Utah

Header image from National Park Service.gov, Arches National Park, Utah

Utah became the 45th state on January 4, 1896

Bird: Seagull

Seagulls learn, remember and even pass on behaviors, such as stamping their feet in a group to imitate rainfall and trick earthworms in to coming to the surface.
Seagulls can drink both fresh and salt water. Most animals are unable to do this, but seagulls have a special pair of glands right above their eyes which is specifically designed to flush the salt from their systems through openings in the bill.
Many seagulls have learned to conserve energy by hovering over bridges in order to absorb raising heat from paved roadways.
Seagulls are fondly remembered in Utah for helping Mormon settlers deal with a plague of crickets. The seagull is now the state bird of Utah and a monument in Salt Lake City commemorates the event, known as the ‘Miracle of the Gulls’.

Utah – Sego lily

The sego lily was chosen as the flower symbol of Utah because of its natural beauty and historic significance (the soft, bulbous root of the sego lily was collected and eaten in the mid 1800’s during a crop-devouring plague of crickets in Utah). Also called mariposa lily, the bulb of the sego lily was roasted, boiled, or made into a porridge by native Americans before the Mormon pioneers.

Utah – (blue spruce until 2014) – Quaking Aspen

The quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) was chosen by the Utah State Legislature in 2014 to be the state tree. The quaking aspen replaced the Colorado blue spruce, which had held the honor of state tree since 1933. The quaking aspen, which is also known as trembling aspen, makes up about 10% of the forest cover in the State of Utah and can be found in all of Utah’s 29 counties. In comparison, the Colorado blue spruce makes up about 1% of the forest cover and is primarily found in the the Wasatch and Uinta mountains.
This deciduous tree belongs to the willow family. Its name originates from the lightweight shiny leaves that quake and tremble when moved by even the gentlest breeze. Do not plant these trees near buildings, driveways and sidewalks because they produce large roots near the surface of the ground. The roots will invade any crack or flaw in foundations and cement structures as the tree grows.
One group of these trees in Utah (called Pando) may be the largest single organism in the world. As I said these trees reproduce using root suckers. This means that the new trees are all clones of the original tree. This makes them one single organism. Back in 1976 scientists estimated that Pando consisted of 47,000 trees that were clones.

State Quarter

From: theus50.com

The reverse of Utah’s quarter features two locomotives moving toward the golden spike that joined the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads, linking East to West and transforming both the Utah Territory and the Nation with the inscription “Crossroads of the West.” The coin also bears the inscriptions “Utah” and “1896.”

On May 10, 1869, two steam locomotives met at Promontory, Utah, for the “Joining of the Rails Ceremony,” at which the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads completed the transcontinental route. The event was crucial to the development of the American West because it made cross-country travel more convenient and economical. The construction of the railroad, and the subsequent mining boom, brought diverse ethnic and religious populations to Utah. The railroad also symbolized the changing technology, and moved Utah from an agrarian economy to a more industrialized one.

Even before the time of steam locomotives, Utah experienced a steady flow of explorers and pioneers. The Spaniards first came to explore Utah in the 18th century and were followed by mountain men, Mormons and prospectors in search of precious metals found in the 1860s. Because of its central location, Utah became known as the “Crossroads of the West.”

Capital: Salt Lake City

Nickname: Beehive State

Animal: Rocky Mountain Elk

Fish: Rainbow Trout

Symbol: Beehive to represent thrift and industry.

Motto: Industry

Utah Facts and Trivia

The name Utah comes from the Native American Ute tribe and means “people of the mountains.” In the tribe’s language,” ute” means “Land of the Sun.” The name “Ute” may have originated with the Apache words yudah, yiuta or yuttahihmeaning “they who are higher up”).

Mountains, high plateaus and deserts form most of Utah’s landscape. At Four Corners, in the southeast, Utah meets Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona at right angles, the only such meeting of states in the country.

In 1824, Jim Bridger was the first Caucasian person to see the Great Salt Lake. He initially thought he had found the Pacific Ocean because it was so salty, but soon realized it was a giant salt lake. In the 1830s, thousands of people travelling from the East made stops in the Great Salt Lake region, which was then known as Lake Youta.

The Great Salt Lake, which is about 75 miles long and 35 miles wide, covers more than a million acres.
The Great Salt Lake covers 2,100 square miles, with an average depth of 13 feet. The deepest point is 34 feet.
Utah’s Great Salt Lake is about four times saltier than any of the world’s oceans. If a person boiled 1 quart of water from the saltiest part of the lake, a half cup of salt would remain. It is so salty because as the ancient Lake Bonneville dried up, salt and other minerals were left behind. Because the shrinking lake had no stream out to sea, the salt deposits became concentrated in the lake.
Utah’s Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the western hemisphere.

Salt Lake City was originally named Great Salt Lake City. Great was dropped from the name in 1868.

In 1847, a group of 148 Mormons traveled to Utah led by Brigham Young. They settled in the Salt Lake Valley and named their settlement the Great Salt Lake City. The next year, 1,650 more Mormons arrived. Soon the area grew rapidly with new settlements forming such as Ogden, Provo, and Farmington. The Mormons named their land the state of Deseret and by 1850 there were over 11,000 Mormons living in the area.

In 1848, crickets were terrorizing Utah settlers by devouring their crops. A flock of California Gulls flew in and ate the crickets, saving the crops and the settlers’ food. In gratitude, the California Gull was revered and was later named the state bird of Utah.

Utah was acquired by the United States in 1848 in the treaty ending the Mexico War.

Fillmore was Utah’s first territorial capitol and was named for U.S. President Millard Fillmore. The statehouse was never completed, but the first wing remains Utah’s oldest governmental building and now serves as a state museum.

During the Utah War (1857–1858), over 120 unarmed settlers, including women and children, were murdered by a group of Mormon militiamen. The militia initially claimed Native Americans killed the settlers. The motives behind the massacre remain unclear, though historians point to war hysteria and a fear of outsiders. Scholars still debate whether the Mormon leader, Brigham Young, ordered the massacre or if the responsibility lies with local leaders in southern Utah.

Completion of the world’s first transcontinental railroad was celebrated at Promontory Summit where the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads met on May 10, 1869. It is now known as Golden Spike National Historic Site.

Utah is the site of the nations first department store. Zions Co-operative Mercantile Institution was established in the late 1800’s. It is still in operation today as ZCMI.

Levan, is “navel” spelled backwards. It is so named because it is in the middle of Utah.

The Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City took 40 years to complete. The Mormon temples in St. George, Manti and Logan Utah were completed before the Salt Lake Temple.

Rainbow Bridge, Nature’s abstract sculpture carved of solid sandstone, is the world’s largest natural-rock span. It stands 278 feet wide and 309 feet high.

The average snowfall in the mountains near Salt Lake City is 500 inches. Because of the state’s inland location Utah’s snow is unusually dry. Earning it the reputation of having the world’s greatest powder. 14 Alpine ski resorts operate in Utah.

Utah mountain peaks, on average, are the tallest in the country. The average elevation of the tallest peaks in each of Utah’s counties is 11,222 ft.-higher than the same average in any other state.

Utah has five national parks: Arches, Canyonlands, Zion, Bryce and Capitol Reef.

Utah has seven national monuments: Cedar Breaks, Natural Bridges, Dinosaur, Rainbow Bridge, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Timpanogos Cave and Hovenweep.

Utah has two national recreation areas: Flaming Gorge and Glen Canyon.

Utah has six national forests: Ashley, Dixie, Fishlake, Manti-LaSal, Uinta, and Wasatch-Cache.

Approximately 62% of Utahns are reported to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS (Mormons), which greatly influences Utahn culture and daily life.

Utah is one of the four corner states, along with New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado. It is also bordered by Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada. Utah has a gorgeous natural environment and is home to deserts and forests. The Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, and the Colorado Plateau meet in Utah to contribute to its unique geography.

The federal government owns 65% of the state’s land.

Utah has the highest literacy rate in the nation.

The largest public employer in Utah is the Utah State Government.

Salt Lake City, UT, is home to the nation’s leading manufacturer of rubber chickens.

Unusual Laws:
In Utah, it is illegal to hire trombone players to play on the street to advertise an auction.
Additionally, it is illegal to fish while on horseback and to hunt whales.
In Salt Lake City it is illegal to walk down the street carrying a paper bag containing a violin.
While you’re fishing, you cannot use or possess corn or hominy.

In Tremonton It is illegal to have sex in a moving ambulance and if you are caught the guy is let go and the woman is punished and her name appears in the newspaper.

When a person reaches the age of 50, he/she can then marry their cousin.
A husband is responsible for every criminal act committed by his wife while she is in his presence.
Utah’s laws in regard to alcohol, tobacco and gambling are strict. Utah is an alcoholic beverage control state. The Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control regulates the sale of alcohol; wine and spirituous liquors may only be purchased at state liquor stores, and local laws may prohibit the sale of beer and other alcoholic beverages on Sundays. The state bans the sale of fruity alcoholic drinks at grocery stores and convenience stores. The law states that such drinks must now have new state-approved labels on the front of the products that contain capitalized letters in bold type telling consumers the drinks contain alcohol and at what percentage. The Utah Indoor Clean Air Act is a statewide smoking ban, that prohibits smoking in many public places. Utah is one of few states to set a smoking age of 19, as opposed to 18, as in most other states. Utah is also one of only two states in the United States to outlaw all forms of gambling; the other is Hawaii.

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