Utah Statehood 125: 1896-2021

Utah's Road to Statehood (125)

Introduction: 125 Years

• The Earliest Utah Settlers
  The earliest settlers in modern Utah were, of course, the Indigenous Americans.
• Latter-Day Saint Pioneers
  The history of the Latter-day Saint pioneers who settled in the Salt Lake Valley in the later half of the nineteenth century
• Political Obstacles
  Obstacles that prevented Utah from becoming a state until 1896

• The Obstacle of Polygamy
  There was another large obstacle that made Congress wary of giving Utah statehood: polygamy.
• Seven Bids for Statehood
  The Latter-day Saints settled the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, and for the next fifty years they and following settlers fought for statehood. It took seven attempts to finally realize that goal.
• The Finish Line
  In 1894, Congress voted to invite Utah into the Union. President Grover Cleveland signed the Enabling Act, which allowed Utah to officially form a Constitutional Convention.

Road to Statehood (100)

In 1996, the Utah State Archives created an online exhibit based on a guide book (Utah's Road to Statehood) prepared for a traveling exhibit for Utah's Centennial. Cooperation with the Utah Manuscripts Committee and repositories across the state brought together documents, photographs, and memorabilia to tell the story of Utah's 50-year struggle to achieve statehood.