[The following is in relation to the death of Parley Pratt, an early leader of the Latter Day Saint movement. Having practiced plural marriage as part of his religion, he was eventually murdered by the estranged husband of his twelfth wife. Long story short: the twelfth wife was already married to another man, and she was secretly converted to the Mormon faith by Pratt. Her husband hated the idea, and their division over the issue effectively ended the relationship, although they stayed together for the kids. She had their children secretly baptized as Mormons, and the husband found out and was furious. He beat her and took the children away. She then conspired with Pratt to recover the children and run away to Utah with him. During the incident, the estranged husband found out their plans, and managed to catch up with Pratt.]
While searching for Elenore, Pratt was apprehended by a marshal and several rangers who had a warrant for his arrest. Since there were no courts in Indian Territory, they shackled him in leg irons and took him across the border to the nearest town, Van Buren, Arkansas. At his hastily held trial Pratt faced a jeering crowd agitated by the famous polygamist in its midst. The trumped-up charges of stealing the Pratt children’s clothing were so flimsy the magistrate released Pratt quietly in the early-morning hours. But his horseback escape was futile; McLean [Elenore’s estranged husband] and two companions overtook him near the border.
Following a galloping chase, McLean came close enough to fire his gun at Pratt. When he missed, he drew alongside him, spooking Pratt’s horse to rear in fright. This allowed McLean to plunge a bowie knife into his victim’s left armpit. When Pratt fell to the ground, McLean shot him in the neck with a derringer and left him for dead. A nearby couple watched as Pratt tried to “staunch his wounds with wads of paper from his pockets,” afraid of retribution if they assisted him. Elenore found her way to his side in time to watch him die a slow and excruciating death.
McLean was said to have returned to Van Buren, where he boasted of the killing for a few hours before fleeing to avoid apprehension on murder charges.
Source:
Denton, Sally. “Deseret, August 3, 1857.” American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, September 1857. Vintage Books, 2004. 111-12. Print.
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