Answer:
The Mormons faced persecution in New York and Illinois. They wanted to find a place where they would be free to practice their religion.
Therefore, they started out on a westward journey and settled near the Great Salt Lake.
There was a lot of religious persecution in the past and this played a major role in the establishment of the United States as we know it today. If Puritans had not been mistreated in England they might not have founded some colonies in the Americas.
Unfortunately this religious repression continued even in the United States and one such group that suffered were the Mormons. The movement started in the first half of the 19th century and after facing some persecution, they left New York and Illinois and went further westward where they could practice being Mormons in peace.
