An ExMormon’s Take on American Primeval and the Utah Pioneer Legacy

Let’s just rip the band-aid off: American Primeval is Netflix’s current #1 show, and for good reason—it’s brutal, gory, and messy, much like the history it’s dramatized. Think The Revenant meets Oregon Trail, but with more blood, fewer dysentery jokes, and a heavy dose of 1857 tension.

As an ExMormon with ancestors who crossed the plains in wagon trains, I couldn’t resist diving into the Mormon pioneer aspects of this show. And yes, I dressed the part. Bonnet? Check. Pioneer spirit? Questionable.

Growing up in a devout Mormon family, I was spoon-fed tales of virtuous pioneers crossing harsh landscapes, singing hymns, and basically being saints in buckskin. What I didn’t hear about?

The not-so-saintly bits, like massacres, colonization, and polygamy. American Primeval doesn’t shy away from the darker realities, and I’m here for it. So, grab your handcart (or just your Netflix login), and let’s talk about pioneers, massacres, and a whole lot of hypocrisy.

The Sanitized Stories vs. American Primeval

If you grew up Mormon, you’ve probably heard more pioneer stories than you can count. I grew up hearing how they ate leather during food shortages, sang songs around campfires, and braved the elements with courage and faith. What I didn’t hear?

The, um, slightly more violent parts of history. For instance, the Provo River Massacre, where Mormon militia killed many members of the Timpanogos Tribe, or the infamous Mountain Meadows Massacre, where over 100 members of a passing wagon train were slaughtered by Mormons disguised as Native Americans.

American Primeval wastes no time ripping off the veneer. From the first episode, it portrays Mormon settlers not as innocent victims but as aggressive colonizers who believed they had a divine right to the land.

While this show is a dramatized version of this history, it felt abundantly more honest than the overly sanitized versions of history I grew up with—versions that conveniently left out most of the bloodshed, polygamy, and colonization.

Zion: The Mormon Manifest Destiny

One of the show’s recurring themes is Zion, a cornerstone of Mormon theology that’s both a physical place and a spiritual ideal. To Mormons, Zion is wherever they can establish a righteous community—or, as it sometimes played out, wherever they could claim land and say, “God gave us this.”

Joseph Smith started the Zion narrative in Missouri, declaring that the Garden of Eden was in the U.S. Midwest (yes, really). Brigham Young later expanded this idea, declaring Utah as Zion and encouraging settlers to establish a “promised land.” The problem? That land wasn’t empty. Native Americans had lived there for thousands of years.

This tension is front and center in American Primeval. It doesn’t hold back in showing how the Mormon doctrine of Zion was used to justify colonization. Watching Brigham Young portrayed as a self-righteous mob boss felt oddly satisfying, given how much his real-life actions mirrored that portrayal.

Polygamy: Awkward, but Let’s Talk About It

Another topic American Primeval handles far more honestly than any Mormon-produced media is polygamy. Growing up, I watched church movies like Legacy that completely ignored the practice, portraying pioneers as monogamous and squeaky clean. It was all smiles, sunshine, and wholesome wedding ceremonies. The reality? By the time the events of Legacy take place, Joseph Smith had already secretly married dozens of women.

In American Primeval, non-Mormons openly mock polygamy, asking questions like, “So, how do you divvy up the wives—one for each foot?” This mocking wasn’t just Hollywood embellishment; historical accounts show that polygamy was a point of contention and ridicule, both for outsiders and even some insiders. The show’s willingness to confront this topic is a step toward a more honest portrayal of history.

The Mountain Meadows Massacre: A Dark Chapter

The most shocking event depicted in American Primeval is the Mountain Meadows Massacre. For those unfamiliar, here’s the gist: in 1857, a wagon train passing through Utah was attacked by Mormon militia and disguised as Native Americans, and nearly everyone in the party was killed. The real story is even more disturbing than the show’s dramatization.

The wagon train, known as the Baker-Fancher party, was heading to California when it became the target of Mormon paranoia. Brigham Young had declared martial law, citing fears that the U.S. government was coming to annihilate the Mormons. This atmosphere of fear and distrust set the stage for the massacre.

During a five-day siege, Mormon militia—alongside members of the Paiute tribe—attacked the wagon train. When the siege dragged on longer than expected, the Mormons became worried their true identities had been revealed. In a horrifying act of betrayal, they convinced the survivors they would be spared if they surrendered. Once the emigrants laid down their arms, the militia killed nearly all of them, sparing only 17 children under the age of seven.

This event wasn’t just a dark chapter in Mormon history; it was a cover-up. Mormon leaders initially blamed Native Americans for the massacre, a narrative they maintained for years. Brigham Young himself denied any involvement, though historians are divided on whether he had foreknowledge of the attack.

Mormon Media’s Selective Memory

Predictably, Mormon-owned media like Deseret News criticized American Primeval, calling it a biased dramatization. Their main gripe? That the show takes “artistic liberties” and portrays Mormons as violent and strange.

Mormon-produced media does the exact same thing—just in the opposite direction. Films like Legacy erase Native Americans, polygamy, and violence from their narratives, presenting pioneers as innocent, persecuted saints. It’s historical fiction dressed up as fact, and it’s just as biased as any Hollywood production.

The Hypocrisy of Religious Persecution

One of the most fascinating aspects of American Primeval is how it highlights the Mormon persecution complex. Growing up, I was taught that Mormons were always the victims—driven out of Missouri, tarred and feathered in Illinois, and forced to flee to Utah to escape religious persecution. While there’s truth to this, it’s far from the whole story.

The show doesn’t shy away from depicting the hypocrisy. Mormons cried persecution while displacing Native Americans, claiming their land as “Zion.” This double standard—demanding acceptance while denying it to others—is frustratingly familiar.

Wrapping Up the Wagon Train

Watching American Primeval was an emotional rollercoaster. It brought back memories of the pioneer stories I grew up with, but it also forced me to confront the darker, messier realities of that history. For ExMormons like me, it’s a reminder that the truth is rarely black and white.