Founding of the State of Deseret-Founding of Utah

Utah almost wasn't Utah. In 1849 the Latter-day Saint settlers organized a sprawling provisional government they called the State of Deseret — a would-be state reaching from the Rockies toward the Sierra, named for a Book of Mormon word for honeybee. Congress declined, carving out the much smaller Utah Territory in 1850 instead and naming it for the Ute people. Statehood didn't come until 1896, after Utah gave up plural marriage. This marker compresses that whole arc — Deseret to territory to state — into a single stone.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Salt Lake City — 0.5 mi
  Utah's capital and largest city — where the Wasatch Range meets the Great Salt Lake.
• Temple Square — 0.5 mi
  The spiritual and architectural heart of Salt Lake City
• Ensign Peak — 0.9 mi
  A short hike to the spot where Brigham Young surveyed the valley
• Liberty Park — 2.3 mi
  Salt Lake Citys beloved 80-acre urban park since 1882

More markers nearby

• Brigham Young Statue — steps away
• Unca Sam Bust — steps away
• Chief John Duncan — steps away
• U.S.S. Utah Veterans Memorial — steps away