Utah

About Utah

Early history of Utah

Native Americans have lived in Utah for several thousand years; most archeological evidence dates such habitation about 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. Some left petroglyphs and pictographs which exist throughout the state.

Francisco Vásquez de Coronado may have crossed into what is now southern Utah in 1540, when he was seeking the legendary Cíbola.

A group led by two Catholic priests—sometimes called the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition—left Santa Fe in 1776, hoping to find a route to the California coast. The expedition travelled as far north as Utah Lake and encountered the native residents.

Fur trappers—including Jim Bridger—explored some regions of Utah in the early 1800s. The city of Provo, Utah, was named for one such man, Étienne Provost, who visited the area in 1825.

Mormon settlement

Mormon settlers first came to the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. At the time, Utah was still Mexican territory. As a consequence of the Mexican-American War, the land became the territory of the United States upon the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, 1848. The Treaty was ratified by the United States Senate on March 10. In 1850 the Utah Territory was created with the Compromise of 1850, and Fillmore was designated the capital. In 1856, Salt Lake City replaced Fillmore as the territorial capital.

Disputes between the Mormon inhabitants, who had settled in the area in 1847 and were pushing for the establishment of the State of Deseret, and the US Government, intensified after Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints publicly admitted to the practice of polygamy among their members. The U.S. Government, which was reluctant to admit a state the size of the proposed Deseret into the union, opposed the polygamous practices of the Mormons.

After news of their polygamous practices spread, the members of the LDS Church were quickly viewed as un-American and rebellious. In 1857, after news of a false rebellion spread, the government sent troops in the “Utah expedition” to quell the supposed rebellion and to replace Brigham Young as territorial governor with Alfred Cumming. The resulting conflict is known as the Utah War.

As troops approached Salt Lake in Northern Utah, nervous Mormon settlers and Paiutes attacked and killed 120 immigrants from Arkansas in Southern Utah. The attack became known as the Mountain Meadows Massacre. The Massacre became a point of contention between LDS leaders and the federal government for decades. Only one man, John D. Lee, was ever convicted of the murders and he was executed at the massacre site.

Before troops led by Albert Sidney Johnston entered the state, Brigham Young ordered all residents of Salt Lake City to evacuate southward to Utah Valley and sent out a force, known as the Nauvoo Legion, to delay the government’s advance. Although wagons and supplies were burned, eventually the troops arrived and Young surrendered official control to Cumming, although most subsequent commentators claim Young retained true power in the territory. A steady stream of presidential-appointed governors quit the position, often citing unresponsiveness of their supposed territorial government. By agreement with Young, Johnston established Fort Floyd 40 miles away from Salt Lake City, to the southwest.

Salt Lake City was the last link of the transcontinental telegraph, completed in October of 1861. Brigham Young was among the first to send a message, along with Abraham Lincoln and other officials.

Due to the Civil War, federal troops were pulled out of Utah Territory, leaving the territory in LDS hands until Patrick E. Connor arrived with a regiment of California volunteers in 1862. Connor established Fort Douglas just three miles east of Salt Lake City, and encouraged his men to discover mineral deposits to bring more non-Mormons into the state. Minerals were discovered in Tooele County, and miners began to flock to the territory.

Beginning in 1865, Utah’s Black Hawk War developed into the deadliest conflict in the territory’s history. Chief Antonga Black Hawk surrendered in 1867, but fights continued to break out until additional federal troops were sent in to suppress the Ghost Dance of 1872. The war is unique among Indian Wars because it was a three way conflict, with mounted Timpanogos Utes led by Antonga Black Hawk exploiting the mutual distrust between federal and LDS authorities.

On May 10, 1869, the First Transcontinental Railroad was completed at Promontory Summit, north of the Great Salt Lake. The railroad brought increasing numbers of non-Mormons into the state, and several influential non-Mormon businessmen would make fortunes in the territory.

During the 1870s and 1880s a number of laws were set to punish polygamists, and in the 1890 Manifesto the LDS Church finally agreed to ban polygamy. When Utah applied for statehood again, it was accepted. One of the conditions to granting Utah’s statehood was that a ban on polygamy be written into the Utah Constitution. This was a condition required of other western states that were also admitted later into the Union. Statehood of Utah was officially granted on January 4, 1896.

20th century

Beginning in the early 1900s, with the establishment of such national parks as Bryce Canyon National Park and Zion National Park, Utah began to become known for its natural beauty. Southern Utah became a popular filming spot for arid, rugged scenes, and such natural landmarks as Delicate Arch and “the Mittens” of Monument Valley are instantly recognizable to most national residents. During the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s, with the construction of the Interstate highway system, accessibility to the southern scenic areas was made easier.

Beginning in 1939, with the establishment of Alta Ski Area, Utah has become world-renowned for its skiing. The dry, powdery snow of the Wasatch Range is considered some of the best skiing in the world. Salt Lake City won the bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics in 1995, and this has served as a great boost to the economy. The ski resorts have increased in popularity and many of the Olympic venues scattered across the Wasatch Front continue to be used for sporting events. This also spurred the development of the light-rail system in the Salt Lake Valley, known as TRAX, and the re-construction of the freeway system around the city.

During the late 1900s, the state has been growing quickly. In the 1970s growth was phenomenal in the suburbs. Sandy was one of the fastest-growing cities in the country at that time. Today many areas of Utah are seeing phenomenal growth. Northern Davis, southern and western Salt Lake, Summit, eastern Tooele, Utah, Wasatch, and Washington counties are all growing very quickly. Transportation and urbanization are major issues in politics as development consumes agricultural land and wilderness areas.
Utah

Alta     American Fork     Beaver     Blanding     Brian Head     Brigham City     Bryce Canyon     Bullfrog     Cedar City     Clearfield     Coalville     Delta     Draper     Ephraim     Fillmore     Glendale     Green River     Heber City     Hurricane     Ivins     Kanab     Layton     Lehi     Logan     Midvale     Moab     Monticello     Mt Carmel Junction     Murray     Nephi     North Salt Lake     Ogden     Orem     Panguitch     Park City     Parowan     Payson     Price     Provo     Richfield     Roosevelt     Salina     Salt Lake City     Sandy     Sardine Canyon     Scipio     South Jordan     Spring City     Springdale     Springville     St. George     Tooele     Torrey     Tropic     Vernal     Wendover     West Jordan     West Valley     West Valley City     Woods Cross