TheMormon History Association (MHA) is an independent,non-profit organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects ofMormon history to promote understanding, scholarly research, and publication in the field. MHA was founded in December 1965 at theAmerican Historical Association (AHA) meeting inSan Francisco under the leadership ofLatter-day Saint andhistorianLeonard J. Arrington. In 1972, MHA became an independent organization with its own annual conferences and publications.The Journal of Mormon History, the official biennial publication of the association, began publication in 1974. MHA also publishes the quarterlyMormon History Newsletter and is an affiliate of both AHA and theWestern History Association.
MHA "welcome[s] all who are interested in the Mormon past, irrespective of religious affiliation, academic training, or world location." It is not formally affiliated with the LDS Church.[1] Its members are composed of people both within and withoutthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and theCommunity of Christ, including those who rejectMormonism.[citation needed]
MHA presidents are recognized contributors to the field of Mormon history and serve for one year.
| Years | Name | Prominence at the time of service |
|---|---|---|
| 1966–67 | Leonard J. Arrington | MHA co-founder;Utah State University historian; author ofGreat Basin Kingdom |
| 1967–68 | Eugene E. Campbell | Brigham Young University (BYU) history professor |
| 1968–69 | T. Edgar Lyon | Nauvoo Restoration |
| 1969–70 | S. George Ellsworth | Utah State University history professor |
| 1970–71 | Richard D. Poll | Western Illinois University vice-president; formerBYU historian |
| 1971–72 | Davis Bitton | MHA co-founder;University of Utah history professor |
| 1972–73 | James B. Allen | MHA co-founder;BYU history professor |
| 1973–74 | Reed C. Durham Jr. | Director ofInstitute of Religion at theUniversity of Utah |
| 1974–75 | Thomas G. Alexander | BYU history professor |
| 1975–76 | Charles S. Peterson | University of Utah historian; former director ofUSHS |
| 1976–77 | Paul M. Edwards | |
| 1977–78 | Douglas D. Alder | USU history professor and director of honors program |
| 1978–79 | Milton V. Backman | BYU Religious Education professor |
| 1979–80 | Jan Shipps | Indiana University professor of history and religious studies |
| 1980–81 | Dean C. Jessee | Joseph Smith researcher and archivist with the LDS Church. |
| 1981–82 | Melvin T. Smith | |
| 1982–83 | William D. Russell | Professor of history atGraceland University |
| 1983–84 | Kenneth W. Godfrey | LDS Institute of Religion Director |
| 1984–85 | Maureen U. Beecher | BYU English professor with theJoseph Fielding Smith Institute. |
| 1985–86 | Richard L. Bushman | Columbia University historian; author ofJoseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism |
| 1986–87 | Richard W. Sadler | |
| 1987–88 | Valeen Tippetts Avery | Northern Arizona University historian, Co-author ofMormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith |
| 1988–89 | Stanley B. Kimball | SIU Edwardsville historian; biographer ofHeber C. Kimball |
| 1989–90 | Carol Cornwall Madsen | BYU historian with theJoseph Fielding Smith Institute. |
| 1990–91 | Richard P. Howard | World Church Historian of theRLDS Church |
| 1991–92 | Ronald W. Walker | BYU history professor |
| 1992–93 | Marvin S. Hill | BYU historian; author ofQuest for Refuge: The Mormon Flight from American Pluralism |
| 1993–94 | Roger D. Launius | JWHA president; chief historian forNASA |
| 1994–95 | Mario De Pillis | Professor of American Religious history at theUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst |
| 1995–96 | David J. Whittaker | Brigham Young University archivist |
| 1996–97 | Linda King Newell | historian; author ofMormon Enigma; editor ofDialogue;JWHA president |
| 1997–98 | Armand L. Mauss | WSU professor of sociology and religious studies |
| 1998–99 | Jill Mulvay Derr | BYU historian; authored women's histories |
| 1999–2000 | Newell G. Bringhurst | |
| 2000–01 | William G. Hartley | Director of the Family History and Genealogy Research Center atBYU |
| 2001–02 | Dean L. May | University of Utah historian specializing in social history of the American West |
| 2002–03 | Lawrence Foster | Georgia Institute of Technology professor of history, technology, and society |
| 2003–04 | Martha Sonntag Bradley | |
| 2004–05 | Donald Q. Cannon | Brigham Young University professor |
| 2005–06 | Philip L. Barlow | Professor of theology and American religious history atHanover College |
| 2006–07 | Ronald K. Esplin | Joseph Smith Papers Project director;BYU historian;Joseph Fielding Smith Institute director |
| 2007–08 | Paul L. Anderson | BYU Museum of Art curator |
| 2008–09 | Kathryn M. Daynes | BYU historian; author ofMore Wives Than One |
| 2009–10 | Ronald E. Romig | Community of Christ archivist |
| 2010–11 | William P. MacKinnon[2] | Independent historian; author ofAt Sword's Point |
| 2011–12 | Richard L. Jensen[3] | Research historian with LDSChurch History Department |
| 2012–13 | Glen M. Leonard | Independent historian; author ofNauvoo |
| 2013–14 | Richard E. Bennett | BYU professor of Church History and Doctrine |
| 2014–15 | Laurel Thatcher Ulrich | Harvard University historian of early America and women;Pulitzer andBancroft winner |
| 2015–16 | Laurie Maffly-Kipp | Professor at Danforth Center on Religion and Politics,Washington University in St. Louis |
| 2016–17 | Brian Q. Cannon | BYU historian and director of theCharles Redd Center |
| 2017–18 | Patrick Q. Mason | Utah State University Arrington Chair of Mormon History and Culture, professor of history; former Howard W. Hunter Chair at Claremont University |
| 2018–19 | W. Paul Reeve | University of Utah professor of history and the director of graduate studies in the history department |
| 2019–20 | Ignacio M. Garcia | Lemuel H. Redd Jr. professor ofWestern American History atBrigham Young University |
| 2020–21 | Jenny Lund | Director of the Historic Sites Division of theChurch History Department |
| 2021–22 | Claudia Bushman | Professor ofAmerican Studies emerita atColumbia University |
| 2022–23 | Matthew Bowman | Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies,Claremont Graduate University |
| 2023–24 | David Howlett | Mellon Visiting Assistant Professor of Religion atSmith College |
| 2024–25 | Andrea Radke-Moss | Department of History and Political Science, atBYU-Idaho |
Since 1974, MHA has produced theJournal of Mormon History, anacademic journal in the field ofMormon studies. From the founding of MHA until 1974,Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought was a principal venue for articles on Mormon History written by MHA members.
A DVD archive of past issues of the journal is available at MHA's web site.
| Name | Position | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Richard Sadler | Editor | 1974–1981 |
| Dean L. May | Editor | 1982–1985 |
| Leonard J. Arrington | Editor | 1986–1987 |
| Lowell M. Durham Jr. | Editor | 1988–1990 |
| Lavina Fielding Anderson | Editor | 1991–2009 |
| Martha P. Taysom[5] | Editor | 2009–2016 |
| Jessie L. Embry[6] | Editor | 2016–2019 |
| Christopher James Blythe Jessie L. Embry | Co-editors | 2020–2022 |
| Christopher Cannon Jones Jessie L. Embry | Co-editors | 2023-2024 |
| Christopher Cannon Jones | Editor | 2024- |
Among the awards presented by the association are: theLeonard J. Arrington Award "for distinguished and meritorious service to Mormon history" – named for the MHA's founder, and father ofNew Mormon history; Best Book Award; Best First Book; Best Documentary or Bibliography; Best Biography; an award for an outstanding International Mormon history; an award for an outstanding history of a Mormon family (or grouping of families in one community).[7]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
