Midway Social Hall

Midway built with what it had, and what it had was "pot rock" — the porous limestone its hot springs left behind. The Social Hall, raised from it in 1898, gave the town a proper stage for dances, plays, and gatherings behind a tidy symmetrical front. Its best story is next door: the hall shared a wall with Hair's Barber Shop and Ice Cream Parlor, and for some thirty years a window cut through that wall would open during a function so dancers could be passed sodas and ice cream mid-evening. The building still stands in Midway.

What the plaque says

Built in 1898, the Midway Social Hall is constructed of a local material known as "pot rock," a porous limestone formed by "hot pots," or hot springs. The building is architecturally significant in its use of this locally popular 19th-century construction material. This simple, rectangular structure incorporates Classical architectural features such as a symmetrical principal facade and pedimented lintels. The Social Hall shares a wall with a building to its east built c.1905 that was originally known as Hair's Barber Shop and Ice Cream Parlor. Between c.1910-40 a window that existed in the shared wall was opened during functions at the Socal Hall so patrons could be served ice cream and sodas. The Midway Social Hall is historically significant for its role as a community meeting place and center for cultural performances. It is one of the few known remaining social halls constructed by Mormon communities during the second half of the nineteenth century. The hall functioned as the primary meeting place for local activities and celebrations and for religious and town meetings from the date of its construction until the building of the Midway Town hall in 1940.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Midway — steps away
  A Swiss-inspired village with a geothermal crater you can snorkel in
• Homestead Crater — 1.0 mi
  A hidden geothermal spring inside a 55-foot limestone dome
• Heber Valley Railroad — 3.1 mi
  A vintage steam train ride through a stunning mountain valley
• Jordanelle State Park — 6.6 mi
  A sapphire reservoir nestled between the Wasatch and Uinta mountains

More markers nearby

• Midway Fort — steps away
• Midway Town Hall — 0.2 mi
• Pioneer Lime Kiln — 0.5 mi
• Pioneer Cemetery — 1.3 mi