Archaeologists: Indians were executed by Mormons

Friday, June 8, 2007  

Utah state archaeologists who have spent nine months examining the remains of seven Indian men and boys say they were executed by Mormon settlers.

The remains -- in 1,800 bones and bone fragments -- were found in a shallow grave last August. They belonged to men and boys from ages 12 to 35.

Archaeologists initially thought the men and boys were killed in a skirmish with Mormon settlers. But after finding evidence of bullet wounds -- including some near the top of the heads -- they concluded otherwise.

"It's a situation where you see people down on the ground, with their heads lowered and then shot in the back of the head," assistant state archaeologist Ronald Rood told The Salt Lake Tribune.

The men and boys may have died in the summer and fall of 1853 in what was called the Walker War.

Get the Story:
Bones whisper grisly secret (The Salt Lake Tribune 6/8)

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