Mormon Battalion Memorial - Tucson, Arizona
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 32° 13.170 W 110° 58.103
12S E 502979 N 3564766
Memorial honoring the Mormon Battalion which was formed during the Mexican-American War. The memorial is located in Armory Park in Tucson, Arizona.
Waymark Code: WMHGHA
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 07/08/2013
Views: 12
The memorial is a concrete monument with a plaque inscribed:
To The
Mormon Battalion
Which Under Command Of
Col. Cooke, InThe Course Of
Their 2,000 Mile Infantry
March To The Pacific Coast
Arrived and Raised The First
American Flag In Tucson,
December 16, 1846.
Erection Supervised By
M-Men And Gleaner Girls
Of The
Central Arizona District
Of The
Church Of Jesus Christ
Of Latter-Day Saints
June 13, 1937.
From Wikipedia:
"The Mormon Battalion was the only religiously based unit in United States military history, and it served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War. The battalion was a volunteer unit of between 534 and 559 Latter-day Saints men led by Mormon company officers, commanded by regular US army officers. During its service, the battalion made a grueling march nearly 2,000 miles long from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego.
The battalion's march and service was instrumental in helping the US secure much of the American Southwest, including new lands in several Western states, especially the Gadsden Purchase of 1853 of much of southern Arizona. The march also opened a southern wagon route to California. Veterans of the battalion played significant roles in America's westward expansion in California, Utah, Arizona and other parts of the West."