
There’s the Mormon history you do know … and the Mormon history you don’t. Join Lindsay Hansen Park (Year of Polygamy) and historian Bryan Buchanan as they gossip about their ancestors and dig into all aspects of Mormonism’s astonishing 200-year past—uncovering the little-known stories that chronicle how a six-person church grew into a multi-billion-dollar religion. Episodes for this podcast are released every other week.
This podcast is heavily researched. For information on sources, and for additional reading for each episode's topic, click here.
Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or stream episodes right here on Sunstone.org.
E107: Brigham vs. Orson in a Quest for Power
In this episode, Bryan and Lindsay discuss Orson Pratt and the reorganization of the First Presidency. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the …
E106: The Vanguard Comes West
Well, that took forever… But Bryan and Lindsay finally brought the podcast to Zion! This episode covers the story of Brigham Young’s vanguard wagon company as they arrive in the …
E105: Playing the Mormon Trail
Ever played the old PC game The Mormon Trail? Your ancestors played it in real life and this episode discusses what it was like for them. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and …
E104: Daily Life in the WQ
What was life like if you were stuck in Winter Quarters? Bryan and Lindsay dig into some of the stories of the women who lived there and what their day-to-day life …
E103: The Donner Party and the Mormons
Many people don’t realize just how many Mormons were part of the fated Donner/Reed tragedy. In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan discuss the horrible tale of travel gone awry. Shownotes: …
E102: Ladies of the Battalion
Women were an integral part of the Mormon Battalion story and Lindsay and Bryan share their histories, including the story of a rogue group of women that braved the wild …
E101: Mormon Battalion Boys
In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan discuss the history of the only United States military regiment ever mustered specifically from a religious group: The Mormon Battalion. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone …
E100: Mormonism and Race, part three
The third in a three-part miniseries where Bryan and Lindsay discuss the development of race in Mormon theology through a historical lens. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave …
E99: Mormonism and Race, part two
In this three-part miniseries, Bryan and Lindsay discuss the development of race in Mormon theology through a historical lens. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note …
E98: Mormonism and Race, Part One
In this three-part miniseries, Bryan and Lindsay discuss the development of race in Mormon theology through a historical lens. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note …
About Our Hosts
Lindsay Hansen Park is host of the Year of Polygamy podcast and executive director of the Sunstone Education Foundation. A single-mom of three kids by day, and nerd researcher by night, Lindsay lives in Salt Lake City, Utah where she interacts with hundreds of different restoration branches, Latter-day Saints and Mormon fundamentalists. Her adventures have led her to some of the most isolated fundamentalist compounds in the America West where she interacts with modern day outlaws, inlaws and everything in between. Her goal is to widen the conversation about common and shared heritages within the larger Mormon diaspora.


Bryan Buchanan works at Benchmark Books, surrounded by Mormon history. At night, he herds small children and works on umpteen book projects, some of which might even be published.