Portal:Utah

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The Utah Portal

Utah is a western state of the United States, in the Rocky Mountain region. The name Utah is derived from the Southern Ute word for "higher up." In addition to the Ute Tribe, the Paiute, Navajo, and Goshute nations also inhabit portions of the state.

Utah had a population of 2,389,039 in 2004, according to a Census Bureau estimate. About 85% of Utah's population resides in the valleys and on the western slope of the Wasatch Mountains in northern and central Utah. Residents are called Utahns. The state is generally rugged and arid, and has spectacular natural scenery. It is a popular summer and winter tourist destination. Salt Lake City, the ski resorts in the Wasatch Range, and the national parks of the south are the most popular destinations.

Utah's capital is Salt Lake City, a vibrant metropolitan city. The small community of Fillmore, in Millard County, was designated as the territorial capital in 1854, four years after Utah Territory was organized. In 1856, the capital was moved back to Salt Lake City, which became the capital of the state when Utah was admitted to the Union in 1896. Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics, which gave a significant boost to the state's tourist industry (especially the ski resorts).

Salt Lake City, Utah is also the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of which approximately 60% of Utah residents are members. The LDS Church has a strong cultural influence on the state, resulting in Utah being one of just two states where gambling is illegal.

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Credit: Jon Zander (User:Digon3)

Bryce Canyon Amphitheater

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The Bear River Massacre, also called the Battle of Bear River and the Massacre at Boa Ogoi, took place on January 29, 1863, between the United States Army and the Shoshone Indians at the confluence of the Bear River and Beaver Creek (now Battle Creek) near Preston in present day Franklin County, Idaho. The detachment of the U.S. Army was led by Col. Patrick Edward Connor as a part of the Bear River Expedition against Shoshone Chief Bear Hunter.

There were several incidents in the summer and fall of 1862 that lead to the eventual confrontation. While viewed as isolated incidents they seem insignificant, when grouped together a picture of broad struggles over almost the entire United States west of the Mississippi River can be seen during this time period when the attention of the nation was focused on the battles going on in the eastern states. Modern historians have often overlooked these incidents because they occurred near the ill-defined boundary of two different territorial jurisdictions (Washington Territory and Utah Territory), where the incidents are geographically close but the administrative centers dealing with them are over 1000 miles apart. Indeed, the vicinity of Franklin and the general location of the conflict was assumed to be in the Utah Territory, with residents of Franklin sending elected representatives to the Utah Territorial Legislature and participating in the politics of Cache County, Utah until 1872 when a surveying team pointed out that they were, in fact, in Idaho.

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Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is a prolific and best-selling author, working in numerous genres. He is best known for his novel Ender's Game and its many sequels. Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead were both awarded the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award, making Card the only author (as of 2006) to win both of Science Fiction's top prizes in consecutive years.

His writing is dominated by detailed characterization and moral issues. As Card says, "We care about moral issues, nobility, decency, happiness, goodness — the issues that matter in the real world, but which can only be addressed, in their purity, in fiction."

A member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, some of his novels have stories explicitly drawn from scripture or church history. His religious and political beliefs have drawn the ire of some science fiction fans, making him a provocative figure within the genre.

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Did you know...

...that George Dern (pictured), the 6th Governor of Utah and 54th War Secretary, is the grandfather of actor Bruce Dern and the great-grandfather of actress Laura Dern?
...that the fifth-worst mining accident in American history, the Winter Quarters Mine disaster, occurred in Scofield, Utah on May 1, 1900 when at least 200 workers died as the result of a coal dust explosion?
...that the Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation operates the Bingham Canyon Mine, the largest open-pit copper mine in the world near Copperton, Utah?