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Gus Faust - American Doughboy
Utah sent thousands of infantrymen into World War I where they faced unimaginable conditions on the battlefield. But when the war ended, the battle continued at home, where returning soldiers faced a changing economy, uncertain job prospects, and a…
Harry’s Dream: Beaver Mountain Ski Resort
Like many Utahns, Harold Seeholzer loved snow and skiing. But how did his enthusiasm for outdoor recreation turn into one of Cache Valley’s most notable ski resorts?In the late 1930s, Harold and a few local ski fanatics engineered the first…
Helen Zeese Papanikolas
A famous historian used her girlhood memories of Carbon County to completely change the way we understand Utah’s past.She passed away in 2004, but Helen Zeese Papanikolas is still revered in Utah as an historian whose work made it impossible to…
Henry Adams Visits Utah
Henry Adams, one of the leading historians of his day, visited Utah on a geographic expedition with his childhood friend Samuel Emmons in the late 1900s.In 1871 as Samuel Emmons, Arnold Hague, James Hague, and others conducted the United States…
Historic Copperton
Historic Copperton is a tiny town that defied the boom-bust cycle typical of mining towns.The commercial mining industry has driven Utah’s economic, political, and social development. Most towns associated with the mining industry went through…
Hobbitville: Allen Park’s Journey From Urban Legend to City Park
Salt Lake City’s “Hobbitville” is not actually a neighborhood for small, shoeless, fantasy people who live underground. Although it IS home to a colorful pride of peacocks. Learn about the real history of Allen Park.
“Tongues in trees, books…
Hollywood Puts Utah to Work
Utah’s romance with the movie industry began in the 1920s silent film era and hasn’t diminished since. Nearly a thousand motion pictures and television series have filmed in Utah, bringing millions each year to the state. Learn how Hollywood…
Hoop Mania Sweeps Utah
Utah women were captivated by “hoop mania” back in the 1860s. The fashionable hoop-skirt swept through Mormon society.The headline on the September 7, 1859 issue of Salt Lake’s Valley Tan newspaper read “Progress of the Hoop Mania.” The…
How Antelope Island Got Its Name
Antelope Island was named by the famous American explorer John Charles Fremont during his travels around the Great Salt Lake.In the fall of 1845, the famous American explorer John Charles Fremont crossed over the Rocky Mountains into eastern Utah…
How Big Is Too Big? Utah’s High Hat Law
In 1897, Utah passed a law regulating hat size in theaters and public places. One might ask WHY? Who did it affect? Was it warranted? And just how big is too big anyway?
Before the days of social media and television, late 19th century Utahns…
How Carp Took Utah Lake
Utah Lake was once an important and abundant source of fish and wildlife for the Timpanogos Ute people. But by the turn of the twentieth century, Utah Lake’s native fish species had almost completely vanished.
Prior to Mormon settlement in 1849,…
How Cremation Came to Utah
In 1877, a cremation was scheduled to take place in Salt Lake City. The body to be burned was Charles F. Winslow's, a doctor from Boston, Massachusetts, who died of heart failure earlier that week on July 7th.When Winslow's friends read his will the…
Howard Coleman: Stepping Stones to a Better Life
Meet Howard Coleman, who came West with the railroad and built a better life – one job at a time.Like many of us, Howard Coleman used his work as a stepping stone to a better life. As a black man and the son of a Kentucky share-cropper, his…
Illustrating the West
They say a picture is worth a thousand words... Artists got people moving West by idealizing both the journey and the destination. The mapmaker for the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition, Bernardo de Miera y Pacheco, created the first known map of Utah…
In Praise of Leisure
Tourists and Utahns alike enjoy the Beehive State for its many opportunities for outdoor recreation. Learn how much of that recreation originated in the way people worked.The state of Utah is widely known for its outdoor recreation. Skiers…
In This Little Town of Ours, We Have a Literary Club
In 1928, a women’s club in Moab adopted an official song that crowed: “In this little town of ours, we have a literary club, and we derive from it everything good, it helps the town and public in numerous ways.” Learn more about these women and…
Incident at Mountain Green
In 1825, long before permanent settlers began arriving in present-day Utah, a run-in between British and American trappers triggered an international incident that sparked concerned reactions from as far away as Canada and Great Britain.One of the…
Indefatigable Artist Minerva Kohlhepp Teichert
Utah artist, Minerva Kohlhepp Teichert, is considered to be among the top women American artists- a teacher, dancer, rancher, and tenacious painter, she was heavily inspired by the religious and pioneer stories told by her parents.Artist Minerva…
Indoor Plumbing Eases the Domestic Burden
Most of us take for granted the luxury of having running water inside of our homes. But, indoor plumbing is a relatively new phenomenon that has made life significantly easier!
At the turn of the twentieth century, just 1% of homes in the United…
Industrialism Drives Utah Women to the Workplace
American industrialism at the turn of the 20th century brought Utah women out of their homes and into the workplace. There they faced inequality and wage disparity.The turn of the twentieth century saw dramatic changes that created new opportunities…