The Progressive Era, the Making of a Proper Park, and the “Stockades”

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Fifteenby Brad Westwood and Cassandra Clark The Progressive Era spanned from 1890 to roughly 1920 and was a time of reform and social activism. Progressives were mainly white, Protestant, and members of a growing “new” middle class, who earned their wealth as a result of America’s rapid post-Civil War industrialization. By the end of the …

Continued Transformations: Industrialization and Salt Lake City’s West Side

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Thirteenby Brad Westwood Salt Lake’s west side underwent massive and constant changes during the last quarter of the nineteenth century.  What began as a fort where Mormon pioneers sought shelter, transformed into a transportation, industrial and manufacturing hub, and by the late nineteenth century experienced dramatic social and environmental consequences as a result. For …

Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century Developments

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Twelveby Brad Westwood Salt Lake’s west side was the location of businesses, homes, tenement houses, hotels, transportation hubs, government buildings, schools, and early non-Mormon (members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, hereafter LDS Church) religious communities. The Salt Lake County Courthouse was built a block north of the park on 156 …

The Pioneer Park Neighborhood’s Warehouse District and a Visit From the Liberty Bell

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Elevenby Brad Westwood The Pioneer Park neighborhood underwent several changes related to post-Civil War industrialization. In the late nineteenth century, the Pioneer Park neighborhood became Salt Lake City’s first warehouse district. Today there are several warehouses that date back to the 1890s. For example, the W.S. Henderson Block spans from 379 West and 200 …

Salt Lake as an Early Industrial City and the Beginning of the Relief Society Halls

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Tenby Brad Westwood Not long after the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (hereafter LDS Church, also known as Mormons) entered the Salt Lake Valley, Brigham Young and members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles instructed Henry G. Sherwood and Orson Pratt, to design an ideal agrarian-based city. Young’s …

The Pioneer Park Neighborhood’s Boundaries

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post TwoBy Brad Westwood This post clarifies the traditional boundaries of Salt Lake City’s Pioneer Park neighborhood or, the original west side. It also defines terms used throughout the series when discussing geographic locations.  When we discuss Salt Lake City’s original west side, we refer to a specific geographic area. The boundaries are as follows: …

Pioneer Park Neighborhood: The Wellspring of Modern Salt Lake City

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Eighteenby Brad Westwood In the decades following the Civil War, the United States emerged as one of the world’s largest economic engines. It was railroading, mining and industry that attracted thousands of economic emigrants to Utah, that allowed Utah to be part of this larger economic story. The United States’ emergence as an industry …

Twentieth and Twenty-First Century Pioneer Park Neighborhood Developments

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Seventeenby Brad Westwood In 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law the Federal-Aid Highway Act. This Act allowed for the construction of an interstate highway system with the main purpose of defending the nation from foreign attack. In Utah, representatives from the state legislature called upon eminent domain – the condemning and purchasing …

Current Challenges and Developments in a Post-Industrial Neighborhood: Part One

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Thirty-Threeby Brad Westwood Since the mid-1990s, the Pioneer Park neighborhood has gradually redefined its identity from that of an industrial, transient, and impoverished area, to a more permanent and economically stable area. Like all change, the neighborhood has both gained and lost much in this process. Change is a constant in the Pioneer Park …

Immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe and Salt Lake City’s West Side

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Twenty-Six By Brad Westwood During the second industrial revolution (1865-1920), the United States absorbed a large population of immigrants from eastern and southern Europe. These new immigrants joined other immigrant groups already working in Utah’s expanding mining, industrial, and transportation sectors. Most of Utah’s Italian immigrants arrived in Utah after the 1890s. The majority of …

The West Side’s Pioneer Park Amenities

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post Thirtyby Brad Westwood and Cassandra Clark The Pioneer Park neighborhood offered several amenities to Utah residents and tourists alike. After 1909, the park had one wading pool for women and one for men. It also had a framed bandstand that hosted musical performances on weekends. A craft house also welcomed the young and old …

Eight Themes Offered

Salt Lake West Side Stories: Post ThreeBy Brad Westwood Historical themes allow us to understand the past by drawing connections to larger events and historical contexts. Weaved together in this serial history blog are eight recurring themes. We define them here. One theme that is evident throughout the series is “homeland.” Throughout Utah’s history, many people have considered the Salt …