This monument is dedicated to the Mormon Battalion, the only religiously based regiment in US military history. The monument is located off Interstate 25 between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. The unit served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War. 500 Mormon volunteers marched almost 2,000 miles from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego, California. Many say the Battalion 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.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
This monument is dedicated to the Mormon Battalion, the only religiously based regiment in US military history. The monument is located off Interstate 25 between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. The unit served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War. 500 Mormon volunteers marched almost 2,000 miles from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego, California. Many say the Battalion 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.
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I wish we had known the monument was there when we made that drive a few years ago. Jacob and Angie will arrive here on Sunday night and visiting the new and improved Mormon Battalion Museum is on our list of things to do while they are here! We'll take you there too if you want to come visit.
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