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Augustus C. Dodge and George W. Jones letters

John F. Kinney (1816-1902)

John F. Kinney (1816-1902)

L. Tom Perry Special Collections is pleased to announce the availability of a new digitized collection: Augustus C. Dodge and George W. Jones letters (MSS 4046).  The collection includes two letters, one from Augustus C. Dodge and the other from George W. Jones, from 1853. The letters both recommend John F. Kinney for the position of Chief Justice over the Utah Territory, so that he might “exercise a wholesome influence over the Mormons”.

George W. Jones (1804-1896)

George W. Jones (1804-1896)

In 1848, both Dodge and Jones served as Iowa’s first U.S. Senators. Given their proximity to the Saints as they fled Nauvoo for Utah, the Senators would have very been familiar with the Mormons.  Kinney, a prominent American attorney, judge, and Democratic politician from Iowa, would end up being appointed for two terms as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Utah and one term as the Territory of Utah’s Delegate in the House of Representatives of the 38th Congress.

Augustus C. Dodge (1812-1883)

Augustus C. Dodge (1812-1883)

George W. Jones was a Black Hawk War veteran and served in several political positions in Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa Territories prior to his service in the Senate. After his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Augustus C. Dodge later served as minister to Spain under President Franklin Pierce, and had an unsuccessful run for Governor of Iowa.

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