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Women Hold the Line in Carbon County
When Carbon County coal miners from the National Miners Union went on strike in 1933, their wives, sisters, and daughters were right there beside them. These women proved to be formidable adversaries in the fight for workers’ rights.
Women have…
The Last Brothel in Utah
Urban spaces in twentieth century Utah are known for their vice -- gambling, prostitution and more. But did you know the last brothel to close in Utah was actually in a rural town?
Sitting in the second floor windows of Helper’s Carbon Hotel,…
Carbon College and Utah’s Educational Revolt
Back in the 1950s, Utah’s budget-slashing governor J. Bracken Lee wanted to close the first institution of higher education in eastern Utah – which he actually helped establish! But Utahns balked at his plan and stopped it.
Upon its approval in…
Putting the Carbon in Carbon County: Divergent Identities Lead to Divorce
The creation of Carbon County in 1894 resulted from a rift between Mormon agriculturalists and non-Mormon miners, and illustrates the struggle over identity in rural Utah.
The discovery of industrial-grade coal in 1882 at Castle Gate in Price Canyon…
Welcome to Main Street: Helper Commercial District
Every rural Utah town has their own special Main Street. In Carbon County, Helper’s main street tells a rich historic story about change and continuity in its unique community.
In the early twentieth century, the small community of Helper was…
Basque Community in Utah
Hailing from the mountainous border region between Spain and France, Basques are a tightly-knit and proud ethnic group. Find out how Basque immigrants to the Intermountain West maintained their identity, community, and traditions so far from home.
In…
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…
Dam and Disaster: The 1917 Mammoth Dam Break
Dams are a vital part of Utah’s water infrastructure -- but they sometimes fail. A breach of the Mammoth Dam in 1917 sent millions of gallons of water rushing downstream, and exposed its poor conditions of construction and operation.
On June 24,…
The Mining Workscape
The depth, the dark, and the dangers inherent in coal mining created a uniquely hazardous work environment for miners in Utah at the turn of the twentieth century.Imagine for a moment that you’re walking the mountain trails of Carbon County in the…
Miner’s Angel: Mother Jones and the Carbon County Coal Strike
When she came to Utah to support striking coal miners, the Deseret News described her as a “vulgar, heartless, and vicious creature.” Learn about the “Miner’s Angel,” labor organizer “Mother” Jones.In April 1904, Utah received a visit…
Take Me Out to the Ball Game: Baseball in Carbon County
The all-American game of baseball helped new immigrants adjust to life in Utah during the early 1900s.During the early 1900s, the United States came into its own as an industrialized nation. Attracted by jobs and the chance to move up in society,…
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…
The Murder of George Demetrakopolous
The murder of Greek labor agent, George Demetrakopolous, and the hunt for his killer in 1908.In the early 20th century, a contentious relationship existed in Utah’s mining camps between Greek immigrant laborers and the agents of Greek labor padrone…
Winter Quarters Mine Explosion
A disaster in the Winter Quarters mine left hundreds of miners dead and others severely injured. It remains the fourth deadliest mining disaster in U.S. history.According to the stopped watch on a dead Finnish miner, 10:28 A.M. on May 1, 1900 marked…
Evans Family Singers
The death of two brothers in the Winter Quarters mining blast was made especially tragic by their recent success as a part of their family’s musical performance troupe.In 1900, two brothers, David and Richard Evans, were killed in a tremendous…
Reva Beck Bosone
Reva Beck Bosone’s political ambitions began as a lawyer in Carbon County and eventually led her to become Utah’s first congresswoman.In 1948, Reva Beck Bosone became the first woman elected to Congress from Utah. Born in American Fork to…
The Castle Gate Mine Disaster
A mine disaster in Carbon County claimed the lives of more than 170 men in the 1920s. The tragedy had long-reaching effects on the large mining community throughout the County.In 1924, two explosions tore through the Number Two Mine at Castle Gate in…