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Water is Alive: Navajo Connections to the Colorado River
In Navajo belief systems, water is alive and a vital part of a healthy landscape. When Glen Canyon Dam blocked the flow of the Colorado River, a landscape that holds deep meaning in traditional Navajo spirituality was completely transformed.
For…
Pink Floyd the Flamingo
Looking out at Great Salt Lake you may have seen it before – a flash of pink wings and long legs… wait, was that a Flamingo? Find out more about Great Salt Lake’s beloved pink visitor Floyd.
In 1988, a flamingo living at the Tracy Aviary in…
Gilgal Garden: One Man’s Beliefs in Stone
A towering arch made of boulders. Biblical quotes carved into stone pavers. A bird’s house with dozens of entrances. This is not a surreal dream land, but Gilgal Garden, a sculpture park in downtown Salt Lake City. Learn the history of this special…
Hobbitville: Allen Park’s Journey From Urban Legend to City Park
Salt Lake City’s “Hobbitville” is not actually a neighborhood for small, shoeless, fantasy people who live underground. Although it IS home to a colorful pride of peacocks. Learn about the real history of Allen Park.
“Tongues in trees, books…
Utah Downwinders: Rural Activists for a Post-Atomic World
Atomic testing in the nearby Nevada desert had devastating effects on rural Utah communities, but activists calling themselves "Downwinders" banded together to demand action from the federal government.
Between 1951 and 1992, the United States…
Midway’s Swiss Party for their Rural Community
On the east side of the Wasatch Mountains, you can find a little slice of Switzerland right here in Utah. Learn more about Midway’s Swiss Days celebration.Midway City, located in the Heber Valley on the east side of the Wasatch Mountains, boasts…
Sundance: How Hollywood Changed Rural Utah
The natural beauty and recreational opportunities offered by the Wasatch Range have long brought people seeking an enhanced quality of life. But how did the arrival of Hollywood change the culture and economy of this corner of Utah?Tucked in the…
Dinah the Dino
She’s big, pink, and has long beautiful eyelashes. Learn more about this unique rural Utah icon.
Looming large on the side of Highway 40 in eastern Utah, a sign reading "Vernal: Utah's Dinosaur Land" greets visitors as they enter town. It’s a…
Orchards to Steel: The Transformation of Utah Valley
Today, Utah Valley is known for its rapid development and urban growth. But the valley just east of Utah Lake used to be farmland and orchards. Find out how wartime transformation brought prosperity to this region -- but also irrevocable…
West Desert Wasteland: Pollution and Sovereignty in Rural Utah
Just around 45 miles west of Salt Lake City is a vast landscape shrouded in mystery and controversy. It’s also a holding place for some of the US military’s deadliest materials.
Perhaps no part of Utah suffers as much disregard as Utah’s arid…
Utah’s Gay Rodeo
Saddles, denim, country music, and… drag queens? It’s an unexpected combination but an important one for community and belonging in queer rural Utah. Find out more about Utah’s famous gay rodeo.
Utah is known for its rodeos. Burly cowboys ride…
Fistfight Between Old & New: The 1971 Park City “Riot”
Tensions between the old and new are not new to rural Utahns – but in 1970s Park City, these tensions erupted into an actual brawl between two seemingly opposite groups: hippies and miners.
Park City’s population rapidly changed during the…
No Dam Here! The Echo Park Controversy
As the population of the American West grew in the mid-twentieth century, so did the demand for water. Learn how the fight over a proposed dam in the middle of Dinosaur National Monument gave birth to the modern conservation movement.
Echo Park sits…
Utah's Front Lawns
Each summer, as the snowpack dwindles and drought restrictions come into play, most Utahns keep up a small oasis in the desert – their front lawns. Learn why more than half of Utah’s valuable household water is used outside to sprinkle this…
Faking the Greatest Snow on Earth: Brian Head Resort's Snowmaking
Utah boasts the greatest snow on earth, but the pristine powder isn’t always nature-made. The fake snow saves tourist seasons, but at what cost?
Skiing is big business in Utah! The state’s geography allows for a light, fluffy powder that tends…
State Street River: Salt Lake City’s 1983 Flood
Find out how a season of terrible floods left Salt Lake City residents with a memorable scene: their neighbors packing sandbags to create a river running down State Street.
The uncharacteristically wet winter and spring seasons between 1982 and 1983…
Desperate for Rain: Utah’s Cloud Seeding Industry
Utah communities regularly wish for more rainfall, especially during years of drought. But can they do more than just pray? Learn how scientists in the 1950s harnessed technology to make their own rain.
Today, Utahns experiencing drought due to…
There’s Fluoride in the Water!
Public health campaigns have long sparked fears of government overreach. In the mid-twentieth century, for example, dentists lobbied to add fluoride to Utah’s water supply to support tooth health. Learn more about the decades-long public uproar.
In…
Electrifying Utah with Steam
When we say “water is power” we are sometimes actually talking about electricity! Find out how harnessing steam electrified Utah for thousands of residents in the 20th century.
The early decades of the 1900s were marked by a growing demand for…
Cosmic Aeroplane: Salt Lake City’s Countercultural Safe Haven
The heart of Salt Lake City’s countercultural movement found its home in a small, independent headshop in the 1960s and 70s.
Utah’s countercultural movement in the 1960s and 70s was fairly tame compared to the social movements of larger cities.…