Portal:Utah

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The Utah Portal

Utah (/ˈjuːtɑː/ YOO-tah, /ˈjuːtɔː/ ^ⓘ YOO-taw) is a landlocked state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to its northeast, Idaho to its north, and Nevada to its west. In comparison to all the U.S. states and territories, Utah, with a population of just over three million, is the 13th largest by area, the 30th most populous, and the 11th least densely populated. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two regions: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which includes the state capital, Salt Lake City, and is home to roughly two-thirds of the population; and Washington County in the southwest, which has somewhat more than 180,000 residents. Most of the western half of Utah lies in the Great Basin.

Utah has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups, such as the ancient Puebloans, the Navajo, and the Ute. The first Europeans to arrive - in the mid-16th century - were the Spanish. Because of the region's challenging geography and harsh climate, it only became a peripheral part of New Spain (and later of Mexico). Even while it was Mexican territory, many of the Utah region’s earliest European settlers were from the United States; notable among these were Mormons who were fleeing marginalization and persecution in the United States and arrived via the so-called Mormon Trail. In 1848, after the Mexican–American War, the region was annexed by the U.S., becoming part of the Utah Territory, which included what later became Colorado and Nevada. Disputes between the dominant Mormon community and the federal government delayed Utah's admission as a state: in 1896, after it agreed to outlaw polygamy, it was admitted as the 45th state.

People from Utah are known as Utahns. Slightly over half of all Utahns are Mormons, the vast majority of whom are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which has its world headquarters in Salt Lake City; Utah is the only state where a majority of the population belongs to a single church. The LDS Church greatly influences Utahn culture, politics, and daily life, though since the 1990s the state has become more religiously diverse as well as secular. (Full article...)

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Silver Reef in the 1880s

Silver Reef is a ghost town in Washington County, Utah, United States, about 15 miles (24 km) northeast of St. George and 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Leeds. Silver Reef was established after John Kemple, a prospector from Nevada, discovered a vein of silver in a sandstone formation in 1866. At first, geologists were uncertain about Kemple's find because silver is not usually found in sandstone. In 1875, two bankers from Salt Lake City sent William Barbee to the site to stake mining claims. He staked 21 claims, and an influx of miners came to work Barbee's claims and to stake their own. To accommodate the miners, Barbee established a town called Bonanza City. Property values there were high, so several miners settled on a ridge to the north of it and named their settlement Rockpile. The town was renamed Silver Reef after silver mines in nearby Pioche closed and businessmen arrived.

By 1879, about 2,000 people were living in Silver Reef. The town had a mile-long Main Street with many businesses, among them a Wells Fargo office, the Rice Building, and the Cosmopolitan Restaurant. Although adjacent to many settlements with a majority of Mormon residents, the town never had a meeting house for Latter-day Saints, only a Catholic church. In 1879, a fire destroyed several businesses, but the residents rebuilt them. Mines were gradually closed, most of them by 1884, as the worldwide price of silver dropped. By 1901, most of the buildings in town had either been demolished or moved to Leeds. (Full article...)

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Credit: User:Decumanus

The boundaries of the provisional State of Deseret as proposed in 1849 are shown in orange. The area of the Utah Territory as organized in 1859 is shaded in red.

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November 11, 1965 - United Airlines Flight 227 crashed while attempting to land at Salt Lake City Municipal Airport.
November 19, 1915 - Joe Hill, a radical songwriter, labor activist and member of the Industrial Workers of the World, is executed by firing squad for murder.

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Browning, c. 1915

John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms, many of which are still in use around the world. He made his first firearm at age 13 in his father's gun shop and was awarded the first of his 128 firearm patents on October 7, 1879, at the age of 24. He is regarded as one of the most successful firearms designers of the 19th and 20th centuries and a pioneer of modern repeating, semi-automatic, and automatic firearms.

Browning influenced nearly all categories of firearms design, especially the autoloading of ammunition. He invented, or made significant improvements to, single-shot, lever-action, and pump-action rifles and shotguns. He developed the first reliable and compact autoloading pistols by inventing the telescoping bolt, then integrating the bolt and barrel shroud into what is known as the pistol slide. Browning's telescoping bolt design is now found on nearly every modern semi-automatic pistol, as well as several modern fully automatic weapons. He also developed the first gas-operated firearm, the Colt–Browning Model 1895 machine gun – a system that surpassed mechanical recoil operation to become the standard for most high-power self-loading firearm designs worldwide. He also made significant contributions to automatic cannon development. (Full article...)

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Lagoon is a family owned amusement park in Farmington, Utah, located about 18 miles north of Salt Lake City. Lagoon is divided into five main areas: The Midway, containing the majority of the rides; Pioneer Village, which has several exhibits displaying pioneer buildings and artifacts; Lagoon-A-Beach, a water park; Kiddie Land, an area with several rides for small children; and X-Venture Zone, featuring more extreme rides that are upcharged. Lagoon also offers an RV park, a campground, and a walking trail outside the park that stays open all year. Every autumn, the park offers Halloween-themed shows and attractions, collectively known as Frightmares.

Lagoon has eleven roller coasters, six of which are unique: Colossus the Fire Dragon, one of two remaining Schwarzkopf Double Looping coaster still in operation in the United States; Roller Coaster, one of the oldest coasters in the world, operating since 1921; Wicked, designed by Lagoon's engineering department and Werner Stengel in cooperation with ride manufacturer Zierer; BomBora, a family coaster designed in-house; Cannibal, built in-house with one of the world's steepest drops; and Primordial, an interactive dark ride coaster/3-D shooter game attraction inside an artificial mountain. (Full article...)

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...that the Utah teapot (pictured) is a 3D model which has become a standard reference object in the computer graphics community?
...that Camp Steiner is the highest boy scout camp in the United States at 10,400 feet?
...that James H. Clark, who received a PhD in computer science from the University of Utah in 1974, founded Silicon Graphics, Inc., Netscape Communications Corporation and Healtheon?

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Credit: Cacophony

Landscape Arch in Arches National Park

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General images

The following are images from various Utah-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1"Welcome to Utah" sign (from Utah)
Image 2A sketch of Salt Lake City in 1860 (from Utah)
Image 3The California gull is the Utah state bird. (from Utah)
Image 4Farms and ranches (from Utah)
Image 5The Huntsman Cancer Institute on the campus of the University of Utah (U of U) in Salt Lake City (from Utah)

Map of counties in Utah by racial plurality, per the 2020 US Census

Legend

Non-Hispanic White

60–70%

70–80%

80–90%

90%+

Native American

50–60%

(from Utah)

Image 7Sri Sri Radha Krishna (Hindu) Temple (from Utah)
Image 8Bonneville Salt Flats (from History of Utah)
Image 9Bryce Canyon National Park Amphitheater (winter view) (from Utah)
Image 10The Eyring Science Center on the campus of Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah (from Utah)
Image 11Salt Lake International Airport is the largest airport in Utah (from Utah)
Image 12Fremont petroglyph, Dinosaur National Monument (from History of Utah)
Image 13FrontRunner commuter rail runs between Ogden and Provo via Salt Lake City (from Utah)
Image 14Downtown Salt Lake City in the early 20th century. (from History of Utah)
Image 15One out of every 14 flash memory chips in the world is produced in Lehi, Utah. (from Utah)
Image 16Arches National Park (from Utah)
Image 17The Rocky Mountain elk is the Utah state mammal. (from Utah)
Image 18Children reading in Santa Clara, Utah, in 1940 (from Utah)
Image 19Little Cottonwood Canyon (from Utah)
Image 20Western black widow spider (from Utah)
Image 21Hovenweep Castle, San Juan River basin (from History of Utah)
Image 22Location where the Mormons entered the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, now the This is the Place Monument and Deseret Village (from History of Utah)
Image 23The Golden Spike where the First transcontinental railroad was completed in the U.S. on May 10, 1869, in Promontory, Utah (from Utah)
Image 24Pariette Wetlands (from Utah)
Image 25Joshua trees, yuccas, and cholla cactus occupy the far southwest corner of the state in the Mojave Desert (from Utah)
Image 26Deer Creek Reservoir (from Utah)
Image 27Mining has been a large industry in Utah since it was first settled. The Bingham Canyon Mine in Salt Lake County is one of the largest open pit mines in the world. (from Utah)
Image 28Utah county boundaries (from Utah)
Image 29Utah population density map (from Utah)
Image 30TRAX light rail serves Salt Lake County (from Utah)
Image 31Zion National Park (from History of Utah)
Image 32The LDS Salt Lake Temple, the primary attraction in the city's Temple Square (from Utah)
Image 33Utah State Route 12 through Red Canyon in Dixie National Forest (from Utah)
Image 34Pando, considered one of the heaviest and oldest organisms on Earth. (from Utah)
Image 35Robbie Russell playing for Real Salt Lake (from Utah)
Image 36The Olympic cauldron is lit by the 'Miracle on Ice' 1980 U.S. men's ice hockey team at the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City (from Utah)
Image 37The boundaries of the provisional State of Deseret—as proposed in 1849—are shown with a dotted line. The Utah Territory as organized in 1850, is shown in blue with black outline. (from History of Utah)
Image 38Zion National Park in southern Utah is one of five national parks in the state. (from Utah)
Image 39Map showing Utah in 1838 when it was part of Mexico, Britannica 7th edition (from Utah)
Image 40American Fork Canyon (from Utah)
Image 41Map showing Utah in 1838 when it was part of Mexico. From Britannica 7th edition. (from History of Utah)
Image 42Snow in Rose Park, Salt Lake City (from Utah)
Image 43The Utah Jazz playing against the Houston Rockets (from Utah)
Image 44Köppen climate types of Utah, using 1991–2020 climate normals. (from Utah)
Image 45Jake Garn (top-right), former Senator of Utah (1974–1993), and astronaut on Space Shuttle flight STS-51-D (from Utah)
Image 46First Presbyterian Church in Salt Lake City (from Utah)
Image 47The Utah State Capitol, Salt Lake City (from Utah)
Image 48Deseret Village recreates Utah pioneer life for tourists. (from Utah)
Image 49Kolob Canyons at Zion National Park (from Utah)
Image 50The Scott Matheson Courthouse is the seat of the Utah Supreme Court. (from Utah)
Image 51The Wasatch Front region has seen large growth and development despite the economic downturn. Shown is the City Creek Center project, a development in downtown Salt Lake City with a price tag of $1.5–2.5 billion. (from Utah)
Image 52Navajo homeland in Monument Valley (from History of Utah)
Image 53Brigham Young led the first Mormon pioneers to the Great Salt Lake. (from Utah)

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State facts

Nickname: The Beehive State
Capital and largest city: Salt Lake City
Total area: 219,887 km² (84,899 sq mi)
Population (2010 Census): 2,736,424
Date admitted to the Union: January 4, 1896

State symbols:

Animal: Rocky Mountain elk
Bird: California seagull
Fish: Bonneville cutthroat trout
Flower: Sego lily
Grass: Indian ricegrass
Insect: European honey bee
Tree: Quaking aspen
Fossil: Allosaurus
Gemstone: Topaz
Mineral: Copper
Motto: Industry
Rock: Coal
Snackfood: Green Jell-O
Song: "Utah, This Is the Place"

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