Utah Trivia Thursday for June 5, 2008

When it comes to transportation and communication in the United States, Utah has played a central role when linking the east and west coasts.

The transcontinental telegraph line was connected in Salt Lake City Utah. The telegraph line coming from Carson City, Nevada was completed on October 18, 1861 and the line coming from Omaha, Nebraska was completed on October 24, 1861. This finally connected the east and west coasts and made communication much faster and easier. In fact, two days after the telegraph line was completed, the Pony Express (which also traveled through Utah) went out of business.

The first transcontinental railroad was completed on May 10, 1869 at Promontory Point, Utah (northwest of Salt Lake City) The Union Pacific built their line coming from the east, starting at Council Bluffs, Iowa and laid 1,087 miles of track. The Central Pacific began in Sacramento, California and laid 690 miles of track. The ceremony to finalize the completion of the railroad at Promontory, Utah became known as the driving of the Golden Spike.

In 1914, on the Utah/Nevada border the Bell Telephone Company of Nevada and the Mountain State Telephone and Telegraph Company spliced together the final wires which finally connected the east and west coasts by telephone. The final telephone pole with a historical marker still stand today in the parking lot of the Silver Smith Casino in Wendover, Utah.

Utah Trivia Thursday for May 22, 2008

Did you know that Father Silvestre Vélez de Escalante and Father Francisco Atanasio Domínguez, Franciscan missionaries, were the first two men of European descent to see Utah Lake, the second largest lake in the state of Utah in 1776. But after reaching Utah Lake, they turned and headed south, not realizing that a much larger and stranger lake was only about 35 miles to the north. They just missed seeing the Great Salt Lake.

The first man of European descent to see the Great Salt Lake is often credited to Jim Bridger, a famous mountain man. He did not arrive there until 1824- 48 years after Fathers Dominguez and Escalante.

Utah Trivia Thursday- May 15, 2008

Beaver, Beaver County, Utah is the birthplace of two famous Americans.

The first was Robert LeRoy Parker, born April 13, 1866. You might know him better as Butch Cassidy, the notorious western outlaw who teamed up with Harry Longabaugh, the Sundance Kid to lead the Wild Bunch.








The other was Philo T. Farnsworth, born August 19, 1906. He was the inventor of the first completely electronic television set. Without him, you may not be sitting back in your easy chair watching a football, baseball or basketball game. All hail Philo!

Utah Trivia Thursdays- May 8, 2008

Did you know that Utah has...











5 National Parks- Arches, Canyonlands, Zions Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Capitol Reef.

7 National Monuments- Cedar Breaks, Natural Bridges, Dinosaur, Rainbow Bridge, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Timpanogos Cave and Hovenweep.

2 National Recreation Areas- Flaming Gorge and Glen Canyon.

6 National Forests- Ashley, Dixie, Fishlake, Manti-LaSal, Uinta, and Wasatch-Cache.

Almost all of these areas are within a days drive of any location in Utah (often less than a day) and nearly all (or parts of them) are easily accessible by car.