Presidio Park Sculptures: Mormon Battalion

Address

220 W Pennington St
Tucson, AZ 85701

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#4 on Turquoise Trail Map: This bronze statue commemorates the day in 1846 when Mormon soldiers entered Tucson on their way to California to fight in the Mexican War. The Spanish-speaking citizenry, in spite of being nervous about these armed outsiders, treated the soldiers to a fiesta. One of the Mormon soldiers joined in the fun by playing his fiddle (note fiddle case on north side of statue). Soldado de Cuera/Leather Jacket Soldier This Spanish soldier, assigned to the Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón, is dressed for battle. The leather armor (cuera) made of 7 layers of deerskin, rawhide shield (adarga), and 9-foot-long lance (lanza) made him a formidable adversary. His shield helped to deflect arrows while his long lance was the premier weapon of the day.