Utah Stories from the Beehive Archive

Whether it’s cancer or autoimmune, it’s common today to see people wearing folded ribbons in solidarity against a disease. But did you know AIDS was the first disease ever to have such a ribbon?

How did a Jewish, Ukranian violin player become one of Utah’s most beloved local celebrities? Learn about the life of one extraordinary man.

Baseball in the nineteenth century was more than just Salt Lake City’s “favorite pastime.” The game became an outlet for the tensions between Mormons and the growing number of residents who did not adhere to the dominant faith and lifestyle.

What began over a century ago as a field for airplane stunts has become one of the country’s top thirty busiest airports. But did you know Salt Lake City's airport has a wildlife division?

Museums are usually established in the public trust and in the public interest. But one museum in Salt Lake City’s Marmalade District caused a whole whirlwind of drama -- and even a state Supreme Court case. 

The 1960s were a time of upheaval, ushering in changes in politics, music, and society. Utah was not immune to the growing political consciousness of the youth movement, and nowhere was that more obvious than in Utah's folk music revival.

One of the most racially diverse neighborhoods in the Salt Lake Valley didn’t start out that way. Find out how Rose Park changed from a subdivision restricted to white people to become the vibrant community we know today.

Rose Park began as an affordable, working class neighborhood. But the true costs for the subdivision would not be revealed until decades later.

An impressive mansion on Salt Lake City’s west side serves as a reminder of Utah's beer history and the prosperous titan who ran the largest brewery in the West. 

Salt Lake City’s “Hobbitville” is not actually a neighborhood for small, shoeless, fantasy people who live underground. Although it IS home to a colorful pride of peacocks. Learn about the real history of Allen Park.

A towering arch made of boulders. Biblical quotes carved into stone pavers. A bird’s house with dozens of entrances. This is not a surreal dream land, but Gilgal Garden, a sculpture park in downtown Salt Lake City. Learn the history of this special place.

In 1897, Utah passed a law regulating hat size in theaters and public places. One might ask WHY? Who did it affect? Was it warranted? And just how big is too big anyway?

The heart of Salt Lake City’s countercultural movement found its home in a small, independent headshop in the 1960s and 70s. 

Maybe you’ve heard of the Great Saltair Pleasure Resort as a prime example of Utah’s early pleasure resorts. But have you ever heard of Fuller’s Hill? At about 1100 East and 400 South in Salt Lake City, this little-known park had a covered dancing hall, ice cream saloon, a swing set, and even a trapeze.

The story of water in Utah is complex, and rifts often arise in unexpected places. The fact that water sustains us all can sometimes be easy to overlook, but ultimately it an issue we cannot ignore and to which we must constantly adapt.

When we say “water is power” we are sometimes actually talking about electricity! Find out how harnessing steam electrified Utah for thousands of residents in the 20th century.

Firefighting is dangerous work. It also requires a lot of water! Today we are used to seeing fire hydrants in every neighborhood, but for many Utahns at the turn of the 20th century, such community water infrastructure was completely new.

Urban legends tell of the “Witch’s Cabin” in downtown Salt Lake’s City Creek Canyon, but is it really haunted? Learn its real history.

Public health campaigns have long sparked fears of government overreach. In the mid-twentieth century, for example, dentists lobbied to add fluoride to Utah’s water supply to support tooth health. Learn more about the decades-long public uproar.

If you’ve ever been on a river trip, you probably didn’t bring along your hair curlers or a nightgown. But for women rafters in the 1930s, keeping up gender norms was part of the river experience.

If you or your dog have ever gotten sick drinking untreated water, you've probably heard of giardia. Chlorine is regularly used in water treatment plants across Utah today to fight this deadly water parasite, but some of its earliest opponents worried about its effects on human health – and pickles.

During the depths of the Great Depression, thousands of young men went to work on over one thousand water projects in Utah. Learn about some of the projects that survive to this day.

Who owns common sources of water? As Mormons began to spread south throughout Utah Territory in the 1850s, conflict over watering holes in the desert turned deadly.

Most of us take for granted the luxury of having running water inside of our homes. But, indoor plumbing is a relatively new phenomenon that has made life significantly easier! 

The Enterprise Dam in Utah's Washington County is an amazing example of how early Mormon settlers mastered the waters of the harsh desert using community effort. But did you know the process of building it was bursting with controversy and deluged with drama?