Ensign Peak - Trailhead

This 1934 monument stands at the foot of the climb Brigham Young made two days after reaching the valley, when he and a party of church leaders — Woodruff, Kimball, Richards, and others — hiked the bare hill to survey their new country. Wilford Woodruff, first to the top, saw in it a natural flagstaff, a place to raise "an ensign to the nations" in the words of Isaiah, and the name stuck. The peak became a symbolic standard for the gathering Latter-day Saints; a flag has flown from it many times since.

What the plaque says

July 26, 1847, two days after the Mormon pioneers entered this valley Brigham Young and party climbed to this point and with the aid of field glasses made a careful survey of the mountains, canyons and streams. In the group were Heber C. Kimball, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Ezra T. Benson, Willard Richards, Albert Carrington and William Clayton. Wilford Woodruff, first to ascend the peak, suggested it as a fitting place to “set up an ensign” (Isaiah 11:12). It was then named Ensign Peak. Subsequently the Stars and Stripes were raised here.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Ensign Peak — steps away
  A short hike to the spot where Brigham Young surveyed the valley
• Salt Lake City — 1.5 mi
  Utah's capital and largest city — where the Wasatch Range meets the Great Salt Lake.
• Temple Square — 1.5 mi
  The spiritual and architectural heart of Salt Lake City
• Liberty Park — 3.3 mi
  Salt Lake Citys beloved 80-acre urban park since 1882

More markers nearby

• Ensign Peak Trail Markers (3) — steps away
• Ensign Peak Nature Park (8) Markers — steps away
• Ensign Peak - Top — 0.2 mi
• Warm Springs (2) Markers — 0.6 mi