Utah (UT).

• Region: Rocky Mountains
• Population: 3,380,800 (ranked 30th) (2022 estimate)
• Capital: Salt Lake City (pop. 204,657) (2022 estimate)
• Largest city: Salt Lake City (pop. 204,657) (2022 estimate)
• Number of counties: 29
• State nickname: Beehive State
• State motto: Industry
• State flag: Blue field with variant of the state seal

Utah, the "Beehive State," entered the Union on January 4, 1896, as the forty-fifth state. It is one of the "desert states," along with Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada. Utah is bordered by Nevada on the west, Idaho and Wyoming on the north, Colorado on the east, and Arizona on the south. (In addition, the state's southeastern corner touches the northwestern corner of New Mexico.) Utah's history is bound up with that of the Mormons (officially the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), who were seeking a refuge from religious persecution. The first Mormons arrived in Utah in 1847, led by Brigham Young, and settled on the shores of the Great Salt Lake. Relations with the federal government improved substantially in 1890, when the Mormons officially renounced the practice of polygamy. Important aspects of Utah's economy and heritage include mining, agriculture, and tourism, while the service and financial industries are also major economic drivers.

State Name: The name "Utah" is believed to be derived from the Ute American Indians, whose name means "mountain people." Another theory is that is comes from the Apache word yuttahih, which means "one that is higher." The state's nickname of "Beehive State" comes from "Deseret," the Mormons' original name for Utah. Found in the Book of Mormon, "Deseret" means "honeybees." Early Mormon settlers also nicknamed the territory "Zion," in reference to the biblical Mount Zion.

Capital: The state capital is Salt Lake City, which also served as capital of the Utah Territory. The town of Fillmore also served briefly as territorial capital in the 1850s.

Flag: Utah's state flag bears the state seal on a blue background. At the center of the seal's design is a beehive, representing industriousness. Above the beehive is the state motto "Industry." On either side of the beehive is the sego lily, the state flower, representing peace. The seal includes the national symbols of the bald eagle and the US flag, to show Utah's loyalty to the Union. Underneath the seal are the dates 1847 (when the Mormons, led by Brigham Young, first arrived in Utah) and 1896, when Utah became a state.

Official Symbols

• Flower: Sego lily
• Bird: California seagull
• Tree: Quaking aspen
• Animal: Rocky Mountain elk
• Fish: Bonneville cutthroat trout
• Song: "Utah, This Is the Place" by Sam Francis and Gary Francis

State and National Historic Sites

• Anasazi State Park Museum (Boulder)
• Bryce Canyon National Park (Bryce Canyon)
• California National Historic Trail
• Camp Floyd State Park Museum (Fairfield)
• Fort Buenaventura (Ogden)
• Golden Spike National Historic Site (Brigham City)
• Historic Union Pacific Rail Trail (Park City)
• Frontier Homestead State Park (Cedar City)
• Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
• Newspaper Rock Historic Site (San Juan County)
• Old Spanish National Historic Trail
• Pony Express National Historic Trail
• Territorial Statehouse State Park Museum (Fillmore)
• Zion National Park

State-Specific Holidays

• Pioneer Day, July 24

DEMOGRAPHICS

• Population: 3,380,800 (ranked 30th) (2022 estimate)
• Population density: 39.7/sq mi (2020 estimate)
• Urban population: 89.8% (2020 estimate)
• Rural population: 10.2% (2020 estimate)
• Population under 18: 27.6% (2022 estimate)
• Population over 65: 12.0% (2022 estimate)
• White alone: 90.0% (2022 estimate)
• Black or African American alone: 1.6% (2022 estimate)
• Hispanic or Latino: 15.1% (2022 estimate)
• American Indian and Alaska Native alone: 1.5% (2022 estimate)
• Asian alone: 2.8% (2022 estimate)
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone: 1.2% (2022 estimate)
• Two or More Races: 2.9% (2022 estimate)
• Per capita income: $33,378 (ranked 38th) (2021 estimate)
• Unemployment: 2.3% (2022 estimate)

American Indians: Utah is believed to be named for the Ute American Indians, who along with the Goshute, Navajo (Dine), Paiute, and Shoshone have inhabited the region for centuries. These groups, which still inhabit the present-day state of Utah, are part of the Numic and Athabascan language-groups. They were not, however, the region's first American Indian inhabitants. From about 1300 BCE to around 1000 CE, Utah was inhabited by the Ancestral Pueblo culture (formerly known as the Anasazi after the Navajo term for the group meaning "ancient enemy" or "ancient ones"). During this same period, from around 1150 to 1300 CE, Utah was also inhabited by the Fremont culture, similar to the Ancestral Puebloans.

Utah's American Indian groups had troubled dealings with White settlers beginning with the first wave of Mormon migration in the late 1840s. The American Indians and Mormons fought several wars over control of land and resources. Large numbers of non-Mormons began arriving in the 1860s, due to the discovery of gold and the completion of the transcontinental railroad (1869), reducing the American Indians' treaty lands even further. Many Navajo were forced in 1864 to make the "Long Walk" to federal prison in New Mexico, and were not allowed to return until 1868.

Relations have improved since the mid-twentieth century, and Utah's tribes now govern themselves on their own reservations.

ENVIRONMENT AND GEOGRAPHY

• Total area: 84,897 sq mi (ranked 13th)
• Land area: 82,170 sq mi (96.8% of total area)
• Water area: 2,727 sq mi (3.2% of total area)
• National parks: 13
• Highest point: Kings Peak (13,528 feet)
• Lowest point: Beaver Dam Wash (2,000 feet)
• Highest temperature: 117° F (St. George, July 5, 1985; July 10, 2021)
• Lowest temperature: -50° F (East Portal, January 5, 1913)

Topography: Utah, part of the American Southwest, contains large expanses of desert (to the east) as well as large mountain chains (to the west). The Wasatch Range, part of the Rocky Mountains, divides the state into two regions. One of Utah's most distinctive features is the Great Salt Lake, located in the Great Basin, on whose banks the Mormon settlers established their community in 1847. Also in the northwestern part of the state are the Bonneville Salt Flats, whose flatness and immense size make them ideal for engineers' speed tests. Southeastern Utah contains plateaus and canyons, similar to those of neighboring Colorado.

Major Lakes

• Bear Lake
• Deer Creek Reservoir
• Great Salt Lake
• Flaming Gorge Reservoir
• Lake Bonneville
• Lake Powell Reservoir
• Navajo Lake
• Otter Creek Reservoir
• Quail Creek Reservoir
• Utah Lake

Major Rivers

• Bear River
• Colorado River
• Dirty Devil River
• Escalante River
• Green River
• Logan River
• Ogden River
• Provo River
• San Juan River
• San Rafael River
• Uinta River
• Virgin River
• Weber River

State and National Parks: Utah has numerous state parks and forests, with a mixture of historic, scenic, and recreational areas. Camp Floyd State Park Museum, located in Fairfield, commemorates the US Army's efforts to suppress a reported rebellion in Utah in the 1850s. Scenic areas include Snow Canyon State Park, which features sand dunes and lava rock. Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, a popular recreation area, offers visitors the chance to see a petrified forest as well as dinosaur bones.

Utah also has thirteen national parks, along with many other sites managed by the National Park Service including national historic landmarks, national natural landmarks, and national trails. These include Golden Spike National Historic Site, the point where the tracks of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads met in 1869. The approximately 1,300-mile-long Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail honors the migration of around seventy thousand Mormons from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City between 1846 and 1869. Other historic trails include the Pony Express National Historic Trail, honoring the express-mail service of the early 1860s. Bryce Canyon National Park, near the state's southern border, presents a unique array of limestone and sandstone formations.

Natural Resources: Utah possesses vast mineral deposits, particularly gold, silver, copper, and zinc. The state is also a major producer of petroleum and coal. Decades of irrigation, begun by Mormon pioneers, have also turned lands around the Great Salt Lake into rich farmland. The state also possesses extensive grazing land for livestock.

Plants and Animals: Utah's large expanses of wilderness offer homes to numerous species, many of which are rare elsewhere in the United States. Large mammals include mule deer, white-tailed deer, coyotes, bighorn sheep, elk, mountain lions (cougars), and black bears. Smaller mammals include badgers, red foxes, snowshoe hares, prairie dogs, chipmunks, squirrels, and voles. Bird species include birds of prey such as the bald eagle, golden eagle, and goshawk; and game birds such as the ruffed grouse and scaled quail. The rivers and lakes are full of many varieties of fish, including the bluegill, channel catfish, several kinds of trout (including brook trout, brown trout, cutthroat trout), and walleye.

Climate: Utah has wide variations of temperature and precipitation—a result of the state's mixture of mountains, valleys, and plateaus. This semiarid climate promoted the early settlers' use of elaborate irrigation systems, beginning with the Mormons in the late 1840s. The higher elevations, particularly the mountains, have cooler temperatures and greater precipitation; the reverse is true in low-lying areas such as the Great Basin and the Great Salt Lake Desert. Utah's annual precipitation averages between 10 and 15 inches, but some mountain regions have received over 60 inches per year while desert regions receive less than 5 inches. Winter temperatures average in the high 20s Fahrenheit, with summer temperatures averaging around 68 degrees.

EDUCATION AND CULTURE

Major Colleges and Universities

• Brigham Young University (Provo)
• Dixie State University (Saint George)
• Southern Utah University (Cedar City)
• University of Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Utah State University (Blanding, Logan, Price, and other regional campuses)
• Utah Valley University (Orem)
• Weber State University (Davis, Ogden)
• Westminster College (Salt Lake City)

Major Museums

• B. F. Larsen Gallery, Franklin S. Harris Fine Arts Center, Brigham Young University (Provo)
• Brigham Young University Museum of Paleontology (Provo)
• Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum (Blanding)
• Natural History Museum of Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Pioneer Memorial Museum (Salt Lake City)
• Springville Museum of Art (Springville)
• Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum (Vernal)
• Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (Salt Lake City)
• Utah Museum of Fine Arts, University of Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Utah State University Eastern Prehistoric Museum (Price)

Major Libraries

• Family History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Salt Lake City)
• Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University (Provo)
• J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Salt Lake City Public Library (Salt Lake City)
• Weber County Library (Ogden)

Media

Utah has daily papers in the state's major cities. These include Salt Lake City's Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune, Provo's Daily Herald (Utah), and Ogden's Standard-Examiner. There are also numerous weekly papers, including the Salt Lake City Weekly (Salt Lake City) and the Times-Independent (Moab). Hill Air Force Base has its own weekly, the Hilltop Times. Utah Public Radio, a member of National Public Radio and affiliated with Public Radio International, is a service of Utah State University. PBS Utah (Salt Lake City) is a public-television station in the state.

ECONOMY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

• Gross domestic product (in millions $USD): 248,176.3 (ranked 29th) (2022 estimate)
• GDP percent change: 2.1%

Major Industries: Utah's economy has traditionally depended upon agriculture, mining, and the federal government. Hill Air Force base is one of the state's largest employers. Newer industries have become more prominent, particularly high-technology fields such as biomedicine and aerospace. Tourism has also become a major industry. The financial sector contributed the most to the economy in the state in 2022, accounting for about 21 percent of state GDP.

Tourism: Utah has made tourism a major industry, focusing on the state's immense natural beauty. Salt Lake City scored a major coup by hosting the 2002 Winter Olympics, an event that brought billions of dollars into the municipal and state economies. Each year, tens of millions of nonresident visitors travel in Utah, bringing in billions of dollars in spending and tax revenue. Scenic attractions include Bryce Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, and the Grand Staircase (Escalante) National Monument. Many historic sites in Utah, such as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail, recall the state's Mormon and pioneer heritage. The Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, the center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is home to the world-famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The Sundance Film Festival, held each year in Park City, attracts film lovers as well as directors and movie stars to the state. Skiing and business conventions are other major draws.

Energy Production: According to the US Energy Information Administration, as of 2022 the majority of the state's domestic electricity (53 percent) was produced by coal-fired power plants, though this represented a notable decline from even just five years before, as natural gas production increased in the early twenty-first century. The state produces substantial amounts of coal and natural gas, as well as some crude oil. Renewable resources such as solar and wind power have also grown in popularity in Utah.

Agriculture: Utah's semi-arid climate is well-suited to ranching, and livestock are a major agricultural product. Major commodities are cattle, hogs, and dairy products. Though much of the state receives less than five inches of rain annually, the agricultural areas generally receive six to eighteen inches of rain per year. Hay, used for animal feed, is an important crop. Food-crop farming is made economical partly through irrigation systems; much of the water comes from reservoirs and mountain snow. Fruit and vegetables are also raised in greenhouses and nurseries.

GOVERNMENT

• Governor: Spencer Cox (Republican)
• Present constitution date: March 9, 1905
• Electoral votes: 6
• Number of counties: 29
• Violent crime rate: 260.7 (per 100,000 residents)
• Death penalty: Yes

Constitution: Utah adopted its constitution in 1895, and the document went into effect in 1896 when the state entered the Union.

Branches of Government

Executive: Utah's chief executive officer is the governor. Duties include the proposal, approval, and vetoing of legislation; serving as the commander in chief of state military forces, and oversight of state executive bodies. The other constitutional officers are the lieutenant governor, attorney general, state treasurer, and state auditor.

Legislative: The Utah State Legislature has two houses—a twenty-nine-member senate and seventy-five-member house of representatives. Senators are elected to four-year terms and representatives to two-year terms. The legislature meets every January for a session lasting forty-five calendar days.

Judicial: Utah has several levels of courts: the state supreme court, the court of appeals, district courts, juvenile courts, and justice courts. All judges are appointed by the governor and must stand for reelection when their first term expires. The highest court is the five-member state supreme court, which serves as the court of final appeal and has original jurisdiction over cases of state-constitutional law. The justices serve ten-year terms and may be reelected; from their own numbers, they appoint a chief justice and associate chief justice, to four-year and two-year terms, respectively.

The seven-member court of appeals, established in 1987, hears cases from the state's courts of original jurisdiction. The members serve six-year terms and may run for reelection. The district courts are the state's courts of original jurisdiction, hearing most criminal and civil cases. Juvenile courts, which have the same status as district courts, are special-jurisdiction courts that hear cases such as child custody and juvenile delinquency. Justice courts exist in cities and counties and handle cases such as small claims and certain minor misdemeanors.

HISTORY

1765 Spanish explorer Juan Maria Antonio de Rivera reaches the area now known as Moab, Utah.

1776 Two Spanish Franciscan friars, Silvestre Velez de Escalante and Francisco Atanasio Dominguez, explore the region now known as Utah. They are among the first Europeans to enter the region. This marks the beginning of what later becomes the Old Spanish Trail between Santa Fe (New Mexico) and Utah Lake.

1819 The United States and Spain sign the Adams-Onis treaty, recognizing Spain's authority over the Western lands including present-day Utah.

1820Joseph Smith, a resident of upstate New York, claims to have received visions from the angel Moroni telling him to establish a purified form of Christianity. In 1827, Smith claims to have received and translated a secret gospel in the Egyptian language, which he publishes in 1830 as the Book of Mormon.

1820s Several frontier fur-trappers, the "mountain men," travel through northern Utah. On his 1824 journey through the region, American frontiersmen Jim Bridger discovers the Great Salt Lake in 1824. The following year, Peter Skene Ogden of the Hudson's Bay Company passes through. In 1826, the region is visited by Jedidiah S. Smith.

1846 Miles Goodyear, a former trapper, founds the trading post of Fort Buenaventura, at the site of present-day Ogden. This community, over 30 miles north of the Great Lake City, is Utah's first permanent White settlement.

1830 Having published the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith organizes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in Fayette, New York. From the start, Mormons face intense hostility from their neighbors, because of their distinctive doctrines (including the practice of polygamy or "plural marriage").

1830s–1840s The Mormons establish numerous communities in the Midwest, including Kirtland, Ohio (1831); Zion, Missouri (1838); and Nauvoo, Illinois (1838–1839), but in each case are driven out by violently anti-Mormon feeling.

1840 The state of Illinois grants Nauvoo a charter in 1840, which allows Smith to run the city almost independently of outside control. The community grows rapidly, but so does anti-Mormon sentiment.

1844 Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum are killed by a mob at the jail in Carthage, Illinois. In part, the mob violence is brought by Joseph Smith's announcement that he will run for president of the United States. The following year, Illinois revokes Nauvoo's charter. Brigham Young, the new Mormon leader, leads about fifteen thousand settlers westward to establish a community in what later becomes Utah.

1847 Led by Brigham Young, the Mormons arrive in Utah in July, settling along the shores of the Great Salt Lake. They call their settlement "Deseret," after the Book of Mormon's word for honeybees. At this time, the region is still Mexican territory. The Mormons claim as Deseret territory all of present-day Utah and Nevada, most of Arizona, part of the California coast, and other parts of the West.

1848 The Mexican War ends in victory for the United States. Under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, present-day Utah is part of the territory which Mexico cedes to the United States. The Mormons establish the provisional State of Deseret and unsuccessfully petition Congress for entry into the Union.

1850 The fledging Mormon State of Deseret establishes the University of Deseret, but lack of funding forces the institution to cease operations from 1853 to 1869. On September 9, Congress organizes the Utah Territory (with its present boundaries) with Brigham Young as the first territorial governor. Relations between the Mormons and the federal government, however, are generally strained. This is partly due to tension over polygamy as well as interpretation of federal laws.

1852 The Mormons publicly establish the practice of polygamy, causing more friction with the federal government.

1852–1853 The Walker War breaks out between the Ute American Indians and the Mormon settlers. The Mormons defeat the Ute, but the peace is fragile and war breaks out again in 1865.

1857 The Utah War breaks out between Utah and the federal government, due to disputes over enforcement of federal laws in the territory. President James Buchanan declares the territory in rebellion and sends around 3,500 troops. These are stationed from 1858 to 1861 at Camp Floyd, in Riverton. In September 1857, around 150 California-bound emigrants are massacred at Mountain Meadows, along the Old Spanish Trail. The Mormons and Paiute American Indians are blamed for the atrocity, though the extent of American Indian participation is unclear.

1860 Mormons who refused to follow Brigham Young to Utah establish the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their first president is Joseph Smith III, son of Mormonism's founder. Differences from the LDS Church in Utah include rejection of polygamy. In 2001, the Reorganized Church renames itself the Community of Christ.

1861 Congress creates the Colorado and Nevada Territories out of the Utah Territory.

1861–1865 The Civil War. Relations between the Mormons and the federal government improve markedly, because of President Abraham Lincoln's conciliatory attitude. The territory remains strongly loyal to the Union; though no regiments are raised, individuals do go eastward to serve in federal units. The 3,500 federal troops from Camp Floyd, who had served in the Utah War, return eastward to fight the Confederacy. These troops are soon replaced with a California volunteer regiment, which establishes Fort Douglas near Salt Lake City. The anti-Mormon sentiments of their leader, Col. Connor, cause much friction with the Utah population.

1864 The US government defeats Navajo parties who had been raiding White settlements. A large portion of Utah's Navajo population is forced make what becomes known as the Long Walk—a journey by foot to their prison at Fort Sumner, New Mexico.

1865–1872 The Black Hawk War. Chief Black Hawk of the Ute American Indians wages war against Utah's Mormon settlers.

1868 The Wyoming Territory is created by Congress, out of part of the Utah Territory. The federal government allows the Navajo to return to Utah.

1869 The first transcontinental railroad is completed, with the lines of the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific Railroads meeting at Promontory Summit, Utah.

1875 Brigham Young Academy is founded in Provo. The school is renamed Brigham Young University in 1903.

1877 Brigham Young dies in Salt Lake City, after thirty-three years as the leader of the Mormon church.

1886 The University of Deseret grants its first degrees.

1890 Polygamy is officially banned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

1892 The University of Deseret is renamed the University of Utah by act of the Territorial Legislature.

1896Utah is officially granted statehood.

1901 Utah establishes the State School of Mines at the University of Utah.

1914–1915 The University of Utah faces a controversy over academic freedom, relating to a graduation speaker's critical comments of the Mormon Church's influence in Utah. The university demotes or releases four faculty members who allowed the speaker to make the comments. Twenty-one faculty members resign by 1915, and University President Joseph Kingsbury resigns the following year.

1914–1918 World War I. The US military goes into battle using the machine gun and automatic rifle created by Utah gunmaker John M. Browning, head of the Browning Brothers Company. Around 21,000 state residents serve in the Armed Forces, as part of the Utah National Guard. Fort Douglas, the Army post near Salt Lake City, serves as a training post as well as a prison for draft resisters, prisoners of war, and persons with opinions considered dangerous.

1929 The Mormon Tabernacle Choir begins Sunday morning radio broadcasts.

1941–1945 World War II. Hill Field (later Hill Air Force Base) is established in 1940 near Ogden, by the Army Air Corps. The base serves as a major maintenance and supply depot. Utah's mineral wealth aids the defense industry, and gun manufacturers such as Browning experience major growth. More than sixty thousand Utah residents eventually serve in the armed forces. The federal government establishes a relocation camp in Topaz to intern Japanese American citizens.

1948 With the establishment of the US Air Force, Hill Field is renamed Hill Air Force Base. By the close of the twentieth century, it becomes one of the state's largest employers.

1952 The Utah Ballet is established by choreographer William Christiansen, a native of Brigham City. In 1968, the group changes its name to Ballet West. That same year, the radioactive element uranium is discovered near Moab. This becomes an important source of material for construction of nuclear weapons.

1965 Canyonlands National Park is established.

1978 Voters turn down a proposal to merge the governments of Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, and twenty-five special districts. Spencer W. Kimball, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announces that he has received a revelation permitting African American men to become priests.

1982 Doctors at the University of Utah implant the world's first artificial heart in patient Barney Clark, who survives for 112 days.

1985 Utah Senator Jake Garn flies on the space shuttle.

1997 The state celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Mormons' arrival at the Great Salt Lake.

2002 Salt Lake City hosts the Winter Olympics. The event is widely seen as successful, despite an earlier scandal surrounding the state's bid for the Games.

2007 A gunman opens fire at the Trolley Square Mall in Salt Lake City on February 12, killing five people before being shot down by police.

2016 A woman in Utah becomes the first person in the United States to die of the Zika virus, which has been circulating Latin America and parts of the United States and has been linked with birth defects such as microcephaly.

2020 A ban on the performing of conversion therapy on minors by state-licensed therapists goes into effect. Utah, like other states, is also disrupted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

FAMOUS PEOPLE

Maude Adams, 1872–1953 (Salt Lake City) , Actor.

Roseanne Barr, 1952– (Salt Lake City) , Actor.

Wilford Brimley, 1934–2020 (Salt Lake City) , Actor.

Fawn M. Brodie, 1915–81 (Ogden) , Historian.

John M. Browning, 1855–1926 (Ogden) , Gun manufacturer; inventor.

Frank J. Cannon, 1859–1933 (Salt Lake City) , US senator.

William Christiansen, 1904–89 (Brigham City) , Dancer; choreographer.

Philo Farnsworth, 1906–71 (Beaver) , Television pioneer; inventor.

Jake Garn, 1932– (Richfield) , US senator.

John Gilbert, 1897–1936 (Logan) , Actor.

Otto Harbach, 1873–1963 (Salt Lake City) , Lyricist; librettist.

Chauncy Harris, 1914–2003 (Logan) , Geographer; college professor.

John Held, Jr., 1889–1958 (Salt Lake City) , Cartoonist and illustrator.

William D. "Big Bill" Haywood, 1869–1928 (Salt Lake City) , Labor leader.

Jewel, 1974– (Payson) , Musician.

J. Willard Marriott, 1900–85 (near Ogden) , Hotel and restaurant-chain owner.

Merlin Olsen, 1940–2010 (Logan) , Football player; TV sportscaster; actor.

Donny Osmond 1957– (Ogden) , Entertainer.

Marie Osmond 1959– (Ogden) , Entertainer.

Byron Scott 1961– (Ogden) , Basketball player and coach.

Reed Smoot, 1862–1941 (Salt Lake City) , US senator; the first Mormon elected to the Senate.

Chrissy Teigen, 1985– (Delta) , Model; television personality.

Wallace Henry Thurman, 1902–34 (Salt Lake City) , Writer; critic.

Gedde Watanabe, 1955– (Ogden) , Actor.

James Woods, 1947– (Vernal) , Actor.

Loretta Young, 1913–2000 (Salt Lake City) , Actor.

Mahonri MacKintosh Young, 1877–1957 (Salt Lake City) , Sculptor; art critic.

Wakara, c. 1808–55 (along the Spanish Fork River) , Timpanogo chief.

Steve Young, 1961– (Salt Lake City) , Football player.

TRIVIA

• Utah residents are known as "Utahans" or "Utahns."
• Utah is the second-driest state after Nevada.
• The cartoons of John Held, Jr., a native of Salt Lake City, have come to symbolize the Roaring Twenties, with their depiction of the youthful and party-loving "flappers" and "sheiks."
• The Mormon Church's official name is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or LDS. The Church was established in 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. of New York State, after he claimed to have seen divine visions.
• The Zion Cooperative Mercantile Institution (ZCMI) was established in the nineteenth century as a communal store to provide for Utah Mormons' social welfare.
• Hill Air Force Base, located near Ogden, is one of the state's largest employers.
• In 2018, the Utahraptor became Utah's first official state dinosaur.

Bibliography

Cuch, Forrest. A History of Utah’s American Indians Salt Lake City. Utah State Division of Indian Affairs, 2013.

Peterson, John A. Utah’s Black Hawk War. U of Oklahoma P, 1990.

"Unemployment Rates for States." US Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Dept. of Labor, 1 Mar. 2023, www.bls.gov/lau/lastrk22.htm. Accessed 22 Sept. 2023.

"State BEARFACTS." Bureau of Economic Analysis, US Department of Commerce, 31 Mar. 2023, apps.bea.gov/regional/bearfacts/. Accessed 22 Sept. 2023.

"Utah." Quick Facts, US Census Bureau, 2022, www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/UT/PST045221. Accessed 22 Sept. 2023.

"Utah: State Profile and Energy Estimates." US Energy Information Administration, 20 Apr. 2023, www.eia.gov/state/?sid=UT. Accessed 22 Sept. 2023.

"Utah: 2020 Census." United States Census Bureau, 25 Aug. 2021, www.census.gov/library/stories/state-by-state/utah-population-change-between-census-decade.html. Accessed 11 Oct. 2022.

Eric Badertscher