Wood for Pine Valley Chapel and Salt Lake Tabernacle Organ

When the builders of the great Salt Lake Tabernacle organ needed wood for its pipes, they sent three hundred miles south to this valley. The organ maker wanted pine that was flawless: straight, fine-grained, free of knots and gum. In 1866 Robert Gardner walked these slopes choosing the perfect trees. They grew too big for the local mills, so the logs were cut and shaped by hand and hauled north. The next fall, the finished organ sounded for the first time in general conference. Every note it has played since carried a little of Pine Valley in it.

What the plaque says

Wood for Pine Valley Chapel and Salt Lake Tabernacle Organ Logs from the deep gorge west of here were harvested in 1867 and hauled to this site by ox team for construction of the Pine Valley Chapel. Thought to be designed and built like an upside down ship by Ebenezer Bryce, this chapel was dedicated in 1868. It is one of the longest continuously operated chapels in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Wood for the Salt Lake Tabernacle organ pipes was taken from large yellow pine trees here in Pine Valley, selected by Robert Gardner Jr., in 1866. One was harvested 2.6 miles east of here between the left and middle forks of Santa Clara Creek. Others were taken from the mouth of Forsyth Canyon. They were cut into 30 foot lengths, sawed into lumber at sawmills in Pine Valley and hauled by wagon to Salt Lake City, where they were fashioned into organ pipes as prescribed by Joseph Ridges, the organ builder. Sons of Utah Pioneers Cotton Mission Chapter No. 123 Residents of Pine Valley Dedicated 24 July 2006

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Snow Canyon State Park — 15 mi
  Red and white sandstone cliffs with ancient lava flows
• Kolob Canyons — 19 mi
  The quiet, uncrowded back door to Zion National Park
• Hurricane Canal Trail — 19 mi
  The hand-dug canal that built Hurricane, now a walking trail blasted into the Virgin River gorge
• St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm — 20 mi
  Real dinosaur footprints preserved in ancient sandstone

More markers nearby

• Pine Valley Chapel & Tithing Office — steps away
• Pine Valley — 1.3 mi
• Mountain Meadow Memorial (5) Panels — 8.7 mi
• Mountain Meadows Trail & Camp — 9.1 mi