Discovery Road – Becoming Bryce

In this episode, Discovery Road travels to Bryce Canyon National Park in search of a story about a shipbuilder. Ebeneezer Bryce is the pioneer the park is named after and his story is both historic and fascinating. As a shipbuilder Bryce found himself constructing the Pine Valley Chapel in southern Utah. Discovery Road toured the structure which is now the oldest operating Mormon church in the state of Utah. In this episode, Discovery Road travels to Bryce Canyon National Park in search of a story about a shipbuilder. Ebeneezer Bryce is the pioneer the park is named after and his story is both historic and fascinating. As a shipbuilder, Bryce found himself constructing the Pine Valley Chapel in southern Utah.

Picture of Marker describing Pine Valley Chapel and wood from the area being used to buold the organ pipes of the organ on Temple Square — Credit: Discovery Road

Discovery Road toured the structure which is now the oldest operating church for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the state of Utah.

Our next story features murals that seem to be making a comeback along the historic corridor. Muralist Patti Lewis has transformed the look and feel of Kanab, Utah with her colorful, western-themed art on stores, shops and gas stations.

Discovery Road then visits Grass Valley Mercantile in Koosharem, Utah. It’s a century-old hardware store that serves as a community gathering place and popular tourist stop. The store has aisles of supplies and adventure for everyone.

Our last stop is at a gas station that no longer pumps gasoline. Ole’s Place is a historic museum that gives tourists a chance to fill up on gas station history.

MPHNA: 10 Years and Going Strong

MPNHA Press Release – MPHNA – 10 years and going strong

MPNHA Photo Contest – $25 Prize

We know that you have some amazing photos, and now it’s time to share them! The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area is hosting a photo contest. It’s time to dust off the camera, phone, whichever you use to capture special moments and share some great pictures. You probably have some on your hard drive somewhere too!

To enter, users must upload their images to the MPNHA Facebook Page and submit a form (below) for each image that they enter into the contest.

Rules:

All photos must be be property of the entrant and an original work. If you are submitting for someone else, permission must be obtained before uploading the image.
All photos must be taken inside the boundaries of the MPNHA.
Photo enhancements are allowed.
The entry can be used on the MPNHA’s social media channels, website, etc. and will be credited to the entrant.
If people are included in the image, a release is required for entry.
All entrants must submit a short entry form in addition to uploading the image onto the MPNHA Facebook page.
The final date to enter is July 21, 2017 at midnight, mountain time.
The winner of the contest and $25 gift card to a retailer of their choice will be selected by the number of likes on their image. Ask your friends to vote for your image! In the event of a tie, the images with the same number of likes (loves, etc.) will be assigned a random number and then picked at random. The winner will be chosen and contacted on July 31, 2017.
There is no age limit to participants (under 13 years of age must have parental permission) or limit to the number of images that are allowed, as long as every image has been submitted into the form below.
Voting starts when you upload your image, so enter earlier for your best chance.
Those who work for the MPNHA are not eligible to enter/win.
Have fun.

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Railroad Resorts Bring Sevier County’s Railroad Past to Life

MPNHA-Press-Release-Sevier-Railroad

The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad is being resurrected in an unusual way in the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area. Partners David Grow and George Jones of Environetics have built a caboose and railroad village at Big Rock Candy Mountain, north of Marysvale in Piute County. In February they received a 50-year lease of the old Denver and Rio Grande Depot from the city of Mt. Pleasant to build a similar resort there.

Jones, a retired railroad union executive with an interest in historic railroading, began collecting cabooses several years ago. About six years ago he approached Grow with the idea of turning them into a unique resort.

After several years of planning, last year the pair opened the Track 89 Caboose Village Resort at Big Rock Candy Mountain with three railroad cars. This year they have seven and next year they hope to have 10. The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area recently awarded the project a $25,000 grant for landscaping and parking.

Grow said it is unlikely the Mt. Pleasant facility will be open this season since major work needs to be done to prepare the site and move the railroad cars into place. He is very excited about the location, however.

“We’ve always loved that old depot and looked into moving it further down Highway 89 but found it was too expensive,” Grow said.

In 1977 the building was rescued from demolition by a group of local citizens who wanted to preserve it and had it moved to its present location from 500 West and Main.

The new location is ideal, Grow said. “It has great visibility, right on Highway 89. We will make sure that no lodging will block the beautiful view of the terrific old depot.” Grow said the Mt Pleasant site could eventually have as many as 15 rail cars.

He said they plan to incorporate several historic elements into the resort, but they have not yet determined if that will be in the setting of a small museum or as enhancements to the railroad cars themselves.

While some have suggested that the pair open a similar resort in Thistle in Utah County, Grow said that the Utah County planning department is not open to the idea.

“It would be like trying to push a river upstream,” he said.

MPNHA Director Monte Bona sees these two resorts as a first step to bringing about a railroad museum and interpretive center in the area, one of the goals of the MPNHA’s management plan.

“The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area reached the high threshold for national designation by articulating the thesis that Mormon colonization played a major role in the development of the West. The coming of the railroad era had a signifi cant impact that needs to be interpreted, displayed and conveyed as a crucial part of the Mormon country story,” he said.

The railroad first came to the Sevier Valley in 1893 when the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad expanded its line from Chester to Manti , connecting it with its Valley Line at Thistle Junction via Mt. Pleasant and from Manti to Marysvale.

At its peak, the line ferried passengers to Richfield where tour companies would meet the train at Marysvale and take tourists to Bryce Canyon and the Grand Canyon’s North Rim. For several decades it spurred economic growth in the area, especially in the livestock trade.

However, as automobiles grew in popularity, the railroad began to wane. In 1949, D&RGW dropped passenger service in the area. From then until the Thistle mudslide of 1982 shut down the line completely, the line primarily carried freight. Aft er the mudslide the D&RGW determined it would not be cost-effective to restore the line, which had been operating at a loss for decades.

Now, with the Environetics projects, railroad buff s and families will have a unique opportunity to experience a taste of the rich railroading history of the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area.

For more information, contact or MPNHA Director Monte Bona at 801-699-5065 or David Grow at 801-375-9090.

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The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area includes 400 miles of glorious scenic byways, a vast array of wildlife, the best of western living, cattle and sheep ranches, and colorful mountain vistas, all within a trip on Utah Heritage Highway 89

The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area

Category Archives: Bryce Canyon