Utah Trivia & Tidbits - Page 7

Looking for Utah trivia? Try our list Utah little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

Logan is home to two historic Mormon landmarks. The Logan Tabernacle, which houses an extensive genealogy library, was built between 1865 and 1891. The Logan Temple, a Gothic-style building designed by architect Truman O. Angell, was built between 1877 and 1884 on a high point of land that was part of ancient Lake Bonneville.

first appeared: 9/25/2005

Earlier this year, scientists revealed a new dinosaur species that’s reported to be the "missing link" between meat-eaters and plant-eaters. Located in beds south of Green River (pop. 973), the 125-million-year-old fossils indicate that the feathered Falcarius utahensis, or "the sickle-maker from Utah," had the sharp curved claws of carnivores and the smaller teeth and larger belly more characteristic of herbivores.

first appeared: 9/18/2005

Crystal Peak, in the Wah Wah Mountains near Milford (pop. 1,451), gained its name from the white volcanic tuff rock that makes the peak visible from a distance of 50 miles. The Wah Wah Mountains also are home to red beryl—a gemstone sometimes called red emerald or bixbite—which forms from volcanic lava and is found in only a few places in the world.

first appeared: 9/11/2005

Located near Escalante (pop. 818), the Calf Creek Recreation Area features a 5.5-mile round trip trail that leads to Lower Calf Creek Falls, where the creek tumbles over a 126-foot cliff.

first appeared: 8/28/2005

Professional boxer Rex Layne (1928-2000) from Lewiston (pop. 1,877), whose record includes 34 knock-out wins, was a 3-to-1 underdog when he won a 10-round heavyweight decision over Jersey Joe Walcott in 1950 at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

first appeared: 8/14/2005

On June 17, 1914, the last pole of the transcontinental telephone line was set near the Nevada-Utah state line in Wendover (pop. 1,537). The first test of the line occurred the following month during a New York to San Francisco call.

first appeared: 7/31/2005

Born in 1897 in Ogden (pop 77,226), historian, critic, novelist and educator Bernard De Voto wrote a historical trilogy about Western expansion: The Year of Decision: 1846 (1942), Across the Wide Missouri (1947), and The Course of Empire (1952). He also was an expert on Mark Twain, penning Mark Twain’s America (1932) and Mark Twain at Work (1942).

first appeared: 7/31/2005

When silver was discovered in Little Cottonwood Canyon in 1864, miners established Central City. By 1871, another group of settlers formed a new town just 850 yards east of Central City. Merchants and businessmen from the earlier settlement relocated their stores, boardinghouses, and hotels to the new town, and the two merged and became known as Alta (pop. 370).

first appeared: 7/17/2005

Divers flip, twist and turn as they dive off a 30-foot indoor cliff at the Mayan Restaurant in Sandy. The restaurant opened in 2000 and features replicas of Mayan temples from Central America that were built centuries ago.

first appeared: 6/19/2005

The youngest member of the U.S. Olympic team at the 1988 games in Seoul, Korea, 14-year-old Denise Parker helped her women’s archery team win a bronze medal. The South Jordan (pop. 29,437) native also participated in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, and the 2000 games in Sydney, Australia.

first appeared: 6/5/2005

The Chase Home Museum of Utah Folk Arts in Salt Lake City displays work by the state’s various ethnic groups and American Indian tribes. In addition, collections of cowboy gear, saddles and hand-forged tools are showcased in the Occupational Gallery, and braided and woven rugs and willow furniture are among the handmade items exhibited in the Rural Gallery. The museum is a partnership between the Utah Arts Council and Salt Lake City.

first appeared: 6/5/2005

Utah’s 1985 Percent-for-Art Law stipulates that 1 percent of the costs for constructing or renovating public buildings will be used to commission site-specific artwork. Today, more than 200 works in paint, metal, glass, textiles and stone grace university buildings, county courthouses and state hospital facilities.

first appeared: 5/22/2005

Pro Rodeo Hall of Famer Lewis Feild earned world all-around cowboy champion honors in 1985, 1986 and 1987, along with world bareback riding titles in 1985 and 1986. Feild now coaches the rodeo team at Utah Valley State University in Orem.

first appeared: 5/22/2005

Goblin Valley State Park, southwest of Green River (pop. 973), features uniquely shaped rocks, resembling mushrooms or ghosts, which were carved over thousands of years by wind and water erosion. Because of its "out of this world" appearance, the park is a photographer’s paradise and was the filming location of the 1999 movie Galaxy Quest.

first appeared: 5/8/2005

Alan and Karen Ashton, co-founders of WordPerfect Corp., began creating Thanksgiving Point near Lehi (pop. 19,028) in 1995. The more than 700-acre facility includes theme gardens, an education-focused animal park, 18-hole golf course and dinosaur museum.

first appeared: 5/8/2005

Born in Salt Lake City, film director Frank Borzage (1893-1962) won Academy Awards for best director for the 1927 silent film 7th Heaven and the 1931 sound film Bad Girl.

first appeared: 4/24/2005

A rocky outcrop known as the Great Stone Face, rising out of the desert southwest of Delta (pop. 3,209), reportedly resembles Mormon prophet and leader Joseph Smith. The outcrop also is called the "Guardian of Deseret," for the name given by Mormon pioneers to the region they inhabited. Along the road to the site, rocks bear writing that scholars believe records an agreement among the American Indians once living in the area about water and hunting rights.

first appeared: 3/27/2005

When volunteers built the Rock Church in Cedar City (pop. 20,527) during the Great Depression, they used local materials that included stone and juniper. The walls of the baptismal font in the basement of this Latter-day Saints chapel feature the same river rock as the building’s exterior; its floor is dotted with local stones and gems.

first appeared: 3/13/2005

Some 20 million fish eggs a year are harvested at the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources’ J. Perry Egan Hatchery in Bicknell (pop. 353). Shipped to state, federal and American Indian fisheries, the eggs produce various trout species, including lake, tiger, brook, brown and three types of rainbow.

first appeared: 2/27/2005

In 1916, the Bank of Vernal (today the Zion National Bank) became one of the largest items ever shipped by mail when W. H. Coltharp used parcel post to ship the building’s 80,000 bricks to Vernal (pop. 7,714) from the Salt Lake Pressed Brick Co. 400 miles away. The bricks were sent in 50-pound packages, one ton at a time. Reeling from the heavy loads, the post office soon rewrote parcel post regulations to limit the number of pounds one shipper could send in a day to a single recipient to 200 pounds.

first appeared: 2/13/2005

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