Mormon Settlement in Arizona A Record of Peaceful Conquest of the Desert — A Closer Reading

Diction of Documentation

McClintock's word choice often reflects the bureaucratic and ecclesiastical frameworks that shaped his sources. Terms like 'verification of data,' 'checking and correcting,' and 'carefully compiled' signal a methodical approach to history. Yet his diction also carries a sense of movement and conquest, as in the subtitle 'A Record of Peaceful Conquest of the Desert.' The verb 'conquest' is softened by 'peaceful,' suggesting a narrative of settlement that downplays conflict. In describing the salt lake of the Zuni, he writes that 'salt for the early settlements... very generally was secured from' that source, using the passive voice to emphasize the resource's availability rather than the labor of extraction.

Dialogue and Reported Speech

Direct dialogue is sparse, but McClintock occasionally incorporates reported speech from pioneers, as when he notes that 'John Bushman is believed to have been the first Mormon resident of the locality.' The phrase 'is believed to' hedges authority, reflecting the oral nature of such claims. In the account of the sawmill, he writes that the mill 'was given by the Church authorities to the struggling Little Colorado River settlements,' a construction that attributes agency to the Church while leaving the recipients passive. This pattern recurs throughout, with institutional voices dominating over individual ones.

Descriptive Patterns: Place and Movement

McClintock's descriptions often anchor events to specific locations, using directional phrases like '28 miles southeast of Flagstaff' or 'seven miles south of Pleasant Valley.' This geographic precision grounds the narrative in measurable space. He also tracks the movement of objects, such as the sawmill that 'was transferred to Pinedale and in 1890 to Pinetop' and 'now is at Lakeside.' The mill's journey mirrors the settlers' own migrations, but McClintock rarely lingers on the human cost of such relocations. Instead, he focuses on the continuity of machinery and place names, as when he notes that 'Mormon Dairy and the Mount Trumbull Mill' still bear their original names.

Recurring Details: Infrastructure and Naming

Throughout the excerpts, McClintock returns to the theme of infrastructure: sawmills, dairies, salt sources, and springs. These details serve as anchors for the narrative of settlement. He also pays close attention to naming practices, explaining that 'Fort Rickerson' was renamed in honor of a company treasurer, and that 'LeRoux spring was named for Antoine LeRoux.' Such etymologies reveal how the landscape was inscribed with the names of leaders and benefactors. The author's own role as compiler is acknowledged in the foreword, where he mentions '2000 letters' written and 'an immense quantity of typewritten matter' indexed, underscoring the archival labor behind the published text.

Readers approaching McClintock's work should attend to the tension between its institutional sponsorship and its reliance on personal testimony. The author's diction, use of reported speech, and descriptive focus on infrastructure reveal a history that is as much about record-keeping as about settlement. By noting these authorial choices, one can better appreciate how the text constructs a narrative of 'peaceful conquest' through the accumulation of data and the naming of places.

McClintock’s ledger-like prose still holds the desert’s heat, yet every so often his own voice slips past the entries—a quiet, personal warmth beneath the official record. That same tenderness colors The early court of Queen Victoria — Context and Discussion, where ceremony and private memory breathe together, two old friends sharing a knowing glance across the stacks.