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The Cullom Bill WRITE THIS LAST

The bill was sponsored by Sentaor Cullom.

The bill ultimately failed in the Senate.

Contents
The Cullom Bill was the third attempt by Congress to pass legislation since 1865 to restrict the powers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The bill included the power to enforce the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act of 1862. Along with empowering local government and law enforcement agencies to criminally charge polygamists, the Cullom Bill denied US citizenship, the right to vote and hold political office, and homestead opportunities to anyone who practiced bigamy. The Cullom Bill was understood to grant the federal government the ability to end the practice of polygamy and change the political leadership of the Utah Territory.

Polygamy
The American public strongly disliked polygamy CITE THIS. Polygamy was seen as a barbaric and immoral practice.FIND MULTIPLE CITATIONS FOR THIS.

Physicians in the United States, such as Roberts Bartholow, wrote that they believed polygamy caused birth defects.

Similar bills
The Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act, which intended to decrease the power of the LDS church in Utah due to the practice of polygamy, was seen as being largely ineffective by politicians. Multiple attempts to amend the the Morrill Act failed. These attempted bills included legislation that included preventing Mormons from performing weddings and eliminating the use of a jury trial in cases regarding polygamy. Legislative attempts to strengthen the powers granted in the Morrill Act failed to pass as they were seen as too extreme. Despite this defeat, public and political opposition towards polygamy continued.

At the time of the presentation of the Cullom Bill, the church had great control over the Territory of Utah. Many church leaders were also serving in local political offices. The passage of the Cullom Bill would

Senator Shelby Moore Cullom
Senator Shelby Moore Cullom served as member of the House of Representatives and the Senate in the US Congress, representing the state of Illinois. Among other positions in Congress, Cullom was the Speaker of the House in 1861. Before entering Congress, Cullom studied law and was elected to local political positions.

LDS Church
Members of the church strongly opposed the bill. Following the passage of the Cullom Bill in the House of Representatives, many Mormon women held indignation meetings to show their disapproval of the bill. This response from Mormon women was surprising to many people outside of the church since Mormon women were viewed as powerless and in bondage to their polygamous husbands.

Outside church
While previous legislation to curb the rights of polygamists had failed, a public desire to end polygamy remained.

Defeat
The Cullom Bill was defeated in the Senate. Despite the strong opposition to bill by the Mormons, some historians say that lobbying from railroad interest groups was what lead to the defeation     of the bill.

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