Brigham Young's Vision

Brigham Young looked at black lava and red rock and saw a city. Standing in the Virgin River country — the marker says 1859, though the best-known account places it at the little settlement of Tonaquint in 1861 — he gazed toward Pine Valley Mountain and the volcanic ridges below and prophesied: a city with spires, towers, and steeples would rise between them, holding many inhabitants. Whatever the year, the words came before St. George existed. The city that grew here, spires and all, turned the vision into a fair description of the place.

What the plaque says

Near this spot, in the fall of 1859, Brigham Young statesman and leader of the Mormon people, silently gazed at Pine Valley Mountain, and then the valley and hills of black lava and vermilion rock before him. He saw in vision a thriving community. With a sweep of his arm he spoke: "There will yet be built, between those volcanic ridges, a city with spires, towers and steeples, with homes containing many inhabitants."

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm — 3.9 mi
  Real dinosaur footprints preserved in ancient sandstone
• Snow Canyon State Park — 9.2 mi
  Red and white sandstone cliffs with ancient lava flows
• Hurricane Canal Trail — 18 mi
  The hand-dug canal that built Hurricane, now a walking trail blasted into the Virgin River gorge

More markers nearby

• Jedediah Strong Smith - St. George — steps away
• Tonaquint — steps away
• Utah is Rich in Aviation History — 0.9 mi
• The Temple Quarry — 1.9 mi