigham Young as the true mastermind of the massacre. A second trial in 1876, in which the prosecution placed the blame squarely on Lee's shoulders, ended with his conviction and he was sentenced to death.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/six/lee.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010417220430/http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/six/lee.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 17, 2001|title=The West – The Last Words of John D. Lee|publisher=PBS}}</ref> Lee never denied his own complicity, but claimed he had not personally killed anyone. He said he had been a vocally reluctant participant and later a [[Scapegoating|scapegoat]] meant to draw attention away from other Mormon leaders who were also involved. Lee further maintained that Brigham Young had no knowledge of the event until after it happened. However, in the ''[[Life and Confessions of John D. Lee]]'' he (or an editor) wrote, "I have always believed, since that day, that General [[George A. Smith]] was then visiting southern Utah to prepare the people for the work of exterminating Captain Fancher's train of emigrants, and I now believe that he was sent for that purpose by the direct command of Brigham Young."<ref>{{Harvnb|Lee|1877|p=225}}</ref>

[[Image:Execution of John D. Lee.png|thumb|Drawing of Lee's execution.]]

On March 23, 1877, Lee was [[executed by firing squad]] at Mountain Meadows on the site of the 1857 massacre. His last words included a reference to Young: "I do not believe everything that is now being taught and practiced by Brigham Young. I do not care who hears it. It is my last word... I have been sacrificed in a cowardly, dastardly manner."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20010417220430/http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/six/lee.htm PBS.org, ''The Last Words of John D. Lee'']</ref> On April 20, 1961, the LDS Church [[posthumous baptism|posthumously]] reinstated Lee's membership in the church.<ref>{{Citation | last = Haymond | first = Jay M. | title = Utah History Encyclopedia | publisher = University of Utah Press | year = 1994 | chapter = Lee, John D. | chapter-url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/l/LEE_JOHN.shtml | url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221103115751/https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/l/LEE_JOHN.shtml | archive-date = November 3, 2022 | isbn =9780874804256 | access-date = June 19, 2024}}</ref>

==Descendants==
Lee had 19 wives and 56 children, and his descendants are now numerous. Former solicitor general [[Rex E. Lee]] is a direct descendant of John Lee, as are his sons Senator [[Mike Lee]] of Utah and Utah Supreme Court justice [[Thomas R. Lee]].<ref>{{citation |last1= Esplin |first1= Ronald K. |last2= Turley |first2= Richard E. Jr. |contribution= Mountain Meadows Massacre |contribution-url= http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/3966 |pages= 966–968 |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |title= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishing]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0028796020 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism }}</ref><ref>{{citation |title= Mountain Meadows event remembered: Descendants join together in 'spirit of reconciliation' |url= https://www.thechurchnews.com/archive/1990-09-22/mountain-meadows-event-remembered-2410 |newspaper= [[Church News]] |date= September 22, 1990 }}</ref> Another descendant, [[Gordon H. Smith]], was a U.S. senator from Oregon.<ref name="Descendants of JDL">{{cite book|last1=Manderscheid|first1=Lorraine|title=Some Descendants of JOHN DOYLE LEE|date=1996|publisher=Family Research and Development|location=Bellevue, Washington}}</ref>{{rp|812}} U.S. representatives [[Mo Udall]] (D–AZ) and [[Stewart Udall]] (D–AZ) and their respective sons, senators [[Mark Udall]] (D–CO) and [[Tom Udall]] (D–NM) are also descendants.<ref name="Descendants of JDL"/>{{rp|804; 806–807}} Stewart Udall served as [[United States Secretary of the Interior]] under presidents [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. See also the [[Lee–Hamblin family]] for a list of more of his noteworthy descendants.

==Film portrayals==
John Lee was portrayed by [[Jon Gries]] in the film ''[[September Dawn]]'' (2007).

==See also==
* [[Capital punishment in Utah]]
* [[List of people executed in Utah]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|2}}

== References ==
* {{Citation
 |last        = Ashworth
 |first       = William B.
 |title       = Autobiography of William B. Ashworth 1845–1934
 |year        = 1934
 |url         = http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/FH1&CISOPTR=6095&CISOSHOW=5889&REC=17
 |publisher   = Family History Collection, Brigham Young University
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20110611185731/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=%2FFH1&CISOPTR=6095&CISOSHOW=5889&REC=17
 |archive-date = 2011-06-11
}}.
* {{Citation
 | last=Brooks
 | first=Juanita
 | author-link=Juanita Brooks
 | title=John Doyle Lee: Zealot, Pioneer Builder, Scapegoat
 | publisher=Utah State University Press (paperback, 404pp)
 | year= 1992
 | orig-year=1961
 | isbn=087421162X
 }}.
* {{Citation
 | editor-last1  = Cleland
 | editor-first1 = Robert Glass
 | editor-last2  = Brooks
 | editor-first2 = Juanita
 | editor2-link  = Juanita Brooks
 | title         = A Mormon Chronicle: The Diaries of John D. Lee, 1848–1876
 | volume        = 2 volumes
 | place         = San Marino, California
 | year          = 1955
 | url           = https://archive.org/details/mormonchroniclet012749mbp
 | publisher     = [[Huntington Library]]
 }}.   Reissued in single-volume paperback: Huntington Library, 2004: {{ISBN|0873281780}}
* Kelly, Charles, ed. ''Journals of John D. Lee, 1846–47 and 1859.'' Salt Lake City, Priv. print. for R. B. Watt by Western printing company, 1938. Republished: Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1984.
* {{Citation
 | last      = Lee
 | first     = John D.
 | editor    = Bishop, W.W.
 | title     = Mormonism Unveiled; Or The Life and Confessions of the Late Mormon Bishop, John D. Lee; (Written by ''Himself'')
 | year      = 1877
 | publisher = Bryan, Brand & Company
 | location  = St. Louis
 | url       = https://archive.org/details/mormonismunveile00leej
 }}.

==External links==
{{commons category|John D. Lee}}
* John D. Lee Family Association Official Website: http://www.johndleefamily.org
* Online tree of Lee Descendants: http://www.wadhome.org/lee
* [https://archive.today/20120629144500/http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/i_r/lee.htm pbs.org] Excellent sketch of Lee's life
* {{Gutenberg author |id=25890| name=John Doyle Lee}}
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=John Doyle Lee |sopt=t}}
* {{Find a Grave|20490902}}
* [http://lib.byu.edu/collections/mormon-missionary-diaries/about/diarists/john-doyle-lee/ John Doyle Lee's diary] from at [https://sites.lib.byu.edu/sc/ L. Tom Perry Special Collections], [[Brigham Young University]]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, John D.}}
[[Category:1812 births]]
[[Category:1877 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century Mormon missionaries]]
[[Category:19th-century executions by the United States]]
[[Category:19th-century executions of American people]]
[[Category:American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]
[[Category:American members of the clergy convicted of crimes]]
[[Category:American Mormon missionaries in the United States]]
[[Category:American murderers of children]]
[[Category:American politicians convicted of murder]]
[[Category:American people executed for war crimes]]
[[Category:Arizona pioneers]]
[[Category:Converts to Mormonism]]
[[Category:Danites]]
[[Category:Executed American mass murderers]]
[[Category:Executed people from Illinois]]
[[Category:Executed politicians]]
[[Category:Members of the clergy convicted of murder]]
[[Category:Members of the Utah Territorial Legislature]]
[[Category:Mormon memoirists]]
[[Category:Mormon pioneers]]
[[Category:Mountain Meadows Massacre]]
[[Category:Utah politicians convicted of crimes]]
[[Category:People excommunicated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]
[[Category:People executed by Utah by firing squad]]
[[Category:Publicly executed people]]
[[Category:People from Kaskaskia, Illinois]]
[[Category:People of the Utah War]]
[[Category:Perpetrators of religiously motivated violence in the United States]]