Salt Lake City - Case Study Example

Salt Lake In an area once home to various native tribes such as the Ute , who gave the its and later the Navajo, stands Salt Lake City, State capital of Utah. It is near the base of the Wabash Mountains which can be seen from the city. In July 1847 there had arrived a new group – 148 white settlers led by Brigham Young, leader of the Church of Latter Day Saints, usually known as the Mormons. Despite the fact that the Shoshone regularly camped in the area, the land had been declared as being in the public domain by the United States government and Bancroft reports how the local natives were unhappy at having settlers fence off parts of their landi. There were a number of incidents in which people from both sides were killed , but according to Bancroft the Mormon aim was not to overcome , but to convert the natives to their causeii. Image One, A design from the Salt Lake City Tourist Board, 2012 Unusually for Mormons there were only three women and two children in the group according to Utah.com (Undated). The group had travelled many, many miles from Nauvoo, Illinois, and their Winter Quarters in Nebraska, in search of a site where they could settle and practice their religion without outside pressure and interference. The Mormon practice of polygamy and their theocratic tendencies were viewed by many as strange and perhaps un-Americaniii. Thesis Although Salt Lake City began as a place of religious refuge, it now serves in much the same way as any modern city, for the many needs of its population, religious and secular. Salt Lake City It wasn’t perhaps an obvious choice of site for a settlement as the land was arid, but soon responded to irrigation and cultivation. Salt Lake City is important as a historic site, not just for Mormons, but because, together with nearby Fort Douglas, this ‘Crossroads of the West’iv, so designated as it is crossed by the country’s first transcontinental road, stretching from the east coast to the west, and from Times Square New York, to Lincoln Park, San Francisco and designated as the Lincoln Highway. The plans for this first major cross country highway began in 1912, devised by Carl Fisherv, although he was only the vice president of the Lincoln Highways Association. The route was most concerned with getting in a straight line from A to B and so bypassed many large settlements and points of interest, so there were lots of requests for changes of route, but the chosen route was adhered to. Originally plans had included both Kansas and Colorado, but eventually the road was built slightly further north. The present day city, roads and all, shows how America, not just this part, has changed and adapted over the past century and a half, perhaps becoming more tolerant and accepting. Any visit to the city so strongly associated to the Mormon faith , despite its present day diversity, should perhaps begin at the place where Young first decided that that he and his fellow Mormons, male and female, black and white, had reached their new home ‘There It Is’ Heritage Park marks the spot. According to the story as told on the web site “A History of the Salt Lake Mormon Temple (2011) only four days after arriving in the area Brigham Young walked to what is now the temple site and , in response to a vision, planted his walking stick in the ground and declared “Here we will build the temple of our God.” There were however other immediate priorities and it wasn’t until six years later on 14 February 1853, that Young presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for the building of the new temple. In the following spring the cornerstone was laid. No time was wasted in transforming the group from travelers into permanent settlers . Immediately they arrived the settlers began to till the soil and sow crops. They weren’t going to build a small settlement though. Within just a few days plans were being drawn for Great Salt Lake City, taking its name of course from the salty inland lake in the desert land lying to the west of the chosen site. Spreading out from the center of the city, now called Temple Square, city blocks were arranged in a grid pattern covering 10-acre squares. The blocks were separated one from the other by streets which are 132 feet wide. "Wide enough for a team of four oxen and a covered wagon to turn around ”according to Utah.com (undated). A school in a tent was set up by a 17 year old girl, Mary Dilworth in October 1847. The aim was self-sufficiency. The Mormons wanted to be as independent as possible and so plants were set up to produce such things as pottery and paper and there were attempts to grow a wide variety of plants, some more successful than others. In the following year, 1848, more settlers arrived to join the original pioneers. Everything wasn’t perfect however as a late frost, as well as drought, and a plague of crickets almost destroyed the harvest. Great flocks of seagulls, perhaps driven inland by poor coastal weather , eventually ate the crickets and enough of the crop was saved to allow the group to survive through the winter until better weather arrived. The seagull, otherwise known as the Californian Gull viwas later designated Utahs state bird in 1955.Despite these early difficulties the settlers had soon established 12 townships in the surrounding countryside. As well as the many thousands of Mormons who would arrive Salt Lake City was also a major supply point for other migrants intending to travel on to California. Some in government were not entirely sure about the loyalties of the Mormonsvii and also the mail routs north south needed protection and so a fort was set up. Fort Douglas lies on the edge of the city and much of it is now the property of the University of Utah, but also included on the site is a museum giving great insight into the history of the area, but also the changing role of the military over 150 yearsviii. Most people know of only one building in Salt Lake City, the Tabernacle, home of the world famous choir, which is actually a separate building from the Temple, which is actually one of 150 such temples scattered throughout the worldix . Even the stone for this huge building was quarried locally, coming from Cottonwood Canyon, some 20 miles to the south west. Despite a strong desire for such a temple, although work began on it, progress was slow at first because of some difficulties in obtained the necessary materials , and problems with funding. At first everything had to be brought in by slow ox carts. Matters were also brought to a complete halt by the Utah War of 1858, but the arrival of the railroad in 1869 speeded things up. Image 2, The Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah, being built. The Utah War was a strange affair which merely caused delays. It was a war in which no one got either killed or injured, but was caused by the Federal Government’s fear of rebellion by the Mormons and their plan for self-determination. The Wild West magazine described it as Buchanan’s Blunderx . The judges and officials appointed by the federal government proved to be at odds with the Mormons, and a Mormon petition for full statehood was turned down, although President Millard Fillmore did appoint Brigham Young as the territorial governor. Image 3, Salt LakeTemple, Temple Square, Salt Lake City. The Tabernacle is vast, although the actual choir has only 360 members. Even its library is home to 1.2 million pieces of music. Image 3 Music Library Stacks at the Mormon Tabernacle All of these historic buildings are in a relatively small area and can be reached on foot. To travel further afar carriage rides can be arranged. Much more recently the Winter Olympic Games came to the city in 1980 and were opened by then president George Bush senior. This meant lots of new roads, connections to interstate highways and well as other permanent structures, including accommodation now used by university students. This epitomizes how the city, seeking to make a religious statement, is also a secular city with such things as educational and sporting activities. It is also a political place , with the Capitol building and its gardens at the northern end of State Street. To the west lies the Marmalade district, the area where many of the original settlers had made their homes in the 1850s. To the east of the Capital are is Memory Grove, an area dedicated to those lost in war. Despite the city’s origins not all of the population are Mormons these days. There is Catholic cathedral , the Cathedral of the Madeleine, xi as well as Presbyterian, Greek Orthodox and Episcopal churches. On the more secular front a large Masonic Temple, built in 1927, can be visited on guided tours. Not to be missed is the historic Eagle Gate, once being the entrance to Brigham Young’s personal property. The huge and majestic eagle, which surmounts it weighs 4000 pounds. The eagle stood on a beehive and the name of one of the houses which stood behind it was ‘The Beehive.’. Image 4, Eagle Gate Over time the Eagle Gateway which originally led only to farmland owned by Young, has had to be moved and altered, in order to accommodate increasing traffic. It’s original opening of 22 feet wide had allowed only one way traffic for farm wagons. Originally there was a toll to pass through the gate into City Creek Canyon, but this was rescinded in 1852. In 1963 the then president of the Latter Day Saints declared that :- Over the years many attempts have been made to remove the old eagle and its perch in the interest of progress, better traffic control and for esthetic reasons, but they came to naught and the gate has remained as a famous landmark.xii There are many other sights in the area, including the National Dinosaur Museum near the north shore of the lake, dedicated to some much earlier inhabitants of the area. Image 5.The Site of the Wall of Bones at the National Dinosaur Museum Today the city, more than 160 years on from its inception, is described as an ‘attractive, safe and growing city.xiii’According to the official guide there are more than 500 sites of historic interest to be seenxiv. Some need pointing out, but others are very obvious. One of the most obvious perhaps is the famous Eagle Gate, which can still be seen in down town Salt Lake City. The statue, first built as early as 1859, only 12 years after the arrival of those first settlers, perhaps epitomizes the grandeur Young wanted for his city, his vision if you like. It is now in its fourth position, although still close to the original site. This movement shows how the city has had to adapt and adjust according to changing times, from the earliest days of a settlement of tents and wagons, and their perhaps idealistic inhabitants, onwards. Today it is promoted as a tourist center, especially for winter sports with the mountains so close, as well as for hot air balloonists .There is also a large university extending out into the area formerly belonging to the military at Fort Douglas. The metropolitan area now has a population of 181,743 and the immediate area surrounding it has a population of 1.2 million, far in excess perhaps of what the first arrivals could have imaginedxv. Young could still walk into the temple and see worship he recognizes, so, everything has changed, and yet at its center are the temple the church’s headquarters and the tabernacle , and everything, to some intent at least, is still the same. Images 1, A design from the Salt Lake City Tourist Board, 2012, Salt Lake City Visitor Information, (2012) Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.slctravel.com/ 2. The Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City being built, Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,( 2012) Salt Lake Temple, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/saltlake/ 3.The Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City, Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,( 2012) Salt Lake Temple, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/saltlake/ 3.Music Library Stacks at the Mormon Tabernacle ( 2012) Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.mormontabernaclechoir.org/ 4. Eagle Gate at the turn of the century, Haddock, 2010 5.The Site of the Wall of Bones, National Dinosaur Museum, retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.dinoland.com/media/Dino-Natl-Mon-6083-800x600.jpg Bibliography Bancroft, H., 1889, Chapter XIII, Settlement and Occupation of the Country, History of Utah, 1540 1896, Sacred Texts, retrieved 2nd December 2012 http://www.sacred-texts.com/mor/hou/hou16.htm. Browning E. (2003) Historic Museum of Fort Douglas at the University of Utah, A Brief History and Walking Tour, University of Utah, Retrieved from http://www.fortdouglas.org/sites/fortdouglas.org/files/walking%20tour%20book.pdf Cathedral of the Madeleine, (2012) Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.utcotm.org/worship Fort Douglas Military Museum (undated) Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.fortdouglas.org/research/history Haddock, M., ( 2010) Historic Eagle Gate a prominent Salt Lake City landmark , Deseret News, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700020286/Historic-Eagle-Gate-a-prominent-Salt-Lake-landmark.html History Net.com 2012, Utah War: U.S. Government Versus Mormon Settlers , Weider History Group, retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.historynet.com/utah-war-us-government-versus-mormon-settlers.htm Lin,J.,1998, Lincoln Highway, A brief history of origins, 1911-1913, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://lincolnhighway.jameslin.name/history/part1.html Salt Lake City Visitor Information, (2012), Salt Lake City Demographics., retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.saltlakecityutah.org/salt_lake_demographics.htm Salt Lake Mormon Temple,( 2011) A History of the Salt Lake Mormon Temple, Retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://saltlakemormontemple.com/162/a-history-of-the-salt-lake-mormon-temple State of Utah, Utah Department of Heritage and Arts (2012) Utah’s State Bird – California Gull, Pioneer, Utah’s State Library, retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://pioneer.utah.gov/research/utah_symbols/bird.html Utah.com, (Undated) Salt Lake City History, retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.utah.com/cities/slc_history.htm Visit Salt Lake City, (2012) retrieved 2nd December 2012 from http://www.visitsaltlake.com/things-to-do/ Read More