Salt Lake City: History

European Explorers Replace Native Americans

For thousands of years, the inhabitants of the northern Utah region were hunter-gatherers. Artifacts dating as far back as 12,000 years have been found in caves near the Great Salt Lake. About 500 B.C. the Fremont tribe, a less nomadic, agricultural society, settled in the area, building impressive cliff dwellings and drawing elaborate rock paintings, many of which can still be viewed today. Changing environmental conditions eventually made primitive farming impossible, and by the twelfth century, the area was populated mainly by the Ute, Paiute, and Shoshone tribes of nomadic hunters.

The first Europeans to travel through the area were the Spanish, coming from New Mexico in search of a direct route to Monterey, California, in 1776. In the early 1800s, fur trappers and "mountain men" explored the region, discovering the Great Salt Lake and mapping the mountain passes. A number of government expeditions explored the area, and a steady stream of settlers bound for California began to pass through.

Mormons Settle, Lay Out Town; Religious Beliefs Questioned

A group of Mormon pioneers led by Brigham Young settled in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, laying out a town they called Great Salt Lake City. From the beginning the city was well planned, with a grid of ten-acre plots separated by streets 132 feet wide. The industrious settlers began planting crops and developing intricate irrigation systems, eventually forming more than 500 settlements in the Utah area. Disaster was averted in 1848 when, as drought and plagues of insects threatened the crops, flocks of seagulls arrived to consume the insects, thereby saving the harvest.

In 1848 the settlers organized the State of Deseret and applied for statehood with a government headed by the Mormon Church. Congress denied the petition and instead created Utah Territory in 1850. Salt Lake City was incorporated in 1851, and in 1856 it replaced Fillmore as the territorial capital. Misunderstandings about Mormon religious beliefs and political outrage at the Mormon practice of polygamy led to the so-called "Utah War" in 1857 between the Mormon settlers and the U.S. Government. Although the dispute was settled peacefully in 1858, relations between the church and the territorial government were strained for many years.

City Becomes State Capital; Regional Mines, Industry Thrive

The two ends of the transcontinental railroad met just 40 miles north of Salt Lake City in 1869, tying Utah with the outside world. Over the next twenty years, hundreds of copper, silver, and lead mines were developed in the region, bringing a large number of non-Mormon settlers. Under continued pressure, the practice of polygamy was officially stopped by the church in 1890. This paved the way for women's suffrage in Utah, which had been a political lever in the national polygamy debate. The majestic Mormon Temple, begun in 1853, was completed in 1892, and Utah entered the Union in 1896 as the third suffrage state with Salt Lake City as the capital.

During the early twentieth century Salt Lake City assumed the look of a modern city. The State Capitol building and a number of other impressive structures were built, electric trolley cars began service on the city's streets, and large residential sections developed around the city. Like most cities, Salt Lake City suffered during the Great Depression, but prosperity returned during World War II amidst a construction boom and increased demand for metals. Industrial expansion continued postwar with downtown development and beautification projects becoming a focus in the 1970s and 1980s.

In 2002 Salt Lake City hosted the "best attended" Olympic Winter Games in history, with 1.6 billion tickets sold and another 4 billion television viewers. The city continues to reap the benefits of improved infrastructure and a significant increase in tourism.

In recent years Salt Lake City has been consistently recognized for its prosperity and quality of life. In 2003 Fortune magazine ranked the city third-best in America for business. Yahoo! magazine listed it among the nation's top 25 "Wired Cities"; and the sixth edition of Places Rated Almanac ranked the Salt Lake City/Ogden area as the best place to live in North America.

Historical Information: Utah State Historical Society Library, 300 South Rio Grande Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84101; telephone (801)533-3500; fax (801)533-3503

SALT LAKE CITY

SALT LAKE CITY was founded in July 1847 by Brigham Young and his followers, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon). The Latter-day Saints sought refuge from the religious persecution they had experienced in the eastern United States, and chose to settle in the interior basin of the Rocky Mountains, still formally part of Mexico.

The Salt Lake Valley had no settled population of American Indians, though Ute, Shoshoni, and Southern Paiute people had long inhabited the broader region. Although trappers and Mexican traders had traversed the Salt Lake Valley since 1824, and several immigrant parties had passed through on their way to California in 1846, the Mormons were the first to establish permanent settlements.

They began to plot out the city as soon as they arrived, and adapted a plan that had been proposed by Joseph Smith in 1833, called the "plat of the city of Zion." Surveyors set aside a large public square for a temple and other public use, and the grid pattern of streets was laid out. All locations were designated by their direction and distance from the southeast corner of the Temple Square. In 1850, the territorial legislature founded the University of Utah and the first classes met that fall, providing a foundation for cultural and scientific advance that would continue to thrive in the city. The Salt Lake Theater, built in 1861, was a major cultural institution in the West.

The completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 had enormous consequences for the city. Though

the transcontinental route crossed fifty miles to the north, Brigham Young pushed for the completion of the Utah Central Railroad, a connecting line, by January 1870. The city's trade, business, and population all grew rapidly. The population almost doubled between 1870 and 1880, from 12,854 to 20,768, and again during the next decade to 44,834. Chinese and African American rail workers, Jews, and by the turn of the century, Italians, Greeks, Slavs, and others of the new immigration, created a variegated population.

The railroad stimulated both mining and smelting. Salt Lake City became the hub of a series of thriving mining districts in the nearby canyons that produced gold, silver, and copper. By 1910, the population had reached nearly 90,000. The 1920s and 1930s were a period of stagnation, but New Deal programs and war industries revived the economy. In the latter half of the twentieth century, recreation, especially skiing, and high-tech industries gave Salt Lake City a measure of economic stability. In February 2002, the Winter Olympic Games were held in Salt Lake City and brought unprecedented world attention.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Alexander, Thomas G., and James B. Allen. Mormons and Gentiles: A History of Salt Lake City. Boulder, Colo.: Pruett, 1984.

Gottlieb, Robert, and Peter Wiley. Empires in the Sun: The Rise of the New American West. Woodland Hills, Calif.: Windsor, 1982.

McCormick, John S. Salt Lake City, the Gathering Place: An Illustrated History. New York: Putnam, 1980.

Dean L.May

See alsoLatter-day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ of ; Tabernacle, Mormon ; Utah ; Westward Migration andvol. 9:An Expedition to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake of Utah .

Salt Lake City: Population Profile

Metropolitan Area Residents

1980: 910,000

1990: 1,072,227

2000: 1,333,914

Percent change, 1990–2000: 24.4%

U.S. rank in 1980: 41st

U.S. rank in 1990: 38th

U.S. rank in 2000: 35th

City Residents

1980: 163,033

1990: 159,928

2000: 181,743

2003 estimate: 179,894

Percent change, 1990–2000: 13.6%

U.S. rank in 1980: 90th

U.S. rank in 1990: 108th (State rank: 1st)

U.S. rank in 2000: 129th (State rank: 1st)

Density: 1,666.1 people per square mile (2000)

Racial and ethnic characteristics (2000)

White: 143,933

Black or African American: 3,433

American Indian and Alaska Native: 2,442

Asian: 6,579

Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 3,437

Hispanic or Latino (may be of any race): 34,254

Other: 15,482

Percent of residents born in state: 49.1% (2000)

Age characteristics (2000)

Population under 5 years old: 14,432

Population 5 to 9 years old: 11,507

Population 10 to 14 years old: 10,488

Population 15 to 19 years old: 12,835

Population 20 to 24 years old: 21,381

Population 25 to 34 years old: 35,731

Population 35 to 44 years old: 25,021

Population 45 to 54 years old: 19,630

Population 55 to 59 years old: 6,058

Population 60 to 64 years old: 4,739

Population 65 to 74 years old: 8,852

Population 75 to 84 years old: 7,914

Population 85 years and older: 3,155

Median age: 30.0 years

Births (2003)

Total number: 18,223 (Salt Lake County)

Deaths (2003)

Total number: 5,312 (Salt Lake County)

Money income (1999)

Per capita income: $20,752

Median household income: $36,944

Total households: 71,492

Number of households with income of . . .

less than $10,000: 7,660

$10,000 to $14,999: 5,193

$15,000 to $24,999: 11,087

$25,000 to $34,999: 9,920

$35,000 to $49,999: 11,801

$50,000 to $74,999: 12,733

$75,000 to $99,999: 5,810

$100,000 to $149,999: 4,304

$150,000 to $199,999: 1,326

$200,000 or more: 1,658

Percent of families below poverty level: 10.4% (38.4% of which were female householder families with related children under 5 years)

2002 FBI Crime Index Total: 19,059

Salt Lake City: Communications

Newspapers and Magazines

Salt Lake City is served by two major daily newspapers, The Salt Lake Tribune and Deseret News. The Latter-Day Saints publish three titles: Church News, a weekly newspaper; The Friend, a magazine for children aged three to eleven; and New Era, a magazine for teens. Magazines published in the city include Salt Lake Magazine and several scholarly, medical, and industry magazines.

Television and Radio

Salt Lake City's 10 television stations represent the commercial networks and independent and instructional channels. The city is also served by a variety of cable channels. Nearly two dozen AM and FM radio stations broadcast from the Salt Lake City area, providing a wide range of music, news, and informational programming.

Media Information: The Salt Lake Tribune, 143 S. Main Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84111; telephone (801) 257-8742. Deseret News, 30 E 100 South, PO Box 1257, Salt Lake City, UT 84110; telephone (801)237-2100

Salt Lake City Online

City of Salt Lake City home page. Available www.ci.slc.ut.us

Deseret News. Available www.deseretnews.com/dn

Discover Southern Utah! Available www.infowest.com/Utah

Salt Lake City Public Library. Available www.slcpl.lib.ut.us

Salt Lake City Public Schools. Available www.slc.k12.ut.us

Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau. Available www.saltlake.org

The Salt Lake Tribune. Available www.sltrib.com

Utah State Office of Education. Available www.usoe.k12.ut.us

Selected Bibliography

Ayres, Becky, Salt Lake City (Minneapolis, MN: Dillon Press, 1990)

Miller, Marjorie, Salt Lake City: Jewel of the Wasatch (Yellow Cat Flats, Utah: Yellow Cat Publishing, 2000)

Naifeh, Steven W., The Mormon Murders: A True Story of Greed, Deceit, and Death (New York: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1988)

Salt Lake City

The City in Brief

Founded: 1847 (incorporated, 1851)

Head Official: Mayor Ross C. "Rocky" Anderson (NP) (since 2000)

City Population

1980: 163,033

1990: 159,928

2000: 181,743

2003 estimate: 179,894

Percent change, 1990–2000: 13.6%

U.S. rank in 1980: 90th

U.S. rank in 1990: 108th

U.S. rank in 2000: 129th

Metropolitan Area Population

1980: 910,000

1990: 1,072,227

2000: 1,333,914

Percent change, 1990–2000: 24.4%

U.S. rank in 1980: 41st

U.S. rank in 1990: 38th

U.S. rank in 2000: 35th

Area: 109 square miles (2000)

Elevation: 4,330 feet above sea level

Average Annual Temperature: 51.8° F

Average Annual Precipitation: 15.7 inches

Major Economic Sectors: Construction, transportation, trade, utilities, finance, information, education and health services

Unemployment Rate: 5.2% (January 2005)

Per Capita Income: $20,752 (1999)

2002 FBI Crime Index Total: 19,059

Major Colleges and Universities: University of Utah, Westminster College, Salt Lake Community College-South City Campus, LDS Business College

Daily Newspapers: The Salt Lake Tribune; Deseret News

Salt Lake City: Transportation

Approaching the City

The Salt Lake International Airport offers 972 daily flights on 16 airlines, and is located just minutes from downtown Salt Lake City. In 2004 the airport served 18.3 million customers. The Utah Transit Authority provides transportation to and from the airport; taxis are available, and many area hotels provide complimentary shuttle service.

Salt Lake City is at the junction of two major interstate highways, Interstate 15 running north-south and Interstate 80 running east-west. Interstate 215 forms a commuter loop and by-pass around the inner city.

Amtrak provides national passenger rail service from Salt Lake City's Gateway area. The TRAX light rail system serves Salt Lake County.

Traveling in the City

Walking is perhaps the best way to see the city's sights. Salt Lake City was laid out in a grid pattern by the early Mormon pioneers with exceptionally wide streets, which makes automobile travel easy and pleasurable compared to most larger metropolitan areas. Streets are named according to their distance and relationship to Temple Square. Salt Lake City recently implemented an intelligent CommuterLink system to decrease traffic congestion.

The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) operates more than 100 different routes throughout a 1,400-square-mile area. Free fare zones operate downtown. UTA also provides service to ski resorts in winter, and door-to-door transportation for the disabled.

Salt Lake City: Health Care

Utah boasts some of the healthiest people in the country. In 2003 the state was ranked third-healthiest in the U.S. by the United Health Foundation. Utah has the lowest smoking rate in the nation, and also records some of the lowest cancer, heart disease, and infant mortality rates.

A major focus for health care in Salt Lake City is the University Health Services Center, the teaching and research hospital for the University of Utah Medical School. The system consists of 850 physicians and health-care professionals, inpatient and outpatient services, same-day surgery, a 90-bed psychiatric hospital, and 24-hour assessment and referral services. Intermountain Health Care is a non-profit organization based in Salt Lake City. It includes 21 hospitals and has a mandate to provide quality care regardless of a patients' abilities to pay. Primary Children's Medical Center was ranked one of the top 10 children's hospitals in the country in 2003. The Intermountain Shriners Hospital for Children provides no-cost care and services for children with disorders of the bones, muscles and joints.

Salt Lake City: Convention Facilities

The Salt Palace Convention Center, located in the center of the downtown district, is the city's major convention facility. It features 365,000 square feet of exhibit space, a 45,000-square-foot ballroom, and 53 meeting rooms. When the expansion of the center is complete in 2006, the capacity of the Salt Palace will have increased by 40 percent.

There are more than 4,200 hotel rooms and 90 restaurants within walking distance of the Salt Palace Convention Center and another 7,000 hotel rooms in the city. Several of the major hotels also contain extensive meeting, banquet, and ballroom accommodations. The Delta Center offers meeting rooms ranging in size from 400 to 10,000 square feet.

Convention Information: Salt Lake City Convention & Visitors Bureau, 90 South West Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101; telephone (801)521-2822; fax (801)534-4927

Salt Lake City: Geography and Climate

Salt Lake City is bounded on three sides by mountain ranges and on the northwest by the Great Salt Lake. The Jordan River flows just to the west of the downtown district. Mountains shield the city from much of the severe winter weather common to the area, and the lake also serves to moderate the temperatures. Summer days are typically hot and dry, with cool nights and little precipitation. The winters are cold but not severe, with snow remaining on the ground through most of the season. Spring, especially in March, is the season of heavy rain and high winds from Pacific storms.

Area: 109 square miles (2000)

Elevation: 4,330 feet above sea level

Average Temperatures: January, 36.4° F; July, 92.2° F; annual average, 51.8° F.

Annual Average Precipitation: 15.7 inches

Salt Lake City: Municipal Government

Salt Lake City has a council-mayor form of government with the mayor elected at large. The mayor and seven council members serve a four-year term. The city is also the seat of Salt Lake County and the capital of Utah.

Head Official: Mayor Ross C. "Rocky" Anderson (NP) (since 2000; current term expires 2007)

Total Number of City Employees: 2,687 (2004)

City Information: Salt Lake City Corporation, 451 South State Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84111; telephone (801)535-6333

Salt Lake City State capital in n central Utah, USA, 21km (13mi) e of Great Salt Lake. Founded in 1847 by the Mormons led by Brigham Young, it grew rapidly to become capital of the Territory of Utah (1856) and the State of Utah (1896). Salt Lake City is the world headquarters of the Mormon Church. Zinc, gold, silver, lead, and copper are mined nearby. It hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. Other industries: missiles, rocket engines, oil-refining, tourism, printing and publishing. Pop. (2000) 181,743.

Salt Lake City, Utah/USA Great Salt Lake City Founded in 1847 by Mormons as a place of safety from religious persecution. Located near the south‐eastern corner of the Great Salt Lake, it was named after the lake. ‘Great’ was dropped in 1868.