THE MORMON BATTALION STATUE IN YUMA, ARIZONA
Honoring the 2000-Mile March from Iowa to California
The 110-acre West Wetlands Park in Yuma, Arizona runs along the beautiful lower Colorado River and is a wonderful year-round destination for bird watching, fishing, boating and kayaking, family gatherings and picnics, and nature walks that lead you through gardens and areas restored with local native trees, grasses, flowers, and shrubs. Along with the East Wetlands, Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park, Colorado River State Historic Park, and Yuma’s historic downtown district, West Wetlands Park is part of the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area.
Of historic significance, the Colorado River was once a water highway and major crossing point at the narrows, which was the easiest place to cross the Colorado River into California. Many crossed here including expeditions such as Juan Bautista de Anza and the Mormon Battalion, and fortune seekers off to try their luck in the California gold rush.
If you follow the path to the Butterfly Garden in West Wetlands Park, you’ll see a statue honoring the Mormon Battalion. Erected in 2007 by the West Mormon Battalion Foundation, this statue commemorates the 2000-mile march of the Mormon Battalion who passed through Yuma to cross over into California and did so at the narrows of the Colorado River.
Made up of over 500 volunteers, the Mormon Battalion was a division of General Stephen Kearney’s US Army of the West. They served during the Mexican War from July 1846 through July 1847 and made history for making the longest march, going from Council Bluffs, Iowa to San Diego, California, as well as being the only religious unit in military service.
Learn more about the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area at https://www.yumaheritage.com/
