Mark Aldrich (January 22, 1802 – September 21, 1873) was a founder of

Warsaw, Illinois Warsaw is a city in Hancock County, Illinois, Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,510 at the 2020 census, a decline from 1,607 in 2010. The city is notable for its historic downtown. History The city of Warsaw began in 1 ...

, and a politician:

Illinois state senator The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under th ...

for the Whig Party, the first American mayor of

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, and a three-term territorial senator in Arizona. He was one of five defendants tried and acquitted in Illinois of the

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

in 1844 of

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...

, who was the founder of the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by ...

Founding of Warsaw and political leadership

Aldrich was born in New York and moved to

Hancock County, Illinois Hancock County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it has a population of 17,620. Its county seat is Carthage, Illinois, Carthage, and its largest city is H ...

, in 1832, where he was one of the early developers of what would later become the town of

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. Aldrich was appointed as the first postmaster of Warsaw, serving between 1834 and 1838. In 1836 and 1838 he was elected to the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the ...

as the representative for Hancock County.

Early involvement with the Latter Day Saints

In the late 1830s,

Latter Day Saints The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded b ...

began settling in Hancock County. According to Latter Day Saint leader

, Aldrich spent two years trying to convince Smith and the Latter Day Saints to purchase a section of land south of Warsaw which Aldrich owned. In 1841, Smith finally relented and some of the Latter Day Saints settled as Aldrich's tenants in what would be called

Warren, Illinois Warren is a village in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,323 at the 2020 census, down from 1,428 at the 2010 census. Warren was named after Warren Burnett, the first male child born at the site. History Captain Al ...

. However, once the Latter Day Saints had settled there, Aldrich raised the rent and imposed a number of restrictions on the Latter Day Saints that had not been foreseen. As a result, Smith moved the Latter Day Saints settled in Warren to Nauvoo, where the majority of Latter Day Saints had settled. Aldrich was unsuccessful in his attempts to persuade Smith to continue their arrangement. As a result, Aldrich filed for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

on March 22, 1842.

Murder trial

Following his disagreements with Smith, Aldrich became an opponent of the Latter Day Saint presence in Hancock County. He was a major in command of the Warsaw Independent Battalion of the Illinois State

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

. Aldrich was later accused of having directed men under his command to storm

Carthage Jail Carthage Jail is a historic building in Carthage, Illinois, listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). It was built in 1839 and is best known as the location of the 1844 killing of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint mo ...

where Smith and his brother were being held in June 1844. Smith and his brother Hyrum were shot dead by a mob that attacked the jail on June 27. On October 26, 1844, Aldrich was indicted for the murder of the two Smiths. At trial, Aldrich and four other defendants were acquitted of the crime by a jury.

Later life

Aldrich ran for sheriff of Hancock County in 1846, but lost. He went to California during the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, ...

and settled later in

. He was elected as the first American mayor of that city, following the US acquisition of the Southwest following the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

in 1848. In March 1861, Aldrich was chairman of the convention that declared Arizona's secession from the United States at the start of the American Civil War. Aldrich was later elected to three terms in the upper house of the

Arizona Territorial Legislature The Arizona Territorial Legislature was the legislative body of Arizona Territory. It was a bicameral legislature consisting of a lower house, the House of Representatives, and an upper house, the council. Created by the Arizona Organic Act, the l ...

; during the 1866 term, he was the body's president. He died in Tucson on September 21, 1873. Two different streets in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

were named for him: Aldrich Alley (subsequently renamed) and Mark Lane.''The Chronicle'' 12 April 1987 p.7

Notes

References

* Marvin S. Hill
"Carthage Conspiracy Reconsidered: A Second Look at the Murder of Joseph and Hyrum Smith"
''Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society'', Summer 2004.
"Mark Aldrich"

Joseph Smith Papers ''The Joseph Smith Papers'' (or Joseph Smith Papers Project) is a documentary editing project to collect, research, and publish all documents created by, or under the direction of, Joseph Smith (1805–1844), the founder of the Latter Day Saint m ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aldrich, Mark 1802 births 1873 deaths American city founders Arizona pioneers Critics of Mormonism Illinois Whigs Illinois state senators Mayors of Tucson, Arizona Members of the Arizona Territorial Legislature Mormonism-related controversies American people acquitted of murder People from Warsaw, Illinois People of the California Gold Rush 19th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly