Guard’s History Colorful, Professor Says Utah's National Guard units, including those in Ogden, have had an honorable — and colorful - history, the Ogden Kiwanis Club was told this, week. Telling the tale of "The National Guard in Ogden's Past" was Dr. Richard C., Roberts, associate professor of history at Weber State College. Present as guest of the club was Jack Judkins, Utah National Guard state chaplain. Dr. Roberts said the history of the National Guard in Utah began with the creation of the Nauvoo Legion in Nauvoo, 111., in 1841 by the then-new LDS Church. FORMED BASIS Out of the Nauvoo Legion and its experiences came the military veterans which later formed the basis for the Utah guard, he said. After the Mormons were driven out of the eastern states and settled in the Utah territory, the Nauvoo Legion fought the Indians in numerous skirmishes and even took on the U.S. Army in what history calls the Utah War, according to Dr, Roberts. He said the Utah War oc¬curred when the question of slavery got tied up with polygamy. NOT CLEAR According to Dr. Roberts, the opponents of polygamy never made it clear who were the slaves — the men or their wives. The Nauvoo Legion fought a guerrilla war against the U.S. Army led by Gen. Albert Sydney Johnston, taking no lives but causing an un¬comfortable winter when wagon trains of supplies were destroyed. The legion also participated in the Civil War. Then, according to Dr. Roberts, outsiders were sent in to run the territorial govern¬ment and bad reports were | returned to Washington. Disputes between the Mormons and the gentiles resulted in the Edmunds Tucker Act of 1887 which disbanded the legion. From then until March 26, 1894, when the state legislature passed a law creating the Utah National Guard, there was no state military organization in Utah, according to Dr. Roberts. THAT TIME He said during that period, numerous "marching clubs" were organized which carried torches instead of weapons. "Their purpose was to make presentations in favor of their candidates (for territorial of-fice)," said Dr. Roberts. On March 27, 1894, three units of the Utah National Guard were organized in Ogden with H.C. Gilbert, G. W. Driver and E. A. Olsen as captains. "Within three weeks of its organization it was called into its first service in Ogden," he said. Dr. Roberts said that in 18941 the nation was having a problem with unemployment and depression and the unemployed started a march on Washington, D.C., to impress the government with their need for work. He said a group of these men from Oakland and San Fran¬cisco in California had obtained railroad tickets to get them as far as Ogden. Twelve hundred people came in cattle cars; one man died, said Dr. Roberts. The weather over the high sierras took its toll, he said. Utah Gov. Caleb West heard of the people coming and worried there might be trouble and on April 7, 1894, the national guard was called into service in Ogden at the request of Mayor Charles Brough. Units of the guard surrounded the Californians and prevented' their exit from the crowded cattle cars, although later they were allowed into the railroad yards, said Dr. Roberts. THREE DAYS A court injunction was ob¬tained and the people left three days later, said the professor, The National Guard was complimented on their actions of the time, but later, as more of the groups headed for Washington arrived, sympathies turned to the unemployed and their plight. The governor was accused editorially by William Glasmann of the Ogden Standard of bringing on a situation that really shouldn't have existed. Then, even later, as the groups kept coming, sympathies turned against them and Ogden again became involved as there transients began stealing trains, said Dr. Roberts. Units from the Ogden areas were called to Provo where the transients had tipped over stolen train. Dr. Roberts said the guard was used to maintain order later in 1903. The guard was called to Carbon County to maintain order between striking immigrant coal miners and the strikebreaker. Ogden units were called to Carbon County again in 1923. DUTY TOURS According to Dr. Roberts, these duty tours became very tedious, partly because of their length, which caused employers of guard members to threaten their jobs, and partly because of the winter weather. In following years, members of the Utah National Guard served in the Spanish-American War, were assigned to border patrol during a 1916 dispute with Mexico, joined the army during World War I and again in World War II and also served in the Korean War.