Marvin Sidney Hill (1928–2016) was a professor of

American history The history of the present-day United States began in roughly 15,000 BC with the arrival of Peopling of the Americas, the first people in the Americas. In the late 15th century, European colonization of the Americas, European colonization beg ...

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

(BYU) and a historian of the Latter Day Saint movement.

Biography

Born on August 28, 1928, Hill completed his

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in history at BYU in 1955. He received a PhD in American

intellectual history Intellectual history (also the history of ideas) is the study of the history of human thought and of intellectuals, people who conceptualization, conceptualize, discuss, write about, and concern themselves with ideas. The investigative premise of ...

from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

in 1968 and studied under

Martin E. Marty Martin Emil Marty (February 5, 1928 – February 25, 2025) was an American Lutheran religious scholar who wrote extensively on religion in the United States. Biography Early life Marty was born on February 5, 1928, in West Point, Nebraska, ...

and wrote his dissertation on Christian primitivism and Mormonism. Hill attended the University of Chicago at the same time as Dallin H. Oaks, and their mutual interest in the murder of the Mormon founder Joseph Smith in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

led to a ten-year research effort. Together, they published the book '' Carthage Conspiracy: The Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith'' in 1975 while both were working at BYU, Hill as a professor of history and Oaks as the president of BYU. It won the

Mormon History Association The Mormon History Association (MHA) is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects of Mormon history to promote understanding, scholarly research, and publication in the field. MHA was founded in ...

's best book award for 1976. Hill was a professor of

at BYU starting in the 1960s. In 1972, he took leave from BYU to accept a

post-doctoral research A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...

fellowship at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

. He has also served as president of the Mormon History Association and on the board of editors of the ''

Journal of Mormon History The Mormon History Association (MHA) is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects of Mormon history to promote understanding, scholarly research, and publication in the field. MHA was founded in ...

''. In Mormon studies, Hill was a well-known proponent of the new Mormon history and advocated a "middle ground" approach that did not seek to describe Mormonism as authentic or fraudulent. Hill married Lila Foster in 1953. They had six children and lived in Provo,

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

. He was the brother of Donna Marie Hill (1921–2007), the author of the noted 1977 biography ''Joseph Smith, the First Mormon''. He died in Pleasant Grove, Utah, on July 27, 2016.

Awards

* 1975: Best Book Award for ''Carthage Conspiracy'' with Dallin H. Oaks (

) * 1977: Best Article By a Senior Author for "The Kirtland Economy Revisited" with C. Keith Rooker and Larry T. Wimmer (

) * 1989: Best Book Award for ''Quest for Refuge'' (

)

Writings

Books

* * * Published concurrently in ''

BYU Studies ''BYU Studies'' is a multidisciplinary academic journal covering a broad array of topics related to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( Mormon studies). It is published by the church-owned Brigham Young University. The journal is abs ...

'' 17. * *

Articles

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Other

* *

References

External links

The Marvin S. Hill
papers at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

Photograph of Marvin Hill
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Marvin S. 1928 births 2016 deaths American Latter Day Saint writers Brigham Young University alumni Brigham Young University faculty Historians of the Latter Day Saint movement Latter Day Saints from Illinois Latter Day Saints from Massachusetts Latter Day Saints from Utah University of Chicago alumni Writers from Provo, Utah