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Lessons in Resilience
Over long years of colonization, the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation faced severe setbacks. But the Tribe continued to adapt to new conditions and found ways to preserve their culture and traditions.
Like all of Utah's Indigenous peoples,…
AIDS in Utah: The Unspoken Epidemic’s Hidden Heroes
Whether it’s cancer or autoimmune, it’s common today to see people wearing folded ribbons in solidarity against a disease. But did you know AIDS was the first disease ever to have such a ribbon?
In the 1980s and 90s, AIDS was the country's…
Adapt or Die: Utah’s Contested Water History
The story of water in Utah is complex, and rifts often arise in unexpected places. The fact that water sustains us all can sometimes be easy to overlook, but ultimately it an issue we cannot ignore and to which we must constantly adapt.
Utah is…
2002 Winter Olympics Bring Utahns Together
Utah's snowy peaks and valleys became the stage for athletes from around the world during the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake. But the Games were much more than a sporting competition.
For 17 days at the dawn of a new millennium, 3.5 billion…
Eugene Jelesnik: The Man Behind the Music
How did a Jewish, Ukranian violin player become one of Utah’s most beloved local celebrities? Learn about the life of one extraordinary man.
Eugene Jelesnik, skillfully riffing his violin wearing one of his thirty-seven sparkly dinner jackets, was…
Electrifying Utah with Steam
When we say “water is power” we are sometimes actually talking about electricity! Find out how harnessing steam electrified Utah for thousands of residents in the 20th century.
The early decades of the 1900s were marked by a growing demand for…
Utah Tree History: A Landscape in Flux
Utah history isn’t just about the people who lived and worked here. It’s also about some of the oldest living organisms in our state – trees! Learn more about our arborous elders.
The history of trees across rural Utah is one characterized by…
The Salt Lake Deserets
Baseball in the nineteenth century was more than just Salt Lake City’s “favorite pastime.” The game became an outlet for the tensions between Mormons and the growing number of residents who did not adhere to the dominant faith and…
Fighting Fire with Water
Firefighting is dangerous work. It also requires a lot of water! Today we are used to seeing fire hydrants in every neighborhood, but for many Utahns at the turn of the 20th century, such community water infrastructure was completely new.
In the…
Nine Mile Canyon: Resource Exploitation vs Cultural Preservation
Nine Mile Canyon contains an estimated 10,000 rock art sites created over a thousand years ago, and that’s just the beginning of the canyon's historic and cultural value. But natural gas exploration and extraction nearby pose challenges to…
The Airport: from Woodward Field to International Hub
What began over a century ago as a field for airplane stunts has become one of the country’s top thirty busiest airports. But did you know Salt Lake City's airport has a wildlife division?
Love it or hate it – chances are, everyone who’s been…
The City Creek Witch’s Cabin
Urban legends tell of the “Witch’s Cabin” in downtown Salt Lake’s City Creek Canyon, but is it really haunted? Learn its real history.
In the upper reaches of Memory Grove, along City Creek on the edge of downtown Salt Lake City, dog walkers…
The Energy Transition Powered by Rural Utah
When you flip your light switch, do you know which part of rural Utah your electricity is coming from? Historically, fuel for the energy grid came from rural areas in the form of fossil fuels. But even as utilities transition to alternative energy,…
Fighting for a Museum: Daughters of Utah Pioneers vs. Marmalade Neighbors
Museums are usually established in the public trust and in the public interest. But one museum in Salt Lake City’s Marmalade District caused a whole whirlwind of drama -- and even a state Supreme Court case.
Located at the top of Salt Lake City's…
There’s Fluoride in the Water!
Public health campaigns have long sparked fears of government overreach. In the mid-twentieth century, for example, dentists lobbied to add fluoride to Utah’s water supply to support tooth health. Learn more about the decades-long public uproar.
In…
Poultry Co-operative Transforms Utah Agriculture
The switch from Utah being a net importer of turkeys to becoming a substantial exporter in the 1920s can be attributed to the efforts of one man -- Benjamin Brown -- and the poultry co-operative he organized.
Today, Sanpete County is notable for its…
Utah’s Folk Music Revival
The 1960s were a time of upheaval, ushering in changes in politics, music, and society. Utah was not immune to the growing political consciousness of the youth movement, and nowhere was that more obvious than in Utah's folk music revival.
In January…
Sorority of River Rats: Gender Norms on the River
If you’ve ever been on a river trip, you probably didn’t bring along your hair curlers or a nightgown. But for women rafters in the 1930s, keeping up gender norms was part of the river experience.
Between 1936 and 1949, Norm Nevills operated a…
Radio: Bridging the Distance Across Rural Utah
Today, we have 24 hour news channels and TikTok to share breaking news and current trends. But for Utahns isolated by distance in the early 20th century, the radio did a tremendous job of connecting residents in rural communities to each other and to…
Change in Rose Park
One of the most racially diverse neighborhoods in the Salt Lake Valley didn’t start out that way. Find out how Rose Park changed from a subdivision restricted to white people to become the vibrant community we know today.
Rose Park, located in the…