question was whether or not slavery would move into territory that had been conquered in the united states-mexican war. -- i'm going to speak in the past tense. two happened is there are competing visions for how to settle the west. the 1860 election was, in addition to a referendum on the fate of slavery, it was also a referendum on the -- on american empire. nobody thought -- i should not say nobody. very few people in the electorate in 1860 believe that the united states should not move into the west. the question was how it was going to do it. the republican party wins the 1860 election, so you have a centralized division of american empire -- centralized vision of american empire, which will be driven by the pacific railroad act, the homestead act, the land and college act, all of which are passed by the second in 1862. the second congress of 1862? i'm looking like a real historian now. all of these emerge out of the move into the west, because that will collide with the people who already live there. your second question about what sand creek means for the park service interpreting, memorializin

established themselves here in what was mexican territory in 1847 is when they first came in trying to get away from the united states. two years later, after the mexican war, utah territory became part of the united states. there was always an antagonism between the mormon settlers and the united states government based on their previous experience they had with mobs attacking them and driving them out of different states, including illinois. they were not happy to come back underneath the american flag. once the troops left there was a one-year period with no american troops and they decided they needed to establish the authority more firmly. that is when conner and his california volunteers were ordered into utah to establish a camp. originally the camp was not supposed to be right in the mid elf salt lake city. connor had an antagonistic attitude toward mormons and especially polygamy. he found an area that had not been occupied by settlers and got his army up there and squatted there and established the fort. in 1876 an army decided they were going to keep the camp permanently, they renamed it a fort. it took lay l. effort to close down the fort, but

themselves in what was mexican territory in about 1847, when they first came in, trying to get away from the united states, and then two years later, of course, after the mexican war, utah territory became part of the united states, so there always was sort of an antagonism here between the mormon settlers and the united states federal government based on their previous experience that they had back east with mobs attacking them, driving them out of different states, including illinois. so they were not very happy to now come back underneath the american flag, so when the war broke out and the troops left, there was about a one-year period here with no federal troops here, and it was decide that had they needed to re-establish that authority more firmly so that's when conner and his california volunteers then were ordered into utah to establish a camp. originally the camp was not supposed to be right in the middle of salt lake city, but conner being catholic, conner really having a very antagonistic attitude towards mormons and what they believed in, especially polygmy, decided he was going to establish a camp right in the middle of salt lake city. so he did find

what mexican territory, and then a few years later, of course, after the mexican war, utah territory became part of the united states, so there always was a sort of antagonism between the mormon settlers and the united states federal government based on their previous experience they had had back is to with the mobs attacking them and driving them out a different states including illinois. they were not very happy to come back underneath the american flag, so when the war broke out in troops left, there was about with no federal troops, and it was decided that they needed to reestablish their authority more firmly. that is when connor and his california volunteers went to utah to establish a camp. originally, it was not supposed to be right in the middle of salt lake city, but connor being having his antagonistic attitude toward mormons especially polygamy decided he was going to establish a camp right in the middle of salt lake city. he did find an area that had not been occupied by settlers, and basically, he got his army up there and establish the fort. in 1886, the army established they were going to keep the ca