Deborah Blake Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 On 10 May 1869 from Promontory Summit northwest of Ogden, Utah, a single telegraphed word, “done,” signaled to the nation the completion of the first transcontinental railroad. Railroad crews of the Union Pacific, 8,000 to 10,000 Irish, German, and Italian immigrants, had pushed west from Omaha, Nebraska. At Promontory they met crews of the …
Salt Lake City
John S. McCormick Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 The settlement of Salt Lake City was not typical in many ways of the westward movement of settlers and pioneers in the United States. The people who founded the city in 1847 were Mormons, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They did not come as individuals acting on their …
Fillmore
Patricia Lyn Scott Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994 Fillmore was Utah’s first territorial capital and was named for U. S. President Millard Fillmore in recognition of his courage in appointing Brigham Young Utah’s first territorial governor. On 4 October 1851 the Utah territorial legislature passed a joint resolution creating Millard County from a portion of Iron County known as “Pahvant Valley;” …
Flour Mills
Glen Leonard History of Davis County The transition in flour milling was not unlike that of other mechanized aspects of the new agriculture. New forms of power and mechanical improvements of machinery impacted the millers as well as the farmers of Davis County. To keep abreast of improvements meant replacing water power in the mills with steam or electricity and …
The Salt Industry Was One of the First Enterprises
Jeffrey D. Nichols History Blazer, July 1995 Sodium chloride, or common salt, is one of the most useful and sought-after substances on earth. It has long been used to flavor otherwise bland foods and to preserve perishables in the absence of refrigeration. The various inhabitants of Utah over the millennia have recognized the value of the Great Salt Lake and …
The Great Salt Lake Mineral Industry
Linda Thatcher, Beehive History 16 Rumors of a salty lake somewhere in western America circulated for more than a hundred years before it was actually sighted by white men. The Dominguez-Escalante expedition of 1776, while not attempting to visit the Great Salt Lake, nonetheless recorded the lake on the expedition map drawn by Bernardo Miera y Pacheco, their cartographer, using …
Butch Cassidy
Michael W. Johnson History of Daggett County While Browns Park ranchers fought the wealthy for control of the range, there were others who took the battle a step farther. Men like Butch Cassidy, Elza Lay, Harry Longabaugh (the Sundance Kid), and Matt Warner became bandits, robbing banks and trains and giving at least some of the money to the poor. …
Promoting Physical Fitness
Miriam B. Murphy History Blazer, May 1996 Drop in any afternoon or evening and try out your legs on the indoor running track or take a dip in the superb pool or better still, join one of the classes. The work is easy, safe and recreative, [and] accompanied with music, it adds rhythm and pleasure.” This invitation may sound like …
Home Industry 20th Century Style
Miriam B. Murphy History Blazer May 1996 Home industry—in Utah the two words almost immediately bring to mind the pioneer era and the exhortations of Brigham Young to produce locally as many of life’s necessities as possible. No doubt the Mormon leader would have applauded the tub-thumping of the Utah Manufacturers Association (UMA) 70 years later. During 1917 the Utah …
Publicizing Bryce Canyon
Linda King Newell History of Piute County Even before World War I the automobile signaled the birth of a new industry—tourism. Residents of [Utah] had known the splendor of Bryce Canyon for decades, but the roads to the canyon were little more than wagon trails, and sight-seeing trips were not an option in the work-a-day world of most residents. But …