Betty G. Spencer Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 American Fork, in northern Utah County, is located fifteen miles northwest of Provo and thirty miles southwest of Salt Lake City. It is bordered by Utah Lake on the south and by the Wasatch Mountains to the east. Adjacent to it lie the recently organized communities of Highland and Cedar Hills, the unincorporated …
The Hole-in-the-Rock Trail
Lamont Crabtree Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 In the spring of 1880 a direct supply and access road connecting southwestern and southeastern Utah was completed. Known as the Hole-in-the-Rock Trail, its direct penetration through the Colorado River gorge and surrounding topography shortened distances over alternative routes by up to hundreds of miles. Built by Mormon pioneers answering a mission call to …
Saltair
View Saltair: A Photographic Exhibit John S. McCormick Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 The Great Salt Lake has been a popular recreation site since the earliest days of white settlement, and a number of resorts have been built on its shores since the first two were constructed in 1870. The most popular and the best-remembered resort was the early Saltair. An …
Temple Square
C. Mark Hamilton Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 Temple Square is the most visited site in the state of Utah. Its popularity can be attributed to its central geographic location in the capital city, to the national popularity of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and to the general interest in the historic tabernacle and Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus …
The Founding and Naming of Moab
Jeffrey D. Nichols History Blazer, September 1995 The now-prosperous town of Moab had a rocky beginning. Its would-be founders faced hostile Ute Indians who prevented white settlement for over twenty years. Even the name Moab has had to survive a serious challenge. The first white settlers of this region just east of the Colorado River in what is now Grand …
Utah Historic Trails
William B. Smart Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 Spread out a Utah highway map, and let your mind go back a hundred, two hundred years. Where those green, blue, and red lines run, long before the ribbons of asphalt and concrete they represent crisscrossed the state, ran the earlier highways of exploration and adventure. Highway builders today seek the best combination …
Bonneville Salt Flats
Kevin B. Hallaran Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 The Bonneville Salt Flats of the western Great Salt Lake Desert were formed through the evaporation of the Pleistocene-era Lake Bonneville. The salt flats are actually the bed of that once massive lake which rivaled in size present Lake Michigan. The flats are composed mainly of potash salts ranging in thickness from less …
Fort Douglas
Charles G. Hibbard Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 After the Civil War began in 1861 it was necessary to recall regular troops from frontier duty for action against the South, leaving the overland mail route to California unguarded from attack by hostile Indians. President Lincoln called for volunteers, and Patrick E. Connor was appointed Colonel (Brevet Major General) of the Third …
Beehive and Lion Houses
Ann W. Engar Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 The Beehive and Lion houses were constructed in 1854 and 1856, respectively, as homes for Brigham Young, territorial governor and second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Beehive House served as the executive mansion of the Territory of Utah from 1852 to 1855 and was Brigham Young’s official …
Bountiful
Patricia Lyn Scott Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 Bountiful is Utah’s second settlement and was named for one of the ancient American cities described in The Book of Mormon. Bountiful was settled not long after Mormon pioneers arrived in the Salt Lake Valley. Perrigrine Sessions explored the area just three days after his arrival. In September 1847 Sessions gathered his family …