During the Spanish-American War, Mormons made up almost an entire company of the famous Rough Riders. But they never made an appearance with Theodore Roosevelt in Cuba. Why was that?

When the United States declared war on Spain in 1898, Mormons were still villainized as a cloistered, theocratic, patriarchal sect—anti-democratic and opposed to the fundamental principles of modern American society. It had been only eight years since the LDS Church’s nominal cessation of polygamy—and two years since Utah had become a state.

Which was why Church president Wilford Woodruff wanted his people to join the war effort. Utah could demonstrate its patriotic fervor and the Mormons could slough off some of their negative stereotypes. So, his First Presidency announced that Mormons should support the war and, if needed, volunteer to serve.

The response was enthusiastic. Many Latter-day Saints enlisted to serve in both Cuba and the Pacific. When Colonel Jay L. Torrey created three large cavalry companies—the Rough Riders—Utahns enlisted at some of the highest rates in the country. While the Rough Riders remain popularly associated with Theodore Roosevelt, Col. Torrey himself commanded the Rocky Mountain Riders company, which was primarily comprised of Mormons.

The eighty-six men mustered into service on May 15, 1898—three months to the day after the USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor—with Torrey appointing John Q. Cannon (the editor of the Deseret News and son of First Presidency member George Q. Cannon) as second in command. The company traveled by rail towards Florida, but their train derailed en route, causing such a delay that they had to spend the summer in Florida, reaching Cuba only after the hostilities were essentially over.

The men were reportedly disappointed about missing the action, but the delay was fortunate for the history of Mormon cinema. It meant that they were still stationed stateside when a film crew from the American Mutoscope Company arrived to film the famous horsemen in July. On August 1, 1898, the two-and-a-half minute film Salt Lake City Company of Rocky Mountain Riders entered theaters. It was followed by Rocky Mountain Riders Rough Riding, Rough Riders and Army Mules, Col Torrey’s “Rough Riders,” and Rough Riders Jacksonville. All these films probably featured Mormons, showed throughout the country, and were apparently quite popular since they played for months, the last known screening being in a Washington, D.C. theater over a year later.

Unfortunately, all the films were soon lost, but the incident shows how canny President Woodruff’s intuition was. This was not only the first time Mormons appeared on film, but probably the first time they were treated—and even celebrated—as patriotic Americans.