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Early Utah History: Difference between revisions
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Latter-day Saint pioneers migrated to Salt Lake Valley seeking religious freedom in 1847. In May of 1869 the first transcontinental railroad was completed at Promontory, Utah. More than 60,000 Saints had come to the territory by covered wagon or handcart. Utah became the 45th State in the United States on January 4, 1896. | Latter-day Saint pioneers migrated to Salt Lake Valley seeking religious freedom in 1847. In May of 1869 the first transcontinental railroad was completed at Promontory, Utah. More than 60,000 Saints had come to the territory by covered wagon or handcart. Utah became the 45th State in the United States on January 4, 1896. | ||
The settlement of Utah by | The settlement of Utah by pioneers of European descent was commenced in July, 1847, when Brigham Young, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, lead the Saints to settle what is now Salt Lake City, a group consisting of 143 men, 3 women and 2 children. Behind them at different points for a thousand miles, spanning the distance from the Missouri River, the original company was followed by nine other companies, comprising in all about 2,000 souls. To the barren, alkali-covered desert they came, but to them it was a haven of rest, for their leader, Brigham Young, said that "This is the place," where they should be. | ||
It is estimated that about 1,800 people spent the winter of 1847-1848 in the Great Salt Lake Valley. Pres Brigham Young and a number of pioneers had returned to Winter Quarters, on the Missouri River, to call together the members of the Church residing temporarily in Iowa and other places in the east in order to prepare for their migration westward the following year. As these and other converts to the Church from the Eastern States and Europe, year by year, gathered with their co-religionists, the population steadily increased and Brigham Young, who was a natural colonizer, called many of the older settlers to locate in outlying districts and establish settlements to which newcomers might be sent. Thus the area of colonization increased and thirty years after the arrival of the first pioneers of Utah, or at the time of the demise of President Brigham Young in 1877, nearly three hundred settlements of saints had been established in the Great Basin and the surrounding vicinity. In due time other people, not members of the church, settled the area and took part in the development of the country. | It is estimated that about 1,800 people spent the winter of 1847-1848 in the Great Salt Lake Valley. Pres Brigham Young and a number of pioneers had returned to Winter Quarters, on the Missouri River, to call together the members of the Church residing temporarily in Iowa and other places in the east in order to prepare for their migration westward the following year. As these and other converts to the Church from the Eastern States and Europe, year by year, gathered with their co-religionists, the population steadily increased and Brigham Young, who was a natural colonizer, called many of the older settlers to locate in outlying districts and establish settlements to which newcomers might be sent. Thus the area of colonization increased and thirty years after the arrival of the first pioneers of Utah, or at the time of the demise of President Brigham Young in 1877, nearly three hundred settlements of saints had been established in the Great Basin and the surrounding vicinity. In due time other people, not members of the church, settled the area and took part in the development of the country. | ||
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The increase in population in Utah from 1847 to 1868 is phenomenal, but the labors of missionaries of the Church in the United States and in foreign lands brought thousands of converts with their families to Utah. It is estimated that about 80,000 members of the Church crossed the plains and mountains from the Missouri River to Salt Lake City, a distance of about 1,000 miles. Various methods were used in crossing, including ox or mule trains, or on foot, pulling handcarts, previous to the advent of the railroad in 1869. | The increase in population in Utah from 1847 to 1868 is phenomenal, but the labors of missionaries of the Church in the United States and in foreign lands brought thousands of converts with their families to Utah. It is estimated that about 80,000 members of the Church crossed the plains and mountains from the Missouri River to Salt Lake City, a distance of about 1,000 miles. Various methods were used in crossing, including ox or mule trains, or on foot, pulling handcarts, previous to the advent of the railroad in 1869. | ||
As time goes on, the contribution of Utah to the United States in the “winning of the West” is becoming more and more apparent. To the founders of this commonwealth is due the redemption of arid America. They were | As time goes on, the contribution of Utah to the United States in the “winning of the West” is becoming more and more apparent. To the founders of this commonwealth is due the redemption of arid America. They were pioneers of irrigation, and the parched land, responsive to their untiring efforts, blossomed as the rose and yielded not only the necessities of life but many of its luxuries, such as delicious fruits and lovely flowers. The steady streams of emigration from the Missouri River to Utah were a great inducement in regard to the construction of the transcontinental telegraph line in 1861 and of the transcontinental railroad in 1866-1869. Previously the fastest means of communication were the stage coach or pony express. | ||
For nearly fifty years repeated efforts were made by the citizens of the territory of Utah to be granted statehood, but it was not until Jan 4, 1896 that this ambition was realized. On that date President Grover Cleveland signed the proclamation which admitted Utah into the sisterhood of states. The first governor of the state was Heber M Wells.<ref>Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah: Printed by Deseret News Publishing Company, 1941. {{WorldCat|615171272}}</ref> | For nearly fifty years repeated efforts were made by the citizens of the territory of Utah to be granted statehood, but it was not until Jan 4, 1896 that this ambition was realized. On that date President Grover Cleveland signed the proclamation which admitted Utah into the sisterhood of states. The first governor of the state was Heber M Wells.<ref>Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah: Printed by Deseret News Publishing Company, 1941. {{WorldCat|615171272}}</ref> | ||