The Mortuary

Built just after the 1898 fire, this frame building housed the Salvation Army before it became, by 1902, Bill Fennemore's funeral parlor — its sign a miniature casket. That same year the Daly West mine exploded and killed thirty-two men, and morticians came up from Salt Lake to help; one of them, Jacob Richardson, stayed and bought the business. It passed through several hands and served as Park City's only mortuary until the late 1960s. The building outlived that grim trade, going on to hold, among other things, an interior-design showroom.

What the plaque says

This two-story frame structure was built just after the 1898 fire which burned most of the buildings on Main Street. Among the first occupants was the Salvation Army, which moved in in 1900. By 1902 it was the funeral parlor of Bill Fennemore, whose sign was a miniature casket. When the Daly West Mine explosion of 1902 claimed the lives of 32 men, morticians from Salt Lake City were called to help with the emergency. Jacob Franklin Richardson, one of those who answered the call for aid, purchased the business from Fennemore, and later built a one-story addition to the south of this building. George Archer bought out Richardson in 1921, and from Archer it passed to Joseph Olpin. This was the only local mortuary until the late 1960s, when the Olpins relocated to a newer building. This structure then served as an interior design showcase, a real estate office, and a sportswear store. The addition, which for many years housed a children's ski shop, was demolished in 1983. This is a typical example of the vernacular commercial style of Park City buildings in he early 1900s. It features a bracketed wood cornice on the upper facade, and two entryways flanking large display windows. The building has had only minor alterations since it was constructed.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Park City — steps away
  Silver built it. Snow saved it.
• Park City Main Street — steps away
  A historic mining town turned world-class ski and film festival destination
• Park City Mountain — 0.7 mi
  The largest ski resort in the United States, grown straight out of a 19th-century silver town.
• Deer Valley — 1.6 mi
  A ski-only luxury resort above Park City, now in the middle of the largest expansion in U.S. ski history.

More markers nearby

• The Claimjumper Hotel — steps away
• Elks Lodge — steps away
• Rodney W. Schreurs Centennial Park — steps away
• Masonic Hall — steps away