"Mormon Conquest" helped bring Little Hollywood into focus

KANE COUNTY — When director Victor Adamson, also known as Denver Dixon, came to southern Utah in 1939 to film Mormon Conquest, he had more in mind than simply making another B-western. According to a July 14, 1939, front-page article in the Kane County Stan­dard, Adamson wrote and directed the film with two goals: telling a story inspired by the settlement of Kanab and showcasing the scenery surrounding it.

A scene from the 1939 western Mormon Conquest, filmed in southern Utah and featuring several Kane County locals. The film is now considered lost. Courtesy IMDb/Kane County Standard archive.

The film’s character Willard Gilbert Smith was reportedly based on Kanab founder Jacob Hamblin. Film­ing took place in Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Cedar Breaks, Kanab Canyon and Robinson Canyon east of Alton, giving audi­ences a look at south­ern Utah landscapes years before the area became widely known as “Little Hollywood.”

Mormon Conquest starred Wally West as Chris Ferril. West appeared in more than 300 films between 1931 and 1979, but this was the first of only three movies he filmed in Little Hol­lywood. He later re­turned for Westbound Stage in 1939 and The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again in 1979, his final film appearance.

Dorothy McKim II played leading lady Lucy Lane. Little infor­mation survives about her career, though she later appeared in an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1955.

One of the film’s no­table local performers was Bonnie Chamber­lain, born in Kanab in 1933. She played Bonnie, an orphan girl, in her screen debut. After filming wrapped, Chamberlain and her pony reportedly trav­eled to Hollywood, where she starred in Little Miss Cowgirl, also known as Golden Locks of the Golden West. She later lived in California until her death in 2022.

William Woods II portrayed wagon mas­ter Willard Gilbert Smith, while James Sheridan appeared as one of the Gunnison brothers. Sheridan also appeared that year in Lure of the Wasteland and West­bound Stage.

Adamson’s own fam­ily appeared in the production as well. His son, Al Adamson, played Bonnie’s play­mate, while Dolores Booth, Victor Adam­son’s wife, portrayed his mother on screen.

Several Kane Coun­ty residents were also cast in the film, includ­ing Oscar Graham, Rosana Graham, Chief Barbencita, Chief White Cloud, Jacob Hamblin III and Nephi Johnson II.

Mormon Conquest premiered at the Kanab Theatre on July 4, 1939. Today, it is considered a lost film, with no known surviving copies.